Black Panther: Wakanda Forever finally introduced Namor the Sub-Mariner and his underwater kingdom of Talokan to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it also creates a big Iron Man 2 plot hole. The film, greatly reworked after the tragic ing of T'Challa actor Chadwick Boseman and acted as the finale to Phase 4 of the MCU, closing out the first chapter of the ongoing Multiverse Saga with a bang at the introduction of an incredibly advanced new civilization. However, Talokan's backstory in Wakanda Forever, while compelling, seems to ignore an earlier MCU reference.
Tenoch Huerta made a massive splash as Namor in his debut, bringing new life to one of Marvel Comics' original characters. A principal piece of Namor's backstory concerns the highly advanced civilization of Talokan, an underwater city that is based on Namor's city of Atlantis from the comics. Like Wakanda, Talokan made an effort to remain untouched by the outside world as a means of self-defense, especially given their access to vibranium. However, Talokan took their isolationism one step further than Wakanda, keeping their very existence a secret from humanity, only revealing themselves during the events of Wakanda Forever after centuries of being missing from the world scene.
Wakanda Forever Makes Nick Fury's Atlantis Reference Even Weirder
Iron Man 2 featured a Namor easter egg long before the Sub-Mariner and his underwater kingdom were officially introduced into the MCU. During Tony Stark's meeting with Nick Fury, a map in the background of the scene features several highlighted locations, including one in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, clearly referencing the Marvel Comics city of Atlantis. Appropriately, the marked location is only a short distance away from another key spot in Africa, implied to be the nation of Wakanda. However, as exciting as this Easter egg was at the time, the reference becomes increasingly odd in the context of Talokan's introduction in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Talokan's history was clearly retconned in Wakanda Forever with the revelation that its people had been completely undiscovered by humanity for centuries. This makes it nearly impossible for Nick Fury to be aware of the underwater civilization's existence in Iron Man 2, which takes place over a decade before the Talokanil revealed themselves to Wakanda in 2025. Although Fury had a vast source of intelligence agents and secret information as the director of SHIELD, it is still unlikely that he would have had any knowledge of Talokan back in 2010, especially given that Wakanda Forever implies that even the CIA was completely unaware of Namor's operations.
Atlantis Could Reference Someone Other Than Namor
Although Namor's city of Talokan, based on Marvel's rendition of Atlantis, is the primary underwater kingdom known to comics readers, they may not be who was referenced on Nick Fury's map in Iron Man 2. In fact, there is another group from Marvel Comics who also live submerged in the ocean: the Lemurians. The Lemurians are Atlantis's underwater rivals in the comics, often finding themselves on the brink of war with Namor and his people. Though they play a far less integral role in the Marvel Universe than Atlantis does, they are also not as careful as Namor, implying that Fury may have been aware of their existence years ago.
Lemuria's existence in the MCU repairs Iron Man 2's plot hole, which was really intended to be a sly comics reference than an indication of Talokan's existence. Moreover, there is even already proof of the Lemurians' presence in the MCU, given that the opening battle of Captain America: The Winter Soldier takes place on a ship named The Lemurian Star. This Easter egg implies that at least some humans are aware of Lemuria, even if they only believe the city to be mythological in nature. Nevertheless, if Lemuria is to be introduced to the MCU, their rivalry with Namor spells trouble for Talokan following Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
