Hola Todd Squad, today we're gonna check out the most recent issue of Geoff John's "Aquaman", a book that is, in my opinion, one of the three best books since the DC Reboot, along with John's "Green Lantern" and Snyder's "Batman" series. So let's hope this issue lives up to the hype.
Aquaman #10
Summary: This issue kicks off with a secret operative by the name of... The Operative. He's a former teammate of Aquaman's, and has found one of Black Manta's secret bases. He's using the information to find out how Manta has been able to find and hunt down his former teammates. When Manta's men eventually arrive, he makes quick work of them but suffers a gunshot wound before escaping. After his escape, we see that The Operative is actually an old man, who uses a suit that helps enhance his abilities. He eventually tells his pilot/Grandson that they need to find Aquaman. From there we see Mera, arguing with a former ally turned enemy of Aquaman's by the name of Shin, since in the last issue he revealed that Aquaman killed Black Manta's father. Shin assures Mera that what he said about Aquaman is true, and Aquaman has deep secrets that he's hidden away. From there we see Aquaman and Black Manta, beating the hell out of one another in the middle of the city. From there we see a Flashback of when Aquaman's father died, and he asked Arthur to do something we don't get to hear, from there Arthur goes after Manta and attacks him on a boat during a thunderstorm, after a fight he snaps his neck, and lightning crashes, showing that the man he killed wasn't Manta. Manta then came aboard, as he'd been diving, and saw that Aquaman had just murdered his father. In the present, Manta and Aquaman continue to fight when Aquaman's former teammates, Prisoner and Ya'Wara show up, and tell Aquaman not to kill Manta until they can find out why he's been stealing the relics of Aquaman's former teammates. Aquaman says Manta is his and he'll decide when to kill him, which causes enough of a distraction for Manta to steal Ya'Wara's amulet. Manta uses the amulet to transport away as Aquaman runs after him, and the issue comes to a close as Black Manta appears face to face with Shin and Mera.
Thoughts: Well, This issue kinda let me down. The last issue was a bit more interesting and the reveal of Aquaman killing Manta's father was surprising. In this issue we saw how that happened, which was cool, but the stuff with The Operative didn't intrigue me, and that was like... the first six pages of the issue. I know it's building to more, but it seemed excessive here. Also, Johns, can we get some better names than The Prisoner and The Operative please? Besides seeing how Manta's father died, this was a pretty slow issue, even the fight with Aquaman and Manta seemed like it never got into second gear, which didn't excite me. Maybe I picked a bad issue to start reviewing with, but for what I did, this was kind of average.
Score: 6.5/10
Black Manta: My revenge is only the beginning, Aquaman.
Guess this issue wasn't the best example of how great it was going huh :( Well, there's always next issue. The fight with Aquaman and Manta sounded pretty good, but maybe it came out better in writing than in the comic. Well let's hope the next one meets your expectations better :D
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'm still looking forward to reading more of Aquaman though, this issue was just a bit slow. And if I did make the fight sound better than I appreciate ya saying so dude. Here's hoping the next issue blows this one outta the water. No pun intended.
ReplyDeleteEhh... I guess i'm just an Aquaman fanboy I loved this issue but to each his own. Oh and his name is "Prisoner of War" lol.
ReplyDeleteIs that really that much better? Lol. And I've enjoyed the series so far, but this storyline isn't doing it for me sadly.
ReplyDeleteseriously is X-man coming back???
ReplyDeleteI haven't read Aquaman since the Peter David era. But even so I'm not sure if I get the "X-Man coming back" joke.
ReplyDeleteAnon meant the blog's owner, but X is enjoying not having to review stuff and probably won't be back for a while, plus I didn't pick up any comics this week due to my shop being closed so I doubt they'll be any new posts until Wednesday or so.
ReplyDeleteHey, JT have you been getting the "Earth-2" series? Ive only gotten the first two issues this far but its really good. Nicola Scott's artwork is something, in my opinion, close to the style of Ivan Reis or Marcus To in a way. And with a cast like Jay Garrick, Alan Scott, Ted Grant, Al Pratt, Mr. Terrific, Hawkgirl, and who knows who else, you can't really go wrong. And I've heard that even though we saw Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman die in the first issue that Diana wasn't he last Amazon (perhaps the triumphant return of Donna Troy???) and Supes isn't actually dead.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Aquaman series: It lost my interest during the two-issue span of solo stories between Mera and Arthur (#5-6, I believe?). This story arc really turned me off in the solicits as they didn't even mention the fact that Manta was gonna be in it until halfway through the arc (in the solicits, at least). So I may or may not buy the series again during/after the Zero Month thing, depending on the story. Not that Aquaman isn't cool anymore, its just the story isn't interesting. :P
I have read the first two issues Caz, I've been reading it since Lisha's picking it up. I liked the first issue but I didn't care for the unnecessary ending of the second one. We'll have to talk more once I read the third issue. But I'd be pretty shocked if Supes isn't dead, and as much as I hope the amazon is Donna Troy, I wouldn't mind it being Artemis either. Also, ya gotta wonder where Nightwing is, or if he even exists in that world.
ReplyDeleteI liked those stories more than I expected to, especially the Mera one. And yeah, this current story isn't as entertaining as the first one was but here's hoping it spices up a bit, or at least blows the next arc outta the water... no pun intended.
Yeah the ending to 2 and the whole thing with Sam in 3 (you'll know what I mean when you get there) was kind of unnecessary but I think that it may have just been a way to introduce Alan's sexuality. Without revealing too much, I'm glad Kendra and Jay are teaming up, the villain is old, but new at the same time...very good! And Supes may or may not be dead and if they have a new Amazon, then they surely won't back off from a Bat. But I think that's a long way away, according to interviews with Robinson. But I've really been enjoying it (I gave it both 10/10 on my personal reviews).
ReplyDeleteI'm really enjoying Aquaman, and I agree that it's been one of the 4-5 best comics in the new 52. I do like this arc, as it introduces Black Manta as Arthur's major nemesis and gives a solid story as to why that is. I'll be sticking with this one for a while.
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