[This article contains some spoilers. Read at your own risk.]
Hiya everyone, Noreen here. I’m going to tell you just why Aquaman (and his comics) are actually extremely cool and maybe just convince you to look into him.
I’ve been into the character of Aquaman for about three years now, but my true passion for him rekindled earlier this year after playing “Injustice: Gods Among Us”. Not only is he one of the most, for lack of a better term, badass characters in the game, but he is also one of the most badass characters in the DC universe in general, especially in the New 52. Taking a more cool and collected persona, Aquaman just screams amazing. And so does his wife and partner, Mera.
Aquaman is viewed as the weakest and everyone’s least favorite superhero. When he comes to help the people of Amnesty Bay, he is greeted with groans and awkward muttering. The only positive light he ever gets is the fact that he looks handsome. People just assume that his only power is talking to marine life, which isn’t the case at all. Most marine life are incapable of holding a conversation, so really Aquaman is just swaying them to do his bidding. His real powers, the ones that you should fear, are his enhanced strength that has proven him to be able to lift a building, skin that can stand up to gunfire, and even superhuman hearing and sight.
Another important aspect of Aquaman is his trident. Known as The Trident of Neptune, it gives its wielder the right to rule Atlantis. The owner is able to also control the seas, the weather, bring blasts of lightning, and even transforming living creatures.
When I first started reading the comics, I noticed how dark he could really be. Aquaman tries to hide the fact he killed Black Manta’s father from Mera. He tries to hide his whole past from the woman he loves. The time when he admitted to the murder of Black Manta’s father, I read my most recent favorite line. “Don’t underestimate who Aquaman truly is.” The affection from Mera at this moment is so strong and I was just so impressed. I also felt the same heart wrenching pain at the point when Vostok-X gives his life to save Aquaman. In his last moments, he says “My greatest fear has been vanquished and my greatest hope granted. I didn’t die alone”. This was just so hard to read because Vostok-X grew on me a lot. These two moments happen to be in “Aquaman and The Others” and the writer, Dan Jurgens, has done an amazing job with it.
Mera has quickly become one of my favorite characters in the entire DC universe, even surpassing Aquaman. She can suck the water right from your body and kill you. Mera is powerful enough to kill you in under six seconds. She is the epitome of perfection. She can handle herself without the help of Aquaman. Frankly, Aquaman might need her more than Mera needs him. She cares so much for him; it’s moving how much she loves him. Mera was originally supposed to kill Aquaman, but she fell for him. Now at his side as Queen of Atlantis, they make an amazing team. Mera is extremely quick-tempered, but has self control around those who cannot defend themselves. This shows in issue #6 of “Aquaman” when she is being harassed by a shop owner and she breaks his arm, but only after asking him politely to stop. She has control, but that doesn’t mean she won’t kick major butt. In “Aquaman” issue #1, a man is trying to get an interview from Aquaman. At this point he asks is it true if Mera is stronger than Wonder Woman. I honestly think if the setting was right, Mera could most definitely win against Wonder Woman, but that’s just my opinion.
Now, every superhero has their supervillain, right? But just who is Aquaman’s? Black Manta, of course. Black Manta has a few origin stories, but one of the most interesting to me is his first one. Black Manta was once playing by the Chesapeake Bay and he was kidnapped and sexually abused on a ship for an unknown amount of time. At one point, Black Manta saw Aquaman and he tried to signal him for help. Unfortunately, Aquaman didn’t see him and Black Manta was forced to fight and defend himself against his captors. Thankfully, Black Manta was able to get away, but he now had a burning hatred for the sea and Aquaman. Black Manta is one of my favorite villains in the DC universe just because of how cool his costume is. I mean come on, look at that mask! I don’t know as much about Black Manta as I do about Aquaman and Mera, but what I do know is that he is an extremely interesting character to read.
I originally planned to only read Aquaman comics and that’s it. However, after reading I became more open to reading different comics. Lately, I’ve picked up “Suicide Squad”, “Superman/Wonder Woman”, and “Birds of Prey”. Yes, they’re all DC, but I’ve become more open to more than just my favorite superhero. I have to suggest you all to read “Aquaman” because even if you don’t really care about Aquaman, you’ll still appreciate the art and writing of the comics..
I hope I’ve maybe convinced you to check out Aquaman even if it’s just a Wikipedia article. Maybe one day more people will appreciate Aquaman a little more and he won’t be so underrated. Until that day, I guess I’ll just have to sit in a corner and cry about how I can’t find an official Aquaman phone case. I hope you enjoyed reading and be sure to tell me your opinion about Aquaman below. Just make sure not to be too much of a butt about it. Thanks for reading!
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