Emperor Aquaman 23
Ryan White
Recap
Last month, Aquaman was on a journey while the world was in peril. I will say the best thing about this series is to see Aquaman interact with characters you wouldn’t normally see him with. I think it shows another side of him; a very important side that we don’t often see - laid back and more of a showman. Aquaman is always so serious and stoic. This story allows us to see more of his personality, and this issue is as limited as his appearance is; it does the same.
Review
We pick up this issue with the bad guys seemingly having won the battle and are about to destroy the world. The question I always have about these kinds of stories is when the world is destroyed, the bad guys will die too – so what is the endgame exactly? Maybe there isn’t one. Anyway, the big reveal is that Black Manta is not for this plan at all. He frees the good guys and takes down a few baddies once the heroes are free and united and understand that Black Manta is helping.
The attack begins, but before we can get to the battle, which will be left for the conclusion of this story next month. We cut to Aquaman more than halfway into this issue. We find him still blocked from Earth and now on Sinestro’s planet with his son, who now rules it. I will say this part is the highlight for me because there is no fight or argument, just “Oh, we can help you. Can you help us? That works.” They are low on water, and Aquaman, in the ultimate mic drop in the issue, gets his way home and supplies water for the rest of eternity to the planet.
I love this because the people that are interacting with him are having all of their theories about him being proven wrong all while seeing him in action and saying, “He’s a badass.” I originally thought they were all being set up to help him on Earth in the big battle, but now I know this is for the future in other titles. Now we will see that this is where their relationship started with each other.
Final Thoughts
The pages in this issue are fun, full of life and evil. The last page is my favorite when you see Aquaman surfing on the whale as we cruise into the conclusion. My hope is the action is more than one or two pages. I think Aquaman’s entrance into the battle alone should get a splash page or two. Either way, I am looking forward to the conclusion of this story and to seeing how Black Manta and Aquaman interact after they both realize they are on the same side.
Emperor Aquaman 23 “Mic drop”
- Writing - 9/109/10
- Storyline - 9/109/10
- Art - 10/1010/10
- Color - 10/1010/10
- Cover Art - 9/109/10
