The First King and Aquaman Go All Out!
This review originally went up on my blog here. This is part of a double review of issues #22-23.
I keep saying this and I never get tired of it: Geoff Johns’ two years on Aquaman for the New 52 have been nothing short of phenomenal. From the very first issue, he has been turning out a great story and has worked with artists who’ve really gone the lengths to make Aquaman come across as a badass, kickass, and really fun character to read about. It wasn’t until the Throne of Atlantis crossover with Justice League however, that Geoff really began to up the stakes time after time, and he’s been on a really good run since then.
The series has been defined with all these epic arcs, each bigger and more profound than the last. So, in that context, it really is no surprise that he kicked off his latest arc, Death of a King, with a bang and that the last couple issues have been so bloody amazing. When I read #23 last night, it was definitely an experience, and it made me really excited to see how things are going to end up going down in #25 (out November).
#22 marks the first time that Aquaman and the First King actually square off against each other, and in a most brutal fashion. We’ve been seeing glimpses of the First King these last few issues and this time, Geoff holds almost nothing back. From the first page to the last, this issue is an adrenaline ride as the two most powerful men on the planet, or rather, the Seven Seas, go at each other without holding back. Geoff mixes in ample exposition to his action scenes, and treats the reader to so many gob-smacking twists that its a wonder he managed to fit everything together so well, so seamlessly.
Of course, that’s not all that’s going on in this issue. Previously we saw that a villain named Scavenger had invaded Atlantis with a fleet of submarines and had initiated a brutal attack on the underwater kingdom. There is panic in the city since Aquaman is nowhere to be found and the Atlantean forces are struggling to hold the invaders back. We still don’t know what Scavenger’s beef with Aquaman is all about, which I think is the only downside to this issue, from a story perspective. Given that there are still many mysteries about the First King, inspite of all the new revelations regarding his ancestry to Aquaman, I was hoping for something about the Scavenger as well.
Still, the entire attack sequence is a thing of beauty. We get to see a lot of what’s happening in Atlantis from both sides of the conflict: Scavenger and his forces as they continue their assault, and the Atlanteans retaliating under the leadership of Commander Urn, who is quite possibly the most badass secondary character in the entire series so far. We even get to see some background stuff on Atlantis and its laws through Urn in a side moment that involves the traitor Vulko who betrayed Aquaman during the Throne of Atlantis crossover and caused a war between the underwater kingdom and the surface world.
And the side story with Aquaman and Orm’s sister Tula, the disgraced Atlantean Swatt and the warrior Murk continues as well as they make their way to Orm’s prison on the surface world, to free him and return him to his rightful place as the King of Atlantis. That story has a ton of potential, particularly in the context of the Aquaman and First King conflict. Can’t wait to see what’s going to happen there!
The art in this book is absolutely gorgeous. There are a fair number of double page spreads packed with an incredible amount of detail and I loved them, watching them again and again. Ivan Reis and Joe Prado were such an amazing fit on this book when it started, and I kind of miss them on the title still. But all the same, Paul Pelletier, Sean Parsons and Rod Reis are doing an amazing job here nonetheless. The art is really vibrant, and all the scenes pop out, whether they involve just characters talking or characters fighting, or the larger spreads such as the Atlantis/Scavenger battle. In particular, I really love the First King here. That zombie dude is a badass, no matter how you look at him.
Overall, this was a fantastic issue, and certainly proves yet again that Geoff Johns is a master of his craft and that he was/is the perfect man for this title.
Rating: 9.5/10
