The Good
Geoff Johns has done what I hoped he would with this book, build on the mythos of Aquaman and show the world he's truly a great character in the new DC universe. Johns really builds on Aquaman's rage and darkness in this issue as the history of Aquaman and Black Manta is revealed. You truly start to understand the hatred these two classic DC characters have for each other here and why they want to hurt each other in the worst way possible.
While building on the mythos, Johns has been introducing some great new characters, including the Others. We learn more about the Operative in this issue, and while at first, I wasn't too keen on him, a reveal in this issue made me like him a lot more.
I know it's a plot point we'll most likely see down the road, sooner that later I hope, but I'm really intrigued by The Relics and what would happen if Black Manta got his hands on all of them. And I can't wait to see how this all ties in to ancient Atlantis. Johns is slowly building these smaller story lines around a major event so well and it's keeping me so excited for every issue.
There's been a lot of Geoff Johns praise here, and I'm aware of that, but aside from being one of my favorite writers over at DC, he's really turned this character around, and on top of all of that, although we're in the middle of a storyline, this book is still fairly easy to jump into. Not so much this issue, per se, but if you've ever wanted to read an Aquaman book, then start with the beginning of this series.
There is a two page spread drawn by Ivan Reis (pencils), Joe Prado & Andy Lanning (inks), and Rod Reis (colors) that would make one amazing poster. It's one incredibly epic picture of Aquaman punching Black Manta in the raid. The attention to detail here is insane, and it's not just for this spread. The detail throughout the issue is fantastic, and it's great to have a book where the art and the writing are on the same page talent-wise.
The Bad
I love this book so much. Is that wrong?
The Verdict
What is there to say about this book that I haven't been saying since the start. It's the perfect revamp to a character no one took seriously, and each issue gives you a bit more of the mythos of this character. I love the new characters being introduced in this series, and the fight between Aquaman and Black Manta is fantastic. Geoff Johns is doing an amazing job with this character, and I love the art team.
This is a must buy series. This book redefines Aquaman. This is my pick of the week!