Aquaman Appreciation 2019

[ChrisG]

Don't mind me I was just trying troll with that post, I actually hate Deconnick. However having finally read issues 43 through 46, all I can say is that I didn't care for Namma's and the old gods hijinks, but the art alone is worth the price of admission even though I hate bearded look. You should read this one it's pretty decent, it looks like it's finally picking up and fast, they also hinted at a possible Arthur-Mera reunion.
Ps: While we're on the subject of sea gods why is Poseidon's "death" still a thing ? God I hated Drowned earth ! I mean if any god should be a permanent part of Aquaman's mythos it's Poseidon so why kill him off ? I always wanted to read a story with Poseidon championing Aquaman considering Arthur is the owner of his trident, with both of them getting to know each other better over some imminent threat .

Honestly KSD is neither my favourite, but ABnett has damaged somehow Aquaman, especially the character of Mera, she seems to be now a subdued personality from the one we knew. Mera bowing to an arranged marriage is so out of character, whatever reasons they might give. That's not Mera the fiery headstrong badass.
I believe that bringing in some new adventures is not wrong as a concept. As for Poseidon it all depends if KSD is serious in wanting to keep Arthur away from Atlantis as she hinted. Poseidon is after all the God linked mostly as a Sea God to the Atlantis mythos. Again Arthur's history has always been tied closely to Atlantis, breaking this bond as well is a step too far. Geoff Jones managed to make Aquaman great because he found the right mix, I thrust KSD keeps this in mind.

Relegating Mera to a minor role I believe is neither the right way forward. I am still not that convinced at a possible reunion, otherwise the suitor subplot has no meaning at all. Why bring it on? Unless they are using it in someway to bring back old Mera.
If they take the path to separate them by marrying her off, it will be the downfall of the entire run. I repeat again fans don't want weddings or romantic stories as the main highlight, but fun action. After all these are superhero comics not novels, that said, a touch of romance is not bad in itself if kept in the right context.

[marinecurrys]

I'm kind of surprised with what Abnett did with Mera. I don't really agree with the idea that Abnett ruined Mera's character since the Mera Queen of Atlantis title was a nice and fun ride and an ingenious attempt at giving Mera her own short mini-series. I share your concerns thus far, I would seriously loathe the idea of Mera being married off to someone else. I've never liked the idea of Mera being separated from Arthur however, Aquaman should be a book for both Arthur and Mera, they are one and the same in my opinion. Here's hoping Deconnick's run won't last too long otherwise I'll be forced to drop it, and considering Aquaman is my all time favorite comic book character that would "break me".

[ChrisG]

I'm kind of surprised with what Abnett did with Mera. I don't really agree with the idea that Abnett ruined Mera's character since the Mera Queen of Atlantis title was a nice and fun ride and an ingenious attempt at giving Mera her own short mini-series. I share your concerns thus far, I would seriously loathe the idea of Mera being married off to someone else. I've never liked the idea of Mera being separated from Arthur however, Aquaman should be a book for both Arthur and Mera, they are one and the same in my opinion. Here's hoping Deconnick's run won't last too long otherwise I'll be forced to drop it, and considering Aquaman is my all time favorite comic book character that would "break me".

Well ABnett made Mera go after the idea of being Queen of ATlantis, for which she never cared before, if it was for her Arthur would have never returned to ATlantis in the first place. Let alone becoming Queen. This is not Mera at all.
However I want to give them some thrust although still very concerned.

I agree that the book is about Arthur and Mera, having one of them missing or ignored makes fans lose interest. It can work for a couple of issues but in the long run it will fail. The decline in sales is evident. Splitting them will be the straw that broke the camels back.

[stargazer01]

The Aquaman Honest Trailer was fun. "From zero to hunky hero"

I like it that it didn't really say bad things about it.

[Psycwave]

This issue was great!!!!! We got some really good build-up and KSD delivered. The part with Mera was really well done as well. Namma isn't really packing the punch that I had hoped for but the old gods looked absolutely fantastic when Arthur called out. Robson's art is an absolute killer and I don't know who loves Aquaman so much that he keeps getting phenomenal art but I hope they never leave. Mera hearing Arthur was such a great moment. Really excited for the reunion between those two.

But yeah, can't wait till he cuts his dang hair.

[soccerguy951]

I'm kind of surprised with what Abnett did with Mera. I don't really agree with the idea that Abnett ruined Mera's character since the Mera Queen of Atlantis title was a nice and fun ride and an ingenious attempt at giving Mera her own short mini-series. I share your concerns thus far, I would seriously loathe the idea of Mera being married off to someone else. I've never liked the idea of Mera being separated from Arthur however, Aquaman should be a book for both Arthur and Mera, they are one and the same in my opinion. Here's hoping Deconnick's run won't last too long otherwise I'll be forced to drop it, and considering Aquaman is my all time favorite comic book character that would "break me".

My main issue with Mera being made Queen of Atlantis is how she became queen contradicts what had been laid out before. It makes zero sense. The Atlanteans are strict traditionalists. So much so that they begrudgingly took Arthur as their king, because it was his by law. Now, these sisters (who have never been referenced before Abnett's run) decide to make a foreigner, someone who's not even of their people Queen of Atlantis over the rightful king. Since when do Atlanteans choose who their king or queen is. If they chose, then Arthur never would of been king in the first place. Oh, and the people that she's from are actually seen as enemies by most Atlanteans who helped enslave them not too long ago. Just makes no sense.

And Mera chose to leave her own royal duties of her people to be with Arthur. So, why would she choose royal duties of people who aren't her own, and not be with Arthur.

I have no problem with Mera being queen of atlantis, if they had done it right. If she had married Arthur, and then this whole lame amnesia thing happend, it would make more sense her having the role of queen of atlantis. But now, Abnett has left us with a mess and i'm not sure how they rectify it.

[ChrisG]

My main issue with Mera being made Queen of Atlantis is how she became queen contradicts what had been laid out before. It makes zero sense. The Atlanteans are strict traditionalists. So much so that they begrudgingly took Arthur as their king, because it was his by law. Now, these sisters (who have never been referenced before Abnett's run) decide to make a foreigner, someone who's not even of their people Queen of Atlantis over the rightful king. Since when do Atlanteans choose who their king or queen is. If they chose, then Arthur never would of been king in the first place. Oh, and the people that she's from are actually seen as enemies by most Atlanteans who helped enslave them not too long ago. Just makes no sense.

And Mera chose to leave her own royal duties of her people to be with Arthur. So, why would she choose royal duties of people who aren't her own, and not be with Arthur.

I have no problem with Mera being queen of atlantis, if they had done it right. If she had married Arthur, and then this whole lame amnesia thing happend, it would make more sense her having the role of queen of atlantis. But now, Abnett has left us with a mess and i'm not sure how they rectify it.

I agree totally with You, Mera as Queen is nonsense... however these are some points I would like to share with you guys, As the mess is a big one

1) When Arthur returns, what role will he have? he can't be king
2)We know Dc will never permit a wedding between him and Mera.
3)Therefore what shall Mera do? she must marry to produce an heir?
4)If she marries someone else it is obvious Arthur can't stay in Atlantis.
5)If he leaves Atantis they will focus only on Arthur's adventures, it means that Mera as a character disappears. She has to stay in Atlantis.
6)Even If Mera doesn't marry anyone, will she appear in the adventures of Arthur or she must stay in Atlantis?

7)I fear KSD does not see her as a major character in the book. Abnett has also made a mess with Mera's character, she never was of submissive nature, she looks like one now. Todate KSD hasn't fixed this nor has she given her importance. Just a few panels.

That said, Mera is one of the superheroes of DC, I can't believe they are relegating her to a secondary role, as an unhappy married woman who's duty is just to have a son. Is Mera just reduced to a mere baby making machine?

If they do this, I would prefer to see her killed in a fight, it would be more honorable to the history of her character.

PS- Tula, Garth what happened to them?

[MadFacedKid]

Most recent issue was actually pretty good. Pretty action packed. Get some world building, and I'm curious to what the Gods can do.

[Frontier]

My problem though is she doesnt have much depth in the film she's a guide/mentor type character with little to go on to why she wants to do what she wants or why she feels so strongly about it

I agreee about this in One too

https://youtu.be/roZsvPSbW-Y

In the comics he's a sympathetic villaon. Whereas in the movie he's a straight up villain

I think he was definitely a straight-up villain in the Thrones of Atlantis animated movie.

In the movie I think he honestly genuinely believed he was doing the right thing for Atlantis by attacking the surface world and protecting the oceans even though he was going about it in the wrong way and was more of a tool about it. But the fact that they kept him alive at the end tells me that he will probably have a bit of a character arc in future movies.

[marinecurrys]

My main issue with Mera being made Queen of Atlantis is how she became queen contradicts what had been laid out before. It makes zero sense. The Atlanteans are strict traditionalists. So much so that they begrudgingly took Arthur as their king, because it was his by law. Now, these sisters (who have never been referenced before Abnett's run) decide to make a foreigner, someone who's not even of their people Queen of Atlantis over the rightful king. Since when do Atlanteans choose who their king or queen is. If they chose, then Arthur never would of been king in the first place. Oh, and the people that she's from are actually seen as enemies by most Atlanteans who helped enslave them not too long ago. Just makes no sense.

And Mera chose to leave her own royal duties of her people to be with Arthur. So, why would she choose royal duties of people who aren't her own, and not be with Arthur.

I have no problem with Mera being queen of atlantis, if they had done it right. If she had married Arthur, and then this whole lame amnesia thing happend, it would make more sense her having the role of queen of atlantis. But now, Abnett has left us with a mess and i'm not sure how they rectify it.

Yeah they should have done that arc a lot better and actually given the whole Queen of Atlantis gimmick a little bit more foresight. I agree having a Xebelian of all people take the throne of Atlantis was slap in the face of the established canon and also was completely out of character for Mera but I just gave it pass because I assumed it wasn't going to be permanent thing but I was wrong very wrong. They should have done it the way you described in your post and saved this plot point for a later arc, having Mera being married with Arthur would have solved a lot of the problems with this boring amnesia-penelope plot. While I enjoyed a lot of what Abnett did in his run I guess he dropped the ball at the tail end of his run, I guess he couldn't really have anticipated what Deconnick had in store for the characters moving forward but still. That being said I just can't bring myself to stay mad at Abnett with all the things he did decently. While I hated the "dethroned" rehash plot, creating a new rogue (hate or love him) in the form of Mutated Corum Rath and the abyssal dark concept was interesting, reintroducing longstanding characters such has Dolphin-king Shark-Garth (don't like his new design), expanding upon Atlantis' social and political issues with the idea of the ninth tride/underworld....etc Just to name a few of the things I liked about that run.

[ChrisG]

Yeah they should have done that arc a lot better and actually given the whole Queen of Atlantis gimmick a little bit more foresight. I agree having a Xebelian of all people take the throne of Atlantis was slap in the face of the established canon and also was completely out of character for Mera but I just gave it pass because I assumed it wasn't going to be permanent thing but I was wrong very wrong. They should have done it the way you described in your post and saved this plot point for a later arc, having Mera being married with Arthur would have solved a lot of the problems with this boring amnesia-penelope plot. While I enjoyed a lot of what Abnett did in his run I guess he dropped the ball at the tail end of his run, I guess he couldn't really have anticipated what Deconnick had in store for the characters moving forward but still. That being said I just can't bring myself to stay mad at Abnett with all the things he did decently. While I hated the "dethroned" rehash plot, creating a new rogue (hate or love him) in the form of Mutated Corum Rath and the abyssal dark concept was interesting, reintroducing longstanding characters such has Dolphin-king Shark-Garth (don't like his new design), expanding upon Atlantis' social and political issues with the idea of the ninth tride/underworld....etc Just to name a few of the things I liked about that run.

Leaving aside the mess left by ABnett, The role of Mera is the true headache. On it depends all future paths. I can't see how she can have some major role in future arc if she remains Queen, unless she is dethroned/abdicates. Whatever, the future of this Aquaman Comic depends entirely on what they intend to do with Mera. If she's written off as a consort queen of an unknown character, I believe they will have either to reboot or cancel. It won't survive the anger of fans. Many are already livid.

However it must be said that Mera is one of the DC Superheroes, a member of the JL, I can't imagine they want to leave relegated in a minor role as a mere consort queen, with few panels every couple of issues. Even in consideration of the interest generated in the character (unknown to non comic readers) by the movie.

[marinecurrys]

Leaving aside the mess left by ABnett, The role of Mera is the true headache. On it depends all future paths. I can't see how she can have some major role in future arc if she remains Queen, unless she is dethroned/abdicates. Whatever, the future of this Aquaman Comic depends entirely on what they intend to do with Mera. If she's written off as a consort queen of an unknown character, I believe they will have either to reboot or cancel. It won't survive the anger of fans. Many are already livid.

However it must be said that Mera is one of the DC Superheroes, a member of the JL, I can't imagine they want to leave relegated in a minor role as a mere consort queen, with few panels every couple of issues. Even in consideration of the interest generated in the character (unknown to non comic readers) by the movie.

I swear if they get rid of Mera and decide to throw her off in a "creative limbo/ dumpster bin" (like they did other prominent characters btw) than I'm done with this book ! Again you're concerns are valid, I feel that you're highlighting one major problem I have had with Aquaman writers over the years is that I feel they just keep playing it safe, continuously making the same lazy and uninspired writing decisions. I mean how many times has Arthur been dethroned as the king of Atlantis already, it's time to stop rehashing the same plot points and actually write some new stuff, how about the Aquafamily being actual kings and queens for once or maybe just have them be actual superheroes saving atlantians and surface dwellers alike for a change. However the current direction Deconnick has chosen to steer to book into isn't for me, potentially separating Mera from her longstanding love interest and having Arthur sever all his ties with Atlantis is a bad idea, but I guess that's just my opinion as a fan. Also on the lazy writing I've also been wondering just what the hell happened to Garth, Tula, Vulko, Orm, Poseidon, and so many other characters that seldom get the recognition they deserve, I mean to potential to tell fun and epic stories is there but no writers seems to be willing to even acknowledge it. Instead they choose the easy way out and just decide to fallback on the tires old plot points, needless to say I don't like this edgy and hip new direction the book is going in...can't believe some people are actually saying that Deconnick's run is "poetic" whatever that means...
Also on the whole synergy between comics and movie, I hope that they don't honestly think that Momoa will save comics from bad lazy storytelling...

[ChrisG]

I swear if they get rid of Mera (like they did other prominent characters btw) than I'm done with this book ! Again you're concerns are valid, I feel that you're highlighting one major problem I have had with Aquaman writers over the years is that I feel they just keep playing it safe, continuously making the same lazy and uninspired writing decisions. I mean how many times has Arthur been dethroned as the king of Atlantis already, it's time to stop rehashing the same plot points and actually write some new stuff, how about the Aquafamily being actual kings and queens for once or maybe just have them be actual superheroes saving atlantians and surface dwellers alike for a change. However the current direction Deconnick has chosen to steer to book into isn't for me, potentially separating Mera from her longstanding love interest and having Arthur sever all his ties with Atlantis is a bad idea, but I guess that's just my opinion as a fan. Also on the lazy writing I've also been wondering just what the hell happened to Garth, Tula, Vulko, Orm, Poseidon, and so many other characters that seldom get the recognition they deserve, I mean to potential to tell fun and epic stories his there but no writers seems to be willing to even acknowledge it. Instead they chose the easy way out and just decide to fallback on the tires old plot points, needless to say I don't like this edgy and hip new direction the book is going in...can't believe some people are actually saying that Deconnick's run is "poetic" whatever that means...

Problem is Can the book survive with Mera married off? I believe the answer is no.
Can it survive with Mera not married to anyone(arthur Included) Yes
Unlike Garth and Tula, She is the co-star.
BTW whatever happened to her infamous bad temper she seems to me a faded copy of her former self.
They have to keep an eye on the sales, they are very low. If they take a wrong step Aquaman is done.

[marinecurrys]

Problem is Can the book survive with Mera married off? I believe the answer is no.
Can it survive with Mera not married to anyone(arthur Included) Yes
Unlike Garth and Tula, She is the co-star.
BTW whatever happened to her infamous bad temper she seems to me a faded copy of her former self.
They have to keep an eye on the sales, they are very low. If they take a wrong step Aquaman is done.

Again I agree the current versions of these characters are a far cry from what they once were. While the Aquaman franchise is probably at an all time high in popularity considering the release of the movie at this point, I think that cancelling and shelving the book for a time-out and then rebooting it a couple of months down the line might be a possible solution. Then again I stop and realize that I may not be the target audience for this book anymore, time to pack my bags and move on to something else. I guess we'll just have to wait and see ..

[ChrisG]

You know what, while the Aquaman franchise is probably at an all time high in popularity considering the release of the movie at this point I think that cancelling and shelving the book for a time-out and then rebooting it a couple of months down the line might be a possible solution. Then again I stop and realize that I may not be the target audience for this book anymore, time to pack my bags and move on to something else.

I believe a reboot is the solution to the mess left by Abnett, unless KSD has a genial idea to solve the mess. Not easy.