I Think Peter David's Aquaman Run Is Overrated

[KC]

I completely agree. It tried to shake off Aquaman's bad reputation as a character and instead landed in ridiculous 90s edginess.

I think Geoff Johns did everything PAD was trying to do way better.

[Sutekh]

The ONE thing that drives me nuts when I read an Aquaman comic is that writers/artists seem to forget that Atlantis is UNDERWATER!!
Characters read things on sheets of PAPER!!
Arthur has blankets on his bed! (Although he may have a dry living space.)
How on Earth do the character's voices carry when they're 300ft below??!!
I swear sometimes it's like an episode of Spongebob. I'm waiting for them to start a fire....

Oh yes, some writers put no thought into that sort of stuff. There's great worldbuilding potential to show Atlanteans using a writing system like quipu beads (only bits of shell on seaweed string, perhaps?), or just boring old etched writing on tablets of metal or stone or coral or whale ivory or giant clam shells or whatever. Because of the tendency of people to drift underwater, two people talking would be likely to hold onto something to stay in place, or even to hold hands, just to remain close together to talk, even if they aren't exactly 'hand-holding' friends, which could be neat to see, two rival diplomats practically dripping venom at each other, but also with arms locked, holding each other in place so that they can converse. A surface worlder who has no idea what they are saying might think they are flirting or dancing or being all supportive or something!

Also a freaky detail that conflicts with all the times we've seen Aquaman bleeding from a Trench critter attack or Orm's trident. The red wavelength fades out at depth, so that red, like red blood, appears black. So Tempest's spiffy new red and black outfit? Black and yet more black! Mera's hair? It was black for years, and then she went to the surface with Orin that first time and he was like, "DUDE! You're a redhead? I had no idea!" And she was like, 'Dude! What's wrong with my hair? I've never seen this color? Is it going to fall out? Am I dying?" :P

Same thing happens with space. Characters are talking in space, using sonic powers in space, throwing fire blasts in space. (Fire doesn't burn without oxygen! Maybe Firestorm could do it, by creating oxygen and then igniting it, but the average fire-chucker would be SOL!)

I mean, I get that they're comic books, and not peer-reviewed science journals, but I kind of expect someone who gets paid to write about an environment like underwater to at least Google, "Do fish use blankets?"

[Mantis-Ray]

What would you say is among the better/best Aquaman runs?

And by extension what are the worst ones, and where would you rate David's Aquaman on that scale?

[Timothy Hunter]

Well whether you like it or not it's the gold standard for Aquaman runs (Historically the most successful)

I haven't read it in decades but I'm sure it's got a lot of the tropes of the 90's (Trying to be overly angsty and gritty)

Still it's world better than some of the crap DC's been putting out the last two years or so.

The funny thing is that DC wasn't as negatively impacted by bad trends of the 1990s as Marvel and Image were. Sure you had the short lived Bloodlines characters and Fate but those were exceptions to the rule. DC Comics during the 90s was one of their greatest decades: the Batman and Superman titles were consistently great, Wonder Woman had great runs such as Perez, Messner Loebs, and Byrne, Mark Waid wrote a character defining run for the Flash, and sure Emerald Twilight was hated, but Kyle Rayner's time as Green Lantern is pretty well loved by fans.

So, out of all the Justice League characters, Aquaman was the only one that stuck out as particularly dated to me.

[Will Evans]

Didn’t Larsen’s run reveal that Deep Blue was Arthur’s half sister or was that during PAD’s run?

[Frontier]

Well whether you like it or not it's the gold standard for Aquaman runs (Historically the most successful)

I haven't read it in decades but I'm sure it's got a lot of the tropes of the 90's (Trying to be overly angsty and gritty)

Still it's world better than some of the crap DC's been putting out the last two years or so.

Wasn't the Geoff Johns Aquaman run very successful?

What would you say is among the better/best Aquaman runs?

And by extension what are the worst ones, and where would you rate David's Aquaman on that scale?

I think the Geoff Johns, Jeff Parker, and and Dan Jurgens runs are well-regarded.

[Robotman]

He was critical of Image?!? That’s pretty damn funny considering that this was one of the most “extreme 90s” makeovers for a character ever.

Though I think it was somewhat necessary for the character at the time. To the mainstream audience and casual fans, Aquaman was still the lame guy who talks to fish. So I’m not surprised they went with such a drastic change.

Being a kid at the time I recall a lot of my friends suddenly being interested in Aquaman who had previously thought of him as a joke.

[caj]

And I think Grant Morrison used this version of Aquaman well in JLA too. I remember reading an interview with Morrison back then where he said he struggled at first with trying to figure how to use Aquaman in JLA but that this 'new version' of him helped him understand the character much better.

[Ascended]

Though I think it was somewhat necessary for the character at the time. To the mainstream audience and casual fans, Aquaman was still the lame guy who talks to fish. So IÂ’m not surprised they went with such a drastic change.

This. PAD turned Aquaman from a joke nobody really took seriously into a popular underwater Conan, the half-tame barbarian king of an exotic kingdom and the JLA's resident "sexy rugged man." And while it was a little overboard (ha!) it was exactly the kick in the ass the character needed back then. It was one of DC's more XTREME titles, but still paled in comparison to a lot of what other publishers were doing (DC really did avoid most of that extreme phase...until the New52 ). And the franchise is still benefitting. Mamoa playing Orin wouldn't have happened without PAD laying the groundwork, the run influenced plenty of animated versions from JLU to Young Justice, Garth is still Tempest, etc.

It's probably aged real poorly though. I haven't read any of those issues in years but I doubt I'd enjoy them now like I did then.

Being a kid at the time I recall a lot of my friends suddenly being interested in Aquaman who had previously thought of him as a joke.

There are a lot of us who can say the same.

[Thor-Ul]

I agree 100% with Ascended.

[LifeIsILL]

What would you say is among the better/best Aquaman runs?

I really enjoyed the 60s run from the issue 30 onwards, it gets unexpectedly dark.

The first 30 issues though were pretty hard to get through.

[Robanker]

I think the Geoff Johns, Jeff Parker, and and Dan Jurgens runs are well-regarded.

I liked the DeConnick run and the silver age run (it's aged very poorly, but there are some gems in there and the art is wonderful), but these are honestly pretty great.

[Captain Nostalgia]

Wasn't the Geoff Johns Aquaman run very successful?

There are quite a few Aquaman runs that have been successful.

Peter David's run I believe lasted the longest (even after he left) but I've never crunched the sales numbers on it in comparison to other runs.

I just find that Peter David's run is the one that always gets touted as being critically acclaimed by comic media sights.

The funny thing is that DC wasn't as negatively impacted by bad trends of the 1990s as Marvel and Image were. Sure you had the short lived Bloodlines characters and Fate but those were exceptions to the rule. DC Comics during the 90s was one of their greatest decades: the Batman and Superman titles were consistently great, Wonder Woman had great runs such as Perez, Messner Loebs, and Byrne, Mark Waid wrote a character defining run for the Flash, and sure Emerald Twilight was hated, but Kyle Rayner's time as Green Lantern is pretty well loved by fans.

So, out of all the Justice League characters, Aquaman was the only one that stuck out as particularly dated to me.

Hmmmm, I think were in strong disagreement.

I don't believe the 90's were one of it's best decades until after 97, prior to that it descended into a cesspool of over violent and over dramatic angst.
(the hallmark of the 90's)

After the success of Crisis, Killing Joke & Death in the Family, they pretty much notched the carnage up for the 90's. Flash was good, but a lot of titles began to falter.

[Timothy Hunter]

There are quite a few Aquaman runs that have been successful.

Peter David's run I believe lasted the longest (even after he left) but I've never crunched the sales numbers on it in comparison to other runs.

I just find that Peter David's run is the one that always gets touted as being critically acclaimed by comic media sights.




Hmmmm, I think were in strong disagreement.

I don't believe the 90's were one of it's best decades until after 97, prior to that it descended into a cesspool of over violent and over dramatic angst.
(the hallmark of the 90's)

After the success of Crisis, Killing Joke & Death in the Family, they pretty much notched the carnage up for the 90's. Flash was good, but a lot of titles began to falter.

The 90's definitely weren't perfect. You can point towards events like Bloodlines, Zero Hour, Emerald Twilight, and Judgment Day and make a pretty solid argument that the 90's were a rough period for DC. However there were so many good comics coming out at the time that I can happily ignore Extreme Justice or Jim Balent's Catwoman. I mean you can spend years reading all the great comics published under Vertigo and Paradox/Piranaha Press. I could safely say that from 1990 to 1999 you could count on there being half a dozen great titles every month if you knew where to look.

[married guy]

What would you say is among the better/best Aquaman runs?

And by extension what are the worst ones, and where would you rate David's Aquaman on that scale?

Best?

PAD, Jurgens, Pfeifer and Parker.

Worst?

Larsen, Bunn & Veitch