Reviews 

“Aquaman” #38

By | July 27th, 2018
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

Nailing down Aquaman as a character can be tough. We’ve seen so many different versions of him: the clean-cut undersea Superman of the Super Friends, the wise-cracking surfer dude in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, and the version commonly seen in the comics which feels like an underwater Thor. In the ‘King Slayer Saga,’ Dan Abnett attempts – with mixed results – to make the character a little more approachable and interesting to new readers.

Cover by Stjepan Sejic

Aquaman #38
Written by Dan Abnett
Illustrated by Riccardo Federici
Colored by Sunny Gho
Lettered by Steve Wands

Behold King Rath, wielder of the Abyssal Dark magic and destined to conquer all of Atlantis! What power exists to turn the tide? Aquaman’s trident? Scuttled! The armies of Atlantis? Circling the drain. It’s all on Aquaman…or is it? What allies will rally to the Sea King’s side in the epic conclusion to the King Rath saga? The final battle is joined!

In a genre in which risk and consequences tend to be practically nonexistent, it can be difficult for a writer of a Big Two character to establish any level of threat towards the main hero. In his “King Slayer” Saga, Dan Abnett manages to make us feel maybe a little scared for our favorite underwater comic book hero. However, all his build-up proves to be rather disappointing in his conclusions this saga.

The book begins with Arthur Curry in a King Rath’s death grip; we are quickly reminded of why he is a scary villain as he starts choking out Aquaman and backhands Dolphin in the same panel. Frightened onlookers watch in horror as Rath defeats his enemy, declares himself to be the only god of the ocean, and prepares to kill Reverend Mother Cetea. Nowhere to go but up, right? I guess you’ll have to read to find out.

As far as Abnett’s plotting goes, this book could have been more satisfying. It frustratingly requires you to be current on Meera Queen of Atlantis to really know what’s going on. He also relies heavily on well-worn clichés to clip the plot along. For example, in the middle of the book, he throws out one of the most common villain-hero tropes. Rath claims that he has killed Aquaman. Did he ever check? No, of course not. He choked him briefly and tossed him down on the ground to have a quaint character moment with Dolphin. Unfortunately, this book lazily falls into one of the most common villain-hero tropes: the villain – usually a figure who has known for killing and has become quite good at it – declares the death of the hero even though there is a great likelihood that he/she survived the fall/explosion/beating/acid bath.

Additionally, the Deus Ex Machina solution leaves the reader feeling completely unsatisfied. Though Rath pummels Atlantis’ best warriors and stifles every one of Aquaman’s best efforts, as soon as the surprise cavalry shows up, the conflict washes away almost immediately with little to no effort. For a series rode on the back of climactic build-up, the final threat was snuffed out just as easily as a simple one-off story’s threat would be. Overall, it was a disappointing end to a rather interesting and threatening villain.

However, if one thing does set it apart, it Federici’s gorgeous illustration. He perfectly captures the warmth of individual expression. From the sweet character moments between Arthur and Dolphin on page 6, Rath’s sunken, pitiable face on page 15, or the romantic sparks that fly on page 17 and 18, he proves himself to do well illustrating the space between two characters. Likewise, his action panels are also stunning. He expertly channels the feel and aesthetic of Greek gods: from the character design (perfect, Greek bodies) to the expressions on their faces in more intimate moments to the melodramatic battling (large glowing tridents and weapons), he perfectly shapes this world around Abnett’s Greek-inspired script.

His use of perspective on page 9 to draw us into Dolphin’s perspective on a war-torn and sacrificial Aquaman is wonderfully subtle and his depictions of characters riding octopi into battle, wielding massive, glowing tridents feels fresh and just the right amount of melodramatic. He manages to express the wonder that the plot was missing. Though the script made the resolution less than satisfying, Federici makes it beautiful.

In addition, Gho’s soft, underwater colors provide the perfect backdrop for an underwater battle without going crazy with contrast – the pale blue background perfectly complements the rest of the earth-tones in the book. Gho really shines in the action sequences in this book, using electric purple, bright yellow, and explosive orange to offset all the milder tones of the characters and background. It provides the illusion of something standing out and grabbing our attention. The final battle is the moment when these colors really take on a life of their own and drive the book to its conclusion.

Final Verdict: 6.0 – Despite some gorgeous illustration by Federici and Gho, this book’s lackluster conclusion leaves it feeling rather anticlimactic.


Jacob Nuckolls

Jacob writes from the Great Midwest. He lives for stories. He's a writer, poet, comic book enthusiast, and long-time friend of Spider-Man.

EMAIL | ARTICLES