Review:
"Kingdom Lost"
"Aquaman Unleashed"
This book promised much but was ultimately a disappointment.
Reprinting issues #32-39 from the 6th Aquaman ongoing series (2003), this book drops us into the midst of the ongoing Sub Diego storyline. It has been a brilliant plot development for the DC Universe and Aquaman in particular, and it is a pleasure to revisit some of its characters and constraints.
It promised so much: Aquaman reuniting with Mera; the return of arch-foe Black Manta, this time as a genetically-engineered water-breather; tensions in Aquaman's soul between his former kingdom of Atlantis and his new home of Sub Diego; the destruction of Atlantis; an overlap with the larger OMAC DC continuity.
But ultimately John Arcudi's story tries to pack too much into these chapters, and it sinks under its own weight.
As one crisis after another batters Aquaman, he dispatches each in turn surprisingly and disappointingly quickly. Return of Black Manta? a wet firecracker that fails to explode, eve as Aquaman apparently condones killing him. Destruction of Atlantis? For reasons unexplained, the Spectre descends and wreaks vengeance and swift destruction on that city, then is gone. Some refugee tensions among the survivors, but little else in what had the potential to be a character-shaking development.
From crisis to crisis, Aquaman's emotional depth is little more than tidepools, ranging from anger to arrogance. His reunion with Mera, the loss of his son, his grievous wounds from OMAC, all fall flat emotionally. The closest to any sort of emotional or personal interaction with the events and their consequences are a handful of sepia-toned memories in the final chapter.
Sometimes the artists can save a poor story, alas that does not happen here. Leonard Kirk and Andy Clarke do a respectable job, especially with the gauntness of Mera during her illness. And the Spectre is well-done in his few panels, looking the part of a cosmic, inscrutable force. But what really stands out artistically is the brief work of Patrick Gleason, whose layouts in the first chapter are stunningly creative, and whose covers for most of these collected issues pack such punch.
Ultimately, however, this story fails to deliver on its great promise. 2 capes out of 5.
Description:
Concluding the classic Sub Diego storyline, acclaimed writer John Arcudi (B.P.R.D.: Hell on Earth) and artists Leonard Kirk (SUPERGIRL) and Andy Clarke (DETECTIVE COMICS) tell the tragic story of the fall of Atlantis as the Infinite Crisis is unleashed upon the DC Universe!
Aquaman, once King of Atlantis, has abandoned his throne and now serves as protector of Sub Diego. But while the ocean has gained thousands of new inhabitants, it has lost one—Mera, Aquaman’s estranged wife, who has been cursed to live on land and breathe only air.
But when Aquaman’s friends and family seek to cure Mera of the curse, it sets off a tragic chain reaction that leads to the destruction of Atlantis...and the death of many whom Aquaman holds dear.
In the midst of his grief, Sub Diego is attacked by Aquaman’s greatest enemies, including the deadly Black Manta! And now that the King of the Seven Seas has lost his kingdom, Black Manta is about to see what happens when Aquaman is truly unleashed...with all the fury of the sea at his command!
Collects: AQUAMAN #32-39
Authors: John Arcudi
Artists: Patrick Gleason, Leonard Kirk and Andy Clarke
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: Aug. 1 2017
Parental Rating: Teen
ISBN-10: 1401271294
ISBN-13: 978-1401271299
Language: English
Pages: 200 pages
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