It’s true. Regardless of what they boys on The Big Bang Theory say, the King of Atlantis is a badass.
He killed a guy.
Black Manta (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Specifically, one of Black Manta‘s henchmen, who will now and forever be known as “The Unluckiest Henchman in Comics Because He Got Killed By Aquaman“
I doubt the details are all that important to most of you, but here goes:
- The act in question took place in Aquaman #12 (DC Comics), which is a part of the company’s “New 52″ rebooted universe in which the Powers That Be are trying to make their lamest character – in the eyes of the world, that is – into their coolest.
- Aquaman and Black Manta (The guy with the punch bowl on his head and the glowing red eyes) are facing off over… Well, one’s good and the other evil, so its obvious just why they’re fighting, isn’t it?
- An innocent scientist, Dr. Shin, is about to be wiped out by one of Manta’s nameless underlings, at which point Aquaman stabs the underling to death by throwing his trident through his back.
- Take that, world! Who’s a wimp now?
This development has gone largely unnoticed in the fanboy community; a few sites have discussed it, but I haven’t seen any major mainstream coverage. I guess even a badass Aquaman still needs a publicist.
My daughter, Sarah, found the whole situation puzzling, to say the least.
SARAH: But Aquaman is supposed to be a hero! Don’t they have standards to live up to?
THE HOOK: I think he’s more concerned with being cancelled again to worry too much about remaining true to a set of values most people consider outdated in this day and age.
SARAH: Yeah, Raj on Big Bang always says, “Aquaman sucks”! I guess that hurts after a while…
OTHER BUSINESS…
This installment brings us to the end of yet another slightly-off countdown. As for the future, I think I’ll simply stick to discussing terrible things without actually adhering to a system. I hope you’ll continue to stick around, I’d miss you if you left…
EVEN MORE BUSINESS..
A shout-out to my newest blog buddy, Kristen Lamb and her best-selling tome, We Are Not Alone: The Writer’s Guide to Social Media. Give it a try, folks. You won’t be disappointed…
The Blog Hop is over but I’m going to leave the links up for anyone who feels like checking out some of the variety the world wide web has to offer…
Related articles
- JUSTICE LEAGUE and AQUAMAN Crossover in Dec. (comicvine.com)
- Aquaman #12 Review (worldofblackheroes.com)
- SDCC 2012: GEOFF JOHNS Teases Aquaman, GL, JL Future (newsarama.com)
#43: When Good Heroes Get Bad Reps!
Today saw the release of Aquaman #1.
The seventh Aquaman #1.
He can withstand the crushing pressure of the ocean depths and this makes him tough enough to be invulnerable to machine gun fire. He also possesses superhuman strength and can swim at speeds of 10,000 feet per second. He can even swim up Niagara Falls!
But ask most people who he is and what do they say?
“Isn’t he that fish guy?”
He’s been around since 1941 and has navigated the treacherous waters of comic book popularity with the best of them. He’s starred in cartoons, been a Super Friend and even had a television pilot centered around him. It failed miserably, but you gotta admire the orange and green garbed one’s tenacity.
He’s adapted with the times: a hip, blue outfit and attitude for the 1980s:
Image via Wikipedia
A beard, long hair and a hook (He sacrificed a hand for his fans. How many superheroes do that?) for the 1990s.
Image via Wikipedia
But every time, his sales eventually dip and DC Comics sinks the King of the Seven Seas to a watery grave.
But somehow, he still floats to the top. Now he has Geoff Johns, arguably the comic scribe of our age, guiding his adventures.
His creators have even acknowledged his PR issues and dealt with them head on by subject our hero to heckling from fellow diners at a seafood restaurant. In their defense, he does order fish and chips!
Will he succeed this time? I wouldn’t bet your buried treasure on it, but one thing is for sure: he’ll always survive to ride the waves again. Until the undertow of public sentiment drags him down – again.
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Posted in 100 Terrible Things, Comic Books, Life, Postaweek2011, Social Commentary, Terrible Things, Uncategorized
Tagged Aquaman, Comics, DC Comics, Geoff Johns