Sunday, July 3, 2011

Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #41 (June, 2006)



Nanaue the King Shark agreed to go with Arthur Curry to what was left of the Curry-Jonas Oceanographic Center at Avalon Cay, but there was nothing left but debris and corpses, including at least one that had been shot dead. Curry was in denial, and overexerted himself trying to find his father. Nanaue couldn't speak out of water, and Arthur couldn't survive long on air, so King Shark dragged the kid back to the Dweller of the Depths. King Shark decided to part company at that point, so Curry talked the Dweller into seeking aid from his great-uncle, a lighthouse keeper in Maine. En route, a representative from Queen Mera asked the pair to take a detour, to thank Curry for (inadvertently) freeing a scouting party while rescuing King Shark in the previous issue. The Dweller thought it would be a good idea, but couldn't bear to see Mera for reasons unknown to himself, and snuck off.

Mera explained that not only had Atlantis been destroyed in the Infinite Crisis, but other forces demolished the sister city Tritonis, and any attempts to rebuild either were thwarted by barbarians. Mera acted as a leader in a settlement called Surfaceman's Grave. One of her lieutenants was the prideful Atsiul, who had been in the captive party, but took offense to Arthur posturing like Aquaman. They ended up in a sword fight, which Arthur won based on his superior inborn strength and the fury of a guy who had nothing left to lose. Also, something compelled King Shark to return to Curry's company.

"Over His Head" was by Kurt Buisek and Butch Guice. For the second straight issue, it was all about exposition, with a fight sequence to break things up a bit. Of course, standing on a rock swinging swords makes no dang sense underwater, while the art and coloring remained a murky slog. Arthur Joseph Curry is really getting on my nerves, because when he's not whining, he's talking smack with nothing to back it up. The dude spent his entire life sheltered in a fish tank, he doesn't know how to do anything, and he only wins fights because of innate physical superiority to sea life. Also, the dude has shoulder pads and walks everywhere, which would stand out more if all the other sea people didn't do the same. WTF?

Brave New World

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