Aquaman #11 Review

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Reviewer: Chris Delloiacono
Story Title: By the Rivers of Babylon

Written by: Rick Veitch
Penciled by: Yvel Guichet
Inked by: Mark Propst
Colored by: Nathan Eyring
Lettered by: Willie Schubert
Associate Editor: Steve Wacker
Editor: Peter Tomasi
Publisher: DC Comics

Aquaman created by Paul Norris

1908 or something like it!

After the first couple of issues, the relaunch of Aquaman under writer Tom Veitch, seemed to be falling into place nicely. Of course, anyone that’s a fan of the Chicago Cubs knows looks can be deceiving. 1908 is the last time the hapless Cubs won a World Series, and while they’ve looked good on several occasions, invariably the wheels fall off. I liken Veitch’s run on Aquaman to the Cubs. When things go wrong, they go bad in a big way, and there is no hope of salvation.

Due to behind the scenes problems, it was announced several months ago that Veitch was leaving the book with issue 12. At first I was unhappy about the impending change, but that feeling soon changed. Perhaps it’s the horrible sense that everything that’s happened will probably be quickly forgotten, or just the level of inanity that the last few months have brought, but Aquaman has gotten less enjoyable each month. So much so, that I’d just love to drop this book and lighten my monthly reading load.

If they’d only have cut to the finish sooner!

The point that the book lost it was by nearly destroying Aquaman’s one great enemy Black Manta. This is the guy that killed the son of the King of Seven Seas. He’s one of the few memorable villains that Aquaman has, and what Veitch did was turn him into a misdiagnosed autistic. Saying the misunderstanding of his condition was the reason for the characters evil. While this issue effectively turns this ludicrous plotline around, as a whole it still left a bad taste in my mouth.

An even bigger problem with the book has been Aquaman’s seemingly never-ending battle with the Thirst. It was great to see a relatively interesting new villain introduced to battle a character that considers the Oceanmaster a top-tier threat. Unfortunately, that novelty quickly disappeared as the same plotline has been rehashed for months. Nothing but the stupidity of the Black Manta subplot has come out of the book in that time. Certainly a very forgettable period!

Finally, the battle nears a conclusion, as Aquaman teams with Black Manta. The only entertaining portion of the book lately has involved the attempted reclamation of Atlantis by Vulko and Tempest, but it’s only relegated to two pages this month. What a shame, the best parts of this series have been when the title character isn’t involved.

The artwork is solid this month. It’s funny, but months ago I really liked the writing, and the artwork by Yvel Guichet was a bit of a sore point. Now, the artwork is quite good, and the writing is more than a little disappointing. Thankfully there’s only one more issue to go, then a new state of flux for Aquaman can begin. First a two-issue fill-in by the masterful John Ostrander, then Will Pfeiffer takes over. This book is sorely in need of a “hero” and I think Pfeiffer is that man.