Artwork by Ivan Reis and Joe Prado
Aquaman has been getting some amazing treatment from Geoff Johns in the 'New 52'. With an amazing four-issue opening arc and subsequent focus on Arthur's wife, Mera, Aquaman has been heavily praised as one of the best titles currently featured by DC Comics.
This month's prelude to "The Others" introduces Black Manta into the 'New 52' with a murder - fitting for one of Aquaman's oldest and deadliest enemies. Manta kills a woman named Kahina the Seer and vows to kill her family before taking out Arthur and "everything he loves", which I'm sure includes Atlantis. Meanwhile, Aquaman and Mera round up some ships stuck out at sea during an oddly violent storm before paying Dr. Stephen Shin a visit concerning the Atlantean relic Arthur found last issue. In the middle of their discussion, a mysterious woman attacks them, claiming Shin fed Black Manta information about Kahina and "the others".Geoff Johns is a master storyteller who can give readers just enough information to make them think without giving too much away. Where writers like Brian Michael Bendis have a knack for creating stories more suited for graphic novels, Johns' talent lies in month-to-month, episode-style writing. Shin's photograph on the last page shows Arthur working with a group of warriors (at least that's what it looks like) teases readers by revealing a new chapter in Arthur's life without telling us anything about it! Anticipation counts for a lot when it comes to monthly series', and Johns does it so, so well.
GRADE:
A
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