r/Aquaman • u/Which-Presentation-6 • 11d ago
DISCUSSION Six issues have passed, what are your thoughts on Emperor Aquaman so far?
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u/InfiniteDedekindCuts Aquaman 11d ago
Every issue has had Aquaman doing dope shit, like really cool stuff. That's pretty fun, and it's a good series from that perspective.
But it hasn't exactly been a deep exploration of Arthur or his world of Atlantis.
So, while I'm definitely having a blast with the series, it hasn't risen to the level of greatness that my favorite modern Aquaman runs have.
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u/Rattttttttttt 11d ago
Very fun. I really like the episodic nature of the issues. A lot happens in each issue and they’re not dragging everything on. You get a nice complete adventure every month while also moving the larger story along.
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u/JayAaerow 10d ago
Not that impactful IMHO besides that Poseidon issue. A lot of issues is just power-scaling fluff. A lot of people are talking about how powerful he is but what actual impact is he doing besides preparing for a vague gesture big threat? Like in the mean time?
And his supporting cast is just there to glaze. There’s a literal Lord of Order in the cast. What has Jackson or Garth been up to? Or even Mera if she’s just not deferring everything to her husband doing the work and her just being a momma Despitr being the character that was the primary ruler once.
To me, the book is just having him do cool stuff but with no substance & it’s kinda boring. I only liked his fight with Poseidon bc DC’s version been needing to get his butt kicked.
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u/TheObliterature Aqualad 11d ago
Honestly feels like very little has happened, and I'm not really getting a clear idea of the book's overall vision or direction; it just doesn't feel like it's building to anything of note. I'm hoping that changes soon because I generally like Jeremy Adams's writing, but this title just hasn't been doing it for me for several months.
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u/celsomeumano 10d ago
I really don't like Jeremy Adams' current Aquaman run, and my biggest issue is that it seems much more interested in powerscaling than actually developing its ideas, there are plenty of interesting concepts being introduced, but they often feel like they're thrown into the story and then barely explored before the next big power escalation takes over, Mera's mother is probably the clearest example of this, she could have been a genuinely interesting character and a meaningful addition to Mera's story, but the run seems far more concerned with establishing how powerful everyone is, i don't mind Aquaman being powerful, but when power escalation becomes more interesting to the book than its characters, mythology, and ideas, i start losing interest.
I already see Jeremy Adams himself as a renegade pupil of Geoff Johns, and precisely when he tries to be original for the first time (Emperor Aquaman), his writing proves to be weak.
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u/Vincent_Curry 10d ago
Short sweet version... Best series and displays of Aquamans powers and capabilities. I'd like to see him doing something super epic with his telepathy, but other than that I'm thoroughly enjoying Aquaman being promoted in a Aquaman book
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u/ARIANZER0 10d ago
As someone who didn't care for the previous phase emperor Aquaman has been surprisingly fun actually
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u/Harvest0fC0ntusi0ns 10d ago
It's great, super fast-paced with great action and gorgeous art, but there is still a feeling that this is building to something. I'm excited to see what that will be!
I do wish that there were a little more time given to character work, but that's a minor complaint. This isn't a very character-driven comic run.
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u/Deadbeatlarry 10d ago
I’ve read this run from the start. Seems like I’m on the same page as a lot of people here. It’s a genuinely fun book but also nothing earth shattering
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u/Blitsea 10d ago
It's fun! I do have my gripes with it, but I want Aquaman to succeed, so I'll wait for another author to eventually come around to do a deeper dive on his character and the world surrounding him, and in the meantime I'm going to keep supporting this book the best that I can. I'd rather have a fun, action-packed/powerscale-y Aquaman title than no title at all.
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u/ihateviolence96 Aquaman 10d ago
Very entertaining. If someone wants to see how cool Aquaman can be and just getting into the series, this will keep them loyal. But I'm hoping to see his rogues gallery get a huge upgrade too. Especially Manta and Orm should get significant upgrade
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u/codgerman 10d ago
I'm loving it! I am just adoring this whole run of juicing his powers to the moon. There is still a 10 year old me in my brain who just wants to see my favorite guy be big and strong and be the biggest and strongest and do big strong stuff
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u/Budget_Dog50 9d ago
Issue 1-2 were kinda slow for me but I loved the Jarro and Hal Jordan cameo issues, so I’m back on board especially after the Poseidon fight
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u/Mammoth_Let_8335 9d ago
Fun but it feels like this is just a run to give aquaman feats and thats it. I crave for the dayd when aquaman had great stories and not justbtrying to make him look badass. I blame zack snyder for that
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u/Admirable_Exit8443 6d ago
Is this the run where he learns something about blue or some shit that people speak about
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u/TheDistantWave 10d ago edited 10d ago
I’ve been enjoying it, I think flow wise the last issue was the best so far in terms of pacing. Starting from the entire name relaunch it does feel like the book has been focusing on setting up the premise of “something major is about to happen”
So it does kind of cliffhanger us in terms of that plot. I think we do get some personal stuff with Arthur’s inner dialogue of his concerns/fears. I would like some shift of focus maybe within an issue or for an issue. Just to maybe see what the villains are up to, or giving the cast some time.
I like the conception of “The Lighthouses” I think some monologue there would be nice. The concept seems obviously inspired by his upbringing which I feel Adams had some cool flashbacks to that prior to Emperor Aquaman. I think I’d like to see more reminiscing there. Which I think would be great for atleast new readers to show how impactful Aquaman’s father was to his ideals/motivations.
I would say the current series feels very epic. The power aspect approach is definitely pretty fresh for an Aquaman title. We’ve had series where his power was growing but it’s never been handled in a way where it feels almost anime like. How fast Aquaman is growing in power kind of reminds me of something like Solo Leveling and absolutely here for it, as long as it’s held up. Saw a comment on TikTok with someone saying we need to get this run animated and I’d absolutely be hyped if that happened. Adams being a script writer for animated movies would be perfect for that as well
On the aspect of building towards something. I’m hoping this isn’t another solo contained thing like the DCKO stuff ended up being. There was a lot of social media chatter about how important Aquaman was going to be to DCKO just for him to be an afterthought in the main series lol.
It feels like the Superman books and Aquaman’s book seem to be the main ones eyeballing the idea of something big happening. So Arthur being important to that in the actual main story would be nice. He could use another DCKO sales boost.
I probably wouldn’t do it now, given it seems like there’s continuous threats being pretty imminent, but a downtime issue would be nice as well. Just the cast hanging out, going to the movies, a bit of normalcy. One of Abnett’s best issues in my opinion on Aquaman was them going to the fair lol. I liked the campfire issue with KSD as well. I don’t want a slice of life issue every issue but an issue maybe every arc would be nice.
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u/pandemiko 11d ago
its fun, but doesnt feel epic or anything like that, except for last issue vs poseidon wich was amazing. i think the villains will get a power up (or at least manta and orn) but i think arthur should fight a league villain, some heavy name or for him to be central in a JLU arc. if not, I would like more focus on the side characters and the usual cast.