One of the great successes of the new 52 relaunch by DC Comics was the treatment given to Aquaman.  Almost immediately upon his return it was evident that something was going to be done differently, and that the character was going to be treated in a manner that was more deserving of his past.  What is potentially worrisome therefore is that DC is launching into another mini-reboot, and it is one which will incorporate in aspects of continuity from before Flashpoint.  While this might not be the best news for the character as the company heads into Convergence, it at least provided one more opportunity to tell another great story, and that was to determine the fate of Arthur’s mother, previously assumed to have died. As the events of Maelstrom have been laid out it is evident that she did not die, but this alone was not enough to guarantee the success of this story arc.

As the previous issue demonstrated, Aquaman was able to find his mother, but also that she refused to believe his lineage.  As was hinted at this was due to her desire to refuse to believe, in order to not revisit her past, but as a plot device it was fairly weak.  This carries on this issue as well, as she continues to struggle with this aspect of her past.  It is an unfortunate development, as it takes away from what would otherwise be a strong character and a strong premise.  Evidently there are plans somewhere down the road for the reintroduction of this character, but this reintroduction was not as strong as it could be as the writing of the character let her down a bit.  Although it was in the interest of setting up a battle, it likely could have been handled in another way, unless there is a desperate need for this angle in a future story.  Hindsight may prove to be more insightful, but at the moment, this let this story down, at least partially.

Aquaman thus heads into Convergence with one of its weaker stories behind it.  It is unlikely to have a dire effect on the character or the series as it is already plotted to return in June after the crossover, but this story arc left an unfortunate impression on the series before heading into hiatus.   As DC brings back the old Aquaman for a bit, this story arc was one which was more representative of the older Aquaman’s failures.  It will be interesting to see how Convergence changes the character as the success of this character is interesting to note, especially that there will be an Aquaman movie at some point.  For the time being Aquaman fans will have to be happy for the previous 40 issues, even if the end was a bit mediocre.

 Story: Jeff Parker Art: Paul Pelletier
Story: 7.7 Art: 7.7 Overall: 7.7 Recommendation: Read