Aquaman is back in his own series and things are about to get absolutely dangerous for the underwater monarch. Aquaman has had a rough couple of years since the end of his last book. They tried to expand the Aqua mythos by making the new Aqualad into another Aquaman and put Arthur back in the Justice League, but never actually gave him a solo book. However, DC’s All-In initiative has given many classic DC characters a new lease on life and Aquaman #1 kicks off a brilliant new era for the King of Atlantis.
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Absolute Power ended with a huge twist, with some heroes losing their old powers and gaining new ones. Aquaman is one of those, gaining his wife Mera’s hydrokinesis. This first issue of his new series sees him learning the ropes with these new powers, but during the battle with a mysterious water monster, Aquaman is called back to Atlantis. Racing home, he finds his kingdom gone, with the only left behind a pearl found earlier in the issue by Jackson Hyde.
The Pearl Is the Key to Another World
The pearl seems to be the key to the disappearance of Atlantis. Earlier in the issue, an asterisk relates that the pearl should be familiar to readers of Flashpoint Beyond #1, The Flash #785, and Batman: The Brave and the Bold #18, all stories that have some sort of multiversal connotations. Aquaman brings the pearl to the Justice League Watchtower, where Zatanna uses her magic powers to plumb the mysteries of the pearl.
Zatanna reveals that it is an object of great power. She feels like she should know what it is, but something has hidden it from the tapestries of the magic, perhaps before the beginning of time. However, she senses something related to it, and Aquaman, Batman, and Wonder Woman go on a trip under the sea to a mysterious gate. Aquaman releases the pearl and it flies into the gate, which Aquaman goes through. After he’s gone, the gate transforms into an omega from the Greek alphabet, the symbol of Darkseid. This could only mean one thing – that Atlantis, and now Aquaman, have been pulled into the Absolute Universe.
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What Is DC’s Absolute Universe?
The Absolute Universe is DC’s most popular creation in a long time. Its origin comes from the end of the Absolute Power event series and the one-shot DC All-In #1, an issue that sees Darkseid attain greater power than ever by stealing the powers of the Spectre and “die” in a battle with the Justice League. However, that death was revealed to be a red herring, as Darkseid instead was sent to an Earth that he could reshape in his own image. This led to the formation of the Absolute Universe, and the bestselling titles Absolute Batman, Absolute Superman, and Absolute Wonder Woman. This universe is based on Darkseid’s evil, making it a very different Earth than any other in the DC Multiverse.
Aquaman‘s pearl seems to be some kind of bridge between DC’s main continuity and the Absolute Universe – like similar orbs that DC’s heroes have encountered before. Zatanna saying that it was modified at the beginning of time to be outside of the tapestry of magic could point to it being created by Darkseid. Darkseid went to the blank slate Earth and had to mold it; this could mean that he started at the beginning of time, retroactively traveling back, and created the pearl to steal parts of other universes to bring to his. Darkseid is not exactly known for his creative ability, so this could be an explanation for how he created much of his Earth. It also means that Aquaman and Atlantis could be anywhere on the Absolute Universe’s timeline.
Aquaman Is In for the Fight of His Life
Aquaman #1 kicks off by saying that this isn’t the story of Aquaman the king, but that of Aquaman the god-killer. This makes his journey to the Absolute Universe a tantalizing one. While Aquaman is definitely not going to kill Darkseid in this series, Aquaman traveling to the Absolute Universe to save Atlantis is almost certainly going to pit him against some very powerful foes. In the past, readers have seen Aquaman battle Poseidon and Triton, and this new series may see him battling whatever evil god that Darkseid has put in charge of the oceans. Aquaman’s sojourn into the Absolute Universe is going to challenge him like never before.
Aquaman #1 is on sale now.
