Which Justice Leaguer Will Spend Tonight in Jail?

Spoilers ahead for Aquaman #8, on sale now.While Bryan Hitch's new Justice League series is going [...]

By Russ Burlingame

justice-league-rebirth-1
(Photo: DC Entertainment)

Spoilers ahead for Aquaman #8, on sale now.

While Bryan Hitch's new Justice League series is going a long way toward re-establishing the team as beloved by the general public, who have been fearful and distrustful of superheroes and aliens during much of the last five years of stories, that goodwill isn't carrying over to every corner of the DC Universe.

Case in point: In today's Aquaman, the title hero is taken into custody at the order of the President of the United States, and arrested under provisions in the USA PATRIOT Act, becuase he happens to be visiting with the President when a group of Atlantean terorrists take out a US Naval vessel, killing those on board.

This is hardly the first time that the President has made a short-sighted or wrongheaded decision in superhero comics: Even ignoring Richard Nixon being an actual villain in Captain America in the '70s, Bill Clinton alone both stripped Captain America of his rank and role and designated the Cyborg Superman as the "real" Man of Steel following Superman's death and return.

That said, this goes larger than the traditional one-issue story that it might seem. Solicitations for future issues see this story playing out for a while, and something Aquaman anticipated -- that his new fiancee Mera might try to spring him from the clink -- seems to be in the cards for Aquaman #4 in two weeks.

It's unlikely to affect the character's appearances in other comics as far as we can tell: certainly there's an upcoming Justice League solicitation that seems pretty Atlantis-centric -- probably a good thing since much of the civilization seemed to sink deeper into a trench at the bottom of the ocean in Justice League #1 today.

If you want to read it for yourself, you can get a copy of Aquaman #3 at your local comic shop or buy it on ComiXology here.

Trending Now: