Aquaman #56
DC Comics
Written by Kyle Higgins
Art by Aaron Lopresti
Inks by Matt Ryan
Colors by Romulo Fajardo Jr
Letters by Clayton Cowles
The Rundown: Arthur’s story takes him back to a time when he and Mera contemplated their future and if it would involve children.
At the close of another DC event, Arthur and Mera are on Amnesty Bay celebrating their engagement with friends including Diana and Batman. When the subject of children comes up, both heroes have an awkward exchange with their friends before leaving to have a serious discussion about that part of their future.
Unfortunately, the pair won’t have time to settle the debate when an attack on a local oil rig calls both Aquaman and Mera to open water to rescue the crew. To make matters worse, they discover that the rig is under attack by the Trench and the attack itself is not random.
The Story: An interesting throw back to the kinds of conversations couples have before having children. While the Trench backdrop is interesting and done well, this entire story could have been handled in a series of flashbacks as the immediate story that readers have been following moved forward. Higgins does a good job with the theme and the dialogue between characters, especially Arthur and Mera, but there is no immediacy to this issue and it seems out of place and unnecessary when compared to what’s come before.
The Art: Aaron Lopresti does some great classic looking artwork in this issue. There is a definite vibe in the art that this issue happens at a different time than the regular story and that works for me as a reader.