Zomg! Our first blog post!

Oh how exciting, I've finally joined the rest of the geeky world and started a blog. ;-)

This is named "Oddments and Wonder" to reflect the wide variety of things at hold my interest and will be appearing here. Some will be wonders and some will just be odd. You find yourself questioning my sanity at times. I'm remarkably ok with that.

I'm going to open this up with the oddment that is currently on my mind. Aquaman.

I will freely admit that I, alas, grew up not reading comics. The downside of being female is that sometimes your introduction to the wonderful world of geek comes late. That is a topic for another post though. So I knew very little of Aquaman when DC started up their new 52s. Everything I knew could probably be put in a thimble and was gathered from TV shows and jokes at Arthur's expense. Talks to fish, is useless on land, etc.

So I'm sure you can understand my surprise when a friend at my local comic book shop told me that I needed to read the new Aquaman. I was more than a touch reluctant and scoffed a little more than I should have really. Luckily, he's a sweet guy. Putting my faith in him, I dutifully grabbed the last copy of Aquaman 1 on the shelf (the fact that it was the only comic left of that series left and we were sold out of issue one and two should have been a clue in retrospect) and slipped it into my hold box.

I didn't give it much thought over the next few days till I came in to pick up my weekly mana of comics. I thumbed through the issues and pulled out several, including Aquaman issue 1. During a lull in the activity at the shop, I sat down and pulled it out of it's plastic bag. I admit, I was curious to see what had my friend so excited.

Two pages in, I got it. The art is great. The writing made me laugh. Is this a ground-breaking, earth-shattering, going to change comics forever title? No, it isn't. But it is pretty amazing in that it takes Aquaman from a huge walking/swimming joke to a title that is a good, solid fun read. And that is pretty amazing if you think about what a huge joke the character has become.

If you are wondering how, and if you are I don't blame you in the slightest, I think a large part of it is that they completely and utterly own how mocked he is. So far the public's misinformation regarding him has been a clear part of each issue. The first issue starts with him definitively showing that he is far from useless on land (I'm trying not to spoil anything!) and nearby law enforcement comment on how they feel being upstaged by, of all things, Aquaman.

Despite the fact that it clearly bothers him, he hasn't fallen victim to a reoccurring hero flaw of feeling sorry for himself. Nor does he retreat into the ocean to get away from the people who ask what it's like to be nobody's favorite hero. It's rather fun to watch him dive into the fray despite insults and wisecracks being hurled at him and Mera. He, with slightly varying degrees on patience, simply corrects the wisecracks and misinformation. No, he doesn't talk to fish. It's not a orange shirt, it's scale armor. Mera is a touch less patient in her responses but still doesn't cross the line between a good woman whose patience is being pushed and a jerk. He largely allows it to roll off his back and when he can't, simply walks away. Which is, all and all, a great thing for kids to be reading.

And, speaking of being kid friendly, get ready for a delightful shocker...Mera is dressed! Not that I expected her to be prancing around in a G-string but let's face it. DC has fallen a little short of the mark when it comes to how they costume/draw their female characters lately and they have taken a lot of heat for it. The closest Mera comes to being undressed is when she is, in the privacy of their own home, wearing an oversized t-shirt in issue 2. And oversized t-shirt with sleeves down her elbows, neck actually at her neck so no cleavage, and the hem approximately mid-thigh - no panty shots. Her armor/superhero costume does show some cleavage but in my opinion not an excessive amount. It's a generous neckline, no denying that, but the shape of it reminds me of formal gowns through history so it feels right for her character. It's also helped by the fact that, other than this, she is completely covered. Sleeves go low on her wrists and the bodysuit covers her legs and feet entirely.

In fact, in comparsion between Mera of the new 52s to Mera as she is depicted in Crisis on Infinate Earths, the artists actually added more coverage by giving her sleeves - despite the low neckline, her shoulders are completely covered. In addition, all three issues have their female background characters fully and sensibly dressed. While I'm not not the harshest judge when it comes to this issue, it is something has been bugging me with the new 52s. Let me just say that it is positively delightful to read a solid new take on a much mocked character and not have it rely on exposing the female figure or sex appeal. While I am sure we will see passion between Mera and Arthur in the future, issue one did include a wonderful kiss between the two, I really hope they keep this ball rolling. It is just as fun to see Mera commenting on childhood mementos of Arthur's as it is to see him sweep her into his arms.

This is the only steamy moment so far.

If you haven't already given this title a shot, I would definitely call it worth the three bucks to grab the first issue and see if it appeals to you. If nothing else the scene where Arthur is trying to get some peaceful noms in a seafood restaurant is entertaining! 

Two scans of the scene after the break. :-)