It’s so great to see Aquaman finally getting some traction. I’ve tried for as long as I can remember to buy an Aquaman #1, hoping for a sustainable storyline. I always got bored.

This is Volume 7, I think. So, it’s clear DC has tried and tried again to make this character work. And no doubt, understandable: Aquaman is a rich character with a huge amount of planetary surface area to work with. The problem with his stereotype is: we’ve all grown up in some form or fashion watching renditions of Jacques Cousteau. Because we’ve seen it: the dive, the fishies & flippers, sun rays hitting the deep seas surrounded by bubbles. Well… that’s about it, I guess. And that’s the problem — it’s a half hour show and then the channel changes to more interesting things: drama, comedy, movies, etc.

What I’m trying to say is, the ocean gets boring if only for the novelty of the ociean’s sake. Even with the caves and temples buried at the bottom of the ocean, without something new about the character of Aquaman — the drama, the comedy, the theatrics of the interpersonal, the novelty wares off after an issue or two.

I feared it was all going in that same direction the first half dozen issues. However, Johns has had a proven track record and I wanted to stick to this book for at least a year to see if something would come of it.

I’m glad I did. Because it did. And while I kind of wish Reis would have stuck around, Pelletier’s work has really risen to the occasion — and in some ways better (and not quite as much in other ways).

Now, with some real momentum, this has become a solid book and worth continuing for another 12 months. Since a little before the “Throne of Atlantis” arc, it’s been getting 4/5 and 5/5’s pretty regularly (from me, if that means anything or nothing is speculation…) Hopefully enough to establish Aquaman in the same way Green Lantern is now a DC staple. Because, he’s a great, rich character with a lot of potential.