Here we are in a new episode of Aperit-Hero, the column where we chat about the exploits of our favorite heroes! The protagonist of today’s Aperit-Hero is Aquaman, the King of Atlantis! Or rather, the character who has now earned due respect
Aquaman’s publishing history has always been rather troubled, he has never been seen as one of DC’s best heroes. Indeed, to be honest, Aquaman has always been seen as one of the lamest superheroes. As fascinating as the power to telepathically control all sea creatures, generate large tsunamis and use a mystical trident as a weapon is, somehow the figure of this DC superhero has never been seen as “cool”. Maybe because of the uniform that seemed too ridiculous in the comics? The fact is, however, that things changed when they chose Jason Momoa to play the character (read Jason Momoa’s filmography). We already explained in our review of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom how much the character achieved the redemption of him as a “cool character”, but now let’s talk in detail about his history in the DCEU.
A mystical introduction | Aperit-Hero: Aquaman and the Responsibilities of a King
Already from the first close encounter with Aquaman, had with Bruce Wayne, we notice how much mysticity they wanted to give to the character. From the beginning, the character of Arthur Curry is introduced in a majestic, mysterious and even threatening way. Arthur wants to behave like a man like the others, with the only difference that, when people need him, he intervenes and does so by putting himself on display to be admired. A man who certainly likes to be the center of attention, but who still wants to remain within himself, without getting involved in matters where the responsibility is too high.
Precisely from this point Arthur must change and he helps him to do so Batman in personawhen Steppenwolf arrives on Earth and tries to awaken the power of three mother boxes capable of deserting the planetthus allowing his superior Darkseid to conquer the Earth too. From here Arthur begins to understand that he should do something more than just a man of action, he must demonstrate that he really cares about the Earth and its inhabitants and to do so he must join the Justice League and stop Steppenwolf’s plan. This marks the character’s turning point, where he begins to accept his responsibilities as an Atlantean and no longer as a simple enhanced superhuman. From here, the character begins to be something more.
An awareness | Aperit-Hero: Aquaman and the Responsibilities of a King
If with Justice League he started to move and do something more than protect the citizens of a village near the coast, in the first Aquaman film Arthur begins to have a realization about who he is and what he is to the world. From the beginning, his story is complicated: the son of a human and an Atlantean, the Queen Atlanna, who, however, distances herself from her family to return to her responsibilities as sovereign. Loneliness afflicts little Arthur, who decides to ignore the Atlanteans due to his abandonment and to live mainly on Earth together with his father, who loved and raised him. When Mera arrives, sent from Atlantis to invite Arthur to challenge his half-brother Orm, also known as Ocean Masterfor the throne, Arthur initially has no interest in becoming king.
Things change, however, when he discovers that Orm intends to attack the human kingdom. Arthur, particularly caring about his house, finally decides to challenge Orm to take over the throne and thus prevent his half-brother from triggering the catastrophe. This, however, reluctantly, because Arthur he never wanted to be kingdecides to make this sacrifice and fulfill his role as sovereign only and exclusively for the love of his home. This is the heart of the character, Arthur decides to sacrifice his freedom to be with his father and the friends he met on dry land to dedicate himself completely to defending it from a distance, becoming the King of Atlantis.
Acceptance | Aperit-Hero: Aquaman and the Responsibilities of a King
The final phase of analysis of this character lies in his acceptance of his new life. Since he accepted to be the King of Atlantis and to fulfill his role as sovereign, Arthur’s life has ups and downs. On the one hand he built a family by marrying Mera, a woman he loves and with whom he had a child: Arthur Jr. On the other hand, however, things get complicated, because as you have always reiterated, Arthur doesn’t want to be king, occupies a role that he doesn’t like, which doesn’t feel like his, but which he covers anyway because he is aware that it is his duty. What we see in Aquaman 2 is in fact a phase of acceptance of his living conditions. But not only.
In addition to having to lead an entire kingdom, the great Aquaman also has a huge responsibility: protect Atlantis and the human kingdom simultaneously. To do so, however, he must put aside his grudges against his half-brother Orm and form an alliance with him to defeat a common threat: Black Manta, who seeks revenge against Aquaman for his father’s death during their first confrontation. What’s more, he must also protect his family and the kingdom of the Atlanteans, as Black Manta has awakened a dark force capable of destroying the world through Black Trident. The success against this great threat is achieved only thanks to the help of Orm, who in this film obtains his redemption and finally the two brothers create a healthy and strong bond.
The revolution of a character
All things considered, let’s face it, if it hadn’t been for Zack Snyder who introduced the character, for James Wan which continued and deepened its history and for Jason Momoa with his charm and charisma, Aquaman would remain one of the most rejected superheroes by the community. All this has changed thanks to new interpretation that they gave to the character, who before Jason Momoa wasn’t very popular, on the contrary, he was considered one of the most unlucky comic book characters. Fortunately things have changed, thanks above all to the charisma that his actor gave him, who we hope to see again in the role, although we don’t know how, given that DC will start from scratch with its cinematic universe. Time itself will tell us what will happen to Aquaman and what James Gunn has in store for Jason Momoa.
Aquaman is the last protagonist of this year’s Aperit-Hero! We hope you have a good 2023 and above all let’s hope that 2024 can be an even richer year! Continue to follow us on TechGameWorld.com to continue following the Aperit-Hero column and much more from the world of cinema!
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