I realize I’m in the minority, but I thoroughly enjoyed Zach Snyder’s Man of Steel. So, when Warner Bros. announced they’d be forming a full cinematic universe out of that film, I was excited.
Nothing has moved me from that excitement (though I still maintain that Grant Gustin and Stephen Amell should play the roles from their shows in the film), but the news has been a slow trickle to this point. Sure, we saw the Batmobile, and sad Batman on a waterslide, but not much else has really been revealed.
And then…well, they dropped this bomb:
So lets dive into the deep end, so to speak.
Unite The Seven and its Double Meaning
I really like this tagline for Aquaman, and it feels like they’ll be utilizing him as both a catalyst to bring the league together (a unifying presence, or an undersea aggressor? The world must know!), and pay homage to his position as the King of Atlantis. “The Seven”, of course, could mean the Justice League – often referred to as the ‘Big 7’, and/or the Seven Seas, of which Aquaman is ruler.
The Trident of Neptune
I like subtle nods, and this is as subtle as it gets, at least in my eyes. The Trident that Momoa’s Aquaman holds has five prongs, which looks like it was inspired by the Trident that Alex Ross painted for his renderings of Aquaman.
It’s a minor detail, but I really appreciate when films take enough care to show respect to the most influential comic creators of our generation.
Māori Influence
One of my biggest problems with the character of Aquaman is having such a dated appearance – nothing says ‘created in the 40’s’ like a blonde haired, blue-eyed superhero, built like a quarterback, the image of Americana. I don’t get ‘lover of the seas’ when I look at the comic book version of Arhur Curry.
But having Mamoa in the role, a native Pacific Islander (born in Hawai’I) fills me with happiness. The indigenous people of Polynesia relied heavily on the sea for travel, sustenance, and protection. It only makes sense that a person representing that culture would be the King of the Seas.
The Color Palate
Confession time: When I first saw the image, as awesome as it was, I was a bit bummed, because everything was covered in the ‘Snyder-Wash’ as I’ve taken to calling it. Browns and grays do not really make me think of the ocean. So, I grabbed the image and brought it into Photoshop. Playing with the color saturation level (no actual recoloring) I moved a slider and the result was what you see below:
Glorious greens, golds, oranges, and blacks! Blonde highlights! THIS is an Aquaman to get excited for, one I can’t wait to see on screen.
An Aquaman That Looks Like He’d Kick Your Ass
One of the biggest hurdles Aquaman has to overcome is the public perception that all he does is talk to fish. People think of Aquaman, and they remember mainstream appearances and references like on The Big Bang Theory (looking ridiculous):
So Snyder had a major challenge in front of him – Aquaman is perceived as a laughing stock, a ridiculous character that no one cares about, rather than an imposing, regal, badass that could easily stand toe-to-toe with Superman and not bat an eye.
Looking at the first image of Momoa’s Aquaman is to realize that we got exactly what every nerd has wanted for ages: for film adaptations to take the source material seriously, and not treat it as camp. General population, meet your Lord of the Depths. Meet Aquaman.
Jay Malone (@JCorduroy) once lived in a cupboard under the stairs, has been to a galaxy far, far, away (Chicago), and frequently fights off bouts of boredom by rolling dice and pretending to be someone else. His dog looks like Stitch, and his 6 year old son was named after a Latverian dictator…just don’t tell his wife.
