OVERVIEW:

Aquaman comes home from JLA business to find farmers asleep in their fields, and the harvest being looted by Black Manta. Aquaman is also becoming groggy, and can't effectively fight, so Manta escapes. After discussing the issue with Vulko, Aquaman dons a scuba tank and goes to the next likely target. This time the chemical doesn't affect him, and he easily defeats Manta.

COMMENTS:

On his return to Atlantis, Aquaman says it feels like he's been gone for two or three years. Well, he has. It's been almost three and a half years since his last adventure in issue #56 of his own book.

Mike Grell's artwork is fluid and graceful, and at times makes Aquaman look very bizarre. In one panel of this story, Aquaman appears to be wearing eye makeup. In others, his stance looks more like a pose than anything. He makes Vulko look muscular and stout instead of fat, which isn't a bad look at all.

Instead of taking Manta prisoner and punishing him for his crimes, Aquaman lets him go. This doesn't make a lot of sense from a story perspective. Manta was raiding the city's food supplies. Aquaman can't let that sort of crime go unpunished... but he does.

CONCLUSION:

A strange little story with a disappointing ending.