Aquaman #27: Good art and a well-told story, but the political stuff is starting to get in the way. No rating, since I think how you feel about the politics will be a major factor in overall enjoyment. $1.75/$2.50

"Gimme Some Of That Tuna" Award to Aquaman #27

Aquaman "The Rising Sun": With hardly a moment to catch our breath after the conclusion of the big 25 issue arc, PAD launches into another big arc, Aquaman versus Japan. After Porm's funeral and tying off some loose ends, Arthur finds the killer (who wanted to be found), beats him silly and then tries to take him back to Atlantis for judgement...but mean ol' Japan doesn't recognize the killing of dolphins as murder.

While the story fits perfectly with the characterization of Arthur and Dolphin (of COURSE they think of dolphins as people), the whole politicial posturing angle rather sours me on the story. While I could handle it as a subplot, and while I can grimace and try to ignore Dooley's ham-handed environmental sign-off each issue, running this up as the main plot may cause me to seriously consider dropping the book for the duration. The line between fictional conflict and real life demagoguery is getting too thin for my taste. Mixing politics into a comic is always dangerous, since you'll lose a those who disagree with you or just don't give a damn about the issue.