80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular: Aquaman #1
Critic Rating
User Rating
After defending the seven seas for eight decades, it's time to throw Aquaman a party! This all-star-filled anthology spans across the ocean king's legacy, not just celebrating his own triumphs, but also those of his greatest allies and enemies. We look at his ongoing romance with Mera, his bitter rivalry with Black Manta, his brotherly conflict with Ocean Master, and the inspiration he lends to younger heroes like Tempest and Jackson Hyde, the newest Aqualad. It would not be an Aquaman celebration without also looking at how he's changed over the years, including a brand-new tale of Bombshells Aquaman. This special brings together Aqua talent more
CRITIC REVIEWS Back to Top
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9.0
Geek Dad - Ray Goldfield
Aug 31, 2021Overall, there are a lot of top-tier stories in this volume. It's surprising not to see Kelly Sue DeConnick or Cullen Bunn in the writers, but the talent they picked up delivered a great volume. Read Full Review
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8.0
ComicBook.com - Matthew Aguilar
Sep 01, 2021Aquaman is one of DC's biggest icons, and he deserves to be celebrated as such. Thankfully DC did just that with the Aquaman 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular, and it's a celebration no Aquaman fan will want to miss. Read Full Review
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8.0
Nerdly - Dean Fuller
Sep 09, 2021As always, a nicely designed and delivered book. The pin ups and alternate covers were superb. The stories, as you would expect, were a mixed bag, with about half being top quality. I did think overall though Arthur Curry got less love than previous 80 page special characters did. The best stories for me were the ones that focused on his earlier days, and perhaps the collection didn't look at legacy quite enough. Overall, though, a solid book with some nice stuff from great creators. Read Full Review
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7.0
DC Comics News - Matthew Lloyd
Aug 31, 2021Overall, the Aquaman 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular is a solid issue that commemorates the character if not the different eras always effectively. The covers will get you through on that count, but it could get expensive if you wanted to collect 'em all! There's a lot to enjoy and a couple stories serve as portents of things to come that appear to be quite good. It's just sort of ironic that Black Manta and Jackson Hyde seem like they are poised to take Aquaman and the Aqua-Family's place. Read Full Review
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6.0
AIPT - Daniel Berlin
Aug 31, 2021A mixed bag of fun stories with great art, but too many are repetitive and play it safe. Well, happy birthday, Aquaman. Sorry your party's so lame. Read Full Review
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5.0
Lyles Movie Files - Jeffrey Lyles
Aug 31, 2021And for a book intended for that purpose, this special just doesnt seem worth the investment. This one is strictly for everyone whos a die hard Aquaman and want in on the ground floor of Jacksons ascension to the role of Aquaman. Read Full Review
USER REVIEWS Back to Top
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9.5
aquaman rules you drool
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7.5
There were so many pieces of Aquaman's epic that made Arthur Curry into such an interesting character. His relationship with Mera, the fears of not being good enough for her or as King of Atlantis. I also enjoy seeing him as a family man between him, Mera, Garth, and eventually Andy and Jackson. Plus the way they all handle the more bizarre encounters like the Lady in the Lake looks okay. Then there are the times when he and Ocean Master express themselves in artistic fashion. But there are a few things that don't seem quite right like epilogues to previous runs like in Dan Watters instance. Only thing missing is how Arthur actually interacts with Black Manta. It annoys me a little in how Aquaman (or even Jackson) practically had no part more
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7.0
This was one of the better anniversary anthologies from DC. Maybe it's because I haven't been reading a ton of comics lately, but this felt more engaging than DC's other recent outings. It wasn't amazing, but it was solidly okay. I can't say it made me a big fan of Aquaman, but I did selfishly come up with ideas for if I would write Aquaman. I will not share them here.
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6.5
One of the better of the recent crop of DC anniversary anthologies that I've read, but the format of several eight-page standalone stories puts a firm ceiling on how great any of these books can be. Still, a nice time for anyone looking for an Aquaman fix until the various miniseries kick off in a month or two.
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6.0
Another anthology, another book with mixed results. I liked Stephanie Phillips' story, she remembered Arion and I respect that, plus it really was a good story. Dan Watters' story was great, he wrote the YOTV one-shot for Orm too, he's the only writer who respects and understands Johns' version of the character. And Jurgens did a great job with his story, plus Epting on art is always a huge plus. The huge disappointment were Johns' story and Chuck Brown's. Since when is Manta an upstanding dad (Johns) or a guy who "fights for the people" (Brown)? Are you kidding me? Manta is a selfish douchebag, a horrible father and he fights only for himself, certainly he doesn't fight for "the people", even if they're black. He would slit the throat of a more
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6.0
Could've and should've been great
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6.0
AQUABEAST
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10
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8.5
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8.0
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8.0
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7.0
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6.5
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6.5
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6.0
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4.0
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