Peter David in this ish adds a well written tragic heros journey to Arthur's youth. Starting off in Alaska, Arthur saves a Eskimo girl from getting eaten by a polar bear. They manage to kill it together but from the ravage bear Arthur falls unconscious after the fight. Kako the Eskimo girl take shim to her home.

Her grandfather is a man who is weary of white men because he blames them for corrupting his native land and their traditional way of life. To his surprise he comes to his sod hut with a young boy (Arthur) being cared for. Despite his weariness the old man welcomes Arthur for saving Kako.

The ish also shows that Orm is not to far away but is living more like the modern times rather than the traditionalist way. He's arguing with his mother and he talks about how he was a bastard. How did Orm end up all the way here and what's the story with him and his mother? Hopefully we find out more later on.

Arthur and Kako get real friendly, and at one point Kako takes her coat off and ask Aquaman to "warm" her 😉 and they get it on. In the distance Orm was watching them f**k and later on when Arthur wakes up he finds Kako all bloodied and beaten up. Still alive but barely.

When he brings her back she gets visions of the lands native goddess treating him, but he manages to defeat her by commanding her hair of sea snakes to go after her. When he wakes up Kako is saved, he tells the family what happened and the grandfather freaks out that Arthur has angered their native goddess and dies from a heart attack. The mother screams and blames Arthur for destroying the family and makes him leave.

This has some really good emotional moments that adds some real emotional depth to Aquamans development. This imo is how you do a great backstory of a heros youth unlike the most recent Mark Waid Superboy run which is the opposite and has absolutely no emotional weight to it at all... more