WARNING: Spoilers for Aquamen #1 ahead!
The archenemy of the DC Comics Atlantean hero Aquaman, the supervillain Black Manta, has been revealed to be working with Arthur Curry to help save the world in a cliff hanger ending at the end of the recent Aquamen #1. Aquamen is a new series featuring Arthur Curry and Jackson Hyde, the new Aquaman and estranged son of Black Manta, as they attempt to protect Earth from a dark Atlantean secret, and Black Manta might be key to the world’s survival.
David Hyde aka Black Manta has been the arch nemesis of Arthur Curry since his introduction in 1967’s Aquaman #35. He hates Arthur for accidentally killing his father, and has dedicated his entire life to killing Curry and getting his vengeance. His hatred of Arthur has led to a general hatred of all Atlanteans, and Hyde has several times attempted to destroy the Atlanteans or claim their territory for his own purposes. When Hyde discovered that Jackson was his son in Teen Titans: Rise of Aqualad he immediately kidnapped him to use him for his own purposes, making a new enemy out of his own son. Manta has been a part of major supervillain groups such as the Injustice League and the Legion of Doom, so it comes as a surprise that the usually self-obsessed and single-minded villain is now turning a new leaf and helping Curry and his son Jackson.
Aquamen #1 – written by Brandon Thomas and Chuck Brown with art Sami Basri – spins directly out of the conclusions of the 2021 Black Manta miniseries, which follows David Hyde as he discovers he himself has ancient Atlantean DNA. The Black Manta series has led to a revelatory change for the long-time supervillain, not just because he now knows he is a descendant of the African-Atlantean people known as the “Deserters,” but because by the end of the series he seems to take real accountability for the harm he has done to the story’s villain, Devil Ray. David seems genuine in his apology to Devil Ray, reflecting that he is sorry he could not be the hero Devil wanted him to be, and convincing him that a lifetime spent hating and seeking revenge is not worth it, before allowing the villain to escape.
Now, Black Manta has the opportunity to live up to his new values, and forge a better path forward for himself and his relationship with his son in the pages of the Aquamen comic. The series focuses on a group of secret Atlantean sleeper agents, activated remotely and designed to attack humanity on the surface of Earth, potentially in retribution for the oppression they have experienced at the hands of land dwellers. Black Manta witnesses one of these sleeper activations, after detecting a “human” with Atlantean DNA using his new Orichalcum trident, and retrieves the man’s body for further testing. When Jackson discovers his father, seemingly having killed and dissected this man, he attacks Black Manta before Arthur intervenes, shocking Jackson saying “Your father… he’s helping us now. This time… this time he’s on our side…” After decades spent as Aquaman’s archenemy, it is satisfying to see Black Manta turning towards a more heroic nature, especially because it was done in such a thoughtful and true-to-character way throughout the Black Manta miniseries.
Jackson Hyde’s mother is currently in a coma after a massive battle at the end of Aquaman: The Becoming, so if he is actually able to forgive his father and gain another family member, now would be the perfect time for a Hyde reunion. Teasers for future Aquamen issues hint that Arthur may have known about these Atlantean sleeper agents, which might ruin his marriage to Queen Mera as well as his relationship to Jackson,. It would be fascinating if Black Manta became the character that kept them all together in future issues of Aquamen from DC Comics.
