Aquaman #57

Issue Details

Synopsis

Continued from ADVENTURE COMICS #452. Aquaman will not let the murder of someone close to him go unavenged, and so he takes the fight to Black Manta, the murderer himself!The Black Manta has killed Aquaman's infant son. On the hunt for his old enemy, Aquaman is ambushed by the Black Manta's henchmen. As quickly as Aquaman puts one man down, several more appear. Aquaman summons an armada of marine life to even the odds. The Black Manta's men are pierced by sea urchin spines. Their air hoses are cut by sand dollars, thrown by octopi. They are then battered by whales. The Black Manta follows the action on a view screen, within his hidden lair. One of his men, Cal Durham, finds his politics at odds with the Black Manta's methods. Durham is seeking only a place where black men can live in peace and pride. His alliance with the Black Manta was never meant to include murder. Durham attempts to abandon his part in the Black Manta's revenge scheme against Aquaman, but the Black Manta threaten to kill Durham if he tries to leave. Having dealt with the Black Manta's men, Aquaman closes on a barnacle encrusted, World War II era, German submarine. It's hull is emblazoned with the words, "The Conqueror", in fresh paint. Aquaman determines that it is the likely location of the Black Manta. As if to confirm the Sea King's suspicions, Aquaman is attacked by robot manta rays. Aquaman destroys the manta drones easily enough, but falls prey to an enormous robot squid. Held fast in it's mechanical tentacles, Aquaman again summons an armada of marine life to aid him. This time, though, his fish army are intercepted by the Black Manta's robot fish drones. Stalemated, Aquaman finds himself being slowly crushed to death by the robot squid. Meanwhile, in a far away grotto, General Horgan, an officer in the employ of NATO, awakes to find himself the prisoner of the Fisherman. Horgan is not alone, as the Fisherman is also holding several influential statesmen, from countries around the world,...