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Aquaman (2003) #15-22
Aquaman: Sub Diego
A devastating earthquake hits San Diego, leaving thousands dead. But someone survived the cataclysm ... and their survival will require Aquaman to take on a new role that draws upon all his experience as a hero and leader of a nation!
Written by Will Pfeifer (TEEN TITANS) and illustrated by Patrick Gleason (BATMAN AND ROBIN), AQUAMAN: SUB DIEGO is the first ever collection of this classic story. Collects issues #15-22 of AQUAMAN.
Written by Will Pfeifer (TEEN TITANS) and illustrated by Patrick Gleason (BATMAN AND ROBIN), AQUAMAN: SUB DIEGO is the first ever collection of this classic story. Collects issues #15-22 of AQUAMAN.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
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108 people want to read
About the author
Will Pfeifer
312 books23 followersWill Pfeifer was born in 1967 in the town of Niles, Ohio. He attended Kent State University and graduated in 1989. He has resided in Rockford, Illinois since 1990, with his wife, Amy.
Pfeifer, along with his comic writing duties, is the assistant features editor at the Rockford Register Star. He also writes a weekly DVD column for the Sunday paper.
Pfeifer, along with his comic writing duties, is the assistant features editor at the Rockford Register Star. He also writes a weekly DVD column for the Sunday paper.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
June 15, 2016
San Diego falls into the sea following a massive earthquake! Hundreds of thousands of citizens dead in one fell swoop… or are they? Aquaman investigates!
Aquaman polices Atlantis like Batman and Superman watch over Gotham and Metropolis except during this time in the character’s history (about ten years ago), he was in exile from his kingdom and needed an underwater city to be heroic in. Writer Will Pfeifer came up with a clever solution: move a human city into the sea so Aquaman can go back to being underwater Superman – brilliant!
Despite that inspired choice, Sub Diego (I see what they did there…) is just an ok Aquaman book. First of all DC really need to add a “Volume 1” to the title because this is only the first half of the story – it’s not a complete arc. Also, if you’re a New 52 Aquaman fan, you might be disappointed with the total absence of Mera, his wife. She’s been subbed in this book for a bland girl called Lorena who platonically tags along with Aquaman for a bit (she’s on the cover - Lorena eventually becomes Aquagirl).
The story is only intermittently interesting. The mystery of how San Diego fell in the sea, the villains behind it, and the fledgling society of Sub Diego aren’t bad but once we get into how Sub Diego society operates, things get a little too generically superhero-y for my taste. For example, Aquaman stops robbers who’re still doing the same old “breaking into safes” thing only they’re doing it underwater. Aquaman doesn’t have any especially amazing scenes or great dialogue and quite often he’s playing the quiet, stoic, boring hero and occasional aghast observer.
Patrick Gleason’s art though is the best I’ve seen from him. Oftentimes the scenes are dark and unsettling – there’s a lotta blood and gore in this one – so it’s not like Aquaman was some joke character before Geoff Johns got his hands on him in the New 52 (although I’d deffo read a Saturday morning cartoon Aquaman comic a la Batman ‘66!). Despite the grim tone, a number of times I was deeply impressed with the epic vision Gleason produced on the page. This one’s a big, big storyline for Aquaman and Gleason definitely gives it its due. His Aquaman though is a little cartoony with his oddly-shaped head!
Aquaman: Sub Diego (unofficially Part 1) isn’t a bad comic and I liked the setup but what followed wasn’t the most riveting stuff. It was Aquaman being Aquaman and little else besides. That and the fact that we don’t get the full story here doesn’t make for a satisfying read – it’s a shame DC didn’t package the whole arc into one volume. Patrick Gleason’s art though is outstanding and makes up for Will Pfeifer’s weak script.
This isn’t the best Aquaman book you’ll read but it’s definitely better than some of the utterly awful Aquaman comics that’ve come out in the last couple years.
Aquaman polices Atlantis like Batman and Superman watch over Gotham and Metropolis except during this time in the character’s history (about ten years ago), he was in exile from his kingdom and needed an underwater city to be heroic in. Writer Will Pfeifer came up with a clever solution: move a human city into the sea so Aquaman can go back to being underwater Superman – brilliant!
Despite that inspired choice, Sub Diego (I see what they did there…) is just an ok Aquaman book. First of all DC really need to add a “Volume 1” to the title because this is only the first half of the story – it’s not a complete arc. Also, if you’re a New 52 Aquaman fan, you might be disappointed with the total absence of Mera, his wife. She’s been subbed in this book for a bland girl called Lorena who platonically tags along with Aquaman for a bit (she’s on the cover - Lorena eventually becomes Aquagirl).
The story is only intermittently interesting. The mystery of how San Diego fell in the sea, the villains behind it, and the fledgling society of Sub Diego aren’t bad but once we get into how Sub Diego society operates, things get a little too generically superhero-y for my taste. For example, Aquaman stops robbers who’re still doing the same old “breaking into safes” thing only they’re doing it underwater. Aquaman doesn’t have any especially amazing scenes or great dialogue and quite often he’s playing the quiet, stoic, boring hero and occasional aghast observer.
Patrick Gleason’s art though is the best I’ve seen from him. Oftentimes the scenes are dark and unsettling – there’s a lotta blood and gore in this one – so it’s not like Aquaman was some joke character before Geoff Johns got his hands on him in the New 52 (although I’d deffo read a Saturday morning cartoon Aquaman comic a la Batman ‘66!). Despite the grim tone, a number of times I was deeply impressed with the epic vision Gleason produced on the page. This one’s a big, big storyline for Aquaman and Gleason definitely gives it its due. His Aquaman though is a little cartoony with his oddly-shaped head!
Aquaman: Sub Diego (unofficially Part 1) isn’t a bad comic and I liked the setup but what followed wasn’t the most riveting stuff. It was Aquaman being Aquaman and little else besides. That and the fact that we don’t get the full story here doesn’t make for a satisfying read – it’s a shame DC didn’t package the whole arc into one volume. Patrick Gleason’s art though is outstanding and makes up for Will Pfeifer’s weak script.
This isn’t the best Aquaman book you’ll read but it’s definitely better than some of the utterly awful Aquaman comics that’ve come out in the last couple years.
October 17, 2021
This was pretty good.
It starts with San Diego sinking in water and then we find that people are dying because they have been transformed into water living creatures and even if they come back on land, they won't survive and so we follow Aquaman as he pieces together the mysteries of that and meets the man Geist who was responsible for it and its really well done, the mysteries of it all and us finding about the COUNCIL behind it and him fighting a new villain "The Eel", its epic the way it concludes.
I also love the inclusion of Lorena, the new Aquagirl and well her mysteries and strange new origins and the way its done and how Batman is involved and the new geo-political status of what it means. The art was so good by Gleason, he gets these characters so well and everything! Its definitely a must read!
It starts with San Diego sinking in water and then we find that people are dying because they have been transformed into water living creatures and even if they come back on land, they won't survive and so we follow Aquaman as he pieces together the mysteries of that and meets the man Geist who was responsible for it and its really well done, the mysteries of it all and us finding about the COUNCIL behind it and him fighting a new villain "The Eel", its epic the way it concludes.
I also love the inclusion of Lorena, the new Aquagirl and well her mysteries and strange new origins and the way its done and how Batman is involved and the new geo-political status of what it means. The art was so good by Gleason, he gets these characters so well and everything! Its definitely a must read!
May 30, 2016
Aside from Batman (bc obvs), Aquaman is probably my favorite member of the Justice League, and it's due entirely to this kinda-old run by Will Pfeifer that DC has finally had the good sense to start collecting, umpteen years later. I dunno what kind of favors Pfeifer has called in recently -- he's not exactly a well-known writer, but this year has seen both his Aquaman and Catwoman series resurface in new collected editions, seemingly out of nowhere. Since both of these runs were must-buys for me back in the mid-00s, I'm very happy to be reading them again (because let's be honest, there's no way I'm digging those single issues out of the longboxes at my parents' house anytime soon).
As the title indicates, in Sub Diego the city of San Diego is earthquaked into the ocean -- but instead of killing off the populace, the incident triggers a mysterious citywide mutation that causes San Diegans to become water breathers. And what's an underwater city without an underwater king?
Sub Diego is basically a clever contrivance to give Arthur Curry a more relatable way to do what he does best. One of the many reasons that Aquaman is the butt of every joke isn't just because his powers seem ineffectual: it's because he is essentially an alien ruling over an alien world, which doesn't give the reader much to invest in. SD raises the stakes on all fronts -- there's now a palpable human element, an immediate mystery that needs solving, a disaster that needs response, and the waters have become unfamiliar and terrifying. Somehow, brilliantly, Pfeifer applies a very Batman-esque formula to Aquaman, and it works like a dream while still feeling entirely true to the character.
Like his Catwoman run, here Pfeifer balances a skill for interesting central concepts, and for one-and-done monthly adventures -- in each issue, you get the drama of long-form narrative and the zing of an action serial. There's sea monsters, scuba pirates, and tons of Arthur running around and mixing it up with all the members of the JLA who piss him off (hint: all of them). The art is also excellent -- Patrick Gleason's line has a exactness and fluidity that makes me think of Doug Mahnke. It's clean without feeling "house style."
Sub Diego was originally sandwiched between a not-very-good semi-mystical-whatsit run by Rick Veitch that's been in trade for years despite no one liking it, and Kurt Busiek's Arthurian-Knight-of-the-Whatever run that's also been in trade for years despite no one liking it. The problem with most Aquman storylines is that they ignore the retro-cool that makes him fucking great. No matter how many times he's reinvented, Aquaman will be forever ingrained in the fanboy hivemind riding around on the back of a seahorse, with perfect hair, gleaming orange armor, and a dolphin for a friend. The more fully this imagery is embraced, the better he gets. '66 Batman, for example, is still a badass, and Saturday Morning Aquaman is still a tough-as-nails warrior king.
Pfeifer, for my money, is the only writer in recent memory who really gets this (without compensation or apology), and I'm glad his series is finally seeing the light of day.
As the title indicates, in Sub Diego the city of San Diego is earthquaked into the ocean -- but instead of killing off the populace, the incident triggers a mysterious citywide mutation that causes San Diegans to become water breathers. And what's an underwater city without an underwater king?
Sub Diego is basically a clever contrivance to give Arthur Curry a more relatable way to do what he does best. One of the many reasons that Aquaman is the butt of every joke isn't just because his powers seem ineffectual: it's because he is essentially an alien ruling over an alien world, which doesn't give the reader much to invest in. SD raises the stakes on all fronts -- there's now a palpable human element, an immediate mystery that needs solving, a disaster that needs response, and the waters have become unfamiliar and terrifying. Somehow, brilliantly, Pfeifer applies a very Batman-esque formula to Aquaman, and it works like a dream while still feeling entirely true to the character.
Like his Catwoman run, here Pfeifer balances a skill for interesting central concepts, and for one-and-done monthly adventures -- in each issue, you get the drama of long-form narrative and the zing of an action serial. There's sea monsters, scuba pirates, and tons of Arthur running around and mixing it up with all the members of the JLA who piss him off (hint: all of them). The art is also excellent -- Patrick Gleason's line has a exactness and fluidity that makes me think of Doug Mahnke. It's clean without feeling "house style."
Sub Diego was originally sandwiched between a not-very-good semi-mystical-whatsit run by Rick Veitch that's been in trade for years despite no one liking it, and Kurt Busiek's Arthurian-Knight-of-the-Whatever run that's also been in trade for years despite no one liking it. The problem with most Aquman storylines is that they ignore the retro-cool that makes him fucking great. No matter how many times he's reinvented, Aquaman will be forever ingrained in the fanboy hivemind riding around on the back of a seahorse, with perfect hair, gleaming orange armor, and a dolphin for a friend. The more fully this imagery is embraced, the better he gets. '66 Batman, for example, is still a badass, and Saturday Morning Aquaman is still a tough-as-nails warrior king.
Pfeifer, for my money, is the only writer in recent memory who really gets this (without compensation or apology), and I'm glad his series is finally seeing the light of day.
October 5, 2015
Pick this up at Baltimore Comic Con along with few other great graphic novels. I have been reading a lot the New 52 Aquaman books. They have really given me an appreciation for the character of Aquaman. So I was really looking forward to reading a Pre-New 52 Dc comic story arc for the character. I hope after reading this book DC Comics will release more reprints of the best Aquaman stories. I will begin by stating the obvious that I am a newcomer to this Aquaman story arc. But what really works well here is that did not have know what occurred in the issues before this collection. The basic premise here has our hero Aquaman investigating the sudden sinking of San Diego California into the ocean. There is a lot of death but somehow Aquaman discovers survivors that for some reason are now unable to breath on land but in water. This plot was extremely interesting and the mystery was well paced in keeping me on the edge of my seat. The artwork is not bad. There some great surprise appearances by other DC Comics character which include Batman and the Martian Manhunter. This story was great enough to make want to read others.
April 13, 2016
Fun story for the King of Atlantis--frustrating that there aren't more trades of his published. Since this is New 52, the character has a sense of history that gives him weight, without making him feel unapproachable/too complex for the new reader. The plot of this volume is straightforward: much of San Diego just falls into the sea one day, and Aquaman must investigate why while helping the survivors adjust to life underwater. It's quick, enjoyable, unusual, fresh. Some of the art is surprisingly graphic--decaying bodies and fish nibbling on gore--but uniformly delightful. Also, because this is DC, there's a Batman cameo.
November 1, 2016
This was pretty cool. I loved the concept of there being this new underwater city that used to be San-Diego. The issues with the government later in the comic made sense to me. The art wasn't my favorite in this for whatever reason. I feel like Aquaman is basically underwater batman. He's really broody. He wasn't really that interesting to me, though. I'm not sure if I'll read any more of this Aquaman. There were a few really cool fight scenes. I liked the way Aquaman used his powers sometimes. Loved Lorena. Would have liked to see her be able to do more I think. Might pick up more comics just to read more on her.
July 5, 2015
This was, hands down, one of the dumbest stories that ever came out of DC Comics. It's one of the reasons why Aquaman has been the butt of endless jokes and put downs for decades.
June 13, 2021
A fascinating attempt at reinventing Aquaman as a more traditional superhero through the use of a creative high-concept premise: the city of San Diego has collapsed into the ocean, but a sizable portion of its population are somehow transformed into water-breathers when it happens-- forcing them to stay below the surface and try to reconstruct their city as "Sub Diego". Aquaman takes it upon himself to aid in the rescue and reconstruction efforts, and inevitably becomes the city's dedicated champion-- like Batman is to Gotham, or Superman to Metropolis.
Unfortunately, writer Will Pfeifer seems far more enamored with the logistics of his concept than he is with any of the characters. And to be fair, he does a GREAT job of thinking through all the problems that would arise if a major American city had to reconstitute itself underwater-- such as how rescue efforts would have to be coordinated, how pets might be affected, or the fact that guns and cigarettes would suddenly become useless. But when it comes to our protagonists, they mostly seem to be there to facilitate exposition. Take Lorena Marquez, our secondary lead: a young woman who joins Aquaman after he discovers her in the ruins of the city. The one and only character beat she has is to angrily prod Aquaman to find out who was responsible for sinking the city, because (as she reminds us ad nauseum) she lost her entire family in the disaster. Other than that, she's there to have the plot explained to her, and occasionally to be rescued.
But Aquaman himself may actually suffer the most of all from this attempted revitalization. Because-- aside from some moments when he shows off cool new uses for his powers-- he barely stands out as anything but a generic superhero-type in this volume; there's nothing to connect him personally to the story. He doesn't know anyone in Sub Diego. He doesn't have any specific motivation to help these people out, aside from general altruism. We don't get any sense of who Aquaman IS outside of just being a square-jawed good guy. And once he starts going after petty criminals and organized crime-lords later in the volume, it becomes depressingly clear that the driving force behind this revamp was probably to "make Aquaman more like Batman".
It was an interesting experiment, I'll give it that. But I'm not surprised that this new direction didn't last. Because despite DC's clear embarrassment with the character and his world, Aquaman is more fun when he's allowed to just be himself.
Unfortunately, writer Will Pfeifer seems far more enamored with the logistics of his concept than he is with any of the characters. And to be fair, he does a GREAT job of thinking through all the problems that would arise if a major American city had to reconstitute itself underwater-- such as how rescue efforts would have to be coordinated, how pets might be affected, or the fact that guns and cigarettes would suddenly become useless. But when it comes to our protagonists, they mostly seem to be there to facilitate exposition. Take Lorena Marquez, our secondary lead: a young woman who joins Aquaman after he discovers her in the ruins of the city. The one and only character beat she has is to angrily prod Aquaman to find out who was responsible for sinking the city, because (as she reminds us ad nauseum) she lost her entire family in the disaster. Other than that, she's there to have the plot explained to her, and occasionally to be rescued.
But Aquaman himself may actually suffer the most of all from this attempted revitalization. Because-- aside from some moments when he shows off cool new uses for his powers-- he barely stands out as anything but a generic superhero-type in this volume; there's nothing to connect him personally to the story. He doesn't know anyone in Sub Diego. He doesn't have any specific motivation to help these people out, aside from general altruism. We don't get any sense of who Aquaman IS outside of just being a square-jawed good guy. And once he starts going after petty criminals and organized crime-lords later in the volume, it becomes depressingly clear that the driving force behind this revamp was probably to "make Aquaman more like Batman".
It was an interesting experiment, I'll give it that. But I'm not surprised that this new direction didn't last. Because despite DC's clear embarrassment with the character and his world, Aquaman is more fun when he's allowed to just be himself.
October 29, 2017
With the new Justice League movie coming out, I wanted to read something highlighting Aquaman. I've not read much with him, unless he just happen to be a character in a larger story. Well, earlier this year, I watched "Throne of Atlantis," and learned that, despite what "The Big Bang Theory" suggests, Aquaman does not "suck underwater." In fact, he's pretty downright formidable. I was surprised by how dark this comic was. However, it didn't feel as though it was dark just for the sake of being dark (like so many modern comics can be). The storytelling was always on-point, and it definitely had me turning the pages, wondering what was going to happen next. I also really enjoyed Martian Manhunter and Batman's cameos. The art wasn't my all-time favorite, but, still, this is a pretty solid graphic novel.
February 23, 2019
Will Pfeifer and Patrick Gleason deliver a very good Aquaman tale full of heart, heroics, and tragedy. I enjoyed the fact the book moved fast into how the disaster changed everything instead of the actual event. The book could have used a little more exposition, especially for new readers but it was still a fun read. Gleason's art, especially the aquatic life scenes was very good. Overall, a treat.
December 4, 2018
This volume was a vast improvement from Aquaman: The Waterbearer (New Edition) (Aquaman). I will admit that the New 52 Aquaman still is my favorite so far in my journey through various story arcs. This, however is one of the best I have read besides the New 52. I have yet to read the Rebirth and Classic Aquaman lines, but their time is coming.
January 6, 2024
In my opinion, the beginning of the Sub Diego arc was one of the most interesting things that ever happened to Aquaman: the environment played to his strengths, but also gave him new challenges. There were losts of interesting speculative pieces of world-building at play. I think this is well worth a read, esp for folks newer to Aquaman.
August 20, 2019
Easily my favorite Aquaman story
July 19, 2025
i read better comics
October 23, 2020
Hard to believe how soon after the Waterbearer arc this story comes. Feels like an attempt at a course correct that doesn't quite land. I was interested in a whole mystical rebrand of Aquaman, but this makes little to no mention. The concept of submerging the city and mutating the population to be water breathers is interesting, but this doesn't go far enough. I'd be interested in seeing Lorena Marquez' full transformation into Aqualgirl, but I don't intend to read on.
For more, tune in to Comic Book Coffee Break. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOtBW...
For more, tune in to Comic Book Coffee Break. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOtBW...
September 3, 2015
This raises an interesting question: would you sacrifice a few hundred thousand people to save billions? Aquaman comes face-to-face with such a situation when a large part of San Diego sinks into the ocean. This story does a good job of making Aquaman and his powers seem relevant and powerful. There were two things that I didn't care for though. First, the villain in this arc was a bit disappointing. Second, there were a few too many scenes of gore than I cared for. Lighten up of the gore, DC!
September 2, 2015
Primo fumetto di Aquaman che leggo: molto buono!
Pfeifer mi era piaciuto anche su Catwoman; in questo caso, non so se è lo scrittore giusto anche per questo personaggio, o se è proprio un bravo scrittore di per sè, ma la storia è molto bella.
Incalzante, con buoni tempi narrativi, si dipana e si espande piano piano fino al finale.
I disegni funzionano bene, anche se alcune tavole, soprattutto le splash-page, non mi hanno fatto impazzire.
Pfeifer mi era piaciuto anche su Catwoman; in questo caso, non so se è lo scrittore giusto anche per questo personaggio, o se è proprio un bravo scrittore di per sè, ma la storia è molto bella.
Incalzante, con buoni tempi narrativi, si dipana e si espande piano piano fino al finale.
I disegni funzionano bene, anche se alcune tavole, soprattutto le splash-page, non mi hanno fatto impazzire.
October 23, 2015
While this story has an interesting premise, the writing isn't good enough. The dialog is stilted, the characterizations often illogical, various plot holes become glaringly obvious, and the book doesn't include the true ending of the overall story. The art is effective with a nice use of shadowing, although the figure work looks a bit stiff.
September 8, 2022
A surprisingly good read! Some great art from Gleason and the writing from Pfeifer is brilliant. I've never been a big Aquaman person but this book is a great use of the character and a good story all around! I highly recommend this book for people looking to get into Aquaman.
Want to read
August 13, 2016Edición española que incluye Aquaman Vol. IV #15-20, la saga conocida en inglés como "American Tidal".
November 11, 2015
I remember reading a few issues of this is single-comic form years ago. Nice to go over them again.
April 25, 2016
My first encounter with Aquaman in his own world and I must say it wasn't all that bad.
Strange ending though? It feels like there was still a part left untold..
Strange ending though? It feels like there was still a part left untold..
July 15, 2015
Just wished it felt like everything was here in the collection.
December 2, 2018
Very easy to pick up and read, even if you've never read any other Aquaman books (as was the case with me!), though it was a little harrowing at times considering that I live in San Diego. I wanted to learn more about his character, but it gave me an appreciation for him all the same – I just wish the ending hadn't been so cliffhanger-y!
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews