Aquaman (2025-) #12

by Jeremy Adams, John Timms (Artist)

DC K.O. All Fight Month, round 2 of 8! Friends become foes in a battle with cataclysmic consequences!

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics

Kindle Edition

Published December 10, 2025

Reviews

[Colin Post · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, how Aquaman takes out Hawkman the second time, by controlling the blood in his body via its water content, is pretty bad ass. But there’s not too much else going on in this confrontation, definitely not as much interesting character work as in Captain Atom v Superman. I’m also still find it very grating how Adams writes all the women in the book as slavishly worshipping Arthur.

[Cristhian · Rating 4 out of 5]

a nice showcase of Aquaman's new powerset

[Roland Baldwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily accessible as a one shot within an ongoing

[Raymond Paquette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brutal.

[Cybernex007 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our first matchup of a 2-0 knockout award goes to Aquaman. I have to admit there were some rocky moments to that issue and it didn’t feel quite as well constructed as the Superman vs Captain atom fight, but that had some good hype moments for Aquaman. Carter may be able to channel the powers of a god, but before the tournament even started Aquaman had omega energy running inside of him to become a god in his own right! He is the dark tide and out of everyone I truly want to see Aquaman the most affected by this tournament. Hr was impressive seeing him channel the water deep underground in the seemingly barren world they were fighting on. But even Hawkman could tell something is wrong within, and he has become something different from the old friend and protector he knows. Aquaman is immediately able to knock Hawkman out of the sky with a giant wave and rip his wings off, only for Horus to visit Hawkman between rounds and grant him his power. Hawkman returned with a vengeance and whipped up a whirlwind powerful enough to knock Aquaman away from the water and into space so there was no water for him to control. But that is where Hawkman is mistaken, no matter what there is always water to control and Aquaman used his powers to control the water inside of Hawkman’s body! Freezing him up and grabbing hold of him to drive him back down into the planet and get the knockout and deliver the most aura farming walk away I’ve seen in a minute. Can’t wait for the tables to turn and for Aquaman to finally see what this energy is doing to him. The power comes with a cost.

I am also a little disappointed they included the watchtower interlude in the middle of the book instead of the end, so I’m mentioning it here instead. It’s a small moment but it continues the fight between darkseid, inside booster’s body using him as a vessel, and the world forger after chucking the time trapper out into space. The world forger decides to counter by slamming down his hammer and summoning a whole army of boosters to fight darkseid and just dog pile him, lol. I’m sure that won’t last long but it’s a good bit by the world forger.

[AviChaim Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this issue, but I ultimately came away a bit disappointed by how brief it felt. I was really hoping for a full, all-out clash between Hawkman and Aquaman, but the confrontation wrapped up so quickly that it never truly became a fight, more a swift defeat for Hawkman than a proper showdown. I understand that this issue takes place mid-run in Aquaman, but the pacing made the encounter feel rushed and underdeveloped.
I’ve often heard how much Jeremy Adams wants to write Hawkman, which had me especially excited to see his take on Carter Hall. While I did like the voice Adams gave the character, it simply wasn’t enough time to fully explore or showcase him. Additionally, the "character power change" aspect felt underutilized. We mostly stuck with a single version of Aquaman and only a couple of versions of Hawkman, with the “evolved” form feeling more like a cosmetic change than a true reinvention.
That said, this wasn’t a bad issue by any means; it just didn’t live up to what I was hoping for. Grade: B

[RubiGiráldez RubiGiráldez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tengo que animarme a ponerme con esta etapa del héroe submarino por parte de Jeremy Adams, porque los dos tie ins asociados a DC KO me han establecido unas ideas estupendas en torno a este Arthur Curry que asume un rol de liderazgo de su propio superequipo (con una hija adolescente) tras esa dolorosa pérdida en un momento en el que también se convierte en avatar de la fuerza vital acuática. Esto se convierte en clave para el versus con su amigo y aliado Hawkman en el Torneo por coronarse Rey Omega. Carter alude a su estatus ancestral y conexión con la deidad Horus, pero Jeremy Adams hace buen uso de su Deus Ex Machina como guionista y lleva este número a un gran nivel de super acción y emoción.

[Jerry Aguirre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aquaman WIPES THE FLOOR with Hawkman. Not even close. They made him SUPER OP. He might actually be a contender to win the whole tournament. He has learned to wield the blue, but is worried that it’s actually the blue controlling him.

It also seems like the omega heart is giving him more powers, feeding his negative side of losing Mera. He might be another hero (like Atom) to struggle against the heart and lose.

Anyways, just like in basketball, not all matchups are entertaining and a nail biter. Some are just a clean sweep, and that’s what this was. Still cool tho.

[Antonio Escobar · Rating 5 out of 5]

😭😭PUT SOME RESPECT ON AQUAMAN😭😭
Ngl after hawkman had the convo with HORUS—I’m like yeah we gonna get a fight fight but nah, aquaman used the power of water and basic understanding of general chemistry/biology to win

Class act

Aquaman is him and he’s getting some redemption

I was listening to I don’t like by chief keef near the end of this issue and this describes aquaman’s timing💀excited to read WONDER WOMAN VS LOBO next

[Craig Schorling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun spectacle that took a direction that I wasn't expecting. Tie-in issues usually suffer from not having a lot to do with the main story and while that is still true to a degree with these fights, the fights are straight forward and fun. They are one of the biggest selling points of an event based on a tournament. I do not read much of either of these characters and this was still enjoyable.

[Jacob Shaffer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, Aquaman’s new big ahhh family is definitely one of the highlights.

Aquaman Vs Hawkman, Carter changes his skin between battles as we’ve grown accustomed to and Arthur does not. DC fans know of the Red, and the Green, now Aqy keeps talking about the Blue, mmmm yeah that’s fine I’m okay with it

[Paloma Montecino · Rating 2 out of 5]

2⭐
Bueno, en primer lugar me cagaron con mi predicción acerca de que iba a ganar un enfrentamiento cada uno y el tercero desempataba...me re cagaron loco.
En segundo lugar, no fue de mis batallas favoritas porque ninguno de ellos dos es de mis personajes favoritos, entonces convengamos que me daba igual quien ganase.

[Zach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally some supers that know what’s on the line and are ready to battle it out right away

[alejandro galvez · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good.

Yeah! This issue was a banger! Aquaman is cooler than people give him credit for. This series has been a real treat. Go Aquaman!

[Mark Cubillos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This took me by surprise and showcases Aquaman’s new powers.