Wonder Woman #215 - Jan. 1975

Comics Weekend Another obscure Aquaman appearance, this was the Sea King's turn during the unusual storyline that featured Wonder Woman undergoing "trials" to see if she was qualified to return to the Justice League of America.

Diana had just wrapped up her powerless, Emma Peel phase, so now that she was Wonder Woman again, she had the JLA members--one by one--test her.

This issue's story, "Amazon Attack Against Atlantis!" is by Cary Bates, John Rosenberger, and Vince Colletta, and opens with the Amazing Amazon testifying in front of several League members, asserting that the mysteriously-helmeted person seated at the table is...guilty!

When the accused says Wonder Woman is lying, Aquaman offers up his own testimony:

Aquaman starts his tale, recalling how he was swimming up the polluted East River, on his way to meet Diana at her office at the United Nations Plaza.

Arthur then sees Diana flying overhead. Suddenly, a giant waterspout appears, seemingly attacking her on purpose!

Wonder Woman manages to fight off the water spout, dissipating it before it had the chance to hit the nearby docks. She then resumed her I.D. as Diana Prince and went out with her boss, Morgan Tracy to have dinner with an Argonian(?) diplomat.

How does Aquaman know this? That's because, in the same room, were Tracy's goldfish, who later relayed the story to Aquaman:

...ladies and gentlemen, I give you one of the most insane panels in Aquaman's history. I love his nonchalant stance, dressed in hip 70s fashion, telepathically listening to goldfish. I want this panel on a t-shirt.

Anyway, on the way to dinner, Diana is attacked by three giant dogs, who she subdues easily. Then the dogs calm down, and the attack is over as mysteriously as the water spout.

Later, as Aquaman continues to follow Diana, he realizes he has almost gone an hour without water! He heads to a nearby fountain to get a drink, when all the water turns into...oil?!?

The oil geiser sprays Wonder Woman, flying overhead in her invisible plane (on her way to Paradise Island). She manages to free her plane, flying it up into the stratosphere so the oil hardens to the point she can break it off with a mighty kick.

Meanwhile, Aquaman is almost passed out from thirst, until he snags some water from a local passerby. He then hears a distress call from one of his finny friends in a local sewer, who tells Aquaman a startling message.

It's here Aquaman gets to do a classic superhero reveal, something he rarely--if ever--gets to do:

The emergency is happening in Atlantis, where he sees his people about to defend themselves from an invading army of...Amazons from Paradise Island!!

Turns out the Amazons are under the mental control of Mars, the God of War! Mars has also been behind all the weird attacks on Diana, distracting her while he prepares the attack on Atlantis!

Since Mars "feeds" off of war, he needs to renew his mystic energies by creating a new one, and a Amazons vs. Atlanteans fight will do the trick!

Wonder Woman finds Aquaman underwater, and hey hatch a plan. First, Aquaman gets several giant whales to block the attacking Amazons, buying them some time.

Wonder Woman then confronts Mars directly:

The JLA finds Mars guilty as charged, and he is escorted to a "top security interplanetary prison." Done and done!

The JLA congratulate Diana on her successful mission, and she wonders who will be reporting on her next? Ah, that's a tale for some other blog...


A very fun story, totally insane, full of imagination and crazy goings-on. And Aquaman gets to talk to goldfish.