Aquaman Episode 12 - The Microscopic Monsters

Aquaman Episode 12: "The Microscopic Monsters" by George Kashdan

Aquaman is on the floor of the sea, testing a new invention (because he does that, apparently): a machine that can drastically increase the size of anything it is aimed at! The Sea King tries it out on some plankton, and it works spectacularly, not knowing that the dastardly Black Manta is watching from afar, ready to steal it!

Black Manta sends some of his Manta Men to kidnap Aqualad, while he attacks Aquaman directly. To help fight him off, Aquaman calls in some finny friends, including a giant lobster and this nasty-looking beastie, which turns the Manta Men into a quivering mass:

After the Manta Men are dispatched, Aquaman rescues his young sidekick by ordering some Manta Rays to blast a hole in Black Manta's shop, allowing Aqualad to escape.

Just as Manta departs, he aims Aquaman's invention at all the nearby sea life, causing them all to grow to enormous size. Aquaman notices that the sting of the Manta Rays seems to undo the effect, so he orders them to attack all the giant creatures, rendering them harmless once again. Aqualad laments that Black Manta has gotten away, but Aquaman is confident that he'll be back. Until that day, we've reached...The End!

I liked the idea of Aquaman as a kooky inventor--something he's never been characterized as, but was pretty standard fare for cartoons, so why not? Once again, this version of the Sea King does not negotiate with terrorists--when Black Manta puts a ray gun to Aqualad's head, telling Aquaman to back off, the Sea King's immediate response is a full frontal assault via some Manta Rays. Suck on that, Fish Bowl-head!