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Saturday, February 21, 2015

Unite The Seven: A Consideration

This image went live yesterday morning, just before I left for work so I really didn't have time to do anything other than post it. A number of people have asked me what I, aka the Shrine, think of it, so now that I've had some time here are a few random thoughts:

• Two hands, thank Neptune!

• All the promotional images that have been pushed out from WB in relation to BvS have been purposely drained of their color. Why I don't know, but people worrying that Aquaman will look like this in the movie should not be quite so concerned--unless Zack Snyder chooses to the shoot the whole movie in near black and white, rest assured Aquaman et al won't look quite this, er, washed out.

• At first glance, "Unite The Seven" seems to suggest the formation of the Justice League as a plot point. But F.O.A.M.er Travis Fowler proposed another idea which I think is just as, if not more, plausible--that the seven refers to the seven seas. After all, as far as we've heard, this film will feature Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, and Cyborg--that's six. Plus, this poster is aimed at the mass moviegoing public, not comic fans--the average moviegoer has no idea that the JLA mainly consists of seven iconic members, so the tagline is meaningless. Yet everyone has heard of the seven seas.

• Finally, about the overall look, since this of course is far from the Aquaman I grew up with and hoped we'd get (i.e., find some actor that looks like a Jim Aparo drawing). To me, what is really important is how they write the character--if the Aquaman seen in Batman v Superman is a powerful, brave hero, protector of all sea life, ruler of 3/4ths of the Earth, then that will be the Sea King I want to see. If they get that right, I won't care that he doesn't look like just like he does in the comics. If they don't get it right, and this live action Aquaman is just some big dumb Conan-type, then it won't matter what the hell he looks like anyway.

So even though us comic nerds are not good at this, we'll just have to wait and see.




22 comments:

Wings1295 said...

I am leaning more towards "Unite the Seven" being a JL thing. Maybe Snyder will slowly reveal pics of the heroes this way, till we get to all seven, or six, at least.

And I agree about your thoughts about this version of Aquaman. As long as he is Aquaman in heroic spirit and not just some muscle-bound, angry, kill all humans joke, then I can get on board if he looks like this. He isn't blonde, obviously, but not sure the orange and green clad, blonde-haired hero would be a good fit for this film.

I am cautiously optimistic. But, isn't that intrinsic in any of us long-time Aquaman fans? LOL

Rev. O.J. Flow said...

I can't wait, this image has me so excited.

Russell said...

I'm with Joe, I too am "cautiously optimistic." No, it's not what I want to see visually. But really, I didn't like (and by that I mean "hated") MAN of STEEL, so my expectations going in are about as low as Atlantis anyway.

Paul Griffin said...

Maybe 7 JLA members. Maybe 7 seas. Maybe the 7 Others. Or 7 Atlantean relics. Most likely 7 seas. Loving the look.

Matthew Miller said...

I'll give it a shot but I'm not too excited about it!��
This isn't MY Aquaman. It might be really good. I think they're doing this in hopes of shedding the general public's image of Arthur.
People who read comics know Aquaman is a bada$$ on par with ANYONE in the League. He's not just "that guy who talks to fish"

Anonymous said...

Looks are superficial. Millions of people got their first exposure to Aquaman yesterday and thought he looked awesome. Look at Throne of Atlantis, the right look for aquaman but terrible dialogue and production im my opinion.

Darrin said...

Nice summary Rob. You said everything I was thinking. He looks more like Conan and more like the Peter David version than I would like, but I expected that as soon as I heard the casting news. I would prefer the regal looking noble hero I think of as Aquaman, but if he is written well it can still be good. I was very pleased with the amount of attention this got yesterday. That was positive indeed. So, I'm with the majority and remaining cautiously optimistic. Plus ... two hands! I'm so thankful!

Joshua Rainey said...

I think they mean the seven members of the Justice League. From what Ive read the end of BvS has Batman gathering metahumans to form the JL, which usually has seven people founding it. I dont like the look. As some have stated, he looks like Rob Zombie with a designer pitchfork. But aside from the look Im concerned with his origins. He is given a Polynesian look, which is Jason Momoas ancestry, but that is of the Pacific ocean. Atlantis is of the Atlantic ocean. Is Aquaman Atlantean in this movie? And as I read in this one article, tridents are from ancient Greece and Rome. Why would a Polynesian Aquaman have one? Now the trident is just trivial, but if he isnt atlantean then to me hes not aquaman. thats one thing thats has always been a part of his mythos. I think this version is so far removed from the source material. Hes more of an elseworld aquaman. however, Im starting to refer to him as Amino: Aquaman in name only.

Saranga said...

Am I the only one who likes the Peter David era??!!

Joshua: There's no reason a Polynesian actor can't play an Atlantean character. I don't think the look screams Polynesian/Pacific.

Unknown said...

Considering that the term "seven seas" is a poetic invention, which has no real significance. Aquaman should know better. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_seas

Akira Yuki said...

If people actually read the new 52 they will know that there are 7 kingdoms of Atlantis. "Unite the 7" along with what he wrote "there is only one true king" tells me there are 7 kingdoms of Atlantis with most likely other kings and he is going to unite them all.

Andy Luckett said...

Overall I like this look. It exudes strength and authority, and that's vital for Aquaman to succeed onscreen. We won't be able to give a final verdict until we see the character in the context of the film, but I think they are on an interesting track.

Steve said...

Well said, Rob!

I'd also like to add, Saranga, that I too enjoyed the Peter David run on the title although it isn't the definitive Arthur for me.

C'mon, people, haven't all of the Elseworlds stories and the vast DC Multiverse taught us that not all versions of our heroes have to look identical? As long as the core of the character is there, this should be good. This is the Aquaman of the Man of Steel universe. One image cannot tell the entire story. Let's wait and see.

Darrin said...

And well said Steve

Earth 2 Chris said...

I hadn't thought of "Seven seas". My comic nerd bias is showing toward the League. But you may be right. It makes perfect sense.

On all other points I completely agree. I long ago gave up loosing my crap over stuff like this. It's all in the presentation, and you'll never know exactly WHAT they are presenting, until you sit in that theater seat.

Chris

Wil Radcliffe said...

Momoa was pretty good in the recent Conan film. The film itself wasn't very good because they failed to capture the raw, gritty, grim nature of the character. Momoa's Conan was too jovial and pleasant, in my opinion. That being said, if he can bring the same kind of characterization to Aquaman, he may prove to be the perfect choice. What failed for Conan, would be spot-on for Aquaman.

Joe Slab said...

I think everyone who is lamenting the lack of orange & green in the Aquaman promo should jump back to the last post and read the comment from new Aquaman fan Matt Maldre. Very sobering & refreshing for me to hear as a long-time fan...

Point of proof: We basically have a modernized Silver Age Aquaman appearing in the monthly DC book and it moves maybe 30,000 units on a good month. How in the world could anyone expect a company like WB to invest millions of dollars in a character that isn't even selling to his purist, core audience???

Batman & Spider-Man sell books and their movie iterations are barely removed from the comics, but from a business perspective it would be suicide for Warner not to try a new approach. And for every comment online I see about Momoa not looking like "MY Aquaman", I see about 25 saying "Suddenly I find myself interested in Aquaman!"

Now that's certainly worth some consideration.

Denny Hubley said...

I'm a huge Aquaman fan ( started collecting in the 90's with Peter David era loved Orin ) and now in 2015 with the exception of a few issues I have every app. of the Sea King since 1962. I'm proud to say that for I have a low paying job so my $$ would go to Arthur and his adventures :). On the subject I believe that Jason being cast is getting so much buzz that how can it hurt! Rob has said it best that he himself was never a big fan of the David era but acknowledges that his material did bring more people to the character and that is always a great thing.

Mad Love said...

It's nice to see Aquaman fans are optimistic even if it's not the look they would have preferred. I'm a relatively new Aquaman fan so I'm just thrilled we'll be getting an Aquaman movie. A few years ago, that seemed far-fetched.

KJ Sampson said...

Count me as a fan that the PAD era brought in, though I now feel that was in some ways an unfortunate aberration of the character. I've warmed to the movie look somewhat.

wich2 said...

The Nolanverse is too drained of life, light, and humor overall.

This DC guy is sad to admit that as far as recent features, Marvel has done infinitely better by its heroes, and by their fans.

-Craig

Anonymous said...

Yeah, It's momoa in some low budget greek-god tv movie. Unlike Batman, Supes and Wonder Woman, I DO NOT see any Aquaman in this portrayal.