Arthur Curry is the King of Atlantis and the superhero known as Aquaman. Following the defeat of his half-brother, Orm (Ocean Master), he eventually became a member of the Justice League.
Biography[]
Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox[]
Pre-Flashpoint[]
Aquaman and the Justice League gathered at the Flash Museum in Central City, after an alert about a breaking and entering was flagged. There, they allied with the Flash to face the villains Captain Cold, Captain Boomerang, Heat Wave, Mirror Master, and Top, who were planted with futuristic bombs by Professor Zoom and left to die, all just to kill the Flash. Aquaman took custody of Top and tossed him into the harbor nearby. He then summoned a million microbes to eat away at the bomb's wiring, saving Central City.
Flashpoint[]
Arthur in Flashpoint
In the Flashpoint timeline, instead of being a superhero and joining the Justice League, Aquaman became King of Atlantis. When he and Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) had an affair, his wife Mera attempted to intervene and was killed by Diana. Feeling betrayed, he declared war on the Amazons. During the war, he captured Captain Atom in order to power a doomsday device, with which he intended to kill the Amazons. His forces sank Western Europe into the ocean, but the Amazons were protected by magic, renaming the occupied British Isles, New Themyscira.
As Deathstroke and Lex Luthor attempted to search for Aquaman's weapon, Aquaman led his Atlantean forces to kill the crew, however, Luthor transmitted the coordinates to the United States Government. In a bid to try and end the war, pilot Hal Jordan attempted a kamikaze run with an alien spacecraft and a powerful explosive, yet Aquaman ordered a sea dragon to devour Jordan's craft and the payload. Aquaman and his fleet were unaffected by the blast and prepared for the invasion of New Themyscira.
On New Themyscira, Aquaman launched an immense final battle and was surrounded by Grifter's resistance, who were trying to call off the war. Aquaman simply resisted and fought the heroes. During the battle, Aquaman mortally injured Cyborg, before his right arm was blasted off by Superman's heat vision. Seeing his forces dead, Aquaman was ambushed and pierced by Wonder Woman's sword. He refused to surrender, knowing full well that his people would be slaughtered by the Amazon Queen. He boasted that for the greater good, he would not let Wonder Woman have the final victory as activated his Captain Atom-powered bomb, vaporizing the Flashpoint Earth until it was erased from existence by the Flash.
Post-Flashpoint[]
Justice League: Throne of Atlantis[]
Arthur Curry was born to Thomas Curry, a lightkeeper in Mercy Reef, Maine, and Queen Atlanna of Atlantis. He was conceived out of wedlock, during Atlanna's time on the surface with Thomas. Atlanna loved Thomas and Arthur, but she could not ignore the fact she was promised to wed the next King of Atlantis. Unable to wed Thomas or raise Arthur, Atlanna left them at Mercy Reef and returned home. At a young age, he once dove into the sea despite his father's warning. He briefly encountered his mother, whom he shared a brief yet precious moment with, before she gently whisked away without hurting her son after she fondly kissed his forehead. Arthur instantly recognized his mother, and told his father about what he encountered, but Thomas didn't believe the story and insisted that Atlanna was gone for good and it was just the two of them. At some point, Arthur saw Dr. Stephen Shin, a theoretical marine biologist, on the news discussing about Atlantis. Thomas wrote to Shin and asked for help with his half-Atlantean son. Arthur grew up his whole life believing that something was wrong with him.
At adulthood, Arthur went through a period of grieving following his father's recent death. After his father's burial, Arthur drowned his sorrows at a local bar, until he picked a fight with other patrons over a lobster he was talking to. As the fight went on, it became apparent he had inherited the enhanced attributes of an Atlantean. After throwing the last assailant into the sea, Curry released the lobster back into the wild, unaware that he was being watched by both Mera, Atlanna's bodyguard, and Dr. Shin. He staggered back home to the Curry Lighthouse and focused on a frame of his parents.
In light of current events, Queen Atlanna came to believe her people craved a new perspective of the surface world. She believed her first born would be the beacon to lead Atlantis into the next century. Arthur awoke the next morning with a hangover and was visited by Shin. After Shin revealed his father asked him for help, Curry agreed to let him in. As soon as he opened the door, Shin fell over with a sickle in his back. The Drift One team surfaced and attempted to assassinate Curry. He fought back and made his way to the top, throwing the floodlight at his attackers. The soldiers outside destroyed the lighthouse with their energy-powered weapons. As Arthur fell, he was saved by Mera and taken to some ancient ruins. After Arthur awoke, Mera explained the circumstances of his birth, and showed him the King's royal garbs in the Royal armory. Outfitting himself with them, Arthur was overwhelmed and took to the surface to get his bearings. However, he and Mera were attacked by Trenchers, until the Justice League came to their aid.
Afterwards, Superman's words about meeting his own people convinced Arthur to go to Atlantis. When they arrived to the nearly deserted kingdom, it was revealed Atlanna was dead. While they paid their respects, Orm appeared and "welcomed" his half-brother. He boasted of his involvement in killing Atlanna, before easily subduing Arthur and the League by using the magic of the King's trident. Arthur used his royal blood to control his confines and disintegrate the pod conjured by the trident. He then freed Superman, who dealt with the giant monster they were offered to, and then summoned a whale with telepathy to carry the others to safety. Once Mera awoke, Arthur told her that he was going to stop his half-brother from destroying the surface world. After he made his way to shore and fought some Atlantean soldiers, he was then attacked by Black Manta. As Manta laid out his true plans, Arthur summoned a Great White Shark to deal with him. He made his way into the city and challenged Orm to a one-on-one battle. While Arthur held his own, he was ultimately no match for the trident.
Luckily, Batman and Cyborg broadcasted a recording of the latter's earlier encounter with Orm admitting to Atlanna's murder. While Orm tried to convince his army the footage were lies, Arthur recovered and decked him into a car. He then addressed the army and promised he could bridge both worlds in peace. One by one, soldiers in the army removed their helmets and kneeled to Arthur. With the war over, Arthur took Mera in his arms as they kissed. Arthur was later formally coronated as King of Atlantis, wishing to bridge the surface and Atlantean worlds in peace, joined the Justice League as Aquaman, after the name given to him by Shazam, much to his annoyance. King Arthur and Mera swam to the edge of the city and fought off an incursion by the Trenchers, and summoned all marine life nearby to aid them. Together, they defeated the Trenchers in short order, and he and Mera shared a passionate kiss.
Justice League Dark[]
Aquaman made a non-speaking cameo appearance during the Justice League's meeting surrounding the strange supernatural occurrences in the city.
The Death of Superman[]
Aquaman advised that Clark Kent shouldn't wait to reveal to Lois that he is Superman. Afterwards, him, Mera, and some Atlantean guards investigated the mysterious murders of other guards, who went to collect samples from the meteor crash. They covered up their corpses once they arrived, leaving Aquaman enraged about their deaths. Later, he saw a shark that took him to the shore of a beach next to a forest. He then spotted the footsteps of the creature that killed his guards, informing Cyborg on his earpiece that he believed he found the murderer, but that there was no sign of it. Aquaman then said that he needed to return to the guards and Mera. Cyborg then told him that he would tell the other members of the League and that he was sorry for his loss.
When Batman asked for backup while fighting the creature, Doomsday, Aquaman joined the other Leaguers to assist. He surprised Doomsday by jumping on his back and impaling him with his trident, while Martian Manhunter kept hitting Doomsday. However, the monster hit Martian Manhunter aside and with no other distractions, grabbed Aquaman from his back, which caused him to drop his trident. He then pummeled Aquaman into a building, which caused him to be knocked out.
He was later seen near the crater where Superman died after his vicious battle with Doomsday, and was in attendance at Superman's funeral along with the rest of the Justice League.
Justice League Dark: Apokolips War[]
Aquaman was present during the Justice League's briefing to wage war against Darkseid on the planet Apokolips. He later accompanied the Justice League on their assault on Apokolips, while the Teen Titans remained on Earth to defend it. Upon arriving, the League was attacked by the Paradooms, genetic hybrids of Parademons and Doomsday. While the Justice League fought their hardest to defend themselves, they were utterly decimated by the Paradooms as Aquaman was among the ones killed after Darkseid bifurcated his body with his Omega Beams. After Darkseid was defeated, the Flash ran into the Speed Force to create a second Flashpoint.
Personality[]
Always having felt out of place, Arthur spent most of his life feeling like an outcast, and his only major source of comfort being the close relationship he had with his father, Thomas. As a child, he was eager to reunite with his mother, and was overjoyed after seeing her again. As he got older, however, Arthur became disillusioned with her ever returning, and bluntly stated she ran out on him and his father years ago, when spoken to about her. After his father's death, Arthur drowned his sorrows in alcohol, his intoxication showing his defensive and combative side. After finding out that he was the son of Atlantis's queen, everything that had eluded him suddenly made sense. When his half-brother confessed to murdering their mother, Arthur's righteous fury showed, and displayed a wrath that bordered on murderous and homicidal, though understandably justified. He also showed a flirtatious side to him as well, such as his interactions with Mera, who reciprocated his advances with obvious enthusiasm.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
Atlantean/Human Hybrid Physiology: As an Atlantean, Arthur was both stronger and tougher than ordinary human beings and could indefinitely breathe underwater as well as in the air. His body is biologically adapted to survive the extremes found in the depths of the ocean.
- Superhuman Strength: Arthur is able to throw things over an extreme distance, further than any human.[1]
- Superhuman Durability: Arthur is unaffected when he's hit by sharp objects, and they do not pierce his skin.[1]
- Accelerated Healing: Arthur is able to recover from wounds far quicker then any human.
- Superhuman Speed: While underwater, Arthur can swim at supersonic speeds.
- Marine Telepathy: Arthur can control vast numbers of sea creatures through the use of telepathy.[1]
- Hydrokinesis: Arthur can manipulate water in order to propel himself through it.[1]
- Aquatic respiration: Due to his Atlantean heritage, he can breath underwater just as well as he can on land.
Abilities[]
- Expert Combatant: Curry is a highly skilled fighter.
- Trident Master: Curry is highly skilled in using a trident.
- Expert Swimmer: As an Atlantean, Curry is an astonishingly good swimmer.
Equipment[]
- Atlantean Royal Armor
- Mera's Trident
Appearances[]
Films[]
- Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox
- Justice League: Throne of Atlantis
- Justice League Dark (no lines)
- The Death of Superman
- Justice League Dark: Apokolips War
Comic Books[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Corson, Heath (writer) & Spaulding, Ethan (director) (January 27, 2015). Justice League: Throne of Atlantis.