Surprisingly smart & cohesive finale...
To my surprise I've really enjoying DC's Flashpoint event. What's more surprising is that I've found the most pleasure in following a number of the tie-in series, particularly those directly dealing with the war between the Amazons and Atlanteans. "Emperor Aquaman" #3, the final chapter of his mini-series, is not only better than the previous two issues but it's a fun, cleverly crafted book that I found very satisfying.
Writer Tony Bedard does a nice job wrapping things up by giving us a present day story featuring the confrontation between Arthur and Dianna but also flashbacks which continue to fill in the gaps. Everything is brought into the light which provide us with some great character interactions as the main players deal with the weight of their situation and their own personal inner conflicts. Bedard captures this nicely. More impressive is his ability to bring everything together in a smooth, cohesive manner. I was a little bummed that the ending really left things up in the air. It's last page leaves everything hinging on the final issue of the main Flashpoint series. Hopefully that book will provide Aquaman's story with a suitable and deserving ending.
Vicente Cifuentes puts together some fantastic pages and his art style really suits this story. I was instantly grabbed by his opening page and really felt the art succeeded in conveying the intensity and emotion of the story. His action sequences were particularly impressive and I thought his calculated panel layouts worked very well. While Cifuentes does a nice job with the characters I did feel that he lost them on some pages. Aquaman stood out the most, at times looking like a different man or with some wildly overwrought expression on his face. The final panel is a perfect example of this.
While I've enjoyed Aquaman's Flashpoint book I wasn't expecting to like this issue as much as I did. It pulls everything together in a neat, tidy way and never feels lethargic or lazy. It's very well structured and with the exception of the up in the air ending , it wraps things up in a surprisingly pleasing way.
