Fire & Water #187 – Brave and the Bold: Aquaman and the Demon

Rob welcomes fellow network all-star Ryan Daly to discuss BRAVE AND THE BOLD #32, "Night Gods", by J. Michael Straczynski and Jesus Saiz, starring Aquaman and the Demon!

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13 responses to “Fire & Water #187 – Brave and the Bold: Aquaman and the Demon

  1. Man, I really need to get this TPB. This sounds like an outstanding story. I remember Rob promoting the..well…fire out of it, but that was in my “new comics, cold turkey” phase where I was adrift with no comic shop. I missed all of JMS’ B&B run, although I enjoyed Waid’s stories. Definitely going to have to look into this.

    I’m with Rob, I tend to like Etrigan better as a guest star, but I do enjoy him quite a bit in that regard. All of his appearances on the DC animated shows were very welcome, for instance.

    Ryan, I now expect you to rhyme us out of each Knightcast. I can beatbox while you do it.

    Chris

  2. This was like a backdoor pilot for Fire and Water Presents – great stuff.

    I rather like the white Aquaman logo, it lifts a cover that could be a lot more exciting.

    Overall, this is a terrific story, though I disagree that JMS did a great job with the Demon’s dialogue. OK, it mostly scans but at one point JMS uses ‘breeded’ and his rhymes lack the pithiness that makes the best Etrigan dialogue fun to read.

    Saiz’s illustration of Arthur’s true power is amazing, and he and Etrigan make a great, unexpected pairing… mind, the Demon does have a tradition of teaming with kings named Arthur.

  3. This is something of a conundrum for me. This issue and the others in the trade all sound fantastic. (I already own the WW/Zatanna/Batgirl issue and think it is great.) I want to read these.

    But I basically have decided to never give J. Michael Straczynski another penny. I never liked his Superman story Grounded. And he left the book halfway through that arc after setting it down a horrible path. He did something similar with Wonder Woman at the same time. And while I enjoyed his Supreme Power run on Marvel, he also left that book halfway through the sequel. I cannot support someone who takes a character, sends them on a ruinous path, and then leaves so someone else has to clean up the mess.

    All that said, I wonder if JMS is best suited for ‘done in one’ stories where he can touch on archetypes without destroying them.

    And yes, I have no idea what I would do if he was announced as writer on a Supergirl book …

    1. I think JMS’ greatest sin is that godawful Gwen Stacy/Norman Osborn development. Despite his many contributions to comics and pop culture, if that doesn’t get him into fanboy jail, nothing will.

      I’m hot and cold on him myself. I greatly enjoy some of his stuff, but I agree, it may be best to just let him take a quick drive around the block, rather than give him the keys to the car. He usually leaves it embedded in a tree somewhere and runs off.

      Chris

  4. Great episode, guys! I had forgotten just how dark the setting of this book was. In fact, my abiding memory of the issue is of that extraordinary splash page of a glowering Arthur surrounded by shoals of fish, sharks and whales . I’m not one for buying original art, but if the opportunity and funds to buy one single page were available, that outstanding image would be The One. Jesus Saiz was on fire here, and his art is simply delectable with colours that really enhance the undersea setting of the main part of the book.
    The story was enjoyable, especially the Aquaman/Demon partnership. I’m not generally a fan of JMS’s work, but this Brave and the Bold run was pretty good. (Unlike Ryan, I did not enjoy the preceding Hal Jordan GL / Dr Fate story much; two great characters, but a ponderous, preachy story). The single issues were the standouts, especially the Wonder Woman / Zatanna / Batgirl issue that followed this one.
    Thanks for reliving this comic – it provided a great excuse to re-read a fun one-and-done story.

  5. I had taken a break from buying comics in the couple of years leading up to the New 52, so I hadn’t seen this story before. Now I’m sorry I missed it, because it looks and sounds like it is a great one. Like Rob and Ryan, I dig the idea that Aquaman has adventures like this all the time, which he never even bothers to tell the rest of the League about. It goes really well with the idea that he’s out there protecting 3/4 of the planet, while all the rest of Earth’s heroes are running around on the remaining 1/4.

    I also find myself with a sudden urge to reread Jeff Parker’s Aquaman run. I guess that’s because this excellent episode reminds me of the tried and true formula: Aquaman + monsters = fun. Thank you, gentlemen.

  6. Great ep guys and props to the shout out for the Doom Patrol issues of this BRAVE & THE BOLD run. The one with the Legion is wild, especially the part when Saturn Girl mentally catches Robotman having a…thought…about her.

    Also, the Flash/Doom Patrol joint has some silly turns with Wally and his kids. Cliff is exceptionally great with this panel in particular:

    https://www.instagram.com/p/0Ue_xEgH4u/

    I do have to admit that this BATB with Aquaman and Demon is probably the best Demon team-up out there. The DC Comics Presents and original BATB are ok but this one is unique and creepy. Wish we had more of these in the DCU nowadays.

  7. Oh wow, I somehow missed this episode in the shuffle and only just caught up on it. Good catch by Ryan in steering Rob into this one. Also thanks for the plug!

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