Imperius Rex! And…whatever Aquaman exclaims

Aquaman — Sub-Mariner

This one’s pretty obvious, huh? I’m not aware if it has been definitively documented that writer Mort Weisinger and artist Paul Norris overtly plagiarized Bill Everett’s character Prince Namor, for Aquaman. Seems eminently possible, tho.

What is beyond dispute is that Namor is the first Marvel super-hero character —although his “anti-hero” posture was pronounced from his debut in 1939. Arthur Curry, debuting in 1941, was a much more discreet presence in DC comics— some historians believe that Weisinger, the Superman editor in the ‘50s and ‘60s, kept his creation in print long after most super hero titles ceased publication.

In any case, both are key to both diasporas: Namor for the reason cited above, Aquaman simply due to his inclusion in the 1970s Saturday morning cartoon Super Friends (which of course leads to non-comic readers knowing his name, and thus thinking he’s goofy, and thus Entourage, etc. etc.…). And both deserve respekk…

Commonalities:
Both are —despite frequent sabbaticals and exiles— the mighty Kings of Atlantis, and thus function best in the ocean. Beginning in the late 1980s, DC began to characterize Aquaman as a regal, almost arrogant presence —which sounds familiar. Occasionally, Namor has been shown to be weakened when out of water for a long time, which echoes a long-standing but abandoned (I think!) conceit where Aquaman couldn’t be out of water for more than hour.

Differences:
Subby couldn’t command aquatic life; Aquaman does! Subby can fly via ankle-wings; Aquaman cannot. For many years, both were the spawn of a surface-dwelling father and Atlantean mother: post-crisis, Aquaman’s identity was shown to be Orin, son of an Atlantean wizard and a princess of same.

Alternate histories:

AM: A half-breed “avenging son” emerges immediately before World War II, defends his home of Atlantis against surface dwellers until joining with other operatives against the Axis powers. He becomes an amnesiac vagabond for many years until his memory returns after an encounter with the Doom Patrol. Since then, he ascends to the throne of Atlantis, marries noblewoman Mera, briefly joins the Justice League and alternately antagonizes or works with other superhumans.

SM: An Atlantean refugee emerges in the surface world as the King of the Seven Seas and co-founds the Avengers. He claims his throne in Atlantis, marries a woman named Dorma and fathers a child who is killed in infancy. After many years as a world leader, he is turned into a “Dweller of the Deep,” is replaced by a younger iteration and then dies— until such time as a editorial mandate revives him.