Just got back from seeing Aquaman... (Patreon)

To say the least... is was clunky and weirdly paced.

Now don't get me wrong, I liked the movie, but I feel if you were to re-arrange the edit you’d have an even better film. So here’s my re-cut/alternate take for what I was hoping Aquaman could have been.

*spoilers of course but not really cuz this is a headcannon but also like it has stuff from the movie I guess* :P

Okay so I would have started the story with the sub attack. Just like the film, Aquaman stops Black Manta and his Dad still dies. But it’s all in a days work for Aquaman to stop some pirates and return home to Jango Fett for a beer or two.

So Aquaman comes back to chill with AquaDad and they go get some drinks and Jango spills some emotional beans about AquaMom that’s still sentimental but not over the top flashback-y (I really dug that opening fight scene in the lighthouse, but that entire opener didn't really need to be in there...).
So anyway, Aquaman agrees wit his Dad about missing his Mom but it doesn’t hurt nearly as bad as it does for his Dad (again, cut out all the flashbacks and cut out the selfie bar dudes and tighten up the film a bit)

The two of them end their night and wobble out to the truck where the find Mera (first appearance of an Atlantian in the film contrasting strongly against the surface world bay area aethstetic with her magic shiny water clothes. She rocks up and spills the drama beans about Orm and how Aquaman could be a political scape-goat to overthrow Ocean Hitler.

Of course Aquaman says no and just wants to avoid the water drama entirely.

They part ways, and we follow Mera back to Atlantis to meet with Green Goblin inside the sunken ship, letting him know about Aquaman’s answer. Disappointed, Green Goblin is summoned back to the palace to meet up with Nite-Owl (establishing this backdoor political seat he holds with Orm)

During this meeting, the surface sub attack’s during this meeting and plays out just like the film. In the aftermath Orm meets with Black Manta (with a new tuna can helmet, revealing he was in league with Orm this whole time receiving upgrades and pay and stuff). Green Goblin finds out they’re in kahoots and swims off to find Mera again.

——End of Act one

Back with Mera, the two go back to find Aquaman. They kidnap him from the lighthouse, but reassuring his Dad it’s for his own good. They tell him to think of what AquaMom would want.

Back to the sunken ship base, Aquaman is cranky and has a tussle with the two but then reluctantly agrees, then the three go after Orm together.

On their way to the palace, Black Manta captures them and takes them to Orm. Orm screws with them a bit (taunting, monologuing, torturing, etc) - as the process goes down, Manta has subconscious feelings, seeing how bad it is down here (he’s morally conflicted about Orm/Aquaman and who to support when all he really wants is revenge for his Dad. Not any of this water drama)

In the end, Orm forces Black Manta to cut off Aquaman’s hand, the Orm throws the three in prison.

——End Act Two

Orm keeps going about his business, using Manta as a fear mongering device or ocean terrorism (and Manta is getting real tired of the charade with no payoff)

In prison, Mera and Aquamom start hitting it off while Green Goblin tells them the story of the trident. (possibly a voice over while simultaneously watching Manta’s internal conflict build as he does his dirty deeds)

After a few weeks, Manta breaks the team out of jail, and the four of them (on shaky terms) head to the trench to get the legendary trident) and end up (coincidentally) finding AquaMom there too (just like "How To Train Your Dragon") but with a less cliche reveal than what they actually did in the Aquaman movie)

So after the new team of five get that fancy fork and Aquaman's new clothes, they storm the castle!
This is where you can have a big final action scene leading to the top of the palace, Aquaman can fight Orm, yadda yadda, but he just can’t beat him until Orm stops in his tracks seeing AquaMom after so many years. Then it hits him like a ton of kelp; Aquaman and Orm were fighting for the same person, but with very different motives and AquaMom is really disappointed in Orm‘s choices as a leader. (Plays our just like the movie did)

So at AquaMom’s request, Aquaman takes the thrown of Atlantis with Mera and Green Goblin at his side. But while all of this was happening (the big battle) Black Manta slipped out the back door and nobody noticed until Aquaman wants to reward him.

After the crowning ceremony, AquaMom finally meets up with AquaDad Jango Fett giving him a big wet hug on the dock (but it’s cute and emotional because Jango really missed her) She invites him to her squba ship, and takes him to meet the king, making him the first human to see Atlantis!

He sheds a tear for his son, hugs his wife again, camera pans across the city

Boom, roll credits

Then the post credit scene!

Black Manta’s sting ray sub surfaces in a metropolitan bay area. He gets out with a futuristic looking suitcase and meets a bald guy in the shadows on a dock.
“Your scientists were correct. Kryptonite resides under the city” Manta opens the case with a green glow illuminating Lex Luthor and Deathstroke! (cutting out the bit where Randal Park shoots a hole in the ceiling, and instead teases a Leigon of Doom JL story coming soon!)


***


Now don’t get me wrong, Aquaman was a pretty good movie, but it needed to give characters more character? (Everybody was just kinda bland archetypes of themselves).

It could have cut a lot of redundant scenes like the aquarium flashbacks or the lighthouse fight or the dessert hologram mystery or the training montages or the "youve gotta be the king" speeches or the Nemo Ring of Fire battle or the Italian Job Assassin Creed chase scene... etc.
If you were to simplify a lot and keep the story to just three locations (Amnesty,Atlantis,Trench) and maybe sprinkle some other kingdom characters in there like the Fishermen or the crab dudes as easter eggs.

On the other hand, I enjoyed a lot of stuff in this movie though!Like that trench scene tho and the Ring of Fire fight was great too, plus that chase scene with Manta and his comandos was sweet! I appreciate that Black Manta wasn’t just a poor-man's Underwater-Deathstroke.
The soundtrack mixed with the superfriends audio worked real well! The costumes were really cool (except for AquaMom’s How To Train Your Dragon Outfit) but the the visual aethstetic of the film was incredible! Like the city looked incredible, the fight scenes were really cool, and that end battle was super dramatic! :)

Yep!

Overall I liked it. I didn't really have a build/project planned for it, but I did end up making some figs after the fact :P