AUTHOR: DANIELLE PAIGE | ARTIST: STEPHEN BYRNE | PUBLISHER: DC INK | FORMAT: TRADE PAPERBACK | RELEASE DATE: APRIL 2ND
Comic book history has a fine tradition of adapting and changing to appeal to new audiences. DC Entertainment’s latest step in its world domination plan is DC Ink, a label aimed firmly at young adults. Which brings us, in a roundabout way, to Mera: Tidebreaker – a heartwarming graphic novel about Princess Mera, the young woman who will eventually rule Atlantis. This is the sort of thing that encourages people to become life-long comics readers, writers and artists.
We open with Mera as the heir to the throne of Xebel, who in true to form of fictional princesses everywhere, is acting out against her destiny. Xebel is under the control of Atlantis and Mera would rather be opposing her nation’s oppressors than attending diplomatic balls and the like. Worse still, Mera’s dad has plans to marry her off. So far, so very predictable. Things take a turn for the more interesting when Mera decides to seize her own destiny. By murdering an Atlantean prince.
Meanwhile, discarded take-away sound-alike Arthur Curry is living on the surface world, clueless as to his origins as the heir to Atlantis. This is how Mera and Arthur meet; with the girl planning murder and the guy not having a clue what’s going on. The result is a well-paced young adult romance thriller, with the main protagonist torn between her duty and her heart. Writer Danielle Paige knows her audience well, and this story is firmly aimed at the hearts of teenagers trying to navigate an increasingly complex world.
The art is lovely. However, some of the design is a little off; we couldn’t figure out why the underwater buildings looked like their land-based equivalents, and apparently swanky affairs in Xebel serve champagne in fluted glass versions of a sippy cup. These niggles aside, Stephen Byrne nails the character design throughout. Mera is, of course, the star of the show, and her character design is nuanced and fun. Note that the man-who-will become Aquaman in this book is modelled more closely on the classic DC comics design, looking more like a hot young (and non-threatening) dreamboat rather than a carbon copy of bare-chest-for-hire Jason Momoa.
Mera: Tidebreaker is perfectly pitched at its audience, and some of it feels a little bit ‘by the book’. Kids aren’t stupid and they can tell if something is overly formulaic and designed by cliché. Luckily, despite writer Danielle Paige’s ‘by the numbers’ approach to the story, artist Stephen Byrne pulls it back into something that will appeal to everyone, though mostly teenage girls.
