Arthur Joseph Curry (New Earth)

Arthur Joseph Curry
Mainstream Universe‎, 1986‎-2011‎
Real Name	Arthur Joseph Curry
Relatives	Phillip Curry (father), Elaine Curry (mother), Arthur Curry (great uncle)
Affiliation	Outsiders
Status
Alignment	Good
Identity	Secret Identity
Citizenship	American
Marital Status	Single
Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	6' 2"
Weight	325 lbs (147 kg)
Hair	Blond
Origin
Universe	New Earth
Creators	Kurt Busiek · Jackson Guice
First Appearance	Aquaman Vol 6 #40

     

History

While awaiting transport to Miami, Florida, a young man named Arthur Joseph Curry was washed out into the sea when a storm ruptured the tank he was in. This Arthur Curry was the son of marine biologist Dr. Phillip Curry. Arthur's mother, Elaine, died in childbirth, and Dr. Curry was forced to use a mutagenic serum on his son when he was born three months premature. Arthur lived his whole life in the main tank of his father's research facility at Avalon Cay; with the exception of a few brief visits to the ocean — his only window to the outside world being television.

Shortly after his arrival in the sea, Arthur was mentally contacted by the mysterious "Dweller of the Depths," a deformed humanoid with tentacles where his hair and beard should be, who told Arthur to help King Shark fend off a gang of marauders. After doing so, the pair together went to meet the Dweller, who gave Arthur an Aquaman-like costume and believed Arthur to be the original Aquaman. This enraged King Shark, who still bore scars from a previous battle with Aquaman during the battle with Alexander Luthor and Superboy-Prime.

The Dweller, still confusing Arthur for Aquaman and calling him his "charge," told Arthur and King Shark of a prophecy regarding Arthur's future, a prophecy which seemed to be a distorted version of the original Aquaman's history. Arthur told the Dweller that he was crazy, but King Shark pointed out the resemblance between the prophecy and the previous Aquaman's history, and that Aquaman disappeared some time ago. The Dweller replied that the original Aquaman was "transformed into one akin to a great and terrible enemy of your people and become the vessel of power strange, ancient and terrible."

After Arthur and King Shark left, the Dweller updated his diary, recording that the events about which he told Arthur must be true, feeling as if he experienced them himself. He writes with his own hand, which is made of hard-water as was Orin's. When Arthur later met Mera, the Dweller found himself unable to go with him. Later, due to a fight with the Ocean Master, the Dweller realized that he was actually Orin.

Later Arthur finds a humanoid squid named Topo, a naive youth attracted by superheroics, seeking to become a sidekick, and Tempest, now amnesiac, unable to breathe water and implanted with a post-hypnotic suggestion warning of an upcoming battle. The battle soon occurs, and the Dweller/Orin is apparently killed. The Justice League is called in to evaluate Orin's situation, but are unable to determine if he is truly dead, or if he can somehow resurrect himself due to his new magical nature.

Eventually, Aquaman was visited by the Lady of the Lake who explained his origins. The original Aquaman had given a sample of his water hand to Dr Curry in order to resurrect his dead son, Arthur, whom he had named after Orin. When Orin attempted to resurrect Sub Diego, part of his soul attached itself to the dead body of Arthur Joseph Curry, while Orin's physical form mutated into the Dweller. Blaming himself for Orin's death, Aquaman vows to never be called "Arthur" again, refraining from using the "stolen" name, asking only to be called Joseph in the future.

Arthur was considered as a candidate for the new Outsiders by Batman. After seeing him in action with Metamorpho, however, Batman decides against his induction.

In their quest to rid the Earth of all forms of kryptonite, Superman and Batman found a massive lump on the sea floor. The two of them were met with hostility by Aquaman and King Shark. A brief fight ensues, but eventually Joseph allows them to take what they came for. Before doing so, he points out that not everyone may want Superman to find all of Earth's kryptonite, and that he would have to be at least part human to know that.

Curry was recently shown that he felt that he was not appreciated in his own right as the New King of Atlantis as many mere-citizens stated him to only be Orin reincarnated and not his own person, nor by others as Aquaman. Curry was shown to have abandoned both roles, leaving the familar costume of Aquaman and the ruling trident on Orin's throne when Tempest, formerly known as Aqualad, visited Curry .

Curry's current whereabouts are presently unknown.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

Artificial Biological Adaptation: He is artificially biologically adapted to the deep ocean environment, giving them the ability to breathe underwater, enhanced sight, hearing and strength. He can withstand extremes of temperature and pressure that allow him to plunge into the ocean depths and resurface without harm. His metabolism must also be extremely efficient, given that he does not seem to suffer the effects of nitrogen narcosis, the bends or other deep sea ailments common to normal humans, under normal conditions. Any instance that might require that he surface in less than 10 seconds would still cause the nitrogen bubbles to form in his bloodstream.

• Amphibious Nature: Aquaman, can breathe both water and air, but must return to the aquatic environment at various intervals; this length can be prolonged by the humidity in the atmosphere.

• Enhanced Sight: His ability to see in the murky depths of the ocean allows him exceptional night vision while on land.

• Enhanced Hearing: several times more acute than human capacity.

• Enhanced Smell: several times more acute than human capacity.

• Superhuman Strength

• Superhuman Speed

• Superhuman Endurance

• Superhuman Durability

Marine Empathy: He now speaks and understands the languages of the sentient sea peoples unaided, and has a limited ability to communicate with non-sentient sea life. He cannot speak directly to them as his predecessor could, but can send and receive emotional impressions and desires, such as communicating a need for help. He is working to expand the latter ability, and in one instance has been able to "see" through the eyes of nearby fish.

Related

• 32 Appearances of Arthur Joseph Curry (New Earth)
• 38 Images featuring Arthur Joseph Curry (New Earth)
• 9 Quotations by or about Arthur Joseph Curry (New Earth)
• Character Gallery: Arthur Joseph Curry (New Earth)

Footnotes

Aquaman Family member This character is or was an ally of Aquaman, and a member of the Aqua-Family and/or its supporting cast. This template will automatically categorize articles that include it into the "Aquaman Supporting Cast" category. See also: Aquaman Villains.