DC; April 1976
Cover by Jim Aparo

Title: “What Lurks Below Buoy 13”
Synopsis: Batman and Aquaman race to recover a mysterious underwater satellite that threatens to shift the global “balance of terror.”

Writer: Bob Haney
Penciler: John Calnan
Inker: Jim Aparo

Review: At times, Bob Haney’s Brave & the Bold scripts resemble a homemade burrito: overstuffed and a bit of a mess. This one mixes ingredients with manic glee: Gunrunners, stolen Atlantean technology, Cold War geopolitics and… Nazis? Haney’s characterization is also a bit off this issue; his Batman isn’t very bright, and his Aquaman reads more like Namor. John Calnan’s pencils aren’t as dynamic as Jim Aparo’s solo work, but the latter’s inking keeps a consistent Brave & the Bold look. Still, it would have been a treat seeing Aparo penciling this team-up featuring two of his signature characters.

Grade: C

Cool factor: Not so much, which is unusual for a Haney/Aparo Brave & the Bold.

Collector’s note: According to MyComicShop.com, there is a Mark Jewelers variant of this issue.

Character quotable: “As for the air-breathers, let them destroy each other! I care not!” – Aquaman, who does everything except holler “Imperius Rex!”

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