Emperor Aquaman #22 Assembles an Elemental Trio With Maxine Baker and Swamp Thing

Warning: major spoilers for Emperor Aquaman #22.

Emperor Aquaman #22 brings together a strikingly specific DC trio: Aquaman as the Avatar of the Blue, Maxine Baker as the Avatar of the Red, and Swamp Thing as the Avatar of the Green. The issue, written by Jeremy Adams with art by John Timms, frames the meeting around a new mystery and a cosmic darkness that threatens the entire galaxy. It also gives readers a compelling image of what an elemental-focused response team could look like within DC’s superhero world.

That does not mean a new team has been formally announced. Nothing in the available issue details establishes an official “Justice League of Avatars” book, roster, or future project. But the shared scene makes the idea easy to see: three heroes tied to distinct natural domains, gathered during an escalating crisis, with an unusual headquarters located in the opposite direction from the classic Justice League satellite concept.

What the avatar lineup means in issue #22

The key development is Arthur Curry’s place as the Avatar of the Blue. The title has been pushing Aquaman into increasingly godlike territory, and the Avatar designation gives that escalation a clear thematic shape. Rather than simply being Atlantis’s emperor or a hero with an oceanic connection, Arthur is positioned as a representative of the Blue: a force associated here with the world’s aquatic life and waters.

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He is joined by Maxine Baker, the daughter of Animal Man. Maxine is identified as the Avatar of the Red, while Swamp Thing is identified as the Avatar of the Green and carries the memories of Alec Holland. Together, the three characters represent Blue, Red, and Green—water, animal life, and plant life in the most straightforward reading of the elemental labels.

An avatar, in this context, is not merely a superhero alias. It describes a character acting as a living representative or agent of a much larger force. That distinction matters because it enlarges the stakes of a crossover. A threat to one member is no longer only a threat to an individual hero, city, or kingdom; it can be connected to a broader domain that hero embodies.

For Aquaman, that is especially important. His existing role as emperor already creates responsibilities to Atlantis. Becoming the Avatar of the Blue places those political duties beside an even wider cosmic or ecological responsibility. Issue #22’s galaxy-level darkness is therefore more than a convenient excuse to put recognizable heroes together. It is a problem on a scale that suits characters defined by elemental forces.

A potential Justice League-style structure, without the official label

The trio has obvious team-book potential because each member begins from a different corner of DC’s mythology. Aquaman supplies the oceanic and Atlantean perspective; Maxine brings a direct connection to Animal Man and the Red; and Swamp Thing represents the Green while retaining the memories of Alec Holland. Their overlap is conceptual rather than geographic, which is often the useful starting point for a superhero group.

The team-like reading is strengthened by their repeated proximity and by the headquarters imagery in the issue. The location is described as effectively the inverse of a satellite headquarters: not a base floating above Earth, but something positioned in the extreme opposite direction. That visual choice gives the gathering its own identity rather than simply placing the characters in a generic meeting room.

It also works neatly with the group’s premise. A conventional satellite suggests surveillance, spacefaring technology, and a view of the planet from above. An avatar team tied to the living world is more naturally associated with a hidden, subterranean, or otherwise Earth-rooted place. The issue does not need to declare a formal organization for that contrast to do some narrative work.

The missing colors are where the idea becomes speculative

Blue, Red, and Green are the confirmed focus of this issue’s gathering. Any larger roster remains speculation. The notion of adding avatars associated with Grey, White, Black, or other colors is an appealing extension of the premise, but readers should separate that possibility from what Emperor Aquaman #22 actually presents.

That distinction is useful because superhero comics frequently use a single issue to test a combination of characters without promising an ongoing series. The strongest takeaway is not that DC has already created a new league. It is that the issue demonstrates why such a concept could work: the characters have complementary domains, distinct personal histories, and a crisis big enough to justify cooperation.

The immediate story: Atlantis has fallen and a larger darkness is emerging

The elemental meeting happens while Aquaman’s own series is deep in conflict. The solicitation for issue #22 says Atlantis has fallen, Lolanna and Aquaman’s enemies are moving into the next stage of their plan, and Arthur is pulled into the mystery involving Maxine and Swamp Thing. The stated threat is a cosmic darkness capable of endangering the galaxy.

Those plot points give the book two scales of tension at once. Atlantis remains central to Aquaman’s personal and political story, while the darkness broadens the consequences far beyond his kingdom. The avatar trio sits at the junction of those scales. Aquaman may be facing an immediate struggle over Atlantis, but as Avatar of the Blue he is also part of a wider system that cannot be addressed through Atlantean power alone.

That structure could make the issue a meaningful pivot rather than a detached guest-star episode. Maxine and Swamp Thing are not simply present to offer backup. Their identities as avatars make them directly relevant to a plot involving a vast threat and the status of Aquaman’s new role.

What comes next in The Tidal War

The next two listed issues show the pressure on Aquaman continuing to build. Emperor Aquaman #23, scheduled for November 11, 2026, is labeled “The Tidal War: Part Three.” Arthur is trapped on Korugar while the Crimson Queen uses the ancient Zodiac Crystals to summon a power described as old as time and intended to destroy Earth’s surface. Its solicitation also points to an unlikely vision from the DC K.O. tournament as a possible key to saving humanity.

Emperor Aquaman #24 follows on December 9, 2026, and is described as the penultimate chapter of The Tidal War. Aquaman is still on the run on Korugar as the space conflict intensifies, while events in Atlantis reach their final stage and the Crimson Queen pursues revenge. Both issues list Jeremy Adams as writer, Paolo Villanelli as artist, and John Timms as cover artist.

Those solicitations do not confirm whether Maxine or Swamp Thing will return in either chapter. Still, they show why the Avatar of the Blue status may remain relevant. Arthur’s immediate circumstances span Atlantis, Korugar, Earth, and a threat involving ancient Zodiac Crystals. His story is plainly operating beyond the usual boundaries of a single undersea kingdom.

What readers should and should not assume about #25

There is chatter that the current run from Adams and Timms will conclude with Aquaman #25, but that is not established as a formal confirmation in the information available here. The issue #24 solicitation does, however, explicitly say the series is heading toward a milestone 25th issue. That makes #25 a natural focal point for readers following the resolution of The Tidal War and the larger question of Arthur’s Avatar of the Blue role.

Whether Aquaman keeps that status afterward is likewise unresolved. Issue #22 makes the designation dramatically valuable because it connects Arthur to characters and conflicts that a standard royal or superhero title alone would not necessarily reach. Removing it quickly would close off a promising route for the character; keeping it would leave open future stories where Atlantis is only one part of a larger living-world mythology.

For now, the concrete reading order is simple: Emperor Aquaman #22 is available for $3.99, with issue #23 listed at $3.99 for November 11, 2026, and issue #24 listed at $3.99 for December 9, 2026. The important spoiler is not an announced new Justice League. It is the unusually clean alignment of Aquaman, Maxine Baker, and Swamp Thing—and the possibility that DC has found a durable reason for these avatars to keep answering the same call.