Aquaman’s Protege, Aqualad

Kaldur’ahm, the second Aqualad, made his debut in the Young Justice cartoon before ever showing up in the comic book continuity; his first television appearance was in the debut episode, “Independence Day,” as the protégé of Aquaman. Aqualad is elected the leader of the Young Justice squad after their first mission together, as he showcased proficient leadership abilities. Later in the series, it’s revealed that Kaldur’ahm is actually the son of Aquaman’s most persistent foe, Black Manta. This revelation spurs other events into motion in the second season of the show.

The comic book version of Aqualad is pretty different, despite the character debuting in both mediums around the same time in 2010. The first comic appearance of Aqualad was in Brightest Day #4 (August 2010), which established the human alias of the character as Jackson Hyde. Black Manta is still his father in the books, though Mera also has a connection to him. As it turns out, Mera was the one to deliver Jackson to his foster parents on the surface world for his safety, and she also held on to a number of Atlantean items that would be given to him.

As a human/Atlantean hybrid, Kaldur’ahm has a number of unique abilities. Besides his power to breathe underwater, he also has enhanced strength and can adapt his eyes to see in the dark ocean depths. His hydrokinectic powers are also present, similar to Mera’s ability to manipulate water.

Though his history has thus far been short, Aqualad has become a fairly popular character in a short amount of time. He’s appeared in multiple video games as well as in the Flashpoint Paradox animated film, making him one of the more prominent new black characters in comic-related media.