Why Is Aquaman Bulletproof?

Although a subject of mocking for most of his comic book history, Aquaman has recently become a more respected superhero thanks to his badass narratives, as well as Jason Momoa’s brilliant interpretation of the character on the big screen. All of this revitalized interest in Aquaman and his history and one of the questions people ask is “why Aquaman is bulletproof”

Aquaman is bulletproof due to simple physics. Namely, the underwater environment Aquaman lives in has extreme pressure (around 15,000 psi) and he had to evolve in such a way to withstand such pressure. Since a regular bullet produces around 3,000 psi of pressure, it is understandable why Aquaman’s skin is resistant to bullets.

DC Comics gave us the character of Aquaman some time ago and although he isn’t the one with most character development, his underwater environment is rather beautiful and fairytale-like. Read more about his environment-based resistance in the article.

Why is Aquaman bulletproof?

Now, some of you might wonder whether Aquaman even is bulletproof and if he is, is that an old or a new thing? Despite the character going through a lot of changes throughout the years, Aquaman has been bulletproof ever since his debut appearance in 1941. This trait ranged from being more resistant to bullets to be completely bulletproof, depending on the author.

Aquaman has demonstrated this ability on numerous occasions, resisting both regular bullets as well as smaller cannon shells. The reason for that is simple – his skin is so thick that it cannot be penetrated by the force and pressure created by bullets. This is a result of his Atlantean physique, i.e., the fact the has to live underwater, where the pressure is several times bigger than that created by a bullet.

For example, a solid .38 bullet produces around 3,000 psi of pressure momentarily, which is enough to penetrate regular human skin and a lot of other materials, but not Aquaman. Namely, Aquaman lives and moves in the deepest parts of the oceans, where the pressure produced by the water is enormous, several times larger than that produced by a bullet.

The pressure Aquaman has to live with is more than 15,000 psi, which is much bigger than the pressure of a bullet. The Atlanteans had to adapt their physiques in accordance with nature, which made them extremely tough and invulnerable to many regular human weapons, bullets included.

Can Aquaman be stabbed?

Now that we know that Aquaman cannot be penetrated by a human bullet, we might also wonder whether he can be cut or stabbed?

Well, since his skin is so hard to deflect an incoming bullet, it can certainly resist a blade, however big or sharp it might be. This is also due to basic physics, as a blade couldn’t possibly produce enough pressure and/or force to penetrate the skin of a person that can survive more than 15,000 psi of pressure.

Still, Aquaman is not completely resistant to blades and he can be cut, stabbed and even penetrated by a weapon made out of Atlantean steel, whose properties can breach through Aquaman’s enhanced body. This is, so far, the only known weapon that can cut or stab Aquaman that is, of course, of Earthly origins.