Swamp Thing the Bronze Age Omnibus Vol 1 Review
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Wein. The first part is the introduction of the grapheme past Lein Wein (HoM, STv1 #1-13), and it's pretty astonishing. Wein manages to meld together horror and scientific discipline fiction into a harmonious whole, telling stories that are strange, scary, and sometimes dreamlike. The acme is surely #10, which puts the misshapen horror Arcane in conflict with antebellum ghosts. There's a reason that this story was later on repri
Swamp Thing: The Bronze Age Omnibus is really a compilation in iii (and a one-half) parts.Wein. The first role is the introduction of the character by Lein Wein (HoM, STv1 #1-xiii), and it's pretty amazing. Wein manages to meld together horror and scientific discipline fiction into a harmonious whole, telling stories that are foreign, scary, and sometimes dreamlike. The height is surely #10, which puts the misshapen horror Arcane in conflict with antebellum ghosts. In that location's a reason that this story was later reprinted in the second Swamp Thing run!
There are also an amazing number of long-running characters introduced by Wein including Alec (#1), Matt (#1), Arcane (#two), Abby (#3), Gregori (#three), and even Tim Ravenwind (#5). However, you really have to read through this run to see how long a shadow it's cast over the next few decades of the Swamp Affair comic. Wein recognized the power of Arcane by depicting him in two very dissimilar forms (#2, #x). He besides introduced the idea of Alec traveling through fourth dimension (#12) and fifty-fifty meeting Batman (#seven), plots that would afterwards be plundered by Veitch and Moore. Even when introducing adversaries that wouldn't be seen again like the fallen alien (#9) and the conquerer worms (#11), Wein offered upwards memorable characters.
Overall this is a magnificent moody run, marred only a bit past the wordiness of the time period. It's as well nice that in his final consequence Wein provides some closure for the human relationship between Matt and Alec, offering some changes to the storyline, something that were pretty unknown in the era. The beautiful, spooky fine art by Bernie Wrightson for the first 10 problems only improves that great storytelling. [5/5]
Michelinie & Conway. Unfortunately, after Wein leaves, the comics takes a quick and dramatic turn for the worse. The trouble is that the main author of Swamp Thing'south later run (STv1 #14-24), David Michelinie, just doesn't have the imagination that Wein did. He tries to touch upon the horror and science-fiction elements that Wein used, but the result is tired story ideas like a demon (#xv), a zombie cult (#xvi), and killer robots (#17). Meanwhile, Michelinie also needlessly adds radioactive waste material to Swamp Thing's origin (#14). Toward the end of the run, Swamp Thing descends into parody. The idea of a space collector (#21) reads like the scientific discipline fantasy of Barbarella, then the last ii issues (#23-24), these by Gerry Conway, make it clear that the comic has totally lost its fashion, equally supervillains line up to fight the Swamp Affair, who meanwhile turns back into a human. (A thread that was apparently resolved in the never-reprinted '70s revival of Challengers of the Unknown, though Wein would later declare that the final few issues of STv1 never happened.)
The only really worthwhile story in the whole back half of the original Swamp Affair run is a two-parter about a duplicate Swamp Thing, likewise past Gerry Conway (#19-20). It offers some thoughtful commentary on what the Swamp Matter is, and also makes the last use of his supporting cast before they're inexplicably lost. The balance of these roots of the Swamp Thing, though, they're pretty dire. [i/5]
Pasko. Martin Pasko's reinvention of the Swamp Thing (ST v2 #i-xix) in the early '80s manages to recapture Wein'southward magic. He in one case more blends together science-fiction and fantasy, with some particularly memorable problems including ones about a demonic possession (#4), tortured science experiments (#5), and an conflicting that would rule (#6-seven).
The outset thirteen issues form a major arc, which is quite a nice concept that brings real coherence to the championship that was (again) almost unknown at the time. Information technology runs forth nicely for much of its length, only unfortunately its climax is somewhat flat, perhaps because of the increasing complication of plotline. Throughout this arc, Pasko does a nifty job introducing a new cast of characters.
Pasko's terminal few issues are at to the lowest degree as practiced, and if annihilation more in tune with the original run. A story of masks (#16) could hands have been written by Wein, then we get the return of Matt Cable and Abby and the third appearance of Arcane (#17-nineteen), and it's marvelously in-tune with what came before.
Overall, Pasko'due south run is more polished and technically better than Wein'south, but information technology also misses some of the most outlandish and beautiful horror that the Wein/Wrightson collaboration brought nigh. Don't let that seem like faint praise though: these are strong stories, irrespective of their '80s time menstruum, and it'southward great to finally take them collected, a generation after. [4+/5]
Mishkin, Jones. There are a couple of guest spots during Pasko's run. Dan Mishkin writes two issues (STv2 #14, 15) that focus on a scientist who becomes a crystalline lab monstrosity due to an accident. Information technology could have fit right into the latter half of Swamp Thing v1, which means that it's pretty bad, and similar those afterwards stories goes direct over the top when trying to figure out Swamp Thing's mixture of horror and science fiction. It's got pretty bad art too. The Jones story (STv2 Annual #1) is an adaptation of the Wes Craven moving-picture show. Information technology's mildly horrible, with its focus on brainless action, but it's even worse as an adaptation. Overall, these three stories are pretty skippable. [1/5]
The but downside of this book is what it's missing. Those Challengers of the Unknown issues should take been included every bit the missing bridge between STv1 and STv2; as well, the DC Comics Presents and Brave & the Bold issues that featured Swamp Affair in this acting. In improver, Alan Moore's "Loose Ends" is notably missing, since it follows so closely on the heels of the final consequence in this volume. (Fortunately, Pasko's Arcane trilogy ends adequately conclusively.) At the to the lowest degree, DC should have included text pages summarizing those missing issues. Despite those omissions, this is a pretty great drove, bracketed past Wein'southward great work and Pasko'due south very expert work. It's good to have it all in ane place (especially the ~30 issues that had never previously been reprinted.)
Now can we please take a Moore jitney?
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Information technology'due south odd to say this for a book that'southward, what, 9000 pages long? I hateful, a lotta lotta pages -- but this motorcoach is actually somewhat incomplete. At the same time, it's nearly also overwhelming to be discussed as ane volume, considering it is so many damn
I've been working through this monstrosity (haha) for the amend part of a month, and I'thou still not technically finished -- there'due south an adaptation here of the 80's Swamp Thing movie that I'll get back to, simply I'g finished with the run proper, as it were.Information technology's odd to say this for a book that'southward, what, 9000 pages long? I hateful, a lotta lotta pages -- but this jitney is actually somewhat incomplete. At the same time, information technology's nigh too overwhelming to be discussed as one book, because it is and so many damn books bejeezus.
SERIES 1, PART 1: Business firm of Secrets #92, Swamp Thing #1-13
Offset information technology's the Len Wein/Bernie Wrightson run, which starts with a seemingly not-catechism House of Secrets short story that suggests the "root" (haha oh beloved god there will be a lot of these) of Swamp Matter -- that is, a horrifying bog monster created past Weeird Science, doomed to stalk the swamps lonely. It doesn't actually feature the main characters of Swamp Thing #1 which would come out the following year; instead Westward&West would innovate a new Swamp Thing with a shockingly similar backstory (a problem that Alan Moore would, over a decade later, stitch together into a mildly logical continuity).
The surprising ongoing idiosyncracy of these early stories (and indeed, of much of the unabridged volume) is they are really not about Swamp Thing. Instead, they are about the increasingly improbable situations in which he finds himself: in the start thirteen issues, Swampy fights a Mad Scientist, Basically Frankenstein, Werewolves For Some Reason, Witches Okay, Steampunk Robots, Batman (!), Some other Stuff, and Mad Scientist again with the assistance of Ghost Slaves (!!), and absolutely none of information technology really requires him to be Swamp Affair. At most, there'due south nighttime forces at work that want to written report his swamp-body or any, and he occasionally shows signs of nigh-invulnerability because something-something plant cellular structure, but other than that it's basically, like, a Tales From the Crypt-style anthology series that happens to accept a protagonist. I mean, don't get me wrong -- for the most part these are fantabulous slices of 70's pulp horror. Information technology's only, like, such an odd formula compared to our modern, Swamp-Thing-centric version of Swamp Thing.
Serial 1, PART TWO: Swamp Matter #14-24
W&Westward are followed past Gerry Conway and David Micheline swapping scripts over pencils from Nestor Redondo -- Redondo's piece of work was new to me, but I call back it'southward first-class stuff. In any other volume where he wasn't sandwiched between Wrightson (at the beginning) and Stephen Bissette (at the end), he'd be the standout artist. But C&Chiliad's stories aren't every bit strong mainly because they don't retain the classic monster movie archetypes that Wein used with abandon.
In the original W&W run, Swampy has 2 main antagonists: Anton Arcane, the same Mad Scientist who plays into basic horror-fantasy tropes, and The Cabal, a shadowy regime agency who supplies the sci-fi. Just fifty-fifty though Swamp Thing is essentially a product of Science Gone Wrong, information technology'due south as a horror comic that the series really shines. However, the C&M stories become far more interested in Swamp Thing every bit some kind of strange sci-fi fusion mashup, as the series is overrun with psychic mutants, a tribe of amazons, 50s-manner behemothic robots and diverse government agencies continuing to requite chase, becoming a kind of Ten-Files-lite more than than Hammer Horror.
Eventually the creative squad gives upwardly entirely, and Swamp Affair but starts fighting more aliens and superheroes and also becomes human being again, and nothing makes whatsoever sense. This is besides where the collection makes its offset large fumble, as the cease of this series plays out in Challengers of the Unknown, in a handful of bug that aren't even collected here. Boo.
SERIES Ii, Office ONE: Saga of the Swamp Affair #1-xiii
Saga, by Martin Pasko with a rotating crew of artists, introduces a new supporting bandage and, like its predecessor, leans difficult on the government conspiracies. Even moreso (and to its detriment), Swamp Affair is near an afterthought to his own serial. Instead, this giant arc (13 issues for one storyline dorsum in the 80s might as well have been Moby Dick) is literally just The Dark Phoenix Saga -- the authorities are chasing down mutants because at that place's 1 powerful girl-mutant who's gonna kill everybody, and occasionally Swamp Thing shows up. Information technology also tries to go on up with the requirement that Swamp Matter must run across a new inexplicable weird evil creature in every issue on top of the government conspiracy plot literally happening simultaneously, and lord god. I seriously have no idea how this was the storyline that restarted Swamp Affair after a six-year hiatus. Information technology'due south just atrocious. I felt like I went in and out of this one for two weeks wondering if information technology would always end or if I could just die first.
The just practiced thing is that 1 of the stories in this section is called "I Have Seen the Splintered Timbers of a Hundred Shattered Sails," which is great, but not worth those horrible ii weeks of my life.
Issues #14-15 are a fill-in two-parter where Swampy teams up with the Phantom Stranger, and it's laughably bad just I was so glad non to exist reading virtually Swamp Thing and Ten-Men anymore that I just floated through it. Also the Tabular array of Contents doesn't even mention who wrote these bug or anything, and I can't be bothered to await it up, because seriously no one even cares.
Serial Ii, PART 2: Saga of the Swamp Thing #16-19
So yeah, honestly, this is where the book gets actually practiced again -- the last four issues of this monolithic tome that is, as I said, approximately 19 million pages long. Gerry Conway works with Pasko to get things ready for Alan Moore's post-obit run, and Stephen Bissette gets hired to basically beat every artist who ever idea they could depict Swamp Thing.
I almost wished I hadn't had to go through everything I went through to get this far, but there'south this beautiful scene where Swamp Thing sees his friend (and eventual wife) Abby, who was an underwritten groundwork graphic symbol in the showtime series, only had been dropped entirely for well-nigh 20 problems. They look at each other across this twilight scrap of swamp and call to each other -- both had idea the other was dead, and it'south goddman cute and it wouldn't accept worked if the series hadn't sucked for so long.
But these last four problems, I am telling you, they kill -- the horror vibe that is this book'due south lifeblood basically kicks into overdrive, with people turning into insects and eating each other and manifesting ghost-demons and information technology is Braindead level, gooey-icky magic.
But THEN the book commits its second and third drove-crimes, every bit this 2.v billion folio epic ends on a cliffhanger just so y'all'll go buy one measly issue of the Alan Moore run that wraps everything up.
And then THERE'Due south A Film ADAPTATION COMIC INSTEAD.
So. I'one thousand non really sure if I could ever recommend this volume to anyone -- it is, above all else, a slog.
Through, a....yknow...swamp.
HAHAHAHHAHAHAkillmeI'mgoingtobed.
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Despite the bad writing betwixt bug 14-24 (that I mercifully missed when I was a child), this is an absolute treat overall and earns all 5 stars! In that location'south then much to dear in this book. Just make sure yous clothing a weight belt when yous read it. This book is heavy!
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He was extremely the Anti Swamp Matter: made o **Edit**: Browsing the reviews hither, in that location seems to be a lot of detest toward the Nat Broder/Silicon Crystal Human being character. That story was one of my favorites! Because a) Phantom Stranger, and b) the character was a great mirror to hold upwardly to Swamp Matter. Their origins were almost exactly the same: bodies suffused with strange scientific discipline stuff during a lab explosion. Broder's torso was literally dumped in the swamp, from which he rose up equally the Silicon Homo!
He was extremely the Anti Swamp Affair: made of silicon and circuitry instead of roots and moss; cold, unfeeling applied science instead of moss and muck that feels too much. Yearning for ability and dominion instead of belonging and family unit. Swampy doesn't take his connection to the Green notwithstanding, just Broder'southward connection to the web and weave of the Internet unknowingly predicts even that. He even *looked* like Bizarro, and was Swampy's changed every flake equally much as Bizarro is Superman's.
**Original review:**
Super fun and nostalgic. Swampy has always been one of my favorites, since I was a kid.
Started reading this when the DC TV series was going to come out. Standout moments:
1. The Monster of the Week format of the earliest issues: Swampy punches a werewolf! A vampire! A Frankenstein! A robot! An alien! A weird worm!
2. Seeing showtime appearances of Television series tie-ins: Nathan Ellery and the Enclave, Avery Sunderland, the Phantom Stranger.
iii. Ane of Swampy's very first adventures lead him to Gotham, and to an meet with Batman! Did not know that.
iv. There is nothing earth elemental, and nothing about The Green at all about this entire offset run. He'southward just a mossy green hulk who wants to be left solitary.
5. The "Karen Clancy/Anti-Christ Saga" was a loooooong run total of characters and content that I've never heard of. That whole flake felt similar a fever dream. When it was finally over and we got to some other Anton Arcane/Un-men fight, I was happy to be dorsum to "classic Swamp Thing" territory.
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The new Saga of the Swamp Thing series started off pretty strong with som
I previously reviewed the excellent Wrightson/Wein Swamp Thing issues 1-10 in the Dark Genesis collection review, and so this review I'll concentrate on the other issues. The later issues of Swamp Matter'due south original run started out okay but slowly fizzled. Even for a comic book the mode Swamp Matter kept falling into one crazy situation afterward another simply became besides outlandish and somewhen the book lost its manner and was cancelled.The new Saga of the Swamp Affair series started off pretty strong with some very deep and dark storylines for an all ages comic in 1982. Issue four in particular featured a story where a demon possessed various people in order to murder children in horrible ways. While the violence wasn't graphic, I was all the same surprised to run into this pass the comics code back then. I read that issue as a child and it was scary and stuck with me. And then we end up with Swamp Thing vs. The Antichrist, which once once again was pretty heavy for mainstream DC in the early 80s. It was a lilliputian convoluted at times, but to me it read very much like a horror novel of the 80s. Y'all know the kind, they ever seemed to have a skeleton on the cover and were then bad they were adept? Truthful guilty pleasures!
Then this series sort of lost its way too, merely thankfully Alan Moore showed upwards to produce one of the all-time runs in the history of comics with his work on Swamp Thing.
Overall this collection is a potent bronze age horror collection. Information technology features a superhero type graphic symbol as the protagonist, but it'south horror at its heart.
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House of Secrets #92 - The 1st appearance of Swamp Thing. Alex Olsen is killed by his friend Damian, who is in love with Alex's wife Linda. Damian buries Alex in the swamp, where he is resurrected as the Swamp Thing. ST shambles back to his home just in time to foreclose Damian from killing Linda as well.
Swamp Affair #one (Dark Genesis) - Alec and Linda Kingdom of the netherlands are working nether the protection of Lt. Matt Cable, as they conduct important inquiry for the authorities. The Holland's are scientists working on a bio-restorative formula that allows institute life to abound anywhere. The research draws the attention of The Conclave, a shady group who wants the formula at all costs. Led by Mr. E, The Conclave explodes the lab with Alec within. While called-for, Alec runs into the nearby swamp and dies. Withal, the explosion acquired Alec to be soaked in the formula, and later landing in the swamp the two factors combine to plough Alec into Swamp Thing. The Conclave later goes dorsum and kills Linda, causing ST to impale some of their henchman. Matt Cable witnesses the act and assumes ST is an evil monster responsible for Linda's death. Cable vows to catch ST at all costs.
#2 (The Man Who Wanted Forever) - ST is captured past the Un-Men, horrible experimental creatures made by Arcane (1st app.). Arcane is an elderly man with a penchant for magic that lives in a castle above a small village in Europe. Arcane offers Alec a take chances to become a human once more, by swapping bodies. Alec takes up the offer, only to acquire that Arcane plans on using his new superior swamp form to destroy the village below and achieve immortality. Alec reverses the spell and causes Arcane to fall to his death from the castle, his Un-Men spilling out after him.
#3 (The Patchwork Man) - Withal trapped in Arcane's castle, ST is saved by a Patchwork Man, some other creation of Arcane. The 2 manage to escape the castle as it is destroyed in an explosion caused by Arcane's chemicals. Meanwhile, Cable has tracked ST to this village and meets Abigail Arcane (1st app.), niece of the erstwhile magician. She'due south a sweet daughter and a doctor who only had Arcane left in her family after her father disappeared years ago. Turns out, her father is the Patchwork Man, who was severely wounded in an explosion and pieced back together by Cabalistic. The Patchwork Man tries to reconnect with Abby but due to his monstrous appearance and lack of spoken language, it goes poorly. Both Patchwork and ST are hunted by the hamlet, even though they are both technically trying to protect Abby. Patchwork falls to his death, but not before Abby finally gets a spark of recognition for her father. ST escapes.
#4 (Monster on the Moors!) - Abby joins Cable as he comes dorsum to the United states of america, while ST hitches a ride on the body of their plane. The plane crashes on Scottish (?) moors and the surprisingly even so alive passengers are rescued past a local couple with ulterior motives. Cable and Abby observe themselves in danger, as the couple plans on swapping out Cable's claret with the tainted claret of their son, who is a werewolf. ST kills the werewolf, who sacrifices himself willingly to prevent anymore suffering.
#5 (The Concluding of the Ravenwind Witches!) - ST becomes entangled in a literal witch chase in a small village. He comes to the aid of an accused witch - Rebecca Ravenwind - who watches later on her simple brother, Timothy. After all, the true powerful beingness turns out to the Timmy, who uses Rebecca as his conduit. ST saves her from burning at the pale, and doesn't interfere when the fanatical villagers are laid to waste.
#6 (A Clockwork Horror) - ST is shocked to come up confront to face up with Alec and Linda Holland, who are alive and well and living a mysterious mining town which was once defunct. He is introduced to Mayor Hans , who reveals he built the entire town and its residents, using obituaries equally his template for the robotic townspeople'southward appearances. Mr. E, spying on Cable via a radio transmitter in the skull of Cablevision'due south dog, learns virtually the town when Cable goes to investigate information technology. Mr. E sees this as an opportunity for The Caucus, and sends henchman to capture the Mayor and Cablevision. The Mayor takes a bullet to protect his creations, and the creations somewhen destroy themselves every bit they exact revenge of the henchman. Cablevision is captured and shipped to Gotham to meet Mr. E, and ST decides to follow.
#7 (Night of the Bat) - ST first collaboration with Batman. ST comes to Gotham in search of Mr. E. Lilliputian does he know Batman is as well on the trail of the mysterious figurehead. Because ST still hasn't learned to talk at this signal, he is unable to explain to Batman they are on the aforementioned side. Batman tries to bring down ST, and gets his ass vanquish in the process despite ST going easy on him and trying to avoid conflict. ST rescues Cable and Abby from being tortured and tracks down Mr. E at his penthouse. ST plans on killing Mr. Due east, but decides to not stoop to his level. As he pushes Mr. Eastward away, the villain trips over his pet and tumbles out the balustrade window, falling to his decease.
#8 (The Lurker in Tunnel xiii) - ST wanders in to a mining town and is met with hostility initially. However, the mood before long changes every bit the townspeople cover him...a niggling too much. They manipulate ST into entering an abandoned mine shaft to rescue a child. There he is met by a cosmic entity chosen M'Nagalah, a Lovecraftian horror who claims to take created the universe. ST crushes that bowwow in the mine shaft and shambles out, leaving the townspeople with a major guilt trip.
#ix (The Stalker From Beyond) - ST finally makes information technology back to the swamp where information technology all began. In his old lab, an alien spaceship now sits nether construction and ST assumes the alien is dangerous. The alien incapacitates ST to the betoken of near death, and he dumps his torso dorsum in the swamp. At the same time, Cablevision is recruited past an army outfit to investigate the expanse subsequently a UFO sighting. ST is revived by the swamp once again, and gets back to the lab in time to salvage the conflicting from execution. The alien leaves World afterward a monologue well-nigh how he ended up here after a cosmic tempest and was only hoping for assistance in rebuilding his send, but he is ashamed of our vehement natures. Cable is remorseful, peculiarly since his attitude towards ST and so closely resembles that of the douchebag regular army guy.
#10 (The Man Who Wouldn't Dice) - (Wrightson'southward last upshot) ST meets an elderly woman in the woods named Auntie Bellum, who tells him the story of the plantation that used to stand on the grounds. A 1-armed slave called Black Jubal vowed vengeance on oppressors earlier his own death at the stake. After the story, ST finds that he is being watched by the Un-Men, and that Cabalistic is back from the dead. After having his fleeting consciousness transferred into a slipshod trunk, Arcane and his army followed ST to resume his plan. With ST'south trunk, Arcane plans to enslave the earth. ST is outmatched, and is rescued by the ghosts of the slaves of the plantation, led by Blackness Jubal. When he awakens, he finds 6 graves on the spot of the brawl, with one rock reading "Arcane".
#eleven (The Conqueror Worms) - Cable and Abby are kidnapped by behemothic worms and brought to a hidden metropolis in the swamp. The city is New Eden, and was created by Professor Nail as an ark for the terminal remaining humans once pollution eventually destroys the planet. ST follows the pair into the city, where it is discovered the worms accept tricked the Professor into gathering a small population to exist their nutrient supply. The captives escape, and the city implodes with Nail still inside. Once safely ashore, ST leaves the grouping and discovers a strange crystal with a seven-pointed star. When he touches information technology, he is sent back in time to the historic period of the dinosaurs.
#12 (The Eternity Man) - ST travels through time. At each fourth dimension period he meets Milo Mobius, a human who stole immortality from a witch and was cursed by her for doing so. Whenever Mobius dies, he is sent back to the get-go of time and must relive it all over again. The only manner for him to die permanently would be to exist murdered at the hands of a friend. Mobius begs ST to kill him, but ST refuses. Mobius accidentally wanders into some quicksand, and dies before ST can save him, damning him to another reset of life.
#13 (The Leviathan Conspiracy) - (Wein'south final issue) ST is finally captured by Cable and Abby, and brought to a lab in Washington DC. There, ST finally confides to Cable that he is Alec Holland and the story of how he came to be. Racked with remorse at capturing him, Cablevision and Abby help ST escape.
#xiv (The Tomorrow Children) - ST continues to investigate the appearance of mutated swamp life, when he encounters 3 children who likewise announced to have been mutated past the swamp. The local townspeople arraign the psychic children for all the strange occurrences in the town and they lead a charge to impale the kids. When i of the kids sacrifices their ain life to rescue the life of one of the townies' sons, they meet their mistake and end hunting them.
#xv (The Soul-Spell of Father Elation) - ST is tricked by a local priest into becoming part of a program to destroy the globe. Information technology is the priest's intention to release a demon into the world (with ST as a host) because he is hoping that seeing proof of evil will hogtie people back to the church. Cable, Abby, and Bolt track down ST and learn of the plot. Cable is able to convince the priest of the lunacy of his plan, while Abby finds a way to break the spell. The priest and so takes the demon's soul into his own body, which combusts within moments killing both him and the demon. Bolt is captured by a helicopter with an unknown pilot.
#16 (Night of the Warring Dead) - ST is transported in a plane past Abby and Cablevision to follow the helicopter that took Bolt. ST falls out of the plane while stopping a skyjacking and ends upward on an island in the centre of a revolution. The revolution is led by a sorceress named Laganna, who used a talisman to control an ground forces of the living dead. ST destroys the talisman, Laganna is killed, and ST leaves the island.
#17 (The Destiny Machine) - It is revealed that the man who took Bolt is Nathan Ellery - Mr. E of The Caucus. He died after his fall in outcome 7, but was resurrected past the Conclave. His new program is kill ST, and to dominion the earth by turning the minds of world leaders to mush. ST rescues Bolt, Cablevision, and Abby (the latter of whom is displaying mysterious psychic abilities) and causes Mr. E's (presumed) second demise. As the iv become abroad in a helicopter, they run out of a fuel and brainstorm to crash land.
#18 (Village of the Doomed) - ST, Cablevision, Abby, and Bolt emerge in a swamp (where else) and wander into a(nother) secluded town. This ane consists of only elderly people living in a strange storybook type village. The only fellow at that place is Aubrey Trask, who explains that Serenity Village is a retirement village. Aubrey is really a resident there who used the Ebon Tome to suck the youth from someone else and revive himself. Aubrey plans to do the same for the rest of the village, and tries to cede Cable, Abby, Bolt, and his own son for the spell. The mean solar day is saved past Abby, who uses her withal unknown abilities to escape from bondage and get a psychic message out to ST to come salve them.
#nineteen (A Second Time to Die) - Dorsum in upshot #five, ST had his arm cut off in a fight. Considering of the bio-restorative formula that is role of him, his arm grew back. Now, information technology is revealed that the formula too caused a new ST to be restored from the severed arm. This mindless ST double has been spotted in Florida, which is where Cablevision, Abby, and Bolt go looking for ST. The fake ST befriends a Native America named Ho'Tah Makanaw, who teaches a local male child about the curse of the white homo, who hates things based on appearance. Meanwhile, the real ST is far away, and feels a strange magnetic pull towards a government excavation site. At the end of the issue, Ho'Tah brings his young friend to the Grotto of Eternal Youth.
#xx (The Mirror Monster) - ST faces off against his double, while racial tensions come to a eddy in the Florida town. The Grotto is destroyed and Ho'Tah killed. The double is destroyed, leaving Cablevision, Abby, and Bolt to believe Alec is expressionless.
#21 (Requiem) - ST is kidnapped by Solus, an exiled God who controls aliens to fight his loneliness.
#22 (The Solomon Plague) - A government project to develop a plague flop goes awry and citizens of a local desert town and turned into mutants with terminal weather. ST is captured and brought to the bunker where they are existence held.
#23 (Rebirth & Nightmare) - ST goes home to his brother Edward, a chemist working work grad student Ruth Monroe. They recreate the settings of his initial transformation and plow him dorsum into Alec Holland. Meanwhile, a new group called Colossus hunts ST.
#24 (The Globe Below) - Final issue. Alec and Ruth begin a romance, while Colossus counts on the Elemental Thrudvang to track down ST. Edward plots something sinister. Thrudvang is defeated. None of this matters, as the series is cancelled.
Saga of the Swamp Thing #1 - ST is pursued by a Dr. Kay, who reports to a Mr. Yard. ST befriends a "witch-girl" named Casey.
#two - ST and Casey evade capture of Kay and Thousand(rasp).
#three - ST & Casey are separated. ST fights vampires in Rosewood (later revisited in Moore'south run)
#4 - A demon is possessing people and killing children. ST kills the demon, but is knocked out in the procedure. He is taken by the Sunderland corporation.
#5 - Sunderland corp is using genetically engineered beings to absorb hurting and sickness from their workers. ST puts a stop to it, goes on the run with Liz Tremayne and Dennis Barclay. Dr. Kay is in pursuit.
#half dozen, 7 - ST and Dennis stowaway on Sunderland'southward yacht the night of a masquerade brawl. They find Liz, and a sea monster attacks ST. Dr. Kay lets Dennis and Liz escape, and ST destroys the alien monster.
#eight - ST, Dennis, and Liz wash up on an island where Vietnam soldiers accept the ability to create things with their minds. They employ this power to recreate their favorite movies.
#9 - Dr Kay is revealed to be Helmut Kripptman, a Nazi scientist the US protected afterwards WW2.
#10-12 - Casey (Karen), possessed by a demon, plans to start a new Holocaust. Kay - non actually a Nazi but a Jewish dr. that committed atrocities on his own people in hopes of leniency - and his cohorts create a golem to fight back against Casey, and ST is able to kill her subsequently she's weakened. The demon exits Casey and enters Liz.
#xiii - The terminal battle. ST siphons some of the Herald'due south powers using Casey'south locket and uses psychic abilities to defeat the Herald and the Antichrist. In the cease, ST throws the locket and the ruby off a bridge to end things. To salvage ST's life, Dennis brings him back to the swamp and then he can breast-stroke in the waters full of the biorestorative formula.
#fourteen-15 - ST vs. a guy made of crystals who tin plough other living things into crystals. The Phantom Stranger is there likewise.
#16 - During a stopover at a hotel on the fashion to DC, ST stumbles into a strange village where he is given a mask which makes him look normal once more. He discovers the whole town is full of disfigured people wearing masks, and he falls for a young girl named Mallory. He leaves the boondocks, knowing his friends withal need his assist.
#17 - ST reunites with Abby and Matt Cable, the latter of whom is an alcoholic who suffers from monstrous delusions. It is revealed that the Sunderland Corp is hired by the U.s. govt to erase all evidence and witnesses of ST existence. The govt besides stole Linda'due south body from her grave. Elsewhere, Kay is abducted by a revived, arachnid-like Cabalistic and his army of United nations-Men.
#eighteen - A reprint of the original ST #ten
#19 - The last issue before Alan Moore'south legendary run begins. Arcane once again plans to swap his mind into ST. He transforms Kay into an insect Un-Man, and plans to practise the aforementioned to his niece Abby. Dennis and Liz get their car stuck in the wood far abroad and are unable to help. Matt has realized that the creatures that were attacking him were actualizations from his own mind. Merely before Cabalistic tin can complete the operation, Kay shows one more act of humanity and sacrifices himself to save ST. Kay is killed, and Cabalistic'due south mind is left loose in the void, no body to house it. ST and Abby escape Arcane's ship as it crashes. Abby departs to find Matt, and ST heads back to the crash site to confirm Cabalistic is dead.
Almanac #one - an adaptation of the 1982 Wes Chicken "Swamp Affair" motion picture
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Adjacent, nosotros take the run from the mid-80s leading up to the famous Alan Moore run. The first one-half of these stories is one long, continuous plot that wears out its welcome long before its over. The ending, too, is ridiculous, as swamp affair beats the bad guys by developing psychic powers, flying around, and shooting beams out of his mind. Besides, Swamp Thing spends virtually of these early issues sitting around, sleeping, getting knocked out, etc. The last prepare of stories here picks up the pace a bit and reintroduces some original characters like Cable, Abby Arcane, and Cabalistic himself.
One strange affair I noticed nearly all of these stories is all of the talk of god. Swamp thing is always calling out to god and saying things like "I pray to god that...". The long story that starts the 80s run is even more in your face about this as Swamp Thing and friends must finish the antichrist from appearing in the world and, forth the way, discuss the bible, the number of the beast, and even Jewish mysticism. At one point Swamp Thing even exorcises a demon "in the name of god". Some of the story titles are even biblical references, such as consequence xix: "And the Meek Shall Inherit". I don't think this was accidental, either, because I looked into this and found that a Swamp Thing author went on to quit in protest after the Alan Moore run because DC didn't want him to publish a story where Swamp Affair meets Jesus.
And so, anyway, this is a striking-and-miss collection of stories and information technology is safe to skip correct to the Alan Moore run unless you are really interested in these older tales. ...more
The commencement ten issues are very proficient. But as the original creative team departed the volume( the original writer lasted three more bug) the story quality went downwardly quite a fleck. It feels like they didn't have a clear direction for where the new creative team wanted the story to go. So issues 11 th This was a hard rating to give. It'south been a while since I've read this and so I decided to wipe the slate clean and treat it like this was the start fourth dimension I'd ever read information technology. So here is my reasoning for it.
The first 10 issues are very good. But every bit the original creative team departed the book( the original writer lasted iii more bug) the story quality went down quite a fleck. It feels like they didn't have a clear direction for where the new creative team wanted the story to become. And then issues xi through twenty 4 aren't that great. Then the book was canceled.
Saga of the swamp thing issues one through nineteen: good. The later issues are amazing once the Karen Clancy storyline is finished and some of the ongoing plots are finally resolved( or at least explained.) When the new artists are brought in at effect sixteen, the art(while never bad) becomes extraordinary. Anton arcane is suddenly drawn as if he stepped out of a cronenberg picture. There is a panel somewhere towards the end where swamp affair is swathed in pink smoke that I admittedly adore. I could continue and on. And I haven't even gotten to Alan Moore'south run on the series all the same. Only don't worry.... I volition. ...more than
Then it gives style to the 2d book of the serial, that is quite poorly written, with horror plots excessively sordid and grandiloquent,
The genesis of the graphic symbol, in House of Secrets, too as the first thirteen issues written by Len Wein, are pretty good indeed, with intereseting characters and plots and a overnice blending of gothic, fictional science and supernatural themes. When Bernie Wrightson takes the reins, all the same, the series descends into a decadency while nonetheless conserving its involvement.Then it gives way to the 2d book of the series, that is quite poorly written, with horror plots excessively sordid and grandiloquent, resulting in an absurd pastiche of satanism, nazis, diabolical megacorporations, fictional science and whatnot. The characters surrounding Alec Kingdom of the netherlands fail in generating interest on the reader, as well as the villains. In its final arc, the serial tries to resuscitate the characters and plots of the first series, but surprisingly enough, it again strips them off charisma and interest. The obvious and logical failure of the beginning of the second volume gave way to the Moore era of Swamp Thing, that I'm more than eager to read.
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Hopefully this omnibus sells well and DC will finally collect Alan Moore's run in an jitney.
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Wein was inducted into
Len Wein was an American comic volume author and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Affair and Marvel Comics' Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men (including the co-creation of Nightcrawler, Storm, and Colossus). Additionally, he was the editor for writer Alan Moore and illustrator Dave Gibbons' influential DC miniseries Watchmen.Wein was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Volume Hall of Fame in 2008.
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