Saga Of The Swamp Thing - Book Four!

In this fourth volume of Saga of the Swamp Thing the grand scheme that Swamp Thing has been battling with the guidance of John Constantine comes to a vigorous climax. Also the Swamp Thing does his bit in the sprawling universe altering event known as Crisis on Infinite Earths. That's the cosmic stuff but on the home front Abigail must confront a threat of another kind. 

With artwork by Stan Woch and Ron Randall, Alan Moore fabricates a very curious story in which some of Swamp Thing's "fruit" is discovered by a hippie drug dealer named Chester Williams. He's reluctant to bite into this unknown tuber but a woman who is dying and an addict who is less scrupulous are not. The effects of their tasting this "forbidden fruit" are quite different and quire remarkable. 

Swamp Thing must battle the "Bogey Man", a serial killer who imagines himself to be part of some grand mythic pantheon of night dwellers. We see much of his story though the killer's eyes and we are there when the scales fall from them and he must confront the truth of what he truly is. 

This issue is all about ghosts, particularly ghosts who have been killed in some or other by a particular type of rifle. In the sprawling abandoned house of the family who manufactured the weapons, two couples find themselves up against threats they could hardly imagine. Not all of them survive and those who do have Swamp Thing to thank, though they hardly see it that way. 

The forty-sixth issue finds Swamp Thing along with John Constantine aboard the Monitor's orbiting spaceship along with just about every other DC hero of the era. We get a view of this grand assembly from Swampy's point of view as he is not actually quite sure why is there. Nonetheless he does his bit to battle against time lost creatures and save time lost people. He also learns for the first time from Constantine of the "Brujeria", a South American all-male death cult who have been the cause of many of the menaces Swamp Thing has struggled against in his time since learning of his true nature. 

The forty-seventh issue of Swamp Thing is easily the best in this volume. It's the totally awesome first encounter by Swamp Thing with his wooden kin the "Parliament of Trees". Located in the lushness of the Amazon all the "swamp things" which have been are assembled in a grove. They have mostly lost the power of movement and most have lost the ability to communicate in any manner one would describe as traditional. They have taken root among their peers and simply are. Their fundamental notions about the world at large and their extreme long view come in handy later for Swamp Thing who is properly in awe of what they are and what he will become. Among this group is Alex Olsen from the original Swamp Thing story in The House of Secrets. Also recognizably on hand is The Heap and if you  squint just right you might be able to see Man-Thing as well. On the downside of things the romance between Swampy and Abigail has been photographed and that will prove traumatic for her. Stan Woch and Ron Randall handle the art. 

Swamp Thing is in full command of his powers when he and Constantine and what remains of Constantine's team strike at the Brujeria. Things do not go as planned when a traitor is revealed and despite Swamp Things potent talents the threat which has so concerned Constantine is about to be summoned. This is an issue drawn  completely by John Totleben and it's lush, though truth told it's a very hard story to tell visually for any artist. Abigail is arrested. 

With the menace on the way, Constantine assembles a team of mystics such as Sargon, Zatara, Zatanna, Dr.Occult, as well as former Doom Patrol sidekick Mento  to confront the enemy on this side of things while Swamp Thing is joined by Deadman, Phantom Stranger, the Demon and possibly the Spectre to fight on the frontlines with other assorted magical beings. It's quite a muster to face against a threat which is still little understood or frankly understandable. Stan Woch is back and joined by Alfredo Alcala on the artwork. 

Stephen Bissette is back with partner Totleben and newcomer Rick Veitch to wind up this long Swamp Thing saga. This is Bissette's farewell to the character and as much as I want to thoroughly enjoy this wild and action-filled finale it's difficult because the inchoate nature of the threat makes the visuals hard. The assembled heroes and otherwise are up against darkness, a darkness which is reluctant to be seen in its entirety until the very end. It's hard to draw that which cannot be seen. The battles are rough and tumble and some vintage DC favorites don't survive. It will some as no surprise that Swamp Thing's journey has prepared him to perhaps save the day, if such a thing is possible. Cain and Abel show up to add a little light-hearted mayhem to the darkness. And that's a wrap on a saga which guess has been dubbed "American Gothic" save for a one more issue in the next volume that winds it all down. There's no time for Abigail's troubles this issue but she will be front and center next time. 

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Saga Of The Swamp Thing - Book Three!

According to the introduction to the third volume of The Saga of the Swamp Thing stories by artist Stephen Bissette, both he and John Totleben (especially the latter) were significantly involved in selecting and developing stories for the Swamp Thing. Alan Moore crafted the script with great care and at times innovative techniques, but it is somewhat of a misnomer to label these stories as being the product of one mind alone. But as Bissette also relates, Moore was able to write more than the artists were able to draw and so other talents were brought in by editor Karen Berger as necessary. It's remarkable how many of the talents involved with is comic hailed from Joe Kubert's school. 

This volume kicks off with a two-part tale about a chap dubbed merely "Nukeface". Apparently he was a creation of John Totleben's and now is worked into a rather creepy and dismal tale about the effects of toxic waste and other kinds of poisons which were and are routinely dumped and pumped into the natural environment. Nukeface is a crazed drifter who has come to live off toxic radioactive waste, but who unmindful of his state roams the land spreading disease and death. He's a powerful fellow and his touch is enough to even "kill" the Swamp Thing. But as we'll see Swampy recovers in a most unusual way. 

Because of his unusual plant nature it's difficult if perhaps impossible to kill Swamp Thing. Using abilities he was heretofore unaware of, Swamp Thing's consciousness empowers another body to take root and begin to grow. It is a relatively slow process and takes seventeen days for him to recover his previous mature state. While Swamp Thing is growing, attended to by Abigail, we also encounter a new character by the name of John Constantine. Constantine (who looks like Sting) is a mystic of some kind who has a network of agents who keep him informed of mystical doings. Something dangerous and deadly is looming and he will consult Swamp Thing to help solve the problem. 

The first problem concerns the town of Rosewood which was inundated by Swamp Thing in an effort to kill off the plague of vampires which had overrun the town. It seemed to work at the time, but some escaped and took refuge in the town now hidden beneath dark waters. There the vampires conspire to create a brood which will be even more deadly than they themselves are. Locals fall victim to these underwater vampires as Swamp Thing struggles to find a way to end this immediate threat. While full of enigmatic information, Constantine proves relatively unhelpful in the actual fight itself. Of note is that Stan Woch, another Kubert School grad fills in on the first half of this story. And while the full title of the series had been Saga of the Swamp Thing, with the thirty-ninth issue it is changed to merely Swamp Thing. 

The fortieth issue of the comic is  my favorite in this particular volume. It deals both bluntly and tenderly with a reality of our existence which almost never spoken about -- menstruation. I can think of no aspect of normal life which is deemed so verboten yet is a normal part of the life of nearly every woman in the land. In this story the concept of monthly cycles is connected to lycanthropy and not in a snide or sarcastic manner, but rather in a fashion which allows the idea to dealt with and still create a fascinating menace for Swamp Thing to contend with.  At this point the Swamp Thing is sending his essence all over the country at the behest to some extent of John Constantine, though he seems to be getting little in exchange in this one-sided partnership.  

Alas the volume closes with a two-part tale that is not very convincing at all. It suggests that a plantation is teeming with ghosts and other unsettled undead and that those spirits are all too happy to invade and pervert the psyches of living folks who themselves are rich with many of the racial prejudices that still inform the fabric of our society much to its everlasting detriment and shame. These are noble concepts to attempt to discuss, but the vehicle here is not at all compelling and rarely scary in any real way. Of all the Swamp Thing scripts by Moore to date, these two seemed to be the most preachy. I did like the zombie who ends up selling tickets in the grindhouse movie theater though -- that was at once profound and downright funny. More to come next week. 

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Saga Of The Swamp Thing - Book Two!

Alan Moore's reign as writer of The Saga of Swamp Thing continues in this second volume. Having dealt with loose ends and having created some potent horror tales, he uses some of the next issues to switch up the atmosphere a bit. There's no doubt that the storytelling in Swamp Thing stories has changed, become more internal and at times completely character based. That will continue in this volume. 

The primary artists on the series continue to be Stephen Bissette and John Totleben, but in this issue artist Shawn McManus fills in on a tale which almost literally puts to rest the Alec Holland aspect of Swamp Thing. Since discovering that he was a plant trying to become Holland, there has been a question about the disposition of Holland's body. Swamp Thing must confront this new reality as well as come to terms with his old identity. 

The next issue by the regular team beings arguably the most disturbing story yet told in the pages of Swamp Thing. It begins with Abigail Arcane Cable who has learned a terrifying truth about her husband Matt Cable, that truth being that Matt is no longer himself. Who has become "Matt Cable" has been a husband to Abigail in all ways and that causes her to want to shred her own skins. 

 

Swamp Thing comes to her rescue, as much as she can be rescued from the terrible truth of what Matt has become. And Swamp Thing must confront one of his oldest and most relentless enemies as he uses the full range of his newly understood powers to withstand an assault from all directions. 

He attempts to save Abigail from her "husband" who has become a monster. Matt Cable does return in a manner of speaking for a moment or two and he does help end the threat, but it's been at a terrible cost. With Matt turned ironically into a vegetable and Abigail are dead we are running dangerously low on characters. But the Swamp Thing is able to use his new mastery of nature to revive Abby's body, he cannot alas bring back her soul. That's a tale for the 1985 annual. Also of note is that this is the last issue of Saga of the Swamp Thing to have the full title on the cover. The phrase "Sophisticated Suspense" is now used above the logo. 

To rescue Abby's soul, the Swamp Thing must undertake a dangerous journey into the underworld. Like Dante before him he needs guides and at various times he is led by Phantom Stranger, Deadman, and ultimately The Demon. Swamp Thing must brave the most dangerous regions of hell to find and reclaim Abigail Arcane's soul. He is ultimately successful. It required the swollen pages of the second Swamp Thing Annual to tell the tale.  

Next Swamp Thing must meet some aliens who are more than a tad familiar in a Walt Kelly kind of way in a story simply titled "Pog". These sundry animals have come to Earth in a spaceship that resembles a turtle to find a haven where they can live without the threat of carnivores. These creatures are oddly wise and at the same time naive. That naivete causes a grim tragedy before the story ends. Shawn McManus is tapped to draw this tale, his style being ideal for the subject matter. 

The next issue is an odd one indeed as it tells both secrets and solves mysteries. Able and Cain, the brotherly hosts of The House of Secrets and The House of Mystery return for a special engagement to tell Abigail how there have been other Swamp Things in other times, one of those times a tale told long ago in the pages of The House of Secrets by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. It was not Alec Holland's identity which was the template for Swamp Thing then but a lover named Alex Olsen. This tale reprints the original Swamp Thing story and Ron Randall is tapped to draw a frame story featuring the violent brothers. 

Underneath a gorgeous cover by John Totleben, the Swamp Thing enters a new phase in a gorgeous story by Moore, Bissette and Totleben when Swampy and Abby admit to their affection for one another and that despite the profound differences in their circumstances, they attempt to find intimacy. That intimacy is by means of Abbigail consuming  part of Swamp Thing and joining his consciousness on a rather tender acid trip. This is easily my favorite issue of the run by Moore and his assorted artists so far. 

The notion of a romance between human and plant is picked up and is a feature element of The Return of Swamp Thing from 1989. This movie is one I both love and hate. It's got a really good Dick Durok creature outfit and some choice scenes here and there. I like the performance as a somewhat daffy Abigail Arcane by Heather Locklear and that of  her demon uncle by the almost always grand Louis Jordan.  For the most part but the overall attitude of comedy seems to undermine any remote mote of tension or sadly sensitivity the movie might attempt to create. And there are two loathsome children in this one who are so crummy I want them to be eaten by the monster that threatens them at one point. 

By the end of this volume, the saga of the Swamp Thing is a whole other deal. But for more we'll have to wait for the third volume next time. 

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