Swamp Thing

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I started reading Swamp Thing from the very beginning... sort of. When I was a kid, I liked superhero comics and not much else (no western, no war, etc.). I also gravitated toward Marvel, so Swamp Thing had two strikes against it right out of the gate (to mix a metaphor or two). I remember seeing titles such as Swamp Thing and Kamandi on the spinner racks but not giving them a second look (or even a first). Even when I walked into a comic book shop for the first time in my life several years later, it took some time for me to overcome my preconceived notions regarding such titles as Daredevil (Frank Miller's) and Swamp Thing (Alan Moore's). Then, in 1986, DC released the Roots of the Swamp Thing reprint series and i started at the very beginning (#1) if not exactly from the very beginning (1972). 

Skip ahead 15 years. I'm now married. My new bride is not wholly unfamiliar with comic books and is willing to read more. I recommended a list of 8 or 10 of my favorites (including the Wein/Wrightson and the Moore/Bisette/Totleben runs of Swamp Thing), most of which she read. I had tens of thousands of comics in my collection at that time, enough to keep us busy reading and discussing for years. But she became interested in comics I didn't have, such as the post-Moore Swamp Thing as well as the complete run of Fables (which I myself still have not read). We spent the next however-many-it-was months collecting backissues of Swamp Thing plus I added those two titles to my pull & hold. 

At this point Tracy has read literally hundreds more issues of Swamp Thing than I have. We don't have every issue (she finally lost interest after the "New 52"), but we have quite a few. Ironically,  it was "Brightest Day" which reignited my own interest, so some of the more recent issues she has not read. I like to "prorate" the cost of my comics by a) reading them multiple times, or b) giving them to my wife to read. We get the best value from those comic we both read multiple times. To that end, we have decided to work our way through every issue we own from 1972 to 2018.

We recently led a discussion through every issue/series in Terry Moore's "SiP-verse" but, if we complete it, this project is more than twice as long. We invite you along for the ride. 

Wein/Wrightson - p1

Nestor Redondo - p2

The "Mopee Thing" - p3

Miscellaneous - p4

Martin Pasko - p5

Alan Moore - p8

Rick Veitch - p25

Doug Wheeler - p31

Nancy Collins - p33

Grant Morrison & Mark Millar - p37

Mark Millar - p38

[Luis Olavo de Moura Dantas]

A nod to the Heap's origins as a foil to Sky Wolf, I assume.

[Tracy of Moon-T]

Adding characters like Constantine and the Phantom Stranger to any title I'm reading, is wholly enjoyable to me. I was introduced to many interesting characters when I was reading Books of Magic. Even if I don't read any of the other titles in the crossover, I always enjoy the issue. 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I'm not sure what you're referring to here...?

Richard Willis said:

Like with the suicide controversy, I’m sure he wasn’t invoking the non-existent “unwritten law.” Divorce or reconciliation would be the solutions, not murder.

[Richard Willis]

I notice Alan seems to be wearing a V for Vendetta T-shirt. I missed this appearance when I was reading, but I did catch an appearance of page 2 (third panel, lower left corner). I think that's also Alan, looking a little scared.

The Baron said:

[Richard Willis]

Your comment of issue #43 says:

“Speaking of letters pages, #40's story ("The Curse") inspired enough letters to fill two, those of #45 and #46. In fact, comic writer Mindy Newell was given a little more than two columns of text to address the problems she had with the story, and Alan Moore took a bit more than that in response. Most of the objections stemmed from a misinterpretation Moore's message; he was not advocating suicide as being a viable option.”

Jeff of Earth-J said:
I'm not sure what you're referring to here...?

Richard Willis said:
Like with the suicide controversy, I’m sure he wasn’t invoking the non-existent “unwritten law.” Divorce or reconciliation would be the solutions, not murder.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

So, just as Moore wasn't advocating suicide in #40, he wasn't advocating murder in #46? (I should hope not.) The phrase "non-existent 'unwritten law'" threw me.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

ISSUE #47:

This is one of my favorite issues, starting with the cover. I like the way Karen Berger dropped the "Sophisticated Suspense" tag and shrunk the masthead to emphasize the art. Also on the cover are other plant elementals which might be Hillman's Heap, Marvel's Man-Thing and the monster from Morlock 2001. There are two basic stories this issue, The subplot concerns a slimy paparazzo who snapped pictures of a topless Abby (without her knowledge or permission) interacting in the swamp with Alec, then sold them to the local newspaper. We'll see the ramifications of that soon enough. The main plot concerns Constantine leading Swamp Thing to the "Parliament of Trees" deep in the heart of the Amazon jungle. 

When he arrives, he takes on the attributes of the local flora: orchids, ferns, etc. He soon meets Alex Olsen, the only one of the Parliament who remembers how to speak, and learns that they are all Plant Elementals and he himself is an "Erl-King." From Olsen and the others he learns that "Flesh speaks, Wood Listens; Flesh doubts, Wood knows." They advised him to avoid power, beware anger, and asked him, "Where is evil in all the Wood?" then dismissed him. 

Also in the Parliament were thinly-veiled approximations of Skywald's "Heap" (p. 9)...

...Hillman's "Heap" (pp. 11, 13-14)*...

...Marvel's "Man-Thing" (p.16)...

...and I have already mentioned Morlock 2001...

*Alex Olsen identifies the German WWII ace as Swamp Thing's "immediate predecessor" but DC/Moore changed his name from Baron Von Emmelman to Albert Hollerer, but pages 1-3 of Eclipse's Airboy #1 segue into page 14 of Swamp Thing #47 quite well.

Also likely in attendance are some of these...

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I probably also should have mentioned the insight Swamp Thing gained into the use of his powers: different sizes and shapes, animating dead or carven wood, manipulate insects, multiple body control, time travel...

Also, Jon J. Muth introduced a previously unknown plant elemental in 1998.

[Tracy of Moon-T]

Parliament of Trees has always been a favorite issue of mine. I was able to recognize some of previous swamp creatures. 

[The Baron]

I liked Parliament of Trees' early stuff, but their later albums were uninspired.

Tracy of Moon-T said:

Parliament of Trees has always been a favorite issue of mine. I was able to recognize some of previous swamp creatures. 

[Randy Jackson]

Sadly, they got even worse when half the band split off to create the Parliament of Ferns. 

The Baron said:

I liked Parliament of Trees' early stuff, but their later albums were uninspired.

Tracy of Moon-T said:

Parliament of Trees has always been a favorite issue of mine. I was able to recognize some of previous swamp creatures. 

[Richard Willis]

Yesterday I was a little tired and couldn't make it through The Parliament of Trees. 

I have nothing to add to the discussion of it.

I'm about to read #50.