Sunday, July 21, 2019

Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book Two

Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book TwoSaga of the Swamp Thing: Book Two by Alan Moore
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book Two contains Saga of the Swamp Thing 28-34 and Annual 2.

Alan Moore's redefinition of Swamp Thing and comics in general continues in this volume. Swamp Thing buries Alec Holland forever, goes up against an old enemy, takes a trip to hell, and consummates his relationship with Abbie Cable.

Stephen Bissette and John Tottleben handle the bulk of the art, though Alfredo Alcala, Rick Veitch, and Shawn McManus are there to pick up the slack.

Alan Moore continued blazing new trails on Swamp Thing in this volume. I really like how the original Swamp Thing story from House of Secrets was included with a new framing sequence to explain how it fits into the Swamp Thing mythos. Swampy going to hell for Abbie's soul was one of my favorite parts of the book, although setting Arcane's hash was very satisfying. Abbie eating Swamp Thing's sweet potato probably raised a few eyebrows back in the day.

One thing I don't hear mentioned that often is how heavily Neil Gaimain was drawing on Alan Moore's Swamp Thing run in the early issues of Sandman. Sandman is normally the first thing I think of when I think of Vertigo but Swamp Thing was doing the same things years earlier.

It's interesting that the book was still set in the DC Universe at this time, with guest appearances by Phantom Stranger, Deadman, Etrigan, The Spectre, the Monitor, and Harbinger. Did Swamp Thing actually take part in Crisis? I guess I'll find out in future volumes.

Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book Two is another great adventure into the swamp of Alan Moore's mind. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

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