Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION Dr. Gym'll's Cultural Rarities Re-Reads (Now Reading: Swamp Thing: 1971 through 1985)

I thought the vampires in stagnant water idea was suitably creepy. I liked how the idea combined vampire and sea creature tropes in an interesting and visceral way. That said, it was much better the first time I read it and lost something on the re-read.

I personally thought the Nukeface story was a practical tour-de-force both times I read it. It's not exactly among the absolute crème of his run, but it's extremely close. I mean, this is all some of Moore's best work, so even the second tier stories of this run are better than 95% of all other comics out there, imo.

Re: the Nukeface story, I do think it has moments that absolutely sear themselves into one's mind for sure. I just wish that Nukeface was better developed as a character. I think Moore and his artists/co-plotters allowed their anger towards their parents' generation to overwhelm their better artistic judgement. Nukeface IMO doesn't have the three-dimensionality of Woodrue or the iconic status of Arcane. I think he's just a Generation Gap straw man.

Having said all that, I think the things Steve Bissette says in his introduction to the third volume of the Swamp Thing collection about the real-life events that inspired Nukeface are absolutely bone-chilling, and more essential reading than the story itself.

Swamp Thing 40-45

This is a mixed bag of issues, even though they're all beautifully drawn and have definite moments of effective horror. The werewolf story walks a fine line between humanist compassion and misogynous condescension, but thanks to the creative team (and their female editor) it always stays on the right side of that line (Steve Bissette himself, though, has always insisted, as the son of grocer, that the steak knife display in the supermarket with the blades pointing outward was completely unrealistic, and he only drew it that way under orders from Berger and Moore.) The zombie 2-parter just doesn't work for me, mainly because the featured characters are all shallow caricatures (and, in the case of The Black Actor With a Chip on His Shoulder and a Cocaine Habit, an offensive one.) The serial killer story is, to me, the low point of American Gothic, and was obviously written before Moore had done much research on serial killers the way he did for From Hell. On the other hand, the story about the house haunted by the ghosts of gun victims is both highly effective and, sadly, timelier than ever.

Within this desert of horror lies the oasis that is Swamp Thing #43, the issue which introduces Chester. I normally sneer at hippies, but Chester is an exception, and a testament to Moore's talent for characterization. This issue is even better than I remembered, a beautiful parable about the best and worst of humanity and the best and worst of life itself, and moves up to become one of my favorites of this run.

Next week, the interesting but deeply flawed resolution to American Gothic, as Constantine takes center stage and Swamp Thing learns the truth about himself. Be here.

Swamp Thing 46-50

This review will consist of random thoughts, given that these five issues are always an overwhelming experience to read.

- John Totleben's penciller/inker showcase, issue #48, the confrontation in the caves with the Brujeria, may well be the artistic high point of the entire run. Nothing against Steve Bissette, whom I adore, but Totleben was the better draftsman.

- The subplot with Abby being spied on and then persecuted for loving Swamp Thing is much more emotionally affecting than the straight-ahead horror/adventure sequences IMO. Bissette recokns that the creative team was experiencing various levels of burnout with horror by this point.

- The climactic giant-sized issue #50 has some rough edges artistically, understandably so. Among other things, Steve Dayton loses a considerable amount of beard between #49 and #50. How did he find time to shave amdist all the supernatural madness?

- Despite their flaws, these issues contain plenty of great DCU character moments guaranteed to delight any fanchild.

- More than anything, it occurs to me that this would-be apocalyptic epic was an unconscious dry run for Moore's later, far better apocalyptic epic, Promethea.

Next week: Love drives Swamp Thing to acts of grandiosity and their inevitable consequences. Be here.

"Love & Death" (as the arc was called after the fact), continues to fascinate me. Every one of Moore's major works involves sexual assault of some kind or another, and arguably it all starts here. That's not to say it's a misogynistic bent of his, but it's definitely a subject he has a lot to say about and has explored a number of ways. It's interesting how the team pull this off, as Abby's rape is done for the "horror" aspect of it, but just because it's told so well do the team get a pass? On the one hand (bear with me here), at the basest level it's really similar to Identity Crisis: Beloved female character is sexually abused to make us hate the villain that much more. Is it simply a matter of how execution? I think there's more to it.

I remember a few years ago a friend challenged me to re-think a lot of David Lynch's work in terms of a supposed undercurrent of misogyny that ran through it. That's a topic for elsewhere, but one thing I did find was that "Blue Velvet", a film I greatly admired, I ended up re-evaluating based on the fact that the horror Isabella Rosellini's character is put through didn't have enough of a narrative or thematic justification. Yes the scenes were brilliantly filmed (in a sickening way), but in the end the film itself didn't "earn" those scenes through either enough redemption or at least a mature reflection.

Which brings us back to "Love and Death", and why I think at some level it does earn these scenes and that is through the strength of Abby's character. I've said before she's one of my favourite comic characters, but this arc, and everything that follows really shows this. Despite all the harrowing ordeals she's put through, her character grows stronger and flourishes as the series goes on. Yes, there's still an element of Alec having to come to her rescue, but there are equal opportunities for her to aquit herself just fine, and on a character level she shines brilliantly.

Now on to less heady stuff: The Annual still makes me giddy. All of the characters: Deadman, the Stranger, The Spectre and Etrigan are just pitch perfect. I loved the interplay they all have, and the scene where the Spectre opens his eyes is still breathtaking. It was a fun a satisfying conclusion to such a dark story.

I think a lot of it has to do with context, too. Even before Moore, Swamp Thing was a darker, more "adult" book. Although the DCU was mixed in, there was always a respectful distance towards the "kiddie" aspects of the DCU (at least there was when Moore was writing; I think the mixture went off the rails when Rick Veitch took over the writing, but that's a whole other discussion.) Whereas Identity Crisis awkwardly shoehorned "adult" themes directly into the world of bright-colored "kiddie" characters, something which I found completely inappropriate.

Swamp Thing #51-55

After the somewhat awkward metaphysics of the issues immediately preceding it, this arc is straightforward, emotionally true, and utterly heartbreaking. It begins with Abby's perscution and flight to Gotham City, reaches a crescendo with Swamp Thing's invasion of Gotham City and his transformation of the city into a Garden of Eden (issue #53, beautifully pencilled and inked by John Totleben), takes a tragic turn with the apparent death of Swamp Thing at the hands of the same cloak-and-dagger bastards who nearly killed him at the beginning of Moore's run, soars again with Abby's courageous rescue of Liz Tremayne from the twisted excuse for a life she had established with survivalist bastard Dennis Barclay (thus picking up a thread going back to Moore's first issue), and ends with Abby in mourning, yet newly strengthed and determined to move on with her life.

Especially worth noting is the further use of DCU elements, particuarly Lex Luthor as the villains' technical consultant, and, of course, the presence of the Batman! These issues came out at the same time as Fr*nk M*ll*r's D*rk Kn*ght R*t*rns, and can thus be seen as the last hurrah of the un-campy yet unambigusouly heroic Batman who had been established in the early 70s. For many Bat-fans, things have never been the same.

As for the new art team of Rick Veitch (pencils) & Alfredo Alcala (inks), my opinion would be best put as a combination of two flavors I don't like into one I do like. Veitch without a good inker tended, despite the occassional inventive layout, to look awkward, lumpy, and just plain ugly; Alcala grossly overwhelmed every penciller he ever inked (most egregiously John Buscema in the black-and-white barbarian magazines of the 70s) but he undeniably makes Veitch pleasing to the eye.

Next weekend: Swamp Thing lives! Be here.

Swamp Thing #56-59

In these issues, the book takes a sharp turn from horror to science fiction, only to come back down to Earth for an absolutely wonderful sui generis story guest-written by Steve Bissette.

First up, the blue planet issue where Swamp Thing, after projecting his consciousness to outer space when he was dying on Earth, finds himself all alone and creates a simulation of his old environment out of the planet's plant life. Poignant and ultimately disturbing in what it reveals of the layers that Moore continues to find to Swamp Thing's personality.

The next two issues take place on Rann and guest-star Adam Strange and Alanna. The Adam Strange classics were before my time, and when I got into comics in the 90s Adam was going through a particularly bad patch, so the back issues of this story were what made me fall in love with Adam and Alanna. Of special note is the way Moore amazingly works out the Rannian language.

Finally, we come to what can only be described as an awkward and tragic but ultimately loving daughter/father reunion between Abby and the Patchwork Man. Who knew at the time that Bissette would turn out to be an even better writer than he was an artist?

Next week: the end of Moore's Swamp Thing run. Be here.

Sorry folks. My working 70ish hours a week the last few weeks and getting sicker than a dog this week have totally derailed my SMT stuff. Back to it soon though...gonna have to reread the last few arcs I read though, cause I never wrote down my thoughts on them.

I postponed the SMT re-read after I read issue 40. The main reason is that I was getting a little too far behind on my "new" comics pile. Yeah, I'm usually about 2 months behind (and prefer it that way), but almost 4 months was a little much. I especially was concerned about various new series I had picked up and not knowing whether they were good enough to continue buying.

I'm almost right where I want to be. Then, I'll polish off the rest of SMT.

Fickles, I've also been meaning to comment on something that you and Dave talked about above regarding something particularly disturbing that happened to Abby, but I feel I need to at least skim the story in question again to make sure my remembrance of it is accurate. I also hope to chime in on some of your other Swamp Thing thoughts, too.

BTW, more and more, I think my next post-SMT re-read project will be the Claremont X-Men, probably in approximately 30-to-40 issue chunks. Something else else more traditionally super-heroey sounds just about what the doctor ordered. Might start it near the end of the year or January. I'd LOVE if some of you can join me!

Thanks, Lardy. I look forward to your Swamp Thing comments.

I had my own re-read planned for January, of Peter David's Aquaman, but I could postpone that and re-read Claremont's X-Men with you instead. It would be so much fun.

Swamp Thing #60-64

The bizarrely experimental issue #60, drawn by John Totleben using all the multi-media techniques available at the time and continuing Moore's exploration of rape (this time the victim is Swamp Thing himself, and the perpetrator a sentient bio-mechanical planetoid capable of reproducing) is followed by the clever but lightweight #61, in which Swamp Thing visits a planet of anthropomorphic sentient plants, including Medphyl of the Green Lantern Corps.

Then we get Swamp Thing's encounter with Metron and Darkseid in #62, which in my opinion is the best thing Rick Veitch has ever written and drawn, and makes me wonder what might have been if DC hadn't alienated him and he had pitched a full-fledged New Gods ongoing (though I believe the Mark Evanier New Gods was still being published at the time.)

And finally, we come to Swamp Thing's return to Earth in #63-64, where he kills the D.D.I. men who nearly killed him, and settles in the swamp with Abby. I've never understood exactly why he had to kill them. Yes, they were bastards, but they were still sentient beings. Anyhow, #64 is quite notable artwise, for it features inside art by all three artists who had been the regular Swamp Thing penciler up to then -- Veitch, Bissette, and Tom Yeates -- and features an absolutely beautiful John Totleben cover of Swamp Thing and Abby walking arm-in-arm into the sunset.

So ends the glorious Alan Moore run of Swamp Thing, and in retrospect the book should have ended then, too. If it had been published in modern times, it probably would have. I'm not a fan of the Rick Veitch era, and though I haven't read the Doug Wheeler, Nancy Collins, or Mark Millar eras, I have read issue summaries of them at the Swamp Thing Roots web resource (I'm not sure if it still exists) and was not impressed. I haven't read any of the Swamp Thing revivals, either, and haven't heard much good about any of them. I just don't see the point, when Moore gave us such a perfect ending.

Moving forward, it appears that my next re-read will be Claremont's X-Men, in tandem with Lardy (and hopefully at least a couple other Legion Worlders as well) in January. Until then, we'll keep talking about Swamp Thing and SMT for a while, and if any of you want to share other re-reads, please do.

Searching for additional Alan Moore stories in the wake of my Swamp Thing re-read and my first-time read of the second Alan Moore Supreme trade, I decided to re-read my library's trade of "Judgement Day", Moore's attempt to do for Rob Liefeld's entire universe what he had done for Supreme. This was only the second time I had ever read it, the first being several years ago when I previously borrowed it from the library. I couldn't remember much about it, and unfortunately, this re-read revealed exactly why: it's not memorable, indeed it's one of Moore's weakest works. In his late 90s/early 00s stories, Moore always walked a fine line between awakening the readers to the sense of wonder of old-school comic styles and simply being a nostalgic old fogey who can't fully appreciate the way comics have evolved. And with "Judgement Day", he falls on the wrong side of that line, giving most of Liefeld's creations short shrift (even though a lot of them, such as Masada, have great potential) while bringing in way too many one-note analogs of yesterday's heroes. The sheer volume of characters is just one of the things that makes the relatively brief story uninvolving. Then there's...



It could be argued that Liefeld's universe didn't deserve any better, but even though I don't like Liefeld as a person, I believe some of his creations did, and still have, potential. Which leaves "Judgement Day" as a real missed opportunity.

For shits and giggles, I grabbed the first 300 issues of Uncanny X-Men to read alongside Lardy when he does his reread.

Now, I just reread these circa 2010, so my perspective will be different as I have a fresh feel for them. And for me, it was almost entirely positive--even the issues I never cared much for in the past--so in a way I'll be trying to see if I really do like the Leonardi, Silvestri and Lee issues in the same way I loved the first 100 issues of All-New, All-Different.

Yay Cobie! And then there were three...X-Men re-readers!

Coolness! We should talk about how this will take shape, such as how much we'll read at a time, etc. I'm stoked!

Hmmmm....I wonder if anyone else will join in..... <glares at Dev>

I'd say if its 3 or 4 of us, we keep it a bit more informal than the Legion rereading thread in that we continually check in to see where everyone is so no one is left behind, but on the other hand, if the situation calls for it, reading a few issues together is encouraged. For example, the second Magneto story is about three issues long and is awesome, and might be something we all want to read at once.

Does that make sense? For me, the real fun will be doing it alongside you guys so I'm in for whatever.

I also think it should have its own thread.

When you get to it...I could dive into Aquaman as well.

I might try and keep up with some of the X-Men action. Not full time, but as I can. Depends on work schedule in the new year.

I don't see why the X-Men re-read would need its own thread when we've already got this all-purpose re-read thread.

Personally, I think we should read it in blocks of about 30 issues at a time, maybe taking short breaks.

And, Dev, I'll keep you posted on the PAD Aquaman re-read.

I agree on both counts. Any particular reason you think it needs its own thread, Cobie? And I think reading it in blocks will keep us (especially me) from getting burned out.

No real reason at all, so I gladly acquiesce!

As for blocks, I'm cool with it. Maybe we can specify each block as we go...

I calculate the first block will end just before The Dark Phoenix Saga, so that'll give us something to look forward to during the first break.

And, BTW, I think we should start with Giant Size X-Men #1, even though Claremont only did a bit of uncredited plotting on it, just for completeness' sake.

Def agree on the starting point. Especially to comment on how undeveloped and raw they all are at first.

So I’ve gone ahead and begun rereading the legendary run of All-New, All-Different X-Men. I have to say its going way slower than I would have thought. I’ve just been crazy busy, as I’ve been for some time now. But I figured I’d so a little tease and review the issues before Chris Claremont officially came on as sole “writer”.

I’m not sure how we want to do this, but the way I envisioned it was I would do read a run off issues that fit together and then review a bunch at a time. Does that make sense?

Disclaimer: I love all of the All-New X-Men. Each one of them is a personal favorite, and that basically stays the same for the first 100 issues. I intend to bask in that love throughout this project. I also tend to love just about every single issue from now to #200, so get ready for that love fest mentality to be ongoing.

I may, for shits and giggles, write an essay on the creation of the All-New, All-Different team. Would anyone mind if I posted that here? It will probably be totally over-worded and self-serving but the people in this thread are the ones who usually appreciate those kind of posts.

Giant Sized X-Men #1
Giant-Sized X-Men #1 is one of the great post-Silver Age issues in comic book history; it’s held in really high esteem and with good reason, considering it kicked off one of the top comic book franchises to dominate comic books thereafter. It also helps that it’s a really excellent issue that is better than most of its counterparts in the 1970’s.

What sets it apart, first and foremost, is that it is a tour de force of Dave Cockrum’s incredible art style. Fresh off of his Legion stint, Cockrum was just rocking and rolling. He could do it all: great costumes, great dramatic interaction, great action, sexy cast and a general sense of adventure and fun. Every element shines through here and its likely because Cockrum had plenty of time to work on this issue and get it done. It’s this fresh new art style, which was at the forefront of a movement in the mid-70’s, that made the series start to catch fire.

The man who came up with the concept of All-New, Len Wein, is no slouch either. Len’s involvement in making the X-Men great is not quite as monumental as Chris Claremont or Cockrum or Byrne, but he still should get credit where credit is due. He is the one who took the idea of an X-Men revival and twisted it around so that it would mirror the Blackhawks in being an international assemblage only now applicable to superheroes. That in and of itself is a moment of genius and helped add a huge layer to the X-Men in that they always remain united as mutants despite (and perhaps encouraged by) their immense diversity in nationalities. It’s a great analogue when replacing the word “mutants” with “human beings”. Len was one of the great scripters of the 70’s too which is shown time and time again; this line when Professor X recruits Storm is what I consider one of the most beautiful bits of dialogue in X-Men history: “You have land, Ororo—and people who adore you. I offer you a world—and people who may fear you, hate you—but people who need you nonetheless. The world I offer is not beautiful. But it is real. Far more real than the fantasy you’re living now.” That line almost makes me tear up. The fact that Storm choose to join the X-Men is an act that in and of itself feels incredibly heroic.

With great art and great writing enhances every page, the story is further enhanced by the pacing and structure itself. It opens with each new X-Man getting an introduction as they are recruited, and in every seen you get an immense amount of characterization (except perhaps with Banshee, though he was already established in the MU). It then moves to finding out the mystery behind why they were recruited in the first place and an awesome introduction of Cyclops. From there, we get the mission on Krakatoa and then the twist on what Krakatoa really is. Each section of the story works well and accomplishes what its supposed to.

And then, of course, is the characters themselves, which define the X-Men. It’s really Claremont and his later compatriots who would take the “method acting” approach to extremes which created some of the most robust personalities ever in comics. But even with this first story each one of the X-Men, including Prof X & Cyclops, show incredible depth. It’s enhanced by the constant bickering and tension between them. This was always something Marvel could proudly proclaim it had done from Fantastic Four #1 onwards. But with the A-N, A-D X-Men, it was even more extreme and even more exciting. Between the abrasive personalities of Sunfire, Wolverine, Thunderbird and even Cyclops to the hang-ups that Storm and Nightcrawler have, and the wry humor of Banshee and naivette of Colossus, there is just so much to work with.

When putting down Giant-Sized #1, it’s clear the potential here is almost unlimited. You can’t help but want to know more.

X-Men #94 – 95
Following the formation of the new team, there was supposed to be a Giant-Sized X-Men #2 to follow in the next quarter. However, the era of Giant-Sized comics was coming to an end after Marvel declared what was originally a success in 1974 was now a failure in 1975. They were replaced with reprints and instead Marvel chose to resurrect the recently cancelled X-Men story, spreading out the next story over two issues at a bi-monthly pace (which was better for Dave Cockrum). There was also the problem of Len Wein having overreached himself in a major way, and the continuing chaos at Marvel editorially. Just like he would pull a fast exit on his run on Iron Man in a few months, Len had to bow out, as he took over Amazing Spider-Man had a brief interlude as Editor-in-Chief. This allowed for Chris Claremont to step in as scripter for this two-parter and eventually become full time writer. Though, it should be clear, this was done Marvel style, so this was really Dave Cockrum’s story; Len just helped out plot wise and Claremont supplied the dialogue. Len’s contribution is clearly the inclusion of Count Nefaria and the Ani-Men who he liked to use.

This story is unique for the above and a few other things, the most notable being the shocking death of Thunderbird. Never knowing how long this series might last, they decided to not wait and get right to the death of a member—and what a shocker it was! It helped set the pace for the X-Men, that anything could happen…and usually did. By 1975, heroes had died many times in comics but Thunderbird’s death is unique in that it never was reversed and had a continued and lasting effect on the series. Thunderbird dies in such a way that Professor X, Cyclops and Banshee—really the three mentor-type characters—are each left reeling in their own way, setting the stage for their own self-doubt and mourning.

The threat within the story itself mirrors the first X-Men’s battle against Magneto in X-Men #1 in the Silver Age, and that is a nice nod to the past. While it’s exciting, the real meat of the story though is again how the characters interact and what’s going on when they are not facing a threat. We see the original X-Men, sans Cyclops, exit the issue. Claremont would not be done with Jean (and even Havok and Polaris) but clearly Len & Dave were at the time. Sunfire also cuts out in a way that is totally true to his three prior appearances in Iron Man, Sub-Mariner and X-Men which showed his characteristic abrasiveness. The willingness to have him leave the series on such a sour note is another way this series is different than the others; it’s clear there *has* to be another story in which the X-Men meet him again and now I’m left anxious to read it.

This story also reaffirms a few of the things that were central to the X-Men prior, such as the Danger Room & training sessions. The groundwork is laid for ongoing tensions between Cyclops and the others and the sense that the X-Men do not gell well as a team. This last one is a common trope in superhero team comics but it’s never done better than these early issues of the X-Men that show them first unable to work together, then becoming a team , then utilizing advanced strategies, and then Cyclops admitting that having a team of 5 individuals first who can coordinate as a team may be superior to five cogs in one machine as the original X-Men were.

X-Men #96
Chris Claremont officially begins as writer with #96, joining Cockrum as the two start gelling together. With Claremont comes a great deal of the things he is most famous for, right from the beginning, which further serves to give the book its own identity, rather than being just another superhero team comic, of which Marvel had far more than they needed. First and foremost is the subplot with the Sentinnals which will culminate in #100 – 101, as Claremont smartly choose to highlight the core concept of mutants and the X-Men being hunted by the people they are always saving. This factor is reinstilled into the series and becomes the central theme hereafter.

Claremont also brings in the X-Men’s first non-mutant cast member, which was something he liked to do, with Moira MacTaggert. Though she’s introduced as the housekeeper when we first see her, by issue’s end she’s wielding a machine gun. There’s obviously more to her than meets the eye.

We get hints at Storm’s past in Cairo and fear of enclosed space and hints of Wolverine’s inability to overcome his feral nature. Already, the characters are gaining that extra bit of back story and depth. There’s so much we don’t know about them still, and it’s incredible how Claremont took his time in providing us the back story. All the while, their personalities become so crystal clear, you feel like you know them more than many characters that had been around for decades.

The N’Gari demon itself is a bit generic, though Cockrum’s artwork renders it to be pretty gruesome and breath taking at the same time. I wonder if that was Dave’s idea, or Claremont’s? It seems like Dave simply drew up the monster and they created a backstory to use it, though I’m curious. It sets the stage for the awesome second N’Gari story with Kitty Pryde 45 or so issues later.

With Claremont & Cockrum securely the creative team, the series is about to explode towards its first story arc and then onwards to the second with some good smaller ones in between. I'll wait until everyone else is ready to start rereading, but am hopeful this teaser will get everyone more excited!