Daily Archives: 24 April 2011

I love this issue. I only sort of remembered it, but I love what Wein and Wrightson do with it. Wrightson gets a story credit so maybe he’s the one who came up with the concept. Swamp Thing’s back in his swamp, basically just hanging around, when he comes across an old black woman. A very old black woman; she used to be a slave on a plantation nearby. She tells him a story about how the swamp is protected by the ghosts of slaves.

Then Arcane and his Un-Men show up and attack Swampy. You get a few pages of beautiful Wrightson fight art, then the slaves’ ghosts show up to save Swamp Thing. He sleeps through the fight; it happens unseen.

The issue has a dreamlike quality to it. It’s this haunting little story where Swamp Thing isn’t even the lead when fighting his nemesis.

Just wonderful.

CREDITS

The Man Who Would Not Die; writer, Len Wein; artist, Bernie Wrightson; editor, Joe Orlando; publisher, DC Comics.

Wein and Wrightson (he has some amazing panels this issue, whether Matt and Abby at the beach or a captured alien) are back on task this issue.

While Wein still overwrites, the plotting is so good it doesn’t matter again. This issue brings Swamp Thinig back to the swamp where he was created and Wein nicely contrives to get Matt back there too. Swamp Thing’s back to work in his lab—it only occurred to me this issue all his adventures previous were out of his control; the delay is because Arcane grabbed him second issue—and he runs into an alien.

The alien’s using the lab to repair his spacecraft, which leads to some misunderstanding between him and Swamp Thing. The alien design from Wrightson is singular; it’s utterly brilliant.

Cable shows up with the rest of the government agents to contain the situation.

Compications ensue.

A great issue.

CREDITS

The Stalker from Beyond; writer, Len Wein; penciller, Bernie Wrightson; inker, Wrightson and Mike Kaluta; editor, Joe Orlando; publisher, DC Comics.

While the cover—Swamp Thing versus green tentacles—might be memorable, this issue is the first where Wein doesn’t come up with something distinctive as far as narrative. It’s Swamp Thing not versus green tentacles but versus a Lovecraftian god. A really, really weak one who lives in a mine and eats people to get stronger. Swampy takes him out with a cave-in.

Wrightson’s panels, on the monster section, are very strong. He draws a hideous creature and does the summary of its history well too. But the rest of the issue feels dispassionate. Swamp Thing shows up in town after fighting a bear. It’s not a very interesting fight scene, against the bear, in a cave. And then there’s a bunch of talking heads pages, only since Swamp Thing doesn’t talk, it’s rather boring.

It’s decent enough, but something’s definitely missing.

I mean, where are Matt and Abby?

CREDITS

Night of the Bat; writer, Len Wein; artist, Bernie Wrightson; editor, Joe Orlando; publisher, DC Comics.

Swamp Thing arrives in Gotham to save Matt and Abby from the Conclave and runs into Batman. Wrightson doing Batman is something, especially seventies Batman. I love Bruce’s hair, but how does he fit it into the cowl?

Wein finds a great way to integrate Swamp Thing into the DC Universe proper; for a while, as he’s roughing up thugs for information, it’s clear he’d make an interesting pulp hero (which later writers came back to, I think). Wein even avoids most of his regular missteps, maybe because Batman takes up so much of the issue, not Matt. There is one regular Wein moment when Matt’s proud he’s not answering questions under torture (even though he doesn’t know anything).

The issue resolves some of the questions so far—but not why the Conclave’s leader has a pet monkey.

The only serious drawback is Batman gets the conclusion, not Swamp Thing.

CREDITS

Night of the Bat; writer, Len Wein; artist, Bernie Wrightson; letterer, Gaspar Saladino; editors, E. Nelson Bridwell and Joe Orlando; publisher, DC Comics.