COMIC REVIEW: FTN reviews Swamp Thing #23

Written by: Charles Soule

Pencils by: Kano & David Lapham

Colors by: Matthew Wilson

Published by: DC Comics

Things are not going well for Dr. Alec Holland. The Seeder is on the loose spreading deadly magic all throughout the green, and John Constantine, though drunk on dark magic, has placed a curse on the Swamp Thing unravelling him and disconnecting him from the green, leaving him borderline powerless. Needless to say, in Swamp Thing #23, things are looking bleaker than ever!

Like most people, I started reading Swamp Thing because Scott Snyder was writing it when they brought the character into the New 52. I was on the fence about whether or not to continue when Charles Soule took over the storytelling, but after a couple of light-hearted, palette-cleansing issues, Soule has really come into his own in telling the dark tale of the Swamp Thing. He has managed to take a couple of mini-arc stories and turn them into the building blocks of the big confrontation with the Seeder.

The art team has changed with the writers on the book and as soon as they took over, they hit the ground running. The story of Swamp Thing is one of the darkest tales in all of DC continuity. They manage to match the art with the darkness of the story, but use just the right amount of bright colors to make it jump right off the page and suck you into what’s happening!

This book is at the top of my pile every single month. In a universe filled with determined heroes like Batman and Green Lantern, none of them hold the will to get the job done like Swamp Thing. The stories are woven with darkness and the pages are always filled with action! If you don’t believe me, pick up a trade and find out why Swamp Thing has quietly become one of the best books of the New 52!

4.5 out of 5 nerds