groblinthegoblin624's review against another edition
3.75
Very interested in the first half, but by the time the overarching apocalypse plot started to get going I gradually checked out of the story. Good writing, but not my favorite volume
cesspool_princess's review against another edition
4.0
In the context of Moore's run, this is like dead middle of the road. There were some very epic and satisfying moments but also there were some things I had serious problems with.
Lets start with the gun violence arc. This was good but after the whole last volume felt a little tacked on / like a rehash on the themes Moore already covered. So I felt this was just a little less effective than the other ones in this vein. Like it was still good I just think it is outshined. Esp coming right after the plantation one (similar narrative of like horrors of the past literally coming back to haunt the present except there it was zombies and here it is ghosts).
Ok now we get into my rly big problem w this volume. The Brujeria being the shadowy group behind all of this felt sooo fucking dumb to me, like it was such a let down. Here we are bringing together this story about hatred, violence, alienation etc in the U.S and the ppl behind it are a group of Indigenous South Americans living deep in the Amazon rainforest???? bro......
I'm going to quote another review here bc they said it rly well: "I'm not sure how conscious Alan Moore was at the time of the ironies of his writing this plot, in which galactic doom is to be brought about by a black-magic cult in South America (and what's more indigenous South America), during a decade when US interference in Latin America was particularly visible. It does, at this distance, seem odd for an anti-establishment rebel like Moore to have been its writer (albeit at a stage when he was still trying to make a career in big brand comics, which he would soon abandon) and using a wily former punk, lefty anti-hero - a character quite capable of spotting insidious political symbolism in-universe - to resolve it."
Yeah this shit took me out.
Anyway this is followed by the big cross over event, the crisis of a million earths or whatever. This is Swamp Thing at its most superhero comic book and ofc I was annoyed with that but then there ended up being some v epic moments here. All the mystics and psychics joining together and then some of them just bursting into flames from the psychic pressure was fascinating. The factionalization of hell was also fascinating to see. But the big moment was the ending, the big darkness easily destroying some of the most powerful beings in universe because they have faulty ideologies, only for Swamp Thing to bring his wisdom and solve the problem. The joining of the dark and light and the sheer physical scale of it was stunning.
Ultimately for me, this had some of the lowest lows in the run but also some of the most epic / most satisfying moments to balance it out.
Lets start with the gun violence arc. This was good but after the whole last volume felt a little tacked on / like a rehash on the themes Moore already covered. So I felt this was just a little less effective than the other ones in this vein. Like it was still good I just think it is outshined. Esp coming right after the plantation one (similar narrative of like horrors of the past literally coming back to haunt the present except there it was zombies and here it is ghosts).
Ok now we get into my rly big problem w this volume. The Brujeria being the shadowy group behind all of this felt sooo fucking dumb to me, like it was such a let down. Here we are bringing together this story about hatred, violence, alienation etc in the U.S and the ppl behind it are a group of Indigenous South Americans living deep in the Amazon rainforest???? bro......
I'm going to quote another review here bc they said it rly well: "I'm not sure how conscious Alan Moore was at the time of the ironies of his writing this plot, in which galactic doom is to be brought about by a black-magic cult in South America (and what's more indigenous South America), during a decade when US interference in Latin America was particularly visible. It does, at this distance, seem odd for an anti-establishment rebel like Moore to have been its writer (albeit at a stage when he was still trying to make a career in big brand comics, which he would soon abandon) and using a wily former punk, lefty anti-hero - a character quite capable of spotting insidious political symbolism in-universe - to resolve it."
Yeah this shit took me out.
Anyway this is followed by the big cross over event, the crisis of a million earths or whatever. This is Swamp Thing at its most superhero comic book and ofc I was annoyed with that but then there ended up being some v epic moments here. All the mystics and psychics joining together and then some of them just bursting into flames from the psychic pressure was fascinating. The factionalization of hell was also fascinating to see. But the big moment was the ending, the big darkness easily destroying some of the most powerful beings in universe because they have faulty ideologies, only for Swamp Thing to bring his wisdom and solve the problem. The joining of the dark and light and the sheer physical scale of it was stunning.
Ultimately for me, this had some of the lowest lows in the run but also some of the most epic / most satisfying moments to balance it out.
lcush98's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
4.25
bigoldan's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
jammasterjamie's review against another edition
4.0
Another really great volume - I shorted it a star because of the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover stuff making it kind of confusing and leaving some parts of the story feeling disjointed. No fault of Moore's, of course, and it doesn't hurt the superb storytelling overall, but it did take me out of it for a couple of pages without really explaining why, so that wasn't great. That said, it did set up a fantastic end to the volume, so at the end of the day it's all good.
ostrava's review against another edition
4.0
The first volume of the Swamp Thing I'm not giving the full five stars. It's not awful but by far my least favorite. Maybe it's on me though, I could have given it a chance, but I'm a bit distracted at the moment and couldn't give this one my full attention.
The stuff that works is excellent. But it doesn't reach the highs of the second and the third volume. I'm hopeful about the new stuff with Abby though...
The stuff that works is excellent. But it doesn't reach the highs of the second and the third volume. I'm hopeful about the new stuff with Abby though...
some_okie_dude27's review against another edition
5.0
I generally dislike event comics, as a lot of the time they end up turning into convoluted, shoddily written messes, much like the rushed-out-the-door, soulless shit that Marvel and DC have been putting out for the last several years. There's been a few events that I've read that've made the cut. Mark Millar's Civil War is enjoyable, though it suffers from his usual schtick of having an interesting idea, yet never doing anything of substance with it. Jonathan Hickman's Secret Wars fared much better in my eyes, while Hickman certainly likes to be lofty in his aspirations, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Hickman didn't get lost in explaining little, frivolous details and was focused on telling a cohesive, coherent story, and the art from Esad Ribic also didn't do much to damper anything. Yet, I still avoid them for the most part, unless a writer I enjoy takes one on, though even sometimes that can also go badly.
There have been several alternate takes on the 'event comic' over the years too, like with Robert Kirkman's Invincible with the Invincible War issue or Valiant's take on it with The Valiant, but Moore's approach is entirely unique and I like to tell people that this book is Alan Moore's take on the event comic, and in his usual style, he takes the trappings and conventions of event comics and then turns them on its ear. Though it's not necessarily an event comic, It was written during the 'Final Crisis' event at DC Comics, and Moore had to write a tie in for the event. But Moore managed to tie it in with the conclusion of the 'American Gothic' storyline that's been carried through the third trade of the series. The so called 'event' is the ending of the trade, where Swamp Thing and the previously introduced more obscure characters of the DC universe face off against the evil forces seeking to destroy the world as we know it. Moore writes with a surprisingly brisk pace, considering his usual wordiness and slow burn stories that he's known to write. Much like Love and Death, it was one that Moore was forced to write on the spot, and as thus didn't have much time to build as much as he likes to do. Yet somehow he managed to write a great story from it, as if he cast a spell from his magical beard. Moore's aforementioned love of the DC universe comes into full swing in this volume as well, with dozens of references, characters, and call backs that they can't all be captured in the first sitting.
This trade shows how event comics should be, if they were planned out and done by the actual writers instead of them being forced on by editorial to placate idiot VPs, who have no knowledge or interest in how storytelling works. The rest of the stories of the trade also showcase Moore's continued versatility in terms of theme and character, going from disturbing to fun to wryly hilarious from issue to issue, yet with a consistent sense of tone and atmosphere throughout that connects them together. Yet with this trade, we see a climax to the series, and I say that for lack of a better word with the end of the American Gothic storyline, and it wraps up in a way that only Alan Moore can, somehow grand, yet also personal in scope.
Moore writes as deftly as usual, continuing his trend of writing about bigger issues, yet never losing track of what should matter in the story. Moore's political commentary and satire also continues to be sharp and surprising astute as he tackles such topics as xenophobia, gun violence, and further environmental concerns as the trade goes along. It's often Moore's foresight into these issues and his satirical edge on them that keeps his work impressive, even if I don't always agree with it. What I most admire is that, as I've said before, he never seeks to insult his audience or tell them what to think, but to allow for them to come to their own conclusions. Certainly, he'll put out his own opinions, but he never wants to tell others what to think while he does so, it is the showcasing of a master of storytelling and also a pointer for those who want to put social or political commentary in their work.
To not sound too much like a broken record, Bissette and Totleben's art continues to impress, though Woch also manages to bring an hallucinogenic edge to the series, especially once we see Moore continue his expansion into Swamp Thing's mythology and origins that would go on to influence a generation of creators who would work on the character after him. Veitch also continues to impress, and I can't say enough how he continues to perfectly mimic Bissette and Totleben's style and add his own working to their style, becoming a suitable heir to Bissette and Totleben as they begin to fall back on art duties during the series.
Swamp Thing continues to chug along strongly, but we also see a culmination of everything that had come before it, not to say that it only goes down from here, but you do wonder where they can go next after such an epic excursion.
jayspa65's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I love plants. Plants that beat the crap out of bad guys are even more awesome.
While Moore almost certainly didn't intend it, "A Murder of Crows" is a foundation stone for what eventually became DC's Vertigo line. Various writers, chief among them Neil Gaiman, picked up many of the ideas Moore threw into the Swamp Thing pot and ran with them in other books, and certainly the existentialist approach to super-heroics Moore brought to Swamp Thing has been a common thing in all super-hero books since (for good and for ill).
As to the merits of this volume: the overall quality is good, but the presence of the rest of the DCU tends to deflate some of the strong horror elements that Moore had incorporated into the series in previous volumes. The dark threat is tied into the Crisis, however indirectly, and so the overall tone is far more the conventional adventure story. The art, by a collection of top notch talent, is still surreal and just a tad creepy, which is generally a good thing, except for scenes depicting the gathering of super-heroes, where it looks out of place.
Swamp Thing always borders on the old horror comic take, which is a nice departure from superhero stories. Advise keeping this away from younger readers, as the content can be a little disturbing.
While Moore almost certainly didn't intend it, "A Murder of Crows" is a foundation stone for what eventually became DC's Vertigo line. Various writers, chief among them Neil Gaiman, picked up many of the ideas Moore threw into the Swamp Thing pot and ran with them in other books, and certainly the existentialist approach to super-heroics Moore brought to Swamp Thing has been a common thing in all super-hero books since (for good and for ill).
As to the merits of this volume: the overall quality is good, but the presence of the rest of the DCU tends to deflate some of the strong horror elements that Moore had incorporated into the series in previous volumes. The dark threat is tied into the Crisis, however indirectly, and so the overall tone is far more the conventional adventure story. The art, by a collection of top notch talent, is still surreal and just a tad creepy, which is generally a good thing, except for scenes depicting the gathering of super-heroes, where it looks out of place.
Swamp Thing always borders on the old horror comic take, which is a nice departure from superhero stories. Advise keeping this away from younger readers, as the content can be a little disturbing.
rocketwave's review against another edition
5.0
Saga of the Swap Thing is a gift that keeps giving. One of the best graphic novels/comics I've read so far.
A fantastic blend between horror, philosophy and general spoopy stuff. I would recommend it to everyone, however the dated artwork may scare people away.
A fantastic blend between horror, philosophy and general spoopy stuff. I would recommend it to everyone, however the dated artwork may scare people away.
dessa's review
3.0
Off the rails and anti-climactic. Super chilling scene where a girl vomits up her own intestines to become a bird.