DC Comics New 52: Animal Man #1/Swamp Thing #1
Though it’s been weeks since the first wave of DC Comics new 52, due to school, martial arts, family, and journalistic commitments, I’ve only just now finished reading two of the new titles I’ll be getting into for the foreseeable future; Animal Man #1 and Swamp Thing #1. Though it’s too early to tell at this point whether the reboot/series as a whole will be successful and worth reading in the long term, I thought I’d give a quick rundown on the the two issues I did end up picking up.
ANIMAL MAN #1
prelude: Buddy Baker has the ability to take on the powers of any animal he can think of.
First off (and this goes for Swamp Thing as well) it’s not /really/ that much of a REAL reboot — or at least in this case. While the comic is certainly a starting point for a brand new story arc and accessible to new readers, it’s certainly not an origin story: Animal Man is already well established as a superhero in the DC universe (which is already established), so if you’re looking for an origin story, you’re best off to start here. Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth, Essex County) beautifully portrays the family dynamic in the Baker household, allowing him to flesh out his own talents as a writer, and the elements that make Animal Man a unique superhero. While I’m not as familiar with the Animal Man canon as as I am Swamp Thing, this first issue intrigued me enough to keep reading/seek out previous Animal Man trades. Without giving any of the story/plot away. Travel Foreman’s art/cover* was one of the reasons why I opted to pick up Animal Man in the first place, and I was certainly not dissapointed; the art throughout the issue is fantastic, particularly in the last few pages. First issues can sometimes be a bit slow, but Lemire manages to . If you’re a fan of Animal Man or merely looking for a point to jump on, grab this one. Buy it.
SWAMP THING #1
prelude: after a lab accident, scientist Alec Holland’s memories are absorbed into the nearby foliage, and become the memories of the elemental known as the Swamp Thing. The Swamp Thing possesses the power to harness nature.
In contrast to Animal Man, I do have a working knowledge of the Swamp Thing, being both an avid Hellblazer fan, as well as having read the first three volumes of Alan Moore’s Saga of the Swamp Thing. While I haven’t read as much of the older volumes of Swamp Thing as I would like to, I was intrigued that Swamp Thing was being included in the reboot, and opted to pick up issue #1.
Again, this is not a reboot as much as a new story arc/jumping on point — though personally, I found this one to be much less accessible to new readers. In Animal Man, Lemire provides exposition via a newspaper interview with Buddy Baker. In Swamp Thing, although it’s explained that he used to be a brilliant scientist/used to be the Swamp Thing, not much is explained about the character beyond a wordless dream sequence. I realize that Snyder may well be taking a different approach than Lemire, but it seems like it would’ve been a reasonably hard first issue to grasp if I had no background knowledge of the character. Moving on however, one of the first things that Vertigo readers will find strikingly different** is that this comic is set dead in the middle of the DC Universe, with cameos from Superman, Aquaman and Batman all in the first issue. I’m not sure how I feel about this yet, and I know I’ll have to wait for more of the story arc to unfold for me to find out. Written by Scott Snyder (American Vampire), his portrayal of Alec Holland — damaged, isolated, but nevertheless brilliant — is excellent, even if the story arc/way that the story is presented raised an eyebrow. The dialogue is great as well, and I’m certainly looking forward to what Snyder will do with the character. One thing that did piss me off though, was that the Swamp Thing only appears in one measly panel at the very end. It’s not that the art isn’t well drawn — Yanick Paquette’s cover is gorgeous — but for a comic book titled Swamp Thing, it would’ve been nice to see more of the monster/nature that the series is known for. Again, it is only the first issue, and it’s not a big enough compliant to deter people from buying the comic itself. If you’re a fan of Swamp Thing, pick it up, but if you’re looking for a jumping on point, I’d start with the trades. Buy it, if you’re familiar with Swamp Thing. Otherwise, start with the trades.
*Art by Dan Green/Travel Foreman, cover by Travel Foreman
** I am aware that John Constantine has appear in DC universe crossovers before, Batman has teamed up with Swamp Thing, blah blah blah
GOUGE AWAY 