Swamp Thing #1

Swamp Thing #1

DC Comics 2021

Written by Ram V

Illustrated by Mike Perkins

Coloured by Mike Spicer

Lettered by Aditya Bidikar

Swamp Thing returns in a new 10-issue series that stars Levi Kamei as the next Guardian of the Green. Unable to control his transformation into the monstrous Swamp Thing, Levi is thrust into the harsh, unforgiving mystery of grisly murders committed by a supernatural desert legend. Levi must revisit past events in his homeland of India and face the deadly reality of a ravenous new villain in order to comprehend what he is truly, and horrifyingly, becoming. A new era of global action and horror blossoms here, and Swamp Thing will be at the root of it!

Oh sweet mother of Pearl Bailey is this an exceptional issue! I like Ram and the work he’s done in the past and to see him here on Swamp Thing alongside Mike & Mike well it is just this dream come true. I also like that for a change we’ve got a different person in Levi who is taking on the mangle of Champion of the Green as it adds this new dimension to the character as well as showcasing that the whole Future State is possible ow that we’re seeing this. This is what I have been longing for and I gotta say Swamp Thing is one of my absolute favourite DC characters and it has been a long time since he’s gotten the attention and praise he deserves.

I am in love with the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exquisitely well. I like how we see Levi travelling and the clues to himself that he’s given us and what he’s looking for as it adds a dimension to this that brings an element of realism to the story. The character development is stupendous and I love seeing the way that Ram is introducing the characters to us through how the act and react to the situations and circumstances they encounter as well as the dialogue. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the characters and the story has this magical affect on the reader.

The way that this is being structured and how we see the layers within the story emerge and already take such a strong shape is remarkable. The way that we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow is utterly marvellous.

And here I thought the interiors on Future State were absolutely incredible but Mike is continuing this outrageously, mindbogglingly brilliant work on the interiors here. The way that we see the linework with its varying weights and techniques being utilised to create such stunning attention to detail is mind blowing. With the way we see backgrounds being utilised and how they work within the composition of the panels to bring us depth perception, a sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story is perfectly rendered. The creativity and imagination that we see is off the charts in how well its realised on the pages. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show why he has a masters eye for storytelling. The colour work here is divine! How we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is completely and utterly brilliant. I mean the understanding of how colour works and how the various hues and tones that you don’t normally associate with certain colours showcases such talent and skill.

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It is a shame that this is only ten issues. I want this creative team to turn this into an ongoing monthly because this could be as good as if not better than John Constantine. It doesn’t get much better than this and if it’s going to continue this way than i’ll be the books number one fan and champion!