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Swamp Thing (Black & White Edition) #5
Swamp Thing Book 5
Now the swamp is nurturing dark seeds from the other side. An evil for which the Swamp Thing will need the help of an ally to conquer, John Constantine, warlock and demon-hunter.
- GenresGraphic Novels
112 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1988
About the author
Alan Moore
1,636 books22.2k followersAlan Moore is an English writer most famous for his influential work in comics, including the acclaimed graphic novels Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell. He has also written a novel, Voice of the Fire, and performs "workings" (one-off performance art/spoken word pieces) with The Moon and Serpent Grand Egyptian Theatre of Marvels, some of which have been released on CD.
As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.
As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 19, 2018
Moore and our muck-monster hero get stuck into the American Gothic saga properly, guided by one of the great comics characters to come out of the 1980's, John Constantine.
This book is 4 issues of awesome (again) - "Growing Pains" serves as a great introduction to the larger narrative and Constantine, and provides another important milestone in Swamp Thing's rebirth in Moore's hands. "Still Waters" and "Fish Story" has Swamp Thing taking on a colony of underwater nazi-punk vampires, while "The Curse" takes us via a werewolf tale into some serious thinking about gender relations.
The vampire tale is a great showcase for Moore's fertile mind - stagnant water being a perfect place for vampires to put down roots and start a family (a horrific, cannibal blood-sucking family, yes..), and allows us to get a glimpse of Swamp Thing's evolution and growing understanding of what he truely is.
"The Curse" is the volume's highlight - Moore using old fashioned horror tropes in a post-modern way to raise very real social issues. The lot of women in a male-dominated world is brought powerfully into mind here. One of the highlights of this Titan series is the introductions to each volume, giving a little history and context to the stories - and here we get Moore's explaination of where this story come from. His awareness that he's writing for a mostly male audience makes what he's telling us paricularly pertinent. I can say with honesty, when I read this as a teenager back in the late 80's, it did present concepts that i hadn't really thought about. Concepts that remain just as important today.
Volume 5 of this series has Moore hitting his stride - we know we're in for a great, thought-provoking time with Moore (and the stunning art team) in the fictional realms of the DC Universe but we're also getting a sharp focus on the world we actually live in.
This book is 4 issues of awesome (again) - "Growing Pains" serves as a great introduction to the larger narrative and Constantine, and provides another important milestone in Swamp Thing's rebirth in Moore's hands. "Still Waters" and "Fish Story" has Swamp Thing taking on a colony of underwater nazi-punk vampires, while "The Curse" takes us via a werewolf tale into some serious thinking about gender relations.
The vampire tale is a great showcase for Moore's fertile mind - stagnant water being a perfect place for vampires to put down roots and start a family (a horrific, cannibal blood-sucking family, yes..), and allows us to get a glimpse of Swamp Thing's evolution and growing understanding of what he truely is.
"The Curse" is the volume's highlight - Moore using old fashioned horror tropes in a post-modern way to raise very real social issues. The lot of women in a male-dominated world is brought powerfully into mind here. One of the highlights of this Titan series is the introductions to each volume, giving a little history and context to the stories - and here we get Moore's explaination of where this story come from. His awareness that he's writing for a mostly male audience makes what he's telling us paricularly pertinent. I can say with honesty, when I read this as a teenager back in the late 80's, it did present concepts that i hadn't really thought about. Concepts that remain just as important today.
Volume 5 of this series has Moore hitting his stride - we know we're in for a great, thought-provoking time with Moore (and the stunning art team) in the fictional realms of the DC Universe but we're also getting a sharp focus on the world we actually live in.
Displaying 1 of 1 review