Swamp Thing Annual Review
Writer: Scott Snyder and Scott Tuft
Art: Becky Cloonan
Review by David Short
The team that brought us one of the best horror stories in recent comic’s history with Severed join forces again to add to the building history of Alec Holland. Scott Snyder has been killing it on this series, and he and Scott Tuft have proven that they work well together. The Swamp Thing Annual is truly a great read, and a touching story in light of recent events.
This story takes place in Rotworld…for about four pages. Most of the book is a flashback to the first time Alec came in contact with Anton and laid eyes on his soul mate, Abby. This is where the book is at its best. Becky Cloonan joins the plethora of Swamp Thing artists with this gigantic book, and her style works so well with the flashback sequences. But what did we expect? We already knew that she and Snyder can produce great, touching, emotional stories thanks to Batman #12.
Cloonan’s work is known for her thick, bold lines and her super expressive puppy-dog eyes. Her layouts are fun, and fit the story well, but it’s completely different from what we usually get from Paquette or Marco Rudy. Her pages pop because of the lines, but they work so well because the character’s eyes are truly their window to their souls–much like what Raphael Albuquerque (Snyder seems to get ALL the good artists, doesn’t he?) has been doing with the characters in American Vampire. The only gripe I have with Cloonan’s pages come from when Alec is actually Swamp Thing. It doesn’t work for me, but that’s totally personal, and doesn’t detract from the overall appeal of the book. As I said Swamp Thing is only in the book for like four pages.
And the only major problem I have with this book has nothing to do with its creative team. This book is a fantastic story and pulled off extremely well, but this is not worth 5 dollars. There aren’t many comic that are worth 5 dollars. I understand how large the book is, and how much content is able to be put there, but that doesn’t excuse the price tag.
Verdict
If price is no matter to you, then this book should be in your stack. It proves just how much of Snyder’s run is driven by Alec and Abby’s relationship, and it’s a very touching addition to that as well.
