JewishHobbit
Avenger
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I'm not really caring for the line up in that book so far. So unless they add some bigger names, I'm going to pass.
Sucks as I actually liked this book. At least it lasted longer than lots of other 52 books.
It feels like its becoming harder and harder for solo books featuring characters that aren't household names or part of an established franchise (Bat books/Supes books, ect) to get a decent run these days
I am not even mad. Fantastic book and i think its better for it to end on a high note. Animal Man in Justice League sounds a bit meh but Vertigo is dead so there is no point to expect any more vertigo stuff with him or constantine.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=50104
Great interview with Charles Soule where he reflects upon his first arc with Swamp Thing, what he was trying to do and what he plans going forward.
Soule is killing it with this title.
Essentially, you've told two big stories in "Animal Man" -- the "Rotworld" crossover with Scott Snyder's "Swamp Thing" and the current Brother Blood arc. Do these long-term story arcs allow for a different brand of storytelling and a deeper exploration of character than one-and-done, supervillain of the month stories?
I think it suited this character but it's kind of a double-edged sword. It does really let you get in depth into the different characters of the book and really explore them but at the same time, you run the risk of testing the readers' patience sometimes. If you go too long on things, you don't keep the book fresh. That's a lesson that I learned over the course of "Animal Man." I need to find a bit more balance there. I've applied that to my projects since like "Green Arrow." The arcs are much shorter. There is still a large, overarching story but it's told in much shorter sections with new villains and new characters introduced all of the time to keep it a little bit fresher.
Swamp Thing 28 was pretty good. Its very much a setup issue, setting up a Plant Cult and a run-in with Etrigan/Jason Blood to be specific.
While it was good to finally get some backstory on Capucine, I don't think it was handled the best. It rendered most of this issue as pure exposition that really didn't connect well with the first part of the issue, which included a goddamn Mardis Gras Swamp Thing (!).
Basically Soule needed this issue to do a few different things, and it does each of them well, but they feel a bit odd all in one issue. Overall Capucine is a great character but her introduction has been so protracted that even she comments on how ridiculous it is that every time she tries to explain herself Swamp Thing runs off.
Soule has been pretty great overall and my small qualms aside this issue is no different. His focus on smaller arcs has been greatly enjoyable. In contrast, Animal Man has been stuck with the same writer, Jeff Lemire since the New 52 launch. The problems with Rotworld continue, with long, arcs that pad themselves out by repeating themselves again and again. It rarely feels like anything has happened in this title. While I think Soule raps some things up a bit to quickly, its kind of ridiculous when what could happen in Swamp Thing in 3 issues and be exciting, instead a 12 issue slog in Animal Man. I had really hoped a different writer would get to take a shot at Animal Man, instead Lemire is just ending it in March.
Bummer.
Oh no, don't get me wrong, I loved the Mardis Gras Swamp Thing.
This Swamp Thing has mostly been dealing with the internal politics of the green and the challenger they set for him. I'm not sure how that constitutes super hero action at least in comparison to Moore's run which had a lot more of Swamp Thing actually saving people or going out and fighting threats as he was strung along by John Constantine.
I think really the difference in tone remains tied to the fact that this swamp thing really is Alec Holland, rather than Moore's plant who thinks it is Holland. This new Cult of the Serene may offer an interesting wrinkle, but the solicits mention some kind of opportunity for Alec to become human again and it looks like he's going for it. Hopefully when this ultimately fails it can shut the door on that kind of story thread for a while. After Alec as just now established himself as the sole power of the green, not beholden to anyone, I would much rather read about him having to deal with the implications of his actions rather than attempt to become human again.