GRAPHIC NOVEL
Swamp Thing
Bad Seed

Author: Andy Diggle
Artist: Enrique Breccia
Titan Books
RRP £8.99
ISBN 1 84023 954 9
Available 25 February 2005


Once there was
a man named Alec Holland, who died trying to transform the world into a new Garden of Eden. From his ashes rose a shambling mass of vegetation called the Swamp Thing, whose godlike power was tempered by Alec's kindness and human decency. Those same qualities won him the love of a woman, Abbey Cable - a love which culminated in a child named Tefé, who inherited the elemental power to control plants and flesh alike. John Constantine has a plan to reign in the Holland family - he just needs to do a little digging. Fortunately, the Hellblazer happens to know where all the bodies are buried...

Bad Seed is part Swamp Thing story and part Hellblazer. John Constantine raises Alec Holland's rotting corpse from the swamp, where it has laid for years, in a bid to bring some of his humanity back to Swamp Thing - who is now acting on behalf of mother nature.

Tefé, Alec's daughter, has been persuaded, by a mysterious stranger with a few secrets, that Swamp Thing is evil and that she must fight him. The truth is that without Alec's humanity Swamp Thing does indeed appear to be mankind's enemy.

This graphic novel may not be one that those unfamiliar with the character will want to start with, but it is a fantastic collection for those who are fans. Not only does it bring all of the Holland clan into the frame, but the inclusion of Hellblazer's Constantine is an added bonus - his dry wit adds much to the proceedings.

The art work is also worthy of note - you can almost smell Alec's rotting carcass - and the fact that this has been reprinted on glossy pages adds to the quality.

Swamp Thing fans will want to add this to their collection.

Pete Boomer

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