If you’ve not seen episode 2 of the new Swamp Thing series, you may be disappointed to find that the following contains various spoilers. DC Universe’s Swamp Thing, episode 2 was released last Friday (6/7)… More
Poison Ivy & Jason Woodrue have a child?
What seems to be a significant development in the DCU, the new Walmart Exclusive Swamp Thing #4 revealed the full name of Swamp Thing’s current associate… Briar Woodrue! As you may know, Woodrue is the surname of Floronic Man, AKA Jason Woodrue/Plant Man/Floro/Plant Master/Seeder. This revelation creates extremely fun plot opportunities to explore.
Jason Woodrue has a rich history within the DC Universe as a B-list, plant wielding villian, first appearing in The Atom #1 (1962). Prior to adopting the name “Floronic Man” (-see The Flash #245, 1976), Woodrue went toe-to-toe with classic DC characters such as, Wonder Woman, The Atom & the Justice League. Along with being involved in the Atom’s origin story, Woodrue played an integral role in the creation of Poison Ivy. While working as a college professor in the Pacific Northwest in the ’60s, Woodrue seduced and experimented on one of his young students, Pamela Isley. These torturous experiments gave birth to one of DC’s most notable villains. Now, it seems that Woodrue’s experiments have extended his family tree.
Note: The Poison Ivy origin I am referencing is post-Crisis on Infinite Earths, not the Earth-One version.
Throughout the series, hints and allusions are made regarding Briar Woodrue’s family/origin. In Swamp Thing #1 (Walmart Exclusive, 2019), Swamp Thing explains,
“she says she’d defended herself, telling the FBI agents that her mother’s ravenous and demanding rhododendron had directed the crime. The flowers had spoken to her all her life. That mistake, she says, leads her to understand why the man we’re hunting would want to escape the psychiatric ward he was held in until very recently.”
Swamp Thing’s narration in issue #1 paired with the reveal of Briar’s full name in issue #4 leads me to believe, Jason Woodrue and Poison Ivy have a child. The methods in which the two villains created the child, I’m sure, are as sordid as it gets and hopefully more backstory comes to light. Knowing Ivy and Woodrue’s past, the two would seem more likely to throw one another under a bus before collaborating.
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Battle for the Bayou
Swamp Thing Battle for the Bayou Board Game – 1991
Last weekend I had company over and decided to unleash the Swamp Thing board game. It’s always a blast to play and easy to learn. Along with a slew of Swampy merchandise, the game was released in conjunction with the short-lived Swamp Thing animated series in 1991 by Rose Art. Gameplay is easy enough, allowing two to four players, ages seven and up.
Players take turns advancing their game pieces, utilizing “Swamp Thing” and “Hero Card” cards as they make their way toward the evil Anton Arcane. The first player to reach Arcane, and defeat him, wins!
There are various pitfalls and obstacles throughout the board. Arcnae’s Un-Men are dead set on stopping you and your opponents from defeating Arcane. It’s a simple and fun game Swampy fans are sure to enjoy.
Rough start for the Swamp Thing TV series
Two big things happened in the world of Swamp Thing this week.
1) Production of the Swamp Thing series was cancelled
2) The series costume was revealed in a teaser
In a seemingly sudden change of direction, DC/Warner Bros. has decided to cancel the remaining production of the Swamp Thing series. The first season was intended to be 13 episodes long but, last night cast and crew members were notified that production will be cancelled except to finish the tenth episode (they are currently working on), along with re shoots they may need. Without a teaser, leaked photo from the set or much of anything at all to entice, eager fans woke up this morning to the unfortunate news. Although the season will not be the full 13 episodes, DC/Warner still plans to release the 10 episode series. The show debuts on May 31st on DC’s streaming service, DC Universe.
Last night (4/16) I was contacted by a crew member who’s working on the series. He relayed the following information.
“We just got told they’re stopping production on Swamp Thing… we had three episodes left and we’re finishing this one and some re shoots and it sounds like that’s it for now. DC streaming is apparently not doing well. Not sure if Warner Bros will try to find Swamp Thing a home elsewhere or what. We were all basically under the presumption this was gonna go five seasons minimum… not good. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.”
To make things even more confusing, less than 24 hours after the news broke that production cancelled, DC released the following teaser for the series.
Swamp Thing series teaser
It’s a shame Swamp Thing fans weren’t shown the teaser before hearing about the production cancellation. The suit looks great and I have no doubt it will be a fun series.
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Manusia Rawa #1 – Indonesian trading cards
I was lucky enough to acquire another sheet of uncut Indonesian trading cards and am thrilled to share it with you. This sheet depicts the first installment of the narrative that continues in “Manusia Rawa” #2, which I posted a little while back. To get caught up, visit my previous post here. The storyline is poor, but it’s exciting to see young Jim (from the TV show) again. Manusia Rawa, sheets #1 & #2, seem to help explain Jim’s unfortunate departure from the television series.
I’ve provided a rough translation of the trading cards below. A very special think you goes out to Rich Handley for his help in translating. Throughout the sheet, Swamp Thing is referred to as Amos. I’m assuming “Amos” is being used in place of “Alec”.
The Cast:
Thub – Henchman
Jim – Kidnapped boy
Simon – Villain
Jane – Jim’s Mother
Jevry – Good Guy
Swamp Thing/Amos – duh
1.
Swamp Thing: “Manusia Rawa” translates to “Swamp Man”
2.
Jevry: “Let’s go now”
Thub: “OK”
Caption: Jevry and Thub are work colleagues.
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The DC Universe by Len Wein
The DC Universe by Len Wein – 2019
The DC Universe by Len Wein was released last month and I had to get a hold of it to see what great Swamp Thing goodness is inside. The book collects 23 of Len’s greatest stories including the last Swamp Thing book he wrote, Swamp Thing Winter Special #1. As you’re aware, Len created Swamp Thing along with Bernie Wrightson and Joe Orlando in 1971. In December of 2017, Len’s last Swamp Thing story was published following his sudden passing on September 10 of 2017.
The book collects Len’s stories throughout his career, from 1968 to one of the last stories he wrote. The book includes, Teen Titans #18, Phantom Stranger #20-24, Justice League of America #100-102, Action Comics #419-420, 422-423, 425-426, 429, 432, DC Comics Presents #27-29, Justice League of America 80-Page Giant #2, DC Retroactive: Green Lantern—The ‘80s: Big Betrayal #1 and Swamp Thing Winter Special #1.
Below are a few pages from within the book.
DC Direct Swamp Thing Figures
DC Direct Swamp Thing Action Figure – 1999
Once, it seemed he was an unthinking monster, a bizarre combination of scientist Alec Holland and the swamp itself. Now, the truth is clear: the Swamp Thing is an earth elemental- a being of vast power whose role as guardian of all plant life sets him forever above and apart from the human race.
Based on the sculpt of William Paquet and inspired by Michael Zulli’s original Swampy design, this 6 3/4” action figure casts a long shadow. It’s tough to find a better looking Swamp Thing action figure. The figure came with optional rosebush attachments to replace the hands. Although the figure has various points of articulation, the options for posing are quite limited.
The figure was styled after a similar statue, released in 1996. See details of the statue here.
Spanish Bootleg del Pantano
Super Monstruos – Spain 1992
El Monstruo del Pantano figure
I was really hoping to come up with a fun title for this post, riffing on Dylan’s song, “Spanish Boots of Leather” but that took too long and now it’s not funny, but… check out this sweet Spanish bootleg Swamp Thing figure. The Silver Surfer looking Monstruo was produced by Comansi/Yolanda Toys. I was excited to find the figure along with its packaging and product card.
Foil packaging
Figure front
The figure looks quite similar to one of Bernie Wrightson’s more obscure renderings of Swamp Thing.
The illustration on the right was published on the cover of Australian edition, Swamp Monster #2 in 1981. It’s interesting to see similarities between the two.
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