For Halloween: Alan Moore's Swamp Thing (Not for those of a nervous disposition)

[icon_uk]

Alan Moore's run on Swamp Thing was memorable on many levels. As well as reinventing a rather lackluster take on the titular character and changing the rules of the game completely in "The Anatomy Lesson", he also introduced John Constantine and Swamp Thing's true nature as an embodiment of the plantlife of the world. Constantine would put Swamp Thing through many trials and tests to make him become used to his new existence and the true extent of his powers.

He also did some truly awesome horror stories... This is one that lingers with me, partly because of the hook for the main character, and partly because of the amazing art from Steve Bissette and John Totleben (And Ron Randall too, according to Mr Bisssette himself)

Say hello to the nice people Swamp Thing!



"Hi nice people!"

I was never able to take American's referring to "the Boogeyman" seriously. As a kid in the 1970's it was a dance, and how could a monster be named after a fun, if silly-looking, dance? In the UK there is another name for such monsters, a much less pleasant sounding word, so from Swamp Thing 44, I present...


Luckily for me, the part of the story I'm wanting to tell is distinct from the bulk of the issue, which deals with Abbie and Swamp Thing having a heart to.. well, heart shaped legume chat about their future, and John Constantine arranging matters prior to Crisis on Infinite Earths (It's a scene featuring John, Steve "Mento" Dayton and Batman which I hate to omit, because it's rather fun but it's not essential to this story and the 1/3 rule trumps all, and I'm probably already pushing the definition of 7 2/3 or 23 pages here)

We open in a bar, as our never actually seen protagonist (through whose eyes we see this part of the story through) is having a drink with a new friend...



This is not going to end well is it?

After some Swampy related folderol, we return to this storyline a while later...



His companion asks him if he's ever heard of... the Bogeyman, because HE has, he's even met him...





Okay, as a hook for a killer this is pretty damned awesome. It's simple, it's memorable, in a certain frightening way it's plausible, and it's immediately horrible (We already know his kills aren't limited to a particular group we can be grateful we're not a part of, from a bag lady, to a young girl and go back and look at number one thirty two again, the relative size of the eyes suggest that that is a very young boy)

But I digress...



Yeah, think what you like, but I suspect that swamps are not about to be your friend tonight Mr Bogeyman. (Again I like the little touch here, closing a dead person's eyes is a very human thing to do, it's respectful. All the Bogeyman's memories are of open eyes, and one suspects that he never closes the eyes of his victims)



This is very cinematic isn't it? The mention of any relevant number making images of eyes appear would work very nicely in a movie version too.

The Bogeyman makes mention of OTHER people who have his.. particular tastes..



That's a great line! The Bogeyman makes a break for it, thinking it must be a random stranger, some local Cajun from the surrounding area.



Tell me those eyes won't haunt you for the rest of the night, and I won't believe you.

They meet again, and Bogeyman hacks the hand off of Swamp Thing, which has about as much effect as you imagine it would. In fact the hand instantly regrows into a full Swamp Thing and Bogeyman believes he's met a monster equal to himself, could it be that this is his... REPLACEMENT?





Oh, how much do I love that last line, it's pitch-perfect retributive horror, simple, and satisfying and distrubing in it's implications. I personally hold it right up there with "and then some fool turned the lights out" AND "and then some fool turned the lights on" as the perfect cap to a horror story.

The Bogeyman was referred to once more, years later, in the "Serial Killers Convention" story in Sandman, when the Corinthian (another eye-obsessive killer, though in a different league) informs the organiser than the Bogeyman (Who had been expected to attend) drowned in a swamp in Lousiana years ago (though given his abilities, he is perhaps the only person to know, or care, about that)

Oddly, it's the sheer mundaneness of the Bogeyman which makes him memorable to me. He's not a superbeing, he's not supernatural, he's just a sick bastard who got away with mass murder pretty much because he WAS so ordinary.

Sleep well, and be careful who gives you a lift home tonight if you've had a little too much to drink. :)
 

Comments

[misterbug]

So THAT'S why he never made it to the convention. That seemed like a funny subplot at the time. Kudos!

Also interesting that both Bogeyman and the Corinthian has the obsession with eyes...AND the one was defeated by Swamp Thing, the other by Fiddler's Green (sort of)...

[icon_uk]

I view the Corinthian as sort of a patron saint of serial killers, someone who inspires certain others in their ways, and took a kind of proprietorial interest in some of them, and yes, the shared eye motif is interesting (especially some of the expressions in the eyes here, when compared to his introduction in Sandman, one of the more disturbing pages from "The Doll's House")

[misterbug]

And you'll notice, when fake-Bogeyman gets asked for a number, Gaiman nods to Moore's story by showing fake-Bogeyman's OWN eyes, looking confused and shifty. The giant specs also added to the effect.

[cainofdreaming]

The first one kind of was, though I view what he was intended to be, and what the second one is on a good day, as something much scarier. Like boss said, he taught them to be scared of each other. Which they already were, so that was a totally unneeded service. The dark mirror, which shows you as you really are, without any of the lies and walls you've built to protect your ego - that was something that made cold shivers run through my spine.

Oh, and then he cuts your eye out with his knife and munches on it. Just for that final punctuation of the point. Waste not, want not.

[icon_uk]

The first one might not have been "all that he could be", but he seemed scarier and more dangerous than the second one IMHO.

I don't mind more abstract expressions of horror like the second one was, but given the fact that I find a little harmless fantasy bondage appealing, the first one took that and made it as horrible and sordid as it could be.

[thehefner]

It's amazing to read Moore's Swamp Thing and see ALLLLLL the thing that Gaiman lifted from Moore's work in Black Orchid, Sandman, and with Poison Ivy.

[misterbug]

And he's STILL doing it. I can't have been the only one who noticed the "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" reference when he had the TARDIS' body disintegrate in "The Doctor's Wife".

[thehefner]

Oh god, he did? I haven't seen it yet.

Yeah, I enjoy Gaiman, largely because I think he's an utterly delightful human being who is fun to listen as he reads his own work aloud. But at the same time, I'm kind of frustrated by all the legions of fans he's had who I'm willing to bet have or would never pick up Swamp Thing, and thus give him more credit for being an influential trailblazer than he strictly deserves.

[misterbug]

Wooops, sorry for spoiling that plot detail. I hope you'll catch it. Message me if you don't.

Yeah...I'm just continually upset that he keeps using the same ideas I think up before I can get to publishing stage yet. It's seriously frustrating, he does EVERYTHING I want to do.

[thehefner]

I'm afraid to watch it because I've seen very little of DW, and I don't want to be one of "those fans" whose first experience with Eleven is through a Gaiman episode, especially one that I imagine would be more meaningful to those who've seen more episodes of the Doctor and the TARDIS'... "relationship," for lack of a better word. The premise, as I understand it, is almost fan-fic-worthy, and I want to become more of a fan before I get there. That make any sense?

And now I imagine you being chased by General Disarray chanting "GAIMAN DID IT! GAIMAN DID IT!"

[misterbug]

I understand perfectly. This is also why I'm not into a lot of TV series - I'd rather not just dip into something without getting the full story. "Doctor's Wife" is very much a fanfic episode - he even based the villain on one of my favourite Classic-series villains, goddamit! - but the dialogue, ideas and fantastic performances made up for that.

With DW, as a spoiled fanboy I'd heavily recommend starting with "The Eleventh Hour" and not bothering too much about the preceding series. The RTD era had some good stories and very good acting by David Tennant, but when it was bad it was shockingly bad, and I can't describe Rose Tyler as anything other than "Horrid". It's not essential to watch any Ninth or Tenth Doctor episode to understand the Eleventh Doctor's series, but it is fun to watch some of them.

[icon_uk]

I agree that "The Eleventh Hour" is pretty much all that would be needed to "get" "The Doctor's Wife", but I would never deny someone the fun of Moffatt's earlier Who stories; "The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances", "The Girl in the Fireplace" and the unalloyed delight which is "Blink".

[biod]

"Midnight" and "Family of Blood/Human Nature", though not of Moffat's pen are both gems as well

[thehefner]

I've seen a few episodes of Nine, because I already liked Christopher Eccleston as an actor from other things, and as a result, I still have a soft spot for him. At the same time, I'm the kind of guy who wants to feel like he has some sort of arbitrary feeling of cred before getting into a fandom, so I wanna try to watch some of the earlier Doctors first. And not just Four, everybody watches Four! I'm a preemptive snob that way.

[misterbug]

I can't recommend "The Silurians" "The Brain of Morbius" (a VERY clear influence on Gaiman), "The Wheel In Space", "The Mind of Evil", "City of Fear", "Warriors of the Deep", "Time and the Rani", "The Curse of Fenric", and, just to see how bad things could have been, the hit-and-miss Fox collaboration that brought about the Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann.

[korvar]

I'm almost certain you accidentally a word there...

[misterbug]

Woop, good catch! I meant, I can't recommend those adventures MORE.

[icon_uk]

"Warriors of the Deep"? Really? Aside from the ghastliness of the Myrka, I've never seen a denoument flagged quite so blatantly "Oh look, we have a poison which ONLY works against lizard and marine life! Won't that be handy if we run into the Silurians or Sea Devils?"

[icon_uk]

If it makes you feel any better, Sir Terry Pratchett has said much the same thing, most notably about Gaiman outlining the plot for "American Gods" to him, and feeling so jealous that he wouldn't be able to write it that he could TASTE it!

[misterbug]

Thankfully, that particular idea - or, at least, the subject of God and Gods - is one that is so universal that Pratchett, as well as Kirby, Ellis and so many others have easily presented their own take on it...and mine will follow, some day. Some day soon.

[biod]

Just realized there's probably never going to be a sequel to Good Omens now. It didn't need one, but-
Excuse me while I cry forever.

[icon_uk]

I don't think there could be, but fear not, Sir Terry is still working hard, the latest Discworld "Snuff" has just come out (It's a Sam Vimes story) and he has other plans afoot too.

There's a nice recent interview between him and Neil here

[biod]

I always understood that it was a long shot (and I first heard about it with that criterea firmly attached), but something about the finality of it really perturbes me. Like waking up and expecting to find breakfast made by a dead parent on the table, only to realize they aren't around to make it anymore.

[glprime]

Snuff was pretty damn good. I like the "massive cast" aspect a bit more when it comes to Watch novels, but I'm sure Pterry is well-tired of always including everybody, and not just focusing on Sam Vimes.

[biod]

I had very much the same thing with a certain anime that came out at the beginning of this year. The concept wasn't exactly the same but it was similair that, if I ever managed to write and publish it, it would probably be labeled as "a major inspiration" by the kind of people whose commentary I enjoy.

[icon_uk]

Hmmm, I'd have to say not really on that one, because of the entirely different characters involved in those moments.

[misterbug]

Well, it was more referencing the line of dialogue and its ironic use than the character types - after all, he used it with entirely different character types in "Caped Crusader" as well.

[icon_uk]

What's "Caped Crusader"?

[misterbug]

As in "Whatever Happened To The".

[leikomgwtfbbq]

This was always one of my favorite stories from Swamp Thing. It's very chilling.

[tsukiori]

I've been trying to track down this story for forever and never could seem to find it in the comic shops. Thanks for posting it! It was a good, creepy little tale and really fitting for the Halloween season ^_^

[cleome45]

Oh, this takes me back!

<3 <3 <3

Thanks so much for posting it!

[dejadrew]

...-I- don't want to seem callous, but am I the only one who thinks that number 165 here is... kind of an idiot? Around the time this guy is ranting about how he remembers EVERY SINGLE PAIR OF EYES, I'd be inching away and trying frantically to signal the bartender.

[icon_uk]

He's a happy drunk, probably slightly tiddly before the Bogeyman even meets him.

[donnblake]

Also possible that the Bogeyman drugged him, as he mentions he usually doesn't get nearly this drunk.

[glprime]

I just find it silly because "boogy/bogey" translates in my mind to snot, and while slime monsters (especially vaguely humanoid slime monsters) can be quite scary, the idea of a snot man hiding in my closet just makes my latent OCD go "Oh no! My paper media! My clothes!"

[icon_uk]

Oh yeah, bogeys are always snot to me, but snot is something I have odd aversion to and associate with unpleasant times partly because of allergies, and partly because it's just so... slimy, so it works (Seriously I can barely read the title of "Fungus the Bogeyman" with my gag reflex kicking in... and not my usual fun sort of gag reflex)

[eyz]

Classic Alan Moore at his best! :D

[wizardru]

This is really where Moore showed what comics truly could be. What's amazing here isn't just the writing. It's how it all comes together so amazingly.

Totelbehn's artwork sells the creepiness of it all. Being a first-person perspective is used to chilling effect. We have virtually no violence, absolutely no gore and mostly just a lot of talk. And it is SCARY. The best part is the serial killer not getting a chance to tell his name. The best part of Moore's horror is the matter-of-factness of it. Sane people caught up in a terrible world. The capstone, of course, is the sheer horror of Abby taking a shower (or rather WHY she takes that shower). I remember the car crash being one of the most horrifying things I'd ever read. Still gives me chills.

[mrosa]

This is one of the best serial killer stories ever! I love the line about Charles Manson being a loser... the great ones are the ones that are never caught. What a chilling observation!

I need to re-read Swamp Thing; I'm always forgetting what a beautiful synthesis of art and text it was.

A note from Bissette Hisself

[jlroberson]

Shared this on FB and Bissette happens to be an acquaintance(I published him once, and he influenced almost all my thinking on comics art. Which is lopsided.). He mentioned this.

"John, I've gotta give credit where credit is due: RON RANDALL penciled a chunk of the SWAMP THING "bogeyman" serial killer issue, too. Be sure to add his name to the mix; Ron was a fellow Kubert School student/grad (not part of the pioneer Class of 1978, but shortly after). Great, complimentary writeup; thanks for that!"

The thanks is fer you, btw.

Side note-I've been thinking of putting up some Pasko Swamp Thing--I think it's rather neglected, it was very strong as far as THAT Swampy went; Moore's was a different character in most ways. Any votes? I gots the scans. "In The White Room" was one I thought I'd try. And it hasn't been reprinted, which is a shame. Yeates is great and B & T STARTED in Pasko's run.

Re: A note from Bissette Hisself

[icon_uk]

Hey, that's great, thanks! I'll add Mr Randall to the tags!

Some Pasko Swamp Thing could be fun, so it gets my vote. :)