Vertigo can be a strange imprint.  Although it still publishes more unusual books, it's also got a core of characters who keep coming back in one form or another, just like those sixties superheroes who will never be allowed to go out of print forever.

In keeping with that spirit, Andy Diggle and Enrique Breccia bring us a new Swamp Thing series - although they're actually only doing the first six issues before handing over.  Diggle has been doing some great work on the military action title Losers, which nobody is buying but everybody should.  But of course, Swamp Thing is a rather different book.

The problem that all writers face on this title is that they're inevitably inviting comparisons to Alan Moore.  And Moore at his most influential, at that.  Diggle goes for a relatively traditional take on the title, somewhat similar to the present approach on Hellblazer, which is settling into an out-of-costume supernatural hero book.  In fact, a cohesive Vertigo universe seems to be re-emerging - John Constantine guest stars in this issue, and the story spins off the Swamp Thing's recent guest starring role in Hellblazer (an arc which also featured guest appearances from the cast of Lucifer and Books of Magic).

Diggle has Constantine's character nailed, and on the strength of this, I wouldn't mind seeing him take a crack at Hellblazer itself.  The story here has the Swamp Thing separated from Alec Holland's human soul and turning into something more purely elemental.  We don't see much of him, however, since the story follows three threads - the revived Holland (a corpse animated by Constantine), and the Swamp Thing's wife and daughter.

As with recent Hellblazer, your reaction will depend on what you're looking for.  These two books seem to have decided to become comforting old friends doing stories that wouldn't be too far out of place in any superhero title.  They're not continuing to push the envelope.  Judge them as superhero books and they're pretty good.

Enrique Breccia produces beautiful artwork, with great use of light and shade.  The double-page spread of the Swamp Thing's mountain is absolutely gorgeous stuff, and Constantine looks appropriately seedy.  Daughter Tefe leans uncomfortably towards a girl-band idea of punk rebellion, but otherwise it's a great looking comic.

A superior B-movie, which may not be what everyone's looking for from a Vertigo title.  But it succeeds at what it does.

Rating: B+

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