Swamp Thing, Red Hood & the Outlaws Get New Creative Teams

It's been either known or at least widely speculated that the creative teams would be swapped on a number of DC titles coming up in April, and yesterday the publisher made it official, announcing that both Swamp Thing and Red Hood and the Outlaws would get big-name new creative teams that month. Charles Soule was announced as the incoming writer on Swamp Thing, confirming long-simmering rumors that DC was looking outside of theirs and Marvel's comfort zone, seeking out creators who have traditionally worked in small press and creator-owned book, or with Image Comics. Soule is best known for Strongman, 27 and Strange Attractors. He'll get help from fan-favorite artist Kano. " I've always loved the idea of mythologies linked to or underlying everyday life, like the kami gods of Shintoism, where every rock, tree and stream has its own little god associated with it. I tried to establish some of that with 27, by creating deities of creativity, decay and fame. That's nothing new - writers have been doing this stuff for millennia, just like every other idea under the sun," Soule told io9. "Something very cool about Swamp Thing that I think makes the book distinct from some other superhero titles is that it has a very thoroughly developed mythology that spans back to prehistoric times. Avatars of the Green have existed as long as there has been plant life on Earth. Plus, Swampy's powers are essentially infinite but also tightly defined - he can't do anything that plants can't do, and while plants can do plenty, there are also some strong limitations. I also like that Swamp Thing's goal as an avatar of the Green isn't necessarily to defeat or destroy - his job is to seek balance, which is cool. As a writer, all of that gives me a HUGE narrative toolbox to work with, which is inspiring. You can tell stories about some of the deepest philosophical questions mankind has ever considered, while still featuring a giant green leafy dude punching bad guys. It's a blast!"

Meanwhile, Talon writer James Tynion IV, best known to fans as Scott Snyder's protege, will pick up Red Hood & the Outlaws with the upcoming #17, which had previously been solicited as written by Scott Lobdell. The art, originally solicited as being by Timothy Green II, will be provided by Mico Suayan, who had already been solicited as providing covers for #17 and #18. "I'll be doing a few more multi-issue arcs rather than stand-alone issues, but the book is an energetic book that propels itself forward. And I think that's going to continue," Tynion IV told Newsarama. "For me, I am looking to build the few threats in the darkness that will lead to longer arcs that play off the characters' pasts and their relationships with one another." Expect more creative announcements on Monday, when DC's next batch of solicitations are expected.