Alan Moore is one of the greatest legends of the comic industry. Retiring from the industry in 2019, the British writer has been responsible for some of the greatest stories ever, including a comic that is considered the best of them all: Watchmen, with artist Dave Gibbons. This 12-issue story introduced readers to characters that would go on to become legends, with Moore and Gibbons working all of their magic on the book. The writing and art is near flawless in the story, and it’s looked at as a higher level of superhero comic than anything that came before.
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Watchmen is considered a masterpiece for good reason, but Moore had been giving readers amazing work since he came to the American comic industry with Saga of the Swamp Thing #20 (most people think that issue #21 was his first issue, but he closed out the book’s previous story arcs the issue before). Moore’s run writing Swamp Thing made him into a star, and the scribe mastered using the character to create stories that were unlike anything that readers had experienced before. In fact, an argument can be made that Moore’s time on Swamp Thing gave readers his greatest story before Watchmen even began: the 1985 epic “American Gothic”. This story is, in many ways, better than Moore and Gibbons’s classic, and deserves its flowers as such.
“American Gothic” Was Pitch Perfect Superhero Horror
Swamp Thing under Moore was one of the best comics ever. The writer worked with main artists Simon Bissette, John Totleben, and colorist Tatjana Wood, with editor Karen Berger. Their work on the character played up the horror elements, but also dug into Swamp Thing as a human being (which was ironic because the run established that Swamp Thing was no longer human) and his relationship with Abby Arcane. It was emotional, scary, and would deal with real life social problems, like environmentalism. It was a book that was more mature than anything else there, and it built beautifully to “American Gothic”.
The story is, well, simple. John Constantine recruits Swamp Thing to help him on a mysterious mission, with the swamp creature sent all over America to stop monsters from succeeding at, well, monstrous things. Swamp Thing (Vol. 2) #37-50 is mostly made up of one and two issue stories, each of them building the story in the background of the monster of the month tales, until we learned the truth — the monsters were part of a plan to allow the Great Darkness, the nothingness of the void before creation, to eat existence. It all leads to battle in Hell, as angels, demons, forces of nature, and human sorcerers teamed together to stop the impossible.
If that was all there was to the story, it would still be one of the best ’80s DC stories. However, what really made the story work was that Moore used it to talk about American culture, something he had been doing throughout the book’s run. Ideas like the corporatization of the heartland, the treatment of Native Americans and women, the American obsession with guns, racism, and more all run through the stories. Moore wanted to take a look at the darkness at the center of the United States, and he used superhero horror as his mirror. “American Gothic” was able to combine the real and the surreal to create a near perfect story that will keep you engaged across its 14-issue run on every level.
As great as the writing is, the art matches it in every way. Bissette, Totleben, and Wood were there various issues, supplying amazing artwork for readers, but they weren’t all. Artists like Rick Vietch, Stan Woch, Ron Randall, and Alfredo Alcala all gave readers some amazing visuals. While Totleben has always been my favorite Swamp Thing artist from the Moore run, I love Woch and Vietch’s issues. Totleben’s issues are fantastic, and the final chapter was a true epic, the battle against the Great Darkness in Hell of all places, with every DC magical character teaming together for the last fight, really selling the scope of the story. This tale had it all, and it’s got Watchmen beat in every respect.
“American Gothic” Was Moore At His Best
Alan Moore is a comics legend, and Watchmen has been considered his crown jewel for almost forty years now. The story dropped in 1986, and was brilliant. The older I get, though, the more I love “American Gothic” as a work. Watchmen is a great multi-faceted story, with a lot of depth, but it still feels a little shallow compared to 1985’s Swamp Thing classic. Swamp Thing (Vol. 2) #37-50 does a tremendous job of giving readers an amazing story that says a lot about what America is and what it means.
A lot of time, the story of Watchmen doesn’t really feel important; what feels important is the way the story is told. “American Gothic” doesn’t have this feeling. Every issue has so much to say, about the characters, about the plot of the story, about the United States, that you’re mind is constantly abuzz. Moore is able to lead you through the story, shocking you time and again. It’s the kind of ride that you don’t get very often. It’s just as mature and well-told as Watchmen, but the way it uses social issues puts it over the top. If you’ve never tried it, you seriously need to read it, even if you haven’t read any other Moore Swamp Thing. It’s brilliant in ways that will shock you.
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Image courtesy of Universal Pictures.
