Review: Swamp Thing Vol. 2- Family Tree

Quick Summary

Pros: The main storyline is even better than the previous book. The horror is chilling and well written. The flashbacks help with character development and are also scary in their own way. The artwork looks great and helps better tell the story.

Cons: Though not a con to all, this book will definitely be too dark for some.

Overall: This is a great continuation of the story from the previous volume and a solid tale all on its own. The charming cast of characters and the terrifying horror are still as strong as before. Meanwhile, the main storyline is pushing on to even more interesting possibilities. If you liked the first volume, you’ll like this one even more.

Story

Swamp Thing Vol. 2: Family Tree, by Scott Snyder, is every bit as exciting and entertaining as the previous volume, which is a big compliment. It provides a resolution to last volume’s cliffhanger conclusion, while also launching an even larger and more ambitious storyline. All the while, meaningful character interactions and terrifying horror make the book even more fun to read. Essentially, this collection amplifies storytelling in nearly every way possible and ends in a way that will leave readers dying for more.

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Family Tree starts out by dealing with the fallout from the previous volume’s conclusion. It has Alec Holland fully take on the role of Swamp Thing and go head to head with the Rot in a pretty epic showdown. This portion of the book has great level of excitement and action, which prove to be very entertaining.

This portion of the book is also the most uplifting and positive. Swamp Thing is able to rescue Abigail and defeat the Rot’s current champion. When compared to the hopelessness and terror from earlier, this showdown feels exhilarating and triumphant. It gives the readers a “win” to start off with and demonstrates that the entire series is not solely focused on doom and gloom.

From here though, the narrative becomes more subdued and focuses on establishing the “Rotworld” arc, set to take place in the next volume. Instead of epic battle sequences, this portion of the book goes back to quiet horror. Anton Arcane rises and presents a major threat that the heroes are not entirely capable of dealing with. His actions inspire terror on nearly every page and just his presence is creepy all on its own. This portion of the book ends on a dark note that left me incredibly excited to read the next volume.

After this is done, the narrative shifts over to flashbacks. Readers discover the origin of Swamp Thing and see the first time Alec Holland ever met Abigail Arcane. These moments give Alec some fantastic character development while still allowing the collection to maintain its aura of horror. Seeing Anton Arcane kill a previous Swamp Thing is a disturbing visual and an eerie reminder of what is possible. These stories work well here and help further establish what is already an incredibly interesting premise.

(spoilers end here)

Art

For the majority of this volume, Yanick Paquette and Marco Rudy take turns on art, with each doing half a chapter at a time. Though usually having multiple artists on a title leads to problems with consistency, this is not a problem at all. These artists preform well together and assemble a book that mirrors the compliments we lavished on the first volume. This means that the heroes are awe inspiring, the villains are terrifying, and every page is structured perfectly.

Continuity

Swamp Thing Vol. 2: Family Tree continues the story started in Swamp Thing Vol. 1: Raise Them Bones (Review).

The story here continues in Swamp Thing Vol. 3: Rotworld: The Green Kingdom (Review).