First episode of the new Swamp Thing does a really good job of taking all the disparate elements of Swamp Thing and tweaking them so they all exist in the same world. Holland, Abby Arcane, Matt Cable, Sunderland Corporation; I was very happy with how they're trying to put it all together from the get-go wherein the comic books it was all added in dribs and drabs. Not sure if this is Swamp Thing as elemental or Swamp Thing as Holland turned into plant-man. (The comics have gone back and forth on this.) They're very obviously going to try and ape the Alan Moore run which frankly is fine by be. Jason Woodrue/Floronic Man is set to show up. (They showed him in the trailer.) No Anton Arcane yet, but I can't imagine they won't go there.
Abbie is our eyes and ears. She's a CDC worker sent back to her hometown to investigate some weird disease outbreak linked to the swamp. The Sunderlands, particularly a Virginia Madsen with horrifying plastic surgery playing Missus Sunderland, blame Abbie for the death of their daughter Shawna years ago. Alec Holland is around working for Sunderland and uncovers that he's the one poisoning the Swamp and making people sick. He and Abby team up, but we all know it's going to end badly for him.
They've jettisoned Holland's wife Linda, and I get the impression that Shawna Sunderland will serve her narrative purpose. We'll see.
It's well done. The story clips along well. Again, I'm impressed with how they got the ball rolling. The problem is going to be sustaining the story and effects before getting cancelled.
RC says check it out.
And...cancelled. May not even complete the first season. Universal hatred for this one!
