Swamp Thing #13

Shouldn't Deadman be some kind of harbinger of The Rot? Or is there a spirit realm called The Silver or The Gold?

Swampy's turn to realize just how badly he and Buddy Baker fucked up by being lured into The Rot's Dungeon of Doom for just a few minutes. The Earth has been destroyed by The Rot and only a small oasis known as The Red Kingdom survives. Since this comic book is called "The Green Kingdom," I should probably update that statement to say two small oases survive. But I don't know that for sure yet! Maybe The Green Kingdom refers to Poison Ivy's womb. Or Deadman's anus. Why not? Look at Swamp Thing's look on the cover! That's a "You've got to be joking" look if I ever saw one.

The issue begins with Poison Ivy looking super fantastic.

Deadman is also looking at his best here. I've become a huge fan of Yanick Paquette on this title.

I don't know why Deadman is traveling with Poison Ivy. Perhaps Justice League Dark are some of the few people to have survived in Rotworld so they're splitting their members amongst the remaining bands of survivors. Constantine and Black Orchid with The Red and Deadman and Zatanna hanging out with The Green.

During his interrogation, Swamp Thing learns that a full year has passed since entering The Rot and that the world has become one gigantic pile of cancerous shit. Deadman and Ivy are as amazed as Steel, Black Orchid, and Beast Boy that Alec Holland and Buddy Baker still live. But it's too late to do anything, right? Better just to let Abby Arcane fix things in real time.

One year earlier, Abigail Arcane is also looking super fantastic.

The most attractive thing about her is that she just looks so fucking comfortable in those clothes.

While Abby's lost in thoughts of the home of her youth, black ooze streams out of the airplane's restroom and enters into an old man. Isn't that the opposite of how that usually goes?

In Rotworld, bathrooms foul you! Ah ha ha ha!

Back in Rotworld, Swamp Thing makes his way to The Green Kingdom hidden above the Earth at the top of a large stalk. The Parliament of Trees still live and they explain how Anton destroyed the world while Swamp Thing and Animal Man were away. Only beings with a connection to The Red or The Green could be saved. And maybe a few exceptions like Steel who made himself into a robot to avoid rotting and John Constantine who can't be killed due to some deal he made when saving himself from lung cancer. Or just because he's simply too cool to kill.

I like how Rotworld is giving the reader glimpses of other DC Characters that have yet to make an appearance in The New 52. Even if they're dead like Giganta here.

Swamp Thing asks about Abby Arcane but before the Parliament can answer (unless silence is their answer), a rumble shakes The Green. The bottom of the stalk is being attacked. Poison Ivy, Deadman, and their army of fake Swamp Things head down to defend. The Rot has sent some of its transformed heroes to do the job. But this time the real Swamp Thing is here to beat them back.

Rotworld has to be some kind of alternate timeline because Red Robin doesn't look anything like Harvest here!

During the fight, Swamp Thing takes off Kid Flash's head and Poison Ivy throws a wooden sword through Red Robin's face. But since they're Rotten versions of themselves, I don't think those wounds matter. I'm still not sure how anyone is supposed to destroy The Rot! Perhaps compost it and use it as nutrients for creatures of The Red and The Green? I think the only way to kill The Rot is to eat it! Oh, unless you're an Agent of SHADE. Then you have some kind of organic destroying mega bomb. That seemed to work.

During the battle (which will apparently conclude in Issue #14 as Swamp Thing faces off against Rotten Superboy), the Parliament of Trees discuss whether they should tell Alec what happened to Abby one year ago. They believe she died trying to return home to stop The Rot before the war could even start. But The Rot took over everyone on the plane she was on. And since The Rot began in Europe, this must be the moment Anton Arcane's war began. But did Abby really die? Yeah, probably not.

I have a feeling Anton Arcane's real trap was not having time advance by one year but the creation of this Rotworld simulation that is meant to distract Buddy and Alec from helping out in the real world. He's playing mind games with them by making them believe even their loved ones have died. But in the meantime, their loved ones are fighting to stop the world from falling apart. They'll probably need to enter Rotworld themselves at some point to pull Buddy and Alec out of it so that Buddy and Alec can save the world. Part of that will be Ellen tracking down Frankenstein so that he can help them enter Rotworld because Justice League Dark mentioned she would have to find the Green One and they didn't mean Swamp Thing. I think Abby will be able to get into Rotworld on her own since she was meant to be their Avatar anyway.

Swamp Thing #13 Rating: +1 Ranking. Thankfully, Rotworld is off to a really good start. One year into The New 52 and I've had it with continuity and world building! Let these writers and their stories off the leash! The thing I like so far about Rotworld is that anything can happen here. Fuck you, Jonni DC! Snyder and Lemire are gonna fuck some shit up. And then we'll find it's all a dream or a simulation or a hallucination. But that's okay. I'm just here for the shit that's going to get fucked up.