DC is set to release a comic so controversial, it was buried for 36 years. In 1989, DC pulled the plug on a Swamp Thing story that would have seen the character meet Jesus. Years later, an attempt to release it failed, but today at New York Comic Con, DC announced the story will finally see the light of day.
As reported by The Beat, DC Comics announced the completion of a banned Swamp Thing story arc from 1989. Originally written by Rick Veitch, the arc was to have been illustrated by the late Michael Zulli.
The story was pulled from circulation due to the titular character meeting Jesus Christ during Biblical times.
Rick Veitch Had Big Shoes to Fill on Swamp Thing, And He Rose to the Occasion
Yet Cultural Forces Kept Rick Veitch From Finishing His Swamp Thing Tenure
After Alan Moore’s legendary run on Swamp Thing, Rick Veitch had the unenviable position of replacing him as writer. However, Veitch had already collaborated with Moore on Swamp Thing, so the high-quality stories fans had become accustomed to continued. Veitch had grand ambitions for his time on Swamp Thing.
Unfortunately, they were cut short by forces outside Veitch and Zulli’s control. Swamp Thing #88, titled “Morning of the Magician,” was to have featured a meeting between the Earth Elemental and Jesus of Nazareth. It was part of a larger story that Veitch had conceived, focused around Swamp Thing traveling through time.
Yet DC eventually developed cold feet and pulled the original story for issue 88. The script and art was complete at the time, but DC killed it before it ever went to press. Furthermore, three follow-up issues, which had not yet been drawn, were scuttled as well. The incident soured Veitch, and his run came to a premature end.
Various reasons for the story’s cancellation have floated through fandom over the years. Many have speculated that DC did not wish to anger religious conservatives, whose influence had grown significantly during the 1980s. When Swamp Thing #88 would have seen print, Martin Scorese’s Last Temptation of Christ was in theaters, also stirring up controversy.
DC Will Finally Do Right by Rick Veitch and Michael Zulli’s Vision for Swamp Thing
Top-Tier Artists Like Tom Mandrake Will Help Complete Rick Veitch’s Swamp Thing Meets Jesus Story
DC will finally right this wrong early next year, but it is not the first time the publisher has tried to revive this Swamp Thing story. In 2019, DC was close to bringing it back into print, but another, separate controversy, this one over an unrelated Vertigo book that took a similar approach to Christianity.
As a result, DC halted their second attempt to revive Rich Veitch’s controversial Swamp Thing story. This makes today’s announcement at New York Comic Con a cause for celebration. Veitch will be able to finally show fans his vision for Swamp Thing, and some top-tier artists, including Tom Mandrake, will help him see it to completion.
Source: The Beat