Swamp Thing Vol 2 88
From DC Database
Anyhow, this here says something about an artifact -- "The Claw of Elk Hound" -- which was used to send the old fruit "on his way". 
Appearing in "Survival of the Fittest"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Villains:
- Cro-Magnon warriors
Other Characters:
- Anton Arcane (In flashback only)
- Enemy Ace (In flashback only)
- King Arthur (In flashback only)
- Merlin (In flashback only)
- Moon Fawn (In flashback only)
- Sarga (Behind the scenes)
- Shining Knight (In flashback only)
- Tomahawk (In flashback only)
- Wise Owl (In flashback only)
- Rheelai
- Tianne
- Yahc-Kow (Only appearance; dies)
Locations:
- South America (approx. 40,000 years ago)
- Brazil (present day)
- California (In flashback only)
- England (In flashback only)
Items:
- Amber stone (Also in flashback)
- Holy Grail
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Survival of the Fittest"
The Present
John Constantine visits Abby to check on her pregnancy. He coyly reminds her of his own vested interest in seeing to the child's health. Abby is reading an autobiography titled Hawk, Son of Tomahawk, and shows John a photograph indicating that Alec Holland is trapped somewhere in the past.
The Past
During the years of the last great ice age, a woman from a South American Neanderthal tribe celebrates her coming of age by consuming a seed plucked from the mouth of an ancient skull. A second seed falls from the skull, landing on the floor of the cave whereupon it takes root and grows into the form of the Swamp Thing. Swamp Thing gathers his bearings and recalls the last few time eras that he spontaneously visited.
The Swamp Thing meets Rheelai, the shaman of the village. Rheelai recognizes the Swamp Thing as an earth-spirit and Swamp Thing is able to understand the smaller man's language.
The Present
Two police officers from Houma stop Gene LaBostrie. They tell him that if they see Abby, he should let her know that the police are no longer investigating her for the apparent death of her former husband Matt Cable.
The Past
A tribe of Cro-Magnon buries one of their clan elders, Yahc-Kow. They then embark upon a hunt to locate and extinguish any members of the "unclean" (Neanderthal) tribes.
In Rheelai's village, the shaman explains to the Swamp Thing, the nature of his magic, and the power of the earth-father, Sarga. He gives the Swamp Thing three seeds and shows him a piece of amber that he cut and formed himself. Swamp Thing immediately recognizes the rock as the artifact that is connected to his own elemental power. Rheelai also shows him a golden chalice. This, in concert with the amber rock, serves as a spiritual tether for his people.
The Present
Gene LaBostrie reaches Abby outside of her home and tells her the news concerning the police investigation.
John Constantine meanwhile, begins traveling to South America. He suspects that the secret behind the Swamp Thing's cavorting through time has its roots in the jungles of Brazil.
The Past
The Cro-Magnon warriors raid Rheelai's village, slaughtering dozens of defenseless people. The Swamp Thing tries to defend them, but he has yet to re-acquire his full power. The leader of the tribe kills Rheelai and takes his amber pendant. He hurls it at the Swamp Thing, but it passes through him and the Swamp Thing mysteriously disappears. The warrior grabs the golden cup and holds it to the sky. He knows that it is an item of great importance.
Notes
- The letters column includes a letter by group editor Karen Berger explaining writer/artist Rick Veitch's separation from DC Comics. She expands upon the reason why Veitch quit DC in the letters column in Swamp Thing #89. According to Berger, DC Comics publisher and editor-in-chief Jenette Kahn rejected Veitch's original script for this issue, which would have had Swamp Thing arrive in the past during the time of Jesus Christ. It would have revealed how the three wise men were actually assassins and that Jesus was a hedge wizard. The story was rejected out of fear of offending DC's Christian demographic.
- Doug Wheeler becomes the regular series writer beginning with this issue. His run spans from issue #88 to #109.
- The golden cup that the Cro-Magnon warrior takes from Rheelai is the Holy Grail of Arthurian and Biblical lore; earliest chronological appearance.
- The exact era in which this story takes place is unclear, but it reflects the time when Neanderthal man evolved into Cro-Magnon, the oldest modern evolution of man. Scientific excavations suggest that this would have occurred approximately 40,000 years ago. [1]
- Reference is also made to a pending "Ice Age" which helps to determine the chronology for this issue.
- Swamp Thing encountered Enemy Ace and a young Anton Arcane in Swamp Thing #83.
- The flashback with Tomahawk, Moon Fawn and Wise Owl took place in Swamp Thing #86.
- Swamp Thing traveled to Camelot and encountered King Arthur, the Shining Knight and Merlin last issue.
Trivia
- The Guy Fawkes mask on page 5 is a nod to Alan Moore's character V from the episodic mini-series V for Vendetta.
- The Earth-God Sarga is actually one of the first plant elementals known as Tuuru. Swamp Thing will meet Tuuru in issue #89.
Related Articles
- 1989
- Swamp Thing
- Swamp Thing Characters
- Swamp Thing Storylines
- Swamp Thing Quotes Page
- Swamp Thing Image Gallery
- Swamp Thing Image Category
- Swamp Thing Cover Art Gallery
- Swamp Thing Appearances List
See Also
- Discuss Swamp Thing Vol 2 88 on the forums
- Cover gallery for the Swamp Thing series
- Images from Swamp Thing Vol 2 88
Recommended Reading
Links and References
- Swamp Thing at Wikipedia
- Swamp Thing at Sequart
- Swamp Thing at Toonopedia
- Swamp Thing at DCU Guide
- Swamp Thing Annotations
- Swamp Thing Database at Roots of the Swamp Thing
- Swamp Thing at TV Tropes
- Swamp Thing movie entry at the Internet Movie Databse (IMDB)
- Swamp Thing live-action television series at the Internet Movie Database (IMDB)
- Swamp Thing animated series at the Internet Movie Database (IMDB)
