Swamp-Thing 10 cover recreation (with a twist) by Mike Perkins

I was going to sit on this one for a while but I realized that I was too excited about it and that it would be a perfect post for Halloween.

Now this very idea had been percolating in my head for years and I had several artists in mind to tackle it. And to be fully transparent, Mike was not one of them.

Then Mike was a announced as a guest at the Facts 2023 Autumn convention and after months of warming up to his art due to constant discussions with other collectors and the deserved exposure due to his stellar work on Swamp Thing with Ram V, I was thinking about commissioning him.

When it clicked in my mind was when I saw Mike contribution for the Hero Initiative charity auction held at the Baltimore con which featured both swamp creatures. I knew I had the right artist for my idea.

Now to be perfectly clear, I was pretty (art) directive with this one as I knew what I wanted (and did not want). So the basic idea was for Mike to recreate the famous Wrightson Swamp-Thing 10 cover but replacing Anton Arcane with Man-Thing. I’ve always enjoyed both characters as well as the fact that they sprung at the same time from the Comics zeitgeist of that era to the point that nobody knows or can clarify which came first (not that it matters much btw).

Discussing that very aspect with Ruben, then came the choice of removing Anton’s un-men which made no sense if their daddy was not on the piece. I decided to keep Swamp-Thing exact pose as his right arm looked right even without it being held as it would look like he was readying his punch.

I then asked for Mike to keep the tombstones and make a reference to both Bernie Wrightson and Mike Ploog, one original creator and the other being the artist whom I associate the most with Man-Thing and who was my point of entry to the character as a child, as I adore both creator’s work, both masters of the macabre in their own right (one being more illustrative and the other cartoony). I was delighted that Mike chose for Ploog’s name to appear a bit less clearly as he shared my initial concern that it could be perceived bad taste to write his name on a tombstone for obvious reasons.

Lastly, being an animal lover, I insisted on several swamp critters being included to liven up the piece, a snake a toad in this case.

To say that Mike KILLED it would be quite the understatement. I will even be sol bold as to proclaim that this piece is even better than the charity piece he produced priorly.

His lush brush work would make Bernie proud and the fact he didn’t deviate from the original at all (if you exclude the changes I requested) cements that sentiment.

Then of course, I need to mention his gorgeous backgrounds in wash which create a fantastic sense of depth to the scene with its 3 planes (the characters, the tree behind them and the forest far behind).

Many thanks to Mike, a true gentleman as I was able to assess myself upon meeting him a Facts and to RubenDaFacilitator for his (mouthy friendship and his) help.

Happy Halloween 2023 to all.