American publisher DC has announced Swamp Thing 1989 #1, the long-awaited, fully restored, lost issue that begins the conclusion of Rick Veitch’s acclaimed late-1980s run on Swamp Thing. After more than three decades, Veitch’s ambitious final epic will be released under DC Black Label across four issues, published monthly later this year.
Written by Rick Veitch, with art by original penciller Michael Zulli, who died in 2024 aged 71, and inked by Vince Locke, Swamp Thing 1989 #1 completes the comic Veitch and Zulli intended to deliver as Swamp Thing #88.
“In this issue, Swamp Thing is cast back through time and encounters a humble carpenter whose presence will alter the creature’s destiny and send ripples through the DC Universe,” DC Comics announced last week.
The issue also sets the stage for the long-anticipated origin of Etrigan the Demon and catapults Swamp Thing on his mythic journey back to the Big Bang and beyond.
What DC doesn’t mention in its press release is that back in 1989, hot on the heels of meeting King Arthur, the planned Swamp Thing #88 featured a storyline that saw the titular character meet Jesus Christ.
As IGN noted last year, DC opted not to publish the issue, a decision believed to have been motivated in part due to fears of stirring up controversy at the same time Tim Burton’s Batman was opening in cinemas. Veitch walked away from the series in protest, and incoming creators Neil Gaiman and Jamie Delano also quit in solidarity.
Although the Swamp Thing Annual #5 was published as planned, the Swamp Thing series was on hold for two months. Doug Wheeler was called in to finish the storyline in the next few issues, without including Jesus.
Whether it will cause as much controversy now as it did then remains to be seen.
In their announcement for the series DC says “The main cover by Rick Veitch reflects the quiet tension and symbolic weight of the story’s historical setting. Variant and foil covers by Michael Zulli present painterly imagery of Swamp Thing that captures the emotional and mythic intensity surrounding this pivotal moment in Swamp Thing’s saga.”
One of the most talked-about moments of New York Comic Con 2025 was DC’s confirmation that it would finally publish Veitch’s then-controversial storyline, originally pulled before publication. Now presented with its original trade dress, period-accurate numbering on the cover, facsimile-style paper stock, and vintage ads, Swamp Thing 1989 #1 begins the journey to Veitch’s final Swamp Thing saga, running as it would have been published in 1989.
A Restoration Decades in the Making
When Alan Moore concluded his landmark run on Swamp Thing, he personally selected Rick Veitch to continue the series. Veitch’s work quickly earned its own acclaim. In 1989, the original plans for Swamp Thing #88 were halted during production. Veitch left the title, and the unpublished issue marked the abrupt end of Veitch’s three-year saga.
More than three decades later, DC Black Label is completing the work exactly as it was intended. The long-lost Swamp Thing #88, now called Swamp Thing 1989 #1, features art by the late Michael Zulli, who returned to work on the issue before his passing in 2024, completing the painting featured here as the variant cover. Working closely with Zulli’s wife, Karen Zulli, DC selected Vince Locke, Zulli’s longtime inker, to complete the issue over his original pencils while preserving the integrity of Zulli’s original vision.
Veteran Swamp Thing series artist Tom Mandrake will illustrate the brand-new Swamp Thing 1989 #2-4, which would have been Swamp Thing #89–91, bringing Veitch’s never-published storyline to its intended conclusion. For Swamp Thing 1989 #2-4, colourist Trish Mulvihill honours the palette and spirit of legendary series colourist Tatjana Wood while letterer Todd Klein brings the same reverence to the work of original Swamp Thing series letterer John Costanza.
Responding to years of fan campaigns urging DC to publish this lost issue and allow Veitch to complete his run, “the response from readers was immediate and overwhelming,” said Veitch. “It helped make the final decision to publish these issues. I am grateful to the fans for stepping up, and to DC’s team, especially editor Alex Galer and Editor-in-Chief Marie Javins, for pulling off the impossible.”
“This is a historic moment for fans of Swamp Thing and of DC’s legacy,” said Chris Conroy, Executive Editor, DC. “The restoration of this material honours the spirit of the original creative team and allows readers to experience a defining chapter exactly where it always belonged. You will be able to put these into your long boxes as if this run had never ended.”
Swamp Thing 1989 #1 is a 32-page comic book priced at $4.99 US, with a card-stock variant available for $5.99 US and a foil variant for $7.99 US.
Each issue of the series will include supplementary material by Rich Handley, a dedicated writer on comics, whose previous work includes bringing the British Star Trek comic strips back into print at IDW, and much more.
The new series was first revealed at New York Comic Con 2025 and begins in April 2026 to deliver one of the most anticipated restorations in modern comics history. Swamp Thing 1989 is published under DC Black Label and carries an Ages 17+ content descriptor for mature readers.
“A couple years ago, I finally helped to convince a contact at DC to complete Rick’s brilliant saga,” says Rich, “and I’ve since been writing supplementary materials for each of the four issues. Since this is going to be a huge event in DC history, I’m honoured beyond belief that Rick and DC have asked me to be a part of it. I’ve read all four issues, and trust me, Swamp Thing fans are going to love them. It’s about time these stories are being told!”
Swamp Thing 1989 #1 arrives in comic book shops, and everywhere comics are sold, on April 29, 2026.
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
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