2020

DC

Swamp Thing is a DC Comics character, first appearing in 1971. There have been several iterations of his origin, the most prominent being that of Alec Holland, a scientist working in the Louisiana swamps.

Holland, along with his wife Linda, were developing a bio-restorative formula intended to regenerate organic tissue. When mercenaries, seeking to steal the formula, attacked their lab, Holland was doused in the chemicals. He fled into the swamp, and through a combination of the formula and the swamp's mystical energies, transformed into the Swamp Thing.

Initially believing himself to be Alec Holland, Swamp Thing acted as a protector of the environment, battling polluters and various supernatural threats. Later retcons established that Swamp Thing was not Holland transformed, but rather the swamp itself becoming sentient and imbued with Holland's memories and personality.

Over the years, Swamp Thing has been depicted as a powerful elemental being, deeply connected to the Green (the collective consciousness of plant life). He is often a reluctant hero, wrestling with his own identity and the burden of his immense power.