Swamp Thing Review: Pilot (Season 1 Episode 1)

Swamp Thing Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot,” has its slower moments, but it lays fundamental groundwork for what’s shaping up to be a strong season.

By the end of its first episode, Swamp Thing proves itself as a top contender on the list of shows people should watch this spooky season.  

This episode is the longest installment of the season, and those extra minutes feel even longer at certain moments throughout the episode. It’s not even that some scenes need to be cut entirely, just shortened.

Then again, this episode is the first of ten and does plenty of work before its end. One of the most interesting stances this series takes from its first scene, after the initial teaser involving Eddie Coyle and his friends, is the prioritization of Abby Arcane’s story. She is not the titular character — yet Swamp Thing introduces her before Alec Holland.

Abby Arcane is the hero of this story, or at least she is so far.

Her devotion to saving people, especially children, is not a foreign concept once the truth is revealed about Shawna Sunderland. Abby’s practice of disappearing into her work to avoid dealing with her past only makes sense paired with Alec Holland’s wish to be defined by his work.

Abby’s heroics are matched by Alec’s, which leads him to literally being consumed by his work. They are two sides of the same coin, and that’s what’s going to carry Swamp Thing over the course of this season.

Hopefully, Swamp Thing continues with this role reversal and lets Abby save Alec. This isn’t to argue that Alec should be stripped of his agency moving forward. It’s just to say that it would be nice to see the girl save the guy this time around.

Alec acknowledges how smart Abby is at the beginning of the episode, so that has to be a sign that he wouldn’t be against her rescuing him.

The one major factor concerning Swamp Thing is that its villain may be too on the nose. There are ideally plenty of twists and turns to come after this episode. However, it’s not too difficult to believe that Avery Sunderland is the one who hired someone to shoot Alec.

Of course, Avery is pumping the swamp with chemicals. The people of Marais rely on the swamp for all kinds of resources. If Avery takes that option away from the people, they’d have to turn to him and his solutions, which would only make him richer.

If this is the case then, one of the show’s biggest mysteries is easily solvable by its audience. This only makes a character’s journey to discovering the truth more aggravating, especially when those characters are as intelligent as Abby and Alec.

There is a benefit of the doubt since this is only the first episode of the series. There is still room for Swamp Thing to introduce more intrigue and twists regarding Sunderland’s sketchy dealings. Now it’s all about waiting and watching to see if the series can pull it off.

Even if Swamp Thing struggles with the Sunderland story, Abby and Alec’s relationship is enough to keep watching every week.

Andy Bean and Crystal Reed’s chemistry is incredible. So much so, that it feels like Abby and Alec have known each other for a lifetime by the halfway mark of the episode.

It’s a testament to their talent and the show’s storytelling that people may prefer to tune in for the interpersonal relationships despite the initial science fiction pull. Just from this premiere alone, it’s evident that Swamp Thing serves as a reminder that people need people, and we all need a little saving sometimes.

Swamp Thing smartly disguises this message behind an epidemic and a swamp monster. One of those things isn’t too unfamiliar in the present time. This means that people can find entertainment in a spooky TV show during October, but maybe they’ll also find some comfort in a TV show that prioritizes human connection.

Stray Observations

• Abby Arcane drives Stiles Stilinski’s jeep. I can’t be the only one who tried to make that connection.
• The green tint on the camera lens really adds to the swampy feelings.
• The CW’s rules against the use of certain curse words really takes the fun out of some of Swamp Thing‘s scenes.

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What did you think of this episode of Swamp Thing? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Swamp Thing airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.

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