Long before V For Vendetta, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen or From Hell, classic horror series Swamp Thing was the first of Alan Moore's literary creations to be watered down to slop for the big screen. It was also turned into a kids' TV show in the '80s, with the theme song to the tune of Wild Thing. So those unfamiliar may be unaware of just how awesome Swamp Thing is.

The story starts off fairly simple. Alec Holland is a biochemist who's come up with a kind of super-grow fertiliser to solve the world's hunger problems. Evil industrialists blow him and his research up. He goes running on fire out into the water of the bayou, and Swamp Thing is born. The stories are dark, subtle, pretty complex at times. Swamp Thing is also whence the character John Constantine came, only later spinning off into his own Hellblazer series.

The first issue of Swamp Thing is available from DC Comics, here, for free. If you're inclined to download a bit more than that and are fond of torrents, you might want to download Comical to read the usual formats. Trade-paperback compilations of Swamp Thing are generally available from comic stores or Amazon. And if you're keen for taste of some other good comics you might not have read before, check out this list from Daily Bits.