People are still talking about the aftermath of last week’s BATMAN, INCORPORATED #8, and we can certainly understand why. But if you were expecting an emotional breather after that shocking turn of events, think again. Last month marked the conclusion of the crossover storyline, “Rotworld,” but that doesn’t mean the story’s over. In this week’s ANIMAL MAN #18 and SWAMP THING #18 (which also serves as Scott Snyder’s final issue as series writer), we discover the heartbreaking fallout from Anton Arcane’s attack on the living world. And if you’ve come to care about the characters of these two titles the way that we have, it’s an emotional gut-punch. In fact, we think the cover of Animal Man sums things up pretty perfectly.

Sometimes, subtlety just doesn’t cut it.

Of course, it’s not all sadness and tragedy this week. Doctor Fate comes to Earth 2, Jay Garrick guest stars in Smallville Season 11, “Wrath of the First Lantern” continues in Green Lantern and “H’El on Earth” concludes explosively in the pages of SUPERMAN #17. In short, no matter your mood, you’ll find a great DC comic this week to suit it. Though we suggest stocking up…for when your mood changes. First looks at all of this week’s comics are below!

Here’s what hit the web this past week…

USA TODAY ran an exclusive preview of EARTH 2 #10 and interviewed the creative team of James Robinson and Nicola Scott.

YAHOO! VOICES ran an exclusive preview of BEFORE WATCHMEN: RORSCHACH #4.

WIRED’s GEEKMOM ran an exclusive preview of WORLDS’ FINEST #10.

MAXIM ran an exclusive preview of SUPERMAN #17.

MTV GEEK ran an exclusive preview of THE PHANTOM STRANGER #6.

IGN ran an exclusive preview of ANIMAL MAN #18.

CBS’ MAN CAVE ran an exclusive preview of SMALLVILLE SEASON 11 #11.

CRAVE ONLINE ran an exclusive preview of INSURGENT #3.

COMIC BOOK RESOURCES ran exclusive previews of GREEN LANTERN #18 and SWAMP THING #18.

NEWSARAMA ran an exclusive preview of DETECTIVE COMICS #18.

COMIC VINE ran an exclusive preview of STORMWATCH #18.

AOL’s COMICS ALLIANCE ran an exclusive preview of DIAL H #10.

IFANBOY ran an exclusive preview of BATWING #18.

GAMMA SQUAD ran an exclusive preview of LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #6.

COMIC MONSTERS ran an exclusive preview of LOT 13 #5.

The DC Entertainment website ran exclusive previews of AME-COMI GIRLS #1, FAIREST #13, GREEN ARROW #18, HUMAN BOMB #4, and SUPERMAN FAMILY ADVENTURES #10.

SPOILER ALERT: If you have not read ANIMAL MAN #17 yet and do not wish to know what happens, stop reading this post now (major spoiler alerts ahead!)

You may have already read our “This Just Happened” post about GREEN ARROW #17. But with so many exciting things happening in the DC Universe this week, we couldn’t resist a bonus installment of this column today!

From the creative team of writers Scott Snyder and Jeff Lemire and artists Steve Pugh, Timothy Green, and Joseph Silver, ANIMAL MAN #17 serves as the first part of the grand finale of the “Rotworld.” In this epic crossover, the two elemental sides of life in the DC Universe – the Red (animals) and the Green (plants) – come together for the first time in order to defeat the Rot (check out our “5.2 Reasons to Venture Into ‘Rotworld’” for more information!).

In “Rotworld: War of the Rot,” Buddy Baker (a.k.a. Animal Man) and the other agents of the Red have come to the castle of Anton Arcane to end the war against the Rot once and for all. As Animal Man and his allies battle “rotted” versions of the Justice League, Frankenstein bravely squares off against Wonder Woman and loses his arm in the process!

Just when it seems like Arcane and his Rot army will win the fight, the Green arrives at the castle. Swamp Thing, a man-bat serum-infused Batgirl, and other citizens of Gotham work together to take down Superman and a Rot army made up of various villains of the DC Universe.

The battle rages on and there is only one way to stop it. Animal Man and Swamp Thing must join forces and confront Aracane! But, Animal Man hesitates leaving his friends behind, severely outnumbered. As Buddy Baker decides what to do, Sheperd and his army come to the rescue!

With the arrival of Sheperd, the agents of the Red find new energy and begin to fight back against the Rot like never before. Medphyll, a Green Lantern rescued from a “rotted” Metropolis is among those agents. But this Lantern from space is not prepared for the Rot and all its power. In the midst of the battle, he is decapitated by the Rot!

Without a Green Lantern on their side, all hope seems lost for the agents of the Red. But Medphyll’s ring has a mind of its own and finds a new owner amongst the warriors: Frankenstein!

Below, take a look at the tragic death of Medphyll and his ring’s declaration that Frankenstein is worthy of the mantle of Green Lantern. Will Frankenstein accept the ring and the responsibilities that come with it? And what horrors await Animal Man and Swamp Thing if they infiltrate Arcane’s castle?

Place your bets in the comments section and find out what happens next by reading the rest of the finale of “Rotworld” in ANIMAL MAN #17 and SWAMP THING #17, in stores now.

CONSTANTINE #2

Written by JEFF LEMIRE and RAY FAWKES

Art by RENATO GUEDES

Fold-out cover by JUAN JOSE RYP

1:25 Variant cover by RENATO GUEDES

On sale APRIL 10 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+

• Which ghostly menace haunts Constantine today?

THE PHANTOM STRANGER #7

Written by DAN DIDIO and J.M. DeMATTEIS

Art and fold-out cover by GENE HA and ZANDER CANNON

On sale APRIL 3 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T

• Do you dare ask who slayed the Stranger?

SWORD OF SORCERY #7

Written by CHRISTY MARX

Backup story written by MARC ANDREYKO

Art and fold-out cover by AARON LOPRESTI

Backup story art by ANDREI BRESSAN

On sale APRIL 17 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T

• What is the great evil Constantine unleashes on Gemworld, and why is Amethyst powerless to stop him?

JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #19

Written by JEFF LEMIRE and RAY FAWKES

Art and fold-out cover by MIKEL JANIN

On sale APRIL 24 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T

• The House of Mystery is under seige—can special guest star The Flash help Justice League Dark battle this unexpected threat?

ANIMAL MAN #19

Written by JEFF LEMIRE

Art by STEVE PUGH

Fold-out cover by JAE LEE

On sale APRIL 3 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+

• As Animal Man's popularity grows, the paparazzi follow him everywhere. But is there one place he wishes they just wouldn't go?

SWAMP THING #19

Written by CHARLES SOULE

Art by KANO

Fold-out cover by ANDY BRASE

On sale APRIL 3 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+

• What could Swamp Thing possibly fear more than The Scarecrow?

DIAL H #11

Written by CHINA MIEVILLE

Art by ALBERTO PONTICELLI and DAN GREEN

Fold-out cover by BRIAN BOLLAND

On sale APRIL 3 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+

• What? The? Flash?

DEMON KNIGHTS #19

Written by ROBERT VENDITTI

Art and fold-out cover by BERNARD CHANG

On sale APRIL 10 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T

• What undead menaces threaten the lives of the Demon Knights?

I, VAMPIRE #19

Written by JOSHUA HALE FIALKOV

Art by FERNANDO BLANCO and ANDREA SORRENTINO

Fold-out cover by ANDREA SORRENTINO

On sale APRIL 24 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+ • FINAL ISSUE

• With this, the final issue, will Andrew Bennett survive to dawn’s light?

Click here to see a gallery of covers for the above titles.

(The cover for JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #19 by Mikel Janin)

Never has anything so rotten been so good.

…Okay well, there’s yogurt. And blue cheese can be pretty tasty, too. But in terms of comic books, the “Rotworld” event spanning the pages of Animal Man and Swamp Thing took it to a whole new level when they showed readers a world overrun by the Rot—the elemental force of death and decay. And holy heck, it is awesome.

When DC COMICS—THE NEW 52 began, Animal Man writer Jeff Lemire and Swamp Thing writer Scott Snyder (you may have heard of them) both built concurrent storylines exploring the two elemental sides of life in the DCU: the Red (animals) and the Green (plants). However, while Buddy Baker and Alec Holland hadn’t been interacting with each other, they were both facing the same enemy: the Rot.

ANIMAL MAN #12 kicked off the “Rotworld” event and finally brought together the forces of the Red and the Green to combat the Rot together. Unfortunately for everyone, things didn’t go as planned and now the Rot has won and taken over the entire world. Talk about a bummer. However, heroes never surrender, and for the past few months, Animal Man and Swamp Thing have both been battling across the Rot-infected landscape of the DCU to put an end to the destructive force and its avatar, Anton Arcane.

The penultimate chapters to “Rotworld” hit stores and the Interwebs yesterday, and if you haven’t been keeping up with this event, it’s time you went back and did exactly that. And to help convince you to take the trip, we’re counting off the 5.2 Reasons to Venture Into “Rotworld!”

1. A is for A-List

Animal Man and Swamp Thing both previously had a relatively small fan base that stemmed from Grant Morrison and Alan Moore’s respective work on the characters as part of the Vertigo line. With the launch of the New 52, Lemire and Snyder have taken both characters to new heights—making them not only fascinating and a delight to read, but also incredibly powerful characters that help maintain the balance of all life on Earth.

2. A is also for Awesomely Amazing Art

Swamp Thing was already known for its crazy trippy art from back during Alan Moore’s aforementioned run, and artists Yanick Paquette and Marco Rudy have kept that tradition alive and thriving with the current series. Not to be outdone, Steve Pugh and Timothy Green II bring brilliant eye-catching and disturbing imagery to every issue of Animal Man.

3. Seeing Super-Gross, Rotted Versions of the World’s Greatest Heroes

Remember when we said that the Rot had taken over the planet? Yeah, we were serious. Pretty much every hero without a strong connection to the Red or the Green has fallen and been infected, and it’s both a simultaneous thrill and freak-out when you turn the page to see Superboy or the Flash turned into grotesque monsters. You both anticipate and dread who you might see next.

4. TWISTS!

Of course awesome characters and awesome art are great, but what’s even better is a gripping story that expertly ties them together. “Rotworld” is exactly that. What’s even more fun is the unexpected twists and turns Lemire and Snyder throw our way—such as the revelation of Gotham’s guardian and the Green Lantern (we won’t say which one) as the Metropolis prisoner.

5. The Structure of the Event

Lemire and Snyder both began planting the seeds for the “Rotworld” event since the launch of both their titles—both in terms of the story and the structure of the event itself. As mentioned, both Animal Man and Swamp Thing told concurrent storylines, each independent of the other beyond thematic similarities. That tradition continues with “Rotworld.” The opening two issues—#12—and final two issues—#17—tie together, but everything in between tell the tale of their respective heroes in the midst of “Rotworld” without heavy crossover. It’s a cool read that feels part of the cohesive whole without being entirely dependent on one another.

5.1 The SWAMP THING ANNUAL... by Becky Cloonan!

5.2 Still to Come: Animal Man and Swamp Thing vs the Justice League

Tell us why you’re enjoying “Rotworld” in the comments below! And if you could choose to be an avatar of the Red or Green, which would you choose?