I've been fighting this battle for a long time, and if I have to move Heaven and Hell then I will... until I finally get my revenge! 
The Shipment is an episode of season 1 of Swamp Thing. It premiered on November 23, 1990.
Synopsis for "The Shipment"
Sheriff Andrews spots a teenage boy hitchhiking across Louisiana. He stops him and the boy tells him that he's on his way to Tennessee. Andrews suddenly whips out his handcuffs, arrests the teen and thrusts him into the back of his squad car. From nearby, the Swamp Thing watches on.
Andrews brings him back to Anton Arcane's laboratory where he is placed inside of a cage. The cage is next to several similar containers, all of which are populated with Arcane's mutant experiments. He is getting ready to ship them off to a labor camp in Mozambique.
Arcane soon discovers that young Jim Kipp has sneaked inside his laboratory. Jim accidentally makes a sound alerting Arcane and Andrews to his presence, then takes off running. He dashes off into the swamps shouting for the Swamp Thing to come and help him.
The Swamp Thing meanwhile, heads off one of Arcane's outbound cargo trucks. Stopping the truck in the middle of the road, he ejects the driver, then opens up the rear compartment. The truck is filled with imprisoned Un-Men. The Swamp Thing herds them out of the truck, indicating that they are now free.
Jim runs home, but when he arrives there, he finds Sheriff Andrews waiting for him. Jimmy quickly turns around and runs back out into the swamp. Finding a pay phone, he telephones his older stepbrother Will and tells him about what is happening. Will doesn't believe him, but it becomes clear that Jim is in big trouble. Sheriff Andrews catches up to him and takes him captive. He brings him back to Anton Arcane. Arcane decides that Jim is more trouble than he's worth and he will compensate for that aggravation by sending him to one of his work camps.
The following day, Will Kipp arrives at the Langford home and speaks with the housekeeper, Mrs. Blake. Blake tells him that Jim has been missing since last night and Will comforts her, telling her that he is going to go look for him. After Will leaves, the unsuspecting Mrs. Blake places a call to the sheriff's office.
While searching through the swamps for Jim, Will comes upon the Swamp Thing. He doesn't know what to make of such a creature and naturally perceives it as a threat. He tries swinging a branch at the Swamp Thing, who deftly catches it. He then tries punching the Swamp Thing, but the irritated muck monster merely pushes Will backward. Soon after, the two begin talking to one another. The Swamp Thing becomes a little more patient when he learns that Will is Jim's brother, but also grows agitated when Will tells him that Jim is missing. The Swamp Thing already knows that Anton Arcane is behind the boy's disappearance. The Swamp Thing wants to look for Jim on his own, but Will wants to help him. The Swamp Thing refuses his aid, but after some prodding, he agrees to let Will tag along.
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Meanwhile, Anton Arcane loads Jim into a crate on the back of a truck. The vehicle will take him to a plane bound for South America. Arcane doesn't want Jim's disappearance to raise any undo suspicion so he has Sheriff Andrews fake the boy's death. Andrews finds one of Arcane's mutants, Toad Boy, and murders him. He then dresses him up in Jim's clothes and positions the body in front of a car. He also provides the bent frame of a bicycle so as to make it appear that Jim was hit by a car on his bike. To cap it off, Andrews douses the body, bicycle and car in gasoline and sets it on fire. Now, no one will know that the body that is recovered from the wreckage is someone other than Jim Kipp.
The Swamp Thing and Will arrive at Arcane's laboratory. Swampy kicks the door down, but there is no one there but one muscular henchman. The thug charges at the Swamp Thing who is impervious to his blows. The Swamp Thing is angry however and takes his frustration out on the hired hand. After several rapid gut punches, the Swamp Thing hoists the goon onto a gurney and rolls him into the laboratory's central control panel. While the Swamp Thing continues to look for evidence of Jim's whereabouts, Will returns to the house.
News of Jim's alleged demise quickly reaches the Langford household. Jim's mother, Tressa, is beside herself with grief. She thanks Will for coming all this way to help out. Saddened and angry, Will walks out of the house. He meets the Swamp Thing and tells him what has happened. Anger swells within the bog beast and he swears revenge against Arcane.
Meanwhile, Jim Kipp awakens inside a cage in the back of a truck.
Notes
- Final episode featuring Jesse Zeigler as Jim Kipp. The character of Jim Kipp proved to be very unpopular with viewers so the production crew discontinued usage of the character in favor of his older stepbrother, Will Kipp who is introduced in this episode.
Appearing in "The Shipment"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Jim Kipp (Final appearance)
- Oboe Hardison
- Tressa Kipp
- Will Kipp (First appearance)
Antagonists:
- Anton Arcane
- Sheriff Andrews
Other Characters:
- Toad Boy (Deceased) (Final appearance)
- Unidentified mutants
- Mrs. Blake
- Unnamed hitchhiker (Single appearance)
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- Final episode featuring Jesse Zeigler as Jim Kipp. The character of Jim Kipp proved to be very unpopular with viewers so the production crew discontinued usage of the character in favor of his older stepbrother, Will Kipp who is introduced in this episode.
Trivia
- The trucking service that Arcane uses is called Von Huene. This is named after series director Walter von Huene.
See Also
- 4 Images from Swamp Thing (1990 TV Series) Episode: The Shipment
- Episodes of Swamp Thing (1990 TV Series)
- Images from Swamp Thing (1990 TV Series)
- Gallery for the Swamp Thing (1990 TV Series) series
Recommended Media
- Swamp Thing (1982 Movie)
- Return of the Swamp Thing (1982 Movie)
- Swamp Thing (1990 TV Series)
- Swamp Thing (1991 TV Series)
- Swamp Thing Recommended Reading
Links and References
Footnotes