How Sweet Tooth: The Return Set Up a Comic Sequel

When it comes to endearing stories, Sweet Tooth ranks among the best. It started out as an underrated comic from Vertigo Comics, dealing with Gus as he tried to navigate a world where humans feared hybrids. Now, it’s a Netflix hit that speaks to love, family, and perseverance in the face of the apocalypse—and more so, how different species can live together in harmony.

Interestingly, creator Jeff Lemire followed the first comic series with Sweet Tooth: The Return. Like its predecessor, it’s vastly different from the TV show. In the process, Lemire set up a path for the comics to continue based on what happened with The Return’s “Deer Boy” — a Gus clone. This sequel could go a few ways, adding to what the original Gus experienced in a world where humanity was thought to have gone extinct.

Sweet Tooth 3 Could Dissect Cruel Hybrids

Gus Doesn’t Know If Hybrids Are Kind or War-Mongering

Sweet Tooth: The Return was set 300 years after Gus began a colony and started a family. He grew old and died, glad that the hybrids and humans made peace. The Return dealt with a toxic human cult that survived, though. They had an underground lab in Alaska where they created the Gus clone and tried to turn him into a bioweapon to go back up top to wipe out the hybrids.

Gus and the humans partnered up, ended the cult, and went to the surface. Lemire didn’t show what was up there, though. The sequel can focus on what they meet. It’s alleged that humanity died, so the cult and survivors below could be the last of mankind. With Gus 2.0 as their messiah, there is a chance they will meet a world where only hybrids exist. These hybrids could be cruel, forming different societies and empires.

It could play on caste, elitism, and capitalism, where some hybrids think they’re monarchs in kingdoms. This can create a story similar to the Planet of the Apes narrative. It would undo all that Gus worked for in the original series. He thought hybrids and colonies would coexist. But once humanity died, the hybrids could well have become monsters, loving war, slavery, and all the mistakes mankind made.

In other words, it’d be a vicious cycle that keeps repeating and proving that greed, selfishness, and a lack of compassion and empathy will always pervade the world. This has been seen in shows like Snowpiercer, too. Gus 2.0 would be left trying to heal and unite the hybrids. And maybe even form a rebellion, where some hybrids would be seen as traitors for siding with Gus.

Given evil hybrids may try to kill Gus 2.0’s human friends, this would flip the script on the original franchise. Now, humans will be the prey, with hybrids as the hunters and predators. This would certainly challenge the new Gus, as he loves Penny (a human), and wouldn’t want the other hybrid (the elephant boy, Earl) being taken by the elites. In the process, Gus 2.0 will have to show the new world that they shouldn’t be monsters like the cult was.

The thing is, while Gus tries to make peace, the cult’s message could reappear and corrupt this last bastion of humanity. People such as Mel, Pikton and even Earl may realize Father was right, and that if self-preservation is the mission, they may need to enact genocide up top to get their own space in the world. Father seemingly found a virus to kill hybrids, so this could end up being weaponized as the MacGuffin of the sequel. In the end, Gus — in his search for identity — may have to choose which species to save, which is what the Netflix Sweet Tooth show leaned into. The villains may have to be killed for those who want peace to survive.

Sweet Tooth 3 Could Unveil New Mutants

Humans Could Become a New Apex Predator

Now, Father was a unique human. He was old, rotting and decrepit. However, he experimented on himself to prolong his life. He kept saying they were the last of their species. But it was never explained how Father’s cult, in general, lived so long. By the rules of the first series, they should have died. It’s implied there was something special about all of them. Seeing as the Sweet Tooth comic focused heavily on religion, with Gus, the virus, and the hybrids all being born due to primordial animal gods, it could be that humanity had another fate found in the Bible—to be punished, tortured, and suffered. Sweet Tooth’s third story could see Gus’ crew finding hybrids hiding or needing help due to a new breed of humanity: mutants.

This would organically tie into the nature of the series. Remember, the virus and the hybrids being born from humans were all mutations — scientific anomalies that arose once the corpses of the animal gods were tinkered with by mankind. While the cult lived underground for centuries, mankind up top could have become something more: devolved and feral. With some being sinister masterminds. It would have the spirit of other post-apocalyptic stories like The Last of Us.

It would also maintain the energy of The Walking Dead, where humanity did whatever it took, even sacrificing each other, to live. These stories usually paint mankind as desperate tyrants, so mutating humans would be a literal way of making them monsters. All while subverting the idea of normal humans going after hybrids. Mutant humans could want the hybrids for food, slaves, breeding purposes, or even scientific experiments to find a cure. Not just to heal humanity but also to be rid of the hybrids.

This plays on the established lore from the first series. Plus, it’d keep Father’s lab alive. Humanity could seek the cult’s research, the virus, and other elements from the lab, such as Father’s scientific notes and Dr. Singh’s research. This would provide the reason for Gus’ pack, the hybrids up top, and the kind of humans that remain to unite against fascism and oppression.

The Prime Video series Carnival Row had a similar story, breaking down racism and showing how all species and races had to work together in the face of adversity. It would create an unpredictable story, too, leaving the innocent, young Gus fearful, paranoid, and scared of whom to trust. He’s still a kid, so he will have to grow up quickly to lead his people — a story the new ThunderCats comics are also dissecting with its kid Lion-O.

Sweet Tooth 3 Could Revive Gus’ Original Dynasty

Gus’ Clone May Have to Bring Peace Back to Gus’ Descendants

Now, the original series ended with Gus old and dying peacefully, while Wendy was out with their sons, Richard (named after Gus’ adoptive father) and Tommy (named after Jepperd, aka the Big Man who protected Gus). Sweet Tooth 3 can find Gus 2.0 heading to Nebraska to find the colony left behind. If 300 years have passed, Gus will have a family to meet.

They could become allies for any of the aforementioned missions. Or if Gus sees the dynasty as cruel and corrupted, there might be a political drama and lineage conflict to come, a la Game of Thrones. Gus’ descendants may not like this outsider stating how Gus would want them to live. But remember, Gus 2.0 has Gus’ memories. He hallucinates Jepperd’s ghost, too, so he is a connection to the past.

This opens the door for the descendants of the benevolent beaver Bobby to help Gus 2.0. It would throw back to Bobby and Gus’ friendship. Not to mention, the descendants of Buddy (the “dog boy”) could be the ones pushing for war. Buddy was Jepperd’s son, someone who hated humanity. He kept egging on old Gus to kill mankind, so the various houses, clans, and tribes were set up. Rather than a bigger war, Lemire has a chance to streamline the journey into something personal and have Gus 2.0 try to save what Gus built. This would show these hybrids that they should live in peace with the humans who have come up. This would play on philosophy and the emotive vision Gus wanted.

Gus 2.0 trying to prevent it from being perverted would bring his story full circle to his progenitor and really make the clone a spiritual successor. Many people worked hard and died to create the colony, so ultimately, Gus 2.0 teaching them about family would be serendipitous and a denouement filled with poetic justice and purpose.

All three seasons of Sweet Tooth are streaming on Netflix.