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Prog 2059 - Fiends in High Places

Started by McNulty, 25 November, 2017, 06:54:51 PM

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McNulty

Dredd: Dredd shows that he is still the man to be reckoned with as even with his hands tied behind his back, he can still be a force to be reckoned with.

Slaine: Pat Mills really, really doesn't like Christianity.

Sin/Dex: I like where the story is going at the moment. I've waited a while to see some kind of resolution for this thread.

3riller: Started well last week but started to wane a bit. Hopefully it will end strongly.

Absalom: Another episode that juxtapositions two separate stories constantly throughout. I'm not really happy with what the "good guys" did with those kittens though...

all in all a better than average prog with Slaine and 3riller being the low points.

Tjm86

The comment that the forum is quiet at the moment is incredibly accurate.  By now there would normally have been a dozen comments about this week's prog.   :-\

Mills' anti-Christian rhetoric has become so old hat that it is easy to tune it out.  This has to be his greatest weakness as a writer now, he cannot let his prejudices lie low.  Who commented on the cognitive dissonance in his attitude towards editorial oversight recently in his own recollections?  This here is clear evidence of that.  Re-reading the Belardinelli Knucker run you can see a greater quality to his writing when he is held in check a little.

Not completely sure where 3riller is going.  Personally I find them hard to work with.  I think Comics The Gathering made a valid point with regards to these; overlong future shocks that sometimes outstay there welcome.  Possibly the resolution next prog will disabuse me of that but at the moment this is not looking like a strong case for the defence of these.

Only two more progs left this year.  My word, where has the year gone?


Colin YNWA

Well my excuse is I've had a busy day and after reading the Prog earlier used a free evening to watch a Twin Peaks episode before catching up on my favourite interweb place. Based purely on Prog 2058 we can safely say this place ain't quiet cos of the quality of the Prog, this one was an absolute rip snorter.

Rip snorter being a fine way to describe the Dredd episode as well. Just note perfect action from JD, I mean surfing on a dogs corpse - GO JOE! The story moved along very nicely, very nicely indeed. Particularly liked Zima out Dredding Dredd with her save. Glorious stuff and love where this is going if solicitations are to be believed.

This is followed by one of Slaine's good episodes. The comment below is very true Uncle Pat is barely able to contain his personal beliefs and far vomits them with reguritated glee. Maybe its my agreement with him on this one, maybe its the way it seems to fit with Slaine's ongoing themes, maybe it was just the glory with which they were epically presented... whatever I really enjoyed this episode. Sure my sense that this has all been sillly nonsense will return next week as this has been a particularly up and down story.

Oh but then, then we get to the thrill of the week as Sinister Dexter plays an absolute blinder. This set of stories has been superb (I won't say sees this series back on top form as I don't really hold that S&D has ever really dipped in any significent way) once again. The run of short stories has settled the current status quo and the weeks episode sets up where we are going quite wonderfully. This feels like it should have been in the X-Mas bumper Prog, it reads like so many tales in these issues before either wrapping up or setting up and this episode uses Billi quite fantastically to hang tension in the air and have me hackering for this to be back asap.

Some nice art from Paul Marshal (though the Mighty Yeowell needs to be made a permanent fixture for me) with lovingly placed frames from colleagues. I was particularly fond of the way he returned the psychologist chap from Ramone's origin story with a panel straight from Andy Clarke's art draw. FANTASTIC!

As was the 3riller this week. As it remembered we needed tension and conflicit in the tale and with a nice little twist gave us just what the first part was missing.

Finally Absalom continues to be great.

All in all an almost faultless Prog.


Jacqusie

Wonderful cover and Absalom from Tiernen Trevallion, this is the jewel in the slightly wonky and pock-marked crown of 2000ad.

As if Slaine needs more shouting, ESPECIALLY IN CAPITAL LETTERS!?  and JaGgaDey SpeEcH BAlLoOns... like a dissaffected youth trying to get their point accross on twitter, this is just awful now, you have to turn your head away from it.

It was turgid and stodgy before, but the bloated corpse of this saga is floating in the fish pond smelling mighty high and all the SHOUTING won't make it any prettier or cool...

I'm just sad for this story really, it's lost all it's charm that it once had, there's no laughter in the woods, no joy, just an awful decaying breakdown of dialogue which means for me, Slaine has indeed finally gone from us now...

I do hope that 2018 see's the return of Strontium Dog, after all we went through with the ressurection (which I still find tasting rather odd) of Johnny Alpha, was it really worth the bother if the stories have dried up?

Hey ho at least Absalom has one more book left to go!  :thumbsup:

I, Cosh

So that's Tiernen sown up the top 2 places in the cover of the year show? Jaw-dropping stuff which makes the restricted palette seem a bonus.
We never really die.

Tiplodocus

There are so many ugly things in that cover that it confuses me as to how it looks so brilliant and beautiful!
Be excellent to each other. And party on!

Prodigal2

I'm genuinely not against an anti-faith critique by anyone as I would readily agree that the religious realm of things needs serious scrutiny but Pat's approach in Slaine leaves me cold. I hope that doesn't qualify me for today's Mary Whitehouse award. I just feel I am being shouted at continually in an effort to convey stuff I already know.

Seriously Pat I know all that stuff that for some reason never finds its way into Songs of Praise.

Here endeth the moan.


IndigoPrime

Sláine has basically become that idiot online who writes in ALL CAPS BECAUSE THAT WILL GET THE POINT ACROSS. It's just turgid and awful. I really loved that first Brutania book. It felt like a fresh start. But this latest one has had no pace, no energy and no fire. Not even the art can save it. Sláine's just become... boring.

As for the rest, Absalom blazes towards a conclusion, Sin/Dex attempts to wrench itself from continuity hell in a reasonably interesting way, a Thriller does nothing for me, and Dredd ensures 2000 AD will forever be haunted by furious animal rights activists. Possibly.

So: one great, one good, one fine, one mediocre, and one that I wish would somehow become the quality strip it once was.

CalHab

Just to buck the trend, I am enjoying the 3riller. It's a classic 2000AD blend-two-genres thing, and it has enough about it to keep me interested in the conclusion. [spoiler]The betrayal was obvious, though. I assume that there will be some kind of a twist in the final part to show it was anticipated.[/spoiler]

IndigoPrime

To be fair on the 3riller, the format often doesn't work for me. They tend to read a lot better in one go, though. I enjoyed the little floppy that compiled a bunch of them.

Dandontdare

I'm enjoying the 3riller but I think there are too many characters for a short tale, would be better with a slimmed down cast.

I've seen Dredd do some crazy stuff - overthrow a tyrant days after being shot through the head, jump off a block before radioing an H wagon to catch him , but I never thought I'd see him [spoiler]surf a dead dog down a river of molten metal[/spoiler] - kudos!

Abdoloms great, Slaine plods on and I'm liking this new era for sin/dex

Proudhuff

Another cracking cover from TT, made me think of Spring Heeled Jack but the GRennie Droid pulls it out of the bag again with a loverly bit of story telling, and foreshadowing of who telling tales on Auld Harry?
Artwork and characters working hand in hand, top story in the Prog...

and the Dredd close behind, the molten dog sledge and kitten sacrifice getting us primed for the big Festive issue!

I think everything that could be said about Slaine has been and SinDex was a skippyskip for me.

DDT did a job on me

Dark Jimbo

Quote from: Proudhuff on 28 November, 2017, 10:05:47 AM
Another cracking cover from TT, made me think of Spring Heeled Jack but the GRennie Droid pulls it out of the bag again with a loverly bit of story telling...

SHJ already turned up in the second series, o' course...
@jamesfeistdraws

Proudhuff

DDT did a job on me