Striking Brink cover by INJ Culbard. Beautiful colouring, very nice indeed.
Thrills of the Future - Action and Cor/Buster specials and much, much more, apparently.
Dredd, Guatemala - Part 7. Penultimate episode sees Dredd and Co take on El Presidentes' forces. Brit-Cit gets saved from a good hot slap! Will be sorry to see this series end.
Defoe, The Divisor - Part 7. Am I right in thinking that The 'Shining Ones' are the same adversaries from Finn? Does anyone remember Finn?* I was a bit lost in this episode on how the Reeks got onto the Space ship unless it was a case of them literally just appearing.
Brink, Hate Box - Part 7 plays an interesting game of Guess the swear word! I think I got them all correct including two instances of the banned word! Interesting episode.
Hope "Under Fire" - Part 7. Hope really is a dark piece of work and I love it!
The Fall of Deadworld, Doomed - Part 7. I love this strip!
There's a Judge Dredd Star Scan by Brendan McCarthy and Mark Harrison.
Cheers
*I liked Finn.
(https://i.imgur.com/eNKKPQJ.jpg)
Quote from: NapalmKev on 02 November, 2019, 11:57:56 AM
Dredd, Guatemala - Part 7. Penultimate episode
That's disappointing. It's a story that feels as though it could easily run for another twenty episodes without treading water or testing anyone's patience.
I realise this story is a continuation of threads begun in other stories and will
(i) provide the impetus for further Wagner
(ii) strips that take the story forward, but I'd strapped in under feeder and settled into a steady rhythm.
(https://i.imgur.com/tYxELsE.png?1)
(i) Rok permitting
(ii) ... and, hopefully, MacNeil. I loved John McCrea's Harvey, but MacNeil's incredible turn on this and Machine Law - and the way this story has expanded from a Mechanismo reboot into part of the larger, ongoing narrative of the city and Dredd himself - mean it's become the kind of strip (and trade collection) usually reserved for MacNeil or Flint.
agreed, I would loved this to have ran on..
A parent run means I'm late to the party and as such I can save us all time by just refering you to my review of last weeks Prog really...
...okay I'd never be that nice.
Main thing that struck me about this Prog was Defoe. See I'm barely reading it now and while skipping across the art my major problem with it struck me. Nothing rests and is calm. Everything is hyped and busy and it means even when casting your eyes across the story there is no breathing space for anything its all so dramatic - there are no quiet moments of reflection its a continual assault. Each panel is pretty cool. Put together and its hard on the eye and pushes me away from the story.
Dredd is just brilliant - AGAIN - so do we think that last panel reveal is definitive then?
Brink is [spoiler]fucking[/spoiler] [One dollar fine] brilliant - AGAIN.
Hope is creepily brilliant again
Deadworld is meladramatically brilliant again.
Tharg can drop a McCarthy Star Scan anytime he likes to if he fancies buffing up a Prog from bloody brilliant to bloody brilliant with a great McCarthy Star Scan.
Nice one.
Read my Prog , for once when it arrived this Saturday
my thoughts were that it was a very good issue
- I have to admit , I am now liking the artwork in Defoe.
Pat Mills is doing a good job with the writing ( I look forward to the return of Slaine and ABC Warriors )
Dredd was yet again just lovely - with the artwork just sublime .
Brinkwas Again just marvelous .
Hope was another top rate story , the art is brilliant and its a real joy to read
Finally Deadworld is the top rate story for me , and Dave Kendall has made his art
really stand out , I am ashamed to admit it , but this is the story where I first sat up and took
notice of who the artist was , and seek him out to say so on Social Media .
Shout out to all the guys that have created and worked on it !
5 out of 5 for me ( Defoe has won me over )
Striking Brink cover by INJ Culbard. Beautiful colouring, but suffers from the Marvel curse
Dredd, Guatemala - Wonderful stuff as Dredd re-thinks his stance on Bots in general (but not the sniveling Walter)... Will be sorry to see this series end.
Defoe, The Divisor - Part 7. I'm all for shaking up panel framing etc on a page, but I'm too confused by this current layout.
Brink, Hate Box - Part 7 enjoying the pace of this, really hoping its going to have a decent payoff.
Hope "Under Fire" - Part 7. Hope really is a dark piece of work and I love it, I went out and got the first TPB just to relive it!
The Fall of Deadworld: Doomed, Doomed Doomed - Part 7. I couldn't make out Pte Fraser anywhere :-X
There's a Judge Dredd Star Scan by Brendan McCarthy and Mark Harrison, the lengths TMO will go to NOT to give Butt'Man his century :lol:
Hoping mine's finally arrived when I get home... :(
Another great prog. The prog is in a good space currently.
The highlight this prog is Brink. The art is just exceptional especially the use of colour. The script is as sharp and clever as always.
Here is something I honestly never thought I would be saying. If it wasn't for Judge Dredd, I don't think I would be continuing my subscription to 2000AD and the Megazine.
This week's Dredd was excellent, great story, great artwork, I can't fault it. By extension, Fall of Deadworld continued to be a solid story. We all know how it will end eventually, but that is true of all prequels. Still there are characters I genuinely care in this story and it is good to see alternate reality versions of established characters from the main universe being depicted in different ways.
But as for the rest.
I struggle with Hope, it is really dark, both in art and themes. I stick with it but it is hard work. With Defoe, this entire series is becoming unreadable. The art style from the start was always darkly black and white but the last series showed that Defoe could be drawn clearly without taking anything away from the ambience of the overall story. This series has gone too far in the other direction. The story as well has not progressed well either. Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a fan of Brink. Its bland story, its simple artwork and its glaring colours are not for me. I just don't like it.
As I have stated before, I understand that 2000AD is an anthology publication. It is supposed to field both established work from the masters in art and scripts as well as introduce the next generation of those aspiring to make their mark in this field. In artstyle and in various stories of action, horror, comedy and adventure, there should be something for every reader, young or old. That isn't happening now.
I have voiced my disappointment that 2000AD no longer runs more upbeat stories along with its depressing ones. Long I have missed the days when Ace Garp, Sam Slade and Dr & Quinch entertained us with high comedy along with beautiful artwork and memorable stories. Nowadays the best we can hope for is Survival Geeks, that started well but just ended up insulting the readership by trying to be edgy and "subvert expectations" (I really hate that expression).
Please Tharg, can you give us one or two stories that are set out to entertain us without having to preach a message of how Christianity is wrong, there are no heroes left in the world, and we all going to die unloved in a bleak meaningless universe? How about some optimism and less depressing endings that make us feel worse than when we started reading them? Is this really so much to ask for? Please?
Quote from: McNulty on 06 November, 2019, 01:07:58 PM
Please Tharg, can you give us one or two stories that are set out to entertain us without having to preach a message of how Christianity is wrong, there are no heroes left in the world, and we all going to die unloved in a bleak meaningless universe? How about some optimism and less depressing endings that make us feel worse than when we started reading them?
I suppose it depends how you feel about being ruled by supernatural, alien entities. I, for one, welcome our new many-angled overlords.
Haven't read the prog yet but that's cover of the year right there isn't it?
[looks at 2019 covers]
OK, there is some competition.
But, know what I really like about it? The stroke of genius? Bridget's gun. It's pointing at us, but not straight at us. One of my pet hates is when a character is shown brandishing a gun at the reader and the weapon is drawn squarely on so the barrel is a perfect circle. Artists seem to think it's the best way of depicting a gun aimed at the reader but in fact it takes all the depth out of the weapon and it just becomes a series of concentric shapes. Whereas here, we can see the gun's pointed in our direction and we can see it's a gun. Nice touch.
I'm sorry you feel that way, McNulty. I agree with you about Defoe, but couldn't disagree more strongly about Hope and Brink, I think they're both brilliant.
I think there is room for comedy stories in the prog, but I suspect that we don't see more of them because they tend to be unpopular with the readers. (You yourself mention Survival Geeks as an example you no longer like.) Rob Williams wrote the Judge Dredd story Undercover Klegg in progs 1969-1972 which bewildered several people on this forum who seemed to think it was meant to be a straight story, at which point I suspect that Tharg despaired and gave up on our capacity to recognise comedy when we see it!
I still enjoy Survival Geeks, but I think jokes work best when they're in straight stories, like in Guatemala right now, which is a dark story in many ways but which is lightened considerably by the antics of the angry colonel and his ridiculous sidekick.
Comedy strips really works for me. If it is done in shorted burst, it can work but not a full fletch ten part plus story. It took me awhile to warm-up to Survival Geeks but Ace Garp was just never my cup of tea.
Ace Garp was comedy?
:o
Quote from: Richard on 06 November, 2019, 01:49:00 PM
I'm sorry you feel that way, McNulty. I agree with you about Defoe, but couldn't disagree more strongly about Hope and Brink, I think they're both brilliant.
I think there is room for comedy stories in the prog, but I suspect that we don't see more of them because they tend to be unpopular with the readers. (You yourself mention Survival Geeks as an example you no longer like.) Rob Williams wrote the Judge Dredd story Undercover Klegg in progs 1969-1972 which bewildered several people on this forum who seemed to think it was meant to be a straight story, at which point I suspect that Tharg despaired and gave up on our capacity to recognise comedy when we see it!
I still enjoy Survival Geeks, but I think jokes work best when they're in straight stories, like in Guatemala right now, which is a dark story in many ways but which is lightened considerably by the antics of the angry colonel and his ridiculous sidekick.
...ridiculous sidekick....
Quote from: Tjm86 on 06 November, 2019, 02:29:49 PM
Ace Garp was comedy?
:o
Surely not. It wore its Ken Loach influence on its sleeve.
Very saddened to hear that Guatemala is ending next week. I love it; and El Presidente is the best bad guy in years. I hope he survives next prog. Haven't read the rest of the prog yet.
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 06 November, 2019, 09:13:02 PM
Quote from: Tjm86 on 06 November, 2019, 02:29:49 PM
Ace Garp was comedy?
:o
Surely not. It wore its Ken Loach influence on its sleeve.
Very saddened to hear that Guatemala is ending next week. I love it; and El Presidente is the best bad guy in years. I hope he survives next prog. Haven't read the rest of the prog yet.
I'm hoping he is PJ Maybe downloaded into a droid, but that's never going to happen....
Regarding a perceived lack of jocularity in the prog of late - the current run of strips does seem a little more dry than usual, though the tabloid spoofs in Defoe were amusing, and John Wagner's trademark brand of mordant humour has infused previous installments of Guatemala. Also, in recent months we've had Sinister Dexter, Max Normal, Kingmaker and Absalom all brandishing various shades of wit (Spoonerism not intended), and we're never far from a one or two part Dredd story aimed at tickling a few ribs. So I think Tharg's Betelgeusian biology does include a functional funny bone, just one that fluctuates at a particular frequency.
Quote from: Tjm86 on 06 November, 2019, 02:29:49 PM
Ace Garp was comedy?
Survival Geeks is
edgy? Beautiful to look at and often really funny, but edgy? Or indeed 'subverting expectations'? I don't understand, it's a cute little strip with a bit of romance, detailedo nerd references and short-run stories that make good use of familiar tropes.
When was the last time we got a Star Scan?
Alex Ronald in the centrespread of prog 2073?
I can remember the the time when star scans were a regular thing
Bit puzzled by the direction Brink is taking - didn't Dabnett say he'd be exploring the setting with different characters after the third series? Instead we seem to be heading deeper into Kurtis' backstory and the gears of the HSD. Not that I'm complaining, I love Bridge and I could happily have the strip in my prog 50 issues out of the year, just wondering if I misunderstood Dan's intentions.
Talking of wishing things were in the comic each and every week, Dredd: Guatemala is powerful work from complete craftspeople. That second-page splash will take some beating as Page of the Year, glorious imaging from MacNeil and Blythe. It does feel like there's way too much set up here to resolve in a half-dozen pages, and El Presidente surely has more stuff to strut? But you know Wagner, kill your darlings and repent at leisure.
Defoe continues to grab me, still Mills strongest latter-day strip, and given a new and increasingly confident spin by Moore.
Hope is lovely as always, but for me the sudden-but-inevitable betrayal undermines a bit of the investment I had in the gumshoe antics of the previous parts.
Deadworld looks more amazing every episode, but I wonder if we lost a bit of momentum this week - we seem to have been rescuing each other in the anonymous corridors of Sector 13 now for ages, while big events rumble on outside. The end of Gates-emoth was surprisingly touching, but as that thing freaks me out I'm glad to see it go.
Quote from: TordelBack on 08 November, 2019, 08:24:19 AM
Bit puzzled by the direction Brink is taking - didn't Dabnett say he'd be exploring the setting with different characters after the third series? Instead we seem to be heading deeper into Kurtis' backstory and the gears of the HSD. Not that I'm complaining, I love Bridge and I could happily have the strip in my prog 50 issues out of the year, just wondering if I misunderstood Dan's intentions.
Yeah, I'd thought that too. He's allowed to change his mind, I suppose, although this book might end in a way that wraps things up for the Bridge
** Completely ill-informed speculation for where this is going, based on nothing: [spoiler]YES, BRIDGET, I AM YOUR FATHER[/spoiler]
... and it just occurred to me that Series One pulled a fast one on me by subverting my expectations regarding [spoiler]which characters made it all the way to the end of the story[/spoiler].
So Abnett might have made an inadvertent spoiler, there.
Quote from: McNulty on 06 November, 2019, 01:07:58 PM
...not a fan of Brink. Its bland story, its simple artwork and its glaring colours are not for me. I just don't like it.
It goes on a bit without much of a story I'll agree with you there and the main woman with her pouty head shots are just that and not much else. Far too many dud panels of strange looking people doing very little really.
I know most people think the sun shines out of Dan Abnetts pen, but Ive never been a fan sadly and his 24 episode dreary sagas are competing with Pat Mills for who can eek out a series the longest with the least content.
Brink is great and Dredd's always on form with this classic script and art pairing, lets hope that they return one day with a new Stronty Dog...
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 06 November, 2019, 09:13:02 PM
Quote from: Tjm86 on 06 November, 2019, 02:29:49 PM
Ace Garp was comedy?
:o
Surely not. It wore its Ken Loach influence on its sleeve.
Very saddened to hear that Guatemala is ending next week. I love it; and El Presidente is the best bad guy in years. I hope he survives next prog. Haven't read the rest of the prog yet.
I appreciate that it's probably my advancing years creeping up on me, but does anyone else ever mix up Ace Trucking Co. with DR. & Quinch?
Also, did they ever have a crossover? :think:
One was created by Alan Moore and the other by Wagner/Grant. Neither of those two parties take a strong proprietorial interest in the strips they created, so who knows why this crossover you dream of never actually happened.
Quote from: Frank on 09 November, 2019, 07:17:04 PM
One was created by Alan Moore and the other by Wagner/Grant. Neither of those two parties take a strong proprietorial interest in the strips they created, so who knows why this crossover you dream of never actually happened.
No "Thargshead Revisited" mashup then?!
It maybe best left in my dreams!! :lol:
Quote from: Jacqusie on 09 November, 2019, 05:39:56 PM
Quote from: McNulty on 06 November, 2019, 01:07:58 PM
...not a fan of Brink. Its bland story, its simple artwork and its glaring colours are not for me. I just don't like it.
It goes on a bit without much of a story I'll agree with you there and the main woman with her pouty head shots are just that and not much else. Far too many dud panels of strange looking people doing very little really.
I know most people think the sun shines out of Dan Abnetts pen, but Ive never been a fan sadly and his 24 episode dreary sagas are competing with Pat Mills for who can eek out a series the longest with the least content.
Brink is great and Dredd's always on form with this classic script and art pairing, lets hope that they return one day with a new Stronty Dog...
My sarcasm filer has broken. Is BRINK your thing or not?
Jacqusie means he thinks Hope is brilliant, not Brink. Someone mixes them up every week.
Quote from: dweezil2 on 09 November, 2019, 07:28:32 PM
Quote from: Frank on 09 November, 2019, 07:17:04 PM
One was created by Alan Moore and the other by Wagner/Grant. Neither of those two parties take a strong proprietorial interest in the strips they created, so who knows why this crossover you dream of never actually happened.
No "Thargshead Revisited" mashup then?!
It maybe best left in my dreams!! :lol:
Cripes but I loved Tharg's Head Revisited. Loved it at the time and even more as an adult when I finally got the in-industry jokes, and the dirty ones for that manner.
I know they've tried similar stuff in anniversary progs since, but nothing quite matched that level of stinging wit and Mad-Magazine-style detail.
Yeah, the absolute highpoint of 2000AD's self-aware cool for me too, never equalled.
Quote from: norton canes on 07 November, 2019, 08:50:49 PM
Alex in the centrespread of prog 2073?
The J. Geils Band sung about that didn't they?