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Mega City 1 Judge ID tattoo question

Started by Simon Fraser, 19 November, 2019, 04:26:03 PM

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Simon Fraser

Hey so I need some info. Perhaps there are some Dredd experts out there that could help me.

Do MC1 Judges have ID tattoos? I seem to remember that they do. The only reference I can find after a quick Google is this , http://www.2000ad.org/?zone=prog&page=specials&choice=lotf02    , which isn't exactly canon. So is there an official Justice Dept ID tat? If so what is it and where is it? I'm assuming a shoulder , but I don't know which one.

Thanks for any help. You guys are amazing.

Si.


Dandontdare

Whilst I think one or two artists have included a tattoo, I don't recall it ever being canon - apart from the Stallone movie in which they all had a shoulder tattoo.

Dark Jimbo

My first thought was this cheeky/skeevy offering from Ben Willsher:  :o

@jamesfeistdraws

Steve Green

I'm pretty sure I saw one crop up in the strip from before the Stallone film, but it's one of those things that's not really been established as a detail.

Post Stallone film, there were a few things that made their way into the strip for a bit, like the extra bits on the helmet.

Ben Wilsher even had one judge with a Justice Department Brazilian (or Pan-Andean Conurb I guess)

Steve Green

I had a quick look through case files and couldn't find any examples...

I'm sure it's appeared on shoulders outside of LOTF, but I couldn't say where...

Proudhuff

I've a vague memory, but nothing solid, even after seeing that pic  :-[
DDT did a job on me

wedgeski


Goaty

Sadly only in Stallone's Judge Dredd, Simon.


AlexF

Since this is a science fiction story, I wonder if judges might have a tattoo that is only visible when viewed through a judge's helmet visor (one way to spot a jimp?), or, perhaps more likely, they all have some sort of tiny embedded chip that sits under the skin somewhere that can be scanned - using an IR-beam from the helmet, praps.
These sort of chips exist in today's world, used on pets. They're about the size of a grain of rice, I believe. Not sure what you need to scan them with, I guess oyu can get an app on a phone though.

Neither of which leaves much for an artist to have any fun with! Sorry.
(I suppose a helmet-cam setting that makes use of some as-yet undiscovered part of the energy spectrum could have some funky visuals in it, a la Predator)

Steve Green

IIRC Dredd did have a chest eagle as a result of Mutant/City of the Damned shenanigans at the end of 'In the year 2120' but that never appeared again (in much the same way Alpha's Bubba tattoo did)

It doesn't really make much sense to have a tattoo in case they want to go undercover anyway.

Dash Decent

There's a really clear illustration of the Judge tattoo from the Stallone movie in the "Making of" book.

Here's a copy of the page number in case you want to buy a copy to see what it looks like.

- By Appointment -
Hero to Michael Carroll

"... rank amateurism and bad jokes." - JohnW.

Trooper McFad

It would make sense that all judges were physically  "tagged" in some way however in the future would it be a barcode?
Not long after the 1st film I thought of getting a Stallone style tattoo with numbers significant to me but I didn't want to sit there and get jagged hundreds of times 🥺 and pay for the privilege (my inner brave self keeps go on do it you big wimp)
Citizens are Perps who haven't been caught ... yet!

sheridan

Quote from: Simon Fraser on 19 November, 2019, 04:26:03 PM
Hey so I need some info. Perhaps there are some Dredd experts out there that could help me.

Do MC1 Judges have ID tattoos? I seem to remember that they do. The only reference I can find after a quick Google is this , http://www.2000ad.org/?zone=prog&page=specials&choice=lotf02    , which isn't exactly canon. So is there an official Justice Dept ID tat? If so what is it and where is it? I'm assuming a shoulder , but I don't know which one.

Thanks for any help. You guys are amazing.

Si.

Interesting - the number on the Lawman of the Future barcode is 210082055 whereas the one on my sticker given away free with Sugar Puffs (coincidentally unearthed just the other day) is 2205800149.  I wonder how they were coming up with the numbers in the film-related merch at the time?

Simon Fraser

This is great , very helpful. So my takeaway is that there isn't anything that's really canon , except for the 1st Dredd movie. I'm dealing with the main Dredd continuity so that's not relevant. I can draw judges in their undies without fear.

Thank you all for your help. Especially the scanning and deep research. Take a bow ( except you Willsher! )

Cheers

Si.

sheridan

Quote from: Simon Fraser on 21 November, 2019, 02:32:22 AM
This is great , very helpful. So my takeaway is that there isn't anything that's really canon , except for the 1st Dredd movie. I'm dealing with the main Dredd continuity so that's not relevant. I can draw judges in their undies without fear.

It's when the undies come off you have to star worrying about 'hairstyles' ;)