Best one-prog Dredds

[JayzusB.Christ]

I'm sure this has been done before; I may have even contributed to, or possible started, the same thread in the past.  But here we go again.  Favourite Dredd stories that lasted for only one prog (or one Meg issue), and why, please.  I don't remember the names of some of them, but here goes:

The one where the guy burns some clones used in medical research.  Not only very imaginative but also very poignant and thought-provoking.  It cleverly left the reader to do some work for himself (or herself):  [spoiler]Did the clones really feel pain or was it just the guy's imagination?[/spoiler]

Letter from a Democrat:  Introduced an absolutely crucial part of the Dredd storyline - Politics.  Also a great story in its own right.

The Americans:  Old-school Justice Dept solutions to espionage problems are brought to an absolutely perfect snapshot of MC1.  Also goes a long way towards explaining a mindfeck of a continuity riddle: [spoiler]How can Johnny Alpha and Dredd exist in the same timeframe?[/spoiler]

That Al Ewing one based on old-fashioned role-playing gamebooks:  Amazingly clever storytelling, with the use of a technique I've never seen before[spoiler] (a 'fake' multiple option format that actually has to be 'hacked' by the reader and read straight through)[/spoiler].  Alan Moore would be proud to write it.

The Exploding Man:  Good old sci-fi mutants and explosions with a touch of intelligence and pathos. 

More to follow, but let's hear some of yours too.

[TordelBack]

John Cassavetes is Dead.  My favourite Alan Grant Dredd, with fabulous Colin MacNeil B&W art. Gets right at the heart of living a life under irrational and intrusive laws. 

[Jim_Campbell]

Bury My Knee... proof to other Dredd writers that one does not require crack babies to tug at the heartstrings of either the reader or Stony Face himself...

Cheers

Jim

[Hawkmumbler]

Caterpillars. Michael Carroll, you little gem.

[ming]

Finger of Suspicion Prog 1387.  Wonderful art, wonderful story and never fails to bring a smile to my stupid face.

[hippynumber1]

'Alone in a Crowd' immediately springs to mind as does the story oin the special about the kid playing in the garden 'Over the Wall'? Dredd at polar opposites but completely consistent with his character...

[Tjm86]

Alone in the Crowd is a definite for me.  Classic early Dillon artwork for a start.  Always felt he got lazy when he went to the states.  The script is so multi layered it is astounding.  Always felt it was a classic riposte to the eighties 'me first' culture.

[Greg M.]

In the Bath:  Dredd muses on his mortality whilst having a scrub. Part, of course, of the 'ageing Dredd' cycle, but with a touch of autobiographical whimsy (Wagner's bath-loving ways being well-documented.)

Leaving Rowdy:  Dredd hands over his apartment to Rico – and reveals that he's always kept Judge Lopez's badge, due to guilt over his death. Just when you think you've got Joe Dredd figured out, he's still capable of surprising you.

Death of a Legend: Probably the best send-off for any member of Dredd's supporting cast, and serious competition for 'Bury My Knee...' in the emotional stakes. 

[Richmond Clements]

Death of a Legend: Probably the best send-off for any member of Dredd's supporting cast, and serious competition for 'Bury My Knee...' in the emotional stakes. 

This. "You deserved better."

[radiator]

Bury My Knee..., Death of a Legend and In the Bath go without saying, naturally.

I also have a soft spot for:

Simple Domestic - an obscure bit of late-nineties Meg Dredd about a newly-pumped con returning from prison to take revenge on his abusive scumbag of a father, partially told in flashback and with sumptuous art by the massively-underrated Steve Tappin.

My Brilliant Career - classic slice of early-1000s typical Mega-City farce.

The Good Man - a mid-2000s Christmas one-off about Dredd out in the Cursed Earth with eye-popping Jim Murray artwork.

The Mega-City Way of Death - in many ways a definitive slice of modern Dredd - poignant, bittersweet and inventive. Greg Staples on art.

The aforementioned Zombies aka Zombie Barbeque - about the labworker and the weird cloned humanoid guinea pigs. Haunting.

Dead Ringer aka Bodysnatcher - another 'golden-age' short by Wagner & Grant and Barry Kitson with a similar theme to The Mega-City Way of Death.

First of the Many - one of Ennis' best (or being a bit harsher, one of his only good ones), detailing Dredd's first bust and subsequent reunion with him. It doesn't end well.

To Thing With Love is also pretty definitive. I've always wanted to put together a Dredd collection of stories that focus mainly on Mega-City and its citizens, and this would be right up there.

That's just off the top of my head - there's bound to be many, many more. I feel like there's quite a lot of really great one-offs, especially from the Megazine, that really suffered from poor artwork, especially in the 1990s.

[WhizzBang]

The Return of Rico is the one that immediately sprang to mind for me.

[TordelBack]

Death of a Legend: Probably the best send-off for any member of Dredd's supporting cast, and serious competition for 'Bury My Knee...' in the emotional stakes. 

This. "You deserved better."

Y'know, I've never read that one, although obviously I know the summary. Something to look forward to.

[Greg M.]

We must be quite close to it turning up in a Case File - CF 24, maybe?

[Spikes]

Oh blimey, where to start?

But a quick look through the comments on here (to help jog the old memory), I have to add my vote for 'In the Bath', and the perfect 'John Cassavetes is Dead', as well.

Must have a ponder on this some more....

[Steve Green]

My Beautiful Career, Wagner/Coleby - Judge Dredd Megazine #215

A citizen goes through a succession of jobs, ending up being brutalised as a human crash-test dummy for the Judges.

Poignant and great concepts like the Trolley Jerk.