1508 - Back In Black

[The Amstor Computer]

Fucking marvellous centrespread. Nothing more to say on that, really :-)

Dredd & Chiaroscuro are both rocking along nicely ( the order to execute the survivors in Dredd was a bit of an Apocalypse War moment) even if Chiaroscuro still feels a bit derivative.

The 86ers makes an alright return, and if the focus can be kept off Rafe and on the other pilots it might just pick itself up from the rather uninspiring first run. A couple of rushed-looking panels aside, a nice bit of work from PJ as well.

Sin/Dex kind of floated along, but with the added impediment (for me, at least) of having one of my least favourite artists attached to it. I know Williams has his fans, but I'm afraid I just can't get the appeal.

Cracking FS from Al & Edmund Bagwell, though. I don't think Bagwell's a complete newbie - he was responsible for the cover of Mamtor's Event Horizon 2, and according to one bio he's been active in designing for games & multimedia companies for a while - but this is a damn good first appearance in the prog.

Great prog, and it's good to see the order being mixed up again with the tribute centrespread & the back-page FS.

[nick-is-at-home]

"when its revealed Fargo had more involvment in it than previously revealed"

thanks for that spoiler

[The Amstor Computer]

Don't worry, it's not a spoiler - I think Rio is just guessing as to where the story might go based on what has happened so far.

[Wils]

I think that was speculation on Rio's part, rather than actual spoiler, tbh.

[Rio De Fideldo]

Nick-is-at-home

I'm assuming you meant your comment to be taken as sarcastic because obviously I haven't spoilt anything. I was just quite excited to have come up with a theory for why there has been what I  think has been a slow start to Origins



++SPECULATION ALERT++
i.e. Dredd is sickened by what the Atomic War has done to the Earth and the irony of this fact when in later episodes its revealed that Fargo was the War Monger and not the President.  



If I have spoilt the story for you with my idle guessing I'm genuinely sorry.

 

[Wils]

Personally, I'm can't wait until we find out that Fargo had 7 buttocks.

[Rio De Fideldo]

But only one ball!

[Concrete Block 15]

Well, we've had the Wiseheads, so indeed why not the Wiseasses...

[Wils]

All together now!

Fargo has only got one ball
The other is still in the Grand Hall
McGruder had something ruder
But poor old Guthrie has nothing at all

[McNulty]

And now for my comments...

Dredd: Origins: Dredd helps the mutants, but it costs him dear. One of the Judges is dead already, and the mission is hardly started. I didn't know that morks were native to Dredd's world. I haven't seen them out of the world of Strontium Dog. Nice to see them though...

Chiarostcuro: Horror isn't really my thing, I'm afraid. As yet, I'm not seeing anything supernatural, but it does seem to be taking a disturbing path.

The 86ers: Like the new generation of the V.C.s, it is difficult to get into this, but it's early days yet and this new storyline has promise.

Sinister Dexter: There are still a lot of questions to be answered in this story. "Dex wasn't there to listen" does this mean that he isn't buried in the grave? Or is it just a throwaway comment? Finny is obviously looking for a confrontation. He changed his face back, so he is easily recognisable and he went to see someone he knew would tip off Appellido.

Future Shocks: Well, the Murmux did pretty well out of that deal. The Earth gets eaten and they get a huge pile of cash! Can't be bad.

Finally, I have to add my congratulations to everyone involved in the Tom Frame tribute centrespread. Not only was it a marvelous tribute to a great person in 2000AD, it was also wonderful to see so many contributors, both past and present, adding to this memorial. I'm man enough to say that I was quite choked up when I first saw this.

All in all, a great prog.

[Bad Andy]

Wils - that's ace.

McNulty - Dredd and Stront is the same 'universe' though just at different timelines. If dune sharks had made their way to the Cursed Earth from Hestia, same could have happened for the morks.

Strangely I'm more interested in finding out how Sinister Dexter (Deceased) works out than Origins. Dredd's okay, just a bit too slow a burn at the start after a good first episode.

[Leigh S]

Thought bubbles... I think one of the problems with thought bubbles is the way they look - those floaty clouds just seem a bit juvenile.  If only someone could come up with a better visual representation of them, I suspect they'd never have been run out of comics town!

Liked the art on the FS - a name to watch methinks.

The tribute was very well done.  Mike McMahons Slaine is incredible - Why we don't see his art in the progs is a national scandal.  Was this coloured by Mike himself?  If not, he needs to team up with however did it and get back in the progs - if he did it himself, no need for a team up - just get him back in the progs!

[+rufus+]

That is Mick's computer colouring. Mick now works in Computer game design, I'm hoping Tharg will bully him back into doing some covers.
  I'll post all the separate elements up soon.
:-) Rufus

[Byron Virgo]

"Thought bubbles... I think one of the problems with thought bubbles is the way they look - those floaty clouds just seem a bit juvenile."

Don't see the problem myself - how is a thought bubble any more juvenile than a speech balloon? It's something that's universally recognised, even outside of comics, so I can't see a reason for changing it. These accusations of of beong 'juvenile' always strike me as being rather too similar to the media's accusation of comics being a medium for 'kids'. Anyway, whether you approve of the device or not, it's hardly cause to spoil the story though, is it?

Overall it's yet another cracking prog - really enjoyed this one, with Dredd moving on towards the mystery of 'Fargoville', and the mystery deepening in Chairoscuro (and some lovely art there, vaguely reminiscent of Graham Ingels more gruesome excesses). The 86ers make for a pleasant enough diversion, and I like the idea that we'll be introduced to this world in short bursts through a number of different characters. Chris Blythe always makes for a good collaborator with PJ, so I'm happy to see where this one goes. Sin/Dex returns, having won me over recently, and I even like the art! I've been fairly scathing of Anthony Williams' art in the past, but something seems to have clicked with me now - perhaps it's that he seems to have picked up a sort of Argentine style now, which kind of makes me wish that this was being printed in black and white (there's something very Eduardo Risso-ish about the third panel on the third page). Anyway, I assume this strip is going to restablish the series in preperation for the promised Moses Wars (or whatever it was called), which I imagine will return Simon Davis to art duties. Lastly, but not leastly, we have yet another groovetastic Future Shock from young master Ewing - and he's becoming so productive these days that you kind of get the impression that if he wasn't writing so many Future Shocks and Terror Tales then his brain might implode from the density of ideas that it contains. Gorgeous art there (surely we will be seeing more of Edmund Bagwell in the near future?), and it climaxes on the back cover as well - FANTASTIC!

The highlight of the prog has to be that beautiful centrespread though - it takes something like this to remind you what a wealth of artistic talent 2000AD has been lucky to employ during its long history. Great to see the likes of Will Simpson, Gary Leach, Ash Wood and Ramon Sola (who, I've just realised, has always kind of reminded me of Gene Colan - looking forward to that Hookjaw pin-up!) in amongst the usual suspects. And, as everyone has pointed out before, McMahon is yet again almost the best of a truly amazing bunch, perhaps only pipped to the post by the touching inclusion of the Joshbot. Sometimes it takes something like this to remind you why you loved 2000AD - and Tom Frame - so much. Always more of comunity that a business concern. Hopefully Marie Curie Cancer Care will get a fair few donations as a result of this, and well done to Rufus and everyone who contributed and made such a smashing tribute to a genuine UK comics legend.

RIP Tom.

[Leigh S]

You have me wrong Byron (well a bit!)  I love thought bubbles as a concept, but "my thoughts appear in a floaty cloud" isn't the best look for em I feel, and are one of many subconscious reasons why comics are seen as for "kids".

I always thought it was a sad day when thought bubbles were consigned to the dustbin - I just think they dont look the best on the page, and that look hasnt helped their cause.  

A speech bubble is a speech bubble - its a circular thing with a tag - functional.

A thought bubble is a fluffy cloud with extra fluffy clouds - I think they could do with a redesign that made them less intrusive looking (and imo vaguely juvenile!)on the page.

Otherwise, I think they are a real bonus for comics as a medium, and for the right story/moment, they're worth their weight in gold.