1368 - Seeing Red.

[DavidXBrunt]

Another new Prog, another new thread...

Cover - nice idea for an abstract cover, not to my liking, but a nice idea.

Dredd - I'm enjoying this. Adding Kleggs to the mix looks like it could be fun. Still enough interest in the story to make another part appealing, and I enjoyed the scene in the hall of Justice. Nice to see Dredd talked about by the other cast members.

Dead Men Walking - As the weeks go by this story becomes increasingly interesting, the death of Jude was a real surprise to me. Looks to be building to a definite climax.

Cabalistics Inc. - As ever, the best thing in the prog. As the other strips gallop to catch up Cabals. in the quality stakes this one effortlessly canters off into the sunset. A great episode that revealed a lot more than I was expecting. Nice insights into Slater and the reason for the groups formation. Kostabi has now joined Ravne on the list of Cabals cast members that I want to see get their cummupance. I think they'll both survive though...

Synammon - The art continues to be superb and the story continues appace. For all the faults that others will mention this is still a fun tale, an enjoyable sci-fi romp.

Durham Red - The revelation of the Outcasts' identity makes the cliff-hanger between books. Thargy implise the next book will be the last and I think that's a shame. No-one will believe me but I did wonder if the Outcast would appear to be Johnny and not Feral... Another strip that's improved as it goes on, another strip that seems to have sacrificed part of the fun of being able to read it in weekly sections for the ability to make a nice collected edition...

[Art]

"Seeing Red"? Oh dear, that sounds ominous. Perhaps I should go into my newsagents wearing a welding mask, fully expecting a Durham Red photocover capable of burning my eyes out.

[DavidXBrunt]

Fear not, easily embarassed souls, it's an almost abstract D.M.W. cover.

[IndigoPrime]

I didn't think the story suggested that Alpha was the Outcast, and I find it _very_ hard to believe that the current editorial team would allow Abnett to make that the case, thereby completely fucking up John's rewrites of SD.

"I thought you at least would remember the crucible of agony that created us both and cannot be forgotten," is what he says. To me, this suggests that Alpha was perhaps instrumental in the Outcast's formation, but isn't actually the outcast himself.

However, quite frankly, this is yet another story that could have been told in a fraction of the time. I really hope the next DR book is the last.

[paulvonscott]

SPOLIERS (after Dave's Spoilers)

If it's going to end once and for all Dave I'll stop moaning about it.   But isn't this only the first of three books we're currently reading?  If it's the first of two then, okay!  If they've manged to bugger Johnny's corpse again it won't be too soon an end for me.  It would certainly explain all the chunks of SD stuff that have recently floated to the surface in the strip.  As if something were disturbing the sediments...

It's interesting reading spoilers first.  I had guessed the Kleggs would make an appearence, so no huge suprise.  You can't have a meat factory and not have Kleggs somehwere.

[paulvonscott]

I havn't read it IP, but it couldn't be the bat-thing that killed Johnny could it?  I mean, if it's something from the SD past (and is that definite?) then there are surely a limited number of suspects.  I know...

It's the gronkses!

[Mr C]

In the end, Durham and the Offspring are fighting on a standard-stone-bridge-above-a-lava-pool(tm). Durham fllas off but manages to grab hold of a ledge. Offspring does the usual Gab about taking over the universe when all of a sudden, Charlie Squirrel and John Wagner take over and Johnny Alpha, Wulf, the Gronk and Middenface McNulty turn up, deafeat the Offspring, travel back in time together and swear that they shall never speak of any of it ever again....


Could happen.

[petemaskreplica]

I'm afraid that after being in a kind mode when reading the prog last couple of weeks, I'm in a filthy mood this morning, so expect ranting and bile amongst the

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Cover: I liked it, not sure how much it'd pull in a non-squaxx, but as a bit of abstraction it's rather good.

Nerve Centre: Dredd in Metro? Yay! I may have to make the effort to actually pick it up, rather than rely on the chance that a copy happens to be abandoned on the floor of the tube... just hope these new droids Tharg's put on it are up to the job. But this kind of exposure for Dredd/2K can only be a good thing, IMO.

Dredd: I like the script (though bringing in the Kleggs as well gives it a bit of a fanboy monsterfest feel for me)...  but the art! It's doubly annoying because there is stuff about it that I really like, but some of the layouts are really unclear, it's just not clear what's happening a lot of the time. I came away from this week's episode with the idea of "bad Kevin O'Neill" in my head.

DMW: I'm sorry, this just feels like plot device piled upon plot device to me. Maybe I'd feel kinder towards it if I was in a better mood. But I'm not, so tough.

Thank god for Cabs Inc, best thing in the prog by far, a good script which advances the story in a way that feels organic and flowing naturally from what's gone before, allied to an artist who really understands how to tell a story. Quite wonderful.

Synnamon: on the whole I'm feeling quite kindly towards this as a whole, but it annoyed me a bit this week. Can't put my finger on why though. Maybe I'll have another go when I'm less foul-minded.

Red: actually, David, my thought was, oh so the Offspring is the, er, offspring of Red and Johnny?

Maybe it's going to turn out that Feral is Johnny's love child, that'd tie up all our speculation nicely, wouldn't it? Otherwise, I find myself agreeing more and more with pvs's comments about the way this strip messes with memories of Stront. grrrrr.

Roll on prog 2004, say I.

[Matt Timson]

Maybe it's just because I'm feeling a bit poorly today- but I really enjoyed the whole prog for the first time in ages.  Sat in bed and read it twice.

Twice I tell you!  Cover to cover!

[The Monarch]

Maybe it's going to turn out that Feral is Johnny's love child, that'd tie up all our speculation nicely, wouldn't it?

Not gonna happen unless they screw up even more continuity wasn't it revealed that feral was the son of the lyran sorcerer that caused the whole final solution thing?

[W. R. Logan]

>Nerve Centre: Dredd in Metro? Yay! I may have to make the effort to actually pick it up, rather than rely on the chance that a copy happens to be abandoned on the floor of the tube...

Bit of a pisser if your a Dredd fan who doesnt get a train or tube regularly.

La Placa Rifa,
W. R. Logan.

[The Amstor Computer]

"Bit of a pisser if your a Dredd fan who doesnt get a train or tube regularly."

Even more of a pisser if you're living in Scotland...

[GordonR]

>>Even more of a pisser if you're living in Scotland...

We get the Metro here in Edinburgh.

[JTurner]

Cover - Thought it was about Durham Red. A little unclear.

Nerve Centre - I'm also looking forward to the Metro featuring Dredd, now there's something else in it besides the crossword.

Dredd - Pants. The art really screwed this one up for me, what with turnip chin and the incomprehensible pages.

Dead men - Good stuff, and a nice twist.

Cabalistics - Still the best thing in the prog. I appreciate a storyline that isn't affraid to continually develop and reveal more and more layers.

Synnamon - An odd mirror of DMW this week. I'm still not sure about the art (Synn still looks too rubbery).

Durham Red - Purleese. This whole Strontium Dog thing just feels like Dabbnet trying to get back onto the side of the Durham Red purists, instead, the end felt just cheesy.

[Mangamax]

Hang on - i thought the Offspring was Nelson Bunker Kreelman? It was his face on the screen of the Offsprings containment unit weren't it?