What a difference a week can make hey.
Dredd, well if I was disappointed with the ending of the otherwise superb 'Control' the beginning The Fall of Barbarbara Grimm by Mike Caroll and Nick Dyer is quite brilliant. Okay so there's the old panel where the otherwise wonderful Dyer overworks the cross hatching, but that aside wow. I'm reminded of the awful closing in that I felt reading the Block protection racket story in my Prog slog recently.
Sinister Dexter remains fantastic, that opening panel is just great.
Similarly Indigo Prime remains superb, so full of invention.
3riller - Red Road is a blasting, kinetic opener. Its thrilling and while I've not much of a clue about the background yet I'm drawn in. As ever with 3riller its all in how it builds from here though.
Jaegir cranks it back up to the Max with a wonderful episode. Though do think medical staff in any Sci-fi / action scenario seriously need to some self defense training.
In summary 5 out of 5 Prog. Now that ain't bad is it!
This week was very solid would of liked a bit more context in the 3riller but it's a cold opening for more too come
(https://i.imgur.com/FJpOFDr.jpg)
Paul Sketchy Magpie Williams and sheer brilliance
seconded. A superb cover from Paul. It's great to see him being used more by TMO.
I'm with Colin on this one - great prog all round!
Yet again No prog on Saturday In Scotland -
and its yet to appear on today as its a Bank Holiday -
- no Jaegir for me !
Ditto Bristol :(
another nglish bank holiday and another progless Saturday, Monday... at Huff sur La Mer.
Prog finally arrived today - actually really impressed with all the stories
I even manage to make sense of Indigo Prime -
I was also impressed with the new Dredd Story , and the new Tharg's 3Rillers story
from the new writer ( cudos to Andi Ewington )
I also disagree that Sinister Dexter is really overdue to be removed or ended -
its still enjoyable for me , far more than The Order for example
Jaegir was yet again a masterclass in storytelling and a cliff-hanger ending -
its been yet again , a highly enjoyable war story ( I first read Battle back in 1975 )
so its been a blast .
Quote from: 73north on 27 August, 2019, 06:07:07 PM
, and the new Tharg's 3Rillers story
from the new writer ( cudos to Andi Ewington )
He also wrote a 3riller called "
Tooth and Nail" art by Staz Johnson in prog 2120-2122 and a Futrure Shock in prog 2128 called "
Juncture"
Bloody hell, that's great Dredd! Strong prog all round, especially all the killings and twists in Jaegir, but the Carroll writing on Dredd tops the lot. Sinister and gripping.
Andi Ewington has been around a good while - he wrote the acclaimed GN '45' that I believe Jock drew part of back in the early 2000's and he's been working since.
Nice to see him getting some work from TMO.
(https://i.imgur.com/6BSltv5.png?2)
As well as helping himself to Revere, Kek-W is incorporating the Kelvin McKenzie Sun Says editorial caption boxes from Big Dave. The visual of an Apache strafing city blocks recalls White & Austin's Urban Strike (https://i.imgur.com/JnblVGT.jpg) tie-in, too, making this a treat for all those readers who remember nineties 2000ad fondly.
I've delighted everyone long enough (https://youtu.be/eOMZngHTdSY?t=116) with my opinions on the exploitation of John Smith's legacy, so I'll say something nice* - Lee Carter, like Edmund Bagwell and Chris Weston before him, has the perfect aesthetic to complement the script's Kaiju Burroughs and Batman '66 outsize consumer items.
The temptation for the callow editor, when in receipt of a script full of funhouse imagery and pages with the bottom corners torn off, is to assign an artist with a (notionally) appropriate cartoony style. Think (the great) Philip Bond on the final book of The Invisibles or Mike Hadley on Fegredo & Lobe.
The result is too on the nose, burying the needle firmly in the red of WACKY. The representational aesthetic and lucid storytelling of Weston, Bagwell and, now, Carter perform the same function as Ringo's drums, grounding the acid trip toss swirling around it and providing a clear direction of travel.
* I also thought the line questioning whether the cast of Revere were appearing in Indigo Prime or vice versa was arch and self-aware. If it had appeared in Kek-W's own strip, I might even have enjoyed it. Beats me why anyone with the intelligence and humour to write that is wasting their time carrying Tharg's water on a corporate piss-spraying exercise.
Quote from: 73north on 27 August, 2019, 06:07:07 PM
Prog finally arrived today - actually really impressed with all the stories
I even manage to make sense of Indigo Prime -
I was also impressed with the new Dredd Story , and the new Tharg's 3Rillers story
from the new writer ( cudos to Andi Ewington )
I also disagree that Sinister Dexter is really overdue to be removed or ended -
its still enjoyable for me , far more than The Order for example
Jaegir was yet again a masterclass in storytelling and a cliff-hanger ending -
its been yet again , a highly enjoyable war story ( I first read Battle back in 1975 )
so its been a blast .
This^^^ with the exception of SinDex which I feel is a house guest that has overstayed its welcome. The world of Downlode has a million stories to tell: Like MC1 or Nu-Earth, I just think Sindex aren't the vehicle to do it now.
Good, solid prog again
Dredd - great opening episode. I always like Carroll's take on Dredd.
3riller - good first episode enough intrigue and action for me to want more.
Jaegir - keeps on delivering. Wish we can have more of this more often.
Solid prog, with Dredd taking the top spot. I love Dyer to bits, and Mike's gangster stories continue to be a welcome new direction.
John Charles' work on SinDex scales ever greater heights, turning the generally thankless task of colouring Yeowell's lines into a pure joy. They really are the perfect partnership. Dabnett's careful world rebuilding is great too, I could genuinely read this strip every week.
3riller off to a good start, initial impressions of Madrid Max meets ABC Warriors don't survive a full read.
'Madrid Max', there's a pitch in that predictive innovation.
While I'm here again, stylish cover this week, makes a nice impression in the newsagent.
Quote from: Frank on 28 August, 2019, 09:38:30 AM
(https://i.imgur.com/6BSltv5.png?2)
As well as helping himself to Revere, Kek-W is incorporating the Kelvin McKenzie Sun Says editorial caption boxes from Big Dave. The visual of an Apache strafing city blocks recalls White & Austin's Urban Strike (https://i.imgur.com/JnblVGT.jpg) tie-in, too, making this a treat for all those readers who remember nineties 2000ad fondly.
I've delighted everyone long enough (https://youtu.be/eOMZngHTdSY?t=116) with my opinions on the exploitation of John Smith's legacy, so I'll say something nice* - Lee Carter, like Edmund Bagwell and Chris Weston before him, has the perfect aesthetic to complement the script's Kaiju Burroughs and Batman '66 outsize consumer items.
The temptation for the callow editor, when in receipt of a script full of funhouse imagery and pages with the bottom corners torn off, is to assign an artist with a (notionally) appropriate cartoony style. Think (the great) Philip Bond on the final book of The Invisibles or Mike Hadley on Fegredo & Lobe.
The result is too on the nose, burying the needle firmly in the red of WACKY. The representational aesthetic and lucid storytelling of Weston, Bagwell and, now, Carter perform the same function as Ringo's drums, grounding the acid trip toss swirling around it and providing a clear direction of travel.
* I also thought the line questioning whether the cast of Revere were appearing in Indigo Prime or vice versa was arch and self-aware. If it had appeared in Kek-W's own strip, I might even have enjoyed it. Beats me why anyone with the intelligence and humour to write that is wasting their time carrying Tharg's water on a corporate piss-spraying exercise.
What I understand of this, I wholeheartedly agree with...
But then I've always said Carter is a superb artist! :D
Quote... with the exception of SinDex which I feel is a house guest that has overstayed its welcome. The world of Downlode has a million stories to tell: Like MC1 or Nu-Earth, I just think Sindex aren't the vehicle to do it now.
I've tried numerous times over the years to get into Sin/Dex & failed. There's been some great art, it's felt like a mini series that just never ended. Time gentlemen please :-\
I know some are still missing their weekly dose of thrill-power after the bank holiday so here's the original line work for this prog's cover to tide you over:
(https://i.imgur.com/DxB1Kee.jpg)
Quote from: MacabreMagpie on 31 August, 2019, 05:41:47 PM
I know some are still missing their weekly dose of thrill-power after the bank holiday so here's the original line work for this prog's cover to tide you over:
(https://i.imgur.com/DxB1Kee.jpg)
That almost makes up for my wayward Prog!!!
Almost! ;) :D
It's all good this week.
Praise be to Tharg! And all those hard working droids!
Quote from: dweezil2 on 31 August, 2019, 06:22:03 PM
Quote from: MacabreMagpie on 31 August, 2019, 05:41:47 PM
I know some are still missing their weekly dose of thrill-power after the bank holiday so here's the original line work for this prog's cover to tide you over:
(https://i.imgur.com/DxB1Kee.jpg)
That almost makes up for my wayward Prog!!!
Almost! ;) :D
Now that's a chin! Love it :D
Belatedly (been away for a week)...
A promising Dredd but I thought the narrative was unclear in places i.e. on the first page it initially looked like Barbarbara Grimm was the cit with the child. Also not sure what those robotic snakes were supposed to do but whatever it was they must be a massive security risk moving from zone to zone in an iso-block. Couldn't work out how Barbarbara was initially approached by the criminal syndicate, either. Still, trusting the Carroll droid to deliver now the plot is properly underway. SinDex well told but a little underwhelming. IP by Kek-W really not working for me. Hope it's shelved and he gets to start on a new strip of his own invention. 3riller good but could have done with some sort of context or exposition even if only teased. Jaegir imperious once again.
Quote from: norton canes on 04 September, 2019, 02:31:32 PM
Belatedly (been away for a week)...
A promising Dredd but I thought the narrative was unclear in places i.e. on the first page it initially looked like Barbarbara Grimm was the cit with the child.
Generally I've been very much enjoying this Dredd story so far. I think this initial bait-and-switch was intentional, but I can't think why as it doesn't add much to the story. Since coming back to 2000 AD a year ago, there seems to be a lot of this sort of thing going on - particularly in Beeby's Anderson, and the 3rillers. In fact I remember reading an interview regarding the recent
2000 AD Regened, and one of the writers was asked what is the difference when writing for a younger audience. The answer was (and I'm paraphrasing here) is that you should make it lot more obvious what's going on. But surely that should be the default position anyway? I love stuff like Memento and Keyser Soze's unreliable narrative - but only when they serve a purpose. In my opinion recent 2000 AD often takes steps to make the narrative more obtuse just because it's a comic marketed towards adults and being harder to follow the plot somehow makes it more high brow. Reading Beeby's recent Anderson in the prog was a exercise in imagining what the 2 missing panels were in between each pair of adjacent panels. It's clever (I guess) that if you concentrate really hard and re-read it about 3 times you can just about work out what was going on, but ultimately it adds little to story (IMO), and takes away its pace and fluency.
The current Dredd story is not a particular egregious example of this though, but if I were Tharg I'd be trying to push back on this sort of thing: asking the writers (and artists if applicable) what are they trying to achieve by this convolution, how does it serve the wider story etc.
Just to be clear, I love meaty, complex stories, with multi-layered characters, ambiguities etc. I'm not arguing against that. My criticism is that 2000 AD is often overly complex at the "micro-level" if you will: it is often difficult to parse a sequence of panels and work out what has transpired. This difficulty is usually a stylistic choice, rather than bad direction from the writer, or implementation by the artist. Ironically, this seems to be more often the case when the actual story is ultimately quite a straightforward sort of affair.
I have to confess to not being widely read in comics outside of 2000 AD, so this may simply be a current industry trend.
MumboJimbo, I have absolutely no idea what you and Norton are on about here. The Cit with the kid *is* the focus of the first page, he is 'the stranger talking to her', he'said looking at Barbarbara as he speaks.
There's no bait'n'switch involved, this is an establishing scene setting up the isoblock environment within the life of the citizens, Barbarbara's role, her everyday life and her basic decency. If anything this is a very efficient way to hit all these points, all of which are important to the story.
I do appreciate the general point about unnecessarily obtuse storytelling, but this really isn't an example.
Quote from: norton canes on 04 September, 2019, 02:31:32 PM
Also not sure what those robotic snakes were supposed to do
They're basically cleaning droids. I thought that was fairly clear, myself...
...and to develop that point a bit, they are shaped so that they can navigate ducting and pipework way too small to permit any Andy Dufresne shenanigans. If not suborned by a maintenance tek, they seem like a clever idea.
Thought the pointy end was not a good idea in a prison! Given the perchance to turn non pointy things in chibs, this doesn't see a wise move :o
Quote from: Proudhuff on 04 September, 2019, 04:39:15 PM
Thought the pointy end was not a good idea in a prison! Given the perchance to turn non pointy things in chibs, this doesn't see a wise move :o
Again, they're supposed to clean otherwise inaccessible pipework. The prisoners are never supposed to even see them, never mind get their hands on them.
I also found the first page a little confusing - I thought it was the woman with the child who was narrating, not the innocuous figure in the background.
Quote from: Jim_Campbell on 04 September, 2019, 04:15:55 PM
Quote from: norton canes on 04 September, 2019, 02:31:32 PM
Also not sure what those robotic snakes were supposed to do
They're basically cleaning droids. I thought that was fairly clear, myself...
Yeah, I got that when they were shown with Barbarbara (
fantastic name, by the way), but what threw me was the way they moved not just from cell to cell but through communal areas too - it just seemed too obvious that they'd be used to traffic small goods (or as dangerous weapons as Proudhuff mentions).
Quote from: Dandontdare on 04 September, 2019, 05:19:18 PM
I also found the first page a little confusing - I thought it was the woman with the child who was narrating, not the innocuous figure in the background
Phew. Not just me, then.
Whenever it comes to Dredd I just think of John Wagner's beautifully simple yet coherent prose, with which there's never any ambiguity.
Quote from: Dandontdare on 04 September, 2019, 05:19:18 PM
I also found the first page a little confusing - I thought it was the woman with the child who was narrating, not the innocuous figure in the background.
I don't want to seem like im picking a fight here, or slapping down valid reactions, but I really can't see that this line of criticism is justified relation to this sequence.
Barbarara isn't the narrator. The narraror mentions Barbarara in the third person, when he says "Barbarara had ridden the iso-block bus four days a week for almost four years. She was used to strangers talking to her".
There's only one person talking in the scene. Therefore that isn't Barbarbara either: it's the stranger. Up to that point the narration is just general exposition about MC1 public transport.
We're being shown a bus in an urban wasteland. We're seeing how people feel on that bus. We're being told it's the bus to an iso blocknow, and how that differs from the norm. We're being told this is Barbarara's work commute, and then shown that she is kind to frightened strangers. It's good, involving storytelling.
I'm a big believer in Wagner's style, but he (and T.B. Grover) has done
this kind of thing many times. It's clear, it's efficient, it's interesting. More interesting than a caption on a pucture of Barbarbara saying "This person is Barbarara, she works in an iso block but is basically a regular decent cit".
Quote from: TordelBack on 04 September, 2019, 04:15:15 PM
MumboJimbo, I have absolutely no idea what you and Norton are on about here. The Cit with the kid *is* the focus of the first page, he is 'the stranger talking to her', he'said looking at Barbarbara as he speaks.
There's no bait'n'switch involved, this is an establishing scene setting up the isoblock environment within the life of the citizens, Barbarbara's role, her everyday life and her basic decency. If anything this is a very efficient way to hit all these points, all of which are important to the story.
I do appreciate the general point about unnecessarily obtuse storytelling, but this really isn't an example.
Well maybe it's just my comprehension skillz (or lack thereof!). I'm at my office at the mo, so haven't got the prog to hand, but I recall when reading it initially thinking the captions were the thoughts of lady with the child, and that she was Barbarbara, but then finding later on it was somebody else on the bus.
I'll check tonight, and I'd got the wrong end of the stick (through my own stupidity rather than a narrative bait-and-switch) I'll hold my hand up! :-[
REALLY don't mean to be calling anyone stupid, and very sorry that it reads that way. I just think Carroll and Dyer nailed this one, in a way that nicely echoes some of my favourite Dredd strips, and I disagree with what now seems to be a fairly common criticism (so even less likely to be a result of any imputed shortcoming on the part of the reader).
You're all just wrong, Gruddamnit!
Quote from: TordelBack on 04 September, 2019, 05:50:39 PM
Barbarara isn't the narrator. The narraror mentions Barbarara in the third person, when he says "Barbarara had ridden the iso-block bus four days a week for almost four years. She was used to strangers talking to her".
There's only one person talking in the scene. Therefore that isn't Barbarbara either: it's the stranger. Up to that point the narration is just general exposition about MC1 public transport.
Well that does seem to be, for my part, lazy reading then: assuming the new name in the caption to be the name of person depicted in that caption.
To be fair though, that would be true 90%+ of the time, so although "bait-and-switch" is may be too strong it is a bit of a banana skin for the reader!
Quote from: MumboJimbo on 04 September, 2019, 06:25:51 PM
Well that does seem to be, for my part, lazy reading then: assuming the new name in the caption to be the name of person depicted in that caption.
Meant to write: Well that does seem to be, for my part, lazy reading then: assuming the new name in the caption to be the name of person depicted in that
panel
I too thought there was a slight bait & switch going on with the Dredd, and assumed it was just a nice storytelling technique to keep the reader interested.
Guess I'm just wrong ::)
That said, if we're having to discuss it, then surely it's not worked as intended?
Either way up, Barbarbara Grimm is an absolutely spot-on Big Meg name. And I've long been waiting for a mad city and citizens story, rather than a Dredd gets in a fight one. Well done Mike; so far this has been your best Dredd work yet.
I think recent Dredds have shown the non-Wagner writers upping their game with some excellent stories.