Hello all (Dredd newbie)

[sk1]

Hi all,

I've never been into reading comics and only started reading non-fiction a few years ago. I was looking to mix up my reading with some fictional books and Judge Dredd has got me interested; he seems similar to Clint Eastwood, and that type of character appeals to me over the marvel superhero type stuff.

I've read some book reviews on amazon and a few users mentioned 'The Pit' and 'America' as the two books to best introduce someone to the world of Judge Dredd, so I've ordered those and look forward to reading them. What do you guys think of these two to start with? 

Cheers,

Simon

[COMMANDO FORCES]

Welcome aboard the Merry ship THRILLPOWER and enjoy your stay.

[radiator]

Hi mate,

Good choices, hope you enjoy them. Some of the impact of those storylines might be a little lost on you as a newcomer with no frame of reference, but there's more than enough good stuff in there to get you hooked, and if you don't like those two classics then it's fair to say that perhaps Dredd isn't for you!

This issue comes up quite a lot, here's a link to a previous thread on the subject you might want to check out....

http://2000adonline.com/forum/index.php/topic,25181.0.html

Be sure to come back and let us know what you thought, and don't hesitate to ask if you need any further suggestions.

[Wake]

If I were you I would read "The Pit" first which should give you an idea of what the judges are all about. America is great, but it's more about the citizens than the judges.

[radiator]

A fair point, though thinking about it America was one of the first Dredd's I read. I like how you get little glimpses of stuff from Dredd history that make you want to read and learn more.

[Trout]

Welcome! Those are damned fine choices.

- Trout

[Colin MacNeil]

Welcome to the forum SK1. You'll definately  be entertained and educated on all matters twothy here. "America", a good choice for a first go at Judge Dredd, even if I am a bit biased.

[COMMANDO FORCES]

An excellent bit of pimping there Colin

[Colin MacNeil]

An excellent bit of pimping there Colin

Ah thenk yew!!!

[Mike Gloady]

If you can't pimp yourself then there's something wrong with this world.

Those two are fine choices for first Dredd and check out that other thread Radiator mentioned.  It's very helpful and will give you an idea of where to go AFTER that. 

[locustsofdeath!]

The Apocalypse War got me into Dredd, so I'd say - start with the Apocalypse War!

Ah well, glad you've ssen the light in any case. Welcome aboard!

[sk1]

Thanks for the great replies guys – very helpful. I've just read through the thread that radiator suggested, which sent my head spinning; I was taking quotes just to keep track:

"America with art by Colin Macneil is often cited as being the best Dredd Story - however it gets a lot of it's resonance from what comes before and quite a lot could seem a let down after such a great story." - dankell

I say start with Total War, Brothers of the Blood, and America. They will give you the best indication of what Dredd's world is like.- Ignatzmonster

"I'd start with something self-contained like Mandroid, The Chief Judge's Man or The Pit - these will give you a taste of what Dredd is all about. From there you can move on to other, slightly more involved stories like America, Origins and the Judge Dredd Case Files series (which are big volumes collecting all of the early adventures..." - radiator

"perhaps start with is some of the standalone collections, avoiding those that are heavily tied into continuity... Mandroid is a good, solid Dredd tale that fits into that category. America is also worth a look (many considering it to be the very pinnacle of Dredd stories), since although it follows years of democratic struggle in Mega City One, there's enough backstory and exposition for a new reader to make sense of it. (By comparison, I would initially avoid The Pit—it's a really great story, but the sheer magnitude of Dredd taking a desk job will be lost on someone who's reading for the first time. Origins is also probably not worth going for until you've read a bunch of Dredd.)" - IndigoPrime

"Mandroid or Brothers of the Blood.  Both feature some very good stories and are as likely as any others to hook you.  I also agree you should not start with Case Files 1-3.  Any of the later books will have several wonderful stories to give you a good sampling of what to expect, but book one features a fairly dated approach to comic storytelling, one you kind of need to be familiar with already to enjoy.  Book two features two epic-length stories, also a little bit dated, but more importantly you won't get the wild variety of lots of classic Dredd.  I'd discount book three with its lower page count and start with one of the others." - Grant Goggans

"Surprised to see so many people recommend Origins and Brothers, both of which would baffle the crap out of me if I was a newcomer." -IndigoPrime

"America... Mandroid... Total War... perhaps AFTER these three would be Brothers of The Blood... Origins..." -Mike Gloady

Ok, let me see if I've got this right:

If starting with America, the older ones may seem disappointing after that (is that the Case Files?).

The Pit storyline (Dredd taking a desk job) may be best saved for later (impact may be wasted on a newbie).

Origins and Brothers may be best saved for later (may confuse a newbie).

Mandroid and Total War (and possibly The Chief Judge's Man), all self-contained and – as far as I can see – have none of the aforementioned newbie disadvantages (or at least, none that have been mentioned... yet  ).

It seems to be a very opinionated matter, but I'm just wondering if it can be broken down into a logical order that most would say "Yeah, you can't go wrong with that".

p.s. Colin, I look forward to complimenting you on your work; all the sick cover art I've seen are very cool looking... I like the Dredd style.

[flip-r mk2]

Welcome.




filip

[vzzbux]

Hello sprog.








V

[Dandontdare]

Welcome! You're spot on with the Clint vibe - early Dredd was very much "Dirty Harry in the future" and as Dredd gets older (He has aged in real time over the last 32 years) I still imagine Clint's voice when he says "twenty years, punks!" or similar.