Prog 2122 - Your Planet Needs Thrills!

[Richard]

Outstanding!

Judge Dredd: Machine Law is the stand-out story this week, not unexpectedly, with a very fitting finale which was even better than the best of the predicted endings speculated about on this forum. Wagner showing us all how it's done. I did wonder last week just how so much could get sorted out in just six pages, and yet he did it superbly. It's a shame the Dredd Mega-Collection finished before this could be included! Maybe there'll be room in the 2000AD one. I've hugely enjoyed this story.

Jaegir took an unexpected turn at the start of this episode; it reminded me of the film Red Sparrow. Also of the 1984 film Dune. It also introduces the new bad guy for the next story.

Tooth and Nail ends reasonably well, with just enough of a twist to keep in interesting. I particularly like the panel at the bottom of page 3.

Grey Area is literally just talking heads, which is a bit dull, but sets up the next bit of the story.

Skip Tracer finally finishes, and about time. It's just really dated and pointless.

There's an advert for the next series of Brink.

Next week: Kingmaker and Survival Geeks.

[moly]

Not had my prog delivered this week need spoiler for dredd please

[Richard]

Are you sure? I know you're impatient, but they're called spoilers for a reason! Better to wait and read it, I think. But I'll relent if you're desperate!

[Bolt-01]

Moly - you really don't. This is easily one of the most accomplished Dredd stories I've read in the last few years. Patience young, Squaxx.

And yes, Grey area may well be 'talking heads' but OMFGrud, this is why Dan Abnett is so well regarded around here.

We are spoiled, I tells ye.

#Praise Tharg.

[moly]

Will try and be patient (for once) and wait till its delivered

[Eamonn Clarke]

Image nicked from Lee on facebook

Cover by Alex Ronald

[Colin YNWA]

Okay I'll start with a positive before I get run out of town.

Its far too early to call but cos I love a good Tharg cover if we get a better cover this year I can't wait to see it. Bllody lovely!

Okay so here we go, if you want to have any respect you might mysteriously have for me left stop reading now... see I thought Dredd was a bit disappointing... anyone still reading.... anyone...

Let me explain. The actual story was superb, I loved that it was as many predicted, but with a magnificent Wagner twist to turn it all a little on its head. Just glorious. 83.333% was wonderfully crafted BUT... here we go, 16.666% bugged me and that was page 2.

I'm sure if folks can be bothered and if anyone hasn't yet completely rejected my presence already there will be LOADS of examples to prove me wrong BUT Dredd calling rebelling Judges 'You gang of losers' just sounded awful and throw me off. Dredd's little exchange with Logan didn't work for me and Logan's reaction of suspending traitorous Judges seem odd... though it might be a measured reaction to control the response but read weird.... so yeah that page didn't work at all for me. Given how drop dead perfect its been to date that really stood out to me.

Skip Tracer had a pretty strong ending and I think this one will read better when read as one.We'll see.... eventually.

3riller Tooth and Nail.... I think I'm being dumb with that so Nail was the lad all along right.... did we know how he did that - was I just not playing attention?

Jaegir was pretty great but way to leave us hangin! Looking forward to this one returning.

Grey Area is literally just talking heads...

Yep

....which is a bit dull, ...

Nope.

Its a bloody masterclass. As Dabnett has shown before in Sinister Dexter, some folks can do talking heads, so folks can't and Dabnett's talkign heads are like David Byrne's talking head bloody magnificent and this is just wonderful.

Great Prog aside for 16.666% of Dredd (and 3riller) - oh and we got our 1cm back.

[Tjm86]

Okay so here we go, if you want to have any respect you might mysteriously have for me left stop reading now... see I thought Dredd was a bit disappointing... anyone still reading.... anyone ... BUT... here we go, 16.666% bugged me and that was page 2.

I get what you are saying, but at the same time, consider the author.  Consider what Dredd stands for, where he has stood.  I'm not sure that it is completely inconsistent.  Dredd is not willing to stand for anyone who won't respect the 'rigid application of the law'.  I would suggest that Logan was right "it was most instructive".

More importantly, consider that closing scene.  How does Wagner consider the characters he created?  Dredd / Harvey?  Wagner is a master at commentary on current events, albeit incredibly subtly.  What is he really saying?

[Magnetica]

I’m pretty much on the same page as Colin:

> Dredd calling them “losers” seemed off to me

> I also thought “ok so was it that the lad was Nail all along...is that it?”. Indeed the whole story doesn’t seem very 2000AD - he could have just been spinning them a yarn, or was there a transformation I missed?

> talking heads in Grey Area = not boring at all. Actually it’s a master class in how to wrap up hanging threads and move the plot along.

[IndigoPrime]

The one thing that baffles me about the end game in Dredd is the past tense being refereed to on referring to a character that presumably can be replicated at any time. Or has no-one in Mega-City One heard of the concept of back-ups?

[Magnetica]

Yes quite... but that seems to be a thing with androids/ robots / computers in sci-if in general.

I guess a backup = immortality = lack of peril = boring story.

[Geoff]

Superb prog!

Starting with a great Tharg cover and then the finale to one of the best Dredd tales in ages.  Wagner rounded it off beautifully. 

Have to say, I didn't feel that the scenes where Dredd quelled the brief rebellion were off at all.  In his usual abrupt way he just dismissed their lame attempt and immediately re-asserted his beloved status quo.  With some physical force, but really more just the force of his personality and presence.  That's classic Joe to me.  Logan being measured in his response chimed with his character too.

Please write more Mr Wagner, Dredd needs you!!

The rest of the prog was also pretty good. Skipping Tracer, the future shock thingy was entertaining, a pretty classic reveal and not very 2000ad but it worked. 

I'm pleased to say I've been able to get back into Grey Area from this prog, having lost touch with it under all the flashing lights and confusing action (oh what an old git I am..) And Jaegir is always a blast, with top quality art. 

With Harvey...I'm sure another model can be produced but maybe the units develop and change with their experiences and so on.  Some sort of machine learning that makes each model over time develop differently in subtle ways.

With the knowledge that another series of Brink will come and Kingmaker back next week all seemed perfect...until the mention of those Survival Gits returning next week. But since it'll be replacing Skip Tracer it's not so bad.

Keep it up Mighty One!   

[Southstreeter]

Skip Tracer - I’m confused. Can anyone tell me how he disarms the bomb, and then somehow sends another (the same?) bomb to the baddies’ HQ?

[73north]

really enjoyed this week's prog
highlight was the end of Jaegir - with the next series going to be called
Valkryie -
with Dredd a close second , Skip Tracer was okay along with the end of 3riller Tooth and Nail
( with a nod to ' The Usual Suspects ' Film ) Grey Area was very nice - and I look forward
to the next part of KingMaker
( although having to wait 2 years - is a bit too long to wait since the last series - in my opinion )

[Darren Stephens]

That cover is all kinds of wonderful! Only read Dredd as of yet, but loved it. It was pretty close to how some had predicted, but with that usual Wagner spin. A masterclass in storytelling.