Prog 1803 - Splashdown

[radiator]

''Let's repeal the mutant laws. I forsee no problems.''

He knew full well there'd be problems, but believed that doing the right thing is sometimes difficult.

[Dark Jimbo]

Yeah, in fairness I think he said 'It may not be the easy thing to do. But it's the right thing to do. There's a difference.' My point simply being that if ever there was a time for Dredd's word to be at a low in the department, it's now - even after Chaos Day. Or maybe especially after Chaos Day, given it was a reprucssuion for his own actions.

Anyway - this week's Dredd was absolutely, utterly, beautifully superb. Six of the most magnificent pages in British comicdom that aren't by Wagner. THIS is the kind of stuff I was hoping for after Chaos Day. So many callbacks to past events, characters and continuity while simultaneously so many new characters and setting up of new status quos and challenges. So so so good. I worry for [spoiler]Hollister[/spoiler] though. And where's my beloved Roffman in all this...?!

I've yet to read the rest of the prog. I read Dredd through twice then sat there mulling it over for a while, and that felt like a whole prog's worth.

[radiator]

And where's my beloved Roffman in all this...?!

Dead, presumably...

[Goosegash]

Can someone please tell me when we first learned about the [spoiler]clone of Kazan[/spoiler]? I don't recall him at all and I get the feeling a Thargnote has fallen off that page. Apart from that jarring introduction I thoroughly enjoyed this week's instalment, especially Hershey's outburst.

The [spoiler]Kazan clone[/spoiler] first appeared in Gulag(Progs 1383 - 86), but hasn't been featured for a very long time(I think the last appearance was pre-Origins?). One of the story threads left dangling when Gordon Rennie left, nice to see it finally getting picked up again.

[JUDGE BURNS]

Another great cover this week ...reminds me of swamp thing.

Anyway only 2 stories worthy of chat in the prog this week for me....again!

Dredd: a cracker of a teaser story....of things to come??? mmmmm I wonder who it is?

ABC Warriors: story building up nicely and love the art by the Langley droid.

The other 3 stories just do not flicker my circuits at all.

Top Story: DREDD 

[Dark Jimbo]

The [spoiler]Kazan clone[/spoiler] first appeared in Gulag(Progs 1383 - 86), but hasn't been featured for a very long time(I think the last appearance was pre-Origins?). One of the story threads left dangling when Gordon Rennie left, nice to see it finally getting picked up again.

I suggested it years ago but we really do need it now more than ever - we ought to have a Dredd TPB called 'Blood Trails' or similar, collecting all Gordon Rennie's Sov/Vienna storylines. A lot of important stuff in there that newer readers won't have read.

[Cactus]

Can someone please tell me when we first learned about the [spoiler]clone of Kazan[/spoiler]? I don't recall him at all and I get the feeling a Thargnote has fallen off that page. Apart from that jarring introduction I thoroughly enjoyed this week's instalment, especially Hershey's outburst.

The [spoiler]Kazan clone[/spoiler] first appeared in Gulag(Progs 1383 - 86), but hasn't been featured for a very long time(I think the last appearance was pre-Origins?). One of the story threads left dangling when Gordon Rennie left, nice to see it finally getting picked up again.

Thanks Goosegash. I'd actually read that story a few months ago but without episode 1 I didn't really get what was going on and promptly forgot. By remarkable coincidence a second hand copy of prog 1382 arrived from Oz this week so I'll catch up.

[Colin YNWA]

Well on the most average of weeks 2000ad is the best comic out there, on a week like this its the best piece of entertainment his side of the martial bed (ouch sorry). I bloody loved this weeks Prog. The individual stories may not be the absolute best that have been in the Prog (they ain't half bad mind) but the shear diversity of the stories of such quality make this comic quite the wonder it is... and I didn't even really get the Dredd, was I meant to?

The problem with these sort of Chress as metaphor things, aside from the fact its pretty cliche, is the fact it assumes you get the pieces in their right place. So was the reference to the Black and White Queen Dredd and Hershey pretending to disagree for some reason unseen, or something else. I don't think I'm meant to know yet, but someone here will probably come along and show me up. I reckon the fish reference is a red herring (ahem) and meant to make us think Cal but its not... not that I know who of course... having said all that I bloody loved it. Best of the Pr...

...well no actually it wasn't that honour goes to Brass Sun which is bloody wonderful. I think its one of those strips when read back people will be surprised quite how much does happen. But in contrast to Dredd it doesn't feel so dense.

I love this Twisted Tale, even at its most mundane and seemingly grounded ABC Warriors is bonkers brilliant and Grey Area is a very down to Earth procedural done very well.

The perfect Prog, well aside from Tharg telling us we should have all them Dante books on or shelves, well ya Greenness get ya self down the printers and get us some Book 3s printed, I know its the only thing stopping me doing just that...

[A.Cow]

My theory about the line 'not in the official history' is that this is a character from a non-Wagner Dredd from shortly after the Cal era.

Thought I'd did out the post-Day-the-Law-Died progs for a clue and found a doozy.

DTLD finished in Progression 109 and Dredd was missing from Prog 110. A rare event, and possibly we're seeing a retro-filling of that gap!

[Taryn Tailz]

its the best piece of entertainment his side of the martial bed

Is that anything like the marital bed? 

[A.Cow]

Oops -- 'Prog' not 'Progression'.  Bloody predictive text! (And lack of edit function)

[Colin YNWA]

its the best piece of entertainment his side of the martial bed

Is that anything like the marital bed? 

Not in my house...

[Trout]

It's about damn time somebody said something like that to Dredd. He does avoid responsibility. I've long thought it was a character flaw - remember this story? Hershey: "Same old Dredd. Anything to avoid the paperwork."

This week we have a very important Dredd story, because it's Al Ewing doing a Council of Five scene that has a significant effect on continuity. And it works. We're all accepting it because it's a great story and because Al handles the characters well. This is why he's Wagner's understudy now. Imagine this done by pretty much any other writer - somewhere in our minds we'd be thinking, "It's not really canon". I'm thrilled that Al's had the confidence to do this.

I'm sure the biscuits are a clue. Who eats biscuits?

As for the rest, I enjoyed Grey Area and ABC, and I wish we could have more of Brass Sun every week. It's too good for five pages a week. I can't read the Twisted Tales any more. I really tried with this one but I couldn't follow it. I think it's a combination of the layout and the lack of dialogue. It doesn't really lead my eye around the page.

- Trout

[Pete Wells]

Well, I frigging loved that prog!

The cover is incredible though a bit dark on the printed version. I've just put the digital version on my blog, check it out on a lovely backlit screen!

Dredd - Holy Joe Smith, what an explosive episode that was! Kazen is a complete shit and I thought Al Ewing did a wonderful job with his creepy dialogue. I know the chess thing is a bit clichéd but it still worked really well in this episode. As a Dredd saddo, I love seeing council/organisational matters so was happy to be privvy to Hershey's cabinet re-shuffle, which may well prove costly. I fear for Hershey with her choice of Bachman to join the council and found her nasty little rant at Dredd absolutely shocking (though spot on too!) As if I wasn't reeling enough from that, the last page just blew me away! Who the f*ck was that talking to Dredd? Whoever it was, his biscuit dunking technique was poor, you need to dunk much more than that FFS! Good to see biscuits back in Dredd.

ABC's - Love it! Great design on those Mongrol-headed erm... warheads on page one and the swamp thing riff was a hoot. I'm LOVING where this is going, my guess is Hammerstein has been tasked with killing Howard Quartz to stop him making more bots, he fails and as punishment is made to join Ro-Busters where the likelihood is he'll be destroyed at Quartz' metal hands. To think the Hammerstein's were introduced in Savage too; it's a great bit of dovetailing from Pat Mills.

Brass Sun - Bah, I thought the logo was disintegrating the further we got into the strip but a quick check shows it's not. That could be a nice idea for the future Thargy! Anyway, beautiful art though I'm in the not-much-happens camp this week - effectively the girl runs across a collapsing bridge! However, what little happens looks stunning, I'm realling enjoying the strip.

Twisty doo dahs - I'm usually not keen on these at all but this one was a treat! The design of the creatures was a joy and some of the sneaky traps brilliant! The giant rat's fanny was a hoot - however those rats things were splatted with a chemical to make them horny against their will!!! I'm bracing myself to read pages and pages and pages of right on complaints about it! Hey, I'm joking okay!?!

Grey Area - I love this too. Lee's art is really, really nice and the story is riveting. That Uuveth creature is a right twat and I look forward to seeing him get his!

A REALLY strong prog, I am a happy squaxx!

[vzzbux]

Did SJS[spoiler] Judge Slocum die in the[/spoiler] Cal saga, I cant remember and don't have the story to hand. If not this may be our biscuit dunker.




V