Round 2: 8 - Alan Grant or Alan Moore - Ultimate Not Wagner Tourney

[Colin YNWA]

And here it is two writers whose writing has had a monumental impact on Tharg's Organs. This is the one I moved as originally it was drawn for the same day as John Smith and Pat Mills and I worried that might explode folks brains. How do you decide between these two titans. I do wonder while the individual decisions might be tough will the outcome be close... well we'll only know if we try hey. So for this final Round 2 vote whose writing for THARG - no Swamp Thing, No Batman please - do you prefer.

Alan Grant - https://web.archive.org/web/20191027021349/http://www.2000ad.org/?zone=droid&page=profiles&choice=ALANG

OR

Alan Moore - https://web.archive.org/web/20190716042636/http://www.2000ad.org/?zone=droid&page=profiles&choice=ALANM

Again a big thank you to Indigo Prime for pointing me to the way back machine which has archieved a version of Barney, gone (hopefully temporarily) but not forgotten.

What is all this nonsense you ask well we're finding out whose 2000ad (Meg and associated items) writing do you prefer? Voting - just add a comment here with whose work you prefer (and anything else you might wish to say to discuss their work). This vote closes some time early Monday 15th June?

Want to know more https://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=46503.msg1029915#msg1029915

Quarter finals starting soon.

[broodblik]

Alan Who ? Which Alan ? Grant

I will go for Alan Grant purely of his contribution to AD and naturally for his work on Strontium Dog and Anderson.

[Greg M.]

This one boils down to whether a small number of absolutely brilliant stories beat a mountain of very good stories. Ultimately, my policy is that even one work of genius has to beat an ocean of 'mere' excellence, and though Grant contributed far, far more to 2000AD than Moore, the best thing Moore ever wrote for the prog - Halo Jones Bk III - beats the best thing Grant ever wrote or co-wrote. Alan Moore.

[abelardsnazz]

Alan Grant, for Anderson and Mazeworld.

[Dark Jimbo]

Grant obviously contributed far, far more to the prog, but his long tenure means that he contributed a fair few stories that are just 'okay' (and the Snozzbournes, the final Samantha Slade stories and others aren't even that) to counterbalance his masterpieces. Moore burnt less than half as long, but perhaps much brighter - if only for Halo Jones, Moore gets it.

[IndigoPrime]

The problem I have with Grant is separating him from the Wagner partnership. With Wagner, he wrote some of the best Dredds, and years of Strontium Dog. But in all honesty, I've been less enamoured with his solo stuff.

Moore... some fantastic Future Shocks, Skizz, Halo Hones... In my mind, he'll have problems against some in this list, but for now, Moore sneaks it for me.

Actually, I'm going to use my cunning mod powers. Changed my mind. Grant deserves the nod for all the amazing stuff he co-wrote with Wagner, even if a lot of his solo stuff hasn't affected me in quite the same way.

[AlexF]

I'm finding it very hard to forget the anecdote that it was Grant, as sub-editor, who found Moore's early submissions and was able to point out to him how to make them better.

I'm also finding it hard to forget the tears on reading (and re-reading) Skizz and Halo Jones, and the chills rendered just by the title '...and all of them were empty.'

I'm going with Alan Moore.

[SmallBlueThing(Reborn)]

Moore. Despite his relatively small contribution, Halo Jones, Skizz, his Future Shocks and Time Twisters, DR & Quinch and RED PLANET BLUES are among the best things the prog has ever printed.

SBT

[Colin YNWA]

The problem I have with Grant is separating him from the Wagner partnership. With Wagner, he wrote some of the best Dredds, and years of Strontium Dog. But in all honesty, I've been less enamoured with his solo stuff.

I get this is a problem for lots of folks, but I think this really under values some key Alan Grant work. Specifically his long and frankly consistently superb run on Anderson with Arthur Ranson and others. Which frankly starts being excellent from 'Hour of the Wolf' onwards. For me there are few long form runs on any 2000ad character that sustain such a consistent  high level.

While it might not reach the isolated peaks of Skizz and Halo Jones - though there are moments that challenge in there - his large form storytelling and consistent volume deserve a great deal of credit. This would certianly be a very significent factor for me if I was voting here. The brilliance of Anderson always feels a little overlooked to me.

[Bolt-01]

Alan Moore.

Tough, tough round.

[IndigoPrime]

I get this is a problem for lots of folks, but I think this really under values some key Alan Grant work. Specifically his long and frankly consistently superb run on Anderson with Arthur Ranson and others. Which frankly starts being excellent from 'Hour of the Wolf' onwards.

My view is less positive. There was a very strong run, with some blips (Judge Goon—really?), but for me Anderson went off the boil when she went into space, although was somewhat redeemed as a strip in Satan (and the interactions with Dredd, which felt very real). That stuff with the children kind of list me though.

Regardless, it's a tough draw. Quite a few of these have been a coin toss. By pure luck, we have a situation were a lot of lower-tier writers have been drawn together, and elsewhere there have been top-of-the-table skirmishes. If nothing else, it goes to show in these things how much chance is a factor.

[Colin YNWA]

Regardless, it's a tough draw. Quite a few of these have been a coin toss. By pure luck, we have a situation were a lot of lower-tier writers have been drawn together, and elsewhere there have been top-of-the-table skirmishes. If nothing else, it goes to show in these things how much chance is a factor.

Hasn't it - which was kinda my hope but now having done it the positive has meant that we've had some votes in each round that have been eye watering. The negative means that in the later rounds we might still get some landslides rather than the challenges we'd expect.

Still its fun to have chance throw things up as it does inspire varied conversation so overall I'd say I prefer it that way. It also means this is in no way a ranking. Rather just a method from which the final winner should be the same (???) which is probably nicer?

[broodblik]

I still believe that Grant does not always gets the recognition that he deserves. One of his biggest "problems" is his association with Wagner. Many of the stories he co-wrote with Wagner I will give credit to Wagner and not him at all.

[The Mind of Wolfie Smith]

Alan Moore's contribution was only comparatively small. He actually wrote vast amounts of timeless stories for the prog, including some of the best comics ever written.
And we're kind of locked down in the Hoop right now. And I just wanna get out.
Alan Moore gave the comic a peerless level of emotion, empathy and rich characterisation. His work is still influencing and inspiring - it's gonna be fascinating to read Halo Jones alongside Brink in the delayed US 'Best Of' package.
He gets my vote.

[robprosser]

Alan Moore makes the score.