John Wagner topic - can we have some more, please?

[PsychoGoatee]

John Wagner is one of the best writers ever, we can all agree. Any word on how much Wagner we may get in 2000AD this year? Googling for interviews, I saw a 2018 one from August where he jokes "I’m also retired. Or at least I thought I was." Has he mentioned retirement etc? I hope we get more Dredd from him, or anything we wants to write.

I just listened to a very good 40 years interview with John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra from 2017, great listen. John mentions how he'd like to do a story of Dredd's death, done in Elseworlds style (a'la The Dark Knight Returns), so it wouldn't end the comic or anything. He's mentioned this idea before too.

Shouldn't he be able to do any Dredd story he wants? Seeing how he'd handle this, it could end up being one of the most memorable comics ever written if they let him do it. Not to hype it up, but what on Earth are they thinking not encouraging any Wagner Dredd story? But that's a bit more specific, I just think it's a bit of a missed opportunity for them to not let him write that. And who knows if his interest in that story has changed at all a couple years later.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXQesN7z9EM (that interview)

Anyways, he already has the most impressive resume of any writer, but there's always room for more. 

[Mardroid]

I don’t know how much more John Wagner will write, but I understand there’s a Mechanismo Dredd story coming out fairly soon. I have a feeling it won’t be the last thing he will write for the Prog.

[CalHab]

I don’t know how much more John Wagner will write, but I understand there’s a Mechanismo Dredd story coming out fairly soon. I have a feeling it won’t be the last thing he will write for the Prog.

Next week, according to the current prog.

[PsychoGoatee]

Very cool!

[broodblik]

Here is the add for it:

[rs_jr]

I really like the idea for him writing the death of Dredd and ending the character himself and give finality to Dredd stories and just pass the title to Rico and maybe run a strip that covers Dredd earlier years from 2079-2099

[broodblik]

This is very much a catch 22 situation. I do not want another Dredd, but the time factor always counts against him. I like the idea that the current Dredd strip is told in chronological order. How do you do a Dredd strip without the original Dredd?

As an alternative take I would also like a “what if” story where Wagner can do what he wants with the character. This story line will not be part of the main continuum.

[The Adventurer]

Like it or not, Judge Dredd is a corporate character with a lot of brand value. He's as bullet proof as Superman at this point.

A John Wagner ending might be cool, but it certainly wouldn't be the end of the strip. (In my fantasy, a post-Dredd Dredd comic would feature Beeny, Giant Jr, and Rico as a kind of ensemble group book preserving Dredd's legacy. Heck, they should just do that now without killing Dredd IMO.)

To be honest, does anyone actually know if Wagner wants to do a 'death of Dredd' story? Maybe he's content that the character he co-created and shepherded will live forever?

[broodblik]

Like it or not, Judge Dredd is a corporate character with a lot of brand value. He's as bullet proof as Superman at this point.

A John Wagner ending might be cool, but it certainly wouldn't be the end of the strip. (In my fantasy, a post-Dredd Dredd comic would feature Beeny, Giant Jr, and Rico as a kind of ensemble group book preserving Dredd's legacy. Heck, they should just do that now without killing Dredd IMO.)

To be honest, does anyone actually know if Wagner wants to do a 'death of Dredd' story? Maybe he's content that the character he co-created and shepherded will live forever?

I can not remember that I did read that Wagner wanted to do a end strip for Dredd with Carlos (Rebellion was not to keen on this). So this statement from me is not a fact.

I musty agree I can not see that the character will be killed off it is almost like British Comics Superman/Batman. DC tried to kill off Superman and it proved to be a complete disaster. I do not want to see another Dredd I want the original.

[The Adventurer]

Like it or not, Judge Dredd is a corporate character with a lot of brand value. He's as bullet proof as Superman at this point.

A John Wagner ending might be cool, but it certainly wouldn't be the end of the strip. (In my fantasy, a post-Dredd Dredd comic would feature Beeny, Giant Jr, and Rico as a kind of ensemble group book preserving Dredd's legacy. Heck, they should just do that now without killing Dredd IMO.)

To be honest, does anyone actually know if Wagner wants to do a 'death of Dredd' story? Maybe he's content that the character he co-created and shepherded will live forever?

I can not remember that I did read that Wagner wanted to do a end strip for Dredd with Carlos (Rebellion was not to keen on this). So this statement from me is not a fact.

I musty agree I can not see that the character will be killed off it is almost like British Comics Superman/Batman. DC tried to kill off Superman and it proved to be a complete disaster. I do not want to see another Dredd I want the original.

Death of Superman was a storyline. Superman's return was intended from the start. And strictly speaking at the time it sold pretty well and lead to some decent stuff. But it also did a lot of damage to the collectors market and when further event driven stories didn’t sell as well it culminated in the 1996 comics crash.

'The Death of Dredd' as a storyline could work. But... in some ways that was already done with the lead up to Necropolis, yes?

[broodblik]

'The Death of Dredd' as a storyline could work. But... in some ways that was already done with the lead up to Necropolis, yes?

Yes this is true. Necropolis was like "The Dead of Superman" but done so much better.

[JOE SOAP]

To be honest, does anyone actually know if Wagner wants to do a 'death of Dredd' story? Maybe he's content that the character he co-created and shepherded will live forever?

https://www.bleedingcool.com/2016/07/29/judge-dredds-creator-john-wagner-plans-to-kill-him-offf-forever/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hs77OaxEU8&t=12m14s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXQesN7z9EM&t=29m28s

[Richard]

From Bleeding Cool:

"JW: I would like to write his death story, and have suggested it to Rebellion. I’ve thought about it for some time now. Fans have even suggested pooling their money together to get me and Carlos to create that comic. But, I couldn’t do it without Rebellion’s agreement. You never know. there may be an Elsewhere like story one day.

OM: Like Dredd’s Dark Knight?

JW: Yeah. It would be a lovely story to tell, but I would have to give it a lot more though, something like that. Not an epic, but maybe something as long as Dark Justice, a dozen or so episodes."

[swavesey]

I am certainly missing Wagner - with the end of strontium dog - and various writers doing dredd. I've also been reading loads of his more recent work in the Hache collections - and it's just superb. Does anyone know if there is more Wagner Dredd to come - or anything else?

[Richard]

I spoke to him at a signing last month and he said he had not retired. There will be more Dredd, and he now intends to finish Spector after all (having originally decided not to when Carlos died). (He's also keen on Rok of the Rovers, although I can't remember if he said he would do more of that but I wove surprised.)