Prog 2315: Solar Flare

[Leigh S]

A Friday prog! Ntot had one of those since I don;t know when, so lets have a quick look

Dredd continues to be interesting and derivative in equal measure (could ahve done without Senior Leadership Team intrigue again  - get enough of that in real life!)

Pat couldnt have written a more PAt script for this one if its his last - evil wummin who we never heard of before is casually mentioned and is now super important to Joe's entire backstory (so now she just needs to tur up next week)

Hope: nope

The Out is pretty, but dragging its heels a bit - hope it gets a move on soon

Vex ... Vex I already feel like I need to reread the first few parts of this one, let alone the previous tales... frutstrating as an alien space opera should be right up my alley...

[Colin YNWA]

A Friday prog! Ntot had one of those since I don;t know when, so lets have a quick look

Wow a Friday Prog, impressive. They were like hens teeth even before covid and then Royal Mail going to pot!

[Magnetica]

Think I have only once received a Friday Prog before.

Not counting those that came the week after.😂

[Southstreeter]

Friday prog has been the norm for quite a while - unfortunately it's the week before's!

[broodblik]

Cover by Neil Roberts:

[Colin YNWA]

Second Saturday Prog on the bounce... and I was chuffin' away so didn't get the chance to revel in it... am I being churlish to find that annoying.... WELL I DON'T CARE... BOOOOO!

[IndigoPrime]

Ha! No such luck here this week. No 2000 AD and also no Beano and no Phoenix. It's still all very random.

[Colin YNWA]

So a Sunday Prog it is then (silly whine and moan) and its not bad at all, once you pass a cover I'm just not a fan of. From the painting, finely crafted though it is to the font choice of the tagline. Everything feels so... artificial to my eye.

Unlike the art in Dredd which remains as wonderful as the story. Sure I can see why folks feel its a little too grounded but I love the way the crazy future world of Mega City One peaks through that and makes it all the more crazy in the context of the gritty normality that dominates.

Joe Pineapples the art is still miles ahead of the first two parts... the story... isn't

Hope even when needing a re-read its a horrible delight on the eye.

The Out well this one is all about how we look and its a dazing flash in the eyes to go with the wonderful close sutble story.

Proteus Vex how does Jake Lynch make his gritty, scratchy art, feeling so perfect for a crime comic (say) work so well in this gloriously crafted space opera epic. Its an incredible thing to pull off and he does it so well.  The story continues to dazzle.

3 against 2 but those 3, wow those 3...

[Blue Cactus]

I know what you mean about Lynch's art on Vex. Things still seem kind of grubby and worn like in the closeup of whatshername on p1, but then you get something like the background of panel 1 p.2 which is all clean and beautiful. I'm sure Boswell's colours have something to do with it but this universe is sleek and shiny when it needs to be and dirty and pick-marked when you get in close to things. Works a treat!

[IndigoPrime]

A Monday Prog here. I'll take it. I liked the cover. It stands out. I like the Dredd more. Sure, folks can grumble about the dodgy senior Judge trope or the slight verbosity of the lead, but no-one writes Dredd like Wag—. Sorry, Niemand. Honestly, I've not been this excited about a bunch of Dredd strips since Al Ewing's run. There are other writers I've enjoyed – still enjoy – on Dredd, but there's something about Niemand's scripts that just feel right. And I bloody loved that twist on the last page.

After that, Joe Pineapples is like being repeatedly slapped in the face with a wet and rotten fish. I'll admit, I quite liked the lift bit, but the rest of it? Just no. The dialogue on the last two pages was woeful.

Hope was better, in that it ended and was quite interesting – and, finally, broadly coherent. I'm sure there's a great story fighting to get out of this strip, but this run was far, far too long. I'm not sure what happened here, because Hope was tight and horrific in its earlier series. This one just felt messy and muddled. Given how it does end, I think it'll warrant a re-read to see where it next heads. But it won't be at the top of my list.

The Out is good rather than great this week, and feels in search of its next thing, which is presumably set up on the last page. (Still, some nice playing with stereotypes there, in a manner that felt 2023, unlike Joe Pineapples living in the 1970s.) And then Proteus Vex continues to ramp up the epic.

In all, another solid Prog, with three hits, one almost, and one 'never darken my door again'. Although this issue, it felt like Dredd was ahead of the other quality thrills my some margin, despite them also being quality reads.

Dredd > Vex > Out > Hope > Rotten fruit

[A.Cow]

... no-one writes Dredd like Wag—. Sorry, Niemand.

About a year ago, it finally dawned on me who Niemand probably is.  In the past I wasn't the biggest fan of this particular writer, but I've been won over by the sheer quality and passion.  All I can say is, "Bravo" and thank you for proving me wrong.  It's a joy to read these stories.

The dialogue on the last two pages was woeful.

Is it just me who feels that nowadays Mills targets his writing at the translated editions?  Probably sounds much better in French or Italian, but unfortunately shite in English.

[Barrington Boots]

I also got a Friday Prog, which was a crazy surprise but not complaining.

Still enjoying Dredd, the political angle isn't unwelcome for me and I assume will spin this off into something more than Dredd just dealing with this perp. The stuff with the robot was excellent.

Not really enjoying Joe Pineapples. Not much else to say here.

Hope concludes at last - the last couple of episodes have been better, but overall this arc has dragged and dragged where previous ones have been a horrible delight. I felt the art focusing on real world people was a real detriment sadly. For me, the Hope is that the next series is better.

The Out felt slight this week. Quick to read. Looked great.

Proteus Vex is my favourite thing in the Prog at the moment. This is epic, outstanding stuff. The little beetle guy rules.

[broodblik]

Good solid prog.

Dredd – This is some good Dredd. I always enjoyed when the focus is the more on the investigation side of things.

Joe Pineapples – It's better to burn out than to fade away and unfortunately the last works of Mills are the latter.

Hope – This was a long run maybe too long and maybe it could have been done in a single book. The story does end in a very much open-ended type of ending and depends on your interpretation it could end. Hopefully we see more and  the series can continue.

The Out – This episode is very much an in-between episode where the only real change is the change in locale. Still the story is keeping my interest in what is happening next.

Proteus Vex – Really enjoying this series. Lynch is nailing the art and Mike is giving is a proper space opera. My number one in the prog

[JohnW]

The stuff with the robot was excellent.

Niemand does great robots, no mistake.

[The Corinthian]

I like Tharg bigging up "the extra-length finale to Hope" when it gets two more pages than usual and is the same page count as this week's Joe Pineapples.