Topics

1

Music / Napalm Death - Resentment is always Seismic/a Final Throw of Throes...

« on: 18 December, 2021, 07:58:12 PM »

Featuring tracks from the Throes of Joy... sessions that didn't make it onto the album,  plus a couple of covers;  Resentment is always Seismic is out in Feb 2022.

Available to buy right now as a digital download is the excellent Narcissus*,  which is the first track on the upcoming release.

Enjoy and Cheers!

*This is a link to the song on Youtube and not a site to purchase.

2

Prog / Prog 2259 - Jurassic Shark

« on: 21 November, 2021, 09:26:46 AM »

Cover by Tazio Bettin. Looks nice but leaves me wondering why we can't have another series of Slaughterbowl instead of Finnigun Begin-Again/Endless Dexter.

Judge Dredd - The Musical. Part 1.  Sensitive Klegg returns and he's a singing sensation. It's a fun opener which sets the stage and has very little Dredd in it. I got the riff on the Bodycount album cover but couldn't get the other one. Lovely artwork!

The Diaboliks - London Calling, Part 3 sees history catching up with them and some pearly Kings and Queens get a slap. Good episode.

Dexter - Lordy Jordy, King of Everything, Part 2. Dexter is as Dexter does, which is Dexter's wont, I Suppose. Not for me but it has it's fans so there we are.

Scarlet Traces - Storm Front, Part 9. The action is dialed back and the conversations are interesting. Lovely artwork!

The Out - Book 2, Part 9. This strip continues to amaze me. Although dialogue heavy and violence light, like Brink, I find the adventures of Cyd far more interesting and compelling. The lovely artwork helps, I'm sure.

Cheers

3

Prog / Prog 2230 - Takin' Care Of Business

« on: 01 May, 2021, 07:13:43 PM »

Eye catching Intestinauts cover by Pye Parr. I love the designs of these plucky little Gut-Scrubbers.

There's a Droid Life and Tharg touts the next Regened Prog - 2233, featuring Pandora Perfect. I liked the first one-off, it was a fun tale.

Dredd - A Penitent Man, Part 6. Final episode in what has been a very good run. Things end in a way I wasn't expecting and it looks like we'll be seeing more of Kyle in the future. Maybe this is all leading to a The Pit style Mega-Epic with Dredd doing a stint in the SJS to root out some of the shit. I'm probably wrong.

Thistlebone - Poisoned Roots, Part 10. I love this strip but for those who are finding it a bit slow this episode ramps it up a touch. Malcom and Seema meet for a drink and things take a bit of a turn. I'm wondering if Seema allowed herself to get captured and her friend who was coming to pick her up is actually following them from a safe distance. I'm probably wrong.

Deadworld - Transpolar, Part 2. Again, I was surprised by how this ended. Not only was it fairly optimistic but it looks like Death and Co. have a surprise coming.

"It's raining Nukes. Hallelujah - It's raining Nukes... You Pukes!" I dare say it'll all end in tears. This strip is pure Gold!

Tharg's 3riiler - Symbiotic Love Triangle. The Intestinauts return and things are a bit different as one of them seems to be heading out to the wider world. With a little help from his friend... This is a fun opener and acts as a good counter-point to the darker strips in the Prog.

Feral and Foe II, Part 7. Another great episode. Krod continues to steal the show until the end when the others seem to have come to grips with their bodies. The WoodGod Emissary is a sight to behold!

There's a Letters page.

Outstanding Prog!

Cheers

4

Games / Heroquest UK release.

« on: 10 October, 2020, 09:41:32 AM »

That's right, the new version of Heroquest is available for pre-order in the UK from Zavvi.

Only the Mythic tier is available. This contains the new version of the base game and two expansion packs, Kellar's Keep and Return of the Witch Lord, plus all stretch goals unlocked in the current campaign. Total cost is £149.99 + £1.99 for delivery.

For those who remember the original game there are some different Enemy types due to licensing issues, so no Chaos, Fimir, etc but they do have new equivalents that look quite tasty. All of the furniture pieces are now solid paintable items instead of the old paper style doors and such. On the whole it looks quite nice.

Cheers

5

Prog / Prog 2201 - Fiendish Origins

« on: 27 September, 2020, 10:05:21 AM »

Fiends cover by Tiernen Trevallion.

Judge Dredd - Carry The Nine, Part 2. Maitland sees some action in this episode and Justice Dept. need to build better Robots. Like the design of it, though; reminds me of Conrad from Blunt. Great artwork with one panel in particular being quite the masterpiece - Dredd looming over Maitland, I'm looking at you!


Stickleback - New Jerusalem, Part 2. Another great strip which has taken too long to return. Like others I wasn't sure about the Holmes reveal and the end of the last series but I think it was handled well in the long run. Beautiful artwork, so very different from much in the Prog but eye-pleasing all the same.


Skip Tracer - Hyperballad, Part 2. Nolan Blake fights Monster of the week and uses his psychic blast to incapacitate them. This strip is not for me but it must have quite a few fans for it to keep returning with a frequency we don't see with other strips... Where the Drokk is Brass Sun?


Fiends Of The Eastern Front - Constantia, Part 1 Dialogue heavy opener which is fine by me because I found it intriguing. I must say though, it seems like a bit of a trudge to go for a pint. Stunning artwork!


Hookjaw - 2. I never read the original strip this is all new to me whatever spin has been put on it. Two episodes in and I'm finding it interesting. I'm a fan of Horror and this slow burn approach is something that seems to work well in the Prog. I'd also cite Hope... and Thistlebone as examples. Beautiful artwork again but the Prog is rarely in short supply anyway.


Cheers

6

Prog / Prog 2197 - Saints & Sinners

« on: 29 August, 2020, 08:55:07 PM »

Diaboliks cover by Dom Reardon.

Dredd - End Of Days, Part 13 Death is revealed and guess who it is? Except I think there's more to it than that. I wondering if it's the Angel Head that's at the heart of this and I base this also on my recent reread of The Grevious Journey of... (Mega collection). Maybe the typewriter guy from the third series is actually from Dredd's Earth and by killing the planet they can stop him from ever writing about Ichabod? It's Saturday night and I've had a few so bare that in mind.


The Out, Part 10. Another layer to this absolute stunner of a (new) series. The artwork is superb as always and the exchange between Gunhunwud and Cyd is revelatory to say the least.


Future Shocks - Steam M For Murder. Was enjoying this right up until the last page and then it became sort of non shocking, with the interesting aspects of the story, no murder/sentient robots that cannot kill but one with an injury might have the potential to do so, being sidelined for a person who will do anything for money.


Tharg's Thrillers - Un Roman Fantastique. It's 1899 and a Police investigation into murder leads to other worldly consequences...perhaps. There's always the chance they are tripping from the effects of the opened bottle. Great opening episode with lovely artwork.


The Diaboliks - A Crooked Beat, Part 1. The start of this series sees the focus on a new character and it's done very well. Either he's hard as nails or he's elusive as hell. Another good opener.


There's a letters page.


Cheers

7

Prog / Prog 2193 - Nothing To See Here?

« on: 01 August, 2020, 11:42:46 AM »

Epic cover by Mark Harrison.

Thrill of the future - What is Department K?


Dredd - End Of Days, Part 10. Judge Patrick sacrifices herself for the greater good and instantly regrets it. Grim end indeed! Dredd hands himself into the Sovs. Yeah, you heard me. I'm enjoying this tale a lot.


Full Tilt Boogie continues.


Diaboliks - Profondo Rosso. The sixth and final part of this strip. Decent ending to this run and also lays a little ground for future tales. Set to return in Prog 2197.


The Oder - Land Of The Free, Part 10. Antoine Berg goes full mental with a Steampunk Mini-Gun thing and goads Bacon into the Frying pan. Or in front of a Train rather. Chin up Bacon... and arms... and legs.


The Out. Kej Daddy-Warbucks steals the show in this episode as he tries to keep Cyd from being too much of a Human. By which I mean causing unnecessary hassle. Oh, and there's a glimpse of the Tankinar! Great episode.


There's a letters page.


Cheers

8

Music / Napalm Death - Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism!

« on: 25 July, 2020, 06:13:41 PM »

Five long years after the release of the successful (and absolutely outstanding) Apex Predator/Easy Meat, Napalm Death are finally releasing a new album. Available for pre-order from the following:


napalmrecords.com Standard CD and Media book versions.


The Decibel Store De-Weponised Steel and Black Swirled Vinyl.


Nuclear Blast Special edtion CD with 3 bonus tracks.


I personally cannot vouch for any of these companies as I've never used them!


I'll link to a couple of songs for the multitude one or two of you that may be interested.


Backlash Just Because which is a bonus track on the special edition. I like It.


White Kross which is a cover song originally by Sonic Youth and is the B-Side to the available EP Logic Ravaged By Brute Force.


Enjoy!

Cheers

9

Megazine / Meg 422 - Show Of Force!

« on: 11 July, 2020, 07:19:05 PM »

Striking cover by Paul Williams and Chris Blythe.

Dredd - Extraction. Dredd and Giant take a trip into the cursed earth to save a mining operation. Wonder minerals aside I do wonder where all of the cannon fodder Judges come? Stunning artwork!

Tales From The Black Museum - The Cackle. A tale of laughter and Plant-Thing Somethings that will possibly horrify you in more ways than one. It's a decent enough tale and the artwork is lovely.

Devlin Waugh - The Wolves Of St Vitus. Devlin and Dildo Titivilius go on holiday to Prague in this complete tale featuring Teens and a Werewolf. But not Teenwolf which is for the best. It's a decent enough tale with plenty of humor and a different art style courtesy of Patrick Goddard, with colours by Pippa Bowland. Very good indeed.

Blunt III - Part 8. Final episode in a series I wasn't sure of in the beginning but by the end has become one of my Meg favorites! This is despite them (seemingly) killing my two favorite characters and dashing my hopes of a Blunt and Conrad spinoff. Seriously though, great ending to a series I grew to love.

Lawless - Boom Town, Part 8. Kids talking politics and and some clown thinking he can put the squeeze on the locals. Lawless is another strip I wasn't sure on in the beginning but I have grown to love. The weaving of major disaster arcs with smaller character pieces is simply something to behold and it's always a visual treat.

The Floppy offers something different this month with a 22 page Tie-in for a Sci-Fi novel called The Chimera Code. There are also 6 Twisted Tales by the mighty Bob Byrne.

All in all - Outstanding!

Cheers

10

Megazine / Meg 417 - Smash and Crab

« on: 15 February, 2020, 11:00:11 AM »

Before we talk strips I'll mention the Obituary to the late, great, Ellie de Ville. Unsung star of many a strip who is missed by many!

Lovely cover by Karl Richardson.

Dredd - Plunder, Part 3. Final part of this and as much as I enjoyed the tale I was hoping to see more from the sunken (Again?) city. Stunning artwork!

Devlin Waugh - A Very Large Splash, Part 3. Devlin is the star of the Meg this month with an episode that is hilarious and horrific in equal measure. An outraged talking Cock, Face eating and playing with matches - Sounds like fun!

Blunt III - Part 3. Blunt continues to brighten up the Meg with its tasty artwork and incredible Alien-Creature designs. Still not sure how this will end but it's an entertaining read none the less.

Zombie Army - Last Rites, Part 2. Lots of bullets and exploding heads followed by a bit of chat in a shed. As I've said before I have never played the games this is based on but that may actually be for the better as I've no pre-conceived notions of what is or could be going on. All waffle aside, I like this strip.

Lawless - Boom Town, Part 3. A day in the life of Badrock and tensions mount as Monsters are discussed and a riderless bike drifts in to town. Glorious stuff!

other text pieces include an Interrogation with Martin Simmonds and a new book , Battle Stations by Hugo Pratt and Donnie Avenell.

Top Meg!

Cheers

11

Games / Warhammer: Mortal Realms

« on: 01 February, 2020, 10:23:40 AM »

I wasn't going to bother with this collection as I'm only really interested in the Undead models but I can offload most of the Humans to another collector, so here we go...

Part one comes with a ridiculous amount of goodies for £2.99.

3 Sequitors, which have very detailed bases. These will be painted as Golems and not Golums as I misspelt on another thread... my precious.

10 Chainrasps which are sort of a cross between a Skeleton and a Ghoul. Stunning models with a lot of detail but I may try a different colour scheme for some of them. A couple of Fire Wraiths are just what the Doctor Dungeon-Master ordered!

There's also a booklet with a bit of Lore and instructions on building the models. A ruler and game mat with six dice and a poster.

Cheers

12

Prog / Prog 2166 - Active Shooters!

« on: 25 January, 2020, 11:03:47 AM »

Tasty looking Brink cover by INJ Culbard.
 
Thrill of the Future - Deliverance, By David Hine and Nick Percival, coming to the Megazine sometime this year.

Dredd - Kill Bloopy, Part 4. The final part of this tale and it leaves me a bit cold, to be honest. Nice artwork but I'm not sold on the 'Imaginary friend stealth and weapon ops' bit at the end.

Brink - Hate Box, Part 17. Brink goes all Hardcore and Ultra-Violent in this action heavy episode. Great stuff and only Seventeen parts in!

The Zaucer of Zilk - A Zaucerful of Zecrets, Part 5. Beautiful artwork with eye-popping colours but a meandering tale lurks within. I really enjoyed the first series but I'm not really getting much from this one at the moment.

Feral & Foe - Part 5. Fantastic new series which I'm enjoying a lot. Things get a bit more serious this week for the pair and some poor monsters get burned at the stake.

Proteus Vex - Another Dawn, Part 5. This is another great new series. Totally mental in a way we haven't seen since the likes of Shakara or even the original series of Bad Company! Crazy ideas thrown into a pot and lovingly mixed with tasty pictures gives you excessive Thrillage, apparently.

Cheers

13

Prog / Prog 2161 - Organ Malfunction!

« on: 07 December, 2019, 06:39:08 PM »

Cover by Nick Percival.

Dredd - The Harvest, Part 4. Final episode in what has been an excellent story.

Defoe - The Divisor, Part 12. Final episode and I'm a bit lost to be honest. Is Defoe meant to look evil at the end, as if possessed, or am I misreading it?

Brink - Hate Box, Part 12. Talky episode that reminds me of the crime drama's my mum is fond of: N.C.I.S./Law & Order and such. Not to my taste but the artwork is lovely.

Hope "Under Fire" - Part 12. Final episode and I'm really sorry to see it go. This is one of the best thrills to grace the Prog in years and at no detriment to other strips. We really do seem to be in another Golden age which brings me to...

Fall of Deadworld - Doomed, Part 12. Stunning episode that reaps some of the seeds sown near the beginning of this arc. Excellent writing and artwork, as always. The 'Apocalypse' page in particular!

Stunning Prog!

Cheers

14

Prog / Prog 2156 - Gangster's Paradise.

« on: 02 November, 2019, 11:57:56 AM »

Striking Brink cover by INJ Culbard. Beautiful colouring, very nice indeed.

Thrills of the Future - Action and Cor/Buster specials and much, much more, apparently.

Dredd, Guatemala - Part 7. Penultimate episode sees Dredd and Co take on El Presidentes' forces. Brit-Cit gets saved from a good hot slap! Will be sorry to see this series end.

Defoe, The Divisor - Part 7. Am I right in thinking that The 'Shining Ones' are the same adversaries from Finn? Does anyone remember Finn?* I was a bit lost in this episode on how the Reeks got onto the Space ship unless it was a case of them literally just appearing.

Brink, Hate Box - Part 7 plays an interesting game of Guess the swear word! I think I got them all correct including two instances of the banned word! Interesting episode.

Hope "Under Fire" - Part 7. Hope really is a dark piece of work and I love it!

The Fall of Deadworld, Doomed - Part 7. I love this strip!

There's a Judge Dredd Star Scan by Brendan McCarthy and Mark Harrison.

Cheers

*I liked Finn.

15

Prog / Prog 2151 - The Dark Side Of The Moon!

« on: 28 September, 2019, 11:19:20 AM »

Wraparound Defoe cover by Stewart Kenneth Moore. The ship and cityscape below looks pretty good.

Droid Life by Cat Sullivan.

Dredd - carries on in great style. Top stuff!

Defoe - The Divisor, Part 2. Reek-Light episode, and all the better for it. The artwork doesn't seem to be everyone's cup of tea but, for the most part, I like it. Clock-work man looks particularly excellent, drawn in exquisite detail.

Brink - Hate Box, part 2. This is a thrill I run hot and cold on. The end of the last series was interesting enough but now we're back to talking heads which isn't to my taste. It all seems a bit like a soap opera rather than a space opera, IMO. Others love the strip and that's fine.

Hope - Under Fire, part 2. I loved the first series of Hope and so far this one is shaping up to be of at least equal quality, if not better! Is it just me or does Alberto Modi look like John Wayne? Excellent panel layouts and lettering. This and Dredd would be tied for top thrill if not for...

Deadworld - Doomed, part 2. This strip has become one of my all-time Prog favorites. Apparently you can kill that which does not live but I reckon old Sydney isn't quite finished yet. Stunning artwork as always!

There's half a letters page and an advert for The Fall Of Deadworld - Red Mosquito by Matthew Smith.

Cheers