Prog 2375 - err Bumper Issue ** New Readers start here.

[IndigoPrime]

I mean, I like John McCrea art, so I'm on board. I find the criticism of "Shoulder pad and Eagle way too big" quite a funny one, given Dredd over the years (including the gigantic Ezquerra armour). Rogue looks a bit weird, but the tribute Ezquerra dotted lines made me happy.

But what of the issue itself? Well, it's better than any of the recent Regened ones, that's for sure. And it has a reasonable crack at onboarding new readers. It's a bit weird to say "new readers start here" and fully end one tale, but there you go. The double hit of Proteus Vex was wise, as was the new Dredd and one-off Rogue Trooper. It'll be interesting to see how things go for the next bumper prog in terms of scheduling. More of this mix? Or a few new series alongside sone one-offs?

Anyway, the strips:

Dredd shows the aftermath of the previous run, with Dredd clearly annoyed at Logan, and Logan lacking the strength/authority to push back. Here's hoping Moon doesn't get horribly killed in the next series. Also, I got caught out by that colouring error.

After a Slaytime (Worley + Coleby!) ad, Full Tilt Boogie dials things up a notch. Still very much enjoying this. I hope De Campi is OK, given her recent post on Bluesky about work and asking for good vibes to be sent her way. Then Thistlebone ends in predictably gruesome fashion, albeit not in the specific way I'd have predicted. Not sure what happened to Mr Glassed, although maybe that doesn't matter. So an odd one for me, in that it does stick the landing, but I feel less satisfied than with previous series. Not sure I'll be picking this up in HC.

Indigo Prime surprised me, in how much I enjoyed it. Yes, it's all terribly meta. And you have expect Kek and Lee to make an appearance, the way things are going. But it's weird and fun. Rogue, meanwhile, was... fine? I'm not a massive fan of the character anyway, but when it's done well – Ennis; Cinnabar; the IDW run – I can be drawn right in. This felt like an annual story head beamed in from 1986. Perhaps that's apt for a bumper Prog.

Then Proteus Vex gets a double helping to kick off the new run, which – as I said – was in my opinion a very smart decision. There's enough her to get new readers on board, and to help existing ones refresh their memories. All very good indeed.

Oh, and there's a letters page. Which is nice.

Indigo Prime > Proteus Vex > Full Tilt Boogie > Dredd > Thistlebone > Rogue

[Barrington Boots]

Definite annual vibes from the cover! I thought billing this one as a 'new readers start here' one was an odd decision given it has the last episode of Thistlebone, two stories midway and the reasonably high concept Proteus Vex - not new reader friendly at all I'd thought! Stoked to see Alec Worley will be writing Hawk The Slayer.

Dredd is pure setup, but reading comments above about Dredd / Logan it does highlight their deteriorating relationship in their interaction. Interested to see what's next.

Full Tilt Boogie Cool stuff, pushing the story forward with some new elements, I'm a fan of this run!

Thistlebone wasn't the ending I predicted either and dare I say it, felt a little anticlimatic for all its gruseomeness - although I suppose the weight of the ending should be less Camerons fate but more that final panel? This has been an unusual series - parts of it have been stellar, and in both that final panel and the panel where Thistlebone appeared on celluloid we've had more evidence than in all the previous series put together that it might be an actual entity. Other bits of it I felt weren't as strong as the previous series, although it did capture more of that 70s schlocky feel. I'm a huge fan of this thrill though and looking forward to it coming back.

Indigo Prime also really enjoying this - it's hugely meta and weird and fascinating. Vista's explantion about reality changes had a little nod, for me, of how the change of writer has changed up the cast. As ever this looks terrific.

Rogue Trooper - this was pretty poor imo. It did feel like an old annual episode - or indeed, one that could have been written for Regened as it was very lightweight. Paul Marshall definitely not up to his usual standards on the art, nothing to the story, still don't understand why there are civvies on Nu-Earth. I'll happily admit I'm not a huge fan of Rogue - the concept is awesome, but take out the revenge story and I find him very bland: he works best, for me, when the environment or the antagonists really drive the story and here it didn't: possibly because all those stories have been told already?

Proteus Vex Great to have this back with a long episode. The world seems so fully formed now that it feels like the strip could continue even without Vex himself so a Vex-less episode is no problem! Amusing to see not-Tharg and his 2000ad allstars appear (and get eaten off panel, I assume).

[JayzusB.Christ]

A DIY / Domesticated themed cover this week, Dredd looks like he's been doing a bit of painting the back drop and he's been using his big stick to stir the paint pot.

That backdrop definitely needs a second coat, too. 

Snidiness aside, I love that cover.  John McCrea is one of the old school now, and has never stopped developing his style, so spanner-festooned hats off to him.

[Link Prime]

Love the cover - McCrea for President.

Rogue is always a welcome addition to any Prog - providing it's not the standard rote one-off, as we have here.

Bring back Ennis if possible, and if not, I think Mike Carroll could proffer some very decent Thrillage.
Rennie, Kek-W or the non-commissioned Ruckly Droid would also provide safe chem-suited hands.

There's a movie on the horizon, and blue fever is about to hit approx 85 new readers - we need top talent on the strip.

[Richard]

I thought that was a pretty decent Rogue Trooper story.

[73north]

Dredd with R M Guero,I enjoyed this single story , one point ( no spolier ) is that the colourist messed up as one Cadet has a RED Helmet , in one scene ( thats vital to know its a Cadet )
whereas it should be a WHITE Helmet . I had to re-read it .
I am also looking forward to seeing how Moon develops.

Full Tilt Boogie - enjoyable .

Thistlebone - great serial , and artwork . No Complaints

Indigo Prime - not for me . Struggle to understand much of it . if others love it , fine .

Rogue Trooper not too bad .

Proteus Vex This was just amazing , and also a very welcome return

Now Tharg - When do we get Gordon Rennie's Jaegir back please ??

[broodblik]

I like the cover, especially the fact that it feels like the old annuals of yesteryear. I still think we are suffering from some scheduling issues here going back to the xmas prog. I am not sure from my point of view that this can really be seen as a point where new readers can just pick up and go. We have a few stories that are either in the middle or near the end of their respective runs. Maybe that is part of the plan to showcase and pull in readers to entice them to buy the back progs but to have a few stories starting. I still prefer a natural break. Back to the prog it was a good solid prog.

Dredd – A good start to a new arc – this was just a prelude. I am not too familiar with the artist, but I do like it.

Full Tilt Boogie – Interesting new twist in the story. As always, a good solid episode. Love this.

Thistlebone – This was one twisted tale. I do feel that by the last episode this was dragging its feet a little bit but still a good horrorfest. Simon Davis does know how to gore us out.

Indigo Prime – Like the usage of B/W in the strip still as always, a lot of head-scratching going on what is really going on and yes, I think that is the idea.

Rogue – The bigger disappointment with the strip is not the story but rather the art of Paul Marshall which is not up to his normal high standards. The story itself is fine, nothing spectacular.

Vex – Glad to have this back since this has been my favorite series the last few years. The first episode covers a lot of ground. This was an excellent opening.

[norton canes]

Wham, bam, thank you Quaxxann! Now that is a prog. To think that in a parallel continuity not to very far from here, they're wading through 36 pages of Lowborn High. Ugh... let's not go there.

The McCrea/Davies cover is better than perfect. When I first saw it I was so certain it was based exactly on the layout of an 80's 2000 AD annual that I went through the whole collection three times before I realised 1985 was the closest. Why is Dredd in that agonised pose? Who cares! It's brilliant! Create your own backstory, and explain the mk.I Lawgiver while you're at it! The customised borders around the character cameos are a touch of genius, as are Rogue's spanners and the blades vexing Vex. More multi-character covers in this vein please, Tharg!

The first instalment of 'Next Man Up' makes for a perfect introductory Dredd, dispensing with all the usual clichéd spiel about where Mega City One is and who the Judges are in favour of some lean, action-packed scene-setting. Brilliantly fluid, muscular penwork from Guera, so good in fact that Giulia Brusco forgot where she was for a moment (Or did she? Perhaps Dredd saw a little of himself as Hale emerged from that vehicle..?). And the little puzzle at the end provided a lovely note of uncertainty - why choose the subpar Moon over the patently more capable Hale? Stay tuned!

An absolutely exquisite opening page for Full Tilt Boogie, and the grisly effects of the crystal on Patrick weren't too shoddy either. Indigo Prime however just seems to be tortuously complex for its own sake and isn't grabbing me.

I thought Rogue Trooper was just great - the strip's roots are in the down-to-(nu-)earth war comic attitude of Gerry Finley-Day's run, and 'War Child' stuck to that welcome simplicity. Didn't see any problem with the Marshall droid's art either, his scrawny Nort figures working well against some of their more draconian pronouncements. Interesting, incidentally, to compare this with that other Nu-Earth child soldier tale, Mayflies - now where did I see that..? Nope, escapes me.

Finally, Proteus Vex continues its stratospheric trajectory. I was hooked at 'Still Immortal - My Excellent Book About Me', chapter 1732.

Oh hang on, almost forgot Thistlebone! How do you pick a favourite page out of that? (it's page 4, obviously)

All in all a proper old-school thrill-packed prog, and a massive improvement on... what was it called..?

[Woolly]

And the little puzzle at the end provided a lovely note of uncertainty - why choose the subpar Moon over the patently more capable Hale? Stay tuned!

She proved herself to be a good Judge when Dredd questioned her about her injuries. And Maitland was a good Judge.

As for Hale, I imagine Dredd saw too much of himself there. No need for two Dredd's on this mission I guess!

[A.Cow]

As for Hale, I imagine Dredd saw too much of himself there. No need for two Dredd's on this mission I guess!

Nah, Dredd inferred his logic earlier in the story: a heatseeker would have done the job.  I don't think he's impressed by showboating; he wants someone who knows their duty.

[Vector14]

As for Hale, I imagine Dredd saw too much of himself there. No need for two Dredd's on this mission I guess!

Nah, Dredd inferred his logic earlier in the story: a heatseeker would have done the job.  I don't think he's impressed by showboating; he wants someone who knows their duty.

This is what I thought too. Also Dredd would naturally be leading the mission and doesn't want this tryhard getting in the way.
Moon showed she was someone he could rely on to have his back.

[nxylas]

Nah, Dredd inferred his logic earlier in the story: a heatseeker would have done the job.  I don't think he's impressed by showboating; he wants someone who knows their duty.

Nothing impresses the Judge.

[JayzusB.Christ]

Not a bad prog.  Thistlebone wrapped up nicely, even if nothing spectacular happened - The whole story was more a series of connected creepy events than a cohesive plot, but it worked for me.

I liked Dredd, though was also a bit confused by Dredd's decision at the end.  Nice art but there was something very strange about it - it was kind of like the artist had never seen a Dredd strip before but someone read a few of them out to him. The Lawmaster's skinny wheels were particularly weird; it gave it the look of my very unimpressive 125cc Suzuki.

Rogue was a decent little tale but I like my Rogue strips morally ambiguous, rather than a white hats / black hats dynamic like this.  The whole idea that Southers never commit atrocities sounded like Rogue was drinking the Milli-com Kool-Aid.  Bagman had a pretty brave stab at it at the end of Cinnabar, though maybe that hadn't happened yet in the timeline.  I like Paul Marshall but I don't think he's ever bettered Firekind, and Rogue's torso and arms fit together a bit oddly.

I'll get back to the rest of the prog soon.

[Proudhuff]

As for Hale, I imagine Dredd saw too much of himself there. No need for two Dredd's on this mission I guess!

Nah, Dredd inferred his logic earlier in the story: a heatseeker would have done the job.  I don't think he's impressed by showboating; he wants someone who knows their duty.

This.^^^

[Proudhuff]

Dredd: Good tale, but that Lawmaster is soooo not where they have been going since the movie!

Full Tilt Boogie -Just don't get it, five pages of talking heads...

Thistlebone - great serial , and artwork, didn't 'get' the ending though.

Indigo Prime - not for me, seems a throw whatever you like in the pot whenever you like,why? well cause its cool.

Rogue Trooper shockingly bad, like someone phoned it in from another strip, colouring didn't help either.

Proteus Vex: lots to like looking at it, but I struggle caring tbh.


Prog really not doing it for me just now, this certainly wouldn't have grabbed me if I was a newbie