Alan Grant appreciation thread

[Huey2]

With the loss of Alan Grant recently, I thought it'd be a nice idea to share some of our favourite stories from one of comics' greatest writers.

Solo:

* Alec Trench - ( I know that's not the correct title ) - forty plus years later, this is still one of the very best Future Shocks. All the better for telling a story rather than using the pages to set up a twist/ punch-line.

* BlackHawk - Zog and Ursa are two of the best supporting characters the prog has ever seen.

* Strontium Dog: The Final Solution - it's a greatest hits of Strontium Dog before Alpha bows out and yet it never feels that calculated. It's a great story effortlessly moving between comedy (the phrenologist scene being a favourite), action and allegory. I liked Alpha's death too - neither Grant nor Wagner would ever have  a character go out in a blaze of glory saving the universe but he does get a hero's death of sorts, saving a handful of kids. Feral gets a decent introduction too - it's perhaps a shame that Harrison leaned too hard into making him seem cool.

* Judge Dredd - John Cassavetes is Dead. Just a great one-off.

* Anderson - the Jesus Syndrome - a great tale.

* Young Middenface -  Parcel of Rogues - Whilst Strontium Dog tales of the time were flashbacks due to the necessity of Alpha being dead, the Middenface tales were flashbacks because they had a tale worth telling. It's a shame they stopped as they were building up to something. Another great showcase for what Grant could do so well, skipping from the absurd to the poignant in a moment.

* Samantha Slade - the one with the playing cards - I really liked the revival of Robo-Hunter. It was a lot of fun and was genuinely funny. Brought a lot of balance to the prog.

With others:
* Ace Trucking - Strike. A great character led tale.

* Strontium Dog - Rage

* Judge Dredd - Democracy Now - At the time, a couple of recent Dredds had given the idea that perhaps the writers were running out of ideas for the character. Democracy Now came crashing out of nowhere, fully dispelling those ideas. Dredd had always been a bit of a bastard but there was always some justification for his actions. Not so here, all pretence is dropped and Dredd goes full-on villain. 

* Middenface McNulty - the John McCrea one - just great stuff.

* Outcasts - an unjustly underappreciated classic - one of the best things that Grant and Wagner have written. It also showcases what comics can do that other mediums can't - this would be far too bleak in prose or film but as a comic it's hilarious when it wants to be.

* The Bogie Man - They're all great but I reckon Chinatoon is the best of the bunch.

[Richard]

Democracy Now

Do you mean Letter From a Democrat?

[Colin YNWA]

Great thread to start. I've been trying to find a way to sum up how much Alan Grant's work means to me and this seems the perfect place to start.

You've mentioned so many of my favourites. Rage is just a fantastic Strontium Dog story. As you say Outsiders is an under-rated classic and that's before you consider his work with John Wagner. Just an astonishing body of work.

I would however like to highlight two comics. One in 2000ad, one outside.

Anderson PSi Division. When doing my recent re-read it struck me how Anderson doesn't get the appreciation it deserves. The run of stories from Four Dark Judges, The Possessed all the way to Triad and Shambala is astonishing, so so good it ranks alongside the very, very best thrills in the comic. In fact its more consistant than many in my mind. The form continues through R*Evolution and the rest of the work with Arthur Ranson. Its a quite staggeringly good body of work on one character developing Anderson in quite brilliant directions.

Hour of the Wolf has one of my single favourite episodes of any 2000ad story. The second episode, when Anderson is ambushed and gunned down by two Russian agents is just so perfectly timed. The action and tension so viseral. It just demonstrates so perfectly how a 'static' medium like comics can convey action and movement and generate tension like no other. Its an absolute masterclass by Alan Grant and Barry Kitson.

Secondly Alan Grant and Norm Breyfogle's Batman run, briefly with John Wagner in Detective Comics, but eventually moving to the main Batman title and earning them a launch with Shadow of the Bat. When you consider just how much Batman content there is out there its incredible to thing this Batman run is so well regarded and its my favourite - only Morrison's gets close. The way Grant and Breyfogle were able to redefine how a Batman story could work, gave him a new cast of villains, after such a long time is testament to find new ways to tell stories with classic characters.

To this day with all the greats who have worked on the character none have topped this run. He didn't fall back onto the cliche's he refreshed and revitalised and its a quite breathtaking achievement.

These to examples alone would be testament to Alan Grant that he's done so much besides just makes clear what a legend his is. Legend a word often overused at times of passing but in this instance, utterly fitting.

Thank you Alan Grant.

[Funt Solo]

Hour of the Wolf has one of my single favourite episodes of any 2000ad story. The second episode, when Anderson is ambushed and gunned down by two Russian agents is just so perfectly timed. The action and tension so viseral. It just demonstrates so perfectly how a 'static' medium like comics can convey action and movement and generate tension like no other. Its an absolute masterclass by Alan Grant and Barry Kitson.

This ^^^

At the time, there wasn't much that would dent the Judges (Apocalypse aside), and Anderson was usually put up against otherworldly threats. This felt a bit more real.

[AlexF]

I'm overdue a re-read of Anderson, Psi Division, but my memory of it is that Grant rarely put a foot wrong, all the way up to the more recent WMD arc in the Megazine. I especially love an Arthur Ranson one-off called 'The Protest', which is both profound and silly in exact equal measure. And I cannot downplay how much I was moved as a young teen by the Jesus Syndrome arc, where Anderson punches Judge Goon in the face, and her subsequent emotional journey in Childhood's End. The 'Postcards from the Edge' sequence wasn't the best, but I'm glad that Grant followed through on Anderson's state of mind that meant it made sense for her to quit the Judges and then return.

And yeah, I second the suggestion that Grant's 10+ years on Batman may in fact be the best sustained writing run that character ever had. He just had the knack of telling stories about a mad, rich vigilante tackling all manner of weirdoes in a gothic nightmare city, and it always came across as noble and exciting without any of the smugness and extreme angst that Batman accrued in the 21st century. (I would blame Grant Morrison for that but I don't think he was the first)

And this isn't even mentioning the number of belly laughs I've had from multiple re-reads of Ace Trucking, RoboHunter, Strontium Dog and 1980s Judge Dredd. Frankly I hold in higher esteem a creator whose at his/her best is part of a collaboration than one who studiously works alone, and Grant was clearly a master collaborator.

[norton canes]

Blackhawk, all the way. One of my all-time favourite 2000 AD strips.

[Richard]

Definitely agree about Anderson -- almost always brilliant. Also Strontium Dog.

One of my favourite bits of Judge Dredd dialogue is by Alan Grant, from prog 660. From memory it goes something like this:

Dredd: "Your husband is under arrest!"
Wife: "What for?"
Dredd: "Whaddaya mean what for? For turning into a fly!"
Wife: "Is that illegal?"
Dredd: (pause) "... you know, you've got me there...!"

[nxylas]

One thing I wish I'd read is a memoir of his time in the Nerve Centre. I know there have been various accounts of 2000AD's history published over the years, but I can't help feeling that AALN1's version would have been particularly amusing and candid.

[Tjm86]

Secondly Alan Grant and Norm Breyfogle's Batman run, briefly with John Wagner in Detective Comics, but eventually moving to the main Batman title and earning them a launch with Shadow of the Bat. When you consider just how much Batman content there is out there its incredible to thing this Batman run is so well regarded and its my favourite - only Morrison's gets close. The way Grant and Breyfogle were able to redefine how a Batman story could work, gave him a new cast of villains, after such a long time is testament to find new ways to tell stories with classic characters.

You know, it's funny but time and again I've dipped into Detective Comics but nothing has approached the Grant / Breyfogle material.  Granted (excuse me) Breyfogle's artwork elevates anyone's material but even so it is hard to find a comparative set.  I would include the numerous reboots such as New 52 in that respect.  Whilst the Snyder / Capullo run on Batman works incredibly well, the Detective Comics run is banal to say the least.

Lets also remember his Eagle strips including House of Daemon, Doomlord, Manix and Computer Warrior.  Not to forget the Last American and Genghis Grimtoad outside of these august publications.

TL:DR - comics has lost a giant.

[davidbishop]

One thing I wish I'd read is a memoir of his time in the Nerve Centre. I know there have been various accounts of 2000AD's history published over the years, but I can't help feeling that AALN1's version would have been particularly amusing and candid.

He was happy to spill plenty of beans when I interviewed him for TPO:
http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2007/02/28-days-of-2000-ad-9-alan-grant-pt-1.html
http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2007/02/28-days-of-2000-ad-10-alan-grant-pt-2.html
http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2007/02/28-days-of-2000-ad-11-alan-grant-pt-3.html

[nxylas]

One thing I wish I'd read is a memoir of his time in the Nerve Centre. I know there have been various accounts of 2000AD's history published over the years, but I can't help feeling that AALN1's version would have been particularly amusing and candid.

He was happy to spill plenty of beans when I interviewed him for TPO:
http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2007/02/28-days-of-2000-ad-9-alan-grant-pt-1.html
http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2007/02/28-days-of-2000-ad-10-alan-grant-pt-2.html
http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2007/02/28-days-of-2000-ad-11-alan-grant-pt-3.html

I was thinking of this, actually, but a book-length version.

[Funt Solo]

Plus, there's the extended Interrogation through Megs 266-268 (assuming that's different material - is it?).

Also, The Burt Interview in the 81/82 Annual.

[Huey2]

"One thing I wish I'd read is a memoir of his time in the Nerve Centre. I know there have been various accounts of 2000AD's history published over the years, but I can't help feeling that AALN1's version would have been particularly amusing and candid."

Definitely.

In the days, when I went to cons, Alan's appearances were always a highlight - always funny and always interesting.

In addition to David's interviews - thanks for sharing these David - the thrillcast where Alan discusses Shamballa is one of - if not the - best.
Also, here's an interview here conducted by Andy Diggle. http://www.2000ad.org/zone=droid&page=interview&choice=6

There are also some a number short but fun interviews on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsWzosJSYqM

[Huey2]

Looking back over the work that Grant, Wagner and Mills did in the '70s and '80s I'm always impressed by how the scripts they delivered were always better than they had any need to be.
This was at a time when comics were disposable, there were no royalties and, in the case of Alan and John, they weren't even allowed to be credited for everything they did.

And yet despite this, they set themselves such very, very high standards. It would have been so much easier to run through the same stories again an again but they never did. Strips get rested or retired long before the reader gets bored of them: Robo-Hunter could have run and run but after a mere ten strips he's out; '80s Dredd was running in daily newspapers, comics and annuals yet never tells the same story twice (giving us tales from the viewpoints of cockroaches or gang rumbles in rhyme to void doing this); Mean Team and City of the Damned both get cut off because the writers weren't feeling it and yet, recent comments on ColinYNWA's polls show us that this dissatisfaction never translated to the reader .

And then there's all of the jokes and references they put in as bonuses, not knowing if any of them would be understood by the readers - " there's a Moby Dick joke in here, what's that doing in a kid's comic?" my Dad once said flicking through the latest prog.

That 2000ad had a golden age was down to the fact that Wagner and Grant were writing 60 - 100% of the prog at the time. I genuinely believe that the fact the prog survived into the '90s and beyond and also that so many of us are still here reading it is down to these two men.

[sheridan]

Democracy Now

Do you mean Letter From a Democrat?

From the description I suspect that all the John Higgins-drawn democracy stories would fit, so presumably the collection of Letter From a Democrat and Revolution.