The Great
A wonderful cover from Alex Ronald . . . whoa deja vu from my 2000ad review . . ..
A new Ewing/Willsher Dredd gets off to a great start.
Reaper continues well (if you like it as I do, otherwise it continues badly). And it's great to see more from the amazing Fay Dalton!
The Good
Demarco is pretty good.
The Unsure of
Angelic is a new story from Rennie and Carter. I love the art in this but I found the story a bit disjointed. It jumped around in time with the last part taking place 'Five days ago' - I wasn't sure if that was supposed to be 5 days from the start of the story, 5 days from the two weeks ago, 5 days from the current Dredd timeline, 5 days from 17th Jan 2015 (alright I knew it wasn't this). Additionally, I like the idea of a [spoiler]Pa Angel[/spoiler] story, which I assume this is, but it seemed to mess with the back story [spoiler](Link not being his son)[/spoiler] without adding much. Hopefully my fears are unfounded and it will improve in coming weeks.
What I didn't like
The Johnny Nemo article. It did the thing I hate in articles which is to just tell you what happens in stories. It seemed to some kind of unsure advert with lines like 'whether readers enjoy Nemo or not will ultimately depend on their tolerance for humour' which made me think of one of those backhanded compliments that managers put on reviews of people they don't really like. Anyway, I just thought it was not my cup of tea at all. The book looks great though.
And . . .
The Floppy is Red Fang by Steve and Steve (Moore and Yeowell). I have not read this series before so that is nice. I will have a read of this later with a cup of Oolong tea and an organic ginger biscuit.
I am a bit concerned that Fleisher's Harlem Heroes part 1 is next week's floppy :'( I would have preferred some mroe Finn, or Time House, or anything.
(http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r182/Caliban_photos/Meg356_zpsc16d3c11.jpg)
I posted on the prog thread about this, but I don't fancy the new paper stock.
Reading Demarco is pretty grim with the art and speech balloons leeching through from the other side of the page.
So guys, who was bemoaning the lack of recent action covers: 'well you got one now', this and the prog cover are fantastic. Re the paper quality, I'm currently reading megs around 234 and I've got to say the binding was top quality back then, pity this fell by the wayside in later years (cost I guess... though the Meg ain't cheap). Z
Seems I start the meg review exactly as I did for the prog by saying 'Another cracking cover from Alex Ronald'.
Dredd: Love Wilsher's style and choice of framing. The script seems pretty god too, so hoping for a good run of this one.
Reaper: You can only point out the flaws of something so many times before you begin to bore even yourself, so I won't bother commenting further than saying I don't like it.
Reaper Files: Nice art, but other than that, see above.
Demarco: Keen to see where it's going. Steve Yeowell's art while minimal (something I usually don't like) is always engaging. But I agree that for a B&W strip like this, the new paper sucks balls.
Angelic: Really nice expansive artwork, immediately put me in mind of 'Fallout: New Vegas'. Dialogue seems straight out of one of the harsher westerns, which I hope very much helps set the tone for how this will play out. Normally I ain't too fussed by 'origins' tales, or re-visiting a popular character once they are dead, as you KNOW they can't possibly die....which kinda removes the tension. This however could be fun, like a walk down memory lane, as indicated by the cameo from Faro.
Glad to see the features on artists and strips from other titles has been cut down to six pages. Never been keen on that as I tend to buy comics for comic strips....not reviews. Having said that, still more entertaining than the wasted 14 pages that follow it.
I've reviewed the 'floppy' on my Blog (https://judgetutorsemple.wordpress.com/2015/01/18/red-fang-by-steve-moore-spoiler-light-free-with-judge-dredd-megazine-issue-356/). Not read the Meg yet as I have had a busy weekend (I'll read it on the bus tomorrow n review it tomorrow night probably).
I read Red Fang as I couldn't remember much of it and STEVE MOORE! If you read my review you'll know why (hint - it is because I loved his Absalom Daak in Dr who Weekly).
Quote from: Bat King on 18 January, 2015, 08:50:03 PM
I've reviewed the 'floppy' on my Blog (https://judgetutorsemple.wordpress.com/2015/01/18/red-fang-by-steve-moore-spoiler-light-free-with-judge-dredd-megazine-issue-356/). Not read the Meg yet as I have had a busy weekend (I'll read it on the bus tomorrow n review it tomorrow night probably).
I read Red Fang as I couldn't remember much of it and STEVE MOORE! If you read my review you'll know why (hint - it is because I loved his Absalom Daak in Dr who Weekly).
Yeah - It's a great Floppy this month! This is why I love the floppy, for bringing us hidden gems
Quote from: user2000 on 17 January, 2015, 01:07:55 PM
I posted on the prog thread about this, but I don't fancy the new paper stock.
Reading Demarco is pretty grim with the art and speech balloons leeching through from the other side of the page.
I agree. The new paper is shite. It's virtually transparent.
Quote from: Skullmo on 17 January, 2015, 12:53:04 PMI am a bit concerned that Fleisher's Harlem Heroes part 1 is next week's floppy :'( I would have preferred some mroe Finn, or Time House, or anything.
Oh, goof grief. I'd not gotten to Red Fang yet, so I'd forgotten about the dross about to be foisted on us next month. I guess it's not easy for Matt to find new things to reprint, given the lack of crossover with the trades, but I'd also prefer a follow-up to something better. I'm no fan of Finn, but that'd still be better than Harlem Heroes, and Armoured Gideon's stories beyond the first would be good to see in print again.
As for the Meg in general, I enjoyed this issue on the whole. DeMarco's interesting, Angelic's in set-up mode but nonetheless started well, and the Dredd was excellent. This month's text pieces I could take or leave, but I'm happy to have them (and prefer book overviews and creator interviews to prose 'comics' and the old movie reviews. The only downer was another chunk of Sexy Ostriches, but at least it'll all be over soon. (I also wonder how I might have preferred this had Dalton done the art. Langley's a talented chap, but this strip always feels so static; his ABC Warriors works a lot better, I think.)
I think this is the post-DoC story we've all been waiting for; I was really impressed by the psychological depth Ewing manages to bring out in Dredd.
Quote from: JPMaybe on 19 January, 2015, 06:11:40 PM
I think this is the post-DoC story we've all been waiting for; I was really impressed by the psychological depth Ewing manages to bring out in Dredd.
this ^
I thought that this was a pretty good issue. I enjoyed the bonus Reaper story .
But Harlem Heroes?!! Scraping the barrel much? It's not as if they've run out of good strips to reprint.
Can't wait till I get my miss on this and the prog tomorrow:2 Alex R covers and nothing but good reports. Z
Zen - you haven't seen the new paper yet. :lol:
^that.
Is anybody else unable to find this Meg on the iPad app? Must we techno disciples suffer along with the see-through-paper brigade?
Quote from: Timothyjacobs on 21 January, 2015, 10:25:40 AM
Is anybody else unable to find this Meg on the iPad app? Must we techno disciples suffer along with the see-through-paper brigade?
Not up on Clickwheel yet either. Wont someone think of the tight-fisted Scotchmen and press the button?
All sorted now. As you were.
Bought all my thrill power this morning but have only glossed over it. Superfluous commentary but paper stock decline is very noticeable on the meg and the ostriches feel like they are an enormous great lump of overall content.
I like the look of the rest and looking forward to the read.
Quote from: Prodigal2 on 21 January, 2015, 03:17:20 PM
the ostriches feel like they are an enormous great lump of overall content.
A mighty 20 pages this month :(
Still love getting the Meg but Reaper just dosen't light my thrill circuits which saddens me :(
Absolutely cracking set of strips in the Meg this month.
Judge Dredd: Cop. A really good episode, following on from last month's prologue. It was good to see some discussion about how DoC impacts on how Justice Dept should now approach policing the city / actually caring for the citzens. Really liking the art from Ben Willsher - I think this droid needs some high praise.
America Reaper. I actually enjoyed this. The key to that for me was putting side that it was 14 pages long instead of 6 and not worrying about what else might have been printed instead. :)
Reaper files - reads like a nice future shock.
Demarco - really intriguing. Loved the bit where she says there's no [spoiler]Point.[/spoiler].
Angelic. I am interested to see an Angel Gang origins story. Although Mean has featured many times, I always liked Pa and Junior the best but they haven't featured very often [spoiler](having been killed off at the end of the Judge Child - and staying dead)[/spoiler]. ( I have spoilered this - but guess most people know this already. )
I did have the same thought as Skullmo - I am not to keen on [spoiler]retconing the gang as not actually being Pa's children. I hope there is actually a twist to that and something else is going on[/spoiler]. I guess we will have to wait and see.
Really enjoyed the Meg this time out (except the main Reaper story - same old reason, I won't harp on it) but anyone else notice Steve Yeowell is nowing being inked by someone else on DeMarco? It's a much thicker line and is all the better for it.
I have now consumed the prog and started on the meg. Absolutely love the Dredd strip and the nuances shown by Dredd in his approach to the sick guy abused by the system.
Enjoying DM but can see what others have said about the other page bleeding through from the other side.
I've only read Dredd so far, but just wanted to say that this is the best episode of Dredd I've read since Chaos Day.
Absolutely fantastic.
Quote from: Spaceghost on 22 January, 2015, 03:05:38 PM
I've only read Dredd so far, but just wanted to say that this is the best episode of Dredd I've read since Chaos Day.
Absolutely fantastic.
Agreed mate.
Quote from: Daveycandlish on 22 January, 2015, 12:31:53 PM
anyone else notice Steve Yeowell is nowing being inked by someone else on DeMarco? It's a much thicker line and is all the better for it.
Yeah, I really like it too.
Not commented on the Meg in a while but thought this issue deserved a post
Dredd AT LAST!! In just a few brilliant pages Al Ewing brings the Day of Chaos impact on the citizenry to vivid life in just a few pages. This has been overlooked/skipped over far too much imho but here is was given the depth it so richly deserves showing the deep psychological impact even on Dredd himself. MORE please. Excellent art (as always) from Ben Wiltshire, a great talent
Angelic Great art and looks very promising (nice touch seeing the 'Garbage God' at his early beginnings)
American Reaper Please stop, please.....Bit of a slap in the face letting an unpopular strip take up 20 pages, the sparse dialogue and scenes could be done in half that. The art is also overpowered by the photoshoppery.
The New Paper A definite retrograde step which works badly especially on the black and white strips like Demarco where the art on the following page clearly shows through, very distracting and undermines the strip.
Quote from: The Sherman Kid on 23 January, 2015, 11:51:52 AM
b]Dredd[/b] AT LAST!! In just a few brilliant pages Al Ewing brings the Day of Chaos impact on the citizenry to vivid life in just a few pages.[...] MORE please
Sadly, I think Al said on Twitter that this was likely to be his last Dredd for a while.
Cheers
Jim
Quote from: Jim_Campbell on 23 January, 2015, 12:09:20 PM
Sadly, I think Al said on Twitter that this was likely to be his last Dredd for a while.
Sad indeed Jim.
Our loss is Marvel's gain however, and it seems Ewing's star continues to rise across the pond; he's currently working on the upcoming high profile
Avengers: Ultron Forever with Alan 'Art God' Davis.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=57370
It's great to see him doing so well, and I definitely wish him all the best.
Just as long as he comes back from time to time. :'(
That is a great Meg. That's saying something as one of the stories is awful and Demarco is ordinary.
The cover is a belter and the Megazine is lifted by an exceptional Dredd strip and if anything an even better Angelic. They are both dark and in a sense hopeless in outlook, but there is something at the heart of each that is truly human and touching. This is high quality writing indeed.
Awful to hear we're losing Al to the states....i hope it is brief. z
Quote from: Jim_Campbell on 23 January, 2015, 12:09:20 PM
Quote from: The Sherman Kid on 23 January, 2015, 11:51:52 AM
b]Dredd[/b] AT LAST!! In just a few brilliant pages Al Ewing brings the Day of Chaos impact on the citizenry to vivid life in just a few pages.[...] MORE please
Sadly, I think Al said on Twitter that this was likely to be his last Dredd for a while.
Cheers
Jim
Bugger
If we start a rumour that Al's a jihadist (fulsome beard, name starts with Al) then the Americans won't buy his books and he'll have to come back...
Cheers
Jim
Well Jim you've scuppered Al's move to the states....all of your above has flagged up on an NSA database. Z
Pretty good Meg all round. A nice cover from Mr Ronald. I did think it was slightly unfortunate that it came so soon after a very similar composition from Boo, but both are excellent images in their own right.
Absolutely belting Dredd episode. Sorry to see Al moving on but it's good to get a conclusion to his storylines, especially if it's going to continue at this level. Al's seems quite keen on using bits of other languages in his scripts. Sometimes - Damnation Station, for one - this has a point in the story and others it's just for fun. The nom de guerre gag in this must be one of the most convoluted ever. Chapeau!
I've never seen anyone on here say much about Al's Yankee work. What's worth getting?
Interesting that another new strip updating the backstory of a vintage Dredd villain should pop up now. In stark contrast to Orlok, I thought Angelic was a whole passel of fun. The inversions of existing history tickled my funny bone and the nods to continuity made me smile. I guess this is the story to scratch that Cursed Earth Koburn shaped itch.
DeMarco was readable and American Reaper had some nice dresses. I don't usually read the articles so can someone else tell me if I should trade in my old Jonny Nemo collection for the newer model?
Another Great Meg, not a single bad story!
Did I spot an ABC Warriors reference in American Reaper? On page 11 (full page, characters stood under glass dome), the Dome itself looks like 'Howard Quartz' Head - without the brain, obviously.
Cheers
Sorry to hear we're losing the Al you in? Droid. This is the Dredd I want to read, not the ilogical lost in space cuŕrently in the prog
I really liked the Johnny Nemo article, it wasn't too long / overblown and it hopefully has opened up his world to new readers.
I was lucky enough to be there in the Deadline days loved the strip for it's mixture of no nonsense violence and raipier wit, and of course it was drawn by Brett.
I don't think there are many stories that I haven't continued to read in 2000AD world, but I'm seriously considering skipping American Reaper... that or just look at the multitude of dull, lifeless computerised mug shots and try to accept that the megazine is yet again filling space it can't afford & bending me over for the privilage.
...as for the inking on D.I Marco P.I... it's not a very good strip to start with is it?
You might tell I'm not feeling the love for the megazine, and haven't done so for a while. In my humble opinion I think they should do away with it now & merge it with 2000AD before things get any worse...
Si
Dredd was the clear standout this month, Demarco next and Angelic - well, let's see. American Reaper was better this month because things actually happened... but better is short shrift in this case. I am not a big fan of the photoshopped artwork, it always feel very static.
I really like the mix of strips in the Meg right now. I think reaper might benefit from a lower page count but I really like the art. I think it's quite a brave way to update the Eagle style photo stories. Dredd really couldn't be better. I really loved the Reaper back up strip & pin up.
Quote from: Jacqusie on 24 January, 2015, 01:44:23 PM
You might tell I'm not feeling the love for the megazine, and haven't done so for a while. In my humble opinion I think they should do away with it now & merge it with 2000AD before things get any worse...
It just goes to show what Colin said on last week's Prog thread..put 5 Squaxx together and you will get 5 different opinions on what is good and what is bad.
There have certainly been times when some of the stories in the Meg have not been to my liking, (Soul Sisters, Cal Hab Justice, Harke and Burr spring most readily to mind) and the Prog was far more to my liking, but I thought this month's meg was the best for a very long time.
I for one would be really disappointed if they stopped publishing it. It gives the creators a chance to create a slightly different type of story than you get in the Prog - which reading the intro to the Mega Colllection was the whole point.
I am a new subscriber to the Megazine after picking up a copy during a recent visit to London convinced me to jump in - before this I just bought the books.
My review of this issue is a 'hooray for everything!'. I enjoyed it all and do not regret subscribing. I enjoyed American Reaper, which I did not expect to as the art is a bit off-putting with silly poseurs in dark glasses. Looking past that I find it a solid read and am looking forward to the next installment.
I haven't subscribed to 2000ad weekly as 52 comics a year is just a bit much for me to manage. I am happy to wait and see entire serials put out as 'floppies' and pick up JD Case Files for all the Dredd I am missing.
There are few greater pleasures than to collect your prog every Wednesday from the newsagents. Z
I prefer the Reaper Files over American Reaper itself.
I didn't put the title Angelic and the potential content matter together until I got to the first page. File this under 'One's that nearly went over your head'.
Quote from: ZenArcade on 25 January, 2015, 11:47:41 AM
There are few greater pleasures than to collect your prog every Wednesday from the newsagents. Z
I really, really miss getting them through the door back when I subscribed to the paper editions. Was always a great moment, unwrapping it and seeing the cover in all its glory. Sadly space just doesn't allow me to store them anymore, so had to go digital.
For the occasional issue (like the end of year progs) I'll buy both and pass the physical issue onto a friend when I'm done (someone I think might enjoy it enough to take up the prog) but doing that long term would be costly.
You're right though, nothing beats the physical thing, particularly those lovely Case Files books.
I got my mitts on 300 old style prog plastic bags which has allowed me to bag all of the rest of my progs from 804 - 960 and the megs from vol 2 -11 - vol 3 - 79. Z
A frustrating mag, the quality has dipped sharply after a great recent run. However, The Cop is stunning and might be one of those strips "that make the mag worth buying, on its own" as people like saying. Dense and powerful script, while the usually good Willsher looks stunning - down to the great colouring job here, it seems.
Someone round these parts mentioned that Ewings' meg strip would run all year, I really hope that's true. The Cop could be an all-time great story.
Quote from: Jim_Campbell on 23 January, 2015, 05:01:22 PM
If we start a rumour that Al's a jihadist (fulsome beard, name starts with Al) then the Americans won't buy his books and he'll have to come back...
Cheers
Jim
I'm game. I've only read the Dredd strip so far and it was fucking brilliant; easily up there with a some of the best Wagner Dredds. I wish Tharg would pay Al extra to stay, like he did with Dredd's dad.
(And I've just noticed your 'Al' joke - well played, sir :lol:)
Sorry for double posting, but I just thought I'd throw in my tuppenceworth about Angelic. I loved it, me. I don't believe we've ever gone quite this far back in the[spoiler] Angel Gang [/spoiler]story; and while it took me an embarrassingly long time to cop that [spoiler]Linc was Link[/spoiler] I think I can live with him being an [spoiler]adopted son [/spoiler]- just as long as the rest of them aren't. He was always a bit of an outsider anyway, and it's only in recent, non-Wagner stories that he's come from the forefront.
Also, it seems like a whole new approach to the [spoiler]Angel Gang[/spoiler] - I love the comedy of the usual tales but I'm welcoming this grim and gritty take on them. It sort of reminds me of There Will Be Blood.
Finally, I really enjoyed the small glimpse of [spoiler]Faro laying the foundations of his ascent to godhood[/spoiler] - I'm a sucker for Lenny Zero-style nods to continuity.
DeMarco and American Reaper aren't my thing at all, but thanks to Dredd and Angelic I'm really looking forward to the next Megazine, and I honestly can't remember the last time I could say that.
I really think Angelic could be a classic. The prospect of this and the Dredd strip have me salivating for the next issue. Z