Okay let's look at the positives.
The art of Cadet Dredd is great hope to see Joe Currie again soon. Love it. The story was pretty good too.
And then... nothing, absolutely nothing. Regened continues to be drab and utterly uninspiring. Its such a shame that this is the case. The Nerve Centre highlights what a great idea Regene is, how it can work as it references just three of its successes, Pandora Perfect, Department K and Full Tilt Bogie and there have been more. There is nothing even close to that quality in this issue and hasn't been for sometime.
Lowburn High is once agin over long, poorly plotted, utterly uninspiring and the art static and poorly framed. An example of the issues I have with this the fifth page when Maisy's parents are told of her high levels of magic, an apparently dramatic event and yet the page hangs off a central image of someone pulling a file out a draw, while craming the parents poorly realised reaction into a panel dominated by the drab background. Then the whole inspection thread, built up for so long is handwaved any and exposed as utterly superflous.
And again we get 20 pages of this tepid stuff. 20 bloomin' pages.
The Future Shock has art right out of the muddy 90s and a twist that is... well poor.
Renk, well its dull and daft.
Regened used to be something to look forward to, to see what 2000ad could spin with it new direction. Its was hit and miss, but at least it was something that played with potential. This is a pretty good Dredd with great art and the rest is all utter miss.
If you can't get the talent to do this well maybe its time to call this a day, though one assumes sales still prevent that.
So disappointing.
Your first main paragraph is particularly interesting:
QuotePandora Perfect, Department K and Full Tilt Bogie
Imagine the next Regened had that line-up. Cadet Dredd. A perfectly pitched Pandora Perfect. A Dept K one-off. A FTB interlude. I'm sure people would still grumble. And it perhaps wouldn't hit the dizzy highs of Best Prog Ever. But, man, I'd look forward to reading it, rather than looking towards my copy showing up with a sense of acceptance and dread.
Clearly, sales must be strong. Something is driving this. But – again – when I think of how Regened is now compared to The Phoenix, it breaks my heart a little. When Mini-IP leaves a copy lying around, I pick it up. Natch, I flick to Jamie Smart's stuff first and devour it. (Why is there no equivalent in Regened? An anarchic DPS of madness? Bonkers robots, say?) But the other strips mostly click too, making me want to track down other issues and read the full stories.
Sure, it's not
everything. But there's so much good in there that the odd wobble can be forgiven. I felt like that about Regened for a long while too. Right now, it feels like it's mostly – or all – wobble. Or topple. Or smashed up on the floor in bits.
Cover by Peter Yong:
(https://dyn.media.forbiddenplanet.com/rfCb2AvJyvPwpU1D6BQMsCpmUxM=/trim/fit-in/779x1024/filters:format(webp)/https://media.forbiddenplanet.com/products/0f/9a/5a7268bd65f882be29f79caeef9f428e6765.jpeg)
The regen has always been like a lucky packet you never know what you going to get but this year's entries so far were super disappointing. Sorry but this line-up does not inspire me.
There must be a word for the excitement you feel when you find a Saturday prog on the mat, immediately followed by the disappointment when you realise it's a subscriber's contractual obligation regened prog.
Quote from: Southstreeter on 19 August, 2023, 04:04:57 PMThere must be a word for the excitement you feel when you find a Saturday prog on the mat, immediately followed by the disappointment when you realise it's a subscriber's contractual obligation regened prog.
Ha. I got the regened prog today too and had that very sensation. Very rarely do I get a Saturday prog.
White text for spoilers.
I've never much enjoyed
Lowborn High but I got more out of it this time. The initial pages of setup and flashback were a grind, agree with the particular storytelling issue Colin pointed out, and seeing pages of characters in dull school uniforms is dispiriting, but once they move on from the uniforms and are doing something interesting it rather carried me along. The depiction of the djinn was pretty good, and everyone likes a cliffhanger. Right? The coven stuff I have no idea what's going on or why and it's hard to care about.
Cadet Dredd was quite enjoyable with a very nice light-touch and fun art style, with lots going on in most panels. Regened could do with a bit more zany. Sure one might question the Justice Department security protocols, and whoever thought of putting a frickin' laser beam in the data centre might want to think again. Did wonder how Dredd escaped censure for his assault on the exchange cadet...
Future Shock agree with Colin, although I liked the robot cop design. I like the Willsmer droid's covers, but the painting feels a bit heavy in this strip.
Renk I struggled to get through. There seemed to be some backstory from the last story that I'd forgotten. Art's good.
I would have to say that the plot for Cadet Dredd was one of the better ones of late. Artwise, there were moments I was trying to work out what was going on. Currie's take on cadets on law masters really did take away from what was happening. That said, close-up visuals were something else. Long story short, it will be interesting to see what happens when this artist gets into their stride.
As for the rest of the prog.
Lowborn high seems to take the worst elements of Harry Potter and Grange Hill, merge them together, throw in contempt for anyone who has ended up in a comp rather than a private school (speaking as someone who was subjected to a private school and spent the rest of his life trying to recover from the experience, they are contemptible in and of themselves ...) and then decided that anyone reading a 'school experience story' is a muppet.
On a first skim I thought the D'jinn was a demonic extension of OFSTED. Now that would have been a far cleverer 'joke' and have resonated far more with the handful of 'kids' still reading after this many iterations of Regened. Certainly it would have been much more interesting take on what was happening rather than the poor disabled girl surrendering her soul for a date with the coooool dude (a story beat that was wrong on so many levels it was more terrifying than experiencing an OFSTED inspection). At the risk of causing offence here, we have a writer who appears to have managed to be 'ableist' and 'sexist' at the same time.
Future Shocks has the kudos of being a strip that I just could not be bothered with full stop. The artwork lost me at the poor mans Langley impersonation. I ought to have another stab at reading it to see if the story goes anywhere but I was lost before I managed the first page. After nearly 50 years (eeeek!) of Future Shocks, that is an achievement, albeit not in a good way.
Renk. As Fink says, 'arts good', story .... actually it worked better than the FS as a one-off. As a character with mileage though ....
It really does seem like we've seen the highlights of the Regened concept. When I first read Full Tilt Boogie I was not overly impressed but a re-read has changed my mind there. It might be worth another outing to move things forward there.
Cadet Dredd is always hit or miss. It seems to work best when it doesn't try to be too clever and dip into the Dredd vs Rico mythos. That said, it also benefits from strong artwork. Currie's work needs development in some areas but there were more strengths than weaknesses overall.
Tooth has (to my mind anyway) generally struggled with fantasy strips. Summer Magic is the obvious exception. The likes of Lowborn High seem to tap into a fundamental weakness here and perhaps need to be reconsidered.
Then again, I'm someone who really doesn't rate Slaine or Harry Potter so perhaps I shouldn't comment. I'd rather read the likes of Le'Guin's Earthsea series, Susan Cooper's Dark is Rising sequence or Alan Garner's Weirdstone of Brisinghamen.
Tooth has, for me at least, always been at its strongest when it has focused on the Sci-Fi. '77 was a special year for a host of reasons ... Star Wars, 2000AD and Tom Baker's Doctor Who. Now granted DW had a strong 'fantastical / gothic' dimension to its run in 77 but even so, the SF was still a powerful aspect. Perhaps that is something that needs to be reconsidered in Regened?
I am a supporter of the Regened project but all this year's have left me cold.
This was a decent enough Dredd but nothing else works. How long is this "20+ pages of Lowborn High" going to go on for? Looks like same again next time. Is it because it's cheap to do, or is it genuinely hugely popular and we are all missing something?
I'm rarely this negative. I've loved many of the earlier Regened progs but this isn't doing it for me. I accept I'm not the target market, but is "low grade Harry Potter rip off" *really* what young readers want? I'd be delighted if they do and I'm just a deluded old fuddy-duddy.
To be a bit more positive about things....art and colours in all the strips are very good. I could actually follow Lowborn High this time, just don't think the story is that interesting. Points for the pupil flying about on a Henry vacuum though! Also notice the crescent moon logo has been moved down so it no longer looks like Clowborn High.
My 9yo couldn't give two hoots about Lowborn. Perhaps she's too young. But she spent a chunk of today devouring copies of The Phoenix...
They've at least improved the logo so it's not Clowborn anymore.
I wasn't sure about the Dredd art. I like a Moebius riff as much as the next but they have a way to go. Story was good.
I would totally be onboard with Cowborn High.
Quote from: Southstreeter on 19 August, 2023, 04:04:57 PMThere must be a word for the excitement you feel when you find a Saturday prog on the mat, immediately followed by the disappointment when you realise it's a subscriber's contractual obligation regened prog.
This is so well put, same feeling here, too!
Nothing in here resonated for me really. I didn't mind the Future Shock so much but the art was super 90s and offputting. Renk is OK.
Dredd is always a stinker in these imo, but Lowborn High really is the worst. So much wrong with it this time from confusing storytelling in the art to some questionable takes in the story.
Someone somewhere must be enjoying this.
I've given Regened a lot more slack than others but this prog around was pretty dismal, I take no pleasure in saying such.
Not saw this yet, but the above doesn't bode well...
Maybe Joko-Jargo is the issue here. What are his editorial credentials, other than being nepotistically appointed by his uncle?
Interesting at least to see that Cadet Dredd has moved into 2077 at last. He's been stuck in 2076 since Regened started.
Lowborn High's panel is awfully... Boring. There's also lots of dead space littering the page. The two points combine to make a strip that isn't particularly pretty to look at - and that's without commenting on the story.
I'm just not sure who the current lineup of Regened is actually for at the moment, as it seems to be alienating most older readers while holding little appeal for the younger ones.
Why would a reader in the YA demographic want to trudge through the mishmash of recycled genre tropes that is Lowborn High when there are so many superior alternatives available? In the the manga arena they're spoilt for choice with school based sagas which kick the arse of this in terms of characterisation, excitement and pacing. Just look at something like My Hero Academia as an example. It's baffling how much page space this has been afforded so far for something so unexceptional. The art is average to poor but at least they dropped the artist who drew every character with identical facial expressions, I suppose.
Also yet another inclusion of a Future Shock which feels like it doesn't fit the Regened brief at all. Are these Tharg's offcuts being shuffled over from the main prog to make up the page count?
Quote from: Barrington Boots on 21 August, 2023, 09:48:07 AMSomeone somewhere must be enjoying this.
Probably the same Earthlet who liked Skip Tracer.
I really liked that Future Shock. Good story, great art. It wouldn't have been out of place in the regular prog, yet it was suitable for all ages.
I've been back amongst the Squaxx for two years now. The first few regened progs I saw were quite interesting with at least a couple of entertaining thrills in them. That really isn't the case with this one, or the previous one. I will just be leafing through the next one with the assumption it is heading for the recycle bin. That said, I do like the covers.
Quote from: Goosegash on 21 August, 2023, 04:24:12 PMI'm just not sure who the current lineup of Regened is actually for at the moment, as it seems to be alienating most older readers while holding little appeal for the younger ones.
And yet we keep hearing claims that sales spike for those progs (and that collected editions sell well).
This got me thinking about that 1987 strike at Good Morning Britain, when ITV broadcast
Batman episodes instead of the usual show ... and ratings surged.
Seems that that die-hard Tooth fans are now outnumbered by nostalgic grandparents who'll randomly buy anything with an old-skool logo (regardless of the lower-quality content).
If so, is there a risk that Rebellion will decide to play the numbers game? Will we soon find every prog featuring a 20-page episode of Clowborn High?
I'm sure younger people really are buying it in good enough numbers. And I think that's something to be celebrated.
Us old farts may be less keen on the most recent Regened progs but in the nicest possible way that doesn't matter in the config Regened. We need new readers on board and if they like slightly different stuff to us, that's ok.
I think this might be outside the demographic Regened is aimed at (???) but interesting - if not scientific - piece of research done my Kev Sutherland about when kids in his sessions read.
Not sure it belongs in this conversation but didn't want to start a new thread and could see the links so what the heck. From Bleeding Cool (https://bleedingcool.com/comics/kev-f-sutherland-asks-british-kids-what-comics-they-actually-read/).
That was pretty dire - The Dredd strip is the best - however, that has an oddity. Currie either struggles with the uniform, or he draws everyone as if cosplayers are in Uniforms that don't fit. On every panel, the Judge badge is awardly drawn as being stuck over the shoulder pad or under it...
As for what the yoof like - my Nephews, who are the right age live in a golden age of top-quality manga and other content aimed at them.
People with kids: what are they reading these days,more specifically than "manga", I mean? And if you were Joko-Jargo, what sort of strips would you commission for the Regened progs?
Meh, as someone who used to enjoy these it was not fun.
Cadet Dredd was poorly plotted. Obviously it's not who he thinks it is, so it HAS to be the only other character. Didn't think much of the art, either, especially the massive Lawmasters.
Lowborn High... Jovus another 20 pages that just drift on by with no effect in any way. Just average in every single way but worse for the page count.
Future Shocks is teh highlight for me, though the art screams 90s 2000ad mudfest. I liked the story, though.
Finally we get Renk, another average strip which is a basic crime story jazzed up with fantasy trappings.Could have lost two pages to zero effect.
When will Regened get a decent script editor?
I always assumed that most regular progs are bought either by subscribers or completists, which includes the Regened progs. So if you add in those that buy regened only, of course the numbers will be higher. If you took the prog number off and made it a quarterly special, I doubt sales would be so high (I wouldn't buy it).
Quote from: Southstreeter on 23 August, 2023, 06:21:37 PMI always assumed that most regular progs are bought either by subscribers or completists, which includes the Regened progs. So if you add in those that buy regened only, of course the numbers will be higher. If you took the prog number off and made it a quarterly special, I doubt sales would be so high (I wouldn't buy it).
Well, quite. Which is presumably why they don't do it as a standalone title.
Quote from: nxylas on 23 August, 2023, 08:46:54 PMQuote from: Southstreeter on 23 August, 2023, 06:21:37 PMI always assumed that most regular progs are bought either by subscribers or completists, which includes the Regened progs. So if you add in those that buy regened only, of course the numbers will be higher. If you took the prog number off and made it a quarterly special, I doubt sales would be so high (I wouldn't buy it).
Well, quite. Which is presumably why they don't do it as a standalone title.
You'll invoke Jim.....
Quote from: Blue Cactus on 21 August, 2023, 02:49:37 PMMaybe Joko-Jargo is the issue here. What are his editorial credentials, other than being nepotistically appointed by his uncle?
It's not often I say this, but rofl-copters.
Quote from: Goosegash on 21 August, 2023, 04:24:12 PMIt's baffling how much page space this has been afforded so far
It has one key advantage for an editor: it's finished (as in, technically, ready to publish). For modern 2000 AD, that seems to be very important. I have no other explanation for seven books of Skip Tracer. Imagine seven books of Dry Run. Bring back Brigand Doom etc.
i would kill for seven books of kek-w canon fodder
i will admit i liked the first lowborn high but my god 20 pages is too much
I have read lowborn now and do find it not to bad but I think it does not regen prog. I also would like more strips than just these 4 (especially when do not like most of them then you feel like the prog has been a failure).
Quote from: The Monarch on 24 August, 2023, 06:49:28 AMi would kill for seven books of kek-w canon fodder
And I'd read seven books of Dry Run.
Based on this, someone
must be loving Lowborn High.
Quote from: Barrington Boots on 24 August, 2023, 08:56:28 AMQuote from: The Monarch on 24 August, 2023, 06:49:28 AMi would kill for seven books of kek-w canon fodder
And I'd read seven books of Dry Run.
Based on this, someone must be loving Lowborn High.
Maybe Tharg has had sight of the final panel and the pay off is immense and we will all eat our words and bow to his superior intelligence.
Well maybe!
Ooh, good point! maybe Armoured Gideon shows up on the Plateau of Leng Ming and the story takes a new and exciting twist.
Or it's all really just the AI from SinDex!
Expectation management, perhaps, but this wasn't as bad as I'd feared. But... it also wasn't good.
The cover is solid, but then Regened is pretty much always a Dredd now. Dredd itself was a bit Captain Obvious with the twist. Slightly irksome that Only Prominent Female Character was the baddie who hated the system (and with no depth/motivation). The overall premise still doesn't work for me either. Dredd is a stick in the mud. In the 1970s, he was a counter-culture bastard people rooted for. Now, he's just a dick. It's like trying to get behind the last-gen take on Walter the Softie (before his current incarnation as a kind of wannabe evil genius). Purely on the 'justice' side (with some kids – including my own – being big into that) it pales beside the likes of Claire, Justice Ninja (which surely needs another run). Art-wise, I quite liked it. There was energy. It was dynamic. Although those Lawmasters were a bit chunky.
Lowborn High was... fine. There are too many cliches, and characters don't do enough to deserve outcomes. I'd echo Colin's points about dramatic moments and the way the arcs work (or often don't). And, bloody hell, another 20 pages, forever? Rebellion must have some data on this, because otherwise I just don't get it.
The Future Shock was OK. I'm not sure the attempt at satire landed, in the sense of people being protected from the law when they are the law. And liability shifting when you're no longer employed doesn't make a great deal of sense. That's beyond even Dredd-style dystopia. Page four should have had the protagonist at least agree to taking down the protesters. It's just inferred, which isn't enough for what follows.
Then there's Renk. It has something. It's quite enjoyable. But as I noted last time, I'm confused by the character design. The lead looks like a disheveled middle-aged man. Why Renk wasn't a streetwise teen with a rep, I don't know.
And then we get the usual baffling house ad for the next Prog that kids reading this one won't be able to read.
Renk > Future Shock > Dredd > Lowburn. Alas nothing above the average bar. And only Renk is something I'd likely read again.
I think what disappoints me most about Regened is that it's cycled out the most interesting strips (and the few that chimed with my own kid) and retained some of its worst elements. It still feels like it doesn't know what it wants to be. The overall feel is quite dull. There's no anarchy. There's very little fun. Too much of the strips are po-faced.
Yeah, LOVELY ad with "Burn The Freaks" and a slutty vampire just for the kiddies!
Seriously, does no one at Rebellion know how to edit?
Quote from: nxylas on 23 August, 2023, 03:23:06 PMPeople with kids: what are they reading these days,more specifically than "manga", I mean? And if you were Joko-Jargo, what sort of strips would you commission for the Regened progs?
I read with interest that Kev F Sutherland (https://bleedingcool.com/comics/kev-f-sutherland-asks-british-kids-what-comics-they-actually-read/) piece, which broadly aligns with what I see with mini-IP and her 9/10yo friends.
There is, notably, a discovery problem, which now won't change. Most parents are unaware comics exist. When I've recommended The Phoenix to people and parents actually subscribe, they are by and large really happy with it. But if you don't know comics exist (because you never got the habit yourself), that causes a problem.
But, yes, BvM and Dog Man are the defaults. Some of the boys (but few girls) are into SW/superheroes, but it's not that common. A few kids read The Beano, but are starting to age out. Manga hasn't yet taken hold at this age range around here. I'm surprised Luke didn't mention Investigators, which appears to be among the most-liked comics now, according to teachers who stock up comics for class libraries.
Speaking for my own kid, she has read a wide range of comics, including a lot of contemporary fare such as Sparks, Miles Morales, the DC pets series, Ghosts (as in, Telgemeier), Barb the Brave, Kitty Quest, Roller Girl, Zita, Lumberjanes, etc. Again, her experience is anomalous, given my interest in comics.
But as for Regened, I don't know. I think the problem is I still don't really know what it's supposed to be. Monster Fun appears to be attempting to slot into the Fleetway space to DC's Beano. That makes sense. The Beano is
very formulaic, and so offering an alternative to it is smart, even if some of the early editorial decisions totally put my daughter off of reading it in the future.
Regened appears to want to be a stepping stone between The Phoenix and 2000 AD, and yet The Phoenix itself has a quite broad age range and is suitable into that early teens space. It has some really smart serious strips (Fawn; No Country), comedy drama (Mega Robo Bros), anarchic comedy (anything by Jamie Smart), and everything in-between. Its pacing is varied. You'll get single-page Jess Bradley Squid Bits in most issues, and DPS cartoons, mixed with longer and more thoughtful strips.
If Regened wants to steal some ideas, that shift in pace might help. Reimagine ABC Warriors or Robo-Hunter (minus the sexism) as a bonkers cartoon strip, with a maximum of a DPS. Get someone to do strange SF single-pagers (or single-pagers in portrait across a DPS) that echo Squid Bits but fire the imagination in a different direction. Cut back the epic episodes to a maximum of eight pages, to inject some intensity into strips that currently too often meander,
unless those strips can fully justify the extra length.
I don't know. It's very easy to be a back-seat editor, and I'm sure Rebellion is doing what it can with the resources available. The very existence of Regened and the reprint books suggests this must still be working to an acceptable degree. But as a long-time reader of the comic, it feels like much of the fire has gone out of the belly of Regened this past year or so, and it's headed down a cul-de-sac of dull. A comic shouldn't be boring. Right now, Regened just kind of is, and I find that a little bit heartbreaking.
I'd redo Robo Hunter with a young person accidentally helping a Robo Hunter (whoever, ideally Sam or Samantha redone) take down a robot and demanding half the fee or an apprenticeship. Easy to do bottle episodes, have fun with a smart kid and weary adult and mad robot stuff.
Hell, I might do it myself, just not use the IP in any way.
Quote from: IndigoPrime on 24 August, 2023, 10:44:24 AMRegened appears to want to be a stepping stone between The Phoenix and 2000 AD, and yet The Phoenix itself has a quite broad age range and is suitable into that early teens space. It has some really smart serious strips (Fawn; No Country), comedy drama (Mega Robo Bros), anarchic comedy (anything by Jamie Smart), and everything in-between. Its pacing is varied. You'll get single-page Jess Bradley Squid Bits in most issues, and DPS cartoons, mixed with longer and more thoughtful strips.
Yeah from my personal experience that gap between The Phoenix and 2000ad defo exists. The boy child is 11 now, about to go to secondary school. I can feel him slowly getting to the end of his time with The Phoenix, though he's happily reading it still, Dog Man et al he's long past, but he's tracking a trajectory similar to girl child who no longer reads comics at 14 (I failed on that one - I might kick her out???).
Anyway I don't think he's ready for current 2000ad so I'm trying to fill the gap with other things and there are bits and pieces about. The things that works best for him, and this is clearly an individual case, has actually bee old 2000ad stuff which I wouldn't say he's lapping up but he happily reads when point to it.
I don't think Regened is there yet, we've tried it a couple of times and it gets a dismissive shrug when read. Now that's not to say that Regened should be old skool 2000ad at all. Kids have moved on, but what it is now isn't filling that gap in the limited way I can see. Its just this weird other at the moment and lacks the craft to really engage.
That's it exactly. And I agree: it absolutely shouldn't ape the past. What worked in 1977 does not work now. If anything, Regened has been too reverential to 2000 AD's past. Things like that Sam Slade text story were just bizarre, for example. But I don't get the feeling what's there now is really working either.
Again, perhaps the sales say otherwise. Maybe Regened gives the Prog a nice uptick several times every year and the collected trades are doing well. I've no idea. And maybe it's just one of those things, but I am a bit glum that we're currently zero* for two with Rebellion comics in this household, with a 9yo who's a voracious reader.
* Well, half, perhaps. She will read bits and pieces, but there's little real enthusiasm for it. By contrast, her bedroom floor and half the kitchen are currently both littered with Phoenix comics, with her going for a masses re-read.
Stop this all-ages tag and make something for the kids. They already have me in their snare. So focus on purely what the kids like and not try to accommodate our old farts in the regen prog.
Thing is, create something good for the kids, and there's a good chance we're going to like it anyway. I keep hoping they'll backfill Bunny vs Monkey in hardcover, because I'd like a collection of those alongside my Complete Peanuts.
Quote from: IndigoPrime on 24 August, 2023, 01:39:25 PMThing is, create something good for the kids, and there's a good chance we're going to like it anyway. I keep hoping they'll backfill Bunny vs Monkey in hardcover, because I'd like a collection of those alongside my Complete Peanuts.
Oh that would be so good. At the moment they seem to be going for the cheap and cheerful get it into kids hands approach. But when its appreciated as the classic it is I do hope we start to get this in more 'adult' presentation.
QuoteThe Future Shock was OK. I'm not sure the attempt at satire landed, in the sense of people being protected from the law when they are the law. And liability shifting when you're no longer employed doesn't make a great deal of sense. That's beyond even Dredd-style dystopia. Page four should have had the protagonist at least agree to taking down the protesters. It's just inferred, which isn't enough for what follows.
My impression was that the whole point of this story is that the robots don't do as they're told, the human conscience is just a PR lie, and any whistleblowers get shat on from a great height.
QuoteThing is, create something good for the kids, and there's a good chance we're going to like it anyway.
Exactly.
It looks like the upcoming US edition of the first book will be HC. But it's been a bit random with the British ones. Machine Mayhem got that treatment, but Multiverse Mix-up didn't. Impossible Pig will, though, as will next year's Bunny Bonanza. Natch, I didn't buy my own Machine Mayhem, though, and that's now hardly available anywhere. I'm still wavering. (I'd sooner grab them all in paperback than have a mix of formats on the shelves. But I'd MUCH prefer HC volumes.)
Not much to add except to say Joe Currie's artwork was absolutely to die for, more from this droid please.
RE: Clownborn High - At 20 pages a pop, isn't it likely that it was originally commissioned as a standalone series?
Probably shunted off to Regened when the sales projections made Tharg's Rosette of Sirius turn Daz white.
Quote from: Colin YNWA on 19 August, 2023, 01:51:08 PMSo disappointing.
Considering you'd probably give Manchester United: The Comic (written by Piers Morgan) a 2.5/5 score, that's some ice cold commentary.
Quote from: Link Prime on 29 August, 2023, 04:53:01 PMQuote from: Colin YNWA on 19 August, 2023, 01:51:08 PMSo disappointing.
Considering you'd probably give Manchester United: The Comic (written by Piers Morgan) a 2.5/5 score, that's some ice cold commentary.
Now come on my critical chops ain't that bad. That's a 2 max!
Finally read Lowborn High. 20 pages long and yet it still doesn't tell a complete story, opting instead to end on a cliffhanger that won't be resolved for ten weeks.
I did like the panel where a child was flying on a Hoover instead of a broomstick.
Judging by one of the comic books I occasionally visit over on Facebook, this issue has gone down well with a couple of people. Notably, they are lapsed readers. Perhaps there's something in that, or it may just be a coincidence.
For what it's worth I think having a 20 page strip in each issue is a canny editorial idea, given that Regened only gets 4 or 5 issues a year.
Lowborn High isn't the way to go though.
Quote from: scrotnig on 20 August, 2023, 08:19:04 PMI am a supporter of the Regened project but all this year's have left me cold.
This was a decent enough Dredd but nothing else works. How long is this "20+ pages of Lowborn High" going to go on for? Looks like same again next time. Is it because it's cheap to do, or is it genuinely hugely popular and we are all missing something?
I'm rarely this negative. I've loved many of the earlier Regened progs but this isn't doing it for me. I accept I'm not the target market, but is "low grade Harry Potter rip off" *really* what young readers want? I'd be delighted if they do and I'm just a deluded old fuddy-duddy.
This^^^^
Quote from: scrotnig on 20 August, 2023, 08:19:04 PMI accept I'm not the target market, but is "low grade Harry Potter rip off" *really* what young readers want? I'd be delighted if they do and I'm just a deluded old fuddy-duddy.
Is it just a Harry Potter rip-off, though? My knowledge of modern manga is limited, but from talking to my teenage nephew, I understand that Naruto and My Hero Academia are both very popular, and have similar setups to Lowborn High.
Quote from: nxylas on 31 August, 2023, 05:07:45 PMQuote from: scrotnig on 20 August, 2023, 08:19:04 PMI accept I'm not the target market, but is "low grade Harry Potter rip off" *really* what young readers want? I'd be delighted if they do and I'm just a deluded old fuddy-duddy.
Is it just a Harry Potter rip-off, though? My knowledge of modern manga is limited, but from talking to my teenage nephew, I understand that Naruto and My Hero Academia are both very popular, and have similar setups to Lowborn High.
It feels like one to me, but I fully accept I'm not the target market and there has to be a reason Regened has turned into a Lowborn High Comic with a handful of backup strips. I am assuming it's because Lowborn High is popular and I'm an out of touch old fart. I can accept that.
Dredd, story is fine, art is brilliant, reminded me of FM on Ronin, lovely. I enjoyed Renk, the story made sense, and got to its point Nice art and an interesting world.
The rest all readable, but not for me, and maybe that's the rub, its not aimed at me. I dunno.
Having over the years tried to get my kids to read (my) comics, I've never had much success, but Robusters, Early Stront, Computer Warrior and Doomlord have always went down a storm. Never Dredd, by my youngest (12) is currently lapping up The EE edition of PJ Maybe, he loves him! Dunno what that says:)
I reckon the missing adventures of PJ, and Wolfie Smith too could be a good option to add to Regened, teenage tearaway psychic!
Curious but possibly coincidental that PJ is of a similar age. Mini-IP has enjoyed a few classic strips from 2000 AD stablemates, such as the Misty books and Sweeny Toddler.I don't recall her reading any classic 2000 AD as yet, mind, but she's perhaps a bit young. Plus I'm not sure she'd be that interested anyway.
As ever I'm late to a Prog debate, but for whatever reason I enjoyed this Regened Prog more than usual. The Dredd was decent, the Future Shock had fun art that felt kinda weird and actively futureish, which I like, and Renk is plain fun, and I love the art style. Lowborn High I have never enjoyed before, but this episode I felt like I finally understood what the point was, even if it makes no sense.
My children continue not to have the slightest interest. Joko would need to either buy in a popular Manga to reprint (hey, remember when the Megazine ran Preacher - why not try that again..?) or else run a football-themed story, ideally one sponsored by an actual Premiere League star.
Might I also say, writing for kids is HARD! There's a reason Wagner and Mills trained on kids stuff then spent the rest of their lives writing for teens/adults, rather than the other way around, and it's not because there's more money in adult fiction.
I thought the art on Dredd was a bit strange. It had a bit of an Arthur Ranson feel to it, but not as good. But the Lawmasters were bizarre; this was the first time I've seen a Judge's helmet have a chin strap and that was only on the cadets', not the full Judges; but strangest of all was the way the name badges were on top one minute and then under the shoulder pads the next and how big the shoulder pad and eagle were on Dredd, so much so they were touching on the last page.