(http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r182/Caliban_photos/meg353_zpsd0864804.jpg)
Nice doggy. Is that Winslade, eammon? Looks like his hand-painted technique and palette, but the oranges are a little more subtle than his last Dredd cover (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-odAG6Gcil0Q/U1zSlwbDBHI/AAAAAAAAKEc/s6QwKMB3M_U/s1600/Prog+1879.jpg).
cover is by Phil Winslade.
Some transfer grubbiness on my copy I think
The memsabib has confirmed that the Prog and Meg await me with along with a couple o bottles o cider :D
I love that cover! :D
Those are the doohickeys from insurrection....love them. Z
Ooof! Roll on wednesday!
Quote from: eamonn1961 on 11 October, 2014, 03:53:17 PM
cover is by Phil Winslade.
Some transfer grubbiness on my copy I think
I have the same on mine so may find all on the run came out like that?
Getting ahead of myself, but Boo's cover for the next one (movie Dredd) looks fantastic as well.
Quote from: Steve Green on 12 October, 2014, 10:52:29 AM
Getting ahead of myself, but Boo's cover for the next one (movie Dredd) looks fantastic as well.
It's already bad enough that you guys get your physical subs a few days before me :'( I want a sneak peek, too!
Here you go...
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2230663/354.jpg)
Not the biggest fan of Boo's salmon based colour palette: but that cover is suffused with movement, energy and purpose. Z :D
That is one lush cover for Meg 354-talk about dynamic!
Meg 353's is equally lovely! :)
Ooo nice, thanks for putting that up. I do prefer Boo's linework to his coloring (don't really have anything against the coloring....just think his stuff looks better b/w)
No problem, I love the little details like the falling fatty with the pi symbol on his/her shirt...
I love Boo's work, sometimes I feel he's really underrated. One of the aspects of his work which I love is all the stuff going on in the background, as you can see above and as Steve has pointed out. It reminds me of Masamune Shirow's work on Appleseed, Ghost in the Shell et a, with a lot of stuff going on in the panels. Don't know why but I feel really drawn to that type of artwork/ storytelling.
So, anyway, about the new Meg...
I've only just read Dredd but had to put down the comic and fire up the laptop just to say how bloomin' magnificent this episode is. The unexpected direction of the narrative is a master-stroke, and I know that we use the word a lot around here, but I am genuinely thrilled and excited to see where the story goes next.
And the art! Wow - the view of the Meg on p3 is awe-inspiring. The panel layouts and haphazard angles create a wonderful sense of excitement and the palette, as seen in previous episodes, is both ugly and beautiful at the same time.
Full of drama, spectacle, world-building, tenderness and some lovely characterisation, and subtle humour (eg. the reference to an 'art droid'), this is a wonderful, even classic Dredd episode.
With Wagner writing in both titles and two of the best ever JD artists on duty, this episode of Dredd goes even further in provding proof positive that our favourite future lawman is just the best – and why even approaching 40, these stories can still make me buzz like a child.
Bravo!
Yeah, it's a stunning combination - the line that [spoiler]the workfarm punishment wasn't as awful as what they were already doing[/spoiler] or words to that effect was fantastic, and this has been my favourite Dredd story in a long while.
Nice to see not only Zarjaz & Dogbreath getting a mention in the Meg, but The Psychedelic Journal of Time Travel too!
Quote from: Steve Green on 12 October, 2014, 08:30:23 PM
No problem, I love the little details like the falling fatty with the pi symbol on his/her shirt...
Looks to me like the guy has been shoved of the walkway by some juves. :o That is
dark for a front page.
Quote from: Dandontdare on 13 October, 2014, 10:04:08 AM
Nice to see not only Zarjaz & Dogbreath getting a mention in the Meg, but The Psychedelic Journal of Time Travel too!
But a bit of a backhanded compilment!
Sorry for the double post, but hey sue me!
Fine cover: Big robot, big gun, what's not to like?
JD Dead zone: Ten pages! yah! The Big W takes the tale in a new direction [spoiler]back to MC1[/spoiler]. With a verbose Stoney Face, along with some stunning cityscapes from our man Flint.
Class War Prog Cover? is that someones daughters on there? ;)
Interrogation: Phil Winslade get a seven page chat of his life and loves
Lucy Lawless: shows us Phil's fine B&W style,
The man from the Ministry: concludes with some interstellar fistycuffs, will we see a second outing?
Winter special ad: (sorry but those legs keep catching my eye)
Interrogation: Lee Carter has an eyecatching doggy thing centre page and a preview of the Rogue zombie tale
further Interrogation: with Jake lynch and Eoin Coveney, with the aforementioned ' I couldn't draw properly then, so I did a lot of work for fanzines' which could easily be misconstrued, but not met in that way I'm sure.
Dredd Uprising: Nicely done and artwork top notch, bit of a marvel ending, even Old Stoney face[spoiler] can't out gun that lot! [/spoiler]
next month's cover is a cracker too, all and all a fine megazine, can't see why more prog readers don't lap this up.
Yep, got to agree with all the love for the Meg on here lately. It's a brilliant run of stories just now.
Dredd signals the change of pace/location by becoming 'part 1' of a new sub-arc. Grim business surrounding the parentage of the baby. I imagine we're supposed to infer that Belle and Yodie (?) are siblings, which only adds to the unpleasantness. This being Mega City One, I can't see things ending well for anyone.
As has been said, Heny Flint's art is jaw-dropping in this episode. The huge panel featuring the arrival into the city down an ominous trench-like road is beautiful.
Still really enjoying Lawless. A lot of Dreddverse stuff in the Meg feels like inconsequential fluff to me. I find it hard to care about the characters or outcome of the stories, but this is different. All the characters feel really alive and imbued with their own personalities.
Love the continuing 'mountain/gorilla' naming convention we get with Kay-Too to go along with Kill-A-Man-Jaroo.
The art is an absolute treat as well. In his Interrogation, Phil Winslade says he hopes to still be drawing regular series of Lawless in years to come. On the strength of what I've seen so far, I can only agree.
The last episode of The Men From The Ministry seems to leave us with more questions than answers, obviously setting up a second series. It's been good fun and I've enjoyed it.
Lovely creepy alien-girl there.
Uprise is barrelling along. It's still managing to retain the feel of the film whilst adding in some of the more comicky elements of Dredd's wider world. Wish we could see more of Anderson in these comic sequels though. I want to see her being developed into a seasoned Judge.
Another absolutely BLAZING Meg. The sheer quality is unbeleivable at the moment. If you're reading the prog but not the Meg, SHAME ON YOU! You're missing some real treats.
I have only been a regular meg reader for about the last 5 issues after dipping in and out during Ostriches and the like.
Hooked. Love Ministry in particular but the rest also floats my boat in a big way and the creator interviews are immensely enjoyable and part of a great cake mix.
Great Meg!
I'm guessing 'Ministry' will be returning. I liked it a lot but it seems to have just finished without explaining much.
Cheers
Just finished a nice leisurely read: Flint's artwork is staggering, as mentioned earlier the trench road into the Big Meg is a dream come true for one such as me who is facinated with the Mega City concept. The two Dredd stories in the Meg and the prog Dredd are overloading my circuits at the moment. Brilliant stuff....we will look back on Wagners tecnt Dredd stories with wistful joy years from now. Z
The Meg is certainly winning at the moment.
Judge Dredd - Bloody awesome artwork as usual from Flint. He's definitely in my top 5 art droids.
Lawless - This is ticking along nicely, even if we have had few too many arse/boob panels of the main star in the bath/in a towel etc. Less of that this week and an introduction to some new characters. I am enjoying this strip even if it's nothing particularly new or ground breaking.
Man from the Ministry - This started off grabbing my attention, but by the finale this week it has lost me a bit. I'm not really sure why [spoiler]the pilot was taken by an alien race, to then be modified and then beat another alien race simply by driving into them with a ship... if they were that easy to defeat, the whole journey seems a bit unnecessary[/spoiler]. Perhaps this was just the first of many battles and questions will be answered in a future series..?
Dredd - Enjoying the film spin off series. I agree with those who have asked for Anderson to be present in these strips - her character was one of the things that made the film so great. Looking forward to the finale next month though.
I enjoyed the articles as usual - always an interesting read seeing how artists and writers got into comics... even if it always makes me a bit jealous..
Top form!
Another very strong Meg! Excellent work!
If you haven't tried it for a while, well what are you waiting for? Get this one now!
I've been reading this on the app. iPad in landscape zoomed into full page width. Looks gorgeous! :)
Really fantastic meg...
You'd think Wagner was headed for the RIP thread the way his (sublime) tales are greeted recently. Stop that for Drokk's sake! He's been experimenting with re-juve treatment! Hooray!
My only quibbles - and quibbling is one of the greatest joys - are on the scripts for Ministry and Uprise this time round. Because the prog & meg and so stonking these days I am prepared to say that their convoluted/confusing elements (I was left scratching my head a few times) is down to lag between episodes, and thrill-power damage. Meanwhile, the art everywhere was glorious, so there's that.
The Megazine has become enjoyable again.
Judge Dredd is very good. Wagner and Flint at the top of their game. I am really curious if it will all end in tears or the Cubes or not.
Lawless has grown on me. At first I wasn't very interested. Not the next western frontier-town/Firefly with the sassy Anderson-clone. But this has been fun, and the art has been fabulous. Winslade is doing outstanding work here. And I don't have a problem with the few very modest pseudo-nude panels which imho don't even merit the term T&A. I thought the bathtub-scene very funny.
Man from the Ministry: It wasn't bad, and a few parts were fun. Still I thought the whole thing rather by the numbers in its LOEG fashion. And I am not a big fan of the art.
Dredd: Nice one.
Interviews were good. They are much better done in the Megazine then the usual online stuff you mostly get today.
Meg was brilliant this month again. The Lobster Random floppy was great- I really liked this character and the floppy reminded me of just how much.
(http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m560/Nexus-wookie/Mobile%20Uploads/20141028_182111.jpg)
This page by Flint is funting amazing. He's like the natural successor to Otomo when it comes to drawing post apocalyptic vistas/ cityscapes. It's such a vivid piece, beautifully realised. I'm lost for bloody words...
Agreed - I hadn't noticed how that side panel tapers to reflect the perspective of the roadway. Though I do remember gazing at that page for much longer than usual when my prog arrived!
Quote from: Dandontdare on 28 October, 2014, 06:34:08 PM
Agreed - I hadn't noticed how that side panel tapers to reflect the perspective of the roadway. Though I do remember gazing at that page for much longer than usual when my prog arrived!
Same here! The details in the panels are amazing. For me, Henry Flint joins a special group of artists including such greats as Moebius, Corben, Bolland, Otomo, who elicit such a reaction from me, that is to make me gawk at their works for long amount of time!
Si Fraser is another one for a majestic cityscape. The thing that stood out for me this Meg is that not only was there this wonderful splash but there was another fantastic one in Lawless
Yes, how can I forget Simon Fraser! Some of his cityscapes are mouthwatering to behold, both for Nikolai Dante and also like this one here...
(http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m560/Nexus-wookie/Mobile%20Uploads/6_fbe5e3d7c5fd8f40213c387f23a5e54b.jpeg)
From Lilly McKenzie and the Treasure of Paros.
Mindboggling stuff.
Quote from: Muscleman on 28 October, 2014, 11:38:43 PM
Yes, how can I forget Simon Fraser! Some of his cityscapes are mouthwatering to behold, both for Nikolai Dante
Agree and here;
(http://i39.tinypic.com/ifvbwi.jpg)
That is utterly gorgeous, Goaty. I seriously feel that Si Fraser is up there alongside Moebius in creating stunning sci-fi landscapes/ cityscapes. I remember when I first encountered Nikolai Dante, I was gobsmacked at some of his work, especially those engrossing splash pages. The guy is one hell of a talent. I can't wait to see the new Lilly McKenzie story in the Meg (he told me a while back that it would be likely, hope it happens soon).
Shouldn't 254 have been on the doormat by now? :(
Quote from: Proudhuff on 11 November, 2014, 11:46:02 AM
Shouldn't 254 have been on the doormat by now? :(
No, you're a week early - subscribers should get it this Saturday and it'll be on newsstands next week.
Quote from: Molch-R on 11 November, 2014, 11:47:19 AM
Quote from: Proudhuff on 11 November, 2014, 11:46:02 AM
Shouldn't 254 have been on the doormat by now? :(
No, you're a week early - subscribers should get it this Saturday and it'll be on newsstands next week.
:-[ doh! premature as usual...
Quote from: Proudhuff on 11 November, 2014, 11:51:58 AM
Quote from: Molch-R on 11 November, 2014, 11:47:19 AM
Quote from: Proudhuff on 11 November, 2014, 11:46:02 AM
Shouldn't 254 have been on the doormat by now? :(
No, you're a week early - subscribers should get it this Saturday and it'll be on newsstands next week.
:-[ doh! premature as usual...
Actually, you're about 8 years too late for issue 254.
Signed Mr. P. Dant.
Just testing...
They do at least have the same cover artist though.
Quote from: James Stacey on 11 November, 2014, 04:23:42 PM
They do at least have the same cover artist though.
Spooky! :o
I live in Sweden but visited London last weekend and bought this issue as my very first Megazine purchase and I loved it.
I am seriously considering buying a subscription which is not cheap if you are in Europe but it really was miles above my expectations and gave me the same thrill I got from 2000ad as a kid. I haven't bought 2000ad in decades now - I buy Rebellion books instead as I like the whole story to be there for me to get through, but the free mini book provides this kind of kick too so it is very tempting.
The Wagner Dredd story was the biggest highlight but the rest was of a very high standard too and the written pieces interviewing contributors was greatly appreciated. They nicely break the thing up. I would love to see similar pieces about Wagner, Mills, Bolland, Ezquerra, Gibson, Moore, McMahon, etc as well as the current crop of superb new droids.
Quote from: WhizzBang on 20 November, 2014, 08:21:57 PM
. I would love to see similar pieces about Wagner, Mills, Bolland, Ezquerra, Gibson, Moore, McMahon, etc as well as the current crop of superb new droids.
good idea, a catch up of the Prog's 'great and the good' would be a nice addition, some of these guys have been Interrogated a long time ago but it would be nice to see what they are doing now/planning and/or have a rertospective on greats like Cam Kennedy or our new Comic Lorry-ette.