Judge Dredd: The Mega Collection discussion thread

[Dandontdare]

I have always been a  bit downhearted by any story that tries the "corruption in the heart of Justice Dept" angle

^^ This 1000%
It's an easy story approach, but it's been done to death.

[Davgardo]

Just finished Wilderlands and it's much as I remember: enjoyable without hitting the heights of the very best Dredd epics.
I have a problem with 2 things, 1 of which is Ezquerra's first dabblings with computer art. Frankly it's horrible. Not only is his painted tenth planet art streets ahead of it (just compare the 2 different versions of Hestia viewed from space) it's a jarring contrast with Hairsine's work. It's like they're drawing 2 completely different environments.
My other problem is with the vital chapter drawn by Mick Austin. I'm guessing that Mick had to step in at the Eleventh hour because of some issue Carlos must have been having. I don't honestly know, I've never read of a reason. But regardless, the art, and the script are just bizarre. It's like there's a missing chapter somewhere because there's absolutely zero flow from the previous chapter to this. After 2 months of slow build up and tension, suddenly there's a Mechanismo robot staring at us. Terrible. I thought the intro might cast some light on this but it didn't, just spent 500 words describing the plot. Ridiculous.

[Tony Angelino]

Wilderlands was okay, not great but miles ahead of some of the recent volumes (the Calhab one and even Young Death). I also wasn't keen on Carlos' colouring where everything seemed to be different shades of purple and red. The Hairsine pages were great.

I don't remember his art coming up in the Mega Collection before but as someone who jumped ship in the 90's I never really saw much of his Dredd. I did buy either the prog or the meg for a Dredd/Mean Machine Angel team-up that he drew but other than that he's one of the Dredd artists that I largely missed out on. Very like McMahon but still individual enough that its not a blatant copy.

[Jade Falcon]

So whats the next books going to be?  Also, will we ever see the Dreams of Deadworld stories as I noticed them mentioned elsewhere online in relation to Dredd.

[Trent]

Next books are Anderson- Engram and Fetish. Juding by the credits, Fetish will collect virtually all of the remaing Devlin Waugh stories plus some Smith/Doherty Dredd (Roadgames?).
It means for a very Dredd-lite month as I always considered Fetish more of a Devlin story than a Dredd one despite it being the main Dredd strip in the Meg snd Devlin not appearing until half way through.
Anderson should collect most of the remaining early stories with the odd gap - hey get the Psi files if you need everything.

[TordelBack]

...Ezquerra's first dabblings with computer art. Frankly it's horrible. Not only is his painted tenth planet art streets ahead of it (just compare the 2 different versions of Hestia viewed from space) it's a jarring contrast with Hairsine's work. It's like they're drawing 2 completely different environments.

While I can hardly argue with the points about Hairsine and Austin, I think the Great Ezquerriment has to be viewed with a retrospective sense of novelty and wonder: it was brave, it was bright, it was streets ahead of what most others were dong at he time. While I'll always prefer the genius of his purple-and-geeen period, it was amazing to see such a confident established artgod throw out what worked so well for him and leap into the technological deep end with such unrestrained results. You can see him pushing the limits of borrowed textures and vibrant colours, not just trying to do what he used to do only faster: a true artist.

[jabish]

I have a soft spot for Wilderlands but I always though there was a missing chapter. I remember reading it in the prog at the time and going hang on what have we missed here. And reading it in the collected form only reinforced that. Maybe someday we'll find out but it definitely feels like something got lost in the post. Glad I'm not the only one who thought that.

It's like there's a missing chapter somewhere because there's absolutely zero flow from the previous chapter to this. After 2 months of slow build up and tension, suddenly there's a Mechanismo robot staring at us.

[Trent]

I also enjoyed Ezquerra's digital foray even if the results were highly variable. As Tordleback says it was fascinating to watch someone who didn't need to, try something different for artistic reasons.
That said, personally I think Carlos's art peaked in his black and white run on Strontium Dog in the prog. Truly world class comic art.

[Cyber-Matt]

I thought the intro might cast some light on this but it didn't, just spent 500 words describing the plot. Ridiculous.

Because I was 21 when Wilderlands was published, and not long out of college. I have no idea why Mick had to step in to draw an episode - strangely, editorial didn't deign to keep me up to speed on the Nerve Centre's inner workings six years before I worked there. But I imagine Mick drew the script he was given.

[TordelBack]

Surely you could just have asked Tharg, cyberMatt? I mean he was there at the time... unless there's something fishy about the way the Command Module operates. 

I confess I also used to suspect that there was a missing episode in Wilderlands, but there really isn't room for one. Dredd hunts a mystery killer, it turns [spoiler]out to be a Mechanismo unit[/spoiler]. The only thing that falls flat is the moment of that reveal, which is still a mystery at the end of one episode, and then seems to be treated as a matter of common knowledge in the next. Obviously someone was supposed to convey the shock revelation in either the last panel or the first, but it wasn't clear which - then or now.

[Davgardo]

I thought the intro might cast some light on this but it didn't, just spent 500 words describing the plot. Ridiculous.

Because I was 21 when Wilderlands was published, and not long out of college. I have no idea why Mick had to step in to draw an episode - strangely, editorial didn't deign to keep me up to speed on the Nerve Centre's inner workings six years before I worked there. But I imagine Mick drew the script he was given.

Well, without wishing to state the bleeding obvious, you do (I would imagine) have a decent set of contacts and an email may have cleared it up. But I do appreciate the devastating sarcasm which has put me firmly in my place.

[Frank]

Surely you could just have asked Tharg

Wilderlands was right before Tharg got kidnapped by the Men In Black. Blocking the memories of the 'probing' he endured must mean that period is a bit of a blur.

I'm not sure the editorial team of that time [1] would be able to tell us more than we can guess. The only reason an artist draws 1 episode of a 26 part Carlos Ezquerra series is because Carlos had a problem. [2]

Douglas Wolk's reflections on Wilderlands cite Mick Austin's complaints that Tharg used him for any last minute rush jobs, and a familiar voice explains how events are consistent between 911 & 912. There's no missing episode.

The reason it doesn't read well is (presumably) that Austin was working blind, without knowing how Ezquerra had choreographed the action and geography of the scene. Without knowing that, Austin was engaged in a sequential art variant of a game of Consequences.


[1] Neither of whom seem to exchange Christmas cards with Tharg these days

[2] Henry Flint filled in for Ezquerra on Helter Skelter, when the latter's home collapsed. Carlos missed just one deadline on The Apocalypse War too - on that occasion, Tharg chose to reprint an old strip to let Carlos catch up, but the scheduling of Wilderlands to run between prog and Meg ruled that out.

[abelardsnazz]

Finished reading Into the Undercity, I would say it's an entertaining rather than essential volume.

Despite my earlier misgivings, I enjoyed Creep more than I remember from first time round. Maybe I've developed a soft spot for indestructible sadists in my old age. Great interview with Si Spencer too.

A rare appearance for Pat Mills on Dredd, bringing an almost Slaine-esque element in. I loved Tiernen Trevallion's art on Ratfink too.

And there's an answer to that burning question, how do you see in the Undercity?

Overall a good read.

[Judge Nutmeg]

I wouldn't mind the returN of the creep even if it just a one off strip for a face off with DREDD.

[Trent]

Next volumes due in a week or so. Enjoyed Fetish so nice to see that in a decent format and I always welcome Colin MacNeil's painted art. With extra Pete Doherty it should be a good book.
Trying to work out what will be in Anderson assuming the cover includes all contributors (not always the case).
Remaining early stories by listed artists only amount to around 150 pages to the end of Engram. Assume Gibson tales from the annuals but we are still a little short imho.
Leviathan's Farewell would seem a very strange omission given the significance to the whole Grant Anderson arc.