Dredd epics ranked

[Leigh S]

Yay! The 100 sift sorts the wheat from the chaff (though there's still the old long form clunker hanging aroound in there! )

[Dandontdare]

Whilst I may have serious issues with your numerical scores and hence the ordering (I would've been tempted to rank by gut instinct and then fudge the numbers), I can't argue with most of your actual reviews or arguments - I have quibbles, but you make a sound case about the strengths and flaws of each epic (well until you shat the bed downgrading the script for ToD. You mention the good things about the storyline, but I don't think you give them enough weight in the score. It's a definite top 10 IMO).

I agree Trifecta is far less impressive without the delightful shock (which I missed at the time as I always read in worst to best order).

As for Helter Skelter, I think you're being a bit generous when it comes to the balance between "interesting story" and "indulgent fanwank" - Ennis has admitted that he was too much of a fanboy to be writing Dredd, and for me the whole "ho hum, another magic callback of a dead character I remember" annoyance obliterated any subtle strengths of the story.

I never thought there was a continuity error in Wilderlands - I always read it as that comment on Doug Wolk's blog explained. Those photoshop backgrounds though - yikes, they do look a bit crude and dated now, but I remember at the time we were all having our minds blown by desktop publishing and early photoshop, and I thought they looked cool then.

PS -has anyone taken that guy up on the Hicklenton artwork offer?

[AlexF]

I fear I've lost too many friends and readers after my last entry, but nonetheless the ranking continues...

https://dreddepicsranked.blogspot.com/2020/12/epics-25-23-noble-failures.html

[Barrington Boots]

Catching up on these and that the risible End of Days ranks higher than the likes of Trifecta, Sin City and especially Origins is just mindblowing! In fairness it did look ace.

This continues to be such a good read though. It's really inspired me to go back and read stuff like Beyond the Call of Duty and Mandroid that I haven't read for aaages

[Colin YNWA]

Damni these are all reasonable placings and well executed analysis (as ever)... what the heck am I meant to rally against???

One thing that does worry me you have over 20 Epics to go and are already ranking things 16+ have you numbers left support the ongoing climb in quality? I did an Asterix re-read not that long ago, alongside a website and ranked all the books on the comments on that website, alongside others who were doing the same. In the end I ended up with a mark of 14/10 having broken my  1-10 scale with Legionnary (as I recall) and still needing extra praise from there!

[broodblik]

This is like asking two people what their favourite dish is and you will get 5 different answers. I am also quite surprised by the high ranking of End of Days but I still enjoy the analysis behind it all.

[TordelBack]

Can't agree with the ranking (better than City of the Damned and Origins?  Nah), but otherwise Alex is spot-on re: End of Days. It's just plain fun, and packed hyper-dense with imagery and incident. Looking to it for some sort of deep significance for Dredd or his world is a fool's quest and led me to initial disappointment: it's a wacky globe-trotting ensemble adventure, and in a strip recently full of dark conspiracies and intimations of mortality,  all the more welcome for that. 

I think it turned out the best of Rob's longer Dredds, maybe tying with the Pin sequence, albeit completely different in tone and scope.

[AlexF]

Another round of 'your definition of epic is kinda shonky' today...

https://dreddepicsranked.blogspot.com/2020/12/epics-22-20-have-you-forgotten-about.html

[TordelBack]

Now that makes for fascinating reading. I didn't even know Krong Island existed, let alone that it was already collected. Going to have to pursue that one.

Fetish I've never thought of as an epic, although I like it well enough. Every Empire Falls I think is due for a re-read, and I'm not sure I ever read the Koburn bits.

Lots to think about!

[oshii]

I'm enjoying this a lot.  Thanks AlexF

[Colin YNWA]

I'm really looking forward to a re-read of Every Empire Falls - which is kinda close on my Prog Slog. I remember really liking it but it getting a bit of a kickin' at the time. Interested to see how it actually lands.

In other news you link to an old Hamlyn edtion of Fetish - now for some reason - lost to me now - I have an older Rebellion edition of 'Swimming in Blood' (2004) in my head I was advised the printing was much better in that edition which really helped the colours and storytelling therefore - but I've also got a nagging feeling there were other printing problems in that one OR was that in a different edition? Its not in the new Devlin Waugh Swimming in Blood edition I don't think SO how is the printing in Cases Files?

I guess my question is which is the best edition to get Fetish is? Does anyone know?

[TordelBack]

I only have the Hachette version of Fetish (TMC Vol 16), and it looks fine to me there.  Bit dark in places,  but that seems intentional. In fact, a quick flick suggests that all the Waugh material looks pretty spiffy. I feel an impromptu re-read coming on...

[WhizzBang]

I'm really looking forward to a re-read of Every Empire Falls - which is kinda close on my Prog Slog. I remember really liking it but it getting a bit of a kickin' at the time. Interested to see how it actually lands.

I have the trade print of this and it is the only Dredd volume I have that I couldn't finish. I got about 2/3rds of the way through but just closed the book and couldn't bring myself to go back and finish it. I can't really give any specific reasons why, I just wasn't feeling invested. Maybe I will try to give it another go over the xmas break.

[AlexF]

The printing quality of Fetish in the Case Files is top notch. But it does suffer, as they all do, from being such a fat book that sometimes the full impact of those double-pagers gets a bit lost in trying to jam the book open. I don't actually have that Hamlyn collection but they were printed at original Prog/Meg size, and are probably the best out there for art lovers.

On with the show, and another round of smaller epics...
[spoiler]https://dreddepicsranked.blogspot.com/2020/12/epics-19-17-hidden-gems.html[/spoiler]

[AlexF]

Bringing out the big guns now, no doubt more forum friends will fall by the wayside...
[spoiler]https://dreddepicsranked.blogspot.com/2020/12/epics-16-14-two-of-these-are-many.html[/spoiler]