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Just about to read prog 2213 but I just had to log in and say that prog 2212 had me, a 37 year old fully grown man, squealing with delight. An incredible year from 2000AD capped off with an issue of thrills beyond my wildest dreams. I've just realised that I'm excited about every single upcoming story announced so far. Can't wait for the return of The Out, Fiends of the Eastern Front, Dexter, Diaboliks, and so on, and hoping to see a return of Full Tilt Boogie and Hookjaw. My sincere and heartfelt thanks to the writers, artists and editors. Happy New Year everyone.

[Dredd - End of Days]

As a new(ish) reader It seems I enjoyed this prog much more than others here, although I'm missing Tee and the gang from Full Tilt Boogie already.

The Dredd - End of Days installment was a welcome and pleasantly surprising break from the frenetic pace so far, and with the additional intrigue from Azrael this all seems to be shaping up to be more than just a death and ultraviolence action spectacular. A lot of nice world building here that ties into the wider Dredd lore in a satisfying way.

The Out continues to be the best current story IMO, the writing is stellar and although it seems from the reviews above that the artwork is controversial, I personally find it incredibly evocative. In fact when convincing people to start reading 2000AD recently, Harrison's otherworldly artwork is the first thing I show them. Nothing to say that hasn't already been said about this genuinely brilliant story.

Sinister Dexter was good. Although it's not really my favourite strip, I think this part has really re-grounded the story and provides a solid jumping off point for whatever Abnett has planned next.

I thought the Quilli story was honestly brilliant. I loved the "recognisably modern Britain but satirically heightened" sense of it all, most brilliantly expressed with the cops at the start who feel incredibly real before it quickly spins off into Amanda Alsation, like something from Monkey Dust. The whole thing felt like a modernisation of classic British horror in the vein of The Wicker Man, with modern fears of media manipulation in the mix with Hammer Horror's traditional "progress is just a veil over the inescapable terrors of the past" themes. Absolutely brilliant.

The Order is, as always, completely opaque and confusing to me. Maybe one day I'll go back and try to figure out what the hell is happening, but every part I've ever read seems to be the same high stakes turned-up-to-11 melodrama. It just has no breathing room and perhaps for that reason I just can't seem to get a foothold into the story. The art is gorgeous though.

I think the prog has been "this good" for a very long time. And by that, I'm aware that many people have differing opinions as to the quality of many of the strips, but that that range of opinions has been much the same for at least the last ten years. Personally, this last year has one of my favourites- even though I'm striking a three out of five average across most runs of stories. Like you, I'm not following The Order- but I have a suspicion that were I to dig out the progs and set a weekend aside to reading it all, that would change.
While the comic is a very different beast from that of the 80s version, I still find it a vital and entertaining part of my week.
And even back in the 80s, in that beautiful mishmash of Dredd, Slaine, Halo, and all the rest, i think i still ran a three out of five average- as I was never fond of Rogue Trooper or Robo Hunter, to name just two.

SBT

I think the most startling things about returning to 2000AD are:
1. The stuff I remember as being great from back when I was a kid is in fact genuinely great and totally stands the test of time (although you can't go wrong with Grant Morrison, Alan Moore, Bryan Talbot etc.)
2. The current editorial standards are absurdly high. The writing and the art are stellar, the output is easily comparable to today's prestige television shows. I was honestly gobsmacked picking up the latest Progs.

levireeves: you can now post wherever you like.

Cheers!

Yeah and I think this was covered by the line' Its not safe onboard' or similar by Tee when discussing landing - though if that was the case leaving Granny aboard seems harsh!

Welcome aboard levireeves. Really glad you've enjoying the Prog since returning. Hopefully a Mod will be along soon to sort full posting permissions soon enough. If not there's a thread here abouts where you can request. We have problems with Spambots (particularly at the moment but historically as well) so permission are a little more guarded these days.

Thank you I've re-read the last couple of parts and it all seems much clearer now.

I've been really loving Full Tilt Boogie so far, I imagine it's not for everybody, with its clean cut, anime-inspired kids animation feel, but it's an aesthetic I like and I love the world building and the characters.

Then again it's hard to pick a favourite out of the current stories. I'm a bit lost with The Order so that's probably my least favourite but I still enjoy the giddy madness of it all. Thinking of picking up the Caballistics collection because I'm enjoying Diaboliks so much.

Has the prog been consistently this good in recent years? I remember hearing some grumbles about early-era Rebellion (although I suppose that's a long time ago now) but, reading these latest progs alongside my Zenith and Halo Jones collected editions, I honestly think the current stuff is just as good as the late 80s heyday.

[spoiler]Tee and Blackdog went to the asteroid because it is her Blackdog's home-world that was destroyed.  Ifan new that hey can track him so he decided he will "sacrifice" himself for the team.[/spoiler] Sometime it helps going back to previous episodes because parts of episodes 3 will actually continue directly in 5 for example. It is better posting this for example in the prog review section.

Oh and welcome abroad

Thank you so much that really clears things up! I tried to post this in prog review but I don't have the right permissions. Thanks again!

Hi all,

New subscriber here. Used to read 2000ad back in the 90s but I took out a new subscription starting with prog 2183 (2184 was a great accidental jumping on point). Absolutely loving it and blown away by the quality of art and writing these days. Every current story is so good.

I have question for those who've read prog 2191- maybe I'm just being a bit thick here, but in Full Tilt Boogie [spoiler]why did Tee and Black Dog go on to the asteroid? I thought they were just dropping Ifan off there? And what was Ifan's plan? Just to hope his oxygen didn't run out before he was found by some passing ship? Is that really safer than staying on the ship? I really don't understand what the plan was here, especially from Tee's perspective. Tee doesn't seem that surprised when the Luxine Knights turn up, but before she left the ship she thought she had time to get Black Dog and Horus to drop her and grannie off somewhere. Am I missing something?[/spoiler]