Prog 1650 - new Dredd Mega Epic!

[Mardroid]

I get the impression any problems brought about by the 'new management' will mainly be due to lack of resolve, pandering to the senior Judges, etc. Francisco genuinely doesn't seem to be corrupt. Weak, maybe.

[radiator]

Isn't the mysterious villain from that overlong "Ecstasy" story at large somewhere in the Cursed (that's one syllable, incidentally) Earth?

Tour of Duty could be a spell as a Cursed Earth marshall or even a military posting offworld (although that seems unlikely) which is where Dolman wanted to go, if I remember right.

I think Rohmer is dead, but it was a bit ambiguous and the story was left open for a sequel. Dolman is off-world, but as an explorer rather than a soldier.

[locustsofdeath!]

But wouldn't Dredd - no matter how much he disagrees with Francisco's policies - play it by the book unless Francisco got way out of hand, which as has been stated, doesn't seem likely. Weak, rather than corrupt. So if a civil war did break out, Dredd would remain on the side of the Chief Judge, donchathink? Can't wait for this, whatever it may be.

[Goaty]

I wonder which Judges will be on Dredd's side...

[Roger Godpleton]

It'll be interesting to see if Cass, Guth and Giant crop up and where they stand, although it's doubtful with Wagner.

[Dark Jimbo]

I'm more interested in what's going to happen to Hershey, one of the longest serving (surviving) supporting characters - street duty? Long Walk?

[Kerrin]

Good point. Maybe she goes with Dredd on his cursed earth jolly. In which case I'd rate her chances of survival as slim.

Still no news as to who the artist is going to be on this. Is there?

[Goaty]

please let it be Kev Walker....

[I, Cosh]

please let it be Kev Walker....

That would be pretty awesome, but it occurs to me that we haven't seen much of Carlos for a while. Maybe he's been beavering away on this?

[Grant Goggans]

Well, there's the (4-part??) Mork Whisperer story and the next Battlefields: The Tankies three-parter on Ezquerra's plate already this year.

[Pete Wells]

I hope once the title is properly revealed that we get a trailer for it!

[Comrade Aleksandr]

Just a thought, perhaps instead of deporting the mutants the Judges take to Thrid Reich extermination of them instead.
Perhaps Dredd goes on the Long Walk, and comes accross the equivalent of the gas chambers.
Though this is just speculation.

[locustsofdeath!]

Just a thought, perhaps instead of deporting the mutants the Judges take to Thrid Reich extermination of them instead.
Perhaps Dredd goes on the Long Walk, and comes accross the equivalent of the gas chambers.
Though this is just speculation.

Interesting idea...I think something like this could push Dredd into opposition with Chief Judge Francisco if he were santioning it - but then again, as has been noted, Francisco doesn't quite seem up to something like that, unless maybe he is a puppet...hmmmmmm.

[Comrade Aleksandr]

Ah, but the question is, if Francisco is the puppet, then who is the puppeteer?
DAN-DAN-DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

[Dark Jimbo]

I still think the focus of most of these guesses is too strong on Dredd himself, and particularly on 'Dredd in conflict with Francisco' in a civil-war stylee. Wagner's far too smart for that.

Given that Hershey now needs somewhere to go and something to do, I reckon the 'Tour of Duty' in question is going to be hers, and it'll be Dredd that's doing the tagging along. I assume she'll be rigged up with some sort of consolation administration posting in the Cursed Earth, probably a sort of mutant camp cum satellite-city that's she's trying to get on its feet as a way to make up for having failed the mutants in the Meg. I can't see Francisco having a problem with that, so any conflict is going to come from aggressive Cursed Earth denziens or, more likely, dissaffected muties from within.