Prog 2340 - Creature Comforts

[Colin YNWA]

So it was never going to last was it and its not as if its an almightly fall from grace, this Prog is fine. Its  just not absolutely stella as the last couple have been.

Dredd the story ends. The unpinning poppycock kept quiet as the gang stuff stays in the foreground. Is good, not great and the ending is okay.

The big worry this Prog was Portals and blackgoo John Tomlinson's recent work in the Prog has been far from great, if I'm being brutally honest its been very poor. This however is a decent opener. Nothing more, but at least nothing less. The premise and world are set up, we are introduced to our lead, though not yet really given a reason to care. Thne threat seems established. It has an interesting different tone, with bacck street delievers rather than cosmic balance being at stake, so that's feels like a good change. Let's see, but its not bad opener by any stretch.

Speaking of cosmic balance Void Runners introduces its, well more cosmic expansion and we understand the scale of the drama. Great stuff, I mean down to earth stories are a nice change but cosmic balance and existance on the brink can be excellent - as this proves.

The Future Shock doesn't live up to last weeks but its okay. Big business bad and treats its employees well via a nod to The Incal. Decent art. Just don't look to deep into the plot as the whole thing falls apart if you do.

Azimuth remains a highlight. Great fun and just chockful of as many ideas as it has puns.  Wonderful.

So yeah not a bad Prog by any stretch but its interesting how shift and turns in the line up can lead to such a drop from the very high heights of the last couple of weeks. Mind important to say that's more to do with the very high highs we've just had rather than anything else.

[broodblik]

Cover by Stewart K Moore:

[broodblik]

Cover and Logo:

[IndigoPrime]

Like Colin, I felt this was an odd Prog. It was a little like the morning after a party. Not bad, but the excitement has fizzled somewhat with the changing of the strips. Dredd ended well enough, but I do hope this Find My Dredd sub-plot goes somewhere interesting in the next (final?) part of this tale. The inference that they could piggy back on the signal makes sense, but the broad premise remains a bit hmmm. A shame also the most visually striking baddie got removed from the board.

Portals is a first episode, and so it's hard to be too critical. I liked the art style (and the lovely cover). The strip didn't do anything for me yet. Whereas Void Runners and especially Azimuth immediately pulled me in, this one was just OK.

Speaking of, Void Runners isn't hanging about in providing its lore and beats. It feels quite old-school in its execution and retains the interest. Conversely, Azimuth has a very different pace, due to all the text boxes. I'm still not sure what's going on, but it's the best thing in the Prog right now.

Then there's the Future Shock. I didn't pull at any of the threads, and it was a bit obvious, perhaps. But I liked it for what it was.

Azimuth > Future Shock > Void > Dredd > Portals

[Richard]

I liked the art on that Future Shock, I hope we see that artist again.

[Tjm86]

For me the FS was one of the better ones we've had.  Mind you, delivering a good one is a real challenge.  I would agree with comments about the art, will be interesting watching that talent develop.

Portals did nothing for me either.  Felt a bit too much like stuff we've seen before, albeit with a bit of a twist with the Demonic Delivery Service.  At least it suits Coveney's artistic habits so maybe it will pick up.

I'm a bit ambivalent when it comes to Carrol's Dredd but I think part of that is where he tends to over-use conspiracy tropes.  This run was one of the better ones and Lynch has come a long way with his work.  His early stuff on Orlok was uninspiring.  Now though he's shaping up into one of the stronger prog regular artists.

Azimuth is improving for me although I'm still not warming to the cyberpunk affectations.  Top notch artwork certainly helps the strip but it is hard to see what new ideas it brings. 

Void Runners though is the sort of bonkers stuff Boo Cook was made for.  His artwork has the same sort of insane energy that Belardinelli brought to the prog back in the day.  Few artists can do believable but bonkers aliens in the same way those two can.  Aspects of the story do feel a little predictable.  The speed of the story is probably, as IP says, its strength.  I would agree with the 'old school' feel. 

Overall a nice prog.  Not the strongest line up for me but still above average.  I'd be going with:

Void > Dredd > FS > Azimuth > Portals myself but this is by degrees to be sure.

[Barrington Boots]

Superb cover on this weeks Prog! I'd agree that within it was good but not great.

Dredd - I've enjoyed this Dredd a lot. Bit disappointed that it didn't wrap up the Sage storyline but I saw that coming a few weeks back: more disappointed, as IP said, that the most visually striking of the villains checks out as they're a bland bunch otherwise (which I guess is the point) apart from one having a cool robot cat. That's a real nitpick though. Strong story for me, look forward to seeing the next chapter in it.

Portals - this was absolutely ok. I really liked the art: that poor little hungry werewolf cub in his superman suit! The story didn't really excite me but it wasn't bad or boring as an opener and there's a lot of potential there for this to be fun.

Void Runners certainly kicked it up a notch. I'm finding myself neither enthusiastic nor unenthusiastic about the story but again there's a lot of potential for it to become very interesting... Fantastically realised by Boo Cook.

Future Shock Much preferred this one to last weeks. Decent little tale, cool art, nice one.

Azimuth Definitely the best thing in the Prog. This IS interesting, there's just enough obfuscation in language and concepts for me to make things seem intriguing and lived in without being bewildering. Looks brilliant, and can't wait to see what happens next.

[norton canes]

Yeah there's definitely a 'new term' air about the prog this week. In fact, isn't 'In The Event Of My Untimely Demise' the longest-running story in it? It's been quite a sprawling tale and not always simple to follow but it's had a fantastic, high-stakes epic feel. That reminds me - shouldn't we be due another Rob Williams Dredd blockbuster sometime soon..?

New Thrill Portals & Black Goo (hmm... could be snappier. Am I missing a pun?) and it's always great to see Eoin Coveney on art duties (if you're reading, Mr. Rennie - more Alienist..?). Have to say that going by this first instalment, it does seem like something that would feel at home in a Regened prog. Still, looking forward to seeing what John Tomlinson can do freed from the shackles of Future Shocks one-shots.

Speaking of which, this week's Shock is neat and effective, almost like a Black Mirror 101. Agree with the plaudits for Russell M. Olson's art - it strikes a great balance between cartoon and realism, with some lovely running like the running at the bottom of the second page.

Void Runners ups its game after coasting along under the radar for a couple of weeks. Azimuth continues to bear all the hallmarks of a quartet of droids at the top of their game. Interesting to see more fantasy characters in the background (can anyone ID them all?) and I wonder if there are more clues to be found, in the absence (or so it seems) of QR codes?

The cover rounds off another excellent prog, albeit one of a different flavour to recent weeks.