Wait, I can't be the first to get this can I? Haven't bagged the prog thread for yonks, and 2209 was two weeks late. I'll leave Broodblik to do his usual much appreciated posting of the cover, but the tag-line's not exactly memorable. Does what it says on the tin I suppose.
Judge Dredd: Another fine Noam Chimpsky tale from Ken Niemand and PJ Holden, a heartwarming little Christmas tale.
Strontium Dog Well this will probably have some of the facebook crowd having aneurysms - A tale of Johnny and Wulf without Carlos OR John? It works though - The art channels Star Lord era Ezquerra and the script is crammed with all the gadgets and references you'd expect in a satisfying little tale that does rely heavily on one massive piece of luck. And maybe Wulf's accent gets a little OTT on the final page, but overall I'd give it the thumbs up.
In the year 2020 - awesome montage pin up by Stewart K Moore - how long will it take you to find Stogie? Got most of the references, but help a brother out with these few: (left) the dude with the superhero mask punching the Sov mek...the helmeted guy seen from the back, just below Slaine's right hand ... and are those anything other than anonymous barbarians that Slaine's flinging off his back?
Carlos Pino article .. not read yet
Survival Geeks. An epilogue with a huge dollop of awwwwwww.
Letters - I defer to my honourable colleague for fuller reviews, but Ming's Lego looks amazing and star letter is from that bloke from round 'ere that can't spell Steve.
Visions of Deadworld - nice creepy one off. Not as gut droppingly chilling as some, quite sweet really.
That's all, had to take a break to rest the thrill circuits. Part 2 to follow - Proteus Vex and Hershey may have to wait till I've done a catch-up read, but Slaine looks lush (they always do though .. but then words), there's an old-skool Time Twister/Tharg tale and an interesting looking new Durham Red.
If there was an edit function on this thread, I wouldn't have used "tale" five times, twice in the same sentence FFS *groan*
And I would have spelled ELECTRIFYING correctly
Leonardo Manco's art on Slaine is fantastic. This is a promising new start for the series, and seems to be a clean break from Brutannia.
Strontium Dog is definitely a highlight. I'd be happy to see this creative team carry on with this and do a full series. (How else will we get a "The Son" graphic novel?)
Survival Geeks was good, Neil Google's best art to date I think. [spoiler]A bit sad to see the gang break up.[/spoiler]
There's a very silly Time Twister (in a good way). Jake Lynch does a good Henry Flint impression in Proteus Vex. Durham Red gets off to a good start.
I'm very happy with this prog.
Cover by Cliff Robinson and Dylan Teague:
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Eo3ply-WEAI1rjr?format=jpg&name=large)
Cover and Logo:
(https://i0.wp.com/www.comicon.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Screenshot-2020-12-09-23.18.53.png?resize=768%2C1003&ssl=1)
Dear Tharg
This year has proven to be a very disruptive challenging year. We all face changes in how we interact with our fellow humans socially and in the work environment. One thing for me stood out is the House of Tharg even with all the challenges kept on producing the weekly prog and monthly megazine. Not only producing it but the publication has been throughout the year being off high quality and standards.
2020 has been for me personally been a great year of the prog. New thrills like The Out, Pandora Perfect, Department-K, Full Tilt Boogie, The Diaboliks, Proteus Vex and Feral and Foe. Return of a classic Hook Jaw in a new magical jacket. Stickeback returning after a few seasons off absents. We also saw the return of Aquila and The Zaucer of Zilk. We said goodbye to Survival Geeks. It was a continuous great run of progs, thrill on thrill.
So, I will say this thank you Tharg and droids for the flow on thrills and great stories. My Wednesday mornings become my weekly highlight off thrill power-overload.
:)
Slaine the highlight. But no more Strontium Dog please.
And so begins my annual wait. 9 days to go.
Yep mine is tucked away after a quick flick through awaiting Christmas day - though all those new Beasts of Balance might mean I can hold off until Boxing Day... we'll see...
I don't know how you guys can wait, I've already gone through mine over a couple of sittings.
Very good festive Dredd despite the man himself [spoiler]being made to look like a total chump[/spoiler]. I like these Chimpsky takes: they lack the cynical edge that Dredd needs to be really on point imo, but so enjoyable. Loved the last panel as well as the [spoiler]Judge with the balloon[/spoiler] on the third page.
Also enjoyed Strontium Dog which really channels the Western vibe in both the script and the art. For a one off tale this is exactly what I want - Johnny and Wulf being cool, accents and crazy weapons, looks magnificent. I don't want this back full time without John and Carlos but I would like to see more like this in specials and the like.
Praise also from me for Survival Geeks with a very sweet little epilogue to the main tale. I agree this could be Googe's best work in the Prog to date, great facial expressions on both the over the top and more subtle. Much better ending to the strip than when we left it last year.
Deadworld presents the least-horrific of the three one-shots we've had, still completely horrible in a good way, and an uplifting end. It is Christmas I suppose. Looking forward to getting back into this strip proper in 2021.
Proteus Vex - A setup episode with a big chunk of added ultraviolence. A lot happens and there's a lot of information / backstory imparted here but exposition feels less exposition-y and more like stepping into a realised universe. Jake Lynch looks good on art, captures the alien weirdness and scifi backgrounds expertly. The interplay between Vex and Midnight is good here too.
Slaine looks just incredible. It's a gorgeous read and an all action epsiode. If this is the last Slaine I want it to be a winner, although if I'm honest I have a mild feeling of trepidation that it won't be, which is unfair to this as it's off to a great start.
Hershey - hard to look at this objectively given how sour I am on the concept and manner of execution of this thrill. I tried to get over myself on the previous run but it offered little that was enjoyable for me. This time nothing objectionable happens, and it looks cool, but why is it even here? Sorry guys.
Time Twister - Lightweight and amusing tale, some nice playing around with the very Time Twister format itself. Nice one!
Durham Red - interesting start on this as it very much portrays [spoiler]Red as the villain[/spoiler], something I suspect we'll later find out may not be the case (unless this strip has taken a bit of a turn). Nice dialogue and characterisation on the sheriff and the stront and very little dialogue for Red herself but she still comes off a badass when she does speak.
Plus how good is Mings lego build?
Great prog overall and a great year when you think we had a lot of brand new thrills in The Out, Feral and Foe, Full Tilt Boogie and Proteus Vex (and that's not counting Hookjaw). Cheers Tharg / cheers all!
A fantastic prog. Some absolute belters in there and who would have thought that my weakest strip would ever be Strontium Dog? Sheesh.
HERETIC! Strontium Dog is one of the highlights!
I thought the Stront was OK - nice art I'm sure we can all agree. Didn't hit quite the right notes (Wulf getting Time Bombed should have caused a bit more grief for Alpha - the scientist half suggests he hasnt killed him, but a random Time Bomb sounds like a death sentence to me! That could ahve been clearer. I'd have dropped the Genocide Bomb angle too, as it is a concept that really doesn't hold up to much thought and is a bit on the nose really ("We are Facists"). It should really have been a Time Vest... or an Electro-Vest! Now that title is wasted for future Generations!
Surprise highlight for me was the sweet coda to Survival Geeks. Dredd was fun, but does veer into the slight trap of "I love my characters very much and must make them outwit Dredd" - I mean, you do have to outwit Dredd, but even so!
Slaine - greatest Slaine art ever? This is Nemesis Book X all over isnt it, where Pat gets the perfect new artist jut as he has slammed the door.
Eh?
Nothing mentions about Hershey; [spoiler]Dirty Frank is alive! [/spoiler]
Yep Goaty's back, only need some big twists in 2000AD to bring me back!
I thought that happened in the last Hershey series?
The last prog of the year ends the cycle with a bang, what a humdinger prog. I do not have the patience to wait until Christmas day or any other day. The prog is available I jump in and read it.
Dredd – Niemand and PJ has created a cool new "nemesis" for Dredd. Yet again Chimpsky gets the better of Dredd in a great feel-good story. Yes, a happy ending for a change.
S/D – This is good stand-alone S/D story with some great action and great art. I like the way the colours are used here by Teague starting in techno-colour and moving over to a more grey-scale b/w. I know a lot of folk will bemoan this, but the creative team has not tried to re-event or re-image Johnny and Wulf but continued in the same manner that the original stories where told.
Survival Geeks – A enjoyable epilogue to the series. Sam and Simon continue their mundane life with both cannot admit that they miss their adventures. Googe really goes out on a limb with some nice visuals again. The last page is just awesome.
Deadworld – Another disturbing (or in this case less) tale from the world of Death. At least this one has a more off a happy ending.
Proteus Vex – The return of my favourite series this year. The series continues form where we left. Carroll has certainly created a unique and interesting new sci-fi world. Lynch provides the art this round and he does not disappoint with some great extraterrestrial alien designs.
Slaine –It is now almost 2 years since we first saw the advert for the new series. If this is the last series hopefully Mills's can give us a proper farewell. The art is phenomenal, each panel crafted with finesse and a pleasure to behold. So far just some action and mayhem let us see where the story leads us.
Hersey – The first series surely got some interesting feedback. From the beginning this was a story about revenge and the cost of this revenge would be on mind, body, and soul. I enjoyed the first series and the first episode start with a blast.
Time Twisters – This was fun, ridiculous stupid fun.
Durham Red – Good to see Worley and Willsher back on Red. The story starts with some interesting twists and turns. Red is caged but for how long?
I dont think there was a bad page in that. Seeing Slaine back in the prog was like completing a game of Je ga that had been going on bit too long and was getting stacked too high- and I breathed a huge sigh of relief when I turned the page and saw it.
Surprisingly, Durham Red was just underneath it for me- 'surprisingly' because I've not really warmed to this iteration up til now. This one, however, was absolutely spot on.
Everything else was better than i hoped- even Proteus Vex, from which I didnt get much pleasure last time. I could actually follow this opening episode- hope that continues. Also, while I'm in the minority who very much liked Hershey last time and had no problems with her 'coming back from the dead', I wasnt greatly looking forward to this go round. Shouldn't have worried- Dirty Frank! Marvellous.
As I say, not a bad page throughout. But since posts that just praise everything are deeply dull- a bit like that Letter of the Week written by some complete arse- I'll stop this one here. Safe to say, I loved it all.
And no, I havent received my graphic novel yet. Wonder what it will be?
SBT
*Jenga. Je ga is the Klingon version, played with fake infant heads- cos that's like, daaark, man.
SBT
I always enjoy a Christmas Dredd and this was a good 'un - also nice to see the nasty side of the Justice Department again.
The Time Twister was great; some lovely nods to the past there and lots of tongue-in-cheek meta type jokes too.
Sláine has got off to a good start - of course, the artwork is utterly amazing. I think all the major Sláine tales have been told, but I still enjoy the shorter, less noteworthy stories in the vein of The Shoggy Beast and Carnival. If this really is the last one, I will miss the strip.
SD was ok - I don't have a huge problem with other creators having a shot. Not incredible, but not a bad story. (By the way, Laurence Campbell isn't Lol who used to draw O'Rork and Cal Hab Justice in the Meg, is he?)
Never really got my head around Survival Geeks; I've never been a huge convention-goer or memorabilia-collector so maybe it's not aimed at the likes of me. I did like this story though; seemed a nice little epilogue to the whole thing.
Deadworld was as high-quality as always. Now we've got our own [spoiler]Michonne[/spoiler]! To paraphrase an old Strange Cases one-off: In many places this wouldn't be considered a happy ending. But in Deadworld, it's the best you'll get.
Hershey - I'm sorry, I know it's way more important that a pandemic is ravaging the world, racism is on the rise and we're all headed for financial disaster, but I really, really hate that 2000ad has done this. Hershey's death was one of the most touching moments in modern Dredd history, and like all epic Colin McNeil epic death scenes, it's squandered. It's not the worst story around, but I just wish it had a different protagonist.
Sorry to end on a down-note - in any case, so far it's a good, solid Christmas prog and I'm looking forward to Proteus Vex and Durham Red later today.
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 17 December, 2020, 01:15:46 PM
Hershey - I'm sorry, I know it's way more important that a pandemic is ravaging the world, racism is on the rise and we're all headed for financial disaster, but I really, really hate that 2000ad has done this. Hershey's death was one of the most touching moments in modern Dredd history, and like all epic Colin McNeil epic death scenes, it's squandered. It's not the worst story around, but I just wish it had a different protagonist.
The best head-canon fudge is that it's all a
Jacob's Ladder-style deathbed hallucination.
Quote from: Dark Jimbo on 17 December, 2020, 01:45:16 PM
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 17 December, 2020, 01:15:46 PM
Hershey - I'm sorry, I know it's way more important that a pandemic is ravaging the world, racism is on the rise and we're all headed for financial disaster, but I really, really hate that 2000ad has done this. Hershey's death was one of the most touching moments in modern Dredd history, and like all epic Colin McNeil epic death scenes, it's squandered. It's not the worst story around, but I just wish it had a different protagonist.
The best head-canon fudge is that it's all a Jacob's Ladder-style deathbed hallucination.
For Hershey or me?
:lol: Either!
Quote from: SmallBlueThing(Reborn) on 16 December, 2020, 06:24:10 PM
*Jenga. Je ga is the Klingon version, played with fake infant heads- cos that's like, daaark, man.
SBT
And of course, what I really meant there was TETRIS. That'll teach me to post while my wife is talking at me.
SBT
Quote from: SmallBlueThing(Reborn) on 17 December, 2020, 04:51:48 PM
That'll teach me to post while my wife is talking at me.
You do anything other than listen while your wife talks to you?????
:o
My wife is a cockney- I have literally no idea what she is saying most of the time, but it's mostly swears. I have learned to read her elbows and the degree of their vigorous gesticulating in order to judge her mood.
SBT
Ah, know what you mean. My mam is Eastend born too. Ironically although the only one to be able to make that claim, her brothers and sisters all sound far more Cockney than she does despite living just south of Cambridge.
They're probably over-compensating for having moved away.
Just here to say, got my Xmas prog, brilliant to have the old 100-pager again, not going to read any of this thread until I've finished it...
Quote from: Richard on 18 December, 2020, 12:20:09 AM
They're probably over-compensating for having moved away.
It's a definite thing. My accent shifted a county north while I was at university in the Home Counties and I wasn't conscious of doing it.
Quote from: Richard on 18 December, 2020, 12:20:09 AM
They're probably over-compensating for having moved away.
Thing is, she's the only one that was born in the East End. The rest are all too young!
There are quite a lot of "Manchester Irish" who have never set foot on the auld sod in their lives, and haven't since their grandparents' time, but still affect a cod Irish accent. Always makes me laugh, like the British Asians who talk like they've been brought up in the Trenchtown ghetto.
Then there are the types like our Eamonn Clarke, who (name aside) you'd never think was of Irish stock until he says the word / prefix 'any' - over this way it's pronounced 'annie'. My mam being English, there are tapes of me talking when I was about 4 with a bit of a Lancashire accent. Nobody at playschool noticed though. I don't think there's annie trace of Englishness left in my accent now - listen to me on the aforementioned Eamonn's podcast and judge for yourselves.
When I was a young lad, I was in Aberystwyth University for a year, and was very, very shy - I hated that I had an accent that stood out, as I didn't want to stand out at all. Later trips to Britain revealed that my Oirish accent was one of my greatest assets. Never mind all the things about myself that I worked hard on to improve; it's an accident of birth that people liked best.
Quote from: Dandontdare on 18 December, 2020, 12:29:45 PM
There are quite a lot of "Manchester Irish" who have never set foot on the auld sod in their lives, and haven't since their grandparents' time, but still affect a cod Irish accent. Always makes me laugh, like the British Asians who talk like they've been brought up in the Trenchtown ghetto.
First time I was in New York, a friend and I stopped off in a bar* where the barmaid had an accent that could only be described as Irish once you realised that not only had she never been to Ireland, but that she'd never even been in the same room as someone who was
actually Irish. It was hilarious.
*Unbelievable, I know...
Quote from: Jim_Campbell on 18 December, 2020, 12:57:29 PM
Quote from: Dandontdare on 18 December, 2020, 12:29:45 PM
There are quite a lot of "Manchester Irish" who have never set foot on the auld sod in their lives, and haven't since their grandparents' time, but still affect a cod Irish accent. Always makes me laugh, like the British Asians who talk like they've been brought up in the Trenchtown ghetto.
First time I was in New York, a friend and I stopped off in a bar* where the barmaid had an accent that could only be described as Irish once you realised that not only had she never been to Ireland, but that she'd never even been in the same room as someone who was actually Irish. It was hilarious.
*Unbelievable, I know...
Bloody hell; I hadn't even realised fake Irish accents were a thing. Reminds me of Crazy Steve in
All-Star-Batman-and-Robin (spit) pinpointing Black Canary's home county as Monaghan. I have a very good mate from Monaghan, and I couldn't distinguish a Monaghan accent from the surrounding counties.
Accents are always "funny" things, like I am an outsider and if someone does not speak English in almost neutral tone I struggle to follow. When I started reading the prog I never liked Middenface, not that he is a not a cool or great character, just because trying to follow his dialogue was quite a "nightmare" for me. I never liked it when the writers try to use authentic accents in their script.
A friend of mine was on tour with a band in the US and a waitress remarked on his English accent and asked without a hint of irony if he was from Narnia.
the level of geographical ignorance in America is staggering - when I was there I had to explain many times that Scotland and Wales were attached to England, but Ireland was not, and that none of them were attached to Europe; also that England has other cities than London* and that East Berlin is NOT in Russia - and these were college students!
*I was asked what part of London I came from. I replied I came from the North, and the guy told me he'd flown into Heathrow once and seen all these fields - he genuinely thought England consisted of nothing but foggy London and quaint country villages.
Quote from: Dandontdare on 18 December, 2020, 12:29:45 PM
There are quite a lot of "Manchester Irish" who have never set foot on the auld sod in their lives, and haven't since their grandparents' time, but still affect a cod Irish accent. Always makes me laugh, like the British Asians who talk like they've been brought up in the Trenchtown ghetto.
Sounds like an old acquaintance of mine
"Irish Dave" who was born in
Kent, lived in
Dublin for approximately a year and came back with an accent that could be best as
Brad Pitt from
Snatch!
That episode of Slaine was wonderful: made me feel like I was 14 again. I've been getting a bit bored with the Prog lately: turns out all I needed was a [spoiler] big fight with a guy getting his face sliced off![/spoiler].
If it keeps up like this, it'll be some of the greatest Slaine art ever: a ridiculously high bar!
Started reading it. Only got as far as the end of Survival Geeks. I think you can guess why.
you'd guess wrong
Seeing as I've reached a natural break, I might as well do this in bite-size chunks...
Cover: Awesome sauce, Cliff Robinson's intricate linework perfectly complimented by Dylan Teague's vibrant colours. Love the new logo too, hope it sticks around for a few years.
Dredd: You'd have put money on Kenneth Niemand being the go-to droid for a heartwarming festive Dredd story and he doesn't disappoint, giving us action, humour and pathos; and more depth to a character who's becoming a benevolent version of PJ Maybe. And there's nothing 'maybe' about the quality of PJ Holden's artwork (see what I did?).
Strontium Dog: It's a 'Yes' from me. I mean, in a sense anyone taking on this reboot is on a hiding to nothing. There are so many elements that define the strip - the language, the settings, the gadgets, the backstory, and of course Carlos's iconic artwork - that you risk getting it wrong by including too much or too little of any of them. Rob Williams gets it about right in most departments, I think, in what's perhaps wisely a relatively slight story. Keeping it simple was definitely the right decision, even if it does mean the antagonists are short of a little of the bizarreness John Wagner invariably brought them. Mention of 'time DNA device' seemed a bit throwaway, unless it's going to be developed in possible future instalments. The time drogue sequence was nice and the twist worked for me. The Gronk was pretty superfluous though.
Not seen Laurence Campbell's art before but loved it here - touch of the Simon Coleby, I thought. The decision to style it on the early Starlord strips rather than Carlos's more distinctive SD work in 2000 AD paid off. In fact the only disappointment was turning the page to find the whole strip wasn't graced by Dylan Teague's colours.
Looking forward to more.
Survival Geeks: Yes, I blubbed at that last page. I'm a sucker for 'passage of time' stuff like that, it always sets me off. It helps, of course, that Rennie and Beeby created characters I could emotionally invest in throughout the whole of the strip's run. Although... were Clive and Rufus really such ****s?
Anyway. Tharg, please don't let this be the last we see of Neil Googe (ably abetted by Gary Caldwell) in the prog. That Hawkmen panel is glorious!
Quote from: norton canes on 19 December, 2020, 01:25:09 PM
In fact the only disappointment was turning the page to find the whole strip wasn't graced by Dylan Teague's colours.
Dylan did do the grey tones, though! It was Lawrence's idea to switch to grey wash after two pages of colour, as a callback to the old Starlord days, when a lot of strips used grey washes (thanks to being on better paper than 2000AD) but the opening spread would be in colour if it was on the centres.
Ah, right. Totally missed that, thanks.
Quote from: norton canes on 19 December, 2020, 01:46:03 PM
Ah, right. Totally missed that, thanks.
Not gonna lie — it passed me by at first! :-)
Really enjoyed the prog, Chimpsky good fun, Stront feeling a good fit despite no John or Carlos, Proteus Vex off to a flyer, so's Durham Red, even enjoyed Survival Geeks (and presumably means it can never come back?)
But can anyone explain why I'm ok with Hershey being back and on a mission but I'm disappointed they've resurrected Dirty Frank?
This is where the tradition of the xmas prog started from a David Bishop tweet:
Twenty-one years @2000AD published its first end of year 100-page special issue. Making that happen was one of my proudest achievements as editor, and the tradition continues to this day. Looking back, the line-up for Prog 2000 was pretty special... Brian Bolland on cover art!
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EpnDcEhXIAAwySZ?format=jpg&name=900x900)
Quote from: Jim_Campbell on 19 December, 2020, 01:34:50 PM
Quote from: norton canes on 19 December, 2020, 01:25:09 PM
In fact the only disappointment was turning the page to find the whole strip wasn't graced by Dylan Teague's colours.
Dylan did do the grey tones, though! It was Lawrence's idea to switch to grey wash after two pages of colour, as a callback to the old Starlord days, when a lot of strips used grey washes (thanks to being on better paper than 2000AD) but the opening spread would be in colour if it was on the centres.
I was wondering that. Worked very well too, in my book - also suited a SD story by an artist other than Carlos, as many Starlord ones were.
Quote from: SmallBlueThing(Reborn) on 17 December, 2020, 05:54:37 PM
My wife is a cockney- I have literally no idea what she is saying most of the time, but it's mostly swears. I have learned to read her elbows and the degree of their vigorous gesticulating in order to judge her mood.
*applause*
Still no sign at Huff Masions
Chunk two - The Middle Chunk
Deadworld: Yeah, positively festive compared to the previous minisodes. Really made me want some Banzo!
Proteus Vex: I'll happily admit I enjoyed the first chapter mostly for Henry Flint's artwork rather than the story. And when Jake Lynch takes over then let's face it, the artwork ain't gonna get any less pretty. Still, this time round there seemed to be more lightness of touch and a little humour here and there which made it a much better read. Great stuff, and I'll be very if it continues in this vein, even though the wider aspects of the plot might elude me.
Oh I should also say how nice it's been to have longer instalments of some stories - ten pages really gives you the chance to lose yourself in something. Would it be practical for the weekly prog to regularly have double-length instalments of some strips?
Slaine: Ha! Wonder what frustrations Uncle Pat was venting when he wrote this?! Let's see what kind of story we get this time round, but frankly, I wouldn't dare criticise it :)
No 2211 or 2212 for me 😭
Deadworld was good. Like others have said, not quite as bleak as usual.
I'm hoping we see more from the four Dark Judges soon though. Kek-W has done great stuff with Mortis and Fear in recent years.
Dredd felt like a regene tale. Not my bag at all.
Vex is immediately 20 times less enjoyable without flint as the mania is lost. Still good but clearly different.
Survival geeks was lovely
Strontium Dog was ace - the art work reimagined the series from comedy sci-fi adventure to gritty space western really beautifully. I'd happily read more without feeling it was treading on toes.
Thanks to all the droids who worked on 2000ad this year, enjoy your oil break!
I have kinda dropped off from doing weekly Prog reviews, mainly due to my Progs not always being delivered in good time, but I just wanted to make a general comment on 2000AD.
It seems popular to knock it in certain places on the Internet, but for me it's still a strong publication and there have been many great stories this year, including Feral and Foe, The Out, Diaboliks, Survival Geeks, Full Tilt Boogie, Proteus Vex, Fiends of the Eastern Front.
It is good to see other self published and indie comics coming onto the market, but for me they have a long way to go before they better 2000AD.
Just one comment on the year end Prog. Was anyone else disappointed by the new Slaine story? Given how long we have had to wait for this, I was hoping it would be amazing, but really it wasn't.
The script just wasn't that exciting and the art was no where near the level I had expected from the preview glimpses we had seen. Best ever on Slaine? Not in my book; I'll take Fabry, Bisley, McMahon, Belardinelli, Langley, and Davis over this.
Chunk three - The Final Chunk
Hershey: Have to say, this was the closest the prog came to a bit of a let-down. Not actually in let-down territory, but on the hinterlands. I got no problem with the character returning and really liked the last chapter, but Hershey coaching ringside while dealing with a couple of standard-issue hoodlums wasn't the most spectacular way to kick off proceedings this time around.
And Dirty Frank's real name is Frank Rijkaard? Does he know Judge Van Basten and Judge Gullit?
Time-Twister: Nice. Proper laugh at "This one's just a time loop".
Durham Red: Alec Worley continues to put a great spin on the character and some unexpected but very welcome twists in her stories. This opener was really cinematic, could imagine it translating well to the small screen.
Don't want to wish Christmas away but roll on 6th January, DREDD // SLAINE // VEX // RED // HERSHEY looks like a fantastic line-up. Massive thanks to Tharg and all droids concerned for keeping the progs coming in the most challenging of circumstances. Whatever next year brings, I hope 2000 AD continues to be there with some much-needed thrill-power each week.
Quote from: Magnetica on 22 December, 2020, 12:51:45 PM
The script just wasn't that exciting and the art was no where near the level I had expected from the preview glimpses we had seen. Best ever on Slaine? Not in my book; I'll take Fabry, Bisley, McMahon, Belardinelli, Langley, and Davis over this.
Now, personally, I think Slaine's glory days finished after the Horned God, and while I always enjoy him in the prog, I don't think anything since compares to what went before. But I did like this - I mean, the script is definitely more of the 'where can he go now?' type of thing it has been for years, it's a decent read and I do think the artwork is incredible. Maybe not quite up there with some of the legends you list, but amazing nonetheless.
Quote from: norton canes on 22 December, 2020, 03:12:37 PM
Dirty Frank's real name is Frank Rijkaard? Does he know Judge Van Basten and Judge
Doh! I didn't make the connection as I read it. And I like footie almost as much as I like 2000AD. One for the "things that went over your head" thread.
No sign of this issue at the Paisley Wastes. Was going to send the subs droid a note today - is this still missing in a lot of places. Has anything been said about the delays?
No sign ( for second time - last issue 2211 has never appeared at all ) of this Xmas Prog
so no new Strontium Dog for me to read !
The Postal delays are really biting - very disappointed - doubt I will get my 2 missing copies before
Thursday 24th - I realise its not Rebellion's Fault , however .
Had to contact the Oxford Studio today and ask for a replacement for both copies
The automated response I received said they were closed between the 23rd and 5th January. If you ain't got it now you a'int getting it this year!
So Christmas is winding down. Rather than a family game, folks have settled down to a family movie instead, which is keeping the mood pleasent and relaxed, rather than competitive and angry as it might otherwise have been (good call Mrs YNWA). So while they are all settled down I've taken the chance to enjoy a relaxed read of the X-mas prog.
Overall a very, very strong issue. Its a hoot and a fine example of what these end of year (start of next year really) issues do so well. Setting up what looks like being a super strong line-up to open the year - all that's missing is a new thrill - and throwing in a good few treats to boot.
Dredd - fantastic Chimpsky Dredd tale - though demostrates that maybe our new favourite simian has outgrown his roll as co-star in a Dredd strip and is ready for his up-coming solo adventure, to allow his potential to spread its wings some more.
Strontium Dog - well let's get it said right off the bat, in and of itself this is a great little SD tale. Its just that's the problem. Its a great little SD tale and so doesn't really serve any immediately obvious purpose. Now of course there could be reasons for it that aren't immediately apparent. Maybe Tharg is respecting John Wagner's suggestion that running new tales will throw some royality payment to Carlos' family (if they need such?). Maybe Tharg wanted to test the appetite for more SD tales? Don't know, but if Tharg is going to do more tales I think they need to be bolder and more interesting that this. Other folks pulling off great stories riffing off the tales we've seen before, but adding nothing don't really serve anyone. Go big or go home I say.
Mind as I say this is great for what it is and Laurence Campbell's art really captures early Carlos SD without being slavish. Let's see what happens after this?
Arh shucks the Survival Geeks - epilogue is rather wonderfully sweet. Its nice in a way that doesn't feel terribly 2000ad, but somehow feels really rather in place in the X-Mas special. Really rather liked this.
Visions of Deadworld - another fantastic one off and again a curiously off brand nice ending that suits this specific comic.
Then we hit setting up next year territory.
Proteus Vex - new story gets off to a fantastic start and the big news is Jake Lynch, not at all surprisingly, picks up art duties without missing a beat. Capturing Flint's energy but moving things his own way at the same time.
Slaine - well it looks pretty, even if the art isn't 100% to my specific liking you can't fault its technical skill, just astonishing. The story... well its Slaine innit and that good or bad depending on where you stand on Slaine... me I'm just hoping the strip gets a good send off fitting of its early successes. Mark this one - let's see how it goes.
Hershey - look I know this series rubs some folks up the wrong way. But see my comments about Strontium Dog. See I think this goes go big and so no need to go home. I love what this is doing with its lead characters and the art remains stunning. I'm happy to have this back and excited to see where it goes.
When a one-off is done well they are such a delight and perfect for a Prog like this and this one-off is a playful belter. Its look back at Time Twisters past makes it fit right into an end of year special. To then throw [spoiler]Tharg[/spoiler] in as well - do I really need spoilers there? - marks this as genius. One of my favourite one offs for quite a while. All this and glorious Warren Pleece art. Absolute winner.
Oh and again see what you can do returning older characters that by rights maybe should be retired in some folks eyes. Durham Red goes big and so is welcome not to go home and this opener is an action drama classic trope done absolutely spot on. Love this opening and so welcome this strip back with open arms.
All that and some nice (not) back matter -
Very funny Droid Life - tick
Crazy cool art scan by Stewart Km Moore - tick
Nice interview with Carlos Pino - tick
Letters page with more Ming and Our own SBT getting Letter of the Week - tick
Thrills of the future for 2021 for more The Out and Thistlebone - Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.
So all in all an absolute triumph of a comic and I'm so chuffed I saved this for today as its been a perfect treat to accompany a very pleasent X-Mas day... oh and the film is almost done, perfect timing...
Surely the purpose of the Strontium Dog story was to entertain us, which it did.
Quote from: Richard on 26 December, 2020, 01:15:10 PM
Surely the purpose of the Strontium Dog story was to entertain us, which it did.
Yes, ISTR Laurence posted a Johnny Alpha sketch on social media, Rob said "That's great", Laurence said "I'd love to do a SD strip some day" so Rob pitched one to Tharg for the end-of-year special. It's not warming us up for the return of a post-Carlos series (and I'm sure Rob said on the most recent Thrillcast he did that has no thoughts in that direction).
Just gotten round to reading the Christmas Prog. Wasn't feeling too enthusiastic about it but the highs outweighed the lows. Strontium Dog, Survival Geeks and by far TC Eglinton's best script to date were the unexpected highlights.
Maybe time for a longer review tomorrow but I've just read this whole thread and can't believe nobody's mentioned Kek-W's tortuous Grateful Dead joke.
Well I've long been a stranger to these threads as I stopped buying the prog in 2016-ish, but I like to check back in with the Xmas issue now and again.
Dredd was okay, but nothing more. PJ's art seemed pretty rushed, and I wasn't mad about the droid designs. Also my first Chimpsky story, and it didn't blow me away - why's he chumming around with Hitler?
Superb art in Stront. Not much else to say about it, really - a very slight story, but then I suppose it was basically written as a showcase for the art. I'm not sure Wulf's being able to leg it back in time to save the day makes much sense, unless Johnny was chasing perps through the village for a really long time!
A cute epilogue to Survival Geeks that probably hits harder if you hadn't missed most of their later adventures!
Visions of Deadworld was great, even if I didn't understand all of what I was reading. Worked nicely as a one-and-done, though.
Proteus Vex was a bit lost on me too, as I only read the first episode of the last outing!
Slaine looked gaaaaaaawgeous. It's nice that all the set-up for this was done at the end of Brutania..., meaning we can just get straight on with the action. Makes for a bit of a slight episode, though.
The Time Twister was great, really benefitting from an increase on the normal page count. Don't really understand why [spoiler]Tharg[/spoiler] appeared, given there was not a single mention of comics, droids or 2000AD, but I do love a bit of spot colour now and then! Loved the cheeky Chronocops and Dr Dibworthy cameos.
Durham Red was probably the highlight of the prog for me. Such an engaging opener, and every character felt like a real, fully-rounded person. Between this and Slaine, I'm mightily tempted to stick with the prog for this spring run of thrills.
So I guess the question Dark Jimbo is will this be enough to tempt you back in the new year?
Quote from: Buttonman on 23 December, 2020, 03:09:13 PM
No sign of this issue at the Paisley Wastes. Was going to send the subs droid a note today - is this still missing in a lot of places. Has anything been said about the delays?
Prob free December here at Huff Mansions Sur La Mer....
A great finish to the year's thrills:
Judge Dredd: PJ brings the fun to Dredd as always. Noam Chimpsky has quickly become one of my favourite Mega City citizens.
Strontium Dog: I love this take on Johnny and Wulf.
Survival Geeks: A reminder of how much I love this strip. It feels like the definitive ending. Please don't let that be so.
Proteus Vex: Mike has created a fantastic universe. This episode is very frenetically paced though. I'm not sure I took it all in, even on a second read through.
Slaine: This is a great opener for the new series. Fingers crossed for more action, rather than mysticism.
Durham Red: Yes! This is going to be good...
Quote from: Dark Jimbo on 29 December, 2020, 06:10:58 PM
The Time Twister was great, really benefitting from an increase on the normal page count. Don't really understand why [spoiler]Tharg[/spoiler] appeared, given there was not a single mention of comics, droids or 2000AD, but I do love a bit of spot colour now and then! Loved the cheeky Chronocops and Dr Dibworthy cameos.
Because it's a meta-joke about Tharg being the boss of the time twisters happening? Editor as god sorta thing. Hence other time twister characters appearing etc. That's what I took it as and liked a lot.
Quote from: BPP on 01 January, 2021, 05:01:25 PM
Quote from: Dark Jimbo on 29 December, 2020, 06:10:58 PM
The Time Twister was great, really benefitting from an increase on the normal page count. Don't really understand why [spoiler]Tharg[/spoiler] appeared, given there was not a single mention of comics, droids or 2000AD, but I do love a bit of spot colour now and then! Loved the cheeky Chronocops and Dr Dibworthy cameos.
Because it's a meta-joke about Tharg being the boss of the time twisters happening? Editor as god sorta thing. Hence other time twister characters appearing etc. That's what I took it as and liked a lot.
Yes, on reflection it works. In my defence I was minding my five-month old while reading the prog, so concentration was somehwat impaired!
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.