Yeah, i'll go along with everyone's verdict about how cool the new story is, great art and how refreshing it is to see him go back towards more of a horror tale. One things bugging me though. That first episode where reference is made to the Dark Judges being transported to the facility during "Die Laughing". I guess that means that the Batman (and for that matter, Predator) crossovers are part of Dredd continuity?
Bummer.
I was kind of hoping they were stand alone tales, sort of like the old Marvel "What If's". As it stands now, this means the last apperance of the hideous unstoppable killing machine was riding a rollercoaster with the Joker??? Sorry, but i'd rather each comic company have their own universe with crossovers in them but not others. It's like that stupid notion that all Marvel and DC character live in the same America - and in a lot of cases the same city - but they never bump in to each other.
Ah, but it's not a Judge Dredd story though. It's Judge Death. It's obviously in the same 'whatever' as the Batman/Dredds, but not necessarily a part of the main space/timeline.
I really don't mind this continuity. After all, it's not as though Batman lives in the big Meg, is it?
Being able to grab other characters through a D-jump has the advantage that you can break into any comics continuity that you want, and then ditch them just as easily! Unlike say, Sandman, which needed to consistantly reference the DC universe, not just in the first book, but also in the Season of Mists series (Satan needed to appear one month later than Neil planned, so that he didn't feature in 2 comics in the same month), and in 'The Wake'.
Dredd, however, can turn these American sacred cows into hamburger!
I think I've given up trying to think about continuity unless it's an obvious reference. I mean, just try and get into your head the continuity of Ro-Busters, ABC Warriors, Dredd, Nemesis etc. It's enough to drive you mad!!!
Wasn't aware of any references like that in Sandman, but then I wouldn't be, cos I've never read any DC stuff apart from that, unless you count Watchmen of course, and a minimal amount of Batman. It's been a while since I've read any, must read them again! Were there any Hellblazer links at all? oops, that's another one, but then that's Vertigo, which I suppose is a part of DC after all. Ah well, in that case, I've read heaps of DC, but none of the superhero stuff, er, except Batman and er, Watchmen, sort of. I'll get me coat...
Marvel and DC comics are set in two different universes. Marvel's are real-world; Spider-Man operates in NYC, etc, whereas DC's are on a fictional earth with fictional cities standing in for real ones; Metropolis=NY etc.
*J*
Continuity makes my head ache even more than time travel stories.
Think about crossover continuity for a minute.
We already have the sometimes bizarre 2K crossover stuff, as mentioned above: Alpha, Dredd, Rogue, dinosaurs, etc.
Dredd meets Batman in the Die Laughing books.
Batman and contemporary superheroes turn up in Vertigo continuity, including Sandman and Hellblazer.
They've also had crossovers with the Marvel heroes, the Wildstorm universe and countless others.
So, at least in theory, we could have Supreme teaming up with Superman, or that lot from Planetary meeting John Constantine (as if they didn't already, heh, heh).
It sounds cool at first, but eventually it's all a bit strange and annoying.
Anyone for a big fight between the Hulk, Jenny Sparks, Shade the Changing Man, Rogue Trooper, Predator and Wonder Woman?
The mind boggles.
- "can superman outrun the flash?" -
MikeD
The Stronty/Nemesis/Dino stuff is all donw with time travel, but the crossovers with Batman are done with Dimension Globes. Dimension being the operative word.
So In Dredd's world, there never was a Batman.
I would have thought Metropolis was LA and Gotham is new york. Ah well. I know almost nothing about this stuff.
Too hot here for mind to work
Cheers
Paul
What about the one where Rogue Trooper et al (Or it may have been friday, I'll have to go digging in me crates) turned up in the big meg for 'refreshments' or something? THAT sucked. The Batman/Dredd thing I think works, because most of them have been cracking stories.
Partial DC explanation:
Back before the Crisis on Infinite Earths, there was a careful geographical set-up for places like Metropolis, Gotham, Star City et al.
If you care (and I don't and can't remember much of it) you can find out roughly where everything was supposed to be in the old Ask The Answer Man columns in old DC comics.
They would have slightly vague answers like, "Star City is just across the bay from Metropolis" or whatever.
Basically, they were pretty much all based on New York, especially the big two.
Metropolis was the posh bits, and, even though it was a different city in the comic, Gotham was the darker, seedier neighbourhoods.
However, the comics would also refer to New York as a different place.
These days, the whole thing's pretty much ignored, largely because the fictional cities are so established among the fans.
See what I mean? My head hurts.
MikeD
The whole of Sandman is riddled with DC superheros and minor DC characters. a lot of them just aren't in costume.
I'd like to see a Superman Vs Fairly-Hyperman crossover. With Desperate Dan as ref.
The best antidote is to read some Michael Moorcock and think of all in terms of the Multiverse. It makes it all so much easier to accept!
But in the universe of the Red Dwarf novels they claim that there are only six different universes!
How can this be a true universe & all the other ones too yet squeezed into six?????
Unless it's all just fiction.
Pah!
Bloody comics.
I only read 2000AD for the articles.
I'll have to have a look again, I'd read Sandman before anything else really (except tooth). Since then I've read all the stuff I've mentioned, so I wouldn't have known anything about the cameos at the time.
"Unless it's all just fiction."
Nah, that would just be TOO weird!
Warren Ellis and Jerry Ordway are currently working on Planetary/JLA, with Planetary/Batman scheduled to follow (sometime). Unfortunately, Ellis' JLA/Authority proposal was canned.
*J*
Mainly because Appollo accidentally goosing Batman because he looks like Midnighter from behind would have upset the kids. Particularly Robin.
And if Hercules from The Avenger's (Marvel) is supposed to be your actual demi-god himself that really buggers up Wonder Woman's origin.
Ah, but then Marvel has that whole new universe thing going on. No, not THAT New Universe but. . .
Ouch. Brain collapse.
And another thing.
Why is Roman mythology preferred to Greek when it comes to U.S. genre stories?
It's 'Heracles', dammit!
Were there any Hellblazer/Sandman links? John was the co-star of issue 3.