2000 AD Online Forum

Ten to six and no Meg thread? Guess John McCrea's colourful cover is putting people off!

Decent if familiar feeling GRennie Dredd with some nice Inaka  Miranda art with a tasty retro flashback Dredd. Returning villian but not in a consequential way.

Armitage was all yap and no action but at least Tempest is warming up (a bit).

John McCrea article OK but I'm not a fan of his flat and scruffy drawings. Comes across as very unprofessional in his dealings with editors - and he teaches too!

Still to read the rest and will do so when the throne calls. Not much that I really liked this outing, apart from my fantastic letter of course! The letters do seems somewhat delayed, mine at least concerns the Meg two issues ago and comments on Part 2 of the Alan Grant interview.

Prog still £1 cheaper and twice as good!

Only managed to read Dredd so far. I'm sick of these loose end villains. Hasn't Rennie got about five of these on the go at the moment? It's about to start taking some to the next stage and make us interested.

Thank heaven for Tempest! He saved the Meg again. What a fantastic final page!

I read the whole Meg during Rose's nap and enjoyed all the text pieces, especially the John McCrea one.
The lead Dredd was entertaining enough but Armitage has lost me now. I'd completely forgotten what they were investigating, which is probably a bad sign.

The prog was better but the Meg's definitely worth reading these days.

- Trout

Awful cover. There's better on offer in our art threads.

Nice bubble-helmeted retro Dredd. Is this baddie the one that appeared in the prog last time, drawn by Gibson? Fairly good Rennie tale, although the art doesn't seem quite as polished as when we last saw the team.

Considering Armitage is a slow-burn, grayscale, kitchen-sink character-based drama it should be bloody awful, but it keeps surprising me by being my favourite thing in each Meg. Loved that Carry On-style page. Cooper seems much more comfortable now, too, although I think if it's got too many more parts to run it's really going to start dragging.

I like Bob, even if no-one else seems to. Over-eloquent characters who never shut up are great, and I always prefer my Ezquerra black and white. Only thing that makes it feel a bit 'so what?' is the lack of a defined universe.

Still can't get into Tempest. So much running around. What's the point? And the main character is far too self-knowingly 'kooky.' For donkey's I've been waiting for a good Undercity-set tale, and this ain't it. All that said, this part was pretty entertaining, the 'Best. Human. Ever.' line made me cackle, and I didn't see that last revelation coming. It's the art that turns me off this strip most.

Best. Human. Ever.

I agree with Trout. Tempest is by far the best thing  in the Meg.

I thought the cover was fantastic. Something a bit different and Dredd almost seems to be leaping out of the page in three whole dimensions.

Dredd was alright. I do wish we could get a decent run of Rennie to see some of these plots actually developing. On the other hand, I don't want anything to get in the way of Wagner's storylines at the moment. The art was toned down a bit from the last miranda/cruz outing and I liked the old/new Dredd comparisons.

Armitage and Bob don't do much for me, but they're a lot better than Satanus. Tempest is pretty fun but could be better. Agree about the last page.

I'll get to the text stuff once I manage to finish my current toilet reading - Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy - but it's got a few hundred sheets left.

The cover has be the worst cover of 2008 so far. I really like M'Creas Artwork all in all but this looks rushed and the awful pshop cutout of Dredd with the Guassian blur background looks very amateurish - terrible. I have not read the Meg yet, but glancing through it and looking at the beautiful stuff he normally paints he can do far better than this. The meg is definitely the Marmite of the current Rebellion line up.

Is this baddie the one that appeared in the prog last time, drawn by Gibson?

Yep, back in prog 1468.

However, last time Global Psycho appeared, she was a woman presumably in her early twenties. How could she have mentored someone who has been in the vaults for forty years? Bodysnatcher? Time in the vaults herself?

Do I care?  

Its the question the Meg still needs to get round to answering.

Do I care about MCrea?  Nope - By his own admission his work for 2000AD and the meg has been unprofessional and erm.. self pleasuring.  The cover hardly shows he's making an effort to rectify that - worst cover ever?  Maybe not, but its bringing back some pretty bad memories.

Do I care about Rennie's Dredd?  Well, only in the sense I care about what the future holds when we dont have the alternative of Wagners Dredd, and every story is as humourless, unresolved, wordy, po-faced, repetitive and "guest star" filled.  The Rennie ongoing stuff seems totally irrelevant in the face of Wagners much more interesting and fun Maybe as Mayor and mutant threads.  Maybe it'll all tie together in the end, and I'm not sure if that'd be for the better or worse.  

Do I care about Armitage?  The writer seems to assume I care about these characters, or about things that perhaps I should remember from previous stories.  Really, I just don't.  Is that ending meant to mean something to me?

Do I care about bob The Galactic Bum?  Not really, Its a curio that I could have done without - not Wagner, Grants or Ezquerras finest hour.  Despite the odd gag that works, it generally gives truth to the lie of Grant Morrisons opinion of Wagner/Grant, which is not nice to find myself half sympathising with.

Do I care about Tempest?  Actually I do a little bit.  I care that Al seems to be a decent new original  voice, though the art isn't helping me care - it's not bad, just seems a bit bland and the line width is a bit samey.  

When the prog is so good, it seems mad that the Meg is so pointless.  It still desperately needs a direction beyond self preservation.

Stookie user?

"Grant Morrisons opinion of Wagner/Grant"

Which was ?

To paraphrase from memory that they produced stuff that a dad would if he as aiming a comic at his heavy metal loving teenager.

Haven't gotten round to reading this yet, but did skim the movie reviews. Thought the review of "The Cottage" was a bit unfair as it seemed to get torn to shreds, I thought it was really funny and genuinely seemed to have been made with a lot of fondness for the genre, and even if it's not brilliant this 1/5 review seemed more like a kneejerk reaction from someone who took an instant dislike and never gave it a chance. Ah well.

Somtime I think we're reading different comics, The Watcher. I really liked this issue, it all clicked into place for me.

Anyone fancy a Bob verses Stronty short story at some point?

Didn't bother picking up the Meg but have to say that's a fuckin awful cover. Like those in charge know they have a guaranteed audience and need to make no effort. Just awful.

***"Grant Morrisons opinion of Wagner/Grant"

Which was ?***


2000AD was like listening to Radio 4.

Hang on. We've HAVE seen this baddie before, have we?

Now I'm not sure if that's good or even worse.

2000AD was like listening to Radio 4.

Throw in some rhubarb crumble and a naked lady, and you have my ideal afternoon.

LOL, as an Archers fan with a teenaged laddie, but Hot Chip not HM, I must be the right target audience, having said that I don't think he (Mo)really 'gets' Dredd.

I spent some time wondering what it was I didn't like about the cover and I finally, after a couple of Stellas, decided it was the background. It just keeps drawing you eye, it also reminded me of a Crisis cover but that may just be the chevrons.

Liked the chunkie Dredd but he went a bit skinny later on, not the flashback bit, nice to see Guthrie again, but once again a hanging indent baddie fi Grennie, I would like tham all to appear in one story there-by tying up all those loose ends

he rest I'll read later

Ned Shuffen
 

2000AD was like listening to Radio 4.

I can tell that's an insult, but I don't know the context.  Help a Yank out?

Pipe and slippers - basically the uncool, old guard that your dad likes as opposed to his cool cutting edge youth comics.

Which is fair enough, but now I actually quite like Radio 4, and prefer it to the hyperactive wankathon of Radio 1.

But I still hate the Meg.  Or rather, I hate the fact that it's still so low in quality compared to the weekly.  (It's not as bad as the year of Satanus, but then nothing could be that bad, so it's hardly a measure of worth.)

And what is all this confusion of why the cover doesn't work?  It doesn't work because it looks bloody awful.

The Rennie Dredd doesn't work because we've all forgotten which character was previously introduced and then not used for months/years, before they've now been brought back to introduce another new character (which is basically a human form of the doll from the Saw movies) that we'll not see for months/years.  That's all his Dredd's ever are now: a constant introduction and hint of things to come.  How about just giving us a story with a beginning, middle and end.  (Really, Caballistics has become the same thing: constant promises of what's to come, and that's all.)  He should cut out the middle man and just use this script:

Page 1: Single frame, caption, entire page: "Next Page".
Page 2: Single frame, caption, entire page: "Next Page".
Page 3: Single frame, caption, entire page: "Next Page".
Page 4: Single frame, caption, entire page: "Next Page".
Page 5: Single frame, caption, entire page: "Next Prog".

Save us the trouble of caring.  At least it would be art.

Armitage hasn't changed - it's still what it always was: kitchen sink Dredd - now with life-life relationship squabbles.  Hmmm - just the kind of escapism I really want.  The worst thing is that it keeps referring to things that happened either in 2003 or in 2000 or even from way back in 1995, as if we're still supposed to know or care about them.  The Star Chamber are who?  The guy mentioned at the end is who?  Am I supposed to know?

I'm enjoying the reprint, although it has dated, and the creators were never as good at comedy as they thought or were told.

The Tempest thing is good fun but the art isn't my cup of tea.  I don't have any sympathy for any of the characters, at all.  They're all hateful.  The guy in the white suit is just bland, Tempest himself (for all that this month's one-liner at the end really works well) is just a smarmy dickhead, and the mobster chasing them is a human rottweiler.  Television-heads, ratmen, blah.  I'm not on anyone's side.  That's a problem.

That's it for the comic in the comic, and that's what the Meg will always fail or succeed on for me.  Articles are beside the point.

I liked the Dredd.

It had Guthrie in, a move of location, not only out to sea but I think onto the moon. I'd like to believe that Rennie is centreing on his own set of characters but thanks to Wagner moving through his own back log of detail finalising, Gordon has to break up his stories somewhat.

The untraceable-esque storyline is something I mentioned in the chat room the other week. I feel rewarded in a strange way. Last panel gave me the thought of hoping it would have to be a formidable foe. Maybe cunning is the new Mean.

Dredd also had a fantastic colouring job that lifted what was competent, decent art into something atmospheric and aces.

I was going to mention that too.

So fab effective lighting going on throughout. Glad you noticed, fellow north-triber.

Hey, I'm coming to;

Damn it! I'm not. Been a while now...

aww ffs!

...ive read everything Tharg has ever printed but until this issue i really didnt relise McCrea had been in comics for so long, how can somebody so bad make a living out of it for so long???...

because he's a mate of Garth Ennis...

I've never liked Mcrea. He does styles he cannot handle.
 

I haven't read the interview yet .

I'm sorry about that 'cos I know those style a frikking hard to handle. The guts are well on display.

Troubled Souls worked well, but half of me wishes it was D'Israeli.

Christ I feel a cunt. But. When do I speak my mind?

I won't here a word said against Hitman, which is all kinds of awesome, or McCreas work on it, which is exactly right for the comic.

hear, hear Art! finding some 40 issues of Hitman in Tokyo was one of the most serendipitous things to happpen to me.  It's brilliant and the art matches the story perfectly


yours, wishing his bloody Megazine would arrive,

Floyd

McCrea's done some decent stuff alright. Hitman was great. He also produced some beautiful painted artwork on "Troubled Souls" and "For a few troubles more" disproving his own theory that painted art is static and slows the story telling down.
Favourite though was that spiky blend of IMO O'Neill and Gibson which he used on Demon and the excellent Middenface in Mega-City One tale. I'd really like to see him return down that route.

The cover, it wasn't the background so much as Dredd's face that offended me, are they trying to attract readers or scare them away.
Rennie's Dredd was very cool and engaging with fantastic art. The Global Killer storyline lacks urgency but this is because of the space between stories, is the inaccuracy in the age of the killer just Rennie way of criticising the space between stories. And he will never be able to make as monumental changes as Wagner has, and must all ways stay within his restraints.  
I keep forgetting what happened previously in Armitage this couldn't be a good sign.
Still unable to get into Bob The Galactic Bum. Tempest is something I'm enjoying at the moment and I'm realy liking the end page splashes.

Is it wrong that I thought the cover was pretty neat?  The un-logoed version inside shows that the fizzy background makes more sense as a whole, but I actually like the Dredd image.

John McCrea's interview was very interesting - what a prickly chap!  I'm now trying to forgive him for participating in the gaping wound that was Chopper: Earth, Wind and Fire, but I doubt I ever will.

Also enjoyed the del Toro piece -it was about del Toro.  'Nuff said.  The New Movies section is a favoutite of mine, but this felt like it should be called 'Cloverfield: A Retrospective'.


Dredd was pretty well done, and the art was a big improvement over Regime Change, but honestly I almost screamed at the non-end. No more dangling villains, please.  Rennie's sub-universe is getting awfully cluttered these days.  

Also, seeing as this perp couldn't have been questioned at all since his arrest/shooting (having been in the Vaults), and is responsible for numerous murders, how could any number of lawyers possibly keep him out an interrogation cube?  

Armitage was... there.  It's fine, and it may help that I actually remember Efil Draco San (for 'tis he in the picture in Frobishers office) and the Star Chamber, but if I knew there was going to be more and more frequent runs, I'd be feel a lot more engaged.  It'd be better if I knew I wasn't getting involved with the domestic doings of characters I won't see for another 5 years.  

Tempest is that rarest of things: cool.

I havn't got round to BTGB yet.

On John McCrea, I want to add I've always liked his stuff, in the right place, although he never veered close to my top 10 of artists.

Despite its usual lack of any real content, I used to like Carla Allison in Deadline. I was also keen on the issues of The Demon I saw, and consider Hitman one of the most unhappy gaps in my comics experience.

I'd like to see John's work in 2000AD from time to time.

- Trout

I'll just add to the 'shit cover' voice.

It's bloody terrible!

I can't believe this was even submitted for a cover let alone accepted.

how can somebody so bad make a living out of it for so long???...


First chuckle of the day.

As I said on the message board at the *other* place, has anyone yet questioned the reproductive technology that enables a lesbian to put half her DNA into the nucleus of a sperm and get her partner pregnant so she can give birth to a boy.

Last time I looked, women didn't have Y chromosomes, so the sex of a child is determined by whether they inherit an X or a Y chromosome from their father. I wonder if Dave Stone is aware of that fact.

In the current Megazine, Armitage claims that he contributed the sperm - the delivery mechanism only, and no DNA - to the conception.

So where did they get a Y chromosome from??? It would surely have made as much sense to use Armitage's Y as that of any other male donor.

...unless some miracle of 22nd century science has worked out how to turn an X into a Y chromosome (by chopping bits off??); but I'm sure there are many  biotechnologists who could tell you why that's impossible/not a good idea.