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[Palm Springs]

I thought Palm Springs was OK - not a lot added to the Groundhog Day vibe and I could have done with more of the JK Simmons character.

Saw Thunder Force tonight -Shit Force more like. Jason Bateman is the only redeeming feature but even he struggles with a weak script and a dearth of laughs.

You know what I mean! The previously one dimensional Sovs are fleshed out and we get a full look at the geo-politics in place with early looks at Texas and Mega City 2 as well as the Judge's capabilities undersea and in space. Also TADS, Stub guns, Stratos-Vs - loads of stuff!

Apocalypse War - simply because it's the best Dredd for story, art and world building. I've also read it through 20 times. D of C is top work but I've probably only been though it a couple of times. AP is the iconic, archetypal Dredd.

Bumped for a genuine new reader enquiry!

The glory days indeed Funt - I remember getting in behind you with 'the Browns won the super bowl' but the prize had already been claimed!

I'd buy that for a dollar!

Good luck with your endeavours Sheridan - I found a thread or blog or any sort of record helped keep things on track. You can lie to yourself but it's tougher with an audience!

[LOSE WEIGHT]

Well, here we are. 500 days since that innocent youth posted his list of rash challenges. The world has changed a lot in the interim and although it has been a terrible time at least it has afforded us plenty of excuses for staying fat and drinking too much. It has also allowed some the more sedentary pursuits to be exploited and that's where any successes I've managed have come from. Let's take a look at the list of challenges and see where we got to.

LOSE WEIGHT : Static for the last month so still about 14.5 stone or 203lbs. This one has to go down as a fail albeit one with plenty of caveats. At the height of the first lockdown I hit 16 stone 8lbs, so I'm two stone down from that but still two stone overweight. I have kept up the running and walking and moderated the drinking and takeaways so the trajectory is downwards. The closing of the gyms didn't help with mine still a month away from potentially opening. Rangers winning the Scottish League didn't help either as a few bottles were opened to celebrate and I got this Just Eat code. I'll keep on it and will reactivate this thread (God no!) when I hit the magic number.

UPDATE MY MOVIE BLOGS REGULARLY : Success! Both the 'W' Movie blog and the Definite Article blogs were bothered consistently with the 350 and 250 posts marks being hit respectively. I quite enjoyed the self enforced demand of watching films I'd normally miss but I think both have hit a natural end point for now.

UPDATE THE LETTERSENTERTAINYOU THREAD FOR EACH PUBLICATION EVENT : Success! This was quite easy due to the dearth of Nerve Centres and Dreddline over the last year. We haven't seen a Dreddlines for well over a year and the Prog sees letters only every 6 weeks or so. I have however logged every effort and offered some constructive criticism to each These seem relatively popular (compared to this thread at least!) with each registering around 1000 views. I will keep this up for the foreseeable future.


AVERAGE 12,5000 STEPS A DAY : Partial fail. Well OK, fail then. My average on Fitbit is given as 10,638. 1000 steps takes about ten minutes so my total represents 100 minutes of walking/running a day - every day! Not always easy as the weather has been poor and I don't have a dog. Kept myself at 10k minimum steps a day and I like the motivation to taking an hour's walk at lunchtime every day.

GET 105 LETTERS PRINTED : Managed to get two taking me to 101. That may sound feeble but only 42 letters were printed in 2020 with no Dreddlines printed at all. Talk about a deck stacked against you! My hits were in Prog 2165 (Letter of the Week) and this week's issue (2225) which was kind of Tharg as it was basically a begging letter about getting some birthday greetings.

PASS ACII : Managed this in double quick time and won an award for 'Claims Practice' to boot. With distractions this would have taken 3 years but lockdown saw it off in 9 months.

GET ON TV AGAIN : Apart from an archive shot of me on an ITV montage this has to be a fail but with the caveat that almost no one was recruiting. I filled in a couple of applications but didn't even get a reply. Thanks Ben Shepherd!

BAG 50 MUNROS : Managed one, Schiehallion, before they were all locked up for the rest of the year. Will get back to this when I'm free to do so.

STRETCH GOAL : GET A 500 RATING ON CHESS.COM :  Fail! Presently at 354 having gotten to a high of 405. Still enjoying it and I have a winning records of 206 W 198L 43D. Hard to get out of my bracket with wins and losses almost balancing each other out. I have read books and watched videos, most of which has just set me back. Look up Buttonman1969 if you want some cheap pieces.

STRETCH GOAL : Read Charlton Heston's 'An Actor's Life'. Finished it. 480 odd dense pages but enjoyable stuff in 10-15 page nuggets. Interesting insights into the film making process and he is wonderfully indiscrete about the failings he sees in other actors. Reading this I realised that the Dredd ape character 'Harry Heston' was a nod to Chuck. Duh!

Well that's that done. 50 now so pipe and slippers for me. Thanks for all the words of encouragement and good luck to all who are trying to improve themselves in these difficult times. Take care!

My name has too many vowels. I must write a stern note to my dad.

A poor Scrabble value it is true.

In the moment letters interrogation : Was this your first letter in all these years or just the first to see print on account of the others being rubbish?

[Prog 2225]

Well here we are, back again with seemingly indecent haste. Only 3 weeks after the last Input page Tharg serves up another selection of half baked goods in Prog 2225, meaning we're bang on schedule for that weekly letters page we've all being craving. The year 2525 remains favourite.

Still, it has come at a good time with our Golden Anniversary celebrations still in full swing. That's right, 50 editions of Lettersentertainyou which is pretty good going given all those threats, diseases and downright abuse that we've been passing out, er, receiving.

This is a healthy offering with the new and the old (and the very old) all standing shoulder to shoulder and saying 'is your arm sore where you got your jab?'.

We kick off with the appropriately named Paul Newrick from Dorset. On the day the new 'Rick & Morty' trailer dropped Newrick has never been more relevant. Alas there isn't a 'Newmorty' in the Beast's database but we do have a Simon Mort from Poulton le Flyde who had his drawing of 'Thrillbuster' published in Prog 397. Maybe Paul and Simon should get together to offer a crumb of entertainment in these dark days? No? Suit yourself. Paul should probably focus on getting more letters printed to be honest, as he lags far behind the all Dorset Champion Paul Tapner who sits atop his heady pile of five Beast credits.

Paul Newrick&mortyonlyonAdultswim's letter starts with a redundancy when he says that he is a 'new' and 'first time' subscriber - hard to be one without the other! He thinks he's John Betjeman by slagging off Slough - come friendly bombs fall on Paul instead! He is also a big fan of sandwiches and Durham Red. We prefer a flan to be honest. Overall this follows the classic 'I was lost but now I am found' template and for that the Letter of the Week laurels were assured.

Next up an old face and erstwhile friend of all things letters. Linton Porteus used to live in Dundee but he likes American things now. He has sat on his weedy 29 credits since his last appearance in 2007's Prog 1560. This effort, his 30th, makes for a tidy symmetry between his Prog and Meg successes, with them now 15 apiece. This resurgence sees him move up to 5th= on the all-time chart and pushes friend of the thread Alan Holloway down to 8th place overall.

Linton is obviously a reader of this thread as he's taken our lead to lambast previous scribe Stan Wilks' suggestion that the Prog should avoid politics. Linton may do well to follow Stan's advice however, as his anti-Trump rhetoric may see some Good Ole Boys show up at his door armed with MAGA hats and pointed sticks. It is nice to see an old stager return to the fold and it proves once again the 'Hotel California' effects of writing in - you can write in any time, but you can never leave.

Another new writer with a slightly funny name next in the shape of Paul Broadhead of Emailland. Paul has only one Widenoggin compatriot in the shape of Keith from Doncaster who has two drawings to his name, 'Space Fighter' and 'Hammerstein', from Progs 409 and 421 respectively. Keith was also profiled in Prog 376.

Paul Massivecranium mirrors the Letter of the Week as he was also lost and then was found too. Was Tharg out trawling the streets for waifs and strays this week? Paul bought books and subscriptions and is very happy with his decision to do so. Bet his wife is too!

Another first timer next in the shape of Tony Smith from Nuneaton. Party fatigue means we can't be bothered going through all the Smiths but we can say there have been 13 letters printed from Nuneaton with the previous offering being Simon Bissker's Letter of the week in Prog 1435. Tony has the chance to make a name for himself in the Nuneaton 'getting letters printed in 2000ad' scene as the current record is only two and is jointly held by Chris Spicer, Paul O'Sullivan, Simon Buckley and Paul Huxley.

Tony is another long term reader and one who claims to have never written to Tharg before. For shame Tony! He breaks his duck with a short effort in which he says he likes the 3hriller and considers himself 'mature'. That's nice Tony, pipe and slippers for you.

Last up is Stephen Watson of Paisley who unashamedly begs for a credit due to him managing to exist for 50 years. To be fair this does make him the oldest man in Paisley. Fans of synchronicity will be pleased to learn that this is Stephen's 50th letter in the Prog and 101st overall. He is still 3 shy of Floyd Kemode's Prog record of 53 and breaking that will be his ideal birthday present (60th).

This letter isn't his best with a transparent opening thanking every man and his dog for doing their job during the pandemic. Somewhat ironically, we understand that he didn't get his Prog this week and had to beg a copy of the letters page from dubious sources so that he could impress no one at all. The remainder is a set up for a weak pun about Marks and Spencer jeans favoured by old farts and people who maintain letters databases.

Tharg's generous greeting was gratefully received as was the Lobster Random trade.

Overall a wonderful letters page that saw the world record for letters published in 2000ad and the Megazine extended once again, the return of an old stager and three new writers to take up slack from the aging old guard.

See you next time, if we're spared!

Spoiler Alert...
















See you next Prog!

A kinky niche has developed in this thread. Must start an 'Only Fans' account...

[Prog 2222]

And we're back for our celebrated 55th edition. Don't listen to anyone who says we're a new letters blog - an unbroken history of the same jokes confirm that we are the same blog that took those first furtive steps towards the light all those years ago.

This edition covers the full inside back page Input page of 5 letters in Prog 2222. This is the usual month after the previous offering and the range of stories covered suggest that a letter covering each Prog in the proceeding month has been chosen to cover that specific issue. It is a fair way to ensure everyone has a chance but we don't like those odds! We have a bird in the air for the next edition, so let's hope our 'you're doing great work' effort gets the nod this time.

This was a fine outing with no noobs getting an airing. A good thing too - we don't need that fresh blood around here as the current readership is still young and vibrant and...sorry I forget the point I was making...

Anyway we open with 'Oh Doctor' Ashley Beeching of Kent. He's a familiar sight in this parish with this being his 24th effort to see print that moves him to 11th= in the all-time Beast leader board. Ashley first achieved grace in Prog 1008 in 1996 and holds a near balanced 13 Prog / 11 Meg split. This is his first ever Letter of the Week and the old stager must be working on his 25th entry that will see him join Craig Grannell in the top ten bottom spot.

For a 'Letter of the Week' this is a real howler! Fancy not knowing that Dredd has a history of wearing stripy socks! How we chuckled at Beast Towers - what next? Has Dwedd ever had a wisping wobot?! To be fair the story in question may have proceeded Ashley's tenure as a reader, but that's a weak excuse - we think he should surrender his fan credentials at the door and take several bare bottom smacks with a rolled up copy of the 1990 Sci-Fi special in penance. Ashley gets in the now standard thanks to Tharg and his workforce for their sterling efforts in producing the comic and says it is all 'genuinely appreciated' - better than all that fake appreciation that's been doing the rounds!

Another old hand next in the shape of The Chris Browning of Todmorden Version. This is Chris' 17th letter and that neatly moves him up to 17th= on the all time chart. Chris is the great nerd hope of letter writing with his 17 entries all appearing in the 6 short years since his Prog 1961 debut in 2015. At this rate he'll be topping the charts by the time the person compiling them is long dead. He has 2 'Letter of the Week' crowns and a disjointed 14 Prog letters to a measly 3 Megs.

Chris takes a gamble by slagging off Slaine, but it pays off with him notching the published credit - albeit with Tharg marking his card with a "harsh words" assessment. Dog shit in a box coming your way Chris! Chris does overbalance however by loving everything else, saying 'Proteus Vex' is 'coming together' which is always nice.

'Least Letters of the week' award goes to Stan Wilks of Email Land who doubles his all time tally with this, his second offering to see print following a Prog 2212 opener. This is a cause for celebration in the Wilks household as it puts Stan on a par with Matt Wilks whose quick fire double saw print in Progs 1026 and 1073.

Stan has a bit of a rant over politicising in the small bit of text the editor allows himself in the copyright box. Good for Stan! Yeah we don't buy a satirical comic for satire or political comment. Stan starts off by saying he's 'annoyed' by the comment but loses his nerve towards the middle and suggests that Tharg will "appreciate our thoughts and concerns". Fake news! Be it a man in a mask or a resident alien I doubt Tharg give a rat's ass over peoples' thoughts on his Trump rants and is probably surprised that anyone actually reads them - magnifying glass needed here at Beast Towers.

Martin Topping of Worcester now, who seems to be channelling Jim Bowen with his judgement that the stories in recent Progs have been "Great", "Brilliant" and "Smashing". Hope Tharg allows him his BFH for this effort! Martin wonders what Dredd's underpant secret is and Tharg remains coy. We can exclusively reveal that he has a Mean machine style appendage that he takes up to 4 on Walter when Maria is cooking the synthetti - Mama Mia!

Martin isn't quite Topping the class but his 9th offering here has him knocking on the door for a Beast designation code and a 36th= place on the leader board. He has 5 Prog letters to his name with his first appearance being in Meg 121 (V3.18). His previous appearance to this outing was in Prog 2095 in 2018, so he's not in a rush.

Last up is Dave Stone of Crawley who celebrates his 4th offering here. His first two were as 'David' starting with a letter of the Week offering in Prog 1548. Prior to this his last entry was in 2018's Prog 2095 where he shared a berth with Martin Topping (see above)! What a coincidence! -  or is Tharg just recycling old input pages?!

Dave's letter is understandable which is a surprise as we could never work out his 'Armitage' stuff. He doesn't mind a cliché, noting the Prog is 'firing on all cylinders' - we kneew you were going to say that Dave! He likes to spend the weekend "Dipping in and out" which is nice but just remember to rubber up Dave. He likes everything and calls 'Proteus Vex' "interesting and intriguing" - don't worry Dave, we don't understand it either.

Overall a full and experienced monthly workout for the Emerald Editor with some nice varied opinions and no small commentaries offered in response. See you in 6 weeks!

[WEIGHT LOSS]

The penultimate episode arrives! Thank God say one and all.

Decent month with some progress but quite static on a lot of fronts.

WEIGHT LOSS : Weight this morning was 14st 6lbs which is 6lbs down in 4 weeks which is decent if unspectacular. Little and often is the way to go and the excuse of the gym being shut still holds weight - too much of it. The planned 12.5 stone won't happen without some amputations but 33lbs down overall from the starting point is worthwhile. I have gotten into some slim fit shirts that had been abandoned since before lock down so let's agree with the wife and say that fat has been replaced by heavier muscle.

It's the good lady's birthday on March 2nd so there will be a binge then but then a sober 4 weeks until the bell tolls on this endeavour.  Current target is 13st 13lbs which will be achieved with a half stone month.

STEPS : Averaging just under 11,000 which is OK and never fewer than 10k a day. A couple of snow filled days made this a proper challenge but we managed. Probably won't see the 12,500 average goal but I will try and get some hikes in this month, within my council area of course.

UPDATE THE LETTERSENTERTAINYOU THREAD : No letters pages this month so this one was achieved with no effort at all.

TV APPEARANCE : Nothing from Tipping Point.

MUNROS : Not allowed.

MOVIE BLOGS : Completed.

ACII : Completed.

WRITING TO THARG : The dearth of Dreddlines and Nerve Centres have wilted my muse somewhat but I did send one in today. Hoping for a 50th birthday hurrah.

STRETCH GOAL : Get a 500+ RATING ON CHESS.COM. : Presently at 326. Low has been 100 with a high of 384. Was doing well until I read a strategy book and forgot the basics. Currently have a  132W/124L/26D record which I'm quite happy with, not least because my crappy new mesh router cost me 3 of the defeats

STRETCH GOAL : Read this Charlton Heston book I bought in the Wigton bookshop earlier this year.



Have pretty much stopped reading due to chess and Cobra Kai so let's get this tome of diary entries done in a month .

OK, see you next month when we can conclude this matter and never speak of it again!

Interesting. Good book that loses its way in the final third with a few improbable character choices.

Best of 'The Bachman Books' was 'The Long Walk' which has seemingly been optioned by Frank Darabont.

Or show them the drawing you had in the Nerve Centre? Oh no, you can't do that 

You've been dining out on that since Methuselah was a nipper!