Messages

On the subject of hardbacks, does anyone know if we're likely to see Nemesis in hardback at some point? Given that a lot of Mill's other stuff has seen hardback release, it would be good see to Nemesis, too. And the early Slaine, for that matter.

There is the Deviant Edition, which is hardback.

Yes, you're right, I'd forgotten. I should have added that I'm hoping for the larger format.

Regards,

Robin

On the subject of hardbacks, does anyone know if we're likely to see Nemesis in hardback at some point? Given that a lot of Mill's other stuff has seen hardback release, it would be good see to Nemesis, too. And the early Slaine, for that matter.

Regards,

Robin

We used to call them 'pen and paper games', cos that was all you needed. I've used a phone app to handle dice rolls while travelling, but I have to be honest: the physicality of rolling odd polyhedrons or buckets of regular d6s is a big part of the fun for me.

Yeah, I'd forgotten about the term 'pen and paper'. And second yeah, roleplayers love their dice. While figures can be fun, but they're not needed, leaving dice as the only aesthetically pleasing bit of rubbish you can buy to show off to your fellow gamers.

Regards,

Robin

I'm still a little fuzzy on some of the gaming hobby industry's terminology. I'm a little unclear on why the tabletop is even needed, if not for maps and miniatures, although of course there's always dice involved, but presumably a random-number generator (or one of those "pop-o-matic" dice) could accomplish the same without taking up table space, so you could play a RPG on a long train trip or bus ride, assuming no distractions. Personally I enjoy the miniatures as a visual aid, in addition to the hobby modeling aspect. Wargames are fun, but not as enjoyable as acting out a character.

When I were a lad, 'tabletop' used to mean wargaming, where you really did need a table. These days, it's often used to refer to roleplaying games. I've no idea how this came about, but I think it's intended to distinguish RPGs from computer games. Roleplaying in a game is also a rather confusing concept for a lot of people, so I suppose some game companies might shy away from using the word.

None of the numerous RPG campaigns I played as a student or unemployed layabout involved tables - we generally sat around in living rooms or bedrooms. You're right, you only need a surface to roll dice on and you're sorted.

Regards,

Robin

I got the Summer Magic HC, and that is the same size as the Dare / Cursed Earth HC.

Thanks for the info. I've ordered Summer Magic as well as Leopard limited editions now.

Regards,

Robin

Hardback (& signed bookplate and art print) edition now available to order through 2000AD!

I can't see it mentioned in the shop anywhere, but is this hardback edition in the larger format we've seen with the Dan Dare and Cursed Earth collections?

Regards

Robin

Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut

Hiero's Journey - Sterling E Lanier

Desolation Road - Ian McDonald

Regards,

Robin

Veteran TV and film actor Geoffrey Bayldon best know for the character "Catweazel" has died, aged 93.

I'm actually impressed he was still alive until just now, as he seemed ancient when I watched Catweazel as a kid (haven't seen it since, more's the pity).

Members of his fan club have done a lot to help him in recent years, I believe. As I recall, his mobility was decreasing so they funded/helped with improving his garden and getting a special chair for him.

They also contributed to a bust in memory of the series and Richard Carpenter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHPuarCt3RQ

Regards,

Robin

How did I miss first time around reading Judgement Day:

Judge Bruce is Lenny Bruce...

That Sabbat is a parody of the Dennis the Menace character Soppy Walter and even worse I missed that Dennis turns up himself!

But an Aussie version of Lenny Bruce? I can see where I'd miss that; I'd just assumed it was perhaps a common surname in Australia. At any rate, he doesn't get much on-panel time in Judgment Day, but perhaps you're thinking of OZ.

This may be a case of something going over Garth Ennis' head...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyVX3uJpqxc

...or more likely he just didn't care.

Regards,

Robin

Well, perhaps what I felt odd about it is that this information was volunteered by Ron Smith when interviewed in regards to his work for 2000 AD. It's not like something most artists would have felt necessary to bring up, and he could very well have kept that aspect to himself. It just seemed like a very strange sort of attitude to take, considering that he knew that he was being interviewed and what he said for the record would be read by his fans as well as his non-fans. Almost as if he was making a point that "it was just work, that's all".

I think it was just an example of on honest man giving an insight into the realities of producing art in a commercial environment. It's practical advice for any young artist who wants to get out of the garret and put down a deposit on a mortgage.

Regards,

Robin

As for Ron Smith, well... he certainly drew a LOT of Judge Dredd. Somehow I never felt like he "fit in" with the other great Dredd artists, though (diverse though they may be). I think ultimately the most telling indictment of his work to me, was when I read in Thrill-Power Overload that he used to set himself a specific amount of time to work on each page, based on his page-rate from 2000 AD. When that time elapsed, he was done, regardless of what the page looked like at that point. Apparently it was a system that worked for him, in justifying his page-rate, but it seemed a bit mercenary to me, and hard for me to respect from the point of view of the-artist-as-craftsman.

Hmmm. That will probably cause far more offence than the OP.

Ron Smith absolutely was a craftsman. He was making an honest living by producing something to order for a customer in a timely manner. The fact that he did this to a pretty consistently high standard just demonstrates he was a very good craftsman.

Was he a great artist as well as good craftsman? Well, the proof lies in the admiration people still have for his work long after he stopped crafting it.

Regards,

Robin

Much as I also like Bolland, I'll put '80s Barry Kitson ahead of him.

I can get that Carlos isn't everyone's favourite (and the ubiquitous 'King' title isn't going to endear him to non-believers!), but the Barry Kitson love expressed above (and I've seen it elsewhere) is the opinion that twists my melon    Better than Brian ?!
His Megazine montage anniversary cover recently was frankly poor, the opposite of dynamic... Maybe I'm missing something.

I did say '80s Kitson.

Regards,

Robin

Shorts and one-offs
1.   Bury My Knee at Wounded Heart
2.   Citizen Snork
3.   Top Dog
4.   Return of Death Fist
5.   The Graveyard Shift

Epics
1.   The Judge Child Quest
2.   The Cursed Earth/The Day the Law Died (yeah, cheating here, sue me)
3.   Block Mania/The Apocalypse War
4.   The Dead Man/Necropolis
5.   Chaos Day

Stories that span years
1.   America I, II, III
2.   P.J. Maybe stories
3.   Mean Machine Stories
4.   Democracy storyline
5.   Family Dredd (Vienna, Rico, Dolman, Fargos, Giant, Beeny)

Favourite moments
1.   "Who the hell's gonna mess with us?"
2.   Dredd knocking-out and unmasking Batman within minutes of meeting him
3.   Dredd stabbing his hand through the flagpole in Raptaur.
4.   Dredd's Judgment Day speech
5.   Dredd's apology to Anderson in Satan

Best Dreddworld stories
1.   Strontium Dog
2.   Low Life (including Trifecta)
3.   Judge Anderson
4.   Cursed Earth Koburn
5.   Missionary Man

Very tempted to put Angelic in place of Missionary Man, but it's hard to reconcile its realistic tone with the comedy psychopaths we see in The Judge Child Quest. Deadworld's another worthy candidate.

Regards,

Robin

When it comes to Dredd, it's either Carlos Ezquerra or Ron Smith. I struggle to put one ahead of the other because their styles are so different, but they're both definitive Dredd artists (as is Mike McMahon).

Much as I also like Bolland, I'll put '80s Barry Kitson ahead of him.

Regards,

Robin

Just me, or is Helge Jepsen's art reminiscent of Brian Bolland's?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-39581397

I've no interest in cars, but I'm almost tempted to buy this book. And I could easily stand to see Jepson's doing a few Dredd covers, or Star-Scans of Lawmasters, Prowl Tanks, ABC Warriors...

Regards,

Robin