We're witnessing the death of the 'real' Judge Dredd

[AD2000]

Hi.

I'm a long-term 2000AD reader, have read Dredd for years and it's with great sadness that I have to say I'm very dismayed at the development of Dredd from tough iron-man of the law to mutant-loving liberal.

Whilst I accept John Wagner can write Dredd how he sees fit, I've always believed certain behavioural characteristics of Dredd were immutable and not adaptive.

Dredd has never been pro-mutant, at best his attitudes to mutants and their plight have been morally ambiguous. If people doubt this, just ask yourself: "how many mutants has Dredd killed in his 30 plus year career?" Loads is the answer. In fact, Dredd's attitude to the New Mutant Army - a mutant group campaigning for mutant rights -is no different to Strontium Dog's mutant-hating Nelson Bunker Kreelman. Dredd is happy to wipe out those mutants he regards as a threat to the security of the city and yet now we have to believe Dredd wants all mutant laws repealed, full human rights given to mutants? It's not remotely credible.

I didn't recognise Dredd in this week's 2000AD - prog 1546. He's become a mutant social worker and I find it terrible lame and contrary to the point of the character.

I know Dredd fans will say Dredd is entitled to change with the times but when that change reduces Dredd's character it's a negative step - not a productive one. If Mr Wagner wants to write about a liberal fascist sci-fi cop (which is, by definition, an oxymoron) please create a new character and call it JUDGE SOCIAL WORKER. Please don't ruin Dredd, Mr Wagner, by promoting your liberal agenda because it's destroyed that which made Dredd so great in the first place and that was an iron-willed man of the law.

Dredd's never cared about people, not in the same way that we understand the word 'cared'. He cares for the law, that's it. The welfare of the citizens come second and mutants come well down the list. Dredd's never cared about mutants, never wanted to improve their standard of living but now Wagner has emasculated the character. Dredd's attitude to Lilliman was like an employer talking to his worker and since when has Dredd given people jobs and salaries? Dredd isn't a social worker with a cheque book. Dredd doesn't give out jobs - he enforces the law.

I didn't see the real Dredd in this week's prog, just some liberal character dressed as a Judge. You can't have a liberal fascist cop, it doesn't work, the two dynamics don't gel into a cohesive whole and this week's Dredd shows it. With due respect to Mr Wagner's 30 year body of Dredd-related work, he's killed off the real Dredd and that's very sad to see.  RIP Judge Dredd.

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

I claim my fiver.

[mogzilla]

I think he has alwayys had that commpassionate side though,granted he hides it well.His character has always "strayed" on occassion like at the beggining of the judge child mission,he leaves the mutie slaver to the lynch mob of (mutie)townsfolk.
 you  could argue that Dredd would never do that ,he has arrested many people for taking the law into their own hands.He has argued himself that his jurasdiction is wherever he is at the time. in one of the comics recently he left a perp tied to a holding post with a starship about to land on him!
   He killed the new mutant army because they were a threat to the city as east meg one was,if he did harbour any bigotry towards mutants then maybe meeting his "cousins" helped him onto this train of thought...Joe Dredd IS getting old 50 years on the street,even with his accellarated cloning he's no spring chicken,he had doubts years ago,maybe he's just growing up as a character?
 I personally think john wagner IS killing him off, subtley. Rising,popular(surviving )stars such as giant and rico(especially rico) mean that the strip could carry on easily without old stony face...think "TAGGART"...
...when he does bite the big one i'd like him to have a quiet death,a heart attack or something natural(ok "quiet's" the wrong word but...maybe not,given dredd's life a heart attack is quiet in comparrision.) rather than a big out in a blaze of glory storyline.Blimey that was a long one .Beer?

[AD2000]

Compassionate side? This is Judge Dredd we're talking about - not some touchy feely cop.

If you read your Dredd history you will see Dredd has no compassion for anyone, not in the way we understand compassion. Dredd can't afford to be compassionate. He has to obey the law, enforce the law. That's not to say Dredd can't bend aspects of the law and help people he feels have been unfairly treated, but Wagner's reinvention of Dredd as a mutant loving liberal isn't credible nor consistent with 30 years of Dredd. Don't forget - in Origins Dredd kills mutants. Did he regret doing that? Nope. Did Dredd propose a limited repeal of the anti-mutant laws? Nope. He wanted all mutants to have equal human rights so what about all the mutants Dredd hasn't liked in the past? Do they still get Dredd's new touchy feely treatment? This is not consistent and weakens the character.

Would Dredd want to give equality to members of the New Mutant Army? Well, the answer has to be yes because he never said anything to the contrary. Dredd wanted the anti-mutant laws repealed and that means ALL mutants get equal rights, even those that Dredd hates (or rather hated).

Dredd now loves all mutants. He loves them so much he gives them jobs and salaries. When was the last time Dredd gave a MC-1 citizen a job? Search me. I don't think it's ever happened or if it has it's as rare as Judge Death babysitting!

[mogzilla]

bending the law to help people he feels have been treated unfairly isn't commpassion? what about the "bury my knee at wounded heart" story?
...the last time dredd gave citizens jobs was the story "doledrums" he sacked and cubed the staff of the welfare office and gave the first correct number of people in the queue those jobs.
   all citizens get equal rights so why not the mutants? there are good and bad norms as well as muties..and judge death has never said he wouldn'dt babysit,his career's a bit in "limbo" at the mo.

[AD2000]

I don't think John Wagner thought this idea through. It makes no sense because it's Dredd saying "all mutants deserve equality" when most Dredd mutant stories have shown Dredd KILLING mutants. It's a step too far. And I said in my first post - you can't have a liberal fascist cop. It's an oxymoron - two contradictory elements put together. Dredd loving mutants is like Judge Death being a priest! It doesn't work. Sure, it gives Wagner new material but the idea is deeply flawed.

I've read Dredd for two decades but I've given it up. This week's was the lamest Dredd I've *ever* read. People say Robbie Morrison's Dredd is emotional, he's got nothing on Wagner's new touchy feely version.

I wish Wagner would kill off Dredd. Seriously. Let Rebellion market Rico as the new Dredd. New fans won't care and us older fans will see a new Dredd on patrol. The sales will remain high even with a new Dredd in the comic.

It's tragic seeing John Wagner - the master Dredd writer, the man responsible for all the great Dredd stories - destroying his character. It's tragic.

[Leigh S]

So, you've never read The Cursed Earth, or A Question of Judgement, or The Tale of the Dead Man?

Is Dredd really being a wet liberal social worker by questioning whether the blanket treatment of someone based on their genetics is a bad thing?

The Fargo revelation HAS made Dredd question things, and on top of that, finding his own blood relatives are on the receiving end of mutant prejudice has had an impact on him.  For me, thats much more interesting than Dredd being Dredd.  You've never changed your opinion on anything, or had a personal event make you revisit previous beliefs?

[,Mr. Nice]

When was the last time Dredd gave a MC-1 citizen a job?In that story where the computer system keeps going down at the welfare payment office (whatever it's called in MC1).

[mogzilla]

how is judge rico these days? WHEN he takes joes role as primo judge,will they do a kraken and let him carry the dredd name?

[paulvonscott]

Judge Dredd first realised mutants were human too, back in the Cursed Earth story with Novar.  He has on numerous occasions shown compassion as well as the harsh realities of the law to people of Mega-City.  He stopped animal experiments, helped a young girl whose body had been destroyed by a rad-pit accident, saved aliens from slavers.  He's no bleeding heart, but he knows right from wrong.  

Seriously, you must know this.  

[Leigh S]

Actually, the "liberal fascist" is a brillaint way to do Dredd, and on the whole, Wagner has always portrayed Dredd as a 'liberal fascist' from time to time (so long as you dont assume Liberal means the Daily Mail definition of the word).

Dredd helps enforce a 'fascist' regime - one where the Law is in place to protect the city, if not always its citizens.  Dredd believes in this law, and believes it is for the good of the citizens - he doesnt do it because he likes cracking heads - he genuinely believes he is doing good, even when he is crushing the Democrats (terrorists or dangerous idealists who will destabilise the City).  Dredd isnt about enforcing his will, or getting kicks out of supressing the population - he wants to do good, and will put his life on the line for his citizens, even lawbreakers, time and again.  

[mogzilla]

"doledrums" and i only know that cos i asked thargy

[Steve Green]

Yeah, he's never shown compassion.

Apart from Bonnie Crickle, in "a case for treatment"

or "Bury my Knee at Wounded Heart"

or sparing Chopper a bullet in the back "Hitman"

or releasing Blondel Dupre and the others prior to his Long Walk

He's also had his clone father telling him that the system is wrong, that would be enough to shake anyone's faith - even Dredd.

[Jim_Campbell]

"I claim my fiver"

Wake? Oh, Waaaa-ake ...

Cheers

Jim

[AD2000]

".and judge death has never said he wouldn'dt babysit,his career's a bit in "limbo" at the mo."

My babystitting comment was a joke!

I won't keep repeating this but with respect to everyone, Mr Wagner, and all the loyal fans - Dredd is a fascist cop. PERIOD. Now Wagner wants to make Dredd a liberal. It is IMPOSSIBLE to have a liberal fascist cop. Impossible. It's like a 'good evil' criminal. Makes no sense. The longer Wagner spends developing this liberal fascist Dredd, the more absurd it gets.

Wagner is trying to have his cake and eat it by having Rico say "word on the street is you've turned into a bleeding heart." Wagner is trying to poke fun at his narrative conceit but no amount of humour can make the concept work. The bottom line is it isn't the true Dredd. It's a reinvention of Dredd to suit Wagner's desire for new Dredd family-based stories but it's not consistent with Dredd's true personality and his past actions.

How can Dredd help mutants when he's killed hundreds or thousands of them? What, so he can pick and choose his morality? Sometimes Dredd can hate mutants then lo and behold he is touchy feely and loves them! It makes no sense. Dredd can't be all things to everyone.

I AM THE LAW. That's Dredd. Not "I AM THE LAW BUT I NOW LIKE MUTANTS SO PLEASE GIVE THEM EQUAL RIGHTS BECAUSE MY DISTANT RELATIVES ARE MUTANTS AND I LIKE THEM, AND FORGET I KILLED THOUSANDS OF MUTANTS IN THE PAST."

If you really think about it, it's too silly.