Not sure if it's me or the prog...

[Greg M.]

Mind you, at 2000AD, he didn't have to try and manoeuvre the story he wanted to tell around innumerable line-wide cross-overs and soft reboots and cancellations.

[CalHab]

Yes, I suppose so. I just came away with the impression that Ewing is a writer who has lost his way. Perhaps that is unfair given the restrictions you mention.

[SuperSurfer]

In response to some of the comments about different writers on Dredd, I have no idea what level of coordination there is of various storylines at editorial level. But my fear would be, if there is too much control, that we end up with a US mainstream comic type editorial panel approach, that could dictate the overall direction of Dredd and almost reduce writers to fleshing out agreed plots.

All about finding a balance of continuity and allowing writers to develop their own ideas. No doubt that is something that Tharg has pondered over for some time.

[Link Prime]

The way things are going with Marvel, Ewing might have a larger readership if he returned to 2000AD.

[Skullmo]

For me - if Dredd isn't strong I always feel a bit disappointed.

I have found the last 2 years of non-Wagner Dredd's pretty bad: there are so many plot threads going on that I really don't care for.

Added to that the fact that there are a few recurring series I really disliked (Survival Geeks, Black Schlock, most of the 3Rillers, recent Anderson, Hunted, Bad Company revival), A few recurring series I find pretty dull (Aquilla, Counterfeit Girl, Jaeger). This all means that although there is some really good stuff in the Prog at most points 2 stories I don't care about.

[CalHab]

And yet Hunted, Jaegir, Counterfeit Girl and Bad Company have been recent highlights for me, which just goes to prove....something.

[Woolly]

And yet Hunted, Jaegir, Counterfeit Girl and Bad Company have been recent highlights for me, which just goes to prove....something.

I think it proves that Tharg's job is one of the most difficult editing positions there is!
For all the bemoaning of the prog thats going on in this thread, it needs to be said that Cyber-Matt (Matt SmiTharg?) is still the best Tharg we've had.

I wonder if Cyber-Matt gets any other droid's opinions on submitted scripts/commissions, or if he trusts his own judgement? Just curious.

[SIP]

I'm not moaning, just stating an opinion that my apathy for the vast majority of content for the last couple of years, in combination with the strongly felt absence of John Wagner, means that I will potentially, and regretfully, giving up the prog after 37 years reading.

Not the progs fault as some here have stated that they are enjoying the vast majority of it. For whatever reason, I'm really not.

[dweezil2]

I'm not moaning, just stating an opinion that my apathy for the vast majority of content for the last couple of years, in combination with the strongly felt absence of John Wagner, means that I will potentially, and regretfully, giving up the prog after 37 years reading.

Not the progs fault as some here have stated that they are enjoying the vast majority of it. For whatever reason, I'm really not.

Well John Wagner's back in The Meg next week, so happy days! 

[JayzusB.Christ]

Delighted to hear that. I haven't really been getting into the prog of late either, and part of the reason is Dredd meandering from one writer to another without any strong threads to tie individual stories together. Fine writers, as has been said before, and fine stories, but Dredd was at his best when related events unfolded gradually over years.
I realise that this is probably impossible to avoid these days but for me personally, if Dredd meanders then so does the prog.

I miss Al Ewing on Dredd a lot too; i really felt he'd found his calling there.

Also, where is John Smith? He kept me reading almost single-handedly (no sick joke intended) through the murky days of the 90s.

[IndigoPrime]

Indigo Prime's back soon, isn't it?

Also, Rory McConville's getting rather prolific, isn't he? Has he managed to clone himself or something?

[Jacqusie]

I haven't really been getting into the prog of late either, and part of the reason is Dredd meandering from one writer to another without any strong threads to tie individual stories together.

I realise that this is probably impossible to avoid these days but for me personally, if Dredd meanders then so does the prog.

This appears to be a reluctant theme in what some of us are saying/thinking. It must be so tempting as a writer to use MC1 and Dredd's world to the fullest, encorporating as many plot lines and characters to saturation point. Thing is, it all starts to become rather contrived, fragmented and rather difficult to link together as you say.

I'm all for using the wider Dreddverse, there are thousands of great stories to be told, but at the moment writers like Carrol are chucking as many scenarios, characters and plots as they can at Dredd and it's all reading rather uncomfortably.

The Dredd total rejuve story for one seemed so odd and out of place, it wasn't for the first time that I feel I'm following a totally different character than I've grown up with... sadly...

[The Adventurer]

I really don't see it. Maybe its because my adventures with Dredd only started around the Total War epic, but current Dredd honestly doesn't feel significantly different then Dredd has been since 2004. A little less Wager on the Mega Epics, but there always have been a few different guys carving out their own little Mega City 1 niche, or isolated multi-parter/one-off. Only back then it was Rennie, now it's Carrol and Williams.



Dredd rejuve did feel unnecessarily hand wavey though. No sir, did not like it. But I'm chalking that less up to Carrol, rather that's more on Tharg.

[Richard]

What The Adventurer said. Look through most of Dredd's history and there have rarely been ongoing plot threads over a number of stories/months. The first time it happened was the democracy stories, which didn't start until the strip was over ten years old. But no one in their right mind would write off the first 500+ progs as not worth reading. I think the problem (as many have admitted already) is with some readers rather than with the prog. Some people feel like they have seen it all before, because they've been around for so long.

[Magnetica]

Dredd rejuve did feel unnecessarily hand wavey though. No sir, did not like it. But I'm chalking that less up to Carrol, rather that's more on Tharg.

I don't have a problem with the re-juve. I don't dwell on it and it doesn't really impact on reading new Dredd episodes for me, in anyway.