Synopsis and review by Gavin Hanly
2nd Opinion by John Amans

Summaries and reviews contain spoilers for this issue.

GH: Three Dredds for the price of one? When it comes under analysis, this image is really not much more than judges in "gun pointing poses". But it works extremely well for a number of reasons. Firstly, Dredd is arguably the greatest selling point of 2000AD, and having 3 of him in action poses on the cover certainly helps to generate interest. Secondly, the poses actually work quite well - Dredd looks a bit vicious, Rico more clinical, and Dolman positively restrained - matching well with their characters as written in the strip itself. And finally Ezquerra, unlike many artists, remembers that the logo is one of the most important parts of the comic and frames it perfectly - all making for a superbly designed cover.

JA: A great Carlos E cover with all three generations of Dredd in splendid pose. The reds mix in well with the 3 main figures. It looks like the Dredds are dishing out justice in all directions. Good stuff!

Brothers of the Blood – Part 3

Dredd times three...

Synopsis: Dolman is knocked off his bike by a scatterblast, but is unhurt, gets back on and rushes into the fray ahead of Dredd & Rico. They gas the outlying force before heading in to eliminate the rest. Dredd asks him if it's his first time out and what he thinks - "It's exciting, sir."

Dredd says there are to be no prisoners and to shoot to kill. They burst into the main citi def stronghold and kill everyone inside - even as they try to surrender. Dolman avoids killing two innocent citizens who point him to a remaining citi def. Using a ricochet, he takes him down, then shoots him in the back as he reaches for his gun. Narrowly avoiding another smart missile, he helps Dredd and Rico defeat the remaining citi def holed out throughout the building, realising that he was made for the job - and indeed that he now wants it. Outside, Dredd voices his approval to Rico, telling him to keep Dolman busy for the day so that he doesn't have time to brood about his first kill.

GH: Still shaping up to becoming one of the best Dredd stories in a very long while - despite not actually focusing around the main character and being rather short. All this clone business is going to have to come to a head sooner of later though, and I can't help but feel Wagner might be laying the grounds for a larger storyline yet to come. As for this week's episode, Dolman's first experience on the streets is going well, and Dredd's demand "no prisoners" reminds us of the totalitarian nature of Mega City 1 - something that hasn't really been focused on for a while. My only gripe is that Dolman changed his mind very easily about his decision to leave - if in fact that's how it will turn out. As has happened many times before, Wagner can occasionally pull the rug from underneath us, and I can't help but feel that a non-judge Dredd could prove a more interesting dynamic than another one added to the force.

As ever, Ezquerra proves to be a perfect match for Wagner, with the depiction of all three Dredds never leaving us in any doubt that the three are related. But as mentioned with regards to the cover, he manages to give the three judges a particular gait and style - making it surprisingly easy to tell who's who. Another top job by the top Dredd artist.

JA: I've been bemoaning the lack of a good Judge Dredd story for months. We've had a few false dawns e.g. the recent Crystal Skull story. However, this has now changed. After a couple of warm-up episodes, Brothers of the Blood really got going. This had everything: action, good solid Carlos E artwork and the reader wanting more! You had a real sense of being there with Dolman. It was snappy, exciting and made me realise why I've read this comic for 27 years.

I like the way Rico has been merged into the Dredd storyline. It's not a rehash of the Kraken storyline and it's not dosed up on preachy sentimentality. Dolman doubts and fears come across as genuine. How do you fill the shoes of the great man like the original Dredd? I feel the sense of brotherhood between Dolman and Rico and the unspoken respect between Rico and Dredd. The way this whole theme has been introduced is a real credit to the writers. Please don’t ruin it!

Simply excellent!

War For Sale, One Previous Owner

Flarg is intercepted

Synopsis: Conflict Consortium is a business that has created a bubble universe, allowing civilisations to go to war with each other using clone troops and without experiencing collateral damage. Inside the universe, however, a non clone soldier is lurking while the owner of Conflict Consortium is arguing with his chief scientist, Dr Flarg, who he has blackmailed into using the bubble universe for the wars. As Flarg is dismissed, he is intercepted by another alien.

Back inside the universe, the rogue soldier throws a quantum warpbomb which only works with the correct frequencies - which his associate just got from Flarg. The bubble universe rips apart and spills out into the real world. The customers demand refunds and bankrupt conflict consortium. Flarg returns with the rogue soldier who kills the owner. The rogue soldier takes over the business, upping the prices and relaxes in his new found wealth...

GH: This looked very familiar - and I couldn't work out why. Until I suddenly realised that a page of artwork here accompanied the Simon Coleby interview last year. The art is very good indeed, and Coleby seems to be getting better every time we see him, now using greyscale to make his black & white artwork far more easy to digest. As for the story - it's OK, and certainly features a decent premise. However, the pay-off is somewhat confusing - what does "a thousand a day plus unsociable hours" actually mean? Is that directed at the people buying wars or the clones? Therefore a limp ending unfortunately closes an otherwise ingenious tale.

The over-all health of 2000AD is sometimes judged on its one episode stories like these. Sometimes these stories don't work, but this one does.

Just Business - Part 1

Kal makes a new friend...

Synopsis: Sinister, Dexter and apprentice Kal Kutter are heading out to meet a new client, but they tell Kal to wait outside while they make contact. Kal waits near the dancefloor of Rave Gauche, where a dancer catches his eye. They meet at the bar and start talking...

Meanwhile Sinister & Dexter are meeting "Senor Apelledo" a chalk-white skinned man new in town. He has some work for the gunsharks but wants to set up a trial hit first to see how they do - and hands them the details.

Elsewhere, Kal is kissing his new acquaintance as his totem goes off. He reaches for it and sees that the target is the woman he just met. He urgently drags her away, telling her they have to leave...

GH: What appears to be the most recurring story in 2000AD outside of Dredd returns for more. At last we're delving into the story of Kal Kutter, which showed promise so many moons ago but got sidelined for the "wedding" series. This also lays down potential threads for future storylines with the introduction of the sinister Apelledo - someone who has an air of becoming a particular nuisance. However, despite the potential here, the main thrust of the story, Kal meets someone who he then has to kill, seems very familiar. Has this been done before in Sinister Dexter, as I have a strong feeling of déja vu? Perhaps someone will be able to enlighten me in the forum.

Andy Clarke's art, much like in the last SD story he drew, matches the world of Sinister Dexter particularly well, adding a gritty feel that has been missing from the tales for some time now. A few less lines on the faces too, although he does stick them in occasionally, making his characters seem pock marked.

JA: Dan Abnett wisely introduced a new character into his "becoming stale" gunshark saga in the form of Kal Cutter. Though not a major fan of the series I was glad to see them back with Andy Clarke's great artwork. I loved his art on "13" and "Snow Tiger" (Nice art shame about the story).

Though rather predictable, this installment of S&D at least shows a little promise. I loved the series of panels where Kal is looking on the dance floor and spots the usual female interest. I like the way it conveyed Kal's feelings and emotions at that very second. Who among us hasn’t stood at a club or disco and has zeroed in on that one person and just said "wow" like young Kal?

Abnett throws in the usual bad guy, who looks like some escaped crash test dummy and the inevitable, "oh no, the horny girl I’ve just met at the club is next on the hit list". Just another day at the office for our gunsharks!

Hopefully, the plot will not descend into cop-out mode as we have seen previously. Mr Abnett, please don’t take the easy way out. If Kal has to waste fair Isobel then so be it. Gunsharks with romantic consciences? No thanks!

This is one of those stories that could go either way.

Part 4

Egil confronts his son

Synopsis: Kara tells Hjordis to surrender to the Trez as they head towards them. But just as they reach the ship, they go to hyper - narrowly escaping. It's a clever move that reminds Hjordis of Ragnarsson. They go back to where they entered hyper and see that half the Trez ship was pulled into hyper, destroying it - and they head out to check out the damaged Bifrost ship. Onboard, the shockwaves have killed almost everyone. Lily tries to probe the remaining survivor, but kills him in the process - although she does manage to discover their base - a darkworld called Hel, founded by Ragnarsson. Kara heads back to the ship to rest and "talk" to Ragnarsson.

He tells her he started "Odin's Men" to counterbalance female rule, eventually turing to protest and then terror. He was given 7 years suspended animation, during which his son, Baldur, took control of Odin's Men. Egil found out about the deal with the Trez and tried to stop it, but failed. He narrowly escaped, losing an eye in the process. He says an alliance of men and women is needed to stop Baldur.

Meanwhile, the rest have got the Biforst ship operational, and find the darkworld in the navigation logs. Kara and Squeaks take the Bifrost ship as the rest return to the other ship - and they all head to Hel...

GH: Now, up until now, I've been fairly easy on the adult content of this strip - given that there's been a fairy well conceived story behind the scenes. However, despite the fact that the main storyline remains intriguing, and the revelations surrounding Egil Ragnarsson are well handled - it's quite hard to ignore some of the gratuitous nudity in this strip. At least in issue one the nudity had been faintly connected with the plot - but what was the excuse this time? Some eye candy for the admittedly heavily male biased readership? It's a shame, because this is a good strip and much better than we could have hoped for. It's just being dragged down by the debate of what should and shouldn't appear in 2000AD. One thing's for sure - the comic doesn't belong in the children's section of WH Smith any more...

JA: This is the latest "love it or hate it" story. I'm afraid I'm a newly converted "hate it" member. I have given this a chance. I have nothing against the artwork. John Lucas does an adequate job on the material he is asked to draw. But, as per most things, if the story is poor then the rest of it will be poor as well. I didn’t go a bundle on the initial premise in the first place. I don’t like "pander to a certain group" stories and this is beginning to whiff a little of a contrived effort to be trendy. No real character grabs you; you don’t give a monkey if they all get killed horribly. Kara has turned into some "leader of the crew" when she started off as a total bimbo. She gets some crusty old scientist in her head and all of a sudden she's dishing out orders and winning the battles against a bunch of men that I would kill given half the chance.

Put this one to sleep ASAP …please!

Realpolitik - Part 1

Rogue working for the other side?

Synopsis: As the War Marshall unleashes an all-out assault (started back in prog 1349) vast swathes of Nu Earth are completely destroyed. The Nort general are shocked at this approach, with the Nort casualties mounting, and wondering what the point was in capturing crucial objective points only to have them wiped off the map. They are also concerned that reinforcements are being dragged from all parts of the galaxy to Nu Earth, leaving them weak in other areas. An assassination of the War Marshall is mooted - but they would need to avoid suspicion of their actions. They only way would be to use a trained Souther killer - which is just what they happen to have.

Rogue Trooper has been captured by the Norts and is testing one of the nort guns in the shooting range "Are you going to tell me about this mission of yours...?"

GH: Rennie's first series of Rogue Trooper came in for some flak - certainly from me - and was one of the poorer attempts at a relaunched character, with the single issue stories never really gelling together. However, each successive series has been an improvement, and he really feels like he's getting into his stride here. There's been enough time for him to give a clearer picture of the war, lay some foreshadowing and broaden things past Nu Earth - something which really opens the scope for the series. There was some initial concern that once Rogue found the traitor general, where could he go? But as long as that old storyline is swept under the carpet, there's plenty of potential in the character - especially with his becoming a different kind of Rogue from this episode. A very promising start to a series which perhaps deserves a longer run than the 6 episodes planned.

But the most impressive thing about this series is the art. While getting the recent interview with Paul J Holden online, I looked through some of his past artwork in the comic, and he has clearly improved in leaps and bounds. The greyscale effects work wonders making the strip stick out from the others this week and a wonderful thing to look at. Holden's characters are well realised as are his layouts. What could have been a dull round table discussion is made much more dynamic, with some well considered lighting effects and inventive angles. A mighty start for his first multi part strip.

JA: I'm not a big fan the blue guy. I've found his many adventures and guises over the last 10 years to be some of the low points of 2000AD. With his comeback this prog I had to reread the end of his last run in 2000AD to remind what the hell was going on. Ok, this is the original Rogue, not Friday. Is this Tor Cyan? No…that was another story/dimension. Ok, we're back on the original Nu-Earth; we have the original Norts and Southers slugging it out.

Fine, now I have a vague idea of what is going on I could read the episode. Gordon Rennie does an admirable job of trying to get something out the Rogue Trooper mythos. The art work is nice and functional. Rogue always worked better in black and white anyway. This is really a prologue to what is going to happen in the forthcoming episodes. I'm mildly curious, but not hooked. I did have some empathy with the Nort general who bemoaned the destruction of Fort Neuropa. That series is my favourite serial from the original (and best) run of the blue guy. It's all a bit of a waste really, rather like this once great story.