Synopsis by David Knight
Reviews by Ed Berridge and James Mackay

Summaries and reviews contain spoilers for this issue.

EB: It’s hard to describe quite why this image doesn’t work as a cover. Steve Yeowell’s art is as great as ever, and the colouring and layout is nice and effective, if somewhat subdued (as is the nature of the strip). Yet it just doesn’t catch the eye in the way that great covers should and it’s been a problem, to greater and lesser degrees, with all the previous Red Seas covers, which can only lead one to conclude that perhaps it is the series itself, along with Yeowell’s new style for the series, which doesn’t lend itself to cover images. So overall a nice image, just not strictly cover material.

JM: A subtle cover isn't a bad thing, once in a while ("subtle" in the case of 2000AD meaning "no massive explosions or big guns") . And the more I look at this, the more I like it. The thing is, I'm sure this spoof of the covers of early twentieth-century mystery/adventure comics is a homage to something I've seen before. And I can't work out what it is, which is irritating.

Anyway, while it doesn't have the new reader pull-in factor that the recent nuclear Dredds no doubt have done, there's still a nice air of mystery and menace here that makes you want to find out what's happening in the story. Plus, any cover featuring a transvestite, a large-breasted midget and animated scarecrows gets my vote! The one criticism is that the dusk colours are more muted than Yeowell's normal bright primary template, and this dulls the impact quite badly.

Total War - Part 11

Nimrod prepares to improvise...

Synopsis: Caught in the blast of the third Total War nuclear device to have detonated within Mega-City One, the genetically modified Judge Fargo clone Nimrod and Dredd’s niece Vienna have survived inside their crashed vehicles. Nimrod bursts from the hull of the downed hoverporter straight into the expanding nuclear fireball. Vienna emerges from the wreck of her car to survey the destruction around her. Nimrod, his flames extinguished by a spurting water main, detects Vienna with his acute sense of smell, and searches for her across the devastated landscape.

Another badly injured survivor pursues Vienna with thoughts of rape. A crashing pod brings down a rockcrete slab, trapping Vienna. Nimrod saves Vienna from the would-be rapist and lifts the slab off her, but staggers toward the edge of the damaged flyover, suffering a fit that could cause both Nimrod and Vienna to fall to their deaths.

EB: So it looks like we’ve seen the last of both nuclear devices and the more extreme faction of Total War, and instead the story shifts itself back to the more emotional family drama of the triangle between Dredd, Vienna and Nimrod. This is certainly an unexpected move from Wagner, but given the previous twists and turns this story has taken, it doesn’t feel like the jarring turn that it could have become.

The characterisation remains as strong as ever; particularly eye-opening is the exchange between Chief Judge Hershey and her Texas City counterpart, a side of Justice Department politics that we very rarely get to see. All that remains to be seen is whether Wagner can wrap it all up to a satisfying conclusion in a single episode.

Henry Flint’s art remains as impeccable as ever: his depiction of a post-nuclear explosion doesn’t perhaps match his earlier efforts, but after eleven consecutive weeks of nuclear explosions and destruction, his work on this series has been phenomenal, and, despite all the hype, this has been one of the best Judge Dredd stories in years, even going up against stiff competition like Dredd/Aliens or Sin City.

JM: Although, rightly, Henry Flint and Chris Blythe have soaked up great gouts of praise for their incredible work on this series, it's got to be obvious that the lions' share belongs to John Wagner. This series has been tight, compact, and the readership has been masterfully misdirected at every turn. "200 nukes hidden in the city - and there's this guy who can sniff out things nobody else can..." "There's this mysterious group planning a terror campaign..."

It all seemed so obvious: a revamped mini-Apocalypse War, Dredd against a terrible foe, who would maybe turn out to be the same old Soviet enemy. But now that the flames are beginning to settle down it's clear that Wagner has pulled off a stunning coup. What seemed at first to be an epic, then a police procedural, then a disaster movie, has turned out in the end to be - as an Eastenders scriptwriter would put it - all about FAM'LY. And who'd have thought that Dredd, once aptly described as a "human iceberg", would put himself so far on the line for one person?

As with every Wagner-penned Dredd tale, it's also all about the little moments. The interlude with Hershey may only take three panels, but it gives you as clear an insight into the workings of power as one could wish for, moving from condolences to a power-grab in just four lines. And that stone-cold classic line from Nimrod will, I suspect, be quoted for years to come.

Part 6

Kilquo beats up on herself...

Synopsis: At the heart of the facility containing ‘Operation Jonah’, Kilquo and Kolquak are surrounded by intelligence agents and an army of cloned Kakkakian assassins; but the hormonal instability and kill-frenzy of the assassins creates enough of a diversion for the two Kakkaian fugitives to escape into the maze. Kilquo and Kolquak spilt up, planning to double back and meet up at the trans-dimensional bus. Kilquo, while disguising herself as a clone, distracts a guard with her body and knocks him out. Kolquak, disguised as the intelligence chief, orders Kilquo escorted back to the centre of the maze, and knocks out the guard escorting her when they guard there.

Kolquak sets the bus controls for take-off, telling Kilquo that the intelligence agency had plans to use the bus to invade Kakkak. The real intelligence chief returns from the maze and shoots Kolquak in the back. Kilquo kicks the chief in the face, and Kolquak orders her to get on the bus bound for home. As the bus launcher counts down, an agent leaps on board the bus and comes crashing out of the window with Kilquo, and pronounces her dead.

EB: This seems to be a series that has divided the readership: you either enjoy it or you don’t. I have to say that I definitely fall into the first camp, enjoying the cross-pollination of wacky romp and international espionage. Higgins’ greyscale black and white art too has been something to savour, but has occasionally lapsed into the occasional rushed frame.

Unfortunately, this episode sees these problems rise to the forefront: after the first page, the quality of the art seems to fall off almost immediately, looking rushed and unfinished. This seems to match the state of the plot, as I have to admit to not being totally cognisant of exactly what is currently happening in the story at the moment; all the separate threads make for a confusing episode, despite a strong cliff-hanger ending. However, these problems can be rectified if the story pulls together with the last episode next issue. However, I find it hard to imagine that all the plot threads can be tied up satisfyingly in just one episode, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this returns for another series in the future.

JM: It really hasn't worked very well, has it? The series lurches unevenly between genres without ever settling down to tell a story. And why is there a maze in the genetic research facility, anyway? Is this a common feature of secret government underground bunkers these days? Does Kilquo have a character, or does she just react in whatever way the scriptwriters feel will advance the plot? Why is the British Empire involved? If this is satire, why does the series keep wandering away from its targets like a teenager with ADHD? And the biggest question of all - why bother?

The grey art's pretty good, though.

Tooth & Claw - part 6

Redd indulges a hobby...

Synopsis: Lobster Random is chained to a sacrificial altar, at the mercy of both the immortal crustacean form of Professor Cadmium Redd and the bounty hunters Hogg and Pin. Redd is suddenly incensed by the realization that Lobster Random and his wife had been having an affair, but momentarily he is distracted from his revenge by fighting off the bounty hunters.

Immune to pain, Random breaks his hand slipping out of the chains tying him to the altar and creeps away to the ship they arrived on. Redd spots him, and uses his new powers to animate a zombie army of lobster troopers and aliens to slow him down. Redd’s widow’s flying monkey guardian security drone eliminates the zombies and Random climbs aboard the ship. As they take off, the Professor’s new body grows wings and flies after them. Random orders the widow to ‘get naked’ as part of his plan for survival.

EB: Although I have been enjoying this series, it does seem in places a little reminiscent of the last one. Similarly, it seems a little early in our relationship with the character to start giving us even more about his backstory; the fact that Lobster’s claws (or claw, singular, now) were actually inter-dimensional paranormal claws may come into play as a plot point in some future story, but to be honest it makes for slightly confusing reading in the current one. Also, not really much happens this week, so you get the feeling that this week and last weeks episodes could have been combined into one episode, and they may have been spread out to match the number of episodes required.

Having said this, the deficiencies in the script are easily outweighed by the plus points: Lobster himself is chief amongst these. He seems to be one of those rare characters that arrived fully formed, with his own voice already strong and in place. Not only does Spurrier create a great character, but also a believable world behind him, as evoked through the great use of language, terms such as “aresegike” or “lunatist” immediately bring the world of Lobster Random to life. Best of all this series has been the introduction of the two bounty hunters, two characters that I certainly hope to see recur in the future.

However, as I’m sure Mr. Spurrier would agree, the series would be nothing without the excellent art from Carl Critchlow. Clearly Critchlow was born to work on a strip such as this (and anyone who’s read Thrud the Barbarian will know that this is the case). But basically, any artist who can draw a mini-helicopter that turns into a flying monkey has not only my respect, but my undying admiration and awe.

JM: A great story, with great jokes, a great premise, and great art is in danger of collapsing, rather too early, under the weight of its own pretensions. The whole point of having a torturer as a lead character is, surely, that he's not a character we necessarily root for? Once the series has been set up, therefore, the writer has license to concentrate on creating ever more bizarre villains who are evil enough that we'd even support a protagonist who hurts people for money? It's much the same
dynamic that has supported many other anti-heroes in the past, from Cadman
to Ace Garp.

The problem with this second series is that Spurrier seems to be trying to make Random sympathetic. This is of course in keeping with the man who brought us the sublime From Grace last year: it's clear that one of the writer's motivating questions is "Where does evil come from?" But just as Kaith eventually had to face up to the fact that it wasn't just his childhood that made him act the way he does, so Lobster Random's captioned narrative pleading for pity isn't the way to this reader's heart ("YOU try ripping off your best friend's dead head and THEN tell me to quit whingeing [sic]" being a particularly low point).

Still, it's always great to see Critchlow's art, and there are some wonderful throwaway lines ("Plus, it's just so darned cute", "Oil me harder!"). So let's hope for better things from the next series.

Recalibration Part 3

Synnamon begins to remember

Synopsis: In her memories, Synnamon and the rebels of the Nottingham Dominion have walked into an ambush. Marshal Cromwell offers to accept Synnamon’s surrender and allow the others to go free. Synnamon, then known as Jahanara, gives herself up, but her lieutenant refuses to accept the offer. Cromwell orders him killed. When Synnamon returns fire, all of her men are gunned down. Synnamon herself is shot in the leg and hand, and Cromwell takes her prisoner.

In the present, Dr. Banks and Marshal Cromwell watch in a medical lab as Synnamon’s memory repression system fails and she is reunited with her memories. Cromwell’s men prepare to open fire in the event that Synnamon emerges from her coma intent on revenge. Suddenly Dr. Banks announces that Synnamon’s memory suppression system has recalibrated itself, and her old memories remain locked away in her subconscious.

Synnamon leaves the planet again, feeling there’s something missing, like a lifetime of memories. If she was ever to remember her past life she might become very dangerous to Cromwell and the External Security Directorate.

EB: This has been an interesting mini-series, and I think it’s really helped to establish the series, in many way more so than the original series did. Although I complained about too much backstory too early on in Lobster Random, it works in exactly the opposite manner in this series, and works to give it a greater depth, taking it beyond it’s obvious Emma Peel/Barbarella 1960’s roots (despite the cheeky reference at the end). This gives us a much greater appreciation of Synnamon’s world, as well as the type of person she is, as well as leaving the reader enough unanswered questions that another, longer series, would be much appreciated.

Lawrence Campbell’s art remains as nice as ever, now with a more populist sheen thanks to David Roach’s slick inks (although I’m not sure I prefer it to the first series), but the truly unsung star of the series has to be Gary Caldwell’s expert colouring, which really works to bring the series to life. In all, the last two series have proved that 2000AD editorial was right, despite the occasional howls of fan protest to the contrary, to stick with the series, as it could indeed have the makings of something highly entertaining.

JM: I don't know whether it's down to the addition of David Roach's inks or a vast improvement in Clayton and Dows' script, but the storytelling of this series of Synnamon has been so much clearer to follow, and as a result it's been a joy. A huge amount of backstory and several potential future plots have been set up, very painlessly, and almost entirely without recourse to the memory captions that are marring Lobster Random at the moment.

Despite the fairly large chunks of exposition, there are also not one but two moments of real peril in this episode that make you fear for the heroine, and a heart-stoppingly vicious burst of brutality from Cromwell. All of which serves to add some real depth to the glossy, Emma Peel-esque image of a newly restored Syn on the final page.

Decent space operas are surprisingly far and few in 2000AD's history: based on this brief excerpt, I'd say that Synnamon has the potential to achieve everything that Dan Abnett and Mark Harrison's over-lazy Durham Red never quite managed.

Meanwhile... - Part 3

Charlie wafts away...

Synopsis: Jimmy leads Meryl, Mariah and Cora the old plantation house, which he believes now belongs to the thief who took Erebus. Inside the house, Professor Toten is questioning Erebus, under threat of torture, about the entrance to the Netherworld. One of Erebus’s heads lets slip that his innate sense of direction led Captain Jack Dancer to use Erebus as a compass, which is potentially valuable knowledge to Toten. He might now use Erebus as a guide to the Grey Lands of the afterlife.

Outside, Toten’s straw men discover Meryl’s group peering in through a window, and capture them. Toten proposes to kill his captives and open up a doorway to the Lightless Lands as their souls depart. Meryl draws a pistol and fires one barrel at Toten, and shoots the head off a straw man with the other. Its stuffing catches fire, and a jar falls out of its torso and breaks on the floor, releasing the trapped soul of Charlie, a dead member of Dancer’s crew.

As Meryl takes aim at the scarecrow holding Mariah prisoner, Professor Toten strikes at the back of Meryl’s hand with his sword stick and she drops her pistol. Toten’s mask is cracked from the shot Meryl fired at him; and he too is a hollow man, unencumbered by humanity.

EB:This new mini-series has certainly been a welcome edition to the winter line up. Without the weight of expectation that might have been built up had this series and Synnamon been heavily trailed in both 2000AD and online, these have both been unexpectedly brief, breezy fun. This certainly works best in the favour of The Red Seas: already two series in, we are now being given a welcome glimpse of the women behind the swashbuckler, and it not only strengthens and broadens the depth of the series, but also successfully punctures the macho-centric bubble that most of the pirate genre surrounds itself in.

Ian Edginton has a great ear for characters, and in many ways the female characters here are stronger, and more believable than their male counterparts. The story is well plotted, cleverly set during the previous series, with an inexplicable mystery at its centre, and the reader being drip fed enough each week to hold their interest. This is aided by the excellent art by Steve Yeowell, who rejects the frequent artistic path of flashy splash pages and character portraits, but instead concentrates on traditional, honest-to-goodness, well-told graphic storytelling of the highest calibre, as befits the series. It’s a tribute to an artist when you say that you really couldn’t imagine the series being drawn by anyone else.

Like maybe only a couple of other series, say Nikolai Dante and Caballistics Inc, this is one of the only series that have actually succeeded in making themselves appear to be part of the indispensable furniture at 2000AD. Of course, I have no idea where the plot of this story is going, but I’m just happy to be along for the ride, and hope that it’s not too long until we see it return.

JM: One minor quibble before I start. Page 3, final panel. Surely it should be "WHY is she here? What are YOU to HER?": after all, it's not like Erebus is doing anything very active to save "the fat little tavern tart", is he?

Anyway, this diversion from Jack Dancer's gay lads to Meryl's fine tavern ladies has worked a treat for me. Yeowell's art, as usual, manages to animate faces with amazingly few lines, though it's his Erebus that deserves to be singled out for especial praise.

The fleshing-out of the cast means that there are now nine or ten characters in the Red Seas universe whose deaths would actually matter: this might seem like a morbid way of putting it, but with the high casualty rate traditional to 2000AD strips, it's as good a way as any of praising the writer's success.