2000AD Prog 1433 - 6 April 2005
	Judge Dredd (Rennie / Cook) Sinister Dexter (Abnett/ Yeowell/ O Grady) American Gothic (Edginton / Collins) The VCs (Abnett / Williams) Nikolai Dante (Morrison/ Burns) Synopsis by Gavin Hanly Review by Eric Moore 2nd Opinion by Paul I Summaries and reviews contain spoilers for this issue.

EM: A nice simple image by Mike Collins that gets the point(s) across. Nice colours too, with the shading on the glove making me do a double take and think it was Ezquerra.

PI: Now, much as I like this image, I really can't decide if I like this version of the image over the one that appeared in the back of 1432. While both images are quite striking with the very dramatic posing, I feel that the one used in the teaser felt much more in the style of American Gothic. But then, as a cover image, the dull colours would have probably been a lot less striking on the news-stands. And I have to say, I do like the colour palette used. The deep red background allows the character to stand out, and the detail on the gloves and jacket is quite impressive.

However, this is another one of those images that needlessly covers the logo.

Descent - Part 2

A gruesome discovery...

Synopsis: The judges descend into the Ezra Pound hole to retrieve the hoverbus, damaging their craft on the way down. They find bodies, and Karyn scans one of them to discover that the victim crawled out of the wreckage and was attached by monsters, who wanted the well ones alive, and ate the rest. The judges have 4 bikes with them - Dredd, Karyn, Birko and Schindler head off to track down the survivors.

Karyn senses that something knows they're coming for it, called the Shadow King, a leader of monsters that thrive on flesh. The King senses that an old enemy is approaching. They find fresh bodies and realise theyre getting close until they are suddenly ambushed by the creatures. Schindler is killed as the judges realise that normal rounds aren't working. They switch to hi-ex, and Dredd uses a silver bladed boot knife to finish off another.

Dredd believes he's seen the monsters before (in a Megazine tale called Asylum) and the leader of them isn't as dead as he'd thought.

EM: A by-the-book tale by Mr Rennie and there ain’t nothing wrong with that. And it's also a tale to really showcase Boo Cook’s work. I had my doubts last week, within the bright lights of the Meg, but now we’re down in the dark, the shadows really are suiting Boo’s style. Gorgeous stuff, especially the yellow eye on page three and the Morlock/Love Like Blood/ Trapper Khan- style baddie in the last panel.

PI: The first thing that struck me on opening this prog was Boo Cook's art. It really is quite breathtaking at times. Not only is the detail fantastic, but it also feels so right for the story that's being told. Not only do you actually get a feeling that the Judges are deep below the city, but it also conveys the stranger elements of the story perfectly. The purple eyed creatures actually do look frightening, and they do look like they could pose some kind of threat.

The story however, I'm not so keen on yet. But I blame this more on my ignorance than Rennie's writing. It seems a trend in both the Prog and Meg recently to be gazing back into the past for thrills in Dredd recently. Which is fine, I imagine it's a nice trip down memory lane for most. But for people like myself, who are quite new to 2000AD, it does pose quite a problem at times. I don't have much idea of who Karyn is, and I can't really appreciate the big unveiling at the end, as I have no idea who or what that is either. So I really do feel like I'm missing out on something vital. This also comes very soon after Wagner's Nosferatu tale and so far feels very much in the same vein. But I'm still anxious to see what happens next.

Life's a Beach - Part 1

The boys take a fall...

Synopsis: Sinister and Dexter are racing after Paco Raybans in a high speed car chase. However, Paco suddenly veers in front of them and they crash, sending both cars shooting off the side of the road. They awake later, in one piece, but their car is completely wrecked. Paco and his wheelman are dead and Sinister and Dexter have to work out how they're going to get back up to the road. It's a sheer wall, with racing traffic above - things don't look good.

Then they hear something driving towards them. They take cover and see that it's a tow truck. The driver is about to salvage their Edsel until Sinister and Dexter pull their guns on him. They ask the driver, Barnes, to help them find a way out. But Barnes laughs and tells them there's no way out - "welcome to The Beach!"

EM: Hmmm, I still think these guys should have been put out to pasture long ago and, to be honest, I only read it when I do one of these reviews. Still, not as annoying as it could have been and the premise is different enough that I might keep up with it next week.

Better art here from Steve than his turns on Red Sea’s just lately. His style is going more back to his Zenith era and that’s certainly a welcome change.

PI: I'm very much in two minds about Sin/Dex. Some of it I've just thought 'What's the point', such as Vircade, while other tales, such as Latte Animals, I've really enjoyed and thought were a good laugh. So far this is looking as if it's going to fall into the latter. I think the reason for this lies in the fact that it isn't just a one off gag, nor is it 'Sinister Dexter charge in and shoot everything in sight'. It's engaging, and you actually care what happens to the pair in the next issue. It also serves as a way of underlining the very nature of Downlode, reminding you just how epic and dangerous the city is. The last panel displays this perfectly.

It also helps that the art isn't horrible. Sin/Dex is a real mixed bag for art, and I have to say this is some of the better art I've seen for the series so far. It's very clear what exactly is going on, there are no bizarre hair styles or facial colours (Not that I have anything against Sinister's clown mask) and unlike the recent Latte Animals, they don't look like Teenagers.

Chapter 2

LaChance loses it...

Synopsis: LaChance wakes up in a moving wagon and comes face to face with a wolf child and her mother who speak German. Terrified, he jumps out and comes face to face with some more creatures, who look like they want to help him. But LaChance is too freaked to realise this and runs for the hills, away from the wagon train. He halts at the top, stopped by the stranger who rescued him from the bar the previous night.

The Stranger picks up LaChance with one hand and puts him on his horse - they ride down to rejoin the wagon train. Baba Yagga asks if he's for her brood, but the stranger says he's too old. They have prepared something for him, and give it to him to drink. He does so and after violently throwing up, passes out...

EM: A bit of disappointment after last week’s opener mainly, I think, down to the bright daylight setting. I haven’t a clue how this is going to pan out – and this week its looking similar to Todd Browning’s Freaks- but I’m looking forward to finding out.

I’m a big fan of Mike Collins’ art but it looks a bit rushed here. There’s better to come though as Mike had some future pages at Dreddcon two years back and we’re in for a treat.

PI: I have to say, I've liked the idea of this ever since I saw the preview art for it, and so far it hasn't disappointed. While I'm not really a fan of Westerns, I do like the twist Edginton has made to the genre. It also seems to have a good balance between both the western and fantasy elements, with neither seeming out of place or overpowering the other. I'm also a sucker for black and white art, and am really enjoying Collins' style. The only panel that did look very awkward was the one of LaChance being sick, where he rather looked like he was a dancing fountain. I can only hope later instalments live up to this.

Part 2 - Basic

Smith revs up the basic training...

Synopsis: Smith is appalled by the state of the latest recruits as most of them are floating away in the latest scenario, having forgotten to use the Mag Lock in their boots. The cadets are climbing a tall monitain terrain while Kali and Smith start shooting jolt guns at them. Elsewhere, Keege asks Ryx to go through a training session plan with him, but Ryx is too busy looking for information on Veto, who he blames for the death of Lin Fu (back in issue 1379).

Major Smith visits the chief Medical Officer Rene Sheldon. She tells him that she has been fully briefed, and that she is in fact GCC Intelligence - and that she has some case files to bring Smith up to speed - he's clearly not just there to train recruits. Smith gets a call from Keege who tells him that Ryx has gone AWOL...

EM: Not bad, not bad. However, I’m all for characterisation but, to me, this strip is Cam Kennedy and Garry Leach doing a riff on Starship Troopers with tons of action. It’s a war strip – so please can we get back into it?

PI: It's hard to form a decent opinion on this yet, having little knowledge of the V.C.s in any prior form aside from a few back issues, but it's entertaining none the less. You've got to feel sorry for the recruits undergoing this kind of torture, haven't you? The disappearance of Ryx really brings some much needed intrigue into the story, for as fun as watching them knock recruits around is, it'd get boring after awhile, wouldn't it?

Primal Screams - Part 1

Dante feels a breeze...

Synopsis: Solomon's Palace is an exotic casino, overlooking Victoria Falls. Inside, its patrons seems to be humans crossed with animals - walking on 2 legs, but clearly descended from Apes, tigers, lions and the like. The head of the casino, Mr King, is a "panther-man", and is preparing to bring his latest dancer, Ayesha on stage, clearly Lauren in disguise. She begins to dance as a Scotsman, Quentin Durward (Dante in disguise, with red hair and a kilt). He starts his act of a rich man coming in to spend all his money on roulette until one of the women comes on heavily to him. Lauren is enraged and starts beating her way towards him, blowing their cover by calling him "Nikolai Dante". Dante tries to calm Laren down, but it's too late, as Mr King and his rhino guards now know that they planned to rob the place and have them surrounded...

EM: See Sin/Dex. Really, the only reason I read it is for the nostalgia fix of seeing John Burns’ lovely artwork. Other than that, not interested. Sorry.

PI: This didn't really make a lot of sense, to be fair. I can understand the basic idea of Dante going undercover to steal from Soloman's Palace, but what really irked me about this story was that I'd have thought Lauren would have displayed a lot more professionalism. Didn't she enter the comic as an undercover spy for Dante's mother? Surely, in that case, she'd have enough self control and cunning to at least get revenge on Dante without blowing the whole scheme? Still, it was nice to see Dante undercover and quite a bit of fun to read and Burns is really keeping the quality up, so it'll be interesting to see where this goes.