Cover by Simon Davis

GH: If it's the Christmas issue, then it's time to dust Tharg off and get him onto the cover. This is actually one of the better end-of-year covers, with Davis managing to inject an air of fun into the proceedings that's been missing from previous attempts. It feels nice and Christmassy and although I'd question the inclusion of characters that aren't in the comic, the inclusion of the main characters as elves is fun.

I do think the obstruction of the logo in the Christmas issue when you should be trying to attract new punters is an odd decision (and something that regular visitors will know is a bugbear of mine), but it's fun overall and that's enough for me...

AC: That most elfish and sprightly of art droids Simon Davis spreads the Christmas cheer with this warm and funny pastiche of all our favourite heroes. While not quite as inspiring as last year’s Kev Walker cover, it is a great deal more seasonal, and I appreciate that. 

Origins - Part 14 - The President's Man Script: John Wagner Art: Carlos Ezquerra Letters: Annie Parkhouse

Dredd's shows his inexperience...

Synopsis: The cadets and Kinnison stormed a house and came across a group of soldiers raping a woman. In the ensuing firefight, the soldiers were all killed, but Kinnison was also mortally wounded.

Later, the bombs stopped falling, but irreparable damage was already done to much of the world. Howard Lint, a senior aide to the president approached the judges and indicated that Arnold Benedict, the President's special advisor was killed on the orders of Booth, after he indicated he was going to reveal something to the country. Lint says it was that Booth had rigged the election and stole the presidency...

GH: After an undeniably shaky start, things are moving at almost breakneck speed in Dredd's history lesson. There is a certain amount of revisionism going on here, especially as Booth seems a very different man from the one we met in the original Cursed Earth storyline, but the changes are welcome and indeed necessary to start adding some real continuity and backbone to Dredd's world.

Wagner is on top form here, managing to cram an enormous amount of plotting into a scant 6 pages that will leave the inevitable collection being one of the best examples of compressed storytelling on the market. Although it would have been more welcome if Wagner had taken even longer to set things up - maybe spending more time in the origins of the Academy than on the "present day" Cursed Earth diversions - there's no denying that the storyline is currently living up to expectations as well as taking some surprising turns. The political satire is certainly showing up in full force this week, with the references to vote rigging sounding faintly familiar. In some respects, the political scenes have much in common with the best Hollywood political thrillers from the 70's and that's significant praise.

Of course, Ezquerra's been on top form throughout the run too. While I would agree with comments that the photo-montage of famous landmarks being destroyed in previous issues was a rare low point for the artist, he's being excellent elsewhere and it would be impossible to imagine another artist taking on the task.

Only another 9 episodes to go - and let's hope that this storyline has huge ramifications for Dredd going forward...

AC: Origins surges onwards; Christmas special, you cry? No Christmas special shall halt nor otherwise impede the progress of this mighty juggernaut! Although, it should be reflected that “juggernaut” isn’t necessarily the word that comes to mind when I look back on what has gone before in this expose of Dredd’s world.

All change in recent weeks though, as the rather anachronistic Cursed Earth ride-along (there’s only so many ways you can do that, and 2000AD have pretty much done them all thrice) being shunted into the background (yeah, that’s right, you SIT in that damn cave, and you come out when you’ve got something interesting to offer) in favour of the real substance of this story.

Indeed, I’d readily accept the jarringly inconsistent early part of Origins if an impatience to concentrate on the riveting “future history” could account for it! It’s truly fascinating, on an artistic and a technical level, to see this sprawling epic presented as a masterful exercise in story fragmentation and compression (something of a byword for the 2000AD boys).

The variety REALLY works for Carlos Ezquerra as well; he is at his best when he can throw out a mighty palate of computer-aided colours (and he does better work within cityscapes these days) and the purple and grey Cursed Earth gets old pretty fast.

This month we finally get to see that which has been missing from the story thus far; the HUMAN factor. That magical empathy that John Wagner has annihilated me with again and again in the past. We got a little flash when Fargo tried to bite the bullet a few weeks back, but suddenly we find ourselves confronted with properly shocking scenes of degradation and despair among the ruins, as well as the whole other plateau of political conflict unfurling its filthy tapestry, high above the heads of young Dredd and Rico.

If you have one Christmas wish; make it for world peace. If you can scrounge up a second, make it so that Origins stays like THIS for the rest of its run! 

Mother London - Part 1 Script: Ian Edginton Art: D'israeli Letters: Ellie De Ville

Valentine Bay meets his match ...

Synopsis: In ancient Albion, Gog and Magog are sacrificed so that they may live forever as part of the world...

Much later, in 19th century London, Abdul Alhazred is conducting a seance during which a suspended light incapacitates his guests, allowing Alhazred to divulge information about their fortunes. However, the guests are undercover policemen, including Detective Valentine Bay and Sergeant Leonard Chipps. Bay smashes the light, shattering the illusion and freeing the mesmerised guests. Alhazred's female assistant begins beating up the policemen and it soon transpires that both she and Alhazred are mechanical contraptions. The police destroy them both and discover a secret room at the rear of the building.

Later, Bay and Chipps discuss the case. Philo Thyne, an ex professor of mechanical engineering was being sustained in a "greenhouse" and used the clockwork mechanoids to raid people's minds and houses to sustain him in his refuge and allow him to build more machines. They think he might have been afraid of someone - maybe Stickleback.

However, an odd conjoined twin appears to be eavesdropping on the policemen's conversation...

GH: Ian Edginton had a rare and unexpected misfire this year with Stone Island. However, the news that he was reuniting with D'israeli (Matt Brooker), with whom he has arguably produced his most consistent work, promised great things in the future.

In the much anticipated strip, Edginton and D'israeli return to the ground that they seem to enjoy best - that of an earlier England, unfettered with today's technology, yet still slightly more advanced than the true-life Victorian era. This is an era that seems very much in vogue as of late, with films like the Prestige and books like Jonathan Strange or the Glass Books of the Dream Eaters also managing to blend sci-fi with Victoriana remarkably well. Here, in one chapter, Edginton has managed to get me immediately hooked with all manner of intrigue as well as creating a good introduction for the policeman protagonists.

As for the work of D'israeli - it's just mind blowing. It's immensely gratifying to see a 2000AD artist continually trying new approaches and improving with every published work and Brooker takes another quantum leap here. Building on the greyscale style of Leviathan, he has evolved this with, adding a more "painterly" look to it that is simply stunning to behold. He has easily become one of my favourite artists working in comics today and his work in this story alone makes 2000AD a must purchase for the next few weeks.

Overall, very very promising indeed.

AC: Ian Edington is one of the finest creative minds on staff in 2000AD today; not only this, but he has an acute sense for shaping this boundless creativity into a coherent whole (certain, aheh, “mishaps” put to one side of course). Snippets of art displayed in the Megazine earlier this year caught my interest, with a pleasingly macabre glimpse of what is presumably the title character (who does not make an appearance here).

It’s playing its cards close to its chest with an amusing sort of séance double bluff, and a Celticky prologue that will undoubtedly have greater significance later on in the story. It’s competently scripted as ever and I’m sure I won’t be able to guess what connects the two elements introduced until the final reveal, but I think this is mainly preamble, and will take a while revving up.

D’israeli goes for a smokier, mustier feel than in previous outings; generally I’d prefer something a little sharper and more defined from this art droid, but in the spirit of the festive season, I’ll give it a chance, particularly when the steampunk settings are so well realised! 

Walking to Eternity Script: Gordon Rennie Art: PJ Holden Colours: Chris Blythe Letters: Ellie De Ville

The Stompers set out ...

Synopsis: Deep inside the citadel in Acoma Station, Doctor Friedkin is talking to an unseen subject. He gets word that a new expedition is underway to the "anomaly site" on the surface of a gas giant. High intensity Stomper rigs have been sent across the surface, with many refinements after those sent before have been crushed.

Friedkin continues his one-way conversation, indicating that he was part of the Genetic engineering programme in Milli-com. After the Quartz massacre, he was sent home only for his ship to experience a "catastrophic drive accident" on the way - another unidentified, huge and apparently biological craft had entered the jump gate at the same time as his and the wake of that craft had caused the accident. Following this Friedkin turned his interests towards Xeno Archaeology and believed that there were ancient races in the galaxy that operated on a different level to humanity. He discovered what he calls a "tomb" that gave directions to Acoma - where he feels the secret to the ancient race lies.

Meanwhile, the team sent out to the anomaly is close to their destination, and is beginning to realise that this must be a one-way trip. They radio that they can see something and hear voices and then panic and warn that no one else should attempt the trip and they should stop the expeditions. Then they are cut off.

But Friedkin vows to continue the expeditions and discover what is down there as he continues to talk to his prize - an alien apparently preserved in some sort of cryo stasis. Friedkin believes that the secret to eternal life lies down on the planet...

GH: With each new installment, the 86ers shows continued improvement and gains more distance from its Rogue Trooper origins. We're finally beginning to see that Rennie has a much larger plan at work here and if he continues to balance the over-riding arc of ancient beings with the Future War aspects, this has the potential to develop into something very impressive. The ancient race storyline has some similarities with the Polity in the VCs, but Rennie seems to be heading much further down the mystical route here - taking in elements of Event Horizon and other such Sci Fi for good measure.

Upon hearing the strip was returning in Prog 2006 I was a little underwhelmed, but this episode has left me eager for future installments of the 86ers and quite keen to learn where Rennie's taking things. It may not be Caballistics Inc. - but it'll certainly do for the moment.

Holden is also improving every time I see his work and is becoming a valuable (and clearly reliable) asset to 2000AD. His work on the stompers in this issue is particularly impressive, and in general his art appears to be getting more fluid with each outing. Ideally, he'll stay as the main artist for the 86ers, which will allow him to further develop.

AC: WHOAH. Back up a second…

Let’s flash back to earlier this year… The 86ers made its distinctly indistinct debut earlier with Touchdown, a story I can barely remember and have not been inspired to revisit. I greeted the second story with a little more charity; the strip takes an interesting approach, flipping reader expectations on their widdle heads and delivering a tough talking ensemble piece.

Nothing though could prepare me for this.

Will you just take a look at some of these visuals...? It takes a unique combination of a writer with the horrors on an epic scale, and a writer skilled (and crazy) enough to follow him down into the pit. One forum goer described it as a positively Lovecraftian experience (something I want to be recorded for posterity, as I know Rennie will get a kick out of that; his work on Necronauts and Cabalistics Inc. shows that), and when you read this genuinely scary tale of an expedition just trudging deeper and deeper into the s**t, the connections do happen…

It says something that even in the world of 2000AD, where this kind of thing will ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS result in death, that Rennie still manages to make us feel some kind of empathy for these characters; the pleading with command for Jenny to go back to base is a cunning and invaluable move.

And then there the Fishie. The big, flying, space jellyfish type mother-hubbard that creeps me the Hell out but good, and here’s to PJ Holden (“our boy” as some of the forum goers have come to see it) who I have a whole new level of respect for. And another thing! Even with that KILLER splash page, Rennie doesn’t entirely surrender to the decompression bug, putting a corner panel on it; just a little thing, but I wanted it mentioned.

Top marks, baby...
 

Christmas Time Script: Dan Abnett Art: Simon Davis Letters: Ellie de Ville

Sinister's wildest dreams ...

Synopsis: Sinister is caught in a conundrum with the revelation of Dexter's paralysis. He can't see a way to rescue Dexter from the prison and to get things back to the way they were. Killing him could lead Sinister to the chair - and letting him live means letting down his friend....

GH: Ok - this really can't be seen as anything other than a filler episode, but it's nicely paced and does help to emphasise the impossible predicament that Sinister finds himself in. The revelation of Dexter's paralysis has been the second time Abnett has wrong-footed the 2000AD readership, with many asking for his head when Dexter had inevitably survived the shooting (did no one read last year's Christmas episode?). However, by painting himself in such a corner, he seems to be thumbing his nose at all those readers who doubted him - and once again Sinister Dexter could be one of the most anticipated series of 2007.

So - while there's not much to this episode beyond the excellent Simon Davis art - it sets the scene for what could possibly be the end of the gunsharks in 2007. Let's hope they go out with a blaze of glory...

AC: The Dutch have a word for it, as the Dutch often do. It’s that feeling you get when you want to laugh so hard your throat collapses, and at the same time weep until there are simply no fluids left in you. The word is Schaggenmolotoiya, and was on no account made up just then.

This instalment of Sinister Dexter is Schaggentolla-whatever-the-Hell-I-said in motion.

I have never laughed so hard at anything within the pages of the Galaxy’s Greatest as I have at the splash page showing the two possible forms of escape for our gun-toting comrades.

The renaissance continues apace, with a remarkable year for the strip closing on an achingly poignant interlude. Abnett, I don’t know what kinda place you’re in creatively, but you oughtta stay there, and I don’t care how thin the booze they serve is. 

The Volgan War - Vol 1, Part 1 Script: Pat Mills Art: Clint Langley Letters: Simon Bowland

Hammerstein at war ...

Synopsis: The ABC Warriors take Mek Quake to the Broadband Asylum as he has become too deranged to work with them. Blackblood seems quietened by the visage of the asylum, while Hammerstein checks Mek Quake in. The nurse wonders whether Hammerstein needs a spell in the Asylum himself after seeing a message written on Hammerstein's hammer "Fight for Peace, Live for War, Die for Nothing" - a message from an old war comrade that he copied from his original hammer.

As the Warriors leave the asylum and head to pick up Mek Quake's replacement, Hammerstein recalls the Volgan War. Hammerstein was the prototype for fifty thousand Hammerstein robots and was the only one able to fight with independent action. He asked the humans if they would grant his brothers the same opportunity as the cold was affecting them and, without the ability to over-ride certain commands, they would be unable to survive. His request was turned down and as a result, many of the Hammersteins were lost in battle, unlike the Volgans who were prepared for the lower temperature.

Elsewhere, the head of the Volgan Mechs - Volkhan - prepared to attack the invaders who have come to take their oil...

GH: Showing some similarities to Origins, Mills has decide to investigate some of the history of the ABC Warriors - specifically Hammerstein's experiences in the Volgan War. Mills work on the ABC Warriors has always been his most consistent, retaining the spirit of the very earlier strips, while injecting elements of contemporary satire. He also seems less intent on preaching in the ABC Warriors tales (despite the Volgan War already showing some parallels with present day events) and much more on entertaining the readership with the battles of these unfeasibly huge mechanoids.

But the main selling point of this strip is Clint Langley's art. When it was revealed that he would be illustrating the Warrior's next tale, there were echoes of concern from the readership - and indeed myself. Langley's work on Slaine, while beautiful in many respects, did have a "photo story" element to it which occasionally proved to be rather jarring. Could he create impressive artwork without his human models to fall back on? Well, it would appear that all our fears were unfounded as this is simply a stunning effort. From the impressive and omnious visage of the Asylum to a couple of astonishingly good double-spreads of war robot carnage, Langley sweeps aside any criticisms.

A fantastic start.

AC: Ok, I’ve got it all worked out.

I’m going to go and live with Clint Langley. It’ll be alright; I’ll wash dishes, I’ll do chores, at night I’ll sleep in any floor space allotted to me. I’d keep out of the way of his family and he wouldn’t have to, y’know, TALK to me or anything like that. I’ll just be there to… just absorb the creative germ.

When mortal men display so much talent, it is only natural that there should be an abundance of run-off, like a blue tide of energy only just visible to the naked eye; not dissimilar to that gorgeous blue glow in the robot asylum of this month’s ABC Warriors. Or Hell, that luminescent RED glow from the exterior of said asylum. Or forget the glows, it’ll more likely be akin to the deep, rich shadows of the final pages…

I’m fond. Comprehendé?

At nearly THREE TIMES the length of a typical instalment, this rises into the air like a Hammerstein’s head after its chassis has been popped by gunfire. Langley was wasted on Slaine, never having enough room for his renderings, and it’s helpful as well that Pat Mills is having one of his more lucid weeks!

I’ve never seen anything like this, and I may just go read it again before I pack my stuff… 

Winder Wonderbrand Script: Simon Spurrier Art: Boo Cook Letters: Annie Parkhouse

Kipling spreads Christmas mayhem ...

Synopsis: Kipling and his crew arrive on the planet Industropia where one of the districts "Worktown 10", some sort of business venture is under attack from murderous barbarian gods. Kipling helps them to drive back the first wave as they try to discover what the problem is. Most of the other worktowns have avoided problems with gods except for Worktown 10 which always seems to get attacked 4 days before Christmas. Kipling recognises the attackers as Solstice Winter gods and asks what Worktown 10 makes - discovering that they produce a galactically popular drink, which is even more popular at this time of year with their winter branding in place. Kipling suddenly realises what the problem is and manages to destroy the attacking gods, while reminding Worktown 10 to stop plastering their drinks with imagery of the Winter God when next year rolls around...

GH: Boo Cook seems to have found a better medium between his painted work and him more heavy "inkline" work. By combining the two, he's managed to create a much clearer image and has certainly avoided the confusion that occurred with his last work on Kipling. This is much easier to follow and still allows Cook to to embellish his painted style while telling a coherent story. A Marked improvement.

Unfortunately, the story this time out isn't so coherent, with even a couple of readings failing to give this Christmas tale much clarity. It seems rather like Spurrier was trying to get a few too many things into one episode here. Mixing up the Christmas stlyed narration, the introduction of the industry planet, the winter styled gods and a frankly botched punchline of the branded drink makes the whole thing a little muddled. Certainly when you have to read the thing a couple of times to get the punchline, it hasn't quite done its job.

It still passes as a pleasant enough diversion - but not top Kipling by any standards...

AC: And the hits just keep on coming. I slightly fell in love with this title at the first instance earlier in the year, but it has since struggled to find its niche, to sort out what it wants to say and how. This festive special right here represents both ideal message and ideal method.

It’s just FUN, con-sarnitt, and presented in such an irresistibly anarchic and luminous fashion that you can’t help but be entirely swept along.

This is the best instalment to come along since the initial three-parter wrapped up. It gets away from the some of the smart-arsery and mean-spiritedness, stripping it down to an Earl Grey sipping corpse and his posse cutting loose on a shower of behemoths and beasts against a powdery pink, celestial backdrop (Boo Cook makes up for some recent scrappiness by returning to his usual awe-inspiring standard).

As ever, the sheer level of invention is just flowing by the tapful, with a clever play on the yuletide conventions of culture the world over (galaxy even, if we are to believe Simon Spurrier, and you do so at your peril).

“Tally ho ho ho”! 

Part 1 Script: Dan Abnett Art: Richard Elson Letters: Ellie De Ville

The Hackman gets ready...

Synopsis: A group of Warriors is on a long march as sent by their "Masters", led by their Alpha Male leader - Gene the Hackman. They reach water and see what appears to be a "land bridge" as identified by their oldest member - Old Man Gary. As they go to investigate, they smell something and are immediately attacked by insectoid monsters. Some of them dies fighting them back, including Gene's mate, until the battle is finished.

Later, around a fire, Old Man Jack tells the survivors the "tale" which appears to be that of mankind being wiped out by something that "rose up". Something they call "Them". Mankind made the warriors strong enough to resist this new threat and "went to sleep" while the Warriors protected the planet.

The story over, they are disrupted by the insectoids who attack but the team fights them back. The team is also comprised of "Jack So Wild", Beta Male "Tod of Much Slaughter"and "Maryan Faithful" and they are all forced to back away from the new fight. After the battle, Gene believes Tod will soon challenge him as Alpha Male - but there was worse to come...

GH: "Intriguing" is about all I can say of this at this early stage. Abnett appears to be plumbing the far future aspect of Sci-fi to great effects in this outing that allows him to effectively create a new world. At this early stage, it's difficult to gather what's going on but it appears that Earth has been overwhelmed by insectoids, and that these group of Warriors were bred to fight them.

It's intriguing indeed and certainly bears watching, especially as it looks like it will offer Richard Elson the chance to get his teeth into something really decent.

AC: Now this is an oddity; it was enough to stir the interest when it was discovered that Dan Abnett and Richard Elson were putting out a whole new thrill for the Christmas edition, and I’m not sure what I was expecting.

There’s a clear Warhammer 40,000 influence in the scripting (I’ve been fortunate enough to read some of Abnett’s comics work in the “Black Library) with the distinctly Orky catchphrases and behaviour of the characters. The broad humour of those comics also carries over in the form of “Gene the Hackman” et al, which doesn’t always sit well with the serious and rather distanced “nature show” commentary, and the inherent brutality of the goings on.

Richard Elson gives us business as usual, creating a variety of colourful visuals and a creatively realised assortment of sci-fi beasties. His faces, as ever, are a bit samey, but if it didn’t bother you before, it’s not about to start now.

It’s got a certain mystique about it, and I’m officially intrigued, but it’s not what I’ll remember about this Christmas edition. 

The Road of Bones Script: Robbie Morrison Art: John Burns Letters: Annie Parkhouse

Old friends, reunited...

Synopsis: Magadan is a remote district of the Empire, heavily run down and oppressed and home to one of the fiercest prisons, Kolyma, reserved for those deemed most undesirable to the Empire. It is now run by its commander, German Gref, who is told that an imperial craft is incoming.

Elsewhere, one of the inmates, Elena Kurakin - a fellow soldier-in-arms of Dante during the war, is called out of solitary and is told by her friend Nadya that the pilot of the Imperial ship gave out food parcels to the inmates. Kurakin is taken to this pilot who is, of course, Nikolai Dante. he has brought an official pardon for Kurakin with him and is offering her a position as his bodyguard. She asks him to help the inmates, but he replies that she's the only one he can free for the moment - so she turns him down.

Back in her dorm, she discovers that Nadya has been taken by the guards for their New Year enjoyment. She returns to Dante, agreeing to join him, and he gives her permission to settle a few scores. She kills the guards who are trying to rape Nadya. In addition, Dante tells Grep that the Tsar has discovered that he has been siphoning off Uranium ore and has sentenced him to life imprisonment in Gref - but the inmates descend on Gref as he starts his sentence and tear him to pieces. Kurakin walks off with Dante - now working for those they tried to destroy - but Dante might have a trick or two up his sleeve yet...

GH: I'm still shocked that the tales of Nikolai Dante have taken such a positive turn. I was always hopeful that the Russian Rogue would somehow find the spark that made him so popular in the first place. However, I never imagined that Morrison could confound the naysayers, myself included, with such panache. Dante has gone, in a few short weeks, from being a tired character to one of the best in the comic.

The return to the strip's Russian roots seems to have energised Morrison who is once again producing the compressed and intricate storylines that made the character so popular. He's also got back the balance between Dante's smart arsed antics and the drama of an oppressed society. Once again, I actually care about the character and can't wait to see where events are leading.

John Burns also seems to be back on form, creating some wonderful visuals in this episode that have been missing from his long run at sea. The scenes between Dante and Kurakin in the lavish office are particularly impressive, as is the violence that erupts as Kurakin exacts her revenge.

Dante's back firing on all cylinders and ends prog 2006 on a very high note indeed.

AC: Back to the art of John Burns, and I think perhaps Burns’ prominence during Dante’s recent slump has seen him tarred with a bad brush. He is a remarkable artist, whose work summons up immediately an era of sweepingly rendered pulp paperbacks.

Dante seems to have well and truly found its path again, producing an exciting and evocative little one-shot here that serves as the prologue to further adventures. Robbie Morrison is one of the most competent script droids in the whole spot, marked out by the level of COMFORT that shines through in his work, of self assurance. In this respect he is contemporary of Ian Edington.

I can’t say I don’t miss the dynamism of Simon Fraser, indeed I was rather getting used to it, but Burns facilitates Morrison’s script with the ease of one so experienced in this particular collaboration and he captures perfectly the slavering bawdiness and thrilling affray. 

With an excellent article on Bishop that heralds the forthcoming publication of Thrill Power Overload rounding everything up, this might well be the best end of year prog yet.

As 2000AD sails into its 30th year, nothing could be a better advertisement for its continued excellence than this issue. Picking a best story is harder than ever, but the mighty team of Edginton and D'israeli is hard to beat.

Best Story: Stickleback 

AC: As well as the above, we get a bumper episode of Droid Life to kick things off, and here’s hoping we see plenty more of Cat Sullivan in 2007; as is demonstrated herein, Sullivan’s creation is steadily building a little universe of its very own, with a water cooler operated by the brain of a former Doctor Who, suicidal droids, and various cut-price renditions of all your favourite Tooth characters.

We get two extracts from forthcoming book Thrill Power overload from Fiends scribe and editor incomparable David Bishop. It’s a cut above the usual fare we get in the Megazine; it is tightly and engagingly written and I may well pick it up if it manifests itself within my reach. In the tradition of last year’s Button Man profile, we get an update on campy 70’s favourite MACH 1; amusing but the real item of interest is Greyshirts, the “spiritual successor” to John Probe (yeesh…) from Pat Mills.

I’ve sayed it before, I shall say it again; “Hmmm…” 

Overall, the Christmas special is a magical thing is it not? The shiny, durable format of the thing actually lends an air of extra credibility to even the worst strips… I suppose under that reasoning, all the stories contained herein could be absolute dross, and I might not even know about it.

However, with no true evidence of that, I’m going to have to conclude that this is simply excellent stuff!

So, Dredd picks up for the festive season, Kippers shows his original potential once more, Dante and Sinister Dexter remain abreast of their current wave of resurgence, The 86ers is actually GREAT (“Issa miracle!”)!

The two new strips, it has to be said can’t really compete when the established characters are out in such force; Kingdom and Stickleback have yet to leave the starting block, but I remain optimistic about their futures.

With so much good stuff flying around, you’d think it’d be a challenge to pick a favourite. Not so. There is a clear winner this month. And even if its extended size lends the impression of a larger, bullying school-kid shunting his peers out of the way to get to the front of the lunch queue, I would happily be its acne ridden crony.

Merry Christmas to all readers of 2000AD, and here’s to a truly storming new year…

Best Story: ABC Warriors