Synopsis by Gavin Hanly
Review by Stephen Watson

Summaries and reviews contain spoilers for this issue.

Warzone - Part 2

Dredd goes to war...

Synopsis: Dredd and the solidiers fight another a group of insurgents. The soldiers take out some of the enemy, but attract others with the noise. Dredd manages to drive them off by using a heatseeker to fool them into thinking they are caught in a crossfire. Drucker finds one of the enemy alive and despite being told to take him alive, kills him, taking his ears as a souvenir. However, Dredd has managed to wound a prisoner – only a boy - and brings him back for questioning. Dredd doesn’t manage to get any answers from the prisoner, so tells him he’s giving him to Drucker. He talks and tells them that there’s a tunnel system under Jimstown.

They all head out on hoverbikes, taking the boy with them, and eventually set up camp at the Diham temple. The Sarge gets a call from the General and tells him that they are planning to hit Jimstown. After hanging up on the Sarge, the General warns Jimstown that they are getting ready to attack – and tells his contact to “make sure the money’s there on time”.

SW: I didn’t enjoy the first episode of this ‘men on a mission’ story and this outing did nothing to change my opinion. The premise reeks with Dredd inexplicably pulled off duty to charge around on a never before mentioned planet with a bunch of misfits. P J Holden’s art is too cartoonish for my liking and some of the characters don’t maintain a consistent look. Take ‘Rogue’ look-alike Drucker for example, his head blows up and shrinks like a burst balloon.

The story is dull and uninspired and the whole set-up is like a refugee from the Dredd kids’ comic of a few years back. Given a raft of recent strong stories Dredd was due a clunker and ‘Warzone’ has certainly delivered. The traitor conclusion was not unexpected but at least it offers some intrigue for next issue’s episode, which I hope will be the conclusion.

The Harder They Come - Part 4

Shimura's joins the fray...

Synopsis: Inaba, Amber, Dredd and Shimura are under attack from Godzarro - the Lizard King, Assassin Lady Sai, Sentient Swarm of Triad Cyberntic weapons – the Meknificent 707, Khimera – the assassin with a sonic scream, Jijaru who attacks with his flailing skin and his sharpshooter Sidekick - the Twisted Kid and finally master martial artist Stan Lee.

Godzarro and Lee prepare to kill Amber when Dredd executes Godzarro, only to be grabbed by Khimera. Shimura knocks down Lee only to be grabbed by Jijaru – but he ties his skin to his hoverbike and sets it to autopilot. Dredd subdues Khimera with his Electro Knux, but falls to the ground ant to the apparent mercy of Lee. Shimura confronts Lee before he has the chance to kill Dredd and it becomes clear that Lee was the man who gave Shimura his facial scars. They are about to fight, but Amber has summoned her combat droids so they can retreat – while both Dredd and Shimura wonder where the judges are.

Later, it becomes apparent that Amber is rebuilding her father’s hive…

SW: Following a strong opening, this tale has decended into a farcical Goodies
Vs Baddies slugfest. Writer Robbie Morrison has tried to repeat the success
of Shakara Book 2 by basically doing the same thing. Loads of throwaway
characters are introduced and dispatched with undue haste, giving the script
a feel of being made up as it goes along.

The super villain team up is laughable with Stan Lee, previous unbeatable, now transformed into an arrogant orator rather than the ruthless assassin we know and fear. Dredd looks a bit embarrassed and that takes some doing in a comic strip! All that said it is quite fun but farces usually are!

Like the Dredd tale, better things are promised with a delve in to Shimura’s past on the cards. I just hope Morrison keeps more of a lid on things next time because, as baddies go, more is usually less.

Lucid - Part 4

Psis team up...

Synopsis: As all hell breaks loose in Mega City 1 (again), Anderson meets Phobia and Nausea in the dead man’s mind – on a bridge of bones. Anderson starts to destroy the bridge as more dark judges attack: Pustula, Ephemera and Dementia.

Under attack from both sides, Anderson calls for help from Shakta. Shakta hears and enters Anderson’s mind. She arrives to fight by Anderson who tells her that all she wanted her to do was switch off the machine. As they fight side by side, they use their combined powers to get through to the judges in the real world and finally the machine is switched off. He bridge starts to collapse although the sisters all vow to return.

In the real world – everything is back to normal, the machine was holding the mind in place with an electro magnetic field. But she tells the other s that this isn’t over yet…

SW: Another cycle of Anderson tales draws to a conclusion and for once it’s
pretty definite…for now! I was torn here because I was happy the story wasn’t fleshed out beyond it’s natural life but disappointed with the ease with which the assembled Sisters of Death were seen off.

As with all the Death dynasty they will be back and their fleetingly seen siblings will doubtlessly tag along too. I always enjoy Anderson, mostly because of Arthur Ranson’s excellent art but when the story gels it’s an unbeatable package. The two page splash was excellent as were the final two panels which seen to suggest a more intimate bonding between Anderson and Shakta - lets hope for more developments here!

As usual Anderson’s tribulations don’t trouble Dredd’s world too much which is a shame - Blisteria could’ve been the Grubb’s disease for a new generation!

A Scottish Sojer - Part 2

The festival kicks off...

Synopsis: The mutants manage to gain access to the wickerman festival, and the more obvious of them come out of hiding in the van. Charlie says he has a plan and asks Middenface to follow it.

Meanwhile, Rabsy Nesbitt is broadcasting his radio show from a helicopter above the wickerman.

Middenface has a swig of whiskey before starting out and McWeal warns him to stay off the booze. He also tells him that he and Stinking Billy Cumberland were once in the SAS together, and when the pogroms started, Mc Weal cut off Cumberland’s hand to stop him from torturing a prisoner.

As they all head out to the festival, they find an escaped mutant, Dod Stoan and Middenface says they have to take him with them. They trick Rabsy Nesbitt into landing near them and kill him and his pilot. Middenface and the others watch the wickerman burn as Middenface hits the booze…

SW: I like Young Middenface but I am surprised it makes it into the Megazine,
what with it’s Scots’ dialogue and endless references to Scottish pop culture. The names of current celebrities adorning the blocks of Mega City One are one thing but can the use of Franz Ferdinand and Rab C Nesbitt be justified in this setting? I’d say so - it’s satire, you see!

The story lumps, er thumps along at a great pace and there are moments of real emotion as the muties in the wicker man are left to their fate. The grubbiness and violence of the struggle are depicted with far more realism than Alpha’s adventures ever imagined and that is praise indeed. Shaun Thomas’ art is excellent and really benefits for being in black and white.

Easily the most political and realistic strip in the Megazine.

Or so it seems...

Back in Spring Seeds camp for Juve Offenders, Michael Lonegan is trying to hotwire Koburn’s bike when Bonaventura catches him. Koburn is being shown round the camp where the Juves are being taught to put life back into the Cursed Earth. Bonaventura introduces Lonegan to Koburn who is impressed with the fact that he almost managed the hotwiring.

Lonegan goes off to his girlfriend, who is 8 months pregnant, when Koburn gets a call from Inez. She tells him they’re tracking the killer, when Byron and Rufus call in and say they have him in their sights. They go after the monster but are both killed. The monster picks up the com and warns Koburn to give the children a quick death before it arrives. Koburn gets the place ready for an attack…

SW: Another day another unkillable zombified Cursed Earth threat! Trouble is most definite brewing for Koburn as an indestructible zombie is on his way while Koburn tries to secure a Cursed Earth version of an offender training centre.

OK - the premise is nothing new but the execution is excellent. The threat looks like a leftover from Necropolis but with intelligence. The influence of Judge Death has yet to be fully determined but it bodes well for a cracking story. Despite the grim set up there are laughs with the exchange about the recidivism rate a classic. Koburn struggles to escape the Missionary Man without a dog collar label ( have we ever seen them both in the same room?!) but outings like this can only help.

Ezquerra’s art is it’s usual high standard and it’s testament to the man’s ability that I’m mentioning it as an afterthought - it’s Carlos, of course it’s good!

Miscellaneous Material inc.

• 15 Years, Creep!
• Brian Bolland Inteview
• Charlie's War
• Heatseekers
• Metro Dredd
  

SW: BRIAN BOLLAND INTERVIEW: This second part of the interview was less interesting to me, mostly because it was less about an aspiring artist breaking through but more about some grubby cash generating schemes. We all have to eat, but tales of £100 sketches rattled off for convention attendees didn’t sit too well. His
talent is undeniable but he comes across as very mercenary. Given that 2000AD effectively made his name you’d think he’s drop his oft mentioned ‘rate’ a bit more often than the three covers in the last 20 odd years.

Still, the work is sublime and the interview was frank and informative. If I had one critism it’d be over the choice of covers used to illustrate the piece. His ‘Time Out’ work for example was mentioned but we don’t get to see the covers in question. Maybe they are less fussy over their copyright than DC who let loose no less than seven ‘Invisibles’ covers. For a Dredd magazine surely more of the many dozen Eagle reprint covers would be appropriate?

OTHER FEATURES: I enjoyed David Bishop’s latest ‘15 years creep’ feature although the subject matter is becoming a tad recent. How soon before he presents a retrospective of the very issue you are currently reading?! It is, of course, filler material, but decent filler material at that.

The Cult TV and Film pages didn’t do too much for me and were basically a lazy overview of age old products ‘now available on DVD’! I’d prefer it if these pages were given over to witty columnist, given a broad canvas to dissect all things Dredd and sci-fi in general. Come back Gordon all is forgiven!