2000AD Prog 1639 - 10 June 2009

Cover by PJ Holden

John Amans: By looking at the credit in the inside page this weeks cover is a hybrid PJ Holden/ Mike McMahon piece.  Though the art is not spectacular, it has a great strapline which suits the tone of the story inside.  

Gavin Hanly: A brilliant cover by Holden, effectively marrying his style to that of McMahon from this cover, along with some great colouring. If cover homages can be this good, then Tharg needs to try out more of them.

It came from Bea Arthur Block - Part 3 Script: Gordon Rennie Art: PJ Holden Colours: Eva De La Cruz Letters: Annie Parkhouse

Dredd gets a new haircut...

Synopsis: The Zmmm has started spreading through the baldies, but Dredd is soon on the scene dispatching the host, Leon, with a headshot. The Zmmm attacks Dredd, but he subdues it, and sends it to Med Lab. However, the Zmmm are bound to try again, targeting a nude resort on Felder's World...

JA: It seems we’re in a bit of a Dredd lull at the moment waiting for the events of the recent Chief Judge election to have a profound effect on the future of MC-1. So, in the meantime we have a brace of less serious, more quirky, but standard set of Dredd tales. 

This is a model “alien parasite” gets into  MC-1 with a dash of irreverent Dredd-world cultural humour (the slapheads of Bea Arthur block) thrown in. It's not bad, but not likely to be remembered as a classic. The art is functional and, after first reading, it has some nice touches which drag it above the realms of utterly mundane filler material. The panel with the alien “rug” trying to drill into Dredd’s brain while hurtling along on a Lawmaster was particularly well done. In all, it was nice and short, paced well and has a good ending and teaser.

Solid stuff from 2000AD's mainstay

GH: Alas, I have little more to add to my review from last week. Harmless fun with good artwork. There's no escaping that this could easily have been handled in 2 episodes, however.

Script & Art: Bob Byrne

Didn't realise there was a Girl Guide badge for that...

Synopsis: A tale about two girls getting their revenge on a troll that kills their dog...

JA: Why do these stories always take up loads of pages? But at least this wasn’t as irreverent as the last couple of these. Not much to tell really as it's obviously a “filler” piece after the finish of the rather short-run Slaine story last week.

Not mega bad but not mega good. I just feel these would be better served being shorter.

GH: Byrne's Twisted tales work in a way that many Future Shocks do not. There's also a real sense of nastiness to them that shocks in a way that the Terror Tales do not (witness the gutting of the troll in this week's tale). Carrying on that tradition, it's great to see another such little tale here, as two little girls display a particular mean streak while getting vengeance for their dog.

I'm glad to see Byrne's getting these opportunities in 2000AD and long may they continue. In the same vein, I'd like to see more of the UK's small press get some time in 2000AD without being restricted to Terror Tales or Future Shocks. Give creators more of a free rein on one-offs and see if they can match this.

Part 6 Script: John Smith Art: Edmund Bagwell Letters: Ellie De Ville

Cal starts to fall to pieces...

Synopsis: Cal and his friends are spending more time at Mary's and it's beginning to take its toll on his body. Skully, meanwhile, is trying to lure him into a trap.

Elsewhere Shane visits his dog, but the puppies have gone and there's blood around the dog's mouth. Shane goes to find Craig and thinks he might be round at Ted and Mary's. He arrives to find that Ted appears to have killed himself, while Craig and the others are drinking something from Mary...

JA: I often like it when Tharg throws something that’s a little leftfield and is not your usual run-of-the-mill sci-fi fodder. I had a bad feeling that Cradlegrave might descend into the usual clichés about feral hoodies or end up being some kind of chav “Lostboys”. Much to my delight it hasn’t and instead of turned into its own furrow. My only concern is that it has taken longer to crank up the tension and story to really grab you.  Where-as the likes of Zombo has been snappy and punchy from the off, this has taken its time to get going. I also had to reread the last couple of weeks to reacquaint myself with the characters as all of the youths look the same, which sort of reminds me of all of the slouchy chav hoodies that really occupy the streets!

This week the tension does get cranked up and I get the feeling that this is about to take off and get really interesting. Sometimes the best things are matured and take a bit of time to get going. They are definitely worth the wait.

I think that Cradlegrave falls into that category.

GH: Now that's one hell of a final page - Smith certainly doesn't shy away from the gruesome stuff, does he?

This is still one of the best, and strangest, things in the comic - much of its success due to it being so unlike anything else before it. Smith and Bagwell (who's still astounding with his art here) balance the horror and the everyday well here - and it's one strip where the slow pace suits it down to the ground.

Another thing that lifts this high above Smith's last piece, Dead Eyes, is that the characters feel like they're acting out their lives rather than simply being used to push forward the plot. There's a real sense of things unfolding in front of you, something that's difficult to achieve and Smith should be commended for pulling it off. And Kudos to Tharg for commissioning it too.

1984 - Part 5 Script: Pat Mills Art: Patrick Goddard Letters: Simon Bowland

Uh oh...

Synopsis: The general orders the police to release all of Savage's crew. He believes Savage will be back to save them and that they can take him out then. The General reveals that he's known all along who Savage was and that they have been tracking him with an electronic tag that they shot him with during an early run-in. All the information he'd given the Americans had been false, and they were now walking into a trap....

JA: I have really liked the re-imagining of Savage over the last few years. Being an old Invasion fan from the 1970s I have rather taken to the transference of modern day issues and events into the story. Patrick Goddard has done an admirable job and it now feels that this is “his” story rather in the way that Henry Flint has made Shakara his own. I have always got over Pat Mills’ sometimes preachy attitude so I have just sat back and enjoyed the way the story has been built up. You feel as if the US invasion of Volgan Britain is really going to happen soon and that a lot of story strands are going to come together.

It was an interesting episode this week as we got the Volgan slant of what is happening. Has Bill really been a pawn in the game set-up by the Volgans? Or, does he realise the Volgans are onto him and realises he has given the allies misinformation?

Either way I look forward to finding out

GH: This episode has turned things around for me on Savage. I can't deny that it's a very good twist, and although it's another wordy episode - it feels justified this time. Goddard too does well to remind the reader of Savage's wounding and the reveal of who was helping him at the station, working particularly well to enhance the script.

If things do go horribly for the Americans, this should put Savage back to where he's best - working on the underground, to his own rules, and being a true guerilla fighter. Let's just see how things turn out...

RC: Despite the appearance of some blatant “filler”, this week’s prog still maintains a good level of quality and entertainment. Two strong stories, Zombo and Savage, carry it but the rest of the fare isn’t that bad. To be honest I can’t remember any real duffer weeks for years, it’s like that horrid lull period of the 1990s never happened!

Best Story: Zombo

GH: A pretty good week all round, with Savage making a comeback and Zombo living up to its promise. Now bring on more Zombies in Defoe!

Best Story: Zombo/Cradlegrave