Reviewer: Will Cooling
Editor: Matt Smith
Publisher: Rebellion
Judge Dredd
Title: Terror Pt. 4
Writer: John Wagner
Artist: Colin MacNeil
Letterer: Tom Frame
Everyone is under suspicion.
That is the moral of Terror so far with university lecturer Zondra Smith having been thoroughly interrogated by the Judges due to her chance meeting with a terrorist in the middle of planting a bomb. Last issue after going through her ordeal she tried to resume her life only to be met with broken furniture, catcalls and then at the very end the reappearance of the bomber out of disguise. This week through her relationship with the bomber Smith gets into an even greater mess as the Dredd closes in on Total War. There really aren’t enough superlatives to truly describe the greatness of this story with Wagner adopting the same deliberate pace, effective yet understated characterisation and the use of Dredd as a menace in the background that made America such a masterpiece; with some of the subtexts of that seminal work brought to the fore once again. And as for MacNeil well, he’s just in a league of his own. His linework is delicate evocating the same understated naturalism as the Kubert brothers but with the added bonus of gorgeously soft almost pastel paints. This has been over its first four issues been one of the best Dredd stories for some time and with the end of this issue promising a change of pace and increasing of the intensity it seems its just going to get better and better.
Savage
Title: Taking Liberties 9
Writer: Pat Mills
Artist: Charlie Adlard
Letterer: Ellie De Ville
After their successful strike on a local Volg headquarters the resistance led by Savage are attending Freedom Day’s march on the Houses of Parliament hoping that this will lead to the Volg leaving Britain. Unknown to the resistance is that the evil shirtlifter that heads up the Volg secret police and his chief henchmen are also in attendance in the hope eyeing up Bill Savage. As he attempts to infiltrate the resistance the Volg Army gets ready to crush the protest. Dodgy, incomprehensible politics apart this has been a thoroughly enjoyable series will Mills producing taut, no-nonsense stories brilliantly realised by Charlie Adlard’s chunky, McMahon-esque artwork. This penultimate part is no different with Mills delivering apt characterisation of the bombastic joy of the protestors at the start and the descent into chaos when the crackdown happens. His characterisation of Savage is good and believable, portraying him as essentially a right-wing nut although I can’t for the life of me work out where Mills is going with this. To cap off a very good day’s work for Mills he even makes the nasty fudgepacker general work as although there’s an uncomfortable degree of homoeroticism in his pursuit of Savage (which puts him on the level of the woman cop who just can’t keep her hands of the suspect in the pantheon of ridiculous and offensive clichés that white, heterosexual middle age men resort to when they’re running out of ideas) there’s an engaging sense of daring and ruthlessness in his attempts to infiltrate the resistance; kinda like a Nazi Quentin Crisp which makes him a fuller, more readable character. So good script that sets the scene nicely for next week’s climax (and the series beyond) all wonderfully illustrated by Charlie Adlard whose art maintains its usual high standards.
Tyranny Rex Redux
Title: The Comeback Pt. 1
Writer: John Smith
Artist: Steve Yeowell
Colourist: Len O’Grady
Letterer: Tom Frame
Tyranny Rex used to be in 2000AD and as one of the few survivors of the Sauron series of humanoid Tyrannosaurs she had a few adventures before succumbing to death some 10 years ago. I’ve never read her series before but thankfully according to Tharg this has little to do with it as its set some three thousand after her death as she’s about to be revived to undertake some mission or another. However this opening part covers little of this as it follows the American fashion of featuring the lead character very late in the debut part. Instead Smith goes in for a piece of his usual weirdness (he is/was a friend of Grant Morrison you know) as he establishes the planet Tzoltzin to be a superficial paradise where rich-boys engage in death sports safe in the knowledge that advance cloning will quickly grow them a replacement body. In the midst of one of these sports a man and er something else meet to conclude a deal…
John Smith is the corner of 2000AD that is forever Vertigo with him being at his best when he’s allowed to run riot and push the boundaries of obliqueness so they come within touching distance of self-indulgence. After an incredibly poor 2003 (not entirely his fault) this marks a promising return with the future-sports being handled in away that appears fresh and interesting (not easy in comic that’s been obsessed with them over the years). He also succeeds in establishing a cold, sterile atmosphere that makes the “weirdness†of the script highly understandable and accessible. This is helped by the excellent art of Steve Yeowell whose work seems closer to his (excellent) stuff on the Invisibles than his usual coloured work for 2000AD. His linework has a scratchy and in places an impersonal quality that is well suited to capturing the futuristic sterility of the setting. Praise should also be given to the colours of Len O’Grady that not only lets Yeowell’s linework breathe more than Blythe’s, do something that is appropriate for this part but also adopts a light blue dominated colour palette that again bring out the soulless nature of this supposed utopian future.
So this re-debut (reload perhaps?) is a success although with the participation of the lead character reduced to one panel there’s not enough to truly predict the success of the series as a whole. Still nice to John Smith doing what he does best.
A.H.A.B.
Title: Untitled Pt. 9
Writer: Nigel Kitching
Artist: Richard Elson
Letterer: Annie Parkhouse
As the insane A.H.A.B attempts to destroy the God-like Kohenyu, Lizzie and Queequeg have a heart to heart whilst trying to kill A.H.A.B in this explosive climax to the sleeper hit of this line up. Whilst Kitching does some questions unsolved and there’s a certain “neatness†to his ending this is a thoroughly rewarding and enjoyable ending with plenty of action and Kitching managing to capture a genuine sense of chaos and destruction whilst keeping all of the characters true to their previous characterisation with the obsessive hatred of A.H.A.B being particularly rewarding. All of this is captured well by Elson whose linework and colouring have really gelled with Kitching’s script perfectly matching the tone of the work. He’s hoping for a sequel.
Lowlife
Title: Paranoia Pt. 9
Writer: Rob Williams
Artist: Henry Flint
Letterer: Ellie De Ville
Aimee Nixon has been framed for a series of murders with someone putting millions in her bank account and doctoring a video of her committing the acts. Last week we learnt that the video had been doctored by her colleague and friend Link who is now dead. He was murdered on the orders of his boss Farnsworth who was not only directing the murders but is Aimee’s and Link’s Wally Squad Boss. As he told her last week he’s a not-for-profit murderer, his plan is to wipe out all the mob bosses and use their money to revitalise the area populated by the Low Life (think the Big Meg’s version of Daredevil’s Hell Kitchen). This week he offers Nixon a deal; get out of town and it’ll all be over; she won’t be arrested and the people will get a better life. Man o man is this excellent or what? Williams delivers a brilliant script here fleshing out Farnsworth’s plan and determinist philosophy whilst perfectly illustrating how the very talents that made Nixon such an excellent undercover Judge would fatally undermine any attempts to prove her innocence. He’s also excellent at evoking a sense of desperation and panic in Aimee, as she’s tempted to take the deal only to challenge the morality of the deal in a subtle yet effective way. And as for Henry Flint, well what can you say? The man is simply the best artist in comics today with an ability to do Miller-esque grim and gritty street level action but also deliver gorgeous futuristic landscapes. Why this man hasn’t been snapped up by the American Big Two yet is beyond me. Same goes for Rob Williams as well come to think of it.
