Reviewer: Will Cooling
Editor: Alan Barnes
Publisher: Rebellion
Judge Dredd
Title: Six: Pt. 1
Written by: John Wagner
Art by: Chris Weston
Lettered by: Tom Frame
A wealthy South American businessman and his beautiful robot girlfriend have come to Mega-City One on the pretext of re-developing run-down, nuclear wasteland. However, amid the wining and dining there’s another more sadistic purpose as the businessman begins a serial killing spree taking three ordinary, seemingly random citizens out in different yet still equally gruesome and inventive ways.
I love this story! Wagner is on top form delivering a classic Dredd story with the characterisation being absolutely superb. He shows the serial killer plot his evasion from the very Judges meant to bodyguard him so he cannot commit his murders in a blackly comedic way. As with many of the classic Dredd stories, Dredd himself is in the background but Wagner shows his efficiency and brisk application of the law brilliantly. Then there is THAT twist, which he foreshadows and enacts brilliantly, which if I hadn’t have read spoilers would have resulted in one of the biggest mark out moments ever.
Surprisingly though, writing this good almost takes a backseat to the art. The fact that the art is by Chris Weston makes it less surprising as he provides some of his best art in years. His lush, detailed and realistic panels are joy to look at. There are bags of characterisation contained especially with his exquisite drawings of the serial killer. Perhaps the best area of the whole art is the facial characterisation. Weston allows you to know so much of a character’s mood just by the look on their face. He also excels at the murders; all of which are enacted in an utterly gruesome yet ridiculous manner, giving us some fantastically nasty images. His art is also miles ahead of any previous colourist of his work (yes even Laura Martin) with bold and lush colouring that perfectly captures he mood of the drawings and script.
All in all these two have delivered a fantastic first part of what promises to be an absolute classic of a story.
Cursed Earth Coburn
Title: Kuss Hard: Pt. 1
Written by: Gordon Rennie
Art by: Carlos Ezquerra
Lettered by: Annie Parkhouse
In last year’s “Sturm und Dang,†Rennie established former Mega-City Judge Coburn as the Meg’s gun in the Cursed Earth, there to be called upon if a case was too dirty for regular Judges to follow. In the first part of his solo series we see Judge Bonaventura (burn in hell Rennie) deliver a mission to Coburn to break up a Cursed Earth organ-running racket ran by the Kuss Brothers.
In the first of the new series we get a corker as Rennie confounds the critics who worried whether Major Easy pastiche Coburn was too much a one-note joke to sustain his own series. Rennie plays this opener strictly for laughs much in the style of classic Strontium Dog with Bonaventura’s arrival and her barging in on a busy Coburn providing some great comedy moments. Coburn’s character stays largely true to what was shown in Sturm und Dang, he’s streetwise with a few bad habits and absolutely no respect for the letter of the law. Bonaventura seems like an interesting character with a sassy (yes I did just use that word) attitude and hints at a secret shame that’s left her babysitting Coburn.
This really is old school 2000AD style comedy and Rennie does it very well helped immensely by the old school 2000AD style comedy artist Carlos Ezquerra. Ezquerra’s coloured work long ago reached a level of perfection that he can never better nor that he especially falls under. He’s perfect for this strip with the comedic elements brought out great especially as so many of the jokes are sexual, an area where Ezquerra excels…in drawing. His characterisation is excellent with Coburn once again a slightly dishevelled, yet collected character. He gets Bonaventura spot on, definitely sassy she is.
All in all this is a great start for a character that could become a long-term feature of the magazine.
Anderson, PSI Division
Title: WMD: Pt. 1
Written by: Alan Grant
Art by: Arthur Ranson
Lettered by: Annie Parkhouse
At the beginning of the year Half-Life revealed that Judge Death had infected Anderson with a virus that would—when she awoke—destroy all life in the world. Now, elements within the PSI Division have cajoled its head, Shenker, and persuaded Chief Judge Hershey to launch a telepathic expedition into Anderson’s head to try and defeat the virus. This issue sees the launching of that mission and the tensions between the mainstream PSI Division and The Department of the Supernatural (basically witches) as cultures clash!
A beginning to what promises to be another good Anderson story. The character is still firmly removed from the touchy-feely politics that dominated her stories in the nineties. Instead we get a nice setup part that effectively introduces the Witch’s department and the rationale for one and the tension between them and others. It’s an interesting concept with Grant giving it a matter of fact sense of weirdness that promises some interesting confrontations throughout this story. Especially as shock, horror it actually provokes a blond, PSI Division female judge to be nasty. Apart from this conflict there actually isn’t an awful lot in this part, it’s mostly just the launch of the five PSIs to Andersons mind but what’s done is done very effectively.
Arthur Ranson’s art is as good as ever with his detailed and subtle photo-realistic artwork combined with his gorgeous colours making for a good-looking story.
Overall a promising story that carries the story over from Half-Life well.
The Simping Detective
Title: Crystal Blue: Pt. 1
Written by: Simon Spurrier
Art by: Frazer Irving
Lettered by: Tom Frame
Judge turned Private Eye, Jack Point, has been half-heartedly investigating some murders of prostitutes. When his sector-chief tells him to drop the case, he smells corruption and so redoubles his efforts only to land face-to-face with a blast from the past.
Oh yeah, this rules as Judge Dredd Megazine drop their previous plan to have a series of one-offs called Mega-City Noir to instead give the first Mega-City Noir story’s star the clown dress PI Jack Point his own series. And quite a doozy it is too, with yet another quality story from these two.
Point really is an excellent character with his hard-bitten cynical nature, his wisecracks and his clown gear making up for a character captured beautifully by Spurrier’s pastiche dialogue and inner narration. The action is much like the old PI movies, with the focus on the detective work and the thought process of the protagonist instead of out and out action, all of which is delivered excellently.
Then there’s the art, which almost defies explanation. It’s recognisably the work of Frazer Irving, yet he’s almost completely changed his style with a more rounded approach to his linework and a smoother texture. It’s undeniably great but is certainly a puzzler.
Still, a great story, that’s full of black comedy and another of the new generation of characters that 2000AD and the Megazine are producing.
Black Siddha
Title: Kali Yuga: Pt. 4
Written by: Pat Mills
Art by: Simon Davis
Lettered by: Ellie De Ville
Last month we saw Rohan beset by demons unleashed on him by a reluctant Rak, yet his powers still have not returned. This month, he makes one last plea for the Lords of Karma to cut him a little slack whilst Mirabai gives him a nasty surprise and we learn the true place of Earth in the world.
This is better with Mills’ writing bringing the sense of lightness in the romance sections of the story to the rest with some good moments during Rohan’s fight with the demons and the chief bad guy’s explanation of his devious plan. Whilst said plan could be accused of being based on yet more of Mills’ self-loathing it does throw up some quality lines and an amusing look at the idea of karma. Mills writing is a lot tighter with better characterisation all round with even a seemingly bizarre tangent involving an American trying to get a bit of action in Rak’s whorehouse actually having a deeper and more productive purpose in developing his characterisation.
The art is also improving with the move away from action scenes and night and dark areas being a great boon to the visibility and natural feel of Davis’ art.
A good part that shows this series is returning to the heights of its first story.
Charley’s War
Title: Untitled Pt. 44-49
Written by: Pat Mills
Art by: Joe Colquhoun
Lettered by: N/A
Helltrekkers
Title: Untitled Pt. 17-21
Written by: F. Martin Candor
Art by: Lalia
Letterer: N/A
Alas, time constraints once again stop me from reviewing the reprints. To be honest, there’s not a lot to report. Helltrekkers is carrying on its established arc of the number of trekkers gradually being whittled down in a sombre and rewarding story with excellent art from Lalia. Charley’s War continues its recent form with Bourne recovering from last month’s shock death of Ginger whilst meeting up with his brother-in-law and watching the first tanks go into action. Its only let down by Mills editorialising again with his piss-poor characterisation of anyone remotely above working class once again shown with Charley’s rich in law. Then there’s a horrible scene where the soldiers say that if there’s a Second World War they’ll have thought in vain. Leaving aside the politics of this, the First World War was only to become known as such after the Second World War. So, having regular Tommies refer to it as such is wrong, especially as these guys would see the Napoleonic Wars as a “world war.†This only slight niggles, as Mills writing is still top notch and the art is excellent.
