Welcome, citizens, to this week’s installment of Multiver-City One! Each and every Wednesday we will be examining the latest Prog from Tharg and the droids over at 2000 AD, and giving you all the pertinent information you’ll need headed into this week’s Thrill-Zine!
I. THIS WEEK IN PROG 1862
ABC Warriors: Return to Mars, Part 2
This week we get a look into the past of one of the Warriors: Harry Shrapnel, aka Tubal Caine. Harry started off as a combat test robot; tough as titanium nails and put through all manner of destruction day after day before being assigned to Hammerstein’s squad during the Volgon Wars. But Harry was killed off-panel and when he did return (after being rebuilt by the Mek-nificent Seven) he took the Tubal name, and his ‘death’ was never revealed… until now.
Mills is to the ABC Warriors what John Wagner is to Dredd: the steady hand that guides these characters’ paths and keeps them moving forward year after year. Clint Langley’s digital art is very strong. Not only are his robot designs coming from all manner of angles and starting points, which keeps things fresh in a strip that deals with robots almost exclusively, but his rendering is textured and toned in a way that sets mood but doesn’t obscure, which is a common failing of digital artists that Langley avoids. No part of the flashback is unclear or hard to decipher, and the strip is better for it.
Credits: Pat Mills (script), Clint Langley (art), Annie Parkhouse (letters)
Future Shocks: Dying Wishes
Telling six- to eight-page stories in comics is tough. Telling complete one-offs of that length is a bitch, and being able to do it well is no mean feat. Robson and Lynch are new to 2000 AD but waste no time in getting down to business on this Future Shock. A space-faring robots is summoned to the planet of his creation to act as an executor of the will of his creators’ race, now extinct. The story begins with a confidence that had me double-checking to make sure this wasn’t a continuation of an earlier story. The establishing of the robot and his setting/relationship with his shipmate was that natural, that smooth. Hopefully Tharg commissions some more from stories from this team soon. Very soon.
Credits: Eddie Robson (script), Jake Lynch (art), Ellie De Ville (letters)
II. NOW ARRIVING
Judge Dredd: Titan, Part 1
This week’s adventures takes our favorite helmeted lawman off-planet to investigate some strange occurrences on Titan. You see, Mega City One has established a penal colony up on one of Saturn’s moons to provide permanent incarceration for Judges who have been found guilty of a crime. Once transported to Titan, prisoners are outfitted with equipment that will help them adapt to the harsh environment, while permanently disfiguring them. But now all contact with the prison has been lost and the worst is feared to have happened. When you have the potential for almost a thousand escaped criminal Judges looking for some payback, there’s only one man for the job of keeping you safe: Judge Dredd!
There’s a lot of cool stuff happening with this story, including the use of an opening title page; not something we usually see in Progs. But once again we see Dredd having his advancing years thrown in his face, and Dredd not giving an inch against it. He’s been the baddest dude around for a while, but he’s gotta be pushing his 70’s by now. Even though Mega-City One has cloning and brain-transplanting technology, it’s still kinda interesting to speculate on how 2000 AD will be addressing Dredd’s ability to perform his duties in his advancing age without taking those easy roads. At some point, Joe Dredd can no longer be on the streets and will need to head out on his long walk. So what’s that mean for the reader? Well, maybe we could follow Dredd out into the Cursed Earth for some latter-year adventures. We’ve kinda seen that teased out before, but to see that become the new norm for the character would be an intriguing change of pace. The other track a Dredd-less Mega City can go would be to replace him. It could be argued that this has already started to be seeded, with a younger version of Rico showing up not too long ago during Chaos Day.
Continued belowThe art in this strip is right on point with where it needs to be for what seems to be the start of a moody space drama. Flint is coming off of the recently wrapped Dredd movie sequel and he is on a roll. The linework he’s putting down is weighty and deliberate, with color choices that work to enhance the tone of each scene. Not only that, but Flint knows how to add just the right amount of hatching around Dredd’s law-jaw to show it as having seen better days, but still nothing to screw around with; a fine line with fine lines, but Flint nails it every time. From top to bottom this strip is a treat, and I’m excited to see where it all ends up!
Credits: Rob Williams (script), Henry Flint (art), Annie Parkhouse (letters)
III. AN ORAL HISTORY OF JUDGE DREDD
The tale of Judge Dredd has been continually published since 1977, and has been brought to us by some of the most creative minds to ever work in comics. As a result, there have been some out-of-this-world story beats woven into the fabric of the character. We thought it would be interesting to talk with the writers and artists behind Mega-City One and see what their favorite bits of Dredd’s history are. This week Guy Adams returns to talk a bit about what it’s like to approach writing a character like Dredd.
[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/robotsfromtomorrow/guy_adams_history_2.mp3]
IV. FUTURE PERP FILES
ATTN: ALL CITIZENS OF THE MEG! Be aware that there is always a Judge watching you. Each sector is equipped with millions of HD-CCTV and bioID units. They are there for your protection. If your intent is upright citizenry, then you have no qualm with our surveillance. And remember: if you see something, you are now an accessory to a crime. That’s six months in an Iso-Cube, creep! Random CPU algorithms has selected this citizen for immediate surveillance and assessment…
That’s gonna do it for us this week! Prog 1862 is on sale today and is available from finer comic shops everywhere, from 2000ADonline.com, and via the 2000 AD Newsstand app for iPad and iPhone. So as Tharg the Mighty himself would say, “Splundig vur thrigg!”
