Multiver-City One: 2000 AD Prog 2041 – Rumble In The Jungle!

Welcome, Earthlets, to Multiver-City One, our “2000 AD” weekly review column! Every Wednesday we examine the latest offerings from Tharg and the droids over at Rebellion/2000 AD, the galaxy’s leading producers of Thrill-Power entertainment. Let’s get right to it!

Cover by Alex Ronald

THIS WEEK IN 2000 AD

Judge Dredd: Ouroborous
Credits: Michael Carroll (script), Paul Marshall (art), Chris Blythe (colors), Annie Parkhouse (letters)

Greg Matiasevich: After one-off strips the last few weeks, Prog 2041 sees the start of a multipart story by Michael Carroll and Paul Marshall. On the one hand, Dredd and the Justice Department get a tip of a Spike dealer peddling his wares at a nightclub; standard crime stuff. On the other hand, that tip came via a note-encased brick hitting Dredd’s helmet out of the blue (complete with cute stationary and up-front apology for the bad aim). So Marshall & Carroll look to mix humor and hardass in equal measure for ‘Ouroboros’, like the best Dredd strips. But does one flavor overpower the other?

It’s simple to say that since comics are a visual medium, the images set the tone, but let’s unpack that idea for a minute. I think that in visual storytelling, regardless of any added text or captions, your images carry two separate tracks of information: what’s going on and how that’s portrayed. Paul Marshall works with Carroll and Quinton Winter in separate capacities to make sure both those tracks are what everyone agrees they need to be for the story to work.

Marshall/Carroll — Drug bust at an upscale nightclub. ‘Skoobie’ burnout. Quick Judicial response. Panda confusion. Non-threatening brick to the Judge’s noggin.
Marshall/Winter — Don’t overrender or confuse. Contrast action with bright palette but nothing too garish. Simple without being simplistic.

Given those goals and Marshall’s proclivity for a clean & open rendering style a la Colin MacNeil or Steve Dillon (RIP), I came away from the first installment of ‘Ouroboros’ feeling like things leaned more to the lighter side of the spectrum. Which is not to say it’s an absolute laugh-fest, cuz drugs are bad, kids, m’kay? But when things can go super bleak super quick in the Big Meg, it’s nice to see stories that can satisfy without going ‘none more black’.

Plus, I’m really interested in finding more about the last-page reveal Carroll leaves us with…

Future Shock: The Body Politic
Credits: James Peaty (script), Andrea Mutti (art), Simon Bowland (letters)

Alice W. Castle: With “Brink: Skeleton Life” coming to a close last week (something I think I missed mentioning in my review), it’s time for me to turn my attention to one of 2000AD’s patented “Future Shocks.” A five page, black and white short story, ‘Future Shocks’ are where British comic creators cut their teeth. ‘The Body Politic’ is a well realised short with an interesting set-up and payoff all contained within only five pages.

The campaign of a politician running for President has come under fire with repeated assassination attempts to the point where they’ve had to spring for a unique kind of bodyguard. The twist itself is pretty obvious in reading the story, but the effectiveness comes in how it’s presented. The black and white art of “Future Shocks” means that Andrea Mutti can bring in a sense of foreboding and dread through shadows and darkness as the story progresses to a last page that’s suitably brutal.

The only downside to the story is in the constraint of the five pages. While the politician running for president spouts slogans about togetherness and unison and the group seeking her death have a suitably cool name, it’s hard to get a grasp on the actual politics around the situation. Is this president Theresa May with her repetition of her strong and stable slogan that is, in fact, destabilising the most vulnerable of her nation? Or are the Children Of The Galaxy the ones looking to destabilise the union? It’s hard to get a sense of the politics behind the story and know where each party stands. It’s not a bad story by any stretch, just one that could have benefitted from a bit of clarity.

Continued below

Hunted: Furies, Part 8
Credits: Gordon Rennie (script), PJ Holden (art), Len O’Grady (colors), Annie Parkhouse (letters)

Greg Lincoln: In the wake of Wire’s shocking murder and Trasker’s big reveal in her killings aftermath, “Hunted Furies” gives us a couple moments to catch our breath before it dives wholeheartedly into its next big twist. In those breaths Gordon Rennie gives some explanation of Trasker’s story and what he brings to the table now. His ‘Luke, I am your father’ moment coming out as the Traitor General’s son threw me initially and bugged me but after this issue it leaves me wondering who’s getting played after all. Rennie tells us a lot in what gets said in the opening pages but what portion of it is true could be up for debate. I say this because of what Gordon Rennie, P.J. Holden and Len O’Grady say, or imply in the art.

The art tells a slightly different story from the one of reunion. It tells the story of a practical and paranoid man meeting someone of whom he’s suspicious. P.J. Holden reminds us several times of the headshot corpse in the room with Trasker’s and the General. The opening pages are overlaid with the red emergency lighting via Len O’Grady’s colors creating a more tense atmosphere for these events. Holden and O’Grady also spend a couple of panels showing a silent meeting and another couple showing concealed weapons. Saying more about either would be spoiling things though. I will say that week again I have to praise the coherence between Holden’s inks and O’Grady’s colors and rendering bringing texture and realism to the panels.

That twist I mentioned is the second half of the chapter. It’s clear this week is that various plans in the story have come together to work in the Traitor General’s favor. The last two pages show the directing they are taking the story. The forces of both the Norts and the Southers come together against a common foe. The big technicolor full page panel surprise that ends this week shows the foe was not the screed one they expected. That moment reminds me of a TV science fiction series mid season beak cliffhanger; were lucky here though as we only need to wait a week for the next episode.

Greysuit: Foul Play, Part 2
Credits: Pat Mills (script), John Higgins (art), Ellie de Ville (letters)

Ryan Perry: Pat Mills delivers a fun, if occasionally faulty, script in the second installment of “Greysuit: Foul Play.” The reason I note that things could be faulty is because there are many moments where Mills attempts to create humor around an older generation not understanding the internet, however, it doesn’t come across like Mills is genuinely coming from the perspective of someone who would find this funny. It reads as if he’s an older person that understands that kids thinking adults not understanding the internet is funny, and he tried to latch on to that despite being one of those older people. There are also moments where our main character is in another country and the humor is hindered by the language barrier. It would’ve made perfect sense for Mills to simply translate everything since the main character spoke the language but he doesn’t, therefore, it feels disjointed. Other than these couple hiccups, Mills delivers a genuinely fun story with exhilarating action and fun characters that have interesting ticks.

John Higgins has a great style in as far as the way the characters and world look. Characters all have their own distinct identity and emote in a way that feels extremely natural. It says a lot when a character is supposed to be being deceptively kind that you can read that in the kind of smile Higgins draws. Conversely he doesn’t have a great visual language in the sense that panels are laid out haphazardly and the art itself lacks dynamic movement. There’s a page where two characters are talking and the panels are completely disconnected, the background is blank, and there is way too much space between the panels. It takes you out of the reading experience. The color is really pretty in this book. It’s interesting that colorist Sally Hurst decided to light a scene set in direct sunlight in the rainforest and a scene set in direct sunlight in London differently. This is an effective choice nonetheless that adds too the mood of what’s going on.

Continued below

Grey Area: Border Ops, Part 2
Credits: Dan Abnett (script), Mark Harrison (art), Annie Parkhouse (letters)

Rowan Grover: I’ve definitely become fond of this team even after following it only for a short time. It’s great that as soon as the prog opens, Abnett has such a handle on his characters that you immediately recognise theme and feel immersed. Bulliet is pessimistic as usual, Bitch is charmingly cold and factual, and Grell is still a hard, take-no-prisoners type. But this issue goes into some tough themes, like last week’s. Abnett explores the morality of killing during wartime, again with undertones of racism, using Grell and Stinky to represent this. It never feels heavy handed or preachy, however, and moves right along with the flow of the story.

Harrison fires on all cylinders with the best of them here, presenting a clean, balls to the wall firefight from page one. His sequential work feels natural and kinetic, with figures bounding from panel to panel. This kicks off brilliantly with a full team shot at the bottom of page one, which is structures so well that it has as much impact as a splash page in American comics. The coloring here is beautifully done as well, with surreal flashes of blue and yellow light shining everywhere. The scene is akin to a rave party, yet it doesn’t look out of place in an alien firefight either.

“Grey Area” slowly turned into my favourite prog on the zine without me expecting it, and it’s high quality creative team ensure no loss in quality week to week.

That’s gonna do it for us this week! “2000 AD” Prog 2041 is on sale this week and available from: