Welcome, Earthlets, to Multiver-City One, our monthly look at the “Judge Dredd Megazine!” Let’s get right to it.
Judge Dredd: Praise Zort!” Part Two
Credits:Rory McConville (Script), Staz Johnson (Art), Chris Blythe (Colors), Annie Parkhouse (Letters)
Christopher Egan: We and the Judges get a historical rundown on Profundia, why it was formed, the change in its status, ideals, and inhabitants over the decades, and why the Judges need to watch how they interact with those who live there upon arrival. Dredd and the other Judges, looking to make this visit and transition of ambassadorial role go as smoothly as possible endure some odd encounters, veiled threats, and social awkwardness. It makes for some fun and only slightly cringey moments. The plot continues to thicken as an assassination attempt, much like the violence that occurred in part one, happens once again. This time, Dredd and co. are, at least, some of the targets, sending their talks into a spiral and creating a potential international incident between this portion of Africa and Mega City One’s law enforcement and ambassador.
The writing is dense and information forward, but it moves at a pace not unlike a television script. If the story was laid out in a larger chunk this would feel more like an episode of t.v. than a comic strip chapter. McConville continues to flesh out the concepts and this part of the world while still laying down some serious violence and action towards the end of the chapter. Staz Johnson is the MVP of this arc, giving full life to the storytelling and making for a really nice looking strip. We get a classic looking Judge Dredd and the world he inhabits, a lot of side characters – some long standing, some introduced specifically for this story. It all feels lived in, but welcoming, even for those who may not be constant “Judge Dredd” readers. Blythe’s color work is top notch and their combined style makes for some of the best looking Dredd comics out there.
Political intrigue, assassination attempts, and an expanded look at this universe all keep this strip from feeling like a dry crime drama. It’s drags a little bit at the start, but then shifts into a compelling piece of work.
Death Cap, Part 3
Credits: TC Eglington (script), Boo Cook (art), Simon Bowland (letters)
Greg Lincoln: “Death Cap” just keeps rolling along taking our hero from tragedy to further tragedy. We are reminded of the moment that caused her to tale the last walk into the cursed earth that started all this. T.C. Eglington amd Boo Cook hits her with some delusions too involving her dead daughters mixed in to good measure. Her quest for revenge continues even with the deadly fungus digging deeper and deeper into her body and apparently mind. The opening and closing page of this focus on the villain and his apparent plan and search for some kind of treasure. Even though the art by Boo Cook is interesting and draws the eye in the lack of a real emotional hookah involve the reader beyond the events of the story sadly still leaves “Death Cap” feeling a bit distant and empty,
Diamond Dogs: Book III, Part 3
Credits: James Peaty (script), Warren Pleece (art), Simon Bowland (letters)
Michael Mazzacane: The game is afoot as James Peaty and Warren Pleece cut between two similar but different business negotiations. On one hand our band of street gangers finally get to me Mr. Lau and the Silver Apples. On the other Judge Harding and Judge Armitage have a chat over some scotch in a nice back room. While Pleece’s tight framing and angular lines in the opening page promise a lot of tension action, the strip is largely devoid of tension and the threat of violence after that first page. Violence isn’t a slow crescendo in this strip it comes at you fast and sudden as seen by the end of the strip.
Business negotiations appear to go well for Nia Jones as her crew get to make it out alive and maybe with a new slice of the mash trade in return for running guns to the Silver Apples. Armitage and Harding’s tete-a-tete is interrupted by a phone call and duty. Peaty and Pleece do a good job of playing both sequences off one another. Jones’ segment operates on an explicit acknowledgment of the violence that will come at them if their proposal is rejected. Harding and Armitage put on the face of British refinery and threw daggers through smiling grins. Pleece does a fantastic job in transitioning from one to other at one point by creating a match cut of sorts between two panels and fire, or fire like substances.
Continued belowFor all the talk of negotiations, which threaten to remind me of the opening to Phantom Menace, the creative team rightly does not focus on them. They show us the initial offer and then quickly cut to their other scene before returning to them having closed. It is left up to the reader to infer what has occurred but the manic reaction by John in the back of the van does a good job selling the stress of the situation. Simon Bowland shows a lot of nuance in their lettering for the sequence. It isn’t about new fonts and bolding words, but the slight play on font size and their ability to take up space within a word balloon that go to selling the voice and terror.
It was never going to be this easy though with a late reveal of who was calling Judge Harding and the collision course that inevitably puts Nia, Armitage, and Harding on going forward. After three entries I’m getting used to the pace of this strip and it works for the most part. It’s not a fast paced action strip, it’s a bit more procedural in nature and that stands out to the other stuff currently in the Megazine.
Lawless Ballots over Badrock: 03
Credits: Dan Abnett(script), Phil Winslade (art), Jim Campbell (letters)
Matthew Blair: There are plenty of monsters in the small frontier town of Badrock, and while many of them have human faces this section of the story deals with an actual, honest to God monster that was created by an actual mad scientist in secret for the contingent of SJS Judges that live in the town. It turns out that a secretive branch of Mega City One’s Justice Department is up to know good and is using the political intrigue of small town politics to further their own goals and agendas.
And let’s be honest, it would be more of a shock if they WEREN’T doing something like this.
The script for “Lawless Ballots over Badrock: 03” is dominated by an action scene set piece that sets up what is sure to be a much bigger payoff further down the road. Writer Dan Abnett blocks out the violence and action in a very well organized manner with solid stakes, pacing, and payoff to make it interesting. On top of that, Abnett is sure to include plenty of intrigue and commentary on the present election of Badrock to keep the reader aware of the broader situation and move things along in the right direction at a great pace.
The reviews for this series have always had nothing but praise for Phil Winslade’s artwork, but while the artwork for “Lawless Ballots over Badrock: 03” is fantastic, there are some moments where it slips up and reveals some of its flaws. To be clear, Winslade is a fantastic artist and the attention to detail and realism is amazing, but there are times when Winslade’s commitment to highly detailed panels can make the black and white artwork feel muddled and difficult to follow. On top of that, Winslade makes the artistic choice to have a very dynamic panel layout for the action scenes which makes reader orientation even worse. It’s possible to follow what’s going on, but it takes time and might be difficult for readers who aren’t used to comics.
While the artwork may be difficult to follow at times, “Lawless Ballots over Badrock: 03” is another great entry into the story and does a great job of building more tension and introducing a new and terrifying threat to the town and its government.
Surfer: 3
Credits: John Wagner (script), Colin MacNeil (art), Chris Blythe (colors), Annie Parkhouse (letters)
Brian Salvatore: This chapter of “Surfer” allows Colin MacNeil to really explore the urban landscape and show Zane’s surfing in a totally different way. Not going for stunts or showmanship, Zane is surfing the shadows, and the dusk setting adds a beautiful tone via Chris Blythe’s moody colors. The shadows in this issue are both literal and metaphorical, with Zane not wanting to give up his position to the Judges, but also we see the looming debts of his father and the Judges’ arrest warrant creeping across his face, too.
What is so powerful about John Wagner’s script is that, without saying it, you know that Zane could never appeal his legitimate reason for the surfing ticket. The way the Judge speaks, coupled with his smug look, gives the reader all they need to see that Zane needs to run. The idea of the Judges representing law and order but not being the good guys is a cornerstone of 2000 AD and the Megazine, but rarely has it been done so effectively in just a panel or two.
It was legitimately surprising how much hospitality was shown to Zane by his former neighbors. They appear to be living the high life now, and with the MegaCityOne income disparity, it seems likely that they may have sided with the police over their old neighbor. And while that still may happen, the kindness they showed was just about the only light in Zane’s world.
