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!
This week’s cover is by Henry Flint.
I. THIS WEEK IN PROG 1866
Judge Dredd: Titan, Part 5
Things go from bad to worse this week. For Dredd, that is. For readers, it gets even better as the tension is ratcheted up further and further. The big reveal from last week was that Aimee Nixon is very much involved in whatever it is that’s happening out on Titan. She seems to be calling the shots for at least a small group of prisoners, and the big picture of what’s going on is still being obscured. While what exactly has gone down in the prison is still a mystery, the torture endured by guilty judges upon their arrival is very much not. Nixon gets into what the process of having your body retrofitted for a life on Titan is like while Dredd is subjected to some hard punishment of his own. As was the case last week, this strip ends with yet another big character reveal.
So who’s Aimee Nixon you ask? Nixon was a part of The Wally Squad, a team of Judges that go under deep cover to find the horrible, well-hid secrets of The Meg. All Wally Squadders have to walk a VERY thin line between Judge and perp, and as a result they all have Titan on the backs of their minds at all times. In Nixon’s case, she strayed a little too far from the letter of the law and, after running to Hondo City, was brought in to face punishment for her crimes. Despite making a deal, Nixon has found her way to Titan and into this week’s Prog.
Credits: Rob Williams (script), Henry Flint (art), Annie Parkhouse (letters)
Ulysses Sweet, Maniac for Hire: Centred, Part 6
Check out that Do-It-Yourself Doodler! I love easter eggs.
We get to see two more of Ulysses Sweet’s past faces this week, the first of which seems to be very much of an era. Things are getting out of hand at the Amethyst Cluster, as systems go off-line and plans begin to fall into place. It seems that the only person capable of saving the day has been reduced into an unthinking, drooling pile of brain mush.
Credits: Guy Adams (script), Paul Marshall (art), Chris Blythe (grey tones), Ellie De Ville (letters)
ABC Warriors: Return to Mars, Part 6
Clint Langley swings his art back to the highly rendered style we kicked the strip off with all those weeks ago. The change started to reveal itself last week, as Langley shifted some of last week’s pages between this and a black-and-white brush style. I really can’t decide which I like better, as both are executed flawlessly.
Mek-Quake almost bit the big one this week, and at the hand of his teammates, no less! But, after a rather clinical debate, it was decided that it probably wouldn’t be best for The Warriors’ image and they really should just send him off to a hospital. We also got to see a bit into Harry’s past, as he told a tale of his visit to Broadband Asylum where he decommissioned Volkhan!
Credits: Pat Mills (script), Clint Langley (art), Annie Parkhouse (letters)
Grey Area: All God’s Children, Part 1
Anders Garten is a Samaritan with a capital S. He and his colleagues have been allowed license in the Grey Area by the ETC Authority to practice their ministry among those who are stuck there, for whatever reason, and need help or comfort. Be they human or … not. See, in the eyes of the Samaritans, we are all children of God, whether we were born on Earth or out among the stars, and as such are equally worthy of feeling His love and help through his followers. One of Anders’ colleagues administered some charity to an off-worlder right before the above scene without incident. What do you think the chances are that Anders will be able to do the same? I didn’t think they were great either.
Continued belowAbnett shows off a side of faith that is too easily overlooked in science fiction (or genre fiction in general most likely) and that is one of faith being inclusive instead of exclusive. If God created the Heavens and Earth, then it stands to reason he created everything UNDER the first as well as everything on the second. So instead of being afraid of anything that comes from off-world, Abnett has Anders’ Samaritans treat them as gifts from God that we just hadn’t seen yet. A personally refreshing take that I hope will get played out more in the series, as science fiction tends to do its best with material like this to play with.
Credits: Dan Abnett (script), Patrick Goddard (art), Abigail Ryder (colors), Ellie De Ville (letters)
Strontium Dog: Dogs of War, Part 6
Last Prog, Johnny Alpha, the titular Strontium Dog, got a lay of the land for the human opposition to his mutant army. Outnumbered and outgunned, Johnny needed a plan to have a hope in hell of getting his forces out of a confrontation in one piece. Since it looks like the fit hits the shan from the panel above, I’d say Johnny either figured out a way to win, or this dog has had his day.
Credits: John Wagner (script), Carlos Esquerra (art), Simon Bowland (letters)
II. 2000 AD FOR DUMMIES
One of the strengths of 2000 AD is that you can basically start reading with that week’s Prog and be given enough backstory and thrill-power to get you up and running. But we here at Multiver-City One don’t want anyone to feel left out if that kind of introduction to Tharg and his many tales isn’t your fancy. So we’ve decided to add this new recurring segment to the column, where we point out specific 2000 AD collections that we think will match up perfectly with your sensibilities. For example:
You: “Hey, didn’t Alan Moore write some 2000 AD stuff?”
Us: “Why, yes he did! What kind of mood are you in?”
You: “I’m feeling snarky and somewhat anarchist. Whattya got?”
Us: “How about D.R. & Quinch? Over 96 pages of Moore with art by Alan Davis! Two alien teenagers looking to cause maximum damage and give the finger to just about everyone and everything!”
As you can see, the duo certainly know how to rack up quite the rap sheet. And that’s only from their second every story? These teenage hellions were created by Moore and Davis in 1983, back when the duo was collaborating on both Marvelman (its name as it appeared in Warrior at the time) and Captain Britain for Marvel UK. Davis’ art in particular really stands out, as he takes the challenge of showing endless numbers of alien races and technology with no hesitation, and shows chops that certainly made an impression on editors over here in the US. And that Moore fellow can be quite funny when he wants to be, and in these strips from Progs 350 to 367, he definitely wants to have some fun! Also included in this collection is the famous D.R. & Quinch Go To Hollywood, which satirizes Tinsel Town like only Moore can, as well as all the D.R. & Quinch Incredibly Excruciating Agony Pages, by Davis and writer Jaime Delano. That’s 112 pages of hysterical science fiction comedy by three of the greatest talents in comics, complete in one volume and no prior knowledge required. Just bring a sense of humor and you are good to go!
You can purchase this slab of zarjaz laughs at the 2000 AD online store, in either hardcopy or DRM-free PDF/CBZ.
III. OF INTEREST
JUIZ DREDD MEGAZINE, AGORA DISPONÍVEL NO BRASIL
You read that right! But, if you don’t speak Portuguese, then it may not have made much sense. Allow me to translate: “Judge Dredd Megazine, now available in Brazil!”
South American publisher Mythos Editora has begun publishing a version of Megazine for an ever-growing Portuguese language audience. They’re curating a monthly mix of classic 2000 AD strips to run alongside more recent stories. There are even collections like Judge Dredd: Origins available.
Continued below
I always enjoy seeing familiar comics translated for other languages. Not only does it grow the audience, it also forces me to read the pages in a different way. With the English swapped out, I’m forced to rely solely on art to get the point of the story.
MEANWHILE, ON THE INTERNET
Once again, we’ve struck gold scouring the Twitters and Tumblrs out there for Meg-approved goodness to share with all you humes. This week, we turn our gaze back to Chris Weston, as he presents his take on a more cinematic Dredd!
Let’s make it a double! Literally seconds before I went to his Twitter page to grab the URL, Chris posted yet another amazing Judge Dredd piece.
Go follow this guy, his art is awesome.
IDW DREDD SALE!
From now until midnight on January 30th, Comixology is having a sale on almost all the IDW Dredd comics! All 14 issues of the main series, plus the 4-issue Year One and Mars Attacks mini-series, all for 99 cents each! And the appropriate trade collections are priced accordingly, so it’s win-win either way. Turning down an offer this good might be grounds for Iso-Cubing on the charge of criminal negligence. Don’t miss out!
IV. NOW AVAILABLE
The Dredd movie sequel that ran in the Megazine a few months back is now being collected into a single issue and is available at comic shops and digitally via their iOS app. Written by Arthur Wyatt with art by Henry Flint, the story of Underbelly picks up one year after the events of the movie. This one-shot is great for Judge Dredd fans old and new, and would serve as a perfect introduction to anyone interested in the Mega-City and her Judges.
V. 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 1866 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!”
