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!
THIS WEEK IN 2000AD
Cadet Dredd: The Block with No Name
Credits Liam Johnson (script) Duane Redhead(art) John Charles(colours) Simon Bowland(letters)
Michael Mazzacane: “Cadet Dredd” strips always make me wonder what an ongoing strip would be like, it would offer up a new angle on the development of the “Dredd” dystopia. Because it isn’t the dystopia we know, yet everything is still falling into place. A YA twist would be interesting. It would also further open the expansive aesthetics of “Dredd.”
Duane Redhead’s line work is solid craftsmanship with good figure work, though some stiff poses in a few spots. Like the fascist twist of “Cadet Dredd” strips, Redhead’s line work manages to keep the overwrought ornate qualities of “Dredd” iconography but also simplify them down into a younger version. John Charles’ color palette is what gives this “Cadet” strip such a different feel compared to present and prior “Dredd” strips with the vibrant color work and spare rendering. It feels like they didn’t go that much past the flats phase with basic gestures to where shadows would lay. That simplicity leaves Redheaad’s inking to do much of the work and ironically gesture towards the origin of the series as a black and white strip. It also makes the page almost insufferably bright, in a good way. It makes things look not as bad as they really are. That tension of not as bad and the slow decay on top of bright colors is the heart of “Cadete Dredd” strips.
Liam Johnson does a good job structuring an 11-page strip. Some of the late reveals read as a bit forced or sudden but fit the kind of liminal morality and ethics that are on display as Cadet Dredd goes undercover to ferret out some squatting kids. It makes me wish the strip had a larger page budget to really explore the tensions within Dredd and the ones created by the Judges. ‘The Block with No Name’ is another solid “Cadet Dredd” strip that provides a new lens to see the early years of Mega City One.
Mayflies: The Way Forward
Credits: Michael Carroll (script), Simon Coleby (art), Dylan Teague (colors), Simon Bowland (letters)
Greg Lincoln The strength of the “Mayflies” story is in its clear themes and strong characters. You don’t need an encyclopedic knowledge of “Rogue Trooper” history to get the jist of the story Michael Carrol is telling. It is clear who Wrecks Artie, Zuli, Otto are even in the brief introductions we get: they are new, capable and unwilling combatants in war they want no part of. They quite clearly want to escape their lot as the story begins and have too much of a moral compass to allow innocents to suffer, even if it costs them their freedom. It’s surprising how easy it is from the narration and the art to connect to them as individuals and as a group. It’s especially clear when compared to the largely faceless, corporate capitalistic villains they face.
Simon Coleby and Dylan Teague take these mass produced soldiers and embody them with a soul with their art. Their white eyes and blue skin is no barrier to identifying with them, they are not always colored that way by Teague but the story makes it clear the children we are following are anything but normal humans from the beginning. The pacing of “Mayflies” is very smooth and it’s likely due to the narrative flow created by Simon Bowland’s seemingly effortless lettering. His balloon and narration placement solidified the clarity of the story and well defined the many players in the story.
‘Splorers
Credits: Gordon Rennie & Emma Beeby (Script), Neil Googe (Art), Gary Caldwell (Colors), Simon Bowland (Letters)
Christopher Egan: This month’s all ages Prog has a really fun and slimy entry with the inclusion of “‘Splorers.” Young Jaina sees herself as a brave explorer on daring sci-fi adventures. When her little brother wants to join in, she reluctantly allows him to play within her fantasy world.
Continued belowAs the story progresses and the lens pulls back on their life, we realize that things may not be as mundane as these two kids believe it to be. The script is cute and exciting, leaving out any fat. Within the story’s ten pages we get a lot of action, solid chuckles, and a good amount of pop culture references, touching on things like the non-canon “Star Wars” Expanded Universe or the Alien</> film saga. “‘Splorers” is incredibly fun and quick with lots of little surprises along the way.
Neil Googe’s artwork is cute while still feeling right for an all ages audience. Readers of any age will appreciate both the design and the talent on display. Matched up Caldwell’s colors are in the same boat. Bringing a bubblegum sci-fi palette to the story really lends to the tone of strip while still showing off excellent work all around.
Have fun reading this story. It may surprise even 2000AD’s older readers with how much they enjoy it. It’s a really clever piece of fiction that is good for a chuckle.
Future Shocks: Trash Culture
Credits: Karl Stock (script), Steve Roberts (art), Annie Parkhouse (letters)
Matthew Blair: It’s the distant future and the entire world is brimming with garbage. Fortunately, humanity has found a way to survive. Unfortunately, we seem to be even more obsessed with hoarding and tech culture than we were in the past, and it’s somehow gotten even more dangerous and deadly. This is where we meet a little boy named Cordy who stumbles across a working piece of technology spouting a strange message, and then quickly runs afoul of tech hoarders that desperately want it.
Writer Karl Stock makes his premiere in 2000 AD with “Future Shocks: Trash Culture” and it’s a solid first story. If there’s one thing that Stock excels at, it’s world building. Stock has created a setting that is interesting, engaging, and filled with potential for a lot more stories, which makes it kind of sad that this is only a one shot. On top of that, Stock does something interesting with the main character by having the little boy engage with his newfound treasure like a boy engages with a dog in a more normal setting. If the story has any problems, it’s that the twist ending is a little bland, but it’s still a great twist considering how hard it is to fool audiences these days.
Steve Roberts provides the artwork for “Future Shocks: Trash Culture” and it is very fitting for the story. Roberts has a very kid friendly style of art filled with simple lines and exaggerated action and emotion. Roberts is also very good at drawing clutter and grime, giving a world overrun by garbage an appropriately dirty feel. It’s a great style of art for this sort of story and does an amazing job of enhancing the story.
“Future Shocks: Trash Culture” is a solid Future Shock story about a boy and his computer set in an interesting and engaging world. My only real regret is that there aren’t any more Trash Culture stories to read.
Chopper: Chopper Don’t Surf
Credits: David Barnett (script), Nick Roche (art), Pippa Bowland (colors), Jim Campbell (letters)
Brian Salvatore: Chopper is a long-running 2000 AD character last seen in the “Sci-Fi Special” from earlier this year. This all-ages installment doesn’t change the character too much, aside from doing what the whole issue is supposed to do, which is bring these decidedly adult characters into a realm more appropriate for younger readers. Despite the youth-focus, there are a few elements, like the title, referencing a Clash song, that are clearly aimed at an older crowd. Nothing about the story feels particularly out of place for the book, though, and there’s a lot of fun to be had in these pages.
The story itself is basically an origin story for Chopper, with David Barnett showing how he took up sky-surfing, but also establishes a clear moral center for his character. There’s a lot of silliness in the story, but at the heart of it, this is a story of a kid looking for both a place in the world and looking for justice, though not of the Judges’ variety. There are moments where the balance seems like it may be tipping too far on the hokey side, but Barnett pulls the nose up at the last minute to avoid such maudlin or cheesy moments.
A big part of that balance is struck by Nick Roche’s art, which is never anything less than playful and vibrant, with Pippa Bowland’s colors popping off the page, adding intensity to Roche’s lineart. The work is expressive and focused on storytelling, portraying every face with liberal amounts of intensity, whether it is a mile-wide smile or a look so sullen the character appears to be folding in on itself. With a story that is so simple, the creators never shy away from the core of the story, which allows heart to seep through both the script and the art.
While Chopper hasn’t had a starring role in either the Megazine or the weekly Progs in a minute, it’s nice to see the classic character pop up in this new format. Of all of the 2000 AD characters, he may actually work the best in the all-ages format.
