For those who might not know, 2000 AD is a serial anthology, each issue containing several (usually five) on-going stories. One of which is always the title's star, Judge Dredd. Some people might think getting serial comics in 5-page chunks would be annoying. But there are two things at work here; the weekly format means you get the next installment quickly and in regular intervals. Second, in 2000 AD the art of the cliffhanger is alive and well, not to mention economizing of space. There's no 'writing for the trade' style of writing going on here, where what you're reading is just a 50-page story cut into ten 5-page chunks with no regard for pacing (like many monthly comics do).
The cover of this issue is drawn by longtime 2000 AD contributors, Simon Davis. Illustrating inside strip Ampney Crucis Investigates. Lead character Ampney Crucis and his man servant Cromwell are strapped to a flying device as they try to escape a dead parallel Earth being chased by a multi- tentacled horror from beyond space and time. Its that sort of crazy crap that makes 2000 AD covers some of the most memorable in the industry
Being a serial anthology I will be reviewing each story individually briefly.
Judge Dredd: Day of Chaos - Elusive (Part 6) - Day of Chaos is the latest Dredd 'mega-epic' to run through the Judge Dredd series. In many ways a follow up to Tour of Duty, a major Dredd storyline that ran through 2009/2010. One of Judge Dredd's oldest and most elusive perps, the notorious serial killed PJ Maybe has broken out of his isoblock, changed his face, and is now running amok in Mega City 1. Mega City 1 is in the middle of electing a new mayor (PJ Maybe, having stolen the identity of the last Mayor and generally being the best Mayor Mega-City 1 ever had before the Judges caught on) and Maybe isn't pleased with is former party's new candidate name dropping him like they were best buddies. So PJ Maybe is out to put his replacment in the ground, and remind the Justice Department just how dangerous he is. John Wagner is the father of Dredd and still has the magic 30+ years writing the strip. Henry Flint's artwork brings the madness of Mega City 1 and the circus that their elections can become to life. EXCELLENT.
Ampney Crucis Investigates - The English Assassin (Part 9) - Ampney Crucis was a series I didn't like at first. Its about a proper English gentleman who investigates strange goings on, generally of a dark, mysterious, and evil nature all the while keeping his upper-lip stiff. Unknowable horror is no reason to lose your dignified. I thought the first episode or two were sort of formulaic, but the previous two have kicked things up a notch. With Ampney and Co. having become embroiled in international intriqued with the world powers getting into traveling between dimensions. Unfortunately the alternate universe they bored into happens to be a dead world acting as an incubator for a Cthulhu-esk horror looking to wiped out the multiverse. If only it had a convient doorway... opps. This episode concerns Ampney and his, probably possessed, manservant Cromwell trying to make their escape from this hellish world back to their world. Things don't go well. As exciting as that all sounds, this story does tend to move a bit rapidly and rely a little too much on happenstance to move things forward. Simon Davis's painted art style can look great, but often he goes for big panels with minimalist backgrounds, which make things a little dull to look at. But when he puts in the detail things can look really great. PRETTY OKAY.
Indigo Prime: Anthropocalypse (Part 3) - Indigo Prime was introduced in the late 80s and ran through the early 90s, written by John Smith and illustrated by Chris Weston. It involved an extra-dimensional organization who repaired damage to the multi-verse. Its run was brief, but memorable. Back in 2008 John Smith reintroduced Indigo Prime in the pages of Dead Eyes, and promised that Indigo Prime would return. Three years latter that time is NOW. Interestingly, these new Indigo Prime stories are the most in depth about the organization and what they actually do that the series has gone into. Sometime between the last Indigo Prime story in 1991 and now, the originization has taken some hits and lost significant personnel so they are on a kind of recruiting drive. Dead Eye's main character, and the only survivor of his particular reality, Danny Redman is the latest recruit and he isn't adjusting well to his new situation. Meanwhile, new character Doctor March is pulled out of semi-retirement. Indigo Prime is very deliberate in throwing made up words and being cryptic about what has lead to the organization's current status. That being said its a good kind of bonkers that makes you want to keep reading more. Series artist Edmond Bagwell has a really clean line art style that still manages to showcase all these crazy reality warping dangers going on. BONKERS.
Angel Zero (Part 8) -The 'action girl' genre has a long history at 2000 AD. Angel Zero is the latest of that sort of story. Once upon a time Maggie Roth was implanted with an alien life form known as an Angel that made her stronger, faster, and dangerous. She was then honed into a weapon. Eventually she escaped and had the angel removed, but her past eventually caught up with her. Now she's trying to clean up her demons to protect the people she now cares about. Having been captured by a rival gangster, the organization that's after Maggie makes mince meat out of these amateurs and Maggie finds herself looking down the barrel of a gun and someone looking to put her back into trained killer circulation. Kev-K isn't a high profile 2000 AD writer, but his previous series Second City Blues (from way back in 2005) was pretty good, and this has been generally good. What's interesting, and I wonder if its an experiment on 2000 AD's part itself, is that Angel Zero, instead of being the usual 5 pages long, is only 4-pages long for each of its episodes. It seems to work here, the story it told in a very tight and concise manner. It doesn't ramble. Series artist John Burns is an old hand at 2000 AD, his water color art style is usually pretty memorable. This series though sometimes feel a little stiff and might have used a more energetic artist on art chores. SOLID.
Low Life: The Deal (Part 9) - Low Life is a series I've read since its beginning (way back in 2004) and Rob Williams's Dreddworld story of undercover 'Wally Squad' Judges in one of the worst sectors of Mega City 1 has been continually excellent since its inception. Its cast of characters, notably series star Aimee Nixon and her insane cohort Dirty Frank, has been one of the more indeering in Dreddworld history. This series finds Dirty Frank traveling around the world to Hondo City to find his ally, friend, and fellow Judge Aimee. Who after recent events has found herself defecting from Justice Department to the Hondo City yakuza mob after the yakuza moved in and took over criminal activity in the Low Life. Dirty Frank doesn't know why Aimee defected, but he's determined to bring her back to Mega City 1. This episode Frank finally confronts Aimee and her yakuza handlers, but gets a gunshot to the leg for his troubles. Mean while his Hondo City undercover Judge allies make their move. Rob Williams is a treasure of a writer, the fact that he's gone Marvel exclusive recently is a great blow to comics in general. Fortunately he has a clause that he can keep working on Low Life. Series artist D'Israeli is also a treasure, one of the most impressive artists in 2000 AD stable, anything he works on is a treat. And this is no exception. DIRTY FRANK.
Phew, yeah... that sure was a lot of words for five 5-page (in one case 4) comic. But that's why 2000 AD is so great, there is just so much to love between its covers. This issue has many of its current strips reaching their crescendos for their big end of the years conclusions (Prog 2012 is nearing every week!). I can't wait to see what happened next week!
Next: FABLES 111
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