Prog 29

 I'm enjoying the flow of the stories at the moment. With Dredd appearing second in the comic, and Future Shocks coming at the tail, the comic seems to hold together much better, and I find it easier to read in this form. I'm surprised that such a tweak should affect my enjoyment of the comic in this way, and like the albums I often listen to while reading I am finding that track listing does matter.     

Prog 29

10 September 1977

I have found the Invasion storylines since leaving London have been most engaging, especially the last few weeks since Bill Savage has been in Scotland. Following up on last week's football theme story, we remain in Glasgow with a story that carries a strong fire theme. The story is clever in the way it picks up this one idea and runs with it through the entire strip. So when Bill Savage and his men come into conflict with ex-convicts armed with flamethrowers, then what better place to fight them than at Glasgow fire station. But it's not as simple as that, Bill doesn't use the firefighting equipment to tackle the flame throwers heard on, but rather he uses the ladders of the fire trucks to fight the Volgans from a position of high ground. The story is fairly conventional from here on out, as Bill and his men defeat the Volgans, then using the enemy tanks take refuge in the Highlands. Thus, the scene is set for some more action next week as this war continues. An enjoyable entry into the canon this week, and the most memorable parts of the story are certainly early on as Bill battles the Volgans around the fire station. After this strong start, and solid middle section, the ending feels a little rushed, but that hardly detracts from the story overall. With a finely balanced mix of action and cleverness, once again Invasion gets us off to a strong start. 

Rating: 8/10

Best Line:  "Let's go- leap out an' land among 'em!"

We have a very interesting Judge Dredd this week. The striking image of a Klansman lets us know right from the start what this story will be about. With a Klan called the Neon Knights dispensing their own form of vigilante justice on robots, it is easy to draw parallels to the world we live in. It may appear all too obvious, but it is a point well made and remains true to Judge Dredd's character and the world he lives in throughout the story.  When a robot is destroyed in the street, witnesses deny seeing anything when approached by Dredd. Some express sympathy for the Klan, making Dredds's task all the more difficult. Things become personal when Dredd's robot, Walter, is caught out late at night by the Neon Knights, leading to Dredd storming their headquarters to dispense some justice of his own. The story climaxes when it is revealed the leader of the Neon Knights is part cyborg himself, and his hatred of robots stems from self-loathing. One can easily imagine this story written in another context, with robots substituted for people of colour, and the Neon Knights Klan replaced with the Klu Klux Klan. At first, I was worried that this might be a clunky story, shoehorned into Dredd's world, but it fits well with what we have already seen in Dredd, and every character rings true to what we have already seen from the story. It doesn't feel quite as good as some of the more inventive Dredd stories I've read, but it is an interesting twist that kept me on the hook throughout. 

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line:  "Prepare to taste the vengeance of the Neon Knights, Dredd!" 

If we had a most improved player, it would be this week's Shako story. The capsule in his stomach returns to the fore of the story, Falmuth is back, and we have a new player on the field later in the story. After a curious start, with Shako eating lemmings, Falmuth returns to the fray (misspelt in one of the captions as Flamuth), with his dog team pursuing Shako. We get the required dose of action as the dogs attack Shako, and there are some of the typical animalistic panels we have come to expect as Shako takes them on. The final page is where the story once again takes a leap in its development as Shako is unexpectedly saved, by Russians no less. This throws the hunt for the capsule within Shako into a new light and gives the story a new impetuous which I look forward to seeing developed further in the coming weeks. I had previously complained that I was becoming bored with Shako, but this issue has me reinvigorated and eagerly looking forward to the coming weeks. 

Rating: 7.5/10

Best Line: "Don't shoot, ya lame brain! He's movin' too fast. Hit that capsule in his stomach an' half of America will die! Including us!" 

Dan Dare's mission to the Lost World sees his crew in action for the first time, and they don't disappoint as each of the key members is given a chance to shine in the story. Last week we meet Pilot Polanski, and this week he is the first to the fore as he pilots the ship near an asteroid and an abandoned vessel. Dan Dare and crew board this vessel, only to find themselves attacked by a fantastic swarm of aliens, all gliding in on their solar-powered wings. They look great on the page, and the art captures how my mind imagines them. As Dan Dare fits them off, he is saved first by the shooting of Hitman, and then by the brute strength of Bear, as both characters prove their worth in the heat of battle.  However, it is pilot Polanski who has the final say in the battle, as he pilots them out of trouble, before destroying the asteroid the aliens make home. I enjoyed meeting the cast of characters last week, and seeing them at work in this week's strip lives up to my expectations. Hopefully I future these characters will be developed further beyond their abilities alone, but for now, the story is simmering away nicely, and building on the back of a strong issue last week we are looking at a potentially great story.    

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "It'll sure as hell make 'em dizzy - okay, guys, hold on!"

With a missile launch imminent, and the Russian early warning satellite knocked out of commission, M.A.C.H. 1. has his work cut out for him this week. And with his enemy, Tex, still fighting on with his second heart, we are deep in the action from the start. Most of the story follows John Probe's battle with Tex, and it is only once he is finally defeated with a knife through his second heart, does John have time to turn his attention to the I.C.B.M. This he deals with by flying the shuttle and knocking it off course and back to where it came from. With the missile destroying the plotters, and the shuttle crashing into the sea, we are left with John Probe once again left to soliloquize on his survival and the situation he has just dealt with. This three-part story has given us many high points, but somehow this third part has managed to top all that has come before, and the final panel is quite poignant given all we have seen leading up to this. The elongated form of the story worked much better for my tastes, and the story was fully fleshed out with added nuances and a back story. If we continue with longer stories such as this, I will be very happy indeed.   

Rating: 8/10

Best line:  "It means I die...but that's the way it's gotta be. It's just my life against countless millions!"

There is a strong Planet of the Apes influence in this issue's Tharg's Future Shocks. Two astronauts find themselves on a strange planet where they enjoy the hospitality of two aliens who speak their language. They are amazed to find a planet similar to earth, but we find in the final panel that they are on earth, not an alien planet, and mankind is now a zombie race due to germ-warfare.  "God damn you all to hell!" as another man might say. I do enjoy this tale for what it is, and the artwork has a good feel to it, especially the design of the aliens. The final reveal was too familiar for me though, and overall it merely gets a passing mark 

Rating: 5/10

Best line:  "I still think we should have told them!"

Prog 29 final ratings:

Overall: 7/10

Best Story: M.A.C.H 1

Best Line: "Not just for you, Walter. I did it for my fellow judges, too - who died upholding the law that protects robot and human alike!"

Best Panel: