Prog 66

 A busy old week here, and it took me two sittings to get through this issue. I like to give the comic my full attention, and sometimes the stories are so dense that the comic demands it of me. In this case, there were also a couple of stories I read twice. One because it was so good, and another because I thought I had missed something. Find out which is which below. 

Prog 66

27th May 1978

Dan Dare and his two men are on an ice floe heading towards an ice pyramid as we begin the strip this week. It's not their predicament that catches my eye, but rather it is a giant tentacled alien trapped in ice that catches my attention.

Dwarfing the three men, we learn that this squid-shaped monster is a Signa, a creature of deep space. Travelling across the void of space it became trapped in this planet's ice age. Encased in ice it is now slowly dying, lacking the power it needs to free itself. 

Dare tells the Signa that he has a ship orbiting that has the power to free it, but the creature forbids Dare from climbing to a point where he can signal the ship. It fears being left alone to left alone to die.

It is now that wise-cracking crew member Wise comes forward, offering to stay with the Signa. As a captive audience, Wise sees it as an opportunity to tell some of his jokes without being told to shut up. The Signa agrees to this, and as Dare and the other crew member climb to a vantage point, Wise stays next to the creature. 

The plan is a success as Dare radios the ship above, who oblige by shooting a beam of phaser energy into the ice, freeing the Signa and providing it with a jolt of energy. The Signa is freed, Wise survives and we end with Wise once again providing a suitable punchline. 

A tidy finish to what has been a tidy story. With an interesting creature and some new faces on the crew, I felt refreshed as I worked my way through the story. The story didn't outstay its welcome, and we moved quickly without any padding or unnecessary issues. I enjoyed its stripped-back style, uncluttered it was the best Dan Dare story we've had recently. With several memorable images tossed in this was a story that delivered in every facet. It was never flashy but did its job of providing an entertaining read and I couldn't ask for much more.

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Why not, chief? For once, I'll be able to tell jokes without bein' shut up! I mean...monster or not... it's a captive audience, ain't it?" 

Meanwhile, on Death Planet, space captain Lorna Varn has pulled a pistol on the leader of the colonists Richard Corey as their battle for authority over the survivors reaches its peak. This high drama is short-lived, as crew member Mike Herschal steps in and defuses the situation. 

With Varn in charge of the crew and Corey in charge of the colonists, they temporally put their squabbling behind them and focus on survival. This peace holds and for the next few days things settle with houses being built, fires made, and plenty of meat for all. 

They still mount guard at night, although we do see two of the survivors complaining that it is unnecessary and scary. After this panel things escalate, and late at night we see the two guards killed. Varn and Corey discover the bodies, just as the houses is set alight by an unknown person. There are plenty of questions, but we have little time to reflect on that as the story ends with Lorna Varn charging into a blazing building in an attempt to rescue a little girl.

A lot to digest here. I was initially disappointed to see the conflict between Varn and Corey put aside, yet everything else that happened after was excellent and I can see why it was put on the back burner. Any story that raises more questions than it answers is alright by me, and this once had me looking forward to next week for some answers. Even if they aren't answered next week, I'm more than happy with where this story is at. It has settled into a fine adventure and one that I am utterly hooked on. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line:  "We've slaved for days to build that settlement, and it's being destroyed in minutes!"

Mach Zero is wandering through the fog of London's dockland, in an image and atmosphere that harks back to any number of monster stories from Victorian times. Amidst the ruins of the docklands, he stumbles upon a group of vagrants and tramps sharing a fire and a meagre meal of beans.

They welcome Mach Zero, and he enjoys their hospitality before falling asleep alongside them. This sleep is interrupted as a gang of bikers break up the group, threatening the tramps and kicking out at the weakest. This arouses Mach Zero from his slumbers and he uses his hyperpower to full effect. Tossing aside the bikers, he picks up one of their bikes and crushes it in his bare hands. 

The bikers are dispatched with but Mach Zero's troubles aren't over yet. He has been found by an agent of his nemesis Cousin George. He unknowingly walks into a trap, and we finish the episode with Mach Zero caught in a net while a gloating Cousin George towers over him. 

The first and last panels of this story were exceptional, and beautifully set the scene for this episode and the one to follow, The picture of Mach Zero emerging from the fog was striking and immediately tied the story back to an earlier time and the canon of great monsters. As someone who has only known the current state of the London docks, this was a time capsule to the desolate wasteland it was in the late seventies and early eighties, and it was the perfect setting for this story. The final image of the story wasn't quite as striking, yet it was still memorable and prepares us for next week's issue. The story this week was heavier than last week, and I hope this tone will be maintained throughout the rest of the series. I didn't expect it to be this good this soon, yet here we are. 

Rating: 9/10

Best line: "You treating me like a friend- Zero not forget this!" 

With the Brotherhood still in pursuit of Judge Dredd, Dredd pushes the land-raider as fast as he can across the cursed earth. Little does he know what trouble awaits him as on the first page we are introduced to a Mutie called Novar. Novar is building a scrap metal tree in front of his house as his mother calls him inside, details that will be important later on.

On board the land-raider the crew reports massive interference with their scanners, a strange force is blacking everything out and the land-raider comes to a halt. Strandard in the middle of the cursed earth, Dredd steps out with Spike as they prepare to fight off he rapidly approaching Brotherhood. Sighting a scrap metal tree beside a house, they decide to investigate. 

It's here that they meet Novar, and he tells them that it is him who stopped their machine. He also tells them of their mission and goes on to tell Dredd that the mission will save many lives. Dredd wonders how he could know so much about them but there is little time for this as the Brotherhood is now upon them. 

The fighting is fierce, and it seems that Dredd is doomed as Morgar, leader of the brotherhood, throws a knife at Dredd a close range. However, things take a turn at this point in the story. Using telekinetic power, Novar sends the knife back towards Morgar. The knife even swerves around a couple of Muties before it plunges deep into the chest of Morgar.

Novar then unleashes the full force of his powers, and the leaves of the metal tree become deadly weapons that turn the fight against the brotherhood. A dark autumn indeed, as one of the Brotherhood put it so beautifully. 

This brings the story to a close, and although Dredd asks Novar to join him, Novar tells him that the cursed earth is his home and he can never leave. The final panel has Novar telling his mother what a fine man Judge Dredd is, while his mother comments that Novar's father was also a fine man before they had the war. 

The parallels to Star Wars, the Force and Luke Skywalker are all obvious and there is no need for me to discuss them here. After digesting these influences, I was thinking about how influential Dredd itself was on the comics that followed. The grim apocalyptic setting, the haunted faces of the characters, and the black humour are all things I am very familiar with from reading comics in the nineties and beyond. Now that I have gone back to 2000AD and read it from the start I can see where all these came from. Dredd's reach is long, and it's hard for me to imagine the impact it has had across the ages since it was first published. The artwork here is exceptional, and the details on the page need to be seen. A brief precis of the story does nothing to convey the detail of the artwork or even the humour and brilliance of some of the lines in the story. What amazes me most is this doesn't even feel like the best Dredd story. It is very good, and often brilliant, yet I feel it could still get better. For now, this is the gold standard, and one the rest of the comic should aspire to. 

Rating: 9/10

Best line: "Flee! The day of atonement is postponed...indefinitely!"

Future Shocks is back. It's been a while, but it makes a welcome return with a nine-panel story for this issue. 

London in the year 2000. A city monorail, skyscraper blocks, a regular hover bus service, yet there's still fear on the streets. 

A lone figure is on the run, and after stumbling over some dustbins is captured by a robotic-looking character. His pleas for mercy go unheeded, and he is executed on the spot. Turn the page and the true nature of the scene reveals itself. The robot-looking character pulls off his helmet, revealing a human inside. He tells us that the new humanoids are too realistic, now they look, sound and think like us humans. When they break out of their factories they must be destroyed before they can cause harm, no matter how much they plead.

You want hover bus service, you get the Millennium Dome. London in the year 2000 wasn't quite like the writers here imagined. As for the rest of the story -  I had to read this twice, at first I thought I had missed something. The twist didn't feel like a twist and the story was exactly as it read on the page. I had forgotten how quick these shocks read, and I admire them for their tight storytelling. This one wasn't one of the best but it was a nice reminder of how sharp these stories are. It's been a while, but I'm pleased to see Future Shocks aback, and I hope this story is the starting point for many better ones to come.

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "You heartless creature, why can't you just leave me alone to go free? What have I ever done to you?"

On the pages of Inferno, Artie Gruber has been smuggled into the Philpdelphia Freaks lineup for their game against the Hellcats. Intent on revenge against the Hellcats, Gruber has already destroyed Eegle and now has his sights firmly on Zack.

Zack toys with him, sending Gruber crashing into the safety barrier. It's a tough hit, but Gruber is still in one piece and still flying. It is now that the new member of the team, Cindy Lamont, comes to the fore. She takes a weak shot at the Freak's goal, only for the caveman to throw the ball back into play. Not only that, but it becomes white heat, sending all the players scrambling for safety. 

Everyone that is except for Gruber, who miraculously manages the catch the ball. Its unprecedented, and watching from a distance Mr Chubb surmises that his hatred is making him stronger and bloating him with power.

Calling to Gruber, Cindy goads him into throwing the ball at her. She catches it easy enough and the resulting play sees her score three points. This is to her detriment as we see in the final panel Gruber receiving new instructions - he is now to kill Cindy Lamont. 

Chock full of beautiful artwork, this was a story worth dwelling on. I wasn't one hundred percent sold on the action, but my word it looked good on the page. The insane face of Gruber in the final panel was certainly a highlight, but before this, there had already been a number of eye-catching panels. I want to like the storyline more, but for now, I just can't. Cindy seems too good for a novice, and there hasn't been enough invested in her character before now for me to care. I would love to see a strong female character emerge in this story, but Cindy doesn't feel natural to the plot, or to what we have seen previously. However, I'm more than happy to forgive that for now, as long as the art keeps delivering compelling images such as we have here. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "White heat! White heat! All the players are advised to take evasive action..!"

Prog 66 final ratings:

Overall: 8/10

Best Story: Judge Dredd 

Best Line: "No, Judge...I couldn't leave...the cursed earth is still my home. There will be others like me. Maybe it is not the end here, but...a new beginning!"   

Best Panel: