Prog 67

Judge Dredd should have been my favourite story this week. It was creative, funny, and grim, all essentials for a Judge Dredd story, and all essentials for my favourite type of strip/ It even had brilliant artwork, although that s a given for most stories appearing in the pages of 2000 AD. However, when I finished the comic and looked back over what I had read, I found that there were another couple of stories that my mind drifted to ahead of Judge Dredd. Like a teenage boy, I couldn't help but consider the women appearing in Death Planet and Inferno. Both brought a smile to my face and made a more lasting impression than Judge Dredd. As a stand alone story, I'm Judge Dredd all the way, but in the company of some strong women - poor old Judge Dredd just can't compare.  

Prog 67

3rd June 1978

Mach Zero offers a thrilling cover, but inside the comic Dan Dare is straight into action as his space fortress comes under attack from eight strike-craft. 

His team puts up a spirited fight, but eventually, their laser canon takes a hit and Dare has to get into his spacesuit to go and check on the damaged section of the ship. 

On his way there we learn how they got into this situation. A distress call has been received from the planet below, but as they approached they were suddenly jumped by these attack craft.

Dare finds that the canon is intact, and it is the guidance system that is out of commission. At the same time, they receive a transmission from their opponent who warns them not to get involved. Dare pays no heed and using his naked eye he aims and shoots down one of the alien ships. 

This is enough for the attackers to back off, and Dare and his men make an emergency landing on the planet. It is a bountiful world, with plenty of food for all. One crew member even describes it as a paradise.

Dare comments that it is almost like Earth, and we end on a surprise as a figure appears and tells him that's why they call it New Earth.

This story gave me serious Star Trek vibes. An unknown attacker, a mysterious paradise, and then the sudden appearance of another human. This could happen in any episode of Star Trek and it was familiar territory throughout. Dan Dare in no Captain Kirk, and in this respect I enjoyed 2000AD's take on the genre. I do question some of the situations Dare puts himself in and think it would perhaps be wiser if another character went to check on the damaged laser. Still, it's Dan Dare's name on the masthead and he must do what it takes to live up to his title. A good start to this story, I can only hope we get something original next week. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Y'know sump'n--this place sure seems like paradise after that lousy ice-ball of a planet we hit last"

Mach Zero is the cover star of this week's issue, and if the story is half as good as the cover we should be in for a treat.

We get several displays of Mach Zero's strength this week. First, he breaks from the net holding him, but several tranquillizer darts shot at him by Cousin George put paid to his escape. 

Then over the page, we find him chained to a wall. Once again he demonstrates raw power, tearing the wall apart and confronting George. 

The only thing that can stop him is his own mind, and when George pulls out a boy and claims it is Mach Zero's son he has pause to stop and think. With confusion in his mind, he calms and becomes subservient to George. 

Meanwhile, Gimpy the tramp has survived his encounter with Cousin George's men. In a curious few panels, he calls on a mysterious group called the Brotherhood to help Mach Zero with a day of whispering. We don't know what a day of whispering is, but in the final panel, we do see him asking for the help of three. 

I have so many questions about these final panels. All good questions, and all guaranteed that I will be back next week. The rest of the story didn't do much for me. I have seen Mach Zero's strength plenty of times before, and this week didn't offer anything new in that regard. But mysterious men lurking in the docksides, now that is something I want to read much more about. A story of two halves, we finish on a high and hopefully next week will pick up from right here. 

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "Yes, I know that they are busy, and I should have seen one of the lesser council men before coming to you, but this is a crisis. When one of the outsiders helps the brotherhood, and then he in turn needs help, we must provide it. Tell them that Gimpy has come and wants to start a day of whispering!"  

I love a good vampire story, and that is what Judge Dredd gives us this week, in a fashion. 

We begin with a beautiful woman and a mechanical vampire leaning over her. Extracting her blood he leaves her dead on the bed, but he seems rather remorseful as he exits via the window.

Dredd enters the picture as he comes across a hillbilly family living on the cursed earth.  Enjoying their hospitality, he is interrupted as their neighbour comes in to report his daughter has been attacked by the vampire. This piques Dredd's interest, and through his questioning, we learn that this vampire has been trouble for years.

Being the law, Dredd steps forward to investigate. As dawn approaches he is told that the vampire lair is an abandoned castle, and Dredd sets off on his bike to check it out.

It is here that the story becomes all the more interesting with the revelation that this vampire lair is actually Fort Knox, abandoned after the nuclear war that laid waste to the cursed Earth. The automatic laser canons are still protecting it, but Dredd manages to gain access anyway. 

Leading the Hillbillys down into the vaults, Dredd tells them the answer lies there. They are accosted by the vampires on their way down the stairs, but Dredd tells the Hillbillys that they are medic robots. With the help of Spikes he destroys one of them but the other two grab both him and Spikes. 

Deeper in the vault some of the Hillbillys have already reached a coffin with a body in it. They are preparing to drive a stake through the heart of it, while above Dredd, still in the clutches of one of the robots, tells Spikes that they are about to kill the last President of the United States. 

Intriguing end to the story, and one that guarantees that I'll be back. This story was full of twists and turns and I appreciate the reinvention of the vampire genre. Although I was fully engaged in the story at the time it was only afterwards that I truly appreciated the cleverness of the concept. Often it is the dialogue that grabs me, or the artwork, but in this case, it is entirely the concept that has me enthralled. From start to finish it was full of invention, and the final panel throws up so many questions that I know next week will be just as good.

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Oh, dear...a lot of gold is smashing my...head. I do not feel...well."

Death Planet succeeds in raising just as many questions as the Judge Dredd comic that precedes it. 

Lorna Varn is dashing into a burning hut to save a small child. Acting as the voice of reason, Richard Corey pulls her out before she can find the child, but just in time to save her from the collapsing hut. Varn is saddened at the death of the child, and Richard Corey has to remind her that she couldn't have done anything anyway and she's best to help the survivors.

Questions are raised about who could have started the fires, and we the readers get an inside scoop as we see a few miles away two men on hoverbikes approaching a spaceship.

Entering, they report to their leader that they have found the survivors. Their leader is a powerful-looking woman who immediately questions the whereabouts of Lorna Varn. They report that she has been killed in the fire, much to the displeasure of their leader who tells them that she wanted her alive. This displeasure is expressed by the sudden killing of these two men, and this mysterious woman goes on to say that she wanted to deal with Lorna Varn herself.

Meanwhile, the survivors are off in search of shelter. It's cold and snowing, and while some ride the strange animals that inhabit the planet, most are travelling by foot. At the back of the column rides Herschal. He is struggling and falls further and further behind until in the very final panels he falls from his beast and lies motionless on the snow. 

Strong Empire Strike backs vibes from the final page, although this is four years before that movie came out. I would not be at all surprised to see Han Solo arrive on a tauntaun about now. That aside, this is an issue that changed my perception of the story entirely. Other humans on the planet have changed the context of the story and raised a lot more questions. It has also delivered another character, and I must say, I am quite taken by her already. She has a fabulous look and obviously has just as a strong personality as anyone else in the strip. I certainly want to see more of her in the coming issues, and I hope there is a juicy backstory to go with all these clues being laid out. Plenty to look forward to, and this issue has been a game-changer.

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "And the woman, Lorna Varn, what of her?" 

Cindy has just scored a cave-in for the Hellcats in Inferno and is still taunting Dimples Devine, the alias of Artie Gruber.

Speaking to Gruber through the device planted in his brain, Mr Chubb tells Gruber to bide his time. The next play will be his opportunity for revenge. And so it goes, for as the ball comes back into play Gruber pulls Cindy from her bike and directly into the path of a teammate in a fearful collision. 

While this has been happening, Louis has picked up some of the signals between Gruber and Chubb. Cindy is taken from the field in an ambulance, but Louis has worked out the signals between Gruber and Chubb mean and alerts Giant.

Giant is a man of action, and he immediately flies at Gruber, promising an inferno fight to the death, despite the warnings that this is exactly what Gruber wants. 

More carnage on the field, and again the sense that this is the real thing. Nobody is pulling any punches as we head to the climax that will come next week. I must admit, this story has vastly improved in my opinion and it has earned its place in this eclectic line-up. The artwork is sensational, and we have an excellent story for the artist to flex his creative muscles with. I don't have any complaints at all with what I have read here. I never thought I would say this about Artie Gruber returning, but I'm happy he's here and I can't wait to pick up the next issue to see what happens.

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "First I'm late for da match - den I squash da lady...uhhh...what a day..!" 

Prog 67 final ratings:

Overall: 7.5/10

Best Story: Death Planet

Best Line: "I'll tell you, Spikes...they're just about to kill...the last president of the United States!"   

Best Panel: