Prog 117

Funny old week here, and nothing has gone quite to plan. This was supposed to be done yesterday, but instead, I drifted off to sleep on my bean bag while I plotted other projects that I will probably never, start let alone finish. Frankly, I'm surprised I have kept this up for two years without jumping onto another project. Let's credit the writers of 2000 A.D. for that. They have not only grabbed my interest enough to start a blog but held it for long enough that I have reached prog 117. When I first started I promised myself that I would do this up to Prog 1000. It's still a long way off, but with this much work behind me, I have no choice but to carry on. Luckily the comic is so good! 

Prog 117

16th June 1979 

 A manhunt for Judge Dredd and a good insight into the city of Mega-City 1 for the reader in the opening strip of this week's comic. 

The story is quickly laid out as we learn that 800 million people live in Mega-City 1.  These citizens are crammed into vast cityblocks, each housing over 60,000 citizens and containing everything a citizen will ever need, making it possible to live your life without ever leaving your block. 

Dredd is in Charlton Heston block when he calls out to a citizen the level above him. The citizen elects to run, and the rest of the comic is a long extended chase. 

This chase goes through gardens, across beaches, through hospitals, all within the block. Dredd's quarry snatches a child briefly as a hostage, before forgoing this plan and instead steals an ambulance. 

The story ends with Dredd apprehending the perpetrator and booking him for vehicle theft, kidnap, assault, possible manslaughter, eighteen other violations and seven traffic offences. Dredd asks the citizen why he ran - after all, he has a clean record, and the citizen tells him he panicked when Dredd called to him. Dredd tells him that he dropped a candy wrapper and that's why he called him, and then is left to muse on the sad cases that should never come before him, and that a crime is no less because someone is a fool.

Another very strong story for Judge Dredd, although the standout character of the piece was the city itself. We got a wonderful insight into how the people of Mega-City 1 live, and I found this to be the main thrust of the story. The chase wasn't given too much attention, and it did feel as though the creators were trying to show as much of the city and how it operated as they could. Dredd still managed to get one of his thoughtful musings in at the end, which brought us back to the actual plot, although I hadn't been too engaged with it until this point. Apart from good images of Dredd gnashing his teeth, my eye mostly lingers on the city laid out in the panels, and the wider panels showing more of the scene were the best. A couple early on set a high standard for this issue, and that standard was matched throughout the story. Beautiful to look at, this week's story pencilled out the world Dredd lives in and makes for a much wider canvas next time for the story to be stretched across. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "One spark here and I've got a riot on my hands. Trouble has got to be stamped on instantly - without mercy - for the people's own good"

Last week Rick Random solved the case of who had been murdering the Guebin delegation onboard the spaceship Columbia. It seems that his work is far from over though, and this week begins with Random telling the others that he thinks a much larger plot is at play. No one has been in touch with their home planet for several days, and when they attempt to communicate they find nothing but radio silence. 

Random tells the Guebins that the murders were merely a diversion for a coup taking place on their home planet, and the Guebins, with Random in tow, make for their planet immediately. 

They arrive to find a battleship blocking their approach to the planet. Jameela sends forth three cruisers, but they are destroyed by the battleship, and Random and the Guebins are forced to think of another approach to Shoya City.

Shoya's three moons are about to come into conjunction, which always confuses the ground-based defence-sensors. This is their chance, and Random leads a commando party of eighteen men down to the planet. They slip through the sensors and arrive at the surface. However, as they exit their ship they find a troop carrier rapidly approaching and they come under attack. 

Although we found out that the murders were part of a bigger story last week, this week's issue failed to pick up the ball and run with it. The story of the coup failed to excite me, and I am waiting for full-time to be blown on this strip. It did have some nice moments on the art side of things, but not enough to make me feel anything for the story. The enemy they are fighting is faceless, and a battleship blasting other ships loses a lot of the impact when we don't know who they are fighting. Many of the characters we previously met were put to one side, and Random's sidekick Vanda has become a mere adornment since the first issue. Next week is the final of this story, and from where I stand I can't see that it's going out on a high. We are going through the motions at this stage, and I'm about as excited to write about it as I was to read it.    

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "It's my guess the murders were just a diversion...to keep you all busy while someone mounted a coup at home!" 

Last week's Strontium Dog climaxed with several monsters rising out of the swamp as Johnny and his friends struggle towards the Black Citadel. The opening panel of this week's story shows these creatures in splendid colour and the story instantly takes on a far more sinister tone. 

Flash Harry quickly falls victim to these creatures, and Johhny resorts to his blaster to keep them at bay. However some tentacles grab him from behind, and he is drawn into the swamp. Trucker Don is powerless to save him, but Johnny still has his electronux and a blow from these frees him from the monster's grip. 

Hauled to the surface, Johnny continues with Don, Gronk and Wulf, across the swamp and up the Mountain of Skulls. The skulls are biting at their feet, and Johnny uses the electronux again to blast a path up the mountain. The swamp creatures are still following them, and they snatch Don, leaving Johnny to cry out about the evil of the world. This brings us to the dramatic final panel of Satan standing before Johnny, telling him that he is the limit. 

Flash Harry certainly didn't last long in the strip, but I can't say I'm saddened by his demise. It did kickstart this issue in grand style and everything from there on was great. Seeing the swamp monsters in colour, and taking out one of the party, was just the opening I wanted to see. It raised the stakes considerably and the use of colour was superb. Things stayed on a high as we saw further peril for the team, and there was again a glimpse of teamwork that gave these characters humanity. There was also the weirdness we have come to expect, and the Skull Mountain was a clever idea well executed on the page. We also saw Johnny Alpha using the electronux which was an expected treat. A different weapon from the blaster we often see, it was utilised twice in the strip, both times looking great on the page and working well in the wider context of the story. The strip ended on an all-time high with the appearance of Satan himself, and although I knew he would eventually appear, it was still an arresting moment on the page. A great issue, and easily my favourite this week. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Yes, my friends, there is a limit! I am the limit!"

Future Shocks presents us with a story of two astronauts in distress. A call for help brings an alien worship to their aid. This warship asks what they need and the astronauts worrying about what kind of food might be supplied tell them they need a hand with bread and water. 

A food pod is dropped to them, and the larger alien craft continues on its way. The two astronauts open the food and are happy to receive the bread and water, but upon opening the third capsule they find they have received exactly what they asked for, a plate of hands. 

I'm not sure if I'd call this comedy or horror, but either way, I liked it a lot. I cant say I was surprised by the final twist, although it looked great on the page and was pitched just right. A nice mid-comic jolt, this did everything it had to in a page, and despite its brevity, it was one of the better moments in this week's comic. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Tell them they can give us a hand with just bread and water if they have it. That should be safe enough!"

In his quest to reach the Crystal of Life, Dan Dare is fighting against a half-human monster guard programmed to kill. In the first image, we can see that Dare is struggling in his battle, but the action quickly turns to the others seeking the crystal, namely Hagnar and the Mekon. 

Their tunnelling machine has already entered the inner chamber and as they approach the crystal Hagnar has visions of smashing it to pieces and selling pieces of it across the universe. The Mekon only wants the crystal for himself to save his life, and while Hagnar is gleefully telling his men of his plans, the Mekon slips out of the tunnel and rushes the crystal. 

As Hagnar follows him, the Mekon turns to tell him that he would never join forces with such a witless thug as him. With Hagnar's usefulness over, the Mekon blasts at the cavern's roof, collapsing it on Hagnar and his men. The Mekon is now victorious and free to do as he pleases with the crystal. 

Meanwhile, Dare's fight with the guardian continues. He is making little progress and they are steadily losing men against the beast. One of the Treens has an idea and tells Dare that if they get a powerful energy flow into the power terminal in the guardian's heel, it will overload its circuitry and blow the motor-cells of its brain. 

Dan attempts this, and while Sandor distracts the guardian, Dare sneaks behind. Using his cosmic claw he blasts a powerful beam of energy into the heel. It works, perhaps a little too well, and the strip ends with a massive explosion and Dare caught in the blast. 

This was almost my favourite story in this week's comic. The artwork was fantastic, and only surpassed by the work that had earlier appeared in Judge Dredd. We had several great images of the Mekon and Hagnar, and these moments were the best in the strip. The fight between Dare and the guardian was a step-down. Despite the fight taking place across multiple pages, none of it was as good as what we saw between the Mekon and Hagnar. Several weeks ago I said I preferred the scenes between the Mekon and Hagnar over the scenes with Dan Dare, and sadly that is the case again here. Dare's foes get the best lines, and the most striking images, while Dare struggles to make little progress in overcoming his obstacles. The fact that the guardian has an actual Achilles heel briefly amused me, although I was left with the thought that the writer was being a little too cute. Still, it was relatable, and I know from my own experience I have put clever things in my work for my own amusement as much as anyone else's. If Dan Dare gets the same opportunities to shine on the page as the Mekon and Hagnar I would be much more positive about all of this, but even so, I rate this one high purely on the art and drama that the Mekon brings to it.

Rating: 8/10

Best line:  "He should not have referred to me as a dwarf who floats on a cooking pot! But now--now for the sight that my eyes have craved!" 

Prog 117 final ratings:

Overall: 7.5/10

Best Story: Strontium Dog

Best Line: "My god! Is there no limit to the evil of this world?"

Best Panel: