Prog 134

It's been a funny old week, and I am in desperate need of some peace and quiet. The thought of sequestering myself away with some old comics for the next hour is appealing and just the thing I need to get away from the real world. You know things must be bad when the world of Dredd, A.B.C. Warriors, and Disaster 1990 look more appealing than the world we live in, but such are the current times.

Prog 134

13th October 1979 

I love a good mystery, and a good mystery is exactly what Judge Dredd has on his hands this week

A mysterious cut-and-paste message arrives at Dredd's office. Signed "The Invisible Man," it tells Dredd that the author intends to steal a piece of art from the gallery, and gives a precise time and day this will happen.

Despite Dredd's best efforts and an abundance of foam, the Invisible Man makes good on his promise and the art piece is duly stolen.

Another letter arrives, this time to arrange a money drop. The Invisible Man is demanding ten million credits, or the city will be sorry. 

Dredd goes along with the money drop but sets a trap. However, the Invisible Man is too fast for Dredd, and although the bag only contains a radio beamer, the Invisible Man manages to snatch it without being seen, while eluding Dredd and his army of judges.

The strip ends with another note arriving, telling Dredd that the Invisible Man will make him the laughingstock of the city. 

If there's one thing I love more than a good mystery, it is a good pasted-together note. We have three in this story, and their mere existence says more than the actual words on them. They lend the story an old-fashioned air of mystery and, despite the story being set in the future, the sight of these hand-pasted notes was a familiar throwback to the past and a well-known genre.  

The actual mystery itself remained unsolved by the end of the strip. Dredd remains a long way from solving the case, despite the amount of resources (and foam) he has thrown at it so far. I'm not sure how I feel about Dredd facing an unseen villain. Although I like the mystery of it, it does depower the crook when we don't know who or what he is. It would be nice to perhaps have a panel showing things from his end, or perhaps I am just trying to bend it back to something I have already seen and I'd be better off enjoying this tale presented in a different way 

Like the hand-pasted notes, seeing our world appear on the pages of Dredd gave the strip a humour-laced edge. The art gallery and the artefacts in it were an early highlight. The first piece of art we saw, Bellini's E=Mc2, was superb and was made even better by Dredds droll comment on art in general. There was plenty of action after this comment, but it remained the most impactful panel in the strip, and the one I will remember most.   

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "Looks like an old twisted coat-hanger to me..." 

When we last saw Blackhawk, he was clubbed to the ground by the evil troll Zog. This week, we leap forward in time, as Blackhawk awakens in a strange vat filled with a vile fluid.

Smashing his way out, Blackhawk finds the director near at hand. Blackhawk learns this is the healing vat, filled with healing fluids to restore any warrior. 

Blackhawk returns to his quarters and meeting Ursa he joins him in more training. Ursa introduces him to Snikka trees, trees that spit out seeds like deadly weapons. Together Ursa and Blackhawk fend off these seeds, but one missile catches Blackhawk off guard and he reacts with fear - ducking under the seed and letting it strike Ursa. 

Ursa bites it off his arm and tells Blackahwk that he recognised the look on his face. It was the look of fear, and one common to those who have been in the healing vat. Ursa warns him that the vat saps your courage, and is a bad place. 

Blackhawk knows he is correct, and over the page, they encounter a visitor bringing forth a creature to challenge the director's gladiators. Blackhawk watches as the mask is removed from the creature, and the drone brought out to fight it dissolves before their very eyes. 

The director tells the challenger that no gladiator could face that, and he refuses the challenge. However, Blackhawk strides forward, telling them he will accept the challenge. He knows he must find his courage and if he dies at least it will be bravely.

Belardinelli's art is a great match for the aliens he depicts, and it's hard to imagine an artist better suited to drawing the weird and wonderful creatures that Blackhawk faces. This week it was the Snikka Trees, and they were imbued with an unease that spilled over into outright fear as Ursa demonstrated what they were capable of. They seemed to leap off the page under Belardinelli's direction and gave a good sense of their speed and motion. 

We didn't see much of the next monster Blackhawk must face. His face was hidden beneath a mask, but we did see his awe-inspiring power and it was enough to instil fear into not only Blackhawk but also the reader at home. I have no idea how Blackhawk could fight such a being, and although the story was an out-and-out cliffhanger, it was certainly enough to draw me back next week. 

Blackhawk has settled into a steady rhythm in the last couple of weeks, and I find myself enjoying it much more. It doesn't feel as rushed, we are getting to know Blackhawk better, and the the monsters he is fighting are more considered. Each week's challenge is greater than the week before and there is the sense that we are steadily moving onwards and upwards. How much further we can go remains to be seen, but for now, I am enjoying what I read, and am happy to continue on this journey.  

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "But Ursa catch seed first! Good game, eh, Blackhawk? Good practice for real chop-chop!" 

We have a Flesh crossover with the A.B.C. Warriors this week with a dinosaur storyline appearing on Mars.

Mike Molasses is taking part in a manhunt on Damnation Island. Riding his Tyrannosaur, he and others of the bored jet-set are hunting a young man. The hunt is successful, but as the dinosaurs devour their prey they lose control with the smell of blood. Mike Molasses is thrown from his mount and can only watch as the dinosaurs go on a rampage, eating the other rich kids before making their way to the mainland. 

At this point, the A.B.C. Warriors are brought into the story. Mike Molasses is punished for his cruelty with the harshest penalty available- death at the hands of Deadlock. 

His father pleads his case, but the robots are ruthlessly efficient and coldly tell him that his son got what he deserved. 

Shortly after the Warriors set out to capture the other dinosaurs, using some female dinosaurs to lure them. Meanwhile, Mike Molasses' father is planning revenge, eyeing Blackblood as a warrior who could potentially betray the others.

The first time I saw dinosaurs on the pages of 2000 A.D. I loved it. The first iteration of Flesh was an enjoyable laugh and although the second one wasn't as quite as much fun, it did have an excellent villain. I'm not yet sure how I feel about dinosaurs appearing A.B.C. Warriors. Until this point, A.B.C Warriors has been excellent in its world-building. We have seen different landscapes on Mars and met a variety of Martian characters, Suddenly seeing dinosaurs in the same setting was somewhat jarring and a little unnecessary. Far be it for me to question the writers, but surely there was some other type of large Martian creature that could have been used here, and then gone on a rampage. We don't necessarily have to see dinosaurs again, especially connecting directly back to Flesh, and it did feel out of place on first reading. 

That said, I did enjoy the general direction of the story. Seeing the Warriors dispense frontier justice and executing Molasses helps strengthen the view that these are emotionless robots and offsets some of the humanity of late. I have been a big fan of that humanity so far, however, a slight course correction in this regard will only help the moments of humanity shine brighter in the face of a tough mechanical world. 

The final panel of the story was the most important. Hearing that Molasses' father intends to turn Blackblood into a traitor excites me, and I am more enthusiastic about this than the main dinosaur storyline. How or when this happens I don't know, but I assume it could be as soon as the next issue. I shall try not to skim over the dinosaur plot to get there, but the two will go hand and hand, one acting as a hand brake on the other and slowing what could otherwise be a thrilling story,  

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "Why did those robots have to kill my baby..? Michael was such a good boy...such a good boy!"

Wolfie Smith is surrounded by stuntmen who think he was somehow involved in the accident that has left their colleague Simon Trent in hospital. Before Wolfie can explain himself, he is caught by psychic forces emanating from the nearby rocks, and through his body, a message is delivered to the gathered men to leave this place. 

With this message, Wolfie's face contorts and becomes clay-like. The men try to attack him, but he easily throws them aside. Tara Lawson's voice brings him back to the moment and the spell is broken.   

However, Wolfie is told to leave by the group of extras that witnessed what had happened, and Wolfie is left to explain to Tara how the stones possessed him. He tells Tara that it is some sort of warning, and something diabolical could happen. 

Even as he speaks, events are unfolding as a storm brews on the film set. J.R. the director thinks it will add to the atmosphere. Seeing a costumed character coming toward him, J.R. is impressed with the costume, little realising that it's not one of the actors, but rather something far more dangerous. 

I am surprised that more questions aren't being asked of Wolfie Smith. He seems to have got off lightly for the trouble he has caused so far, helped in no small part by the strange forces at play. Tara is the closest to him, yet she readily accepts what she has seen and what Wolfie has told her. 

This helps accelerate the story, and we are moving quickly forward without any obstacles. Wolfie has experienced the forces present and fought off the men who doubt him, and now it seems he has some thought of empathy for the forces. This isn't stated explicitly in the script, but there is a nuance to the later panels that Wolfie doesn't feel the forces are against him per se, more against anyone present. 

This should play out in full next week, and we already have a sneak peek of what I store. The costumed figure in the final panels is pitched just right and embodies everything I would expect from such a strip. The character has an air of the unknown about him, as well as a quiet menace. The art of Vano is perfect, and the final picture is worth a thousand words. Wolfie takes a break next week, but I shall be most interested to see what Vano can do with the material when he returns. 

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "I am...the messenger! The warning..!"

Disaster 1990 is moving north as Bill Savage, Professor Bamber, and their old army dukw, make contact with a new group of survivors. 

These survivors are armed, and their land is fortified with barbed wire fences. Savage and Bamber are led through these fences and after a confrontation with some of these survivors, they are introduced to the Archer, the biggest landowner in the area and the leader of all the hill farmers who have rallied together. 

Bamber tells Archer that they propose a policy of mutual assistance between the hill farmers and the Oxford community, but Archer rejects him outright, telling him that it's every man for himself and they will stick with other isolationist ways. 

Savage speaks his mind, which leads to a scuffle and Savage and Bamber are escorted back to their vehicle and told to leave. However, there is one final drama as Archer's two sons vandalise Savage's vehicle right in front of them. Shooting it with shotguns, they then attack the vehicle with axes, before forcing Savage and Bamber to jump off the cliff into the water. Swimming back to his vehicle, Savage clambers aboard telling Bamber that they ain't leaving till he's had his say. 

A change of scenery has done Disaster 1990 a world of good. This week's story feels fresh and exciting, and Savage has finally encountered a dangerous and believable opponent. Archer is portrayed as a powerful leader, while his two sons add danger and menace to the proceedings.

It's hard not to read this without considering the wider political landscape. Archer is pursuing isolationist policies, and although he is in a position of power, it does seem short-sighted in this flooded world. In 2025 it's easy enough to project this forward into our times as we see similar politics play out over a variety of matters. I'm sure it's not written with that intention, and like any great art, the baggage that that observer brings with them is just as important as what the artist has shown us. 

The artwork did a fine job of demonstrating the power of these new survivors Savage has encountered. Not only are the men armed and dangerous, but the perspective chosen for each panel reinforces this feeling. While they smash Savage's vehicle, we find ourselves looking up at them, making them loom large while the reader feels small. It's all very clever, and part of the joy of this comic. 

I have long waited for an issue as good as this one from Disaster 1990, and have been rewarded with a story that shows off serval aspects of Savage's character and the world he lives in. He has a worthy adversary, and as the strip ends Savage is in a losing position. He will overcome, and I only hope the story doesn't rush to that conclusion and we get several more weeks of Savage versus Archer. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Hallo, big man. We been admiring your vehicle an' we reckon it needs a little cleaning up!"   

Prog 134 final ratings:

Overall: 7.5/10

Best Story: Disaster 1990 

Best Line: "Who understands art? At least it keeps the citizens happy..."

Best Panel:  

Prog 133

This issue is a step down from what has come before, although every story points to a brighter future.  It's hard to be too disappointed when we are only a week away from many of these stories blossoming. In particular, the lesser strips all had stories that built nicely toward a payoff in the coming weeks. The Mind Of Wolfie Smith, Disaster 1990, and Blackhawk did enough to keep me turning the page, and by the end of each story, I was excited by the next week. I have a whole week to roll these stories around in my head, wondering where each could possibly lead. The week will pass fast, and before you know it I'll be back here again to take in Prog 134.   

Prog 133

6th October 1979 

The great Muldoon has received permission from Judge Pepper to perform a stunt in which he dives through a steel plate using an invented particle converter. Judge Dredd wants to stop this daredevil stunt, and as a crowd gathers, he dispatches Sweeny to find Pepper and cancel the permit. 

While Sweeny is gone, a gang of robbers tries to steal the arena's gate takings. Dredd and the other judges soon apprehend them at the arena, and by Sweeny's return, order is restored.

Sweeny has the cancelled permit in hand, but he's too late and the Great Muldoon is already climbing to the platform to make his dive. Dredd shouts for him to stop, but it's hopeless and Muldoon leaps. The inevitable happens, and his particle converter fails to work and Muldoon comes to a very public and messy end. 

The strip ends with Dredd commenting on the entertainment value of the act, and the poor ending, but as he says, that's showbiz. 

A lightweight story by Judge Dredd standards. However, it did have a sharpness about it, only dulled by its brevity. The cleverness of the dialogue carried the story, yet by the final page the story no longer held my interest and I was reading for novelty value alone. 

Muldoon felt silly, and the premise of his show was flimsy at best, leaving me to wonder why people would bother paying to see it at all. Seeing Dredd involved did add some weight to proceedings, and although the crooks were dealt with swiftly, it was all a sideshow to the main event of Muldoon's stunt. When Dredd said he had forgotten Muldoon, and hurried back to see the stunt, I felt the same way.  Disappointingly, the stunt didn't deliver, and the stealing of the takings overshadowed Muldoon. 

For all that, the panel of Muldoon crashing into the steel plate was fantastic, and a highlight of the comic for me. We had three pages dedicated to the stunt, and all three contained some fantastic artwork. Paired with the dialogue, this made up for the weak storyline. A better plot would have had me gushing over this week's strip, and even with the tepid plot I still found a lot to like on the pages. 

With the dialogue remaining as sharp as ever, and the social commentary still present throughout, Dredd is still one of the best in the comic. This week may not be the best of Dredd, but taking a step back, there is plenty to enjoy and most of the elements that make Dredd what it is are on the page. 

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "Guess that's showbiz" 

Another week, another monster for Blackhawk to fight against in the arena. This week's monster is large and grotesque, but after a spirited battle, Blackhawk defeats it. 

Leaving the arena, Blackhawk still faces opposition from the other gladiators. Even when he is resting, the director sends drones to kill Blackhawk, ostensibly to keep him sharp and test his reflexes. 

The director thinks Blackhawk must learn how to lose, and with that in mind, he locks him in a room with a dwarf. This is Zog, a very special dwarf who has replaced certain neural connections in his brain. He now attacks anything that moves and will not stop until he defeats it. And so it proves in the final panel as Zog furiously attacks Blackhawk, smashing his shoulder before clubbing him to the ground. 

The first three panels of the story that showed Blackhawk's opponent did the monster an injustice and sketched it out to be a rather cartoony villain. This was rectified as the strip progressed but for me, the damage was already done and I couldn't take it seriously. 

Blackhawk himself still looks as cool as ever, yet he is once again let down by the situations he finds himself in and the general direction of the plot. That may have changed in the final panels of the strip, but we will have to wait a week to find out. His fight with Zog is completely one-sided, and we start next week not with Blackhawk facing a new fight, but in the midst of one. It's a small difference, but it should give next week's issue more pages to deal with the fight's outcome, and the possible twists and turns the story could take should Blackhawk lose. 

This story was disappointing, but for the first time in weeks, I am quietly optimistic about what comes next. The scope of the story felt like it widened a little with the appearance of the director, Blackhawk potentially losing, and a dwarf who punches above his weight. We have new elements coming into the mix, and although Blackhawk is still moving from one fight to another, we now have several ways in which the story could branch out. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "By my ancestors- a midget!"

The double page that opens A.B.C. Warriors is powerful and quickly lays out what has come before. A plague is sweeping through the city. Triggered by fear, only the robots are immune. The A.B.C. Warriors are travelling to Death Valley - the source of the plague, to try and stop it. 

In the desert, they find a dead couple in a car and a child playing nearby. Not wishing to upset the child, they talk of other things to keep him entertained, while telling him that his parents are merely sleeping.

A sandstorm arrives and Hammer-Stein tells the little boy to stay close. Nearby Mongrol has a vision of Lara, the woman who sacrificed herself so that he could live. Mongrol reaches for her to protect her, disregarding Hammer-Stein's warnings. Hammer-Stein's warnings are well-founded as Mongrol shows signs of the plague. He has become afraid, not for himself, but for Lara, and with this, the plague has taken hold of him.

Hammer-Stein falls victim to the plague, and Deadlock points out that he has become afraid for the boy during the storm. With this Deadlock realises that the boy is a mirage created by the plague to help its spread. There is only one thing that can be done, and Deadlock tells Hammer-Stein that he must conquer his fears and kill the boy. 

The boy pleads innocence and begins to run away. Hammer-Stein pauses, and it looks as if he won't go through with it, but at that moment the plague speaks directly to him through the boy. With this, Hammer-Stein's resolve stiffens, and he brings his sword down upon the boy. 

The strip ends with the plague beaten. An alien's intelligence that feeds on fear is overcome by the conquering of fear, and Mars is safe - at least until next week.

An excellent story from start to finish, with a beautiful twist to round it out. Many things within the story excited me, but one can't go past the first page without passing a comment. It wonderfully summed up the story so far and gave one a sense of how deadly the plague had been for the city. It draws upon imagery of the Blackdeath, while also giving us a taste of the future with robots collecting the dead. Normally I'm drawn to the words first, but in this case, the artwork is undeniable and worth every minute I spent with it. 

The heart of the story lay out in the desert and the desert scenes were equally evocative. I could feel my own fear rising as I read the story. Having the plague take a human form to help spread was an intriguing idea well investigated in the strip. So too were the robots being able to feel fear, not for themselves, but for humans. This had me pondering for quite some time after I finished reading the story. Given the rapid rise of AI recently, I couldn't help but wonder how long before what we read on the page becomes real. 

The story touched on the horror genre in those panels in the desert, and with the boy being a physical embodiment of something evil. It is a common trope in horror and brought to mind not only many horror movies I have seen but also the writing of Stephen King. All this was distilled into five comic pages, making the writing of Pat Mills all the more impressive. 

A.B.C. Warriors has picked up the mantle of Judge Dredd and since its appearance in the comic, it has become one of the mainstays, consistently rivalling Judge Dredd for my affection. This week it easily trumps Judge Dredd. This story spoke to me on several levels, and each time I read it I found myself considering another part of modern society. Written forty years before our times, yet completely of our times, this story has aged like fine wine. I can't wait to take another sip from the glass next week. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "I knew I would triumph! You can't kill me...because you're soft - soft as the red sand in which I live...and fester!"

Wolfie Smith has joined the cast of a new horror film. But now, incredibly, the horror has really started to happen. 

Simon Trent, Wolfie's rival for the attention of Tara, comes across a fearsome face while climbing a cliff, and falls. Wolfie senses what is about to happen, and although he yells a warning and runs toward where Simon is about to fall, it's too late and Simon crashes to the ground. 

While Simon is taken to the hospital, the other stuntmen are suspicious of Wolfie and how he knew Simon was about to fall. They close around Wolfie, but Wolfie is saved by the appearance of J.R. - the director. 

J.R. is all business, and desperate to get the film back on track, especially since his last two films were box-office flops. The filming resumes while Wolfie and Tara take a stroll near an unusual rock formation. Wolfie notices that the rocks bear some resemblance to the face he saw in his vision, but he has little time to consider this as he is again surrounded by the angry stuntmen demanding to know more about his role in Simon's fall, and threatening physical violence to get the answers. 

Wolfie Smith is getting better by the week. This week wasn't exactly action-packed, but it continued to add layers and there is a definite sense of moving forward.

Wolfie's rival Simon has left the strip for now, and it's his friends that Wolfie now faces. Although we don't have a single focal point for Wolfie's conflict, the threat is extremely real. There is no doubt in the final panel that violence is imminent, although it remains to be seen if it will be from the surrounding stuntmen or from the unusual pile of rocks. The seed was sown just before the stuntmen arrived, and I wouldn't be at all surprised to see this pile of rocks playing a part in next week's issue. 

Wolfie has become more likeable of late. This is due in large part to his pairing with Tara. Although she wasn't a driving force in this strip, she appeared on most pages, usually beside Wolifie and guiding him through the story. It gave Wolfie a touch more humanity and anchored the story nicely in the face of some paranormal events. 

The story is still at a simmer with the boiling point due to arrive next week. The story has been well crafted to this point, and the payoff should all be worth it when Wolfie's psychic enemies and very real enemies combine against him.  

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "There he is! There's the little creep who seems to know a lot more than he lets on!" 

Disaster 1990 continues with Bill Savage still in Oxford and still rubbing up against the authority figures there. The three dons in charge are unhappy with Savage's primitive ways, and his attitude to helping out. 

Bamber is dispatched to go and have a word with him, but their conversation has barely started before a punt load of students appears. They have been sent to teach Savage a lesson and attack him with their punt poles. Savage repels their attack, holing their punt with a shotgun blast. 

The dons are incensed and confront Savage. However, Savage has news for them, he has found wool freshly shorn from sheep in the water. Somewhere, someone has got organised on dry land, and consulting the map they decide it must be up north near the Pennine mountains. 

Bamber has the idea to send Savage north to contact them, and although one of the dons is vehemently against the idea, the other two think it a good idea. 

Savage wants Bamber to accompany him, but the dons put their foot down, telling Savage that Bamber is too important to go with him. Savage isn't happy with this but makes his preparations and is soon on his way. 

Stopping for freshwater he is attacked by a giant water snake. He is saved by the appearance of Bamber with his shotgun - Bamber has secretly stowed away to join him. They are happy to be back in partnership, but even as they speak they have been already spotted by the northern survivors who are right now deciding whether should they kill them right away or once they arrive. 

Although I didn't rate this highly, there was plenty here to bring me back next week. The thought of Northern survivors, and Savage's imminent clash with them, offers lots of potential for human drama and out-and-out action. 

We had action this week, but it was empty and didn't add much to the story. It did emphasise the dons' opposition to Savage but was unnecessary coming after the fiery argument they had already had about tSavage staying in Oxford. 

The friendship between Bamber and Savage took a large step forward this week, and this was the first time it was made explicit on the age that they are becoming firm friends. I like the partnership so far, and to see it deepen into a friendship is surprisingly satisfying. Bamber disregarding the instruction of the Oxford scholars was a development of his character and gave the story a new dimension. 

Everything else in the story points toward next week, and one can only hope that it doesn't bend under the weight of expectations. I have had my hopes dashed in the past, and I'm yet to learn the lesson to temper my expectations. I like the character of Bill Savage and his surrounding cast. On the horizon, we can see a story worthy of what has come before. Given that the characters are becoming well-rounded, I can only hope the story does the same. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Send Savage - as our representative? Unthinkable!"

Prog 133 final ratings:

Overall: 6.5/10

Best Story: A.B.C. Warriors 

Best Line: "There must be a blood sacrifice! Kill the plague child! Kill the spawn of Red Death!"

Best Panel:  

Prog 132

Saturday morning - I have my favourite playlist on, a warm cup of tea in hand, and Prog 132 ready to go. Life is not perfect, but it's pretty close to it. On the pages of 2000 A.D., it's a different story, and all our favourite characters find themselves in a variety of scrapes this week. All face various degrees of jeopardy but Blackhawk is facing the deadliest foe of them all.  You'll have to read below to see who or what it is, but rest assured, 2000 A.D. has delivered another solid issue and a fine way to begin the weekend.  

Prog 132

29th September 1979 

Judge Dredd, is on the trail of a killer targeting people who earn money from the TV show 'Sob Story". So far there have been forty-one such victims, all of them appearing on the show, and all of them living in mobile homes. 

Dredd sets a trap, planting his own sob story on the TV show - Otto Slump, the ugliest man you've ever seen. With the hook baited, the money rolls in and Otto  Sump becomes exceedingly rich - the ideal target for the murderer.

The action begins to catch up with the story as a mobile ambulance pulls up next to Sump's mobile home. From the ambulance appears Doctor Benson, who promises to transform Sump with a face change. 

Sump invites the Doctor across, and the situation changes as Benson pulls a gun. Dredd is waiting for just such an event and bursts out of hiding, grabbing the Doctor. There is a fight, and the showdown ends with Dredd shooting the ambulance off the road and calling for medical aid for the criminals. 

There is one final coda as Dredd tells us that once the relatives of the murder victims realise there's a connection to 'Sob Story', the TV show will face multiple lawsuits. This comes to pass and in the final panels, we see a very special "Sob Story' with the host, Johnny Teardrop, begging for money for himself as he now faces financial ruin. 

This was part two of a story that started last week, and although parts of it were very good, it never quite lived up to last week's promise. 

It's hard to pinpoint exactly where it failed to deliver. The art was consistent throughout the story, and several panels were outstanding. It was a similar truth with the storyline. It told its story efficiently and gave us several enjoyable twists and turns. It was creative and drew from several genres while giving us a unique tale. However, none of this gelled for me, and I found the overall strip was less than its sum of parts. 

Perhaps this is due to my own expectations. The idea was clever and appealed to me. I immediately loaded it with my own weighty assumptions that this idea would grow into something profound and all-encompassing. Needless to say, it didn't. Instead, it gave us a well-crafted and creative story that was both thoughtful and enjoyable, without pushing into the deeper waters. It was good enough for this reader and a good fit for the comic, and I finished the story chastising myself for putting too much weight on what was a solid Dredd story that astutely pulled together several genres into a futuristic setting.      

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Isn't he terrific, folks! The name is Otto Sump! If you can't remember, just put "The Ugly Guy" - they'll know who you mean!"

Blackhawk and Ursa have been forced to fight a monster as punishment for their previous insolence. They have no idea what they are about to face, but they find out soon enough as a gigantic, scaled, monster emerges from the water.

This is the mighty Kraakhan, and Blackhawk tells Ursa that they must show no fear in the face of such an opponent. Ursa follows Blackhawk's advice and the next three pages are dedicated to their titanic struggle. 

The battle ends in the water, with Blackhawk and Ursa working together to kill the beast. As Ursa stands triumphant on the Kraakhan's head, he tells Blackhawk that he wasn't afraid of the beast, but of the water. With the monster sinking beneath the waves, Ursa begins to talk of his own demise, even when Blackhawk points out that even though he can't swim, he can at least float. 

The strip ends with Blackhawk swimming to shore, dragging Ursa behind him. Ursa is singing a triumphant song and there is a moment of humour as Blackhawk complains that his swimming must surely be better than his singing. 

It's Groundhog Day here at my Prog Slog Blog. The last four weeks Blackhawk has fought a monster, defeated it, and next week found himself facing another. That was the case this week as he fought the Kraakhan. 

The monster was bigger than we had seen previously, and the fighting was more intense. Blackhawk even had someone fighting at his side, adding an element of interest. Despite this being the best fight we have seen so far (something I have written previously) I am bored by it all. 

It doesn't feel like the story is moving forward. Beating the Kraakhan doesn't change Blackhawk's position, nor does it change his relationship with his new-found friend. Next week he will still be an enslaved gladiator fighting on behalf of the same people, and we will be in the exact position we were in after the first two episodes of the story. I have given the story a strong rating based on the dynamism of the fight scene, and the vibrant artwork of Sola, but once again I feel like a frustrated father reading his son's school report. Could do better.     

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "Axe make biggest ever chop-chop!"

The A.B.C. Warriors arrive in Viking City just as the motorcycle cult of Pyramania starts causing trouble. In an audacious move, Deadlock rides by these motorbike punks, and runs his bike up the steep incline of a nearby building. 

The gang leader feels threatened by this and attempts the same stunt himself. However, as he nears the top of the tower he is suddenly gripped by fear and dies a horrible death.

Hammer-Stein arrives with the A.B.C. Warriors and the Pyramanians leave town. The retreating riders become fearful, and they too suffer the same fate as their leader. They suddenly become skeletons in their seats and die as fear grips them.

Hammer-Stein asks if Deadlock has something to do with it. Deadlock says no, and they visit the Viking City Hospital where they learn a new plague virus is the cause. Red Death, as it is now known, is activated by fear, and further tests show that the bikers have carried it in by the dust on their boots, dust particular to only one area of Mars. 

The doctor is unconcerned by this virus, telling Hammer-Stein that modern computers can generate an antidote for anything. However, this faith in computers is misguided, and the doctor becomes scared when the computer tells him there is no antidote. Of course, this fear seals his fate, and the doctor dies where he stands, fearful of the virus he has just been handling. 

The strip ends with Hammer-Stein deciding that they must travel to Death Valley to destroy the Red Death at its source. 

Although I have rated this strip the same as Judge Dredd and Blackhawk, it feels better than those two. It has a firm direction, and an intriguing concept, and is the type of story that has potential for the next few weeks. 

The last couple of stories in A.B.C. Warriors have been wrapped up in two weeks, and my hope is for something more substantial. This could be such a story, and the journey to Death Valley could conceivably become an epic. That remains to be seen, and I am steadfast in my refusal to read ahead. For me the future is unknown and all I can do is cast my wishes to the wind. 

The thought of a virus sweeping across a planet doesn't seem as far-fetched in the post-Covid world as it did in 1979, and once again I applaud the writers for proving that truth is just as strange as fiction. It gave this story an extra edge and the thought that fear could trigger the virus is almost believable - at least a lot more believable than a lot of conspiracy theories floating about out there. 

Before I began to read 2000 A.D. I had heard that A.B.C. Warriors was highly regarded. Over the last three months, I have learnt why. Each story has a human element, in this case, fear, which makes it all the more relatable, and although it is ostensibly a story about robots, the humans that appear make the story what it is. We have yet to find out what awaits the Warriors at Death Valley, but I'm sure there will be some form of humanity there, ready to give the story a heart and soul that always lays at the centre of A.B.C. Warriors.  

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "In each case the Red Death was activated by severe heat palpitations and a massive outburst of adrenalin in its victims...in other words...fear!"

Wolfie Smith is driving toward Druid's Meet, the location for the film "Night Of The Carnivore" Beside him is Tara Lawson, the young woman who has brought him along to be an extra in the film. 

As they approach, Wolfie has a strong vision of the evil forces that lurk at Druids Meet, so strong that he screams in fear. 

After reassuring Tara that it's nothing, they arrive at the movie set. Here they meet one of the stuntmen, Simon Trent. Simon dislikes Wolfie instantly, and Wolfie knows it due to his powers.

After meeting the other actors, Wolfie and Tara watch as Simon climbs a cliff for one of the scenes. What they can't see, however, is that as Simon reaches a ledge he finds a pair of fiery eyes staring back at him from the rock.

This is the best episode of Wolfie Smith we have seen so far. His psychic powers weren't overplayed, the fear was nicely built, and we had a literal cliffhanger finish. Throw in a pretty girl and a love triangle and I am well-satisfied with what I have just read. 

It certainly helped that most of the story took place outside, and it felt like Wolfie's world was widening, both visually and storywise. Having several supporting characters also helped in this respect, as did the threads of stories that were spun out from this week. We have the aforementioned love triangle, the movie being made, and the psychic danger appearing, all with Wolfie trying to find his place in the world. It made for a well-rounded story this week, and although not a single aspect of any of these stood out, they all wove a rich blanket which should provide comfort in the coming weeks. 

A simple story, in which not much seemed to happen, this story still had far more interest than Blackhawk earlier in the issue and was a demonstration that you don't need constant action to make a compelling story. I am well and truly caught up in the dramas of Wolfie Smith, and after a slow start, I feel that this story is now beginning to find its feet. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "There's something weird about this place! We ought to turn around, and-"

Bill Savage and Professor Bamber are face to face with Doctor Pike, a crazed ornithologist leading a flock of vicious Waterfowl against them in the wake of Disaster 1990.

Using a special bird call, Doctor Pike commands his birds to attack Savage and Bamber, and the pair are forced to dive beneath the water to seek refuge. 

They can't hold their breath indefinitely and resurface only to find themselves again attacked by the birds.

Swimming underwater, they surface in a swan's nest where they can rest under cover and out of danger. As always, Savage has a plan, and he and Bamber begin to remove all the gunpowder from his shotgun shells. 

As Doctor Pike approaches, Savage ignites this gunpowder, knocking Pike off his feet and throwing his birdcall into the water. Without his birdcall, he has no power over the waterfowl who attack and peck him to death. 

Savage watches on, and after offering a sardonic comment, moves back to his boat with the Bamber. Motoring back to Oxford he ruminates that maybe Oxord isn't the place for a simple man such as him, and perhaps it's time for him to move on. 

We waited weeks for Savage to leave London and strike out for Oxofrd, and after three weeks he is already moving on. I can only hope his final thought is red-herring and he will spend more time in the city of dreaming spires.  

There is more to be told about Savage's interaction with the Oxford clique, and we have only scratched the surface so far. The first two weeks in Oxford gave us some conflict which is still unresolved, despite the adventures Savage has had since. 

His battle with Pike was enjoyable enough, although I didn't like Pike as a villain. He was too wild and overreaching in his goals, and with a bird army, he was bordering on silly. Savage outsmarted him in the end, but it was the birds that held the real threat throughout the story and they were a much better villain than Pike. 

This week's story stood on an uneasy middle ground, neither embracing the Oxford clique nor the birds as the main threat. Instead, Dr Pike was made a scapegoat for all the troubles Bill was facing. With the birds dispensed with, Bill will have to face down the Oxford scholars or trundle off to find bigger or better villains. I am hoping for the former, but would happily settle for the latter, as long as it's better than Dr Pike. 

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "Just made it - we ducked first!" 

Prog 132 final ratings:

Overall: 7/10

Best Story: The Mind Of Wolfie Smith 

Best Line: "Doctor you've got to stay calm! Remember - the disease lives on fear!"

Best Panel:  

Prog 131

22nd September 1979, I turned six years old. If memory serves correctly, I got a shiny new bike in an unmissable orange colour. I remember the party well, and I still keep in touch with some of the attendees. From the same date, I have no memory of 2000 A.D. I doubt I could read yet, let alone be interested in a sci-fiction comic. The present was exciting enough without having to consider what might be hidden in the creases of the pages of history ahead.  I doubt I would have enjoyed the party half as much if I knew what the writers of 2000 A.D. thought the future may bring. It's grim, with Dredd and the A.B.C. Warriors leading the charge on a gritty and brutal future. Even in 1990, Bill Savage was struggling, although we have already passed that milestone with nothing worse than Milli Vanilli occurring. However dark the future may appear on the pages of 2000 A.D, there was still humour that carried the day, with a healthy dose of the human soul shining through. Hope is undeniable, and with good men like Judge Dredd and Bill Savage out there, six-year-old Hamish can party on, knowing that the future can always be rewritten.

Prog 131

22nd September 1979 

We learn more about Mega-City One in this week's Judge Dredd, and despite its towering cityblocks it is suffering a housing shortage. 

Eighteen million people live in mobile homes, conveniently called Mo-Pads, in varying degrees of luxury. 

It is a more luxurious one that contains a mystery for Judge Dredd. Dredd observes it driving out of control, and once he gains control of the vehicle, he enters for a look around. 

Inside he finds a dead body in a pool, shot in the head, and after checking the rest of the vehicle he learns the man's name is Randall Hodges and the Mo-Pad has been on autopilot for almost three years. Whoever committed the murder has long since moved on. 

The lone clue is a note, leading Dredd to a TV show called Sob Story. On this show, contestants pour out their hearts, and willing viewers donate money. With 800 million viewers, the money at stake is huge, and Dredd duly goes to the studio to investigate further.  

The host fobs Dredd off, but the law will not be denied, and Dredd gets to interview him. The host remembers the dead contestant well and explains to Dredd that the Randall Hodges address was known to all who watched the show. There are 800 million suspects, and Dredd's final thought is that there may be many more victims circuiting in Mo-Pads.

This was a solid start to Dredd's next adventure. It didn't grab me right from the beginning, but by the final page, I had been sold on the concept and was ready to buy into the adventure. 

The world-building in the opening pages was done swiftly, and although this was my least favourite part of this week's strip, it was absolutely necessary for what came next. The idea that Mega-City One had a housing crisis, just like the modern cities we live in now, rang true and once I got past the concept of the Mo-Pads I wholly embraced the story.

A dead body in a pool draws from film noir, and for once, we have Dredd cast in the role of a gumshoe pursuing a mysterious murderer. With a suspect list of 800 million, he has his work cut out for him, and it will take some detective work next week to narrow this down. Dredd is often a man of action, so seeing how he approaches this case will be interesting. I anticipate some clever futuristic devices will aid him in his search. 

The future is wide open from this point. We have a curious case ahead of us, with some well-considered plot points and characters already. The TV show was instantly believable, especially since we have now lived through the rise of reality-based TV shows, and the host was familiar and realistic. The Dredd writers correctly predicted the future of reality TV in this issue, and I look forward to seeing what else they foresee for both our future and Dredd's.  

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "You don't understand, ducky...the viewers have to know where to send their money. Every contestant's address is shown at the end of the programme!"

Blackhawk and his new friend, Ursa, are facing down Battak, who is about to punish them for their friendship. 

Blackhawk acts fast, breaking one of Battak's talons, and before Battak can strike back the pair are calmed by the appearance of their master. He commands that they fight in the arena where he can make a profit rather than here, and the scene is set for them to face each other at the stadium. 

Although armed with only a sword and shield, Blackhawk gives a good account of himself. He looks to have won the fight when Battak suddenly reveals he has wings, flying above the arena and preparing to dive upon Blackhawk. 

Blackhawk responds by throwing his shield, neatly shearing off Battak's wings. Battak crashes to the ground, and the victorious Blackhawk is commanded to kill him. 

Blackhawk is a man of honour and refuses to do so. As punishment, he is set to face a monster from the planet they are on. The monster must be quite a beast, as Blackhawk is told that it's absurd for him to fight it alone and Ursa will fight by his side. 

Like the previous weeks, the artwork and the fight scenes looked great. However, we are stuck in a loop, and the story isn't moving forward. We finish each week with something bigger coming and another challenge for Blackhawk, but it never moves the plot along and he is merely fighting a different monster each week. 

I still have hopes that this story will become something more than this. I have given it a strong rating based on the enjoyable aspects of the story, with the artwork being particularly noteworthy. However, this will not be enough to sustain my interest over time, and should the story fail to find a second gear my opinion of it will quickly drop. Once again I leave with the final thought that there is a great story to be told in this context and with these fine-looking characters, but it is all being wasted with mindless action week after week.  

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Ursa will help dusky human. We friends! We chop-chop well together!" 

The A.B.C. Warriors have tried to give weapons to the Cyboons so they can defend themselves against the cattlemen who are encroaching on their land. Although Rumpus, son of the leader Bedlam, has done his best to persuade the leader to use the weapons, Bedlam steadfastly refuses. Bedlam does not approve of his son's ways, and when Rumpus resorts to bad language he is shown the exit. 

Rumpus arrives at the cowboy's camp, telling them he wants to join them. For his troubles, he is lynched, and the A.B.C. Warriors watch on horrified. The Warriors realise they cannot defy Bedlam, nor can they fight his battles for him, but they do decide to take a hand in matters. 

The following day the cattlemen attack Bedlam and the Cyboons, intent on extermination. However, they find their weapons ineffective, as someone has switched all their ammunition to blanks overnight. 

Bedlam and the other Cyboons destroy the cowboys in battle, and the strip ends with the few survivors slinking off, with the comment that they are going to spread the word that the A.B.C. Warriors mean business. 

A.B.C. Warriors really delivered this issue and is the best story in this week's comic. Coming off the back of last week's strong setup it delivered an excellent story that built not just on what was told last week, but on the history of the American West. 

The story was engaging, and although we only knew the main characters briefly, we became invested in their story. Everyone roots for an underdog, and even more so when there is an injustice at play. No doubt the cinema would cheer at the sight of the Cyboons fighting the cowboys if this was a movie, and in comic form I found myself punching the air in triumph as the Cyboons attacked with tooth and claw. 

It was the realistic note to the story that gave it heft. The early sight of Rumpus being lynched was sobering and gave the story a weight that made the final panels all the more impactful. It was just after this lynching that I realised that the word 'Cyboon' (shortened to the word 'Boons' by the cowboys) is close to the racial slur 'Coon' and was a punch to the face that made the story jump off the page. 

This was the story I was hoping we would get from the assembled Warriors. We have waited weeks for the team to be assembled, and while that was enjoyable, it was nowhere near as good as what we currently have as the Warriors take on the Martian world. May this be the first of many such stories.   

Rating: 8.5/10

Best line: "With tooth and claw, my brothers..."

The Mind Of Wolfie Smith starts with a clean slate this week as the events of last week disappear in the rearview mirror. Wolfie is still hitchhiking and finds himself on the back of a motorbike driven by a young man in a hurry.

Wolfie's ESP gives him a premonition as a vision of the bike slamming into another car pops into his mind. Taking control of the situation, Wolfie grabs the bike's handlebars, just in time to avoid an accident with a car coming around the corner. 

Wolfie escapes unharmed, however, both the bike and its rider end up in a pond. The driver of the car, Tara Lawson, stops to chastise them, but Wolife disarms her with a smile, and soon he is seated beside her as she drives to  Druids Meet. She tells Wolfie that she has signed on as an extra for a new horror film being filmed there called "Night Of The Carnivore"

Wolfie decides to sign up because he needs money. However, as they approach Druids Meet, Wolfie picks up vibrations and voices from the stone henge on site and feels that the film unit couldn't have picked a worse place to make the film. 

I found this to be likeable, and a young lady by his side makes Wolfie Smith a much more relatable character. The story got off to a fast start with Wolfie and the speeding motorcycle, but it was Tara Lawson's arrival that really accelerated the story. Wolfie is no longer cast as a loner, despite words to that effect early in the strip, and with an accomplice by his side the scope of the story widens. It remains to be seen if Tara will be a victim or a companion, but the story is coloured by her arrival. 

Wolfie's ESP only made three appearances this week. Two were essential, and the third was a throw-away moment that gave us Tara's name without taking too much of the page to do so. It was first used to foresee the car coming around the corner. This not only saved Wolfie's life but gave us some early action and a reminder of his powers. The second time gave us Tara's name, and the third was in the final panels as he sensed the forces present at Druids Meet. After last week, where it was present in every panel, this was a well-timed change of pace and slowed the story so we could get a measure of Wolfie and his new adventure. This breathed new life into the story, and after the non-stop rush of last week was a timely breather. 

We still have a lot to learn about this place, the horror movie, and the henge itself, so next week promises to deliver a lot of information while giving both drama and mystery. If it all comes together as a fine blend the payoff should be an excellent adventure with a character I am finally warming to.   

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Any way will do me, darlin'...I only thumbed that nutcase 'cos he was the first thing that passed"

Bill Savage and the Oxford survivors of Disaster 1990 are attacked by a vicious flock of Waterfowl. Savage fights them off with his shotgun, proving his worth to the Oxford scholars, but questions remain about where these Waterfowl came from and why they became killers. 

One of the Dons has the answer to the questions. Pointing to a photo of a man surrounded by birds, he explains to Savage that a bird sanctuary is nearby - set up by the university and led by Doctor Pyke. Doctor Pyke has controversial ideas about bird communications, and it is presumed that the floods swept him away.  

Savage agrees to take a group of chemistry students with him to lay poison at the bird's nesting site. They arrive without fuss, and the students leave Savage while they go about their work. However, after several hours, they haven't returned, and Savage sets forth to see what has become of them. 

He is shocked when he finds their dead bodies, and realises that they have been pecked to death by the birds who were waiting in ambush. Savage stealthily makes his way back to his boat, but a second shock awaits him as he finds the birds have roosted on his boat and Doctor Pyke near at hand telling him that he was behind the previous day's bird attack and intends to complete his victory the next day. 

The birds are great in this story and just the sort of problem I want to see Savage overcome. My problem lies with Doctor Pyke, who seems a step too far as far as enemies are concerned. 

To see Savage come up against only the birds would have been enough for me. Doctor Pyke seems unnecessary and only lessens the threat of the birds in my eyes. We already have seen Savage come up against several wild men, and it was a refreshing change to see him fight a natural foe. The Waterfowl have already proven to be tough to beat, and I thought it fitted into the era in which the strip was written. Given that many horror films of the era cover similar ground of wild animals attacking humans (Jaws immediately springs to mind) this was fertile ground for the Disaster 1990 story. Unfortunately, we are now again seeing Savage fighting another human, something that I have already seen too often. 

The most memorable parts of the story were Savage directly confronting the Waterfowl, with the panel of him discovering the dead students the highlight. This was when the horror of what had happened struck home, and put the Waterfowl threat at a new level. It heightened the drama of the following panel as Savage saw the Waterfowl on his vehicle, and ratcheted up the tension. 

This was still a good story, and with a couple of tweaks, I would have liked it even more. Even so, my feeling is we are heading in the right direction and the story should continue to progress at a steady rate.   

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "Heck! The whole lot of students - all pecked to death! The birds must have been waitin' in ambush!" 

Prog 131 final ratings:

Overall: 7/10

Best Story: A.B.C.Warriors 

Best Line: "Humans...stink!"

Best Panel: