Rob reviews 2000 AD Prog 2359…
We’re back once again with another trip into the 2000 AD Thrillverse. It’s the usual suspects again this week, with our famous 5 continuing their stories. However, things are soon set to change as not only are we getting the finale to Rob Williams and PJ Holden’s latest Dredd, Fall of Deadworld is also taking a break until the new year.
But fear not! For there’s plenty of thrills coming our way, and the Xmas Prog is only a few weeks away too!
Back to the present and under the hood of a frankly superb cover by D’Israeli we have: Hershey’s killer is revealed in Judge Dredd: Poison, Death fights back in Fall of Deadworld: Retribution, the Ballerophon arrives in Helium: Scorched Earth, Constance gets in deeper trouble in The Devil’s Railroad, and finally there’s more medieval mystery with Feral & Foe.
Judge Dredd: Poison - Part 8 (Rob Williams, PJ Holden, Peter Doherty, Simon Bowland)
Dredd’s investigation into who killed Hershey comes to its inevitable conclusion this week as the Judge heads deep into the bowls of Mega-City One. It’s been quite a wild journey over the last eight parts as Williams has taken Dredd on quite a wild goose chase as he’s chased the shadows of PJ Maybe, headed to the Cursed Earth, and gone off world. However, his search has led him back to Mega-City One, and he’s now about to come face-to-face with the person who orchestrated Hershey’s fatal poisoning.
Poison has been quite an interesting if yet underwhelming experience. As a Dredd tale it’s been great to see Dredd sent on a wild goose chase that had me question just how PJ Maybe could fit into it - and it’s always great to see a slow-burning Dredd tale that’s not just full of action. However, considering the blistering and brutal style that Williams “ended” Hershey’s standalone series, Poison feels a little too easy.
Holden and Doherty continue to work their magic as they capture the atmosphere of Williams script. I’ve been a fan of PJ Holden for quite a number of years and his artwork here is just as versatile as always. And those opening shots of a snarling Dredd add a lot more gravitas to his spoken words!
Fall of Deadworld: Retribution - Part 7 (Kek-W, Dave Kendall, Simon Bowland)
We’re at the mid-season finale and things seem to be at a turning point. Death has been figuratively reborn, Casey Tweed has been dealt with, and Ava Eastwood along side her ragtag group of Sov Judges are closing in. With the circle closing in on De’Ath, he’s decided to have a war of words with Sister Eunomia about destiny. But for De’Ath to become the character we all know, judgement has to come to Deadworld. And with Kek-W already teasing the world’s end (remember the statue of teeth?), then Eunomia’s retribution speech could be in De’Ath’s favor.
Kek-W and Dave Kendall continue to deliver the goods with Fall of Deadworld. Not only has Kek-W created this hellish world that makes you root for the “good guys” even when they’re not really “good”. He’s also made quite a page turner in seeing just how Death and his group brought an entire planet to its knees. Kendall then brings it all to life with dripping entrails, mutated freaks, and a plenty of other nasties.
It’s also so good that Tharg’s missed out on the obligatory credits in the opening page!
Helium: Scorched Earth: Part 8 (Ian Edginton, D’Israeli, Simon Bowland)
As the Ballerophon starts its bombardment, it’s not looking good for Sol, Bloom, and Hodge. With the local population wanting to turn over the trio to the Ballerophon, the towns mayor wants to fight. Hodge, however is still bound by duty and wants to turn herself in rather than sacrifice everyone in the group. Yet, let’s not forget that Hodge has her own destiny to serve, and as a runaway princess - whether she likes it or not - handing herself over might not be the best action.
Edginton and D’Israeli are yet again on to something special with Helium. It’s a great adventure tale that’s packed with gorgeous art by D’Israeli, and plenty of emotional storytelling by Edginton. If you’re a fan of Scarlet Traces, and Brass Sun then you’ll love what Helium has to offer!
The Devil’s Railroad - Part 7 (Peter Milligan, Rufus Dayglo, Jose Villarrubia, Jim Campbell)
It’s been a bit of a journey for Constance and Palamon over the last few issues - and if this episode is anything to go by it’s not going to get easier anytime soon. While Palamon continues his attempts in reuniting with Constance, he’s also having to bargain with the devil in order to keep the Devil’s Railroad alive. Meanwhile, Constance has her own battles as she continues to tussle with Sister White and her brutish offspring.
Rufus Dayglo’s art has been a breath of fresh air across this run and here is no different. Each page is packed with details that really help to build the desperate situation that the cast are in. This is then backed up with a great change of pace as we get some extreme close ups where Dayglo gets to showcase the current emotions that gives everything a chefs kiss.
Feral & Foe: Bad Godesberg - Part 8 (Dan Abnett, Richard Elson, Jim Campbell)
Dan Abnett has been on quite the run recently within the Prog. Not only has he continued to shine bright with The Out, we then got Azimuth that added to the writers impressive bibliography. Next up it’s Feral & Foe which is sort-of like Lord of the Rings once Sauron had been defeated. So far Abnett has taken the unlikely duo of Bode and Wrath though plenty of absurd dungeon-crawling adventures that perfectly parodies the fantasy adventure.
This time and the duo find themselves on the wrong end of another couple of outlandish monsters. While Wrath battles the isogedron in the castle dungeon, Bode is about to come face to…well, face with the next batch of ugliness.
It’s all fun and games as Abnett get carried away into fantasy absurdity while Richard Elson taps into a grim-dark D&D session gone disastrously off the rails. It all then comes together to create a true masterpiece that’s the perfect accomplice to the current Prog schedule which is a bit too sci-fi heavy…
Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow us on X/Facebook @GeekCultureRev, TikTok/YouTube @Geekculturereviews, and BlueSky @geekculturereviews.bsky.social
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