Review: 2000 AD Prog 2415

It’s Wednesday which means that Tharg has once again delivered another zarzaz of thrills as 2000 AD Prog 2415 heads to newsstands and comic book shops. With the publication celebrating 48 years this year, there’s no better time to jump on board and see why the sci-fi anthology is so revered. 

It’s straight down to business this week as we get continuations to last week's strips. Dredd and Hernandez lock horns in Judge Dredd: Soft, the cult classic continuation continues in Hawk The Slayer, trouble is brewing in Portals & Black Goo, Constanta heads West in Fiends of the Western Front, and finally, Cyd meets the beast in The Out. 

Phew! 

Judge Dredd: Soft - Part 2 (Rob Williams, Arthur Wyatt, Henry Flint, Jim Boswell, Annie Parkhouse) 

Continuing the threads that we built within the fantastic ‘A Better World’, Rob Williams and Arthur Wyatt are now dealing with the aftermath of Maitland’s death. With the dream of changing Mega-City One now dead along with Maitland, the political ramifications of that dream are now being explored. 

‘Soft’ centres around Council of Five member Judge Hernandez as he attempts to solidify his power in the wake of ‘A Better World’. Seeing Maitland’s experiment and Chief Judge Logan’s willingness to try it out as a sign of the Justice Department going “soft” he’s now settling his sights on Dredd who’s been a loose cannon in his plans - whatever that may be. Meanwhile, Dredd is in the thick of it as crime rates have since skyrocketed in Sector 304. With no signs of slowing down, could Hernandez also be behind the uprising? 

This whole story has been rumbling on for quite a while now with it starting in the wake of ‘End of Days’ back in 2022. Since then Williams and Wyatt have crafted quite an intricate narrative that started to ask what Mega-City One would look like without the omnipresent powers that are the Judges. With ‘Soft’ this notion is then taken in the opposite direction as Hernandez enacts his power grab. It’s also building towards the inevitable confrontation between Dredd and Hernandez, but I can’t help thinking that someone else could be further pulling the strings. 

And of course, Jake Lynch’s art is bloody fantastic! 

Hawk The Slayer: Last of Her Kind - Part 3 (Alec Worley, Simon Colby, Gary Caldwell, Annie Parkhouse) 

Well, I said last week that I hoped to be up to speed on what’s going on with Hawk, and I’m pleased to say that I am. 

Hawk has found himself within the city of Valenfort which is ruled over by Lady Morlaine. Sounds simple enough, but there’s a curse hanging over the city as Lady Morlaine wants to turn back time to before her young daughter went missing. Needing a hero to set things right, it’s over to Hawk to do just that. 

Simply a feel-good fantasy frolic, ‘Last of Her Kind’ continues the journey that set off back in the feature film. It’s a good vs evil tale as Worley gives us swords and sorcery that keep the tone of the movie and Garth Ennis’ follow-up story/sequel.  Colby’s art and Caldwell’s colours are spot on for this strip with a great choice that brings this medieval world to life. 

Portals & Black Goo: A Quorum of Fiends - Part 3 (John Tomlinson, Eoin Coveney, Jim Boswell, Simon Bowland) 

The problem I’m having with Portals & Black Goo is that everything seems to be happening at once. With three separate narratives to keep track of, I’ve lost all understanding of what I thought I knew about what’s going on. So while I try to pick up the pieces, let’s just say that something bad is on its way, which will hopefully pull all three characters together. 

Where the plot is a little confusing, Coveney brings it all together with their art. Even if I don’t know what’s going on, Coveney’s character work is gorgeous to look at. Throw in great use of colours by Boswell and Portals & Black Goo is a great-looking strip. 

Fiends Of The Western Front: Wilde West - Part 3 (Ian Edginton, Tiernen Trevallion, Jim Campbell) 

Constanta and Oscar Wilde (yes you read that right) are hot on the trail of Count Kamarovsky, a monster hunter, and a cousin of the Russian Emperor. Meanwhile Oscar’s adversary, the fallen angel who’s masquerading as the Earl of Hatfield has started his mission of tracking Oscar - in quite a bloody fashion. 

There’s no witty banter this time between the playwright and vampire as the focus switches to their respective enemies. The change in perspective is a great addition that heightens the tension between the four respective characters. With Oscar Wilde being the only one who’s not technically a monster, it’s going to be interesting to see how Constanta deals with both the Earl and the Count. 

As always, Trevallion’s art makes ‘Fiends’ that much more enjoyable. The line between human and monster is often blurred within the story of Constanta and it is captured well by Trevallion. While ‘Wilde West’ may seem a departure from the snowy forests of Russia, its bright façade hides a dark, brooding undertone.  

The Out: Book Four - Part 14 (Dan Abnett, Mark Harrison, Simon Bowland) 

Last time out Cyd was deep in the bowels of The Momodorpho space cruiser in search of the missing guests. Trouble is, she wasn’t alone and soon found herself on the run from something quite large with a lot of teeth. Things then take quite the turn as Cyd realises what The Momodorpho is, and what happens to its passengers when they reach their destination.

Where we were once delving into Alien territory, we’ve now firmly gone full Prometheus as Abnett throws one heck of a curve ball to where he’s going with the narrative. Cyd’s realisation as to what’s happening changes the whole feel of the past few episodes and shows how developed the threads are to Cyd’s adventures. 

I’ve also been quite critical of Harrison’s art over the last few weeks. While he’s a bloody good artist, I’ve felt that there’s been too much to look at which. At times this then makes things confusing as I’m not sure what I’m meant to be focusing on. However, in the last few weeks, this hasn’t been an issue as Harrison’s art has allowed the story to flow. 

Could The Out be getting its mojo back in the eyes of this crusty reviewer? You bet! 

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