I’m not gonna lie to you - I’ve read this comic twice now, and I’m still not 100% on the plot nuances. Mutants have taken over a city block, or gangs have, and they’re holding a judge hostage…? It doesn’t matter - the basic premise is Dredd and a female Judge have to shoot their way up a city block. Just like the last Dredd movie! Where do writers get their ideas?!
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The mind behind the colour of Watchmen and Batman: The Killing Joke brings a new, macabre horror to the streets of Mega-City One this week!
Award-winning artist and colourist John Higgins and writer Michael Carroll (Judge Dredd, Jennifer Blood) begin an explosive new Dredd thriller, JUDGE DREDD: THIS CORROSION in Judge Dredd Megazine #396, as Dredd encounters the terrifying creature from the ‘Twist Loop’ dimension known as Razorjack!
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Some of the biggest artists in comic books got their break at 2000 AD – and new rising art stars now have their chance to get into its pages AND get paid for it!
2000 AD Art Stars is a brand new art competition from the legendary award-winning comic book 2000 AD.
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Batgirl and Motor Crush artist Babs Tarr is set to illustrate a Judge Dredd story in the first time there has ever been an all-female creative team on the character.
In a coup for the legendary anthology 2000 AD, fan-favorite Tarr will illustrate a Dredd story by writer Emma Beeby in the upcoming 2000 AD Sci-Fi Special, set for release in June.
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It’s cliché, but I’m going to say it anyway. Science fiction has nothing to do with the future, it’s all about the now. Sometimes it’s a warning, other times it a thought experiment, but there is another aspect, one that I think gets overlooked and goes a little under appreciated. It’s when science fiction is a protest. And at it’s heart I think Judge Dredd has always had a little bit of rabble rousing in it’s system. This annual gets that. It has everything I want in a Judge Dredd comic. Split into three stories, this issue is a fantastic clash of situations which make science fiction and Judge Dredd great.
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Writer John Wagner (Judge Dredd, A History of Violence) and Nick Percival (Clive Barker's Hellraiser) are to follow up 2015’s chilling Dark Justice with a new story featuring the infamous Dark Judges.
Read MoreAn army veteran and comic book super-fan is to have the character he created immortalised in print, four months after his tragic death. As a life-long fan of legendary weekly comic book 2000 AD, Stewart Perkins, 48, of Wymondham, was looking forward to fulfilling his dream of seeing Harry Heston, an ape-Judge character he created in the 1990s with friend Jake Lynch, finally appear in an official Judge Dredd story.
But tragically Stewart died suddenly and unexpectedly in May while working in Norway with the United States Air Force.
Next week, 2000 AD’s publisher Rebellion will publish the story that Stewart never got to see in its sister title Judge Dredd Megazine.
Based at RAF Lakenheath, Stewart – known to fellow 2000 AD fans as “W.R. Logan” – was a popular Army Cadets instructor as well as a veteran of the Queen's Own Hussars. Born and raised in Stratford-Upon-Avon, his funeral took place in Norwich on 16th June.
Named after Dirty Harry and Charlton Heston, Stewart and Jake created Harry Heston for their Judge Dredd fan comic Class of ’79, which won Best Self Published/Independent Comic at the National Comics Awards in 1999.
Drawn by Jake, the new story has been written by Judge Dredd writer Arthur Wyatt and is set in Dredd’s world 122 years in the future where genetic experimentation has given primates human speech. Heston is a smart-talking gorilla who lives in a shanty town outside the violent Mega-City One on the east coast of America. Modelling himself on Judge Dredd, Heston takes on a gang of muggers but, when they seek revenge, Heston and Dredd are forced to work together to take them down.
His partner, Deborah Ward, said: “About a year ago, Stewart burst through the front door, with a big grin on his face. Jake had just emailed over the first draft of the new Heston story and Stewart loved it. Many emails had gone back and forth since that day, and I remember Stewart proudly telling my friends about the forthcoming publication. I confess it was rather lost on them but no-one could resist getting swept along with his enthusiasm! Enjoy the strip and raise a glass to W.R. Logan, doing us proud yet again.”
His friend and artist on the story, Jake Lynch, said: “When Harry was born, we knew he was something special and it wasn't just the beer talking. To see our 'chimp-face' accepted into the pages of the Megazine was the fulfilling of an ambition both Stewart and I shared. The spin Arthur Wyatt has put on it is perfect and SO in keeping for where Harry came from. I also shared all the artwork I produced for the strip with Stewart and he gave it all the thumbs up. It saddens me to know that he won't ever see it in print but am happy to know the mighty “WR Logan” approved.”
Matt Smith, the editor of 2000 AD and Judge Dredd Megazine, said: “Harry’s a great character to add to the world of Judge Dredd and it’s a fitting tribute to one of Judge Dredd’s biggest fans. It’s a shame Stewart never got to see Harry in print, but I’m sure he’d approve.”
One of the best known fans in the British comics scene, Stewart’s encyclopaedic knowledge of Judge Dredd history led to him advising the character’s co-creator, John Wagner; this led to stories such as 2006’s Judge Dredd: Origins, which laid out the character’s origin story for the first time. In return, Wagner used Stewart’s online pseudonym of “W.R. Logan” when he created the unlucky “Judge Logan”, who has starred in several major storylines, including 2016’s Dark Justice.
During the late 1980s and early ‘90s he had served with the Queen's Own Hussars, a cavalry regiment of the British Army, and later he spent many years volunteering with the Army Cadet Force as an adult instructor. He had also previously worked for Rebellion, organising the 2000 AD archives.
Judge Dredd Megazine #376 will go on sale on 21 September from all good newsagents, priced at £5.99, as well as digitally from 2000 AD’s online shop and Apple, Android, and Windows 10 app.
It can be tough on the streets of Mega-City One and now martial arts fans can protect themselves with The Law – thanks to a new range of clothing from Scramble and 2000 AD. 2000 AD and Scramble are pleased to announce a new range of licensed martial arts clothing and compression wear which draws on the rich history of the Judge Dredd universe – featuring classic images of the ultimate lawman himself to other characters such as Judge Anderson, The Simping Detective, and many more!
The range will include licensed jiu jitsu gi (kimono), rashguards, hoodies, T-shirts, and woven gi patches.
The new products will be released through dedicated stores in the UK and USA, with wholesalers carrying the full range.
Matt Benyon, creative director and owner of Scramble, said: "Judge Dredd has long been one of my favourite characters, and the fact that Dredd is a born-and-bred British comic resonates with us a British brand. As a kid I would practice drawing Dredd until I got the lines just right; now it's my great pleasure to have the official license and to create some amazing products using the iconic image."
Scramble is a technical apparel brand with its roots in the martial arts, particularly Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and grappling. Starting in 2009, Scramble has been very successful in making clothing and equipment that transcends the sport. They are particularly renowned for their collaboration T-shirts with famous figures and licenses, as well as compression wear and BJJ kimonos. www.scramblestuff.com
2000 AD is the legendary weekly British anthology comic and home of Judge Dredd, as well as a galaxy of original sci-fi, fantasy, and horror action stars. As well as producing innovative and provactive comics for almost 40 years, it has brought the industry some of its biggest talents, from Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, and Mark Millar, to Jock, Brian Bolland, Dave Gibbons, and many more. Published in print and digital every Wednesday, 2000 AD is the Galaxy’s Greatest Comic and remains at the industry’s cutting edge. www.2000ADonline.com
It is very easy to follow the easy path when doing a crossover of franchises like these three. The fact is, one of the publishers of this book manages to do it at least a couple of times a year. It is why people hate crossovers. I will admit that I had that fear for this issue. I wondered if I had praised the first issue too much and would instantly eat my words. How could Predator vs. Judge Dredd vs. Aliens not fall into the trap of “okay everyone fight, but not really because we need to protect each brand”? John Layman, that is how.
Layman understands a few important things about this particular crossover, but then extremely important rules for any crossover. Layman protects each brand, but Layman knows that he has two disposable sides of it. No one is expecting the exact Predator or Alien to show up in something else which gives him a lot of leeways. The other important thing that he nails in this issue provides us with a bad guy. Not just any bad guy, however. Layman has created one and found a way to give him a superficial history with Dredd, but then managed to make him a threat to all parties. Now, he is not a threat to the Xenomorphs, but he is the force that can release them and thus destroys humankind.
It was incredibly refreshing to have a fucking villain in a crossover that felt like a real threat and not just another franchise character that no harm can come to. Other significant elements of this particular issue include the Predators tracking Dredd’s assault in the jungle which was a clever way of showing both parties arrival, but in a way that wasn’t annoying or clogged up a bunch of pages. The other was doing a call back to Judge Dredd vs. Aliens: Incubus which added more history to the story. Suddenly it did not even feel like a crossover, but more like canon.
I am going to spoil something with the art for you because it will tell you everything you need to know about Chris Mooneyham’s art on the book. Mooneyham illustrates a Predator/Alien hybrid that is actually really fucking cool looking. Not only that, but there’s a Judge/Alien hybrid as well created by the villain of the story. It too is fucking cool. The only thing else I will add is that Mooneyham’s visual storytelling is spot on and compliments Layman’s narration, particularly during the opening with the Predator’s figuring out the Judge’s battle with the Ani-mans.
I knew that I was going to read this issue no matter what, but I did not think there would be anything worth saying on another review. Thankfully the creative team surprised me. This crossover is a throwback to the early days of franchise crossovers in which they were cool and enjoyable. Thank god someone figured it out.
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Predator vs. Judge Dredd vs. Aliens #2 Writer: John Layman Artist: Chris Mooneyham Publisher: Dark Horse Comics/IDW Price: $3.99 Format: Mini-Series; Print/Digital
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I’m going to be extremely direct with this review. This is everything you’d want from a major crossover like this. Okay done. [su_quote]Synopsis: A predator gets killed by some The Island of Dr. Moreau dudes that live in the forest outside of Mega City One. The anthropomorphic dudes take a look inside the predator’s ship and wouldn’t you know it, their mad scientist leader thinks that Xenomorphs are pretty cool! But where does Judge Dredd fit in? He’s looking for some crazy cultists and tracks down their leader to the animal forest![/su_quote]
Granted there’s more than that going on in the story, but really John Layman takes this ridiculously awesome idea and makes it great. This really is the things that comic book dreams are made of. It’s where all these franchises can come together and play and be merry and no one worries that their brand will look weak or any of that crap. It’s just a good ole crossover. It’s throwback, but modern. He just fucking nails it.
The art from Chris Mooneyham is solid. I’m not a big fan of his Predators or the animal people, but the design and atmosphere that he creates plays an important role to the story. If I were more in love with the aforementioned designs then I would really be crapping my pants for this book, but instead it’s just really solid art that captures the essences of the three properties.
This is one of those books in which you know if you’re going to read it or not. If you’re against purchasing licensed crossovers then this isn’t even on your radar, which is a shame because it’s actually one of the best licensed books being published, even if it is just a mini-series. If you’re planning on getting it then you won’t be disappointed and if you never were going to get it then keep on, keep it on.
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This week, ‘banned’ episodes of Judge Dredd from the late 1970s are being reprinted for the very first time.
Published in 2000 AD in 1978, The Cursed Earth was the first great Judge Dredd epic, but the story ran into trouble when two episodes – ‘Burger Wars’ and ‘Soul Food’ – featured parodies of 
Burger King, Ronald McDonald, the Jolly Green Giant, the Michelin Man, and a number of other prominent corporate characters in a raucous and shameless satire of American consumer culture.
After concerns of legal action at the time the then publisher IPC decided collections of this classic strip would omit the satirical stories. But now, following recent changes in UK law governing parody, Judge Dredd: The Cursed Earth Uncensored reprints the story in its entirety for the first time.
Published on both sides of the Atlantic this week and priced at £25 in the UK and $35 in North America, this sparkling action-packed parody from Pat Mills (Charley’s War) and John Wagner (A History of Violence), complete with sumptuous colour spreads from Brian Bolland (The Killing Joke) and Mick McMahon (The Last American), is being produced in a deluxe hardcover edition featuring all the previously banned content.
Using original artwork on loan from fans, the reproduction in this sumptuous hardcover edition is second to none and includes the colour centre spreads, also never before reprinted.