Only last night I read last weeks Prog and said how hard it can be to pull of ending and yet last week it was achieved with aplomb. Well this week we have a lesson in how to make the also tricky opening episodes likewise sparkle. So often they can feel like set up, a steady start to set the scene. This Prog proves how that can be done with so much more beside. That said I'm getting ahead of myself.
I really should start at the beginning and that cover is just wonderful. We're what half way through the year and we're already having another dazzling year for covers. Could we have another Tharg cover winning the end of year cover vote? That Liam Sharp bit of delight will surely be a contender.
Inside the excellence of the openings is summed up by the final panels of Sinister Dexter, Savage and Zombo. All three absolutely crackle with thrill-power and have me hankering for more already. I loved how all three set up, getting there with masterly introductions. Setting the scene but each telling a contained powerful story in there own rights. Sinister Dexter and Zombo do so my introducing a nice intriguing new element or two. Savage just takes a superb snap shoot of the character we already know so well. All three are top draw and fantastically drawn.
The 3riller wasn't quite as controlled meandering a bit but was effective enough to make me want to see more.
The Dredd however actually surpassed the masterful three. Cramming in three times as many introductions as the other brilliant tales in this issue. It was a very healthy reminder of quite how much Wagner is able to effortlessly blend into 6 pages. Christ the number of American writers who should be made to sit down and read this again and again until they've worked out how its done, or how its half done to give them a chance. Its just an incredible piece of craft so beautifully realised. While the first three stories I talked about did a fantastic job my isolating elements to present an introduction, set up and story Wagner opened to scene wide and gave us it all.
Oh man and that cover too. Endings last week, beginning this week. 2000ad really is a masterclass!
Great Prog.
