Meg 315: "Major thrill-power explosion"

[Trout]

AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

I read Indigo Prime, then Angel Zero and jumped straight to Numbercruncher.

NURSE, THE SCREENS! BRING ME MEDICATION!

It's the last part of Numbercruncher this week. It's an elegant ending that I will not spoil. This has been the best story in the Megazine for many years and deserves to be collected immediately. What clever, complex storytelling.

By the way, I almost never read my anthology comics out of sequence. I'm kind of uptight that way. This morning, I jumped ahead in the Meg to Numbercruncher. That's a compliment.

- Trout

[radiator]

Am I going mad? It feels like Megazine 314 only arrived about two weeks ago?!?!

[Trout]

We have Indigo Prime, Angel Zero and Numbercruncher.

Yes, you are going mad. We are all going mad.

Abandon your consensus reality now!

[The Cosh]

A grim Saturday morning thought The Cosh as he returned from the shop to find the postie had left him a Meg but no Prog. Resolving to make the most of the hand he had been dealt, he sat down with a cup of the old chai and a hot buttered muffin and tore open the envelope.

Faced with an Alan Grant Dredd I almost gave it all up and walked away but I persevered and I'm glad I did. This was quite different any of the infrequent Dredd stories he's done in recent years. Initially it seemed as if it was going to batter us over the head with the old ecology groove that was a bit of a Grant trademark for a while and I was starting to get annoyed at the disconnect between narration and action, but then it twists away into something that I maybe should've seen coming but didn't. I'll leave it to the parents to argue whether this sick filth should be banned, but I found this a really good Dredd outing with a couple of standout moments.

I think the finale of Numbercruncher managed to wrap everything up in a suitably logical fashion but I'll need to sit down and read the whole thing before I can give a proper assessment. Something which will probably have to wait until Monday when I'm on holiday. This and Lily MacKenzie have been a real endorsement for both this creator-owned slot and the whole idea of non-Dreddworld strips in the Meg. I hope American Reaper can fill its boots.

Mr Alec Worley digs deep into compost heap of Dredd lore and comes up smelling of roses with a tight and witty tale from the Black Museum whose protagonist should really have taken heed of Marvell's chilling warning: "My vegetable love should grow // Vaster than empires, and more slow"

Bringing up the rear it looks like we're going to hear the story of how Koburn got his Curse. So far an unremarkable but rock solid story from a realiable team so I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes.

All in all, a genuinely great Meg, all wrapped up in a Duncan Fegredo cover featuring a daft speech bubble of the sort every right-thinking person loves.

[Bluecube]

Brilliant Dredd from Alan Grant. We need more of this stuff.

Numbercruncher came to an end and I thought "Finally!" It was good stuff but I've been feeling the past three episodes have been dragging. Maybe it'll read better when graphic novelised.

I've been enjoying reading the collected Mercy Heights stories which gel well together in collected format. Quick question over something that confused me in the latest batch though. (spoiler added just in case) In Part 5, The Taking of Mercy Heights, we see a Fedayeen Stealth Suit implode creating a black hole which apparently is going to suck in all of Mercy Heights. Eeeerrrr... What happened to it?

[Keef Monkey]

Now that was a great Meg!

That was probably the best Grant Dredd I've read in ages, and I was quite shocked at how dark it got. I really didn't expect it to go there but it did, and I'm glad it did.

Numbercruncher has been fantastic throughout, and this last part left my head spinning a bit. I feel like there's a bunch of stuff I need to re-read, and I know it'll be brilliant when I do. The art was incredible and energetic, the script as clever and witty as anything Spurrier has done. Might give the whole thing a read tomorrow.

I'm always happy to see a fresh Tales From The Black Museum, and I was particularly pleased that this one tapped into old Dredd continuity the way it did.Grimly funny, in the way that TFTBM is perfectly formatted for.

Koburn was always going to be a joy just for the art, but the story seems to be doing some interesting stuff. It's reminding me a lot of that movie R-Point, although it's really nothing like it so forget I mentioned it.

All that and I got a letter printed, ace. Made up for not receiving the prog.

[Toni Scandella]

I have loved Numbercruncher all the way through, from the excellent opening text pages each month to the story itself.

But I did not understand what was going on in the final page.  Maybe I'm just thick?  Am I the only one who didn't get it?

(not read the rest of the Meg yet...)

[Hawkmonger]

Am I going mad? It feels like Megazine 314 only arrived about two weeks ago?!?!

Who knew?
Well i'm gonna pick my meg up next week end (now i'm back to school I only get the oppertunity to pick up the prog and meg every saterday.

[Buttonman]

All that and I got a letter printed, ace. Made up for not receiving the prog.

Bah stuck out of the country - any good news to brighten my day? - all this massive eating, boozin and sunshine can fair dampen one's spirits.

[Trout]

Buttonman: neither you nor your Edinburgher arch-enemy feature on letters pages this week.

Your terrible struggle must continue.

[pauljholden]

I have loved Numbercruncher all the way through, from the excellent opening text pages each month to the story itself.

But I did not understand what was going on in the final page.  Maybe I'm just thick?  Am I the only one who didn't get it?

(not read the rest of the Meg yet...)

Tony, can't apologise enough for any confusion; it was a tough idea to communicate and I'm loathe to spoil it in this thread (or any other, as, hopefully it'll get collected and I'd like the end to be as unspoilt as possible). I had hoped it was clear, but just in case you do know that Richard Thyme is the name of the mathematician?

[James Stacey]

I'm glad someone else asked

Thanks PJ

[Toni Scandella]

I should have gone back and read it all in one go... I'm sure my memory would have held up better then

I enjoyed the rest of the Meg, too.  At first I thought Alan Grant's Dredd was being preachy, then it turned around and was brilliant.  I also loved the Tales From the Black Museum - but Numbercruncher still has the edge and I will be forst in line for the trade - and thanks PJ for answering

[Proudhuff]

Tough choice, straight to Numbercruncher or to Cursed Earth Koburn?

Koburn won, but just so I could savour the final NumberCruncher, and it did close the circle as it were. Just hope American Reefer can fill its boots. Koburn currently ticking all my boxes bythe way bigman and the Black Museum tale was a nice reference to an old Dreddverse tale too

The Dredd was a fine dark tale, no kids over esculators but much much worse  , the art and story telling were all done very well, the only crit would be that the skinny Dredd lacked gravitas

Lots of text articles to chew over in the coming days, pity about the letters page 

[locustsofdeath!]

Sniff, this will be my last Meg purchase in the UK. 

The prospect of not reading it again for a long while would have been easier a few years ago before Tharg got things sorted. Now I even enjoy reading the movie reviews.

For once my wallet hurting has been overruled by my - sniff - heart hurting and I'll add the Meg to my subscription.