Prog 2012

[TordelBack]

Read it Christmas Day/Stephen's Day, and have been re-reading ever since.  So, let's make a start:

Oldies first:

Dredd:  Very cleverly done, with some welcome if heavy-handed name-dropping.  Eminently re-readable (must have tried every path and none), but ultimately not very Christmassy and thus not up to previous seasonal Ewing outings which managed to combine both wit and tinsel.  Surprised Alec Worley didn't get to this idea first!

Nikolai Dante:  Ah f**k me, this really is something else.  Head and shoulders above the rest of Prog 2012, and pretty much anything else I've read in the past while.  A bit obviously two episodes stuck together, but none the weaker for it.  Probably helps that I'm in the middle of a partial Dante re-read (partial based on the trades I can lay my hands on), which I'm also enjoying immensely - the last few years of stories work gobsmackingly well in collected form.

Strontium Dog:  Bit of a let down.  I'm delighted that Middenface's lumps haven't gang aglay, and that Johnny is back, but I'm also feeling a bit shortchanged by the pat resolution to the cliffhanger and by the rather dull off-centre Alpha we have back.  Giving it time, but not the spectacular return I hoped for.  Yet.

Sinister Dexter:  I love Abnett, I love Sinister Dexter and I like Anthony Williams, but I thought this was the surprise one-page splash from a year or two back stretched out to achingly pointless proportions.  If the lads had choked and spluttered while on NuEarth, or interacted in an interesting way with Dante or Alpha, I might have forgiven it, but as it was it was a series of missed opportunities both script and art-wise that I wouldn't have expected from these creators. 

Droid Life:  Always welcome.

[Alien Goodness]

My highlight was Absalom. Those of you who have seen my other posts will remember that it was this character that got me back into the habit of reading 2000AD every week after an absence of 20 years. He's a fantastic mixture of Gene Hunt, Constantine & Dorien Gray. My disappointment is that it was a one-off story while some of the others were kicking off into series.

[TordelBack]

Continued:

The young blood:

Absalom:  Yeah, that was good - a real highlight.  Absalom obviously has legs, and the tease of an earlier team and the odd shenanigans with the cancer avatar were enticing.  It's clealry more than a 21st C Stickleback or a geriatric Constantine, and the China Mieville parallels here are right up my street.

Dandridge: Not a madly original ghost story, and I'm not sure what Dandridge or his universe brought to the tale either, but it was well executed and I enjoyed it.


The debutantes:

And now we come to the exciting part of the Prog.

Aquila:  Every now and again 2000AD throws up a story that could have been written and drawn precisely to my requirements - this is one.  I love immortals in the past, I love the crisp period detail, I love Romans and I love Blackhawk.  The 'that's never 40 yards!' observation is funny, but the spacing of the crosses is not-uncoincidentally exactly that shown in the final magnificent scene of Spartacus, so it gets a free pass from me. I'd rather see the amazing Gallagher in B&W but that is the only thing I can even vaguely criticise.  Love at first sight. 

Grey Area:  I've already wittered in about this somewhere above, but it's a strip bursting with promise and I really enjoyed this opener.  I only hope it doesn't tread on Damnation Station's toes.

Overall:

Lacks the punch of the really great end of year Progs (for me), but what's hugely heartening is that (incredible Dante aside) it was the new or newish stuff that I felt was strongest.  That's a Very Good Thing.  I hope to be able to return to regular Proggery in the New Year, and on the strength of Prog 2012 my thrill-circuits are oscillating with anticipation.

[Devons Daddy]

The Dredd concept was bloody brillant. would have liked the idea to have taken a slightly more christmas feel, that would have made it one of the finest. though i really enjoyed every path.

the rest, it was comfort food the holidays, filled with solid, enjoyable tales, OUTSTANDING ART WORK, and overall brought my year to the close i wanted.

once again THARG THANK YOU.

[Hawkmonger]

IM BACK!!!
Anyway, here's my review of Prog 2012.
Droid Life- Usualy very hit or miss, but this nearly had me in tears it was so good. More please!
Dredd- You can only get away with one of these storys at Christmas.
In general I dont like these deside your own story type storys (Unless it's Doctor Who) but this was fun with exelent art from Higgins and a nice node to Judgment on Gotham.
Absalom- This series is fracking awsome! I'm completely honest, the art, the plot arc's, the pun's, the references all perfect! This one off was great fun also, with a nice bit of Lucio Fulci style gore from Absalom's doppleganger and steaming demon hoody's suzz bag's skeletons......and Hoppkins in a tight sweater.
Nickolai Dante- The reason I sticked with the prog when I first started reading 2000AD, and now it's back I could almost break up in tears. It's just to perfect. I can not say any more.
PS. Boobs. In 2000AD. Being used for what there made for?!
Aquila- DAMN.......thiswas good. Exelent art from Galagher, great BlackHawk like story, and a lovely bit of Scanners style head exploding. This is one to watch.
Grey Area- At first I thought Abnett had been watching District 9 a few to many times, but it's not all that similer. It's quite original and well writen with great art work from Richardon . This is another one for me to keep an eye on.
Dandridge- I really like this series, but this just felt a little future shock-ish.
Sinister Dexter- More than a bit fan wanky-ish but fun over all. What was with Deed's gun dissapiering  though?
Strontium Dog- This is my first actualy experience with the series but it seem's good, looking forward to where this is going.
There was also a chick with three tits in it. Thats a tad messed up!

[JUDGE BURNS]

I arrived home to find my weekend mail on the doormat. I scooped it all up and frantically searched for the latest Prog, and found it is now bagged.   
  Ufortunately, the poly bag was ripped down all the one side, AND there was a 4 " by "2 chunk missing off the bottom left corner of my prog !   I was gutted !       ( the rest of the mail was okay )
 I could've gone up to 4 on the postie if I had seen him ( but it was Sunday ).  I am not impressed with the quality of the poly bag enclosing my weekly prog.   I am an avid collector and need my progs in pristeen condition.   So I will off to see the Manager of the local post office with my Electronux to get some compensation first thing Monday. 

Will call Denise at the nerve centre also to see about getting a replacement copy. If I have more damaged by the postal service then I may end upcancelling my sub and just ordering my future progs at the newsagent. At least they should be dry and intact.

I feel better now thats off my chest !

[JUDGE BURNS]

I meant to put my last rant in about prog 1765, not prog 2012.   oops

[locustsofdeath!]

I'm a bit behind on my prog-reading, now being exiled here in the States - but still receiving a bi-monthly dose of Thrill Power courtesy of smallbluething. I've just finished prog 2012 and enjoyed it immensely (it was, admittedly, bittersweet, as I won't read another prog for at least two months).

Cover: Nice, if a bit low key. 2011's cover it was not.

Droid Life: Funny stuff, as usual.

Dredd: Fun, in parts. Must have been mind-boggling to write. Or easy. Who knows, Al Ewing could have meticulously planned this out and pain-stakingly put it together...or he could have written random panels on index cards, tossed them in the air and assembled his strip in the order they hit the floor. It was okay - Mr. Ewing has written better Christmas tales.

Absalom: I like Absalom better than I liked Cabalistics - and that's saying a lot. I enjoyed Absalom's chat with his undead self, a very calm and introspective moment amidst the carnage going on in other panels. Truth be told, this "conversational monologue" was much, much better than the action sequence, as there seems to be a long-term investment story-wise in Absalom's scenes.

Nikolai Dante: Hurry up and get the next arc running! Hurry, hurry, hurry! A great episode, gets the reader (re)involved in the story right away. All the characters I love, dislike and hate are here, more alive on paper than ever. I will be sad to see this strip hit the archives.

Aquila: A nice, moody and atmospheric opener. The tone is reminiscent somewhat of Robert E. Howard, especially his Bran Mak Morn stories and in particular "Worms of the Earth". The art, of course, is fantastic. Mr. Gallagher seems to be right at home drawing these quasi-historical strips, with all the hacking, slashing and bodies getting ripped to bits. Great final splash. Look forward to reading the first series.

Grey Area: Another nice series opener. Great, great way to toss us right into this world. Lots of exposition, but woven into the action in a wonderful way. The art is good...it is a relief that the sci-fi tradition of female body armor constructed for boobs lives on.

Dandridge: Finally. Dante and Dandridge appear in the same prog, giving proof that they are not one and the same.  . Good stuff, a nice little tale. Be interesting to see what the Worley-Bird coes up with next for Dandridge.

Sinister Dexter: Nope.

Strontium Dog: Best in the prog. The series I've been waiting for. Now I have to wait for my next package of Thrill Power to find out what happens next  .



Well done Tharg and Droids. Prog 2012 was a pleasure to read.

[Proudhuff]

Dredd:  he could have written random panels on index cards, tossed them in the air and assembled his strip in the order they hit the floor. It was okay - Mr. Ewing has written better Christmas tales.

Got to disagree Locust, have you read it as a straight forward tale? normal left to right top to bottom, it still works, if fact works best this way so no random tossing

Exiled? who done that!

[Sector Chief]

The Dredd strip fondly reminded me of the 'long-dead' Diceman comic. BRING BACK DICEMAN! 

Having said that is there a mistake on panel 23 (go to panel 39 doesn't make sense or is it just me?)

[locustsofdeath!]

Proudhuff! That quote sounds really bad taken out of context!!! Here's the full quote:

Dredd: Must have been mind-boggling to write. Or easy. Who knows, Al Ewing could have meticulously planned this out and pain-stakingly put it together...or he could have written random panels on index cards, tossed them in the air and assembled his strip in the order they hit the floor.

It was meant to be a comment on the madness of Al Ewing,  .

[locustsofdeath!]

Fixed the above (weird how there's no modifying a post when it's go a quote in it.


Proudhuff! That quote sounds really bad taken out of context!!! Here's the full quote:

Dredd: Must have been mind-boggling to write. Or easy. Who knows, Al Ewing could have meticulously planned this out and pain-stakingly put it together...or he could have written random panels on index cards, tossed them in the air and assembled his strip in the order they hit the floor.

It was meant to be a comment on the madness of Al Ewing,  .