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Prog 1980 - They've got the whole world in their hands....

Started by Colin YNWA, 07 May, 2016, 11:37:31 AM

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Verence

Quote from: Dandontdare on 10 May, 2016, 01:35:23 PM

My question about Dredd: [spoiler]WTF's going on with his arms?  :o[/spoiler]. Enjoying this story, and Joyce Jr makes a great sidekick for Dredd. I'm sure Texas are up to something too, that chief judge is a mite too friendly, but not sure what.

Some sort of power grab definitely... maybe the next mega-epic will be a war between MC-1 and Texas City.  I'm thinking the Brit-Cit Judges who are holding Dredd are a rogue element within Brit-Cit Justice Department who think Mega-City One's era is over and it's a better idea to ally with Texas City.

BTW is it just me who thinks the robot driver of the bus that nearly ran over Joyce looks like Blakey from On The Buses?

Frank

Quote from: Verence on 11 May, 2016, 11:26:50 AM
Quote from: Dandontdare on 10 May, 2016, 01:35:23 PM
My question about Dredd: WTF's going on with his arms?

Some sort of power grab


That would explain his arms, but he must have been overdoing the power grabs to get them in such a state.

Mike Carroll was nice enough to mention how close we were * with our guesses concerning what happened to Dredd, let's push our Cassandra credentials and speculate that whatever cure for being dead the Brits are giving Dredd also leaves Rebellion with a little wriggle room on the question of his aging.

Talking of age, Carroll gives Mayhew and Corden some dialogue explaining that although Hershey's fifty four she's as fit as a thirty year old, but I'm sure that was just small talk and won't turn out to be an important plot point in later episodes. [spoiler]HERSHEY'S GOING TO HAVE A BIG ACTION SCENE![/spoiler]

Round of applause for the name Pamelina (Oswin); a name that's half Wagner, half Roald Dahl. The way the TC CJ towers over Hershey makes me wonder if Dredd's about to get its first transgender villain - going toe to toe with Pamelina will be Hershey's greatest catfight since Joan Chen tried her luck.

What's with the colour(s) of her/his hair? I conducted my own extensive research, but I've no more clue about that than whether McCluskey's plastic paddies are Brits or Texans.  Interesting to see what Brit-Cit stand to gain from a plan to unite the 3 US megacities and for helping by keeping Dredd in limbo.

Do you think Dredd's Brett Ewins VR helmet means we'll get a holodeck episode of Next Generation, where Dredd figures out what's going on? Maybe Dredd's in The World from DC Dredd, or an old West fantasy where he's a homesteader married to Hershey and teaching little Rico and Kraken how to herd steer.


* Well, me and Dandontdare, anyway

Starkers

Quote from: CalHab on 07 May, 2016, 03:55:10 PM
Is it just me that finds it impossible to tell what's going on in the artwork on Slaine?

No I haven't got a clue either. I might be less bothered if the script wasn't so turgid. How many times has the line "Obey like a dead body obeys" been used now. Frankly I'm enjoying this like a dead body would...

Dredd was excellent. I like Joyce a lot, and though I was 99% sure Joe was still in the land of the living I'm glad they haven't drawn it out too long. Is Texas City the villain of the piece, is it Brit-Cit? Are they working together? Pamelina is so obviously up to no good that I'm hoping its a feint and TC are actually the good guys.

Tainted is really growing on me (like some kind of fungus obviously) and I liked the Judge Child nod as well. Guess since they've namechecked all the Dark Judges Fairfax is either going to die, become one of the lesser Dark Judges or somehow escape? (Not sure how that can work though)

Brink is just annoying. Too much exposition. I normally really like Abnett's stuff as well and the artwork is clear and nice, I just can't connect with it.

Survival Geeks was ok, I've found it less annoying of late which is something I guess!

Goaty

Is it strange I like Judge Fairfax and his Lawmaster?

JayzusB.Christ

I must admit it took me quite a while to warm to Mike Carroll's Dredd - I think I was blown away by Al Ewing's magnificence on the strip and very disappointed when he left; and thought at the time that other non-Wagner writers had a lot to live up to.

But I'm on board now.  Mike does a fine Dredd; and Joyce is a great supporting character.  (Once again thanks, Mike, for doing as I suggested years ago and rescuing the Emerald Isle from Garth Ennis's silliness.  Not saying it was my suggestion that spurred him to do it, or anything.)  Really looking forward to seeing how this develops.

Tainted is great; especially now we can see the four big boys in mid-transformation.  I've said it before, but  as far as Dark Judge back stories go,  I'd take this over Young Death any day. 

I haven't really got into the Abnett strip, and Survival Geeks is a fun, throwaway strip.

Which brings me to Sláine.  Sorry, but I just think it's time he hung up his hero-harness.  I liked it when he was developing from a violent teenage hooligan to a violent noble king, and I think he jumped the shark long ago.  It's just very dull these days.  No direction, no dwarven comic relief, lots of silly chat over pointless fights. Sláine was once a brilliant strip, but these days I just don't see the point.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

Frank

Quote from: Starkers on 13 May, 2016, 10:56:57 AM
Quote from: Tordelback on 11 May, 2016, 11:06:46 AM
Brink ...Lovely dialogue, designs and character work. Feels almost like a near-future Halo Jones.

Brink is just annoying. Too much exposition. I normally really like Abnett's stuff as well and the artwork is clear and nice, I just can't connect with it.

Normally I'd agree, but Tordelback correctly identifies why I found this week's episode entertaining. The naturalistic dialogue and INJ Culbard's easy way with characterisation was more Love And Rockets than Space Precinct.

I suppose Abnett felt he'd earned some time with the characters after the Dredd (2012) opening episodes, but I'd prefer another six weeks of Carol Vorderman detox chat to the shootouts and crotchety old police captains I'll go back to being indifferent about next week.

They're persona non grata on this board, but the most perceptive and funny commentary on prog 1980 comes from the bad boys of 2000ad fandom, the ECBT2K crowd. Your intrigue concerning the clever observations on PJ Holden's metaphorical framing of characters and the name of Fire's cadet will outweigh your outrage at the terrible slurs against the Welsh:

https://2000ad.wordpress.com/2016/05/13/prog-1980-review-orlok/



Tiplodocus

Enjoying most of prof but unsure about Slaine  and just not getting Tainted at all.  (Struggling to know who is who and when it jumps location. Obviously  I am not paying attention so will attempt to re-read it in one go)
Be excellent to each other. And party on!

Ghost MacRoth

Cover: Niiiice

Dredd: Oh look, he's not dead!  He got better!  Although I don't get quite why they blow him up.... make him better, and hide him.  Surely if you want to put him on trial Hershey will find out.... so why the dire warning about what'll happen if Hershey finds out??

Survival Geeks:  Nowt new to report...still liking it!

Slaine 'The Bore-tania Chronicles': Didn't bother throwing my tuppence in on it's return.... but more talking heads and stretched scenes.....wake me up if something worth reading occurs.

Brink:  Great.....just suffered Slaine, and now this.  Dull, dull, dull.  Again, I should say it's most likely the disconnect I feel with the art.... get someone else drawing it, maybe I could find an 'in', but Culbard's art does nothing for me at all.

Tainted: And the big lads have turned up!  Yay!

I don't have a drinking problem.  I drink, I get drunk, I fall over.  No problem!

ThryllSeekyr

After I got my refund from Steam......

As you all know...I only get the Prog for Slaine & I just flick through the digital pages until find that tell tale explosion of colour that herald the work of Simon Davis. Kind of like going to a nudie bar just for that glimpse of a certain something and nothing else.

Even if it's getting worse as most of you say. I found it's to follow and read properly these days, and even I though there was too much dialoge during the battle. I kept flipping back to another internet page and then almost forgetting I was still in the process of reading Slaine. Even with my own penchant for long sprawling essays. I think this needed less of words. Even as it turns out that now most of them were coming from Slough Junior.

And then those last three words issuing in unison from the mouths of both Slaine and now Gort as well! You'd think this is return to one of the things that made him cool. Yet, it doesn't work on paper.

Is Pat Mills off his game again?

Is there a Pat Mills?

I sometimes think that he might have been hired as acting author used as a façade while somebody else ghost writes behind the scenes. For awhile it's doesn't seem like the same writer. I've been nursing that assumption for along time now and only because lacks the thrills that it used to have.

Not that I want to accuse Pat Mills of taking the credit for somebody else, but if I didn't. It might be that he's now taking the blame.

TordelBack

Oddly I thought this week's episode was pretty good - Slough Goddodin is a great design, and was beautifully painted in all his glory this week. Like everyone else I wish Pat would stop hitting the 'paste' button for 'obey like a dead body obeys', and the script instruction 'BOTTOM RIGHT PANEL: Slaine is bloodied and on his knees, about to be beheaded. Leave room for Next Prog box',  but aside from that I'm enjoying proceedings.

ThryllSeekyr

I forgot to add that line....

HUMANS
ARE AFTER ALL
A BASTARD RACE.
NEITHER APE NOR
CYTH


Now I always thought that Apes & being descended from them was Darwinism.

Sure the author might not agree. Given that I couldn't immediately find anything (From that link above!) to support my belief that we are descended from Apes. Not that it has to be that way & especially in this universe.

Nothing wrong with that really....anything is possible in here!

This begs a question about that Dark Gods book that P. Mills once referenced was a partial source for Time-Killer & all that stuff about the Root-Races.

Where did humans come from? 

(Of course, the answer might found if you follow the last link.)

I don't actually believe this it true, but like Slaine. I like a good fantasy fiction!




TordelBack

Quote from: Tordelback on 19 May, 2016, 11:33:56 PM
Oddly I thought this week's episode was pretty good - Slough Goddodin is a great design, and was beautifully painted in all his glory this week. Like everyone else I wish Pat would stop hitting the 'paste' button for 'obey like a dead body obeys', and the script instruction 'BOTTOM RIGHT PANEL: Slaine is bloodied and on his knees, about to be beheaded. Leave room for Next Prog box',  but aside from that I'm enjoying proceedings.


Bah, this was meant to be in the 1981 thread.

ThryllSeekyr

Quote from: ThryllSeekyr on 20 May, 2016, 03:33:23 AM
I forgot to add that line....

HUMANS
ARE AFTER ALL
A BASTARD RACE.
NEITHER APE NOR
CYTH


Now I always thought that Apes & being descended from them was Darwinism.

Sure the author might not agree. Given that I couldn't immediately find anything (From that link above!) to support my belief that we are descended from Apes. Not that it has to be that way & especially in this universe.

Nothing wrong with that really....anything is possible in here!

This begs a question about that Dark Gods book that P. Mills once referenced was a partial source for Time-Killer & all that stuff about the Root-Races.

Where did humans come from? 

(Of course, the answer might found if you follow the last link.)

I don't actually believe this it true, but like Slaine. I like a good fantasy fiction!

A few corrections....

I also thought being descended from apes was something to do with Darwinism (Even though I can't find evidence to support that  from following that link!)

Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah....

Where did humans come from....in the Slaine-verse?