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1438: The Shape Of Things To CONE

Started by Max Kon, 08 May, 2005, 05:11:21 PM

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McNulty

....And so to my comments...

Dredd: Really shaping up to be a good story. The elements of the stoned rock fans, the radstorm, the Dark Judge-Loving musicians, the punk bodyguard and the zealous mutants are all coming together, and the Judges just decided to join the party! I noticed the reference to a previous rock band Judge Dredd story with the mention of the Pug Ugly Experience (obviously a tribute band of the now imprisoned rock band), and their was a nice Woodstock reference with the warning to the crowd not to take the bad batch of pills!.

The V.C.'s: This story brings together the two seperate storylines with the Veto vendetta coming to a bloody conclusion and the Polity about to show up.

Slaine: I've made no bones that I haven't been exactly overjoyed with this strip of late, but I have to agree that this week has been a good one. The winter scenes were beautifully done and I also like the inclusion of the demon tracker. As for the story, I have felt an empathy with Slaine for the first time in ages. I cannot imagine how killing the infected must be affecting those that have to carry out this horrible work. I mean, it's not the villagers fault that they have been infected, but it is the innocent that have to pay for the actions of others.

Bec and Kawl: Another weird episode. It's a cultral thing but I don't have the same experience with cones that others in the more built up areas must have. I don't see them everywhere, and so consequently I don't have the nagging suspicion that they are up to no good...

So, all in all a good prog. Nice to see that Bill and the gang will be back to dish out laldy soon!
 

Dudley

I'd do my Alan Freeman impression again, but have been listening too much to an incomprehensible local pirate station's "grime MC", which nearly caused me to write the whole review as

"down kwit five mumblemumbleSHOUTmumble American Gothic f'twang ponk art, sorry"

4 - Bec n Kawl.  When the reason for the joke stopped 10 years ago, stop making the joke...
3 - Dredd.  Seen-it-before script, art's just OK...
2 - VC's.  It just keeps me interested, against my better judgement.

1 - Slaine.  Never let Langley near a fire effect again - this is bloody great!  And the script is, contrary to every expectation I've had of a Slaine story, AWESOME.


And *yoink* nice poster quote from Tharg - Futurequake as "the future of comics", eh?

Artificial Idiot

Personally, I still think the art on American Gothic is wonderful! It comes just behind the amazing work of Mr. Langley and the fantatstic effort displayed on Bec & Kawl. I just suppose it's not everybodies cup of tea.

Really forgetable prog really. Stock Dredd story that's inderesting, with good art but I can't seem to find too much interest in it. Much like the VCs, nothing wrong with it at all. It's just not transmitting to my thrill-power receptors long enough to make an imprint.

Slaine on the other hand... Wow, what a turn up for the books. Fantastic! Please Mills, keep this quality up! Because I am really enjoying this! Top stuff!

Bec & Kawl, not as funny as last week but still had a second read. I like the light hearted tone of this, and would really like to see where this is going. Indeed, the army of alien abductees looks an inteesting development.

American Gothic is still going strong, once again LeChance and Philip hit common ground. Should be a fun ride, and hopefully we'll see more action in the next instalment.

Art

Anyone want to sendmail me the text of the FutureQuake plug? I won't get this prog for months.

GordonR

The Pug Ugly Experience is also a reference to 80s indie band The Syd Presley Experience, whose name was itself a homage to  dead (or at least braindead) rockers Syd Barrett, Elvis and Jimi Hendrix.

Not that it matters much.

Bolt-01


Tiplodocus

Dredd going according to plan but I can't help thinking that "I'm more worried about what's hiding in it" would have made a good ending for the first episode.  

VCs is enjoyable action stuff (including the old action movie staple of "I can't hit the person I'm shooting at so I'll pull off a ludicrous trick shot and blow away the supports of the thing he's hiding under despite the fact that this shot is fifty times harder than simply putting a bullet between his eyes").  Have we seen the polity so far other than as big spaceships?  I can't remember so I'm intrigued by the ending...

I really like American Gothic's concept despite feeling short changed by the very sketchy characters. You really have to fill in a lot of the blanks in this story. I think that's OK for plot (sometimes exposition can be a terrible thing) but I think man and monster should have been fleshed out a bit more to make this work.

Bek and Kawl has great art and a very hardworking script and is doing it's best to make me love it. But I can't.

I fear Slaine is about to return to fire and battles after a brief change of pace and colour scheme.  Am I the only one who thought that a great opportunity was missed here to build some suspense and horror into the routine hack and slash we've endured of late?  I don't like the rigid structure of Langley's panels. Row after row of page wide panels keeps dragging me out of the story.

Heh heh - That's a nice bit of selective editing going on to get a poster quote of "FUTUREQUAKE... the future of comics" - THARG  but I'll let you off. Wish I was going to Bristol to see all of the finished comic(s) but I'll be whisking my wife away to a beautiful island* for the weekend.



*Arran.
Be excellent to each other. And party on!

wrighty47

I'm feeling the same way. My sub copy hasn't turned up yet!  :(

As for FutureQuake??!!  It goooood!

Alan!

Carlsborg Expert

Taking the time to deliberate my thought I have the following assumptions

Dredd iiiss good,it takes a run of the mill plot and transfers details of religious undertone that scale from the classic iconography of the celebrity worship up to invention of new deities through a new civilisations own understanding its own struggle.Rolled up with sloops of ultraviolence and baked in gouache for a week.It does go into completely predictable mode at the end with another fine mess of Judges flooding the scene and oh what could happen?

In the enjoyable VCs young anekin Ryx sets off to find the illusive Veto and five of his cohorts with a lovely echo of humanity in the script.Positions of charactors work their best in telling the story.A nice but an oover used ending of its big and its already on top of us,climax.

The cold shouldered Slaine wanders along,straight(I hope I dont offend any straight people saying that word but perhaps you shouldn't have used it to define a generation of those in your sexuality,mayhaps?)into a classic,village with a secret scenario.Clints, work is often beyond definition with the ammount of detail he can fit into a piece and here he shows what a little genius hes getting at composition and tying different events happening in on pane.The ending being so cultish I fear for younger readers sleep.Maybe my own as well.

Ah,our intrpid reluctant adventurers hapleesly find themselves with a hangover on a cone.On wonders if this may lead to ethnic cleansing in the road maintenance department.A lot of it is played for laughs in the spread and no, I wonder how they can stop this invasion.Im sure the plot does nt involve much time jumps to later dates when the world is under the control of the cones.

Finally I love Westerns and being me I can not deny anything from American Gothic.It may be treating the comparisons this week but its standing up like a new born calf,now.
In the future I hope to see it give some good solid bull.


Ta.



PS. Expo Expo Expo!

Darryl

Dredd - after a few months worth of good, solid storylines, this is poor.

VC - as last week - DAbnett's seemingly on autopilot. Good artwork though.

Slaine - hmm - did i miss an issue? where did the demon slave come from? why is it now winter?

Bec n Kawl  - made me laugh.

American Gothic - after last weeks, I've decided to read this in one go - maybe itll appeal to me more then.

overall - beter than last week, but not by much. 6/10.

Swearengen

For the first time in ages I really enjoyed this weeks Slaine although I wish Mr Mills would stop with all the wet business offers that seem to appear every week.

Dredd not enjoying the art just dont like the fact that because of the background colour it just all melds into one.

The VC's seems to be picking up and wish Tharg would give the lovely Bec a cover of her own.

TommyVindicator

For starters l like the cover, it seems different in a very sketchy way.

Dredd: I'm loving the story. Its funny in a ironic sense yet doesn't go overboard with the humour, which is good for a Dredd story. The sharp and dark artwork really fits the story well.

V.Cs: Not so keen on the artwork. It just doesn't seem to work for me. Story is shaping up very nicely. I'm really looking forward to seeing where this going.

Slaine: Great story and some beautiful artwork. It really does shine in comparison to the likes of Bec and Kawl.

Bec and Kawl: Oh dear. I really don't see where this story is going. Just seems tacky and the puns are nothing new. Artworks decent enough though.

American Gothic: The build of tension between characters is being played off well. The artwork could do with some work but the story is off the hook.


House of Usher

Had a read of it. Judge Dredd's not working for me, not even the brown LSD reference, which has been done comedy-style elsewhere (even in cola adverts). Haven't read The VCs yet, can't be bothered. Bec & Kawl is annoying and unfunny: the cones hotline isn't topical, it's a nostalgia trip - the strip's one saving grace is that at last I've got the joke about the Frenchman's complete inability to speak convincing French, and it's not just that Si can't be bothered to do proper research. American Gothic has lost my attention for the time being.

Slaine was interesting. The abrupt move to winter was good for dramatic impact, and the whole thing has taken on such a dark tone. Now Slaine finds himself in the role of Witchfinder General, or perhaps he's turning into Torquemada? Pat has made a point of questioning our assumptions about heroes before, and it's thought provoking to see Slaine taking questionable actions to protect his land. At least this whole dilemma that has Slaine killing peasants and burning villages gives his strip some much needed gravitas.

Glad Pat hasn't used the predictable "uurgh - those prostitutes have got crabs" joke yet (and I can do without all the 'wet business' already).
STRIKE !!!

the other dredd

"Slaine - hmm - did i miss an issue? where did the demon slave come from? why is it now winter?"

Just read it and I was wondering that? Where did the demon come from? From reading last week's episode it seemed as if all the sea demons had been destroyed.

Funt Solo

"Slaine - hmm - did i miss an issue? where did the demon slave come from? why is it now winter?"

"Where did the demon come from? From reading last week's episode it seemed as if all the sea demons had been destroyed."


Prog 1436:  The demons are defeated but Lord Odacon escapes on the last page.  "Run, Sethor!" and "I may have lost the battle, but I will return..."

Prog 1437:  Odacon visits the village of Rury in summer and infects them with [drum roll] "The Spawn of Odacon!"

Prog 1438:  Time has moved on (as it does), which kind of explains why it's winter (pay attention at the back, there).  In the interim we can assume from what we are told that Odacon has infected other villages, and that (between progs) Slaine and his gang have been wiping out infected populations.
++ A-Z ++  coma ++