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Should Dredd ever be killed off?

Started by Syne, 08 April, 2012, 11:38:27 PM

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Syne

#15
What's the deal with the rejuvenation process anyway? I presume it can't fully restore youth fully, as Dredd has had at least one rejuve job yet is still feeling the effects of age.


I think Dredd's boots are too big for any one character to step into. Maybe I just have memories of the "Kraken" storyline where Dredd's clone tries to do just that, and fails miserably. The Adventurer's idea of an ensemble cast might be the best bet. And I recall someone suggesting - might have been here, might have been on the reviews blog - that Dredd's brain/personality could be preserved in some Justice Dept. computer. That could work really well, continuing the Dredd/younger judges dynamic that's going on at the moment but allowing those younger judges to take centre stage.

The Adventurer

Quote from: NorthVox on 09 April, 2012, 05:17:30 AMDredd would give his life, passing the mantle onto Rico. Rico would accept the mantle, and in honour of the old man, change his name to Dredd.

Man I don't know. Dredd would never do something that sentimental. He wouldn't give a stomm about his 'mantle' or legacy.

If anything, I could see Justice Department thrusting the Dredd name at Rico, with some belief that if there isn't a 'Judge Dredd' to put fear in the minds of would-be law breakers crime rates would go up city wide. And then Rico just has to deal with having this big legacy thrown on top of him without his consent.

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TordelBack

Quote from: The Adventurer on 09 April, 2012, 05:40:25 AM
If anything, I could see Justice Department thrusting the Dredd name at Rico, with some belief that if there isn't a 'Judge Dredd' to put fear in the minds of would-be law breakers crime rates would go up city wide. And then Rico just has to deal with having this big legacy thrown on top of him without his consent.

Worked great for Kraken!

The Adventurer

Quote from: TordelBack on 09 April, 2012, 05:50:40 AM
Quote from: The Adventurer on 09 April, 2012, 05:40:25 AM
If anything, I could see Justice Department thrusting the Dredd name at Rico, with some belief that if there isn't a 'Judge Dredd' to put fear in the minds of would-be law breakers crime rates would go up city wide. And then Rico just has to deal with having this big legacy thrown on top of him without his consent.

Worked great for Kraken!

Man, I have GOT to read that period of Dredd at some point. I keep putting off picking up Casefiles 13-15 for some reason. Necropolis is the last great Mega-Epic I still don't have under my belt.

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WhizzBang

#19
I think he should be killed off and I am certain John Wagner will do this in spectacular fashion. After that, I would like to see stories from the first 15 years or so that are pre-prog 2.

I then think eventually the 'classic' strips could be re-interpreted in much the same way as Sherlock Holmes stories have been retold in different ways over the years.

Colin YNWA

The very nature of the strip, aging in real time means something has to happen sometime.

The thing is there are a couple of options. Kill Joe Dredd off and replace him with another character. A bit of me likes the idea of Rico for the reasons The Empire mentions, but don't think that'll happen for reasons I'll come to. Second option is to just sci-fi the problem away and 'de-age' Dredd. In a world with Stookie long established and the needs of the Justice Department seen as paramount, there's an easy option there, but a good writer could come up with numerous others I'm sure.

My preferred option is when John Wagner retires (hopefully not for a long time) Joe Dredd is killed (and definitely so) and replaced with a new character. That way whomever becomes the strips main writer and I'd like to see one writer take over the strip for at least a couple of years exclusively to establish themselves, can make the character their's without the burden of having to write a Wagner character.

Eric Plumrose

Quote from: Judge Jack on 09 April, 2012, 12:34:39 AMive always been intrigued by that scene in Origins, when Fargo says to Joe and Rico, that he's going back into suspended animation, and that the medical team have a "fool idea of putting my essence into another body".

I suspect that might be Wagner having a wee dig at those who keep on saying Dredd should have the same, be it a full-brain transplant or a bio-chip upload.

Quote from: TordelBack on 09 April, 2012, 05:50:40 AM
Quote from: The Adventurer on 09 April, 2012, 05:40:25 AM
If anything, I could see Justice Department thrusting the Dredd name at Rico, with some belief that if there isn't a 'Judge Dredd' to put fear in the minds of would-be law breakers crime rates would go up city wide. And then Rico just has to deal with having this big legacy thrown on top of him without his consent.

Worked great for Kraken!

To be fair, though, Kraken didn't have fifteen years' training!
Not sure if pervert or cheesecake expert.

Pete Wells

Well, I may be an unimaginative, senitimentail cock but I'd happily see the sci-fi cop out. Dredd without Dredd sounds like a awful idea to me.

We've seen body transplants and the like before, it's no big deal. This wouldn't make Dredd invulnerable, he'll still be in constant danger from snipers, terrorists and the like but it'd solve the ageing problem and, potentially, throw up new challenges for him.

While not perfect, it seems like a small sacrifice to keep Dredd the focus of his strip.

Beeks

I always thought Dredd would become Chief Judge

Can just imagine him taking the long walk..
"We keep on being told that religion, whatever its imperfections, at least instills morality. On every side, there is conclusive evidence that the contrary is the case and that faith causes people to be more mean, more selfish, and perhaps above all, more stupid." ― Christopher Hitchens

a chosen rider

Personally, I'm against killing Dredd simply because I think there are far more potentially interesting stories to be told about a Dredd who's too old to keep doing the job than there are about the aftermath of killing him off.  Sure, make the switch to more ensemble storytelling (we're pretty much there already) and shift the action elements onto Rico and Beeny and co, but Dredd doesn't have to die to achieve any of that.  Far better to have him in the background as a recurring character and mentor figure and get glimpses of how he's handling being retired from the field.  There are plenty of options there - teaching at the academy, Chief Judge, the long walk - that we've seen teased before, but never really stuck with long enough to properly dig into.

...That said, if at any point we get wind of a new Wagner/Ezquerra Dredd story, I'm going to be biting my nails the whole way through.
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A.Cow

I've just been re-reading the horrendous run of Tooth when Ennis & Millar were let loose on Dredd.  A few gems but mostly dross.

It really highlighted just how good John Wagner really is.  As soon as he re-appeared (e.g. Mechanismo saga, The Pit) the quality jumped straight off the scale.  How he keeps up such originality after all these years is a mystery.

However, given the long run that Dredd's had, even the Wagner droid has repeated himself on occasion.  (If I read another "Welcome to our town ... oh, by the way we're cannibals/vampires" or "lone gunman looking for righteous vengeance" story I shall scream.)

This current storyline (and I'm presuming it runs into a second saga after Chaos Day itself) is surely the last great Dredd we'll see.  I can't imagine that there is anything new to say, even under very good writers like Gordon Rennie and Mike Carroll.

Maybe it really is time to retire old Joe?

SpetsnaZ99

Don't kill him off, just give him lighter duties

You ever notice that everyone who believes in creationism looks really unevolved? Eyes real close together, big furry hands and feet. "I believe God created me in one day." Yeah, looks like he rushed it.

IAMTHESYSTEM


Lovely artwork!

I think they'll re sleeve JUDGE DREDD ala Altered Carbon style.

New body.

Same Dredd.
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Trout

Quote from: WhizzBang on 09 April, 2012, 06:54:01 AM
I think he should be killed off and I am certain John Wagner will do this in spectacular fashion.

I would love to see this happen but I think that 2000AD editorial could never allow it. Why kill the goose that lays the golden eggs?

Modern Panther

I've always assumed that Rico's purpose as a character was to act as a young Dredd, to replace Old Man Joe when the time comes. I think that the strong point of Day of Chaos so far is to move Dredd to a more managerial role, occasionally calling on him to do something heroic, but not superhuman. If the trend continues, then his eventual replacement as a street judge is inevitable. If that happens, then he'd only be an interesting character to use during big event stories

Since the character has evolved over time, it need not be the end of "Dredd" if Joe is replaced with Rico.