stiricide's review against another edition
3.0
I've been meaning to dive in to Dredd for a while, so when I saw this at my new library, I snagged it. No surprises to anyone passingly familiar with the Dredd-iverse, but nothing too earth shaking, either. (I suspect if I'd come across it 30 years ago, it would have been.)
There are 24 volumes of this? Sure, I'll hide in this for a while. As this kleptocracy develops, I'm finding that the only way I can cope is by delving ever-deeper in to stauncher dystopias. 'Sup, Overton window shifts.
There are 24 volumes of this? Sure, I'll hide in this for a while. As this kleptocracy develops, I'm finding that the only way I can cope is by delving ever-deeper in to stauncher dystopias. 'Sup, Overton window shifts.
jobby's review
4.0
I always loved Dredd as a kid so it's nice to go back to the earliest stuff. Going by the storylines it seems the 70s was a crackers place to live! The artwork is great and the stories range from amazing to bizarre. Some of the ideas are so mad that you can't help but love the writing.
arthurbdd's review
3.0
Alright, but it's compiling the earliest Judge Dredd stories - and therefore the roughest-around-the-edges ones, which largely hail before the truly iconic tales like The Day the Law Died. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2009/03/16/a-judge-a-bounty-hunter-and-a-warlock-walk-into-a-bar/
librarycobwebs's review
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
neven's review
2.0
I really enjoyed the recent 'Dredd' movie, so I figured I'd dig up the original comics. Unfortunately, I found the early issues not very entertaining, and overall rather generic "hero comic" stuff. It reminded me again of why I don't dig DC/Marvel superhero stuff.
This isn't exactly awful, but it just doesn't hold my attention, and between all the meaningless action, the best I could hope for was a lukewarm one-liner. The later issues are supposed to be better, but I'm not expecting I'll love those either, really.
This isn't exactly awful, but it just doesn't hold my attention, and between all the meaningless action, the best I could hope for was a lukewarm one-liner. The later issues are supposed to be better, but I'm not expecting I'll love those either, really.
thecommonswings's review
4.0
For many, Judge Dredd and 2000AD are not so much synonymous as interchangeable. So it’s a weird old thing reading a young and still not quite Dredd like Dredd. His character slowly takes form as the book and progs go on, but it’s weird to see him almost be funny a couple of times and be fond of Walter his annoying robot butler. But the strength of this first volume is seeing the world of Mega City One come together
Call Me Kenneth and the robot rebellion is the first longer plot the story tries and it mostly works brilliantly. Rico’s episode is surprisingly frittered away - no build up and none of the repercussions that his death will bring are immediately felt here. We also get the first sense of one of the biggest problems Dredd always has - no reoccurring villains of note, because by nature Dredd is a cop at the height of his game and as such even long running foes like PJ Maybe eventually have to die at his hands. It’s good to see Max Normal though and some of the other familiar aspects of Mega City life. The bits that have been long since forgotten - Judges being buried, for example, has I presume become a luxury they can ill afford and so they become recycled at Resyk too - are forgivable because of the genuine crackle the story has when an element falls resoundingly into place
The other fascinating thing is the art - McMahon is a lot scrappier than you remember but still feels like the archetypal early Dredd artist (those feet!); Gibson particularly enjoys the robots and it’s unsurprising that Tharg moved him to Robo Hunter where his ridiculous and hilarious imagination at dumb robots could take flight; Bolland must have been a revelation with those clear lines and use of chunky blacks and it’s fascinating to see that he’s the one who streamlines the helmet into the familiar one we have today. Dredd himself doesn’t quite look himself (and you can see how early artists took up on Ezquerra’s unusual early idea that Dredd might be biracial in some way) and his jaw is particularly nothing like the iconic presence it would become. It’s a fascinating moment when his face is censored (because Bellardini cocked it up), a genuinely historical moment where a happy accident leads to one of the most iconic absences in comic history. If Bellardini had managed to conjure up a suitable face, would Dredd’s days have been numbered? His very facelessness is in part why he is so iconic. It doesn’t matter what he looks like, he’s just “The Law”
Call Me Kenneth and the robot rebellion is the first longer plot the story tries and it mostly works brilliantly. Rico’s episode is surprisingly frittered away - no build up and none of the repercussions that his death will bring are immediately felt here. We also get the first sense of one of the biggest problems Dredd always has - no reoccurring villains of note, because by nature Dredd is a cop at the height of his game and as such even long running foes like PJ Maybe eventually have to die at his hands. It’s good to see Max Normal though and some of the other familiar aspects of Mega City life. The bits that have been long since forgotten - Judges being buried, for example, has I presume become a luxury they can ill afford and so they become recycled at Resyk too - are forgivable because of the genuine crackle the story has when an element falls resoundingly into place
The other fascinating thing is the art - McMahon is a lot scrappier than you remember but still feels like the archetypal early Dredd artist (those feet!); Gibson particularly enjoys the robots and it’s unsurprising that Tharg moved him to Robo Hunter where his ridiculous and hilarious imagination at dumb robots could take flight; Bolland must have been a revelation with those clear lines and use of chunky blacks and it’s fascinating to see that he’s the one who streamlines the helmet into the familiar one we have today. Dredd himself doesn’t quite look himself (and you can see how early artists took up on Ezquerra’s unusual early idea that Dredd might be biracial in some way) and his jaw is particularly nothing like the iconic presence it would become. It’s a fascinating moment when his face is censored (because Bellardini cocked it up), a genuinely historical moment where a happy accident leads to one of the most iconic absences in comic history. If Bellardini had managed to conjure up a suitable face, would Dredd’s days have been numbered? His very facelessness is in part why he is so iconic. It doesn’t matter what he looks like, he’s just “The Law”
mardukzero's review
4.0
I realized recently that Judge Dredd is a series that has always been in my periphery, and aside from much time playing JD Pinball as a kid, I hadn't really dove into it. Decided to change that, and was recommended "just start at the beginning!" -- and I did.
Going in, I knew the series would evolve a lot. I often saw recommendations to skip to Case Files Vol. 5. But part of this journey was that I want to see that evolution. It's bragged that JD has a chronological trajectory that is permanently changed when big things happen, so I want to experience that change. Also, I've increasingly grown to appreciate the development of a series/franchise as part of the experience of exploring it. Coincidentally, a lot of this can be credited to my recent deep dive into the Gundam franchise, which started just two years after Dredd did. But, I digress.
Dredd is a lot of fun. The campy, pulpy strips grew on me. The 2000AD ~5 pages per issue format is new to me, and neat to see how that influences story telling. I like that consuming an issue can be easily done in a brief sitting.
The trademark satire starts to really show in the last handful of progs. A good sign of things to come.
I'm excited to continue this journey.
Going in, I knew the series would evolve a lot. I often saw recommendations to skip to Case Files Vol. 5. But part of this journey was that I want to see that evolution. It's bragged that JD has a chronological trajectory that is permanently changed when big things happen, so I want to experience that change. Also, I've increasingly grown to appreciate the development of a series/franchise as part of the experience of exploring it. Coincidentally, a lot of this can be credited to my recent deep dive into the Gundam franchise, which started just two years after Dredd did. But, I digress.
Dredd is a lot of fun. The campy, pulpy strips grew on me. The 2000AD ~5 pages per issue format is new to me, and neat to see how that influences story telling. I like that consuming an issue can be easily done in a brief sitting.
The trademark satire starts to really show in the last handful of progs. A good sign of things to come.
I'm excited to continue this journey.
abkeuser's review
4.0
A fun collection of the comics. They art style works well with the narratives: bleak and gritty as the story itself.