Not having been a Deca Thargo since 1997, it is rare that a 2000AD cover grabs me by the Id and will not let go until my ego and super-ego have reviewed that piece.

The cover of 2000AD Prog 1821 by Brian Bolland

Many will think that the cover for Prog 1949 is a homage to the Brian Bolland cover from issue 1821 where we have Dredd almost as a Lincoln-esque figure, but this piece is much darker than that.

For those of us that remember British TV from the 1970s and 1980s, it has a more sinister undertone; a reminder of someone sitting centre stage in a garb that paid no lip service to the acceptable cultural mores of the day. A man in a comfortable chair, witha persona that gave you the image of stability, but with an undercurrent of darkness…

Is it possible that this image is based on something a bit more tangible than the febrile imagination of an artist?

2000AD Prog 1949 “Dreams of Deadworld” cover art by Dave Kendall

I spoke to artist Dave Kendall about it, who commented: “Well… If you’re going to draw evil then you draw on something in reality.” And, for me, the piece has echoes that reverberate throughout my childhood. And I will say that if the story is half as scary as the cover, then don’t read it at night!

Colin Noble

A life-long comic fan, specialising mainly in UK adventure comics, Colin did his very best to support his passion for the comics of his youth, Commandos (still going!) and any small press that interested him. Sadly, Colin passed in March 2021, an invaluable downthetubes team member, much missed by us all

Categories: 2000AD, British Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News

Tags: 2000AD, Comics By Country, Current British Comics, Dave Kendall, downthetubes News, Dreams of Deadworld, Horror Comics, Judge Death, Judge Dredd, Rebellion