2000AD has blasted into 2022 – and its 45th anniversary year – with a bang with Prog 2263, with a smashing “Proteus Vex” cover from Cliff Robinson, coloured by Dylan Teague.
Inside, Tharg’s rightly keen top push up the impending arrival of “the back-breakingly huge” 2000AD Encyclopaedia in February as well creator-centric collections such as The Best of John Wagner’s Judge Dredd in March, to coincide with four and a half decades of Mega-City One’s hyper-cop.
Strip wise, there’s plenty to enjoy, especially the opening episode of an all-new Judge Dredd thriller from Ken Niemand and Patrick Goddard, featuring the return of delivery skysurfer Mona Plankhurst, plus cracking instalments of “The Order“, “Kingmaker“, “Proteus Vex“, and a fantastic episode of “The Out”, with that story drawing to a close next week.
Alongside this week’s edition of the Galaxy’s Greatest Comic, out today, is the digital release of Sleeze ‘n’ Ryder, by Garth Ennis, and Nick Percival, lettered by Mary Green. This is an utterly bonkers tale from the 2000AD vaults, to say the least, as these teaser pages testify…
In Prog 2263…
JUDGE DREDD – WORKING GIRL
Script: Ken Niemand Art: Patrick Goddard Colours: Dylan Teague Letters: Annie Parkhouse
Mega-City One, 2144 AD. Home to over 180 million citizens, this urban hell is situated along the east coast of post-apocalyptic North America. Unemployment is rife, and boredom universal. Tensions rest on a constant knife-edge. Crime is rampant and only the Judges — zero-tolerance cops empowered to dispense instant justice — can stop total anarchy. Toughest of them all is JUDGE DREDD — he is the Law!
PROTEUS VEX – DESIRE PATHS
Script: Mike Carroll Art: Jake Lynch Colours: Jim Boswell Letters: Simon Bowland
Another galaxy, the far future. The centuries-long war between the Alliance and the Obdurate people is over, a conflict brought to an end with the deaths of billions when the Alliance teleported a dying white dwarf star into the Obdurate system. Imperium agent PROTEUS VEX — who is operated by a flesh-pilot — has now become an enemy of the Alliance when he released information about past war crimes…
THE ORDER – FANTASTIC VOYAGE
Script: Kek-W Art: John Burns Letters: Simon Bowland
Throughout history, mankind has been under threat of extermination by the Wurms, creatures that break into our reality. Defending humanity are the men and women of THE ORDER , a band of warriors that have fought the entities across the centuries. But time has become fractured, and now the despotic Francis Bacon is determined to rule a vast empire. Anna Kohl and the others, fleeing Bacon, have tumbled over Times Edge…
KINGMAKER – FALLS THE SHADOW
Script: Ian Edginton Art: Leigh Gallagher Letters: Jim Campbell
The Nine Kingdoms may have defeated Ichnar the Wraith King to live in relative peace, but they hadn’t reckoned on the Thorn — a race of aliens that occupied their world with the intention of strip-mining its magic. Wizard Ablard, ork Crixus and dryad Princess Yarrow believed they may have the means to stop them — but Ichnar manifested in Ablard, and Crixus and Yarrow were forced to kill him. Ichnar’s spirit escaped…
THE OUT – BOOK TWO
Script: Dan Abnett Art: Mark Harrison Letters: Annie Parkhouse
The furthest edge of the universe, far into the future. Cyd Finlea is photo-journalist working for the publishers Global Neographic, travelling deep into outer space — otherwise known as THE OUT — and cataloguing the alien societies that she encounters.
She left Earth ten years ago and has been seeking other ex-pat humans, accompanied by her sentient flatspace bag — but now she ’s trying to escape the relentless Tankinar…
ALSO OUT THIS WEEK…
Sleeze ‘n’ Ryder (Digital Edition)
Garth Ennis (Writer) Nick Percival (Artist) Mary Green (Letterer)
Out: 5th January 2022
DIGITAL, 54 pages
PRICE: £7.99
ISBN: 9781786186652
Where did they go? Out. What did they see? Freakin’ everything, man! Sleeze and Ryder are on the roadtrip of their drokkin’ lives. Far from Mega-City One and deep in the Cursed Earth, these no-good hell trekkers are looking for adventure – but what they find is dinosaurs, mutants and the grud-dang apocalypse!
This outlandish classic of 1990s 2000AD is brought to you by the outrageous minds of Garth Ennis (Preacher) and Nick Percival (The Dark Judges) and is available in an exclusive digital edition for the first time ever!
Available in digital from: 2000 AD webshop & apps for iPad, Android and Windows 10
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: 2000AD, British Comics, Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News
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