Cover: Colin MacNeil
Publisher: Rebellion
Judge Dredd
Script: Rob Williams & Ned Hartley
Art: PJ Holden
Colours: Jack Davies
Letters: Annie Parkhouse
Oola rips off Facechange, taking the score and leaving him in the upper atmosphere, so he confesses everything to Dredd, even telling him which cabin to search on the cruise liner. Facechange tells Dredd it’s the last one and gives Dredd his parachute.
But Oola’s one step ahead. She’s on another ship.
To add insult to injury, Facechange lied about the parachute and got away. Apart from the henchmen, the criminals in this case won.
If you overlook the fact that Facechange didn’t need to go up to the satellite, as the threat was in place and the demands were already issued to the rich ransomees, Climate Crisis was a fun ride. I hope PJ Holden and Jack Davies work together again, as they complement each other well.
On the subject of sequels, I’m also keen to see Facechange again, perhaps hunting Oola in Hondo, if she didn’t lie about going there.
Brink
Script: Dan Abnett
Art: INJ Culbard
Letters: Simon Bowland
At the firing range, Kurtis tries to convince Bonner that Holly Cutwell isn’t a good security officer, but he doesn’t agree.
Kurtis attends a meeting with Cutwell and Izzy Fredon, another member of the task force. Kurtis denies being an expert on the Sect.
Brink continues to lay the groundwork for future drama, but I suspect that these short, slow parts will read much better when collected. Soap operas work in a similar way. Before you report me to Tharg, let me explain. Because soaps run for hundreds of episodes, they can afford to apply thin layers of character paint in each scene, so you can afford to reveal a slight emotional change in a character because, after a year’s worth of soap, you can look back and see that Gail Platt was working towards a big emotional payoff.
Similarly, Brink is likely to run for months, so I’m holding out hope that these small changes will add up, but right now I’m quite bored.
Tharg’s 3rillers: Who Is Adrian Apollo?
Script: Liam Johnson
Art: Steven Austin
Colours: John Charles
Letters: Rob Steen
At the end of part two, Adrian’s handler asked him why he was lying, and in this part, we find out why.
Adrian’s on the run. The Handler orders his goons to find the most innocent being they can. There’s this cute, pink alien with huge eyes, and the Handler electrocutes it. It’s pretty shocking! It’s not a child, though; it’s T’Sone Vex from part one. She killed Adrian the same night they got together, and she shapeshifted to look like him and carry out the mission.
The great thing about 3rillers is that you can feature a character in part one, allow two weeks to pass, and then bring them back at the end for a twist. It’s never confusing, either. It’s a massively impressive feat to have such a big twist and to squeeze so much into just fifteen pages without completely disorienting the reader. There’s a lot to Who Is Adrian Apollo, and I can see it expanding into its own series. I’d read a series in which a shapeshifting spy in space swaggers about, doing her best impression of Apollo.
Future Shocks: Lucky Number Six
Script: Andi Ewington
Art: John McCrea
Letters: Annie Parkhouse
An unnamed protagonist needs to improve his luck, so he gets a geas tattooed on his left forearm in the form of a snake. As he wins more and more, the snake moves up his arm and towards his heart. He wins the jackpot, but he just can’t stop himself. After one final bet, the geas bites his heart, and he dies.
Tattooing a predator on yourself is a fine metaphor for a lifelong commitment to self-destruction. Gambling addiction brands itself on you, and once you’ve started, it’s incredibly hard to stop.
I have to compliment John McCrea’s art, who gives the world of Lucky Number Six a roughness and franticness which suits it. The montage of the protagonist winning bets with the coiled geas at the centre is striking, and I can see McCrea collectors fighting in the street to own it.
The Discarded
Script: Peter Milligan
Art: Kieran McKeown
Colours: Jim Boswell
Letters: Annie Parkhouse
The bomb detonates.
Veera is unscathed, but she’s left to mourn her father Aaxon, who she never thought she would miss.
Regardless, her mission complete, Veera seeks out the trashmasters to take her home, telling them that Chief Maxwell sent her undercover to kill Aaxon. Maxwell orders the masters to dispose of her.
Somehow, she gets away, but she’s been radicalised by the experience, and she sets out to find the Arkists.
I’ve gushed endlessly about this series ever since it started, but I can’t overstate how good it is. Every chapter has fleshed out a world that I want to return to. Milligan’s writing humanises, Kieran McKeown and Jim Boswell’s art diversifies and enriches, and Simon Bowland knows when to draw attention and when not to. I cannot wait for this series to return.
Overall: 8/10
Tony Holdsworth is a comics writer based in Dundee, Scotland, who reviews 2000AD each week.
His comics can be found here: https://tonyholdsworth2.wordpress.com/category/portfolio/
