Comics

2000 AD Free Comic Book Day 2012

Continuing my attempt to re-start reading the Galaxy's Greatest Comic, I went for this year's FCBD issue. Five stories, only one of which I'd read before. The first is an all-new four-page Judge Dredd, written by creator John Wagner, which manages to be both entertaining and function as an intro for complete newbies. This is what the launching-soon US Dredd comic from IDW should aspire to with its first issue... except even if it does, it'll take 20 pages to achieve what Wagner does so well in just four.

Also, the first part of The Grievous Journey of Ichabod Azrael, from a couple of years ago. It seemed an enticing introduction, certainly made me want to read more. A new tale started a while after this (not somewhere I've got to in my reading, obviously), but to continue his origin I guess I'll have to find the paperback. Then the first part of Zombo from my first Prog; a classic self-contained Ro-Busters by Alan Moore and Steve Dillon (from 1982); and a fun superhero-lampooning Future Shock (from 2010), perfect for this US-comics-fan-aimed one-off promo.

Good fun and fairly representative of what 2000 AD is like week-to-week, I thought. Nice job droids.