As usual, it wouldn’t be a week of comic books without a little 2000AD. This week it’s 2000AD #1846, which contains Judge Dredd, Defoe, The Ten-Seconders, Age Of The Wolf III and Slaine. Let’s dig in.

First up is Judge Dredd. The current story continues to explore Mega City One life, especially with the Judges, in a way only John Wagner could understand; few writers could write Dredd without much Dredd. Of course, the vibrant art of Ben Willsher also helps in this violent-heavy issue.

Next is Defoe. Pat Mills delivers an explosive, action packed script that doesn’t get bogged down in details or back story too much. It feels cinematic at times, which might be due to Leigh Gallagher’s striking black and white visuals.

This is followed by The Ten-Seconders. Rob Willaims shows some excellent writing here, with a dialogue heavy issue that still reads smoothly whilst tackling large and unusual themes. That said, it has more than a little help from the beautiful artwork of Edmund Bagwell. It’s also very colorful in all the right ways thanks to Abigail Ryder. All in all, a very strong creative team.

After this comes more Age Of The Wolf III. A very short issue, but important nonetheless. Alec Worley pens plenty of suspense, surprise and revelations. All in all, combined with the detailed work of Jon Davis-Hunt, this is a great example of Age Of The Wolf.

Finally, we end on some Slaine. Pat Mills offers a confusing script, not quite comical but not quite serious either. It plays with the story in a very loose manner, acting rather surreal and whimsy when the setting seems more serious. The same goes for the artwork, with the black and white visuals of Mick McMahon looking similar to hieroglyphs and other ancient drawings, not quite realistic but enough to give understanding.

4.5/5