The Weekly 2000 AD Prog #2496: The Secrets Of The Oubliette Revealed?

Taking a look inside the UK’s greatest sci-fi comic, the Galaxy’s Greatest, fast approaching 50 years of brilliance — it’s the Weekly 2000 AD.

This week, the Prog is bookended by two episodes of ‘The Oubliette’, the latest huge Judge Dredd epic, opening with Ken Niemand and Dan Cornwell‘s ‘The Oubliette’, and closing with Niemand and Jake Lynch‘s ‘The Finders’. The various plot threads of the massive bit of Dredd come together here, with plenty of secrets revealed, as it all races to its climax in Prog 2499.

In between those two bits of Dredd, we have the continuations of three great strips, all examples of the sheer breadth of what 2000 AD is capable of. The always magnificent sci-fi procedural that is Brink; the nightmarish inevitability of The Fall of Deadworld, as we watch the Dark Judges do what we always knew they were going to do; and the historical, magical fantasy of Nightmare New York.

Again, as I keep saying, there’s never a perfect time to get into 2000 AD. Sure, the various jumping-on Progs are good, but I’d always recommend doing just what I did many years ago (2012 in fact) and just pick up a Prog, read the Prog, read the next Prog, read the next Prog. You’ll find yourself loving some strips immediately. You may find yourself not liking others. You’ll find yourself intrigued but lost by some. It doesn’t matter. The way 2000 AD cycles strips and keeps things fresh and deliberately avoids dense continuities means that all you need to do is commit to reading a handful of Progs and you should find yourself eager to read more.

Anyway, all of the thrills begin this Prog under a rather impressive Jake Lynch wrapround cover, showing us what’s happening in The Finders right now…

2000 AD Prog 2496 is out in the UK on 19th August. If you’re in the Americas, you’ll have to wait a couple of weeks; it’s out there on 2 September through Lunar Distributors. Do go and ask your local comic shop to order it in for you.

Okay then, preamble done, it’s time to take a look inside …

Judge Dredd: The Oubliette — Part 14 — By Ken Niemand and Jake Lynch, Colours by Emily Roach, letters by Annie Parkhouse

The first of two ‘Oubliette’ tales this week, that are, according to the Tharg editorial, meant to be read before you head over to the Judge Dredd Megazine for the final part of Ken Niemand and Nick Percival‘s The Black Tower, where you find out even more secrets of both ‘The Oubliette’ and the Black Tower, and just who exactly is behind all this. Although, to be honest, the three tales of the Oubliette, the Finders and The Black Tower all happen pretty much simultaneously.

At the end of the last episode of ‘The Oubliette’ in Prog 2494, we had this … Dredd and his Sov mates meeting Castellan once more, described, way back in the early episodes as ‘”the Lawkeeper, an ally … as long as you follow the rules.”

Well, here we get to see exactly what Castallan meant by that line:

You’ve done better than you usually do. But always this far. And no further. There’s no escape for you. Everything always ends here.

If you look closer at that image above, you’ll see the bones of Dredd littered by the wayside, proof of Castallan’s words. Oh yes, Dredd’s been here before, died multiple times, as is the way in the Oubliette, and Dredd is told that he’s been here in the Oubliette for centuries.

But this is Dredd, and of course he’s not about to give up, even in the face of impossible odds and undeniable facts. Yes, those are his bones lying there — it doesn’t matter. He has to get back to his city, and he’ll do whatever needs doing to get there.

Castallan tells him that the Oubliette is ‘a trap, a torture process — of exquisitely cruel design. Created solely for you. To deliver you here. Time and time again.’ Implying that whoever set the trap has history with Dredd.

But first, to find out who, Dredd has to get past Castallan, leading to a couple of pages of Dredd going into battle, beautifully done by Cornwell …

But this time there’s something different, as Dredd tells Castallan he knows that he’s Judda (something only revealed thus far over in The Black Tower … so quite how he knows that we’ll just have to put down to Dredd’s investigative skills here), the Black Tower falls and the psychic aftershocks are felt even here, giving Dredd just a momentary distraction, a second’s advantage. And with that moment, plus a realisation of just what’s behind his prison, Dredd falls once more to his death.

Everything really is racing towards the end of the tale here, happening in Prog 2499. It’s been a rather excellent Mega Dredd, and it’s all accelerating impressively to its end.

Brink Book 7: The Call Of The Void — Part 25 — By Dan Abnett and INJ Culbard, letters by Simon Bowland

Again, as always, do yourself a favour and go and buy all the Brink volumes to date. Read them, and you’ll no doubt fall in love with the series as I have. Or not. Incredibly, there are some out there who don’t enjoy Brink. What can I say, they’re wrong. I’m right. Brink is one of the greatest 2000 AD strips of all time. Hell, no, it’s one of my favourite comics of all time.

So, we’re on LunaHab, where Habitat Security, in charge of keeping the last vestiges of humanity corralled into the cramped confines of the Habitat ships after they’d ruined their Earth, are now in charge of investigating the Mercury Event, where Mercury and its Habs went dark.

Bridge is the HabSec officer we’ve been following all along, wrapped up in the strange Sect activities that have beset things throughout. But Bridge has now put forward the idea that it might not be Sect that’s behind all the weirdness; it might just be HabSec’s sister organisation, the Interhab Intelligence Agency, IAA, getting involved for their own shadowy purposes.

They’ve got one of the higher-ups of IIA, black ops leader Danny Reardon/Evan Leedon in cistody, but right now they’re concentrating more on events on the HabSec/ Special Taskforce ship approaching Mercury, where a series of mysterious events have taken place, a suicide, a possible stowaway, strange communication glitches of weird language, and then, right at the end of last episode, this …

Oh yes, no wonder things are getting anxious on Gita’s ship. And is it just me, or is that shadowy figure with the teeth familiar? Again, go read the books.

Right now, episode 25, coming up for 6 months of wonderful Brink, Bridge is desperate to get the link to Gita back, but that’s going to take some time, Bridge turns her attention to Reardon/Leedon, who’s currently being interrogated by Bonner.

And in four pages of that delicious Brink talking heads, the bit where the drama just sparkles, Abnett and Culbard give us plenty — Leedon’s statement that the HabSec op to Mercury isn’t going to end well, that he’s tried hard to prevent them getting to Mercury, only for Bridge to put another idea she’s had to him …

Again, I love this, love all the quiet drama of all this, love how Culbard organises his panels, his pages, how all the characters have life and how the artistic ‘camera’ moves in these interrogation pages. And then the dramatic sparkle of Abnett’s words, everything being laid out, all in service to that bigger story that lies behind Brink. Just a wonderful, wonderful series that keeps on delivering.

The Fall Of Deadworld: Justice — Part 10 — By Kek-W and Dave Kendall, letters by Simon Bowland

Judges Eastwood and Fairfax, both tormented souls, don’t seem to be long for this world. Then again, the world doesn’t seem long for this world, which is the point of The Fall of Deadworld, of course. Kek-W and Kendall are telling us a tale we know the end of, as we know, absolutely, where this goes: we know the planet becomes Deadworld, we know the Dark Judges rise, we know every living thing dies. But as I keep saying, that’s the voyeuristic thrill of this one, watching the brave but futile attempts to stave off that fall.

The pace is definitely picking up, with this episode being just one big action sequence, unusual for this particular strip. But Kendall handles it beautifully, again, all those unusual colours, the pink and purples contrasting with the deep browns and greens, all of it accompanied by Kendall’s painted artwork, full of all the nastiness required, grotesque characters abounding.

It’s Eastwood and Fairfax against Death and his lackeys, violence and brutality on every page here — or almost, as a momentary flashback for Eastwood gives her one simple moment of happiness before things go dark once more. Really rather beautifully done by Kendall, crafting something sentimental and sweet, albeit in amongst a riot, and giving us and Eastwood something lovely.

After that, it’s Fairfax against Judge Fire, and it’s not exactly a fair fight: Dark Judge against a Judge, even a Judge imbued with the dark fluids, it’s not going to end well.

Then again, nothing in The Fall of Deadworld is going to end well; it’s just we don’t know exactly when it’s all going to come to an end. But we know it will, and we’ll be here watching the fall.

Nightmare New York — Book Two — Part 9 — By Kek-W and David Roach, colours by Peter Doherty, letters by Annie Parkhouse

Young Lil sits in the basement of Professor Praetorian’s Dime Museum, whose plan is to trade Lil and her power to demonic forces in an attempt to tip the balance in the war between heaven and hell. Magicks are being conjured, dastardly plots are being carried out.

And as you’ll see from that first page below, Lil’s not only lost Mose, but she’s about to lose Selene as well. It all looks dire, as Praetorian strips off and calls in his demonic masters, running a summoning to sell Lil for dominion of the entire world. Well, you just know that’s not going to go well for those involved, don’t you?

Meanwhile, outside the Museum, Lil’s new family, a witch and a baker, are doing what they can to help … although it’s not exactly going to plan …

So, the door to Asteroth’s realm opens, and we’re racing towards an ending here, one where Lil will no doubt scrape her way through. But that’s not the point; the fun is in the journey here, knowing that Lil is going to develop into something more, something important, and the whole of Nightmare New York is about her becoming. All gloriously illustrated here by those classical stylings of Roach.

Judge Dredd: The Oubliette — Part 15 — The Finders — Part 5 — By Ken Niemand and Jake Lynch, Colours by Emily Roach, letters by Annie Parkhouse

And we end the Prog this week with a return to ‘The Oubliette’ storyline, this time focused on Mega-City One and ‘The Finders’, now a quartet of those in the know, aware that Dredd’s missing, and looking to find a way to bring him back.

So, we’re on the ground with Judge Giant; Joe Fargo, an older, multiversal version of Dredd; PI Lana Locke, the Finder of Lost Things; and Mister Jeremiah, a mystery man given to them by Professor Hobbes, another who’s aware of Dredd’s importance.

Again, this is meant to be read before you head over to the Judge Dredd Megazine for the conclusion of The Black Tower series, where Judge Rico faces down the villain of the piece.

Right now, the Finders are facing down alien beasties, no doubt familiar to long-time readers of Dredd — but fear not, as with so much of Dredd, you really don’t need to know the years of history to get the point of this one. The aliens, familiar or not, lead the Finders to elsewhere, each of them isolated and lost, each of them close to the Oubliette, but only Giant finding his way out, something that leads directly into that Black Tower finale in the Megazine.

Again, cracking art from Lynch, all that angular goodness he does giving shape to Niemand’s endgame. And we’re racing towards that endgame now, with this big, big Dredd tale ending here in Prog 2499, just a few issues from now.