The Monthly Megazine Issue #495: The Finale To The Black Tower And Secrets Revealed

Welcome once more to the Monthly Megazine – doing just what it says, taking you through the latest goings-on in the sister monthly to 2000 AD.

Back to the monthly sister publication to 2000 AD, the Judge Dredd Megazine, where there’s five new strips this month to delight and thrill you, plus the usual mix of interviews and features, alongside a continued reprint of The Angry Planet from The Treasury of British Comics archives — all packed into 100.

All of it starts off with the fourth and final part of Judge Rico: The Black Tower, something so important and revelatory that 2000 AD sent out one of its rare publication moritoriums, telling us members of the comics press that we shouldn’t give away any images or details of the Judge Rico story before the publication date. Yes, it’s that important, it’s that big. We’re about to find out just what or who is behind this latest Judge Dredd Mega-Epic tale.

After that, we get the continuations of the Rogue Trooper and Lawless strips, along with another one-off trip back in time to the very earliest days of Judge Dredd in Mega-City 2099. And, making up the fifth new strip, we have a new series of Storm Warning starting right here, as John Reppion and Lee Carter continue the tale of Brit-Cit Judge Lillian Storm, a Judge with the ability to talk to the dead.

It all starts off under a wonderfully gruesome cover by Nick Percival, showing us just what horrors are to come in the final episode of The Black Tower….

Judge Dredd Megazine 495 was out on 19th August in the UK. It’s also going to be available to US comic shops from 16th September. But, if you do happen to be in the Americas, you’ll need to head down to your local comic shop and ask them to order it in for you. Seriously, trust me, you won’t regret doing it.

So, with all that said, why don’t we head into the greatness of the latest Megazine…

Judge Rico: The Black Tower — Part 4 — Final Part — By Ken Niemand and Nick Percival, letters by Simon Bowland

First of all, a warning to you all, one that was given by Tharg in the pages of 2000 AD and the Megazine — before reading this last part of The Black Tower, you really do have to read the Judge Dredd and Judge Rico strips in 2000 AD Prog 2496 first. Such is the way with these crossovers. But yes, seriously, you should follow Tharg’s instructions.

So, having assumed you’ve read the 2000 AD episodes of both the Oubliette and The Finders, and you’re up to speed, I’m still not going to give away a thing here. Because spoilers are not my thing. Far better just to tell you that Niemand and Percival have just pulled off a great finale here and leave you to find out the details for yourself.

I mean, you’ve got Rico in the Black Tower, literally being flayed alive and put back together, again and again and again, all shown to you in all its hideous yet strangely beautiful fashion by Percival.

Mother Ruin is in charge of all this, all the devastation, all the chaos, shipping Dredd off to The Oubliette, the Black Tower landing in Mega-City One, and she’s someone very familier to long-term readers of 2000 AD, stretching all the way back to the Judge Child Quest, way back in 2000 AD 2000 AD Progs 156–228 (1980–1981), one of the earliest of these BIG Judge Dredd Mega Epic things.

But although 2000 AD have told us that we can tell you, here, after publication date, that we’re okay to reveal the big reveal to you, I’m not going to. After all, as I said, I don’t believe in spoilering things for you, the readers. No, I’d much rather talk my way around the big reveal and let you experience it for yourselves. Suffice it to say that Dredd, Rico, and everyone in Mega-City One is in the deep, deep stuff here, a revenge mission of a mother taking things out on those that wronged her son.

It’s rather brilliantly done by Niemand here, and of course Percival’s art is just perfect for this sort of terrifying nastiness. We’re left with Judge Giant in the Black Tower, witnessing Mother Ruin’s explanation of why she’s here, Rico and Judge Inviata, whose own motives are dubious at best, all tied up with the dark history of the City and the whole idea of ‘The Favoured Sons’ and ‘The Fathers’ of this City. Oh yes, as we’ve talked about before, ‘Inviata’, Italian for envoy.

So, Rico, Inviata, Giant, all trapped here in the Black Tower, with Mother Ruin invoking many things, not the least of is first the prophecy… ‘The two heirs… the blood brother and the protege… both will go into the Black Tower but which will come back out…?’ and secondly the curse she casts, ‘I unleash the full power of this place! Generations of madness and guilt! Steeped in the energies of a shadow dimension! A Curse! My curse upon this City.’

Both the prophecy and the curse will have long-lasting effects for both Dredd and his city, albeit the prophecy is about to be fulfilled here, right now, as someone steps up to save MC-1 and millions from certain death. As for the curse, well, I’d imagine that’s something we’ll be hearing about for years to come in Niemand’s (and maybe others’) Dredd tales.

At the end of it all, the Black Tower collapses, the threat seems done, and one is left outside, one left inside. All delivered in one last amazing page by Percival, as one is left outside the ruins of the Black Tower, his last words here being… well, no, I won’t tell you which and I won’t tell you what he says, that’s way too spoilery. Suffice it to say that it’s a suitably epic conclusion for this particular part of this latest Dredd epic. But although this is the last of the Black Tower here in the Megazine, things continue over in 2000 AD until Prog 2499 in a few weeks.

Essential reading, of course. Niemand really has created this huge Dredd epic here; the final villain’s reveal is both something for those in the know of all of Dredd’s long history yet also explained perfectly well for anyone coming into it fresh. That’s yet another great thing about Dredd – although there’s nearly 50 years’ worth of history, there’s a strident refusal to make readers be cognizant of all that history. Niemand knows that, and has catered this latest Dredd epic for both old and new readers to enjoy.

So, The Black Tower is done; the Black Tower has fallen. Damn, it was good whilst it lasted. Now it’s over to the Prog to continue the story. Next month, here in the Megazine, we’ll be dealing with a new, post-Black Tower Dredd. And that’s all part of what makes Dredd work so well – it just keeps on keeping on.

Storm Warning: Slaughterhouse — Part 1 — By John Reppion and Lee Carter, letters by Rob Steen

A welcome return to Brit Cit and Psi-Judge Lillian Storm, cursed with the ability to talk to the dead and is always pestered and sometimes assisted by her ghostly companions. Now, Storm’s been called to the stately home called Slaughter House, home of the Slaughter family, on an unofficial favour — the sort of unofficial favour that bodes ill for Storm.

Anyway, Lord Slaughter’s been murdered by his own Botler droid, which is why Tek-Div are on the case as well. Stabbed his master in the back with a chef’s knife. Except there doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with the Botler at all, apart from Slaughter reprogramming it to be able to harm humans only on a direct order from its master, and the Botler’s saying it was suicide by droid. Complicating things is that Slaughter’s got a cryo-contract, meaning he’s meant to be on ice in the event of his death. Right now, Tek-Div and the meds have got a temp cryo unit around his head, and Tek-Div are on a clock. Murder? Suicide? And why the hell is Storm here? Which is precisely what she’s been asking…

Well, as you can imagine, Storm, irritable at the best of times, isn’t exactly happy with that. Even more so when the only ghosts she can find there don’t seem to have a clue about Slaughter — but they do have their own little story to tell, a story she’s just not interested in listening to.

Well, until we get the twist right at the end…

Good to have Storm Warning back. Reppion, usually with Leah Moore, but solo here, writes a good character, one that’s rooted in the lore of Dreddworld but different enough to make it interesting.

And Lee Carter’s art is just lovely here; his digital style has developed and matured and softened somewhat over the years, meaning this is his best art yet. Interesting, fluid, a genuine organic touch to it, with the details of both characters and backgrounds really well done.

It’s a fascinating start, a great character done well, all involved in a neat little mystery to be solved. It’s going to be fun seeing it play out.

Mega-City 2099 — Remembrance Day — By Ken Niemand and Conor Boyle, letters by Annie Parkhouse

Back to Mega-City 2099, back to the very start of Judge Dredd, Niemand and Boyle telling stories of the very start of it all, right at the beginnings of the Justice Department, where the Judges still work side-by-side with regular uniformed cops, who did most of the day-to-day policing, with the Judges called in to pronounce judgement on the criminals.

It’s one of those every so often storylines, either one-offs or, as is the case here, multi-parters. Yes, it’s pure nostalgia, harking back to those early Dredds, but it’s also very well done nostalgia, particularly when Boyle is on the art, as his style here really does hark back to those early days, all the look of 1977 2000 AD in the comics and 2099 Dredd in the strips. And here, as usual, his art absolutely shines through, with the old-fashioned Dredd uniform just a delight, but given a modern-day sheen, whilst always keeping that sense of nostalgia about it all.

Oh yes, extremely well done indeed, and looking quite lovely. And it also means we’re back in the days of Dredd having thought bubbles, a feature of the early Dredds that got phased out over time; quite the nostalgic thing to see them back here.

As for where we are, this bit of 2099 and Dredd is all about death and grief, with the aerial cemetries of these times (in the days before Resyk) and the Vid-Tombstones there for the bereaved cits.

Dredd gets involved as he’s made a promise to solve a murder, a husband’s death, Dredd thinking (those thought bubbles I mentioned) about how he’s made that promise to these ‘good, decent, law-abiding citizens,’ with Niemand deliberately over-writing things here, all in the cause of showing us the Dredd of the then and his almost boy scout fashion of going about things, all to show us just how much things have changed.

An interested party gets involved and, before you know it, Dredd’s deep into things on the Tyler case, and suddenly we’re in time travel territory. Well, time viewing at least, where the interested party shows Dredd what he’s been working on, wanting Dredd to solve the Tyler case to prove his theories. Well, this Dredd can’t help but take that particular bait and straps himself into the machine, where he sees Tyler’s killer, but where the scientist sees something more, something from Dredd’s past, hidden deep in his memory.

Sure, Dredd gets to put away the Tyler’s killer, thinking that the scientist’s ‘crazy time-viewing machine tech works,’ and that ‘it’ll be an invaluable new weapon in our never-ending war on crime,’ again, that over-the-top dialogue Niemand deliberately uses here to play upon the past. But there are forces at play here who really don’t want Dredd knowing his past, forces from the very highest power in the Justice Department.

All of which leads us into the next episode of this particular bit of Mega-City 2099, where Niemand and Boyle really do ramp things up rather, giving us a mystery for sure, but also giving us a deeper thing, one that, as I say, runs all the way up to the top of the Justice Department. Intriguing stuff indeed.

But, disregarding the inclusion of the peril factor with a multi-parter, the great thing about this Mega-City 2099 is the whole thing about giving us both the nostalgia of Dredd past and a more modern tale with modern storytelling. And above all that, the artwork, all that gloriously retro stylings from Boyle, evoking the past so perfectly, and keying into the art of the past. So much to enjoy.

Rogue Trooper: An Iteration Of Allies — Part 3 –By Andi Ewington and Sinu Senan, colours by Jim Boswell, letters by Simon Bowland

The proliferation of Rogue Trooper tales in both the Prog and the Megazine is obviously a thing due to the new Rogue Trooper movie that’s in the can and hunting for distributors. Of course it is. From all I’ve seen thus far, the Duncan Jones-helmed animated movie does look rather good.

I won’t go into my usual Rogue Trooper thing of it’s all been done before, everything concluded with the end of the Traitor General storyline, etc, etc. But here, in Iteration of Allies, we have a by-the-numbers Rogue tale, again one of those that takes place in the time when Rogue was on the hunt for the Traitor General, waylaid here in Fortress Itter, where Norts and Southers are working together, going outside the confines of the never-ending war, joining together. And now Rogue’s in the middle of it all, the Fortress under attack from a Nort battalion.

It’s an old-school bit of Rogue, plenty of Senan’s art giving us classic war Rogue…

And that’s just what Iteration of Allies is all about: old-school Rogue, yet another tale told in between his quest to find the Traitor General, yet another Rogue tale slotted into the classic tale.

Yes, it’s all good; it’s playing into all the Rogue mythos, a decent enough tale, of course, but not really saying anything new. Such is the Rogue Trooper problem.

Lawless: Stray — By Dan Abnett and Phil Winslade, letters by Simon Bowland

Well, last issue we had the start of a new series of Lawless, always a particular pleasure, with Abnett and Winslade doing their usual incredible things in this Dreddworld tale that’s more Wild West than Mega-City One.

As I’ve gone on record many, many times before, Lawless is just one of the best things in the Megazine since 2014. We’re following the adventures of one Colonial Marshal Metta Lawson, a woman with a past, tasked with bringing law to this frontier outpost of Badrock.

Right now though, she’s a Marshal in a township with the SJS Judges running the place. As with Brink over in the Prog, this is definitely one that benefits from picking up past volumes. Seriously, you’ll thank me for it. Oh, and while you’re at it, for a little of that past of Metta Lawson, go pick up Abnett and Colin MacNeill’s Insurrection as well.

But fear not, there’s no need to read the prior volumes, as the story is pretty simple — Dreddworld wild west, Marshal Lawson in charge, loads of bad guys, loads of fun.

Last episode was The Exhibition; this time it’s Stray — meaning that Abnett’s doing that thing here of lots of little stories building up to something bigger.

In Stray, we get fragments of the story — the Radland Beast out there in the wastelands, the strange literature everyone’s reading, including Marshal Metta Lawson, out investigating reports of something out in the wilds. So, off to investigate, as the something out there narrates the tale here, a broken, lost thing, searching for something, although it doesn’t know quite what.

By the end of it all, you’ll have read another one of those magnificent little tales that Abnett does so well, a touching little thing, an interlude, a vignette, a strange little thing by its ending, but just an excellent example of the ways in which Abnett mixes things up, adds so much extra. And of course, we get all that delicious Phil Winslade artwork, so much incredible detail in those black and white pages, such wonders to behold.

The Angry Planet — By Alan Hebdon and Massimo Belardinelli

Again, we’re obviously getting the complete reprint from the archives of the Treasury of British Comics of The Angry Planet from back in 1979, Alan Hebdon and Massimo Belardinelli’s tale of rebellious Martian colonists fighting back aginst the corporations that would do them ill.

This one was first published in the 2000 AD adjacent comic Tornado, 22 episodes of it, and it appears we’re getting it all here over the course of several months.

It is, as you’d expect, interesting enough, packed with great artwork, Belardinelli being one of those artists whose work is vastly underrated, and it’s very much a product of its time, all fast and furious, all about getting the story out there before the next cliffhanger.