The Weekly 2000 AD Prog #2507: Red’s Out For Blood In ‘Durham Red’

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.

Okay then, another week of sci-fi greatness in the finest weekly sci-fi anthology there is, 2000 AD. Seriously, nearly 50 years old and still delivering briliance eachand every week.

This week, we’re back to the usual five strips after last week’s bumper Prog. But don’t despair, that does mean that we get the latest in the quite magnificent ‘The New Future’ in Judge Dredd, a political thriller cutting to the heart of Dredd’s world. Backing that up, we have more of the strangeness in the difficult yet absolutely rewarding Ghosted. Then there’s a great, all-out action mystery in Durham Red, and the magical drama of Herne & Shuck continuing. And finally, we get a one-off coda to the recent series of Azimuth, setting things up for future tales of the bizarre yet beautifully weird world.

And it all opens under a typically gorgeous, yet rather terrifying study of Durham Red in action by Boo Cook …

2000 AD Prog 2507 was out in the UK on 4th November. So yes, I’m still radically late with this ‘preview’. But seriously, it’s been a busy, busy, and stressful week here at Bruton Mansions Nevada. For a start, there was the taking of the Nevada driving test for me — passed the second time, so I can now join the many insane drivers on the road here. Thankfully, the tester was so interested in my tale of how I got here — star-crossed lovers and all that — that she chose to ignore my nearly running over a pedestrian. Well, sort of. Nevada road laws are weird. But anyway, 4th November for this one in the UK, meaning you should be picking it up off the shelves right now. Plus, it’s also out in the USA on 18th November, which means you should all be headed into your local comics shop to implore them to order it in for you.

Anyway, enough already, let’s take a little looksie inside …

Judge Dredd: The New Future — Part 7 — By Rob Williams, Arthur Wyatt, Henry Flint, letters by Annie Parkhouse

You should all know this already: ‘The New Future’ is my favourite Dredd since ‘A Better World’, the last time Messrs Williams, Wyatt and Flint dipped their collective toes into Dreddworld. ‘The New Future’ takes on the legacy of Maitland’s dream ( such a loss, felt still) and brings all the political dimensions to the world of Dredd into stark contrast. It’s definitely a Dredd for the ages.

Last episode, we had this at the end, as The New Future organisation struck at the heart of Chief Judge Logan’s dream of a future for the Justice Department, something that struck a blow to his own heart …

Yes, it’s the Chief Judge down. No wonder Dredd’s riding into things with that perfectly done ‘Drokk!’

So it’s Mega-City One without its Chief Judge, reeling from The New Future’s attack, Logan’s clones are gone, and Dredd’s really, really pissed off …

And meanwhile, we have those behind The New Future plotting more strikes on Mega-City One and journalist Roth still on the loose with Maitland’s files, files containing secrets he believes could bring the Justice Department and Robert Glenn down.

So many little plot threads going off here, all in the shadow of the always monumental events of a Chief Judge down. Of course, Logan’s not dead, not quite yet, but you don’t imagine Judge Hernandez is going to let a little thing like that stand in his way, do you?

Again, quite the magnificent bit of Dredd, packed with so much, all of it working so well, and all of it brought to incredible life by the art of Henry Flint, doing incredible things, quite likely the high point of his career art thus far.

Ghosted Book Two — Part 8 — By Guy Adams and Megan Huang, letters by Simon Bowland

Well, last time we had the reveal of Chant, Trust member/leader? (so much is still up in the air with Ghosted; it’s part of the draw of it) giving us an end-of-days scenario, with the power to wipe out everything on the planet apart from the shielded city of Kinshasa. And she’s about insane enough to use it. Perfect case in point here showing just how nasty she can be…

Well, now we get the first time the two storylines we’ve been following appearing together in the strip here, rather than having the now in even-numbered episodes and the past in the odd-numbered episodes. It would appear that the events of the past — Chant coming up with a plan and the means to keep Kinshasa safe — are now very much the now.

As to that now, we have the augmented Benu and her passenger as part of the tiny resistance camp of warriors thrown out by the Trust to fight an unknown enemy, a futile, suicidal thing, with the Trust treating them all as sacrificial lambs to gather data in the hope that something important will come of it all.

So, it’s campfire conversations for Benu with the psychopath on her back, Chant being Chant, and the resistance plotting how to get back into the city, and all of it on a clock now that Chant has the final solution at her disposal.

As things accelerate, they become clearer — well, a little clearer perhaps. One of the draws of Ghosted through these two series has been the uncertainty, the frustration of not knowing, being forced to pay attention and not have the story handed to you. It’s been complex and messy, difficult and fascinating watching it all get to this point. Sure, it’s not one for everyone; I’ve read plenty of voices online complaining about the very things I’m enjoying it for. Hopefully you’re with me on this: Ghosted is worth the read; its very complexity and frustrating nature is merely a step along the road to getting deeper and deeper into the story, and a story that’s been a highlight across both books.

Durham Red: Hungry City — Part 8 — By Alec Worley and Ben Willsher, letters by Simon Bowland

Oh, poor Durham Red, dropped into the world of the Resort Station of Mondo Carnivallo, waking up after a session with blood all around and the dismembered head of the main crime boss, a giant rabbit head no less, in her lap.

Since then, she (and we) have been playing catch-up here in ‘The Hungry City’. We know a little more than she does, but not that much. The rabbit’s head in her lap happened to be Bugsy Cacciatore, whose son, Donnie (and no, absolutely no reference here to modern-day events, with Donnie being a complete psychopath with mental issues and terrible hair — absolutely not) is now on Red’s case. The thing is, Bugsy was the glue holding this City together, stopping the various gangs from declaring all-out war. And whilst Red, the Widow, and poor, stupid Coltt have a chat, it comes out that Donnie might be the reason for Red’s predicament, looking for a way to off his old man without leaving a trail, and Red turning out ot be just a stooge in it all. And stooges have a habit of winding up dead.

Of course, Donnie’s not exactly one to see any plan through — as the Widow puts it, ‘Donnie not organise piss-up in brewery without eating all drugs and burning down brewery.’ So yes, Donnie might have set Red up, but does he really have the brains to do it? Or is it somebody else who put her in the wrong place at the wrong time?

So yes, this Durham Red is the best of the Reds that Worley and Willsher have done in recent years, plenty of action, smart dialogue, giving Red the sort of stories she’s long been deprived of, and letting her character shine through. All of it accompanied by Willsher’s eye-popping artwork, his colours absolutely bringing it all to life in some style.

Oh, and there’s the question you didn’t expect right there on the first page: “So you not eat food? Drink only blood? How that work exactly? Do you poop like a regular person?” These are the things we want to know, obviously …

Azimuth: The Pack — By Dan Abnett and Tazio Bettin, colours by Matt Soffe, letters by Rob Steen

Well, after ‘How To Train Your Dagon’ finished a couple of Progs ago, I was expecting to see more Azimuth in the new year, so it’s a pleasure to have this little coda to the series here and now.

This is a conversation over Tarot cards between Crazy Hate, the mad cadavatar once known as Tracy Weld, once a lover of Ramone Dexter, now very much not, and Louija, the recyclepath, dealer of the cards. Both of them sat here mulling over the Tarot cards dealt, all of them playing into future moments for Azimuth, secrets possibly revealed, although, as always, with Abnett we can never be sure just what is tease and what’s a red herring.

We see The World, The Magician (Andi, the Judge Anderson pulled to this world from Anderson’s Satan storyline), The Fool (Suzi Nine-Millimetre), and Death (Ramone Dexter), all of whom Crazy Hate reckoned were long dead at the hands of the basilisk. But no, they’re all very much alive. Then there’s Judgement (nope, no idea), and Strength (Venus Bluegenes, another multiversal being dragged to Azimuth by the Rogue AI). Next comes The Tower, a place (actually a chain of diners, the closest being in Funderland, where we know Dexter at al are headed). And then, in the detritus left behind, we have The Hermit (again, no idea) and The Devil, who looks a hell of a lot like the AI-taken-over version of Finnigan, Dexter’s partner, and the missing part of Sinister Dexter who hasn’t popped up in Azimuth … yet.

Oh yes, it’s a little moment of mystery and intrigue, leading into the next Azimuth series and giving us just a little hint of what’s to come. Mystery, intrigue, Abnett messing with us as is usual, and Bettin giving it all the great art we’ve come to expect from him when it comes to Azimuth. As I’ve so often said, Azimuth has breathed new life into the whole Sinister Dexter storyline, making it something absolutely fascinating, as we all try to work out where Abnett’s going with all this. And The Pack is just the latest in a number of little moments that guide our way.

More Azimuth in 2027 — which is, scarily, not that far away!

Herne & Shuck: Storming The Stone — Part 8 — By David Barnett and Lee Milmore, colours by Quinton Winter, letters by Annie Parkhouse

If ever you needed another perfect example of how Barnett and Milmore manage to walk a nice line between the serious and the silly in Herne & Shuck, it’s here on page one. Against a backdrop of demonic carnage, with Herne and his merry little gang armed to the teeth in their mission to rescue Caris and the other children held by St Michael, we have this glorious line …

The Bond villain quip is just perfect, exactly the tone that Herne & Shuck have maintained all through, no matter how dark the storylines get.

Anyway, things go south very quickly, all those weapons dissolved under a demon’s gaze, and Herne facing down the demon Moloch without fear — or perhaps just his normal ridiculous habit of cracking jokes in the face of danger. All part of the charm, all part of the charm.

By the end, Herne’s managed to find a way to even the odds somewhat; there’s an unexpected ally attacking Moloch, and things have reached a rather explosive critical mass. I’d have usually expected the series to run to 12 episodes, but things are happening so fast that it could well be over in 10. All in all, as with all Herne & Shuck tales thus far, it’s been a delight, and one that I do hope Barnett and Milmore get to continue once this Caris cycle that’s been in play since their very first adventure comes to an end.