2000AD bumper Xmas Progs, ranked. (or... in search of the perfect Prog) There’s clearly no such thing as the single perfect issue programme Prog of 2000AD. For any given fan it’ll likely be whatever your first Prog was, or perhaps more accurately the first Prog you read where you were like "I have to buy the next one to see what happens!!! Please Mum/Dad/Nan please!" But here I am anyway, on the hunt for some sort of objectively defined Best. Prog. Ever! This endeavour started life as a special request from one David Bishop . He suggested I assess those festive feasts of fun, the Annual 100 page bumper-size ChristmasProgs ! When Tharg asks you to do something, you say "how high?". And in part, it’s because Prog 2000 , the first of those bumper specials, claims on its own cover to be the biggest and best Prog ever. Mr Bishop, the originator and editor of that Prog, lays claim to the fact it remains the biggest and best! Is this true? Given that it worked ...
So of course everyone knows the best thrill to run in 2000AD is... Judge Dredd. But what's the best after that? Well, thanks to Colin YNWA Taylor and some 30 or 40 obsessive 2000AD fans, we know the answer. It wasn't my choice, Nemesis the Warlock, but the alien didn't do bad, all told... In the end the final was a real nail-biter, and you couldn't ask for two worthier contenders, representing different but glorious aspects of what 20000AD does well, whether it's taciturn men with magic guns killing people and feeling bad about it, or garrulous men with magic guns killing people and feeling bad about it, and occasionally having sex and feeling good about it.
Rank 6: Prog 2212 , (which would be ‘Prog 2021’ under the old numbering system) dated December 2020, (falling in between Progs 2211 and 2213, obviously…) Recency bias, or just a really excellent Prog? You decide. Art by Cliff Robinson and Dylan Teague What’s in it? Judge Dredd, a seasonal one-off Strontium Dog, a one-off / blast from the past Survival Geeks, an epilogue Visions of Deadworld, a one-off Proteus Vex, first episode of the latest series Slaine, first episode of the final series Hershey, first episode of the latest series Time Twisters, a 2000AD-centric one-off Durham Red, first episode of the latest series PLUS: An interview with an art droid from yesteryear A double-page poster A couple of trailers for thrills / Live Experiences to come A letters page Analysis So yes, this is the most recent Xmas Prog, produced during the Year of Lockdowns (and released just as Lockdown 3 was underway, I think??), and somehow it's all spiffing stuff - not a dud stor...
Comments
Post a Comment