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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 10:53:58 GMT -5
Post by tingramretro on Sept 29, 2015 10:53:58 GMT -5
I think my strongest memory of Tyranny Rex was when Soft Bodies ended, and someone wrote in to the letters page to ask what it had actually been about. Tharg replied "it was about 50 pages".
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Post by fanboystranger on Sept 29, 2015 11:34:46 GMT -5
Major 2000AD fan. My favorite property was Nikolai Dante, but I have a lot of love for Indigo Prime, The Red Seas, Kingdom, Stickleback, The Red Seas, Zenith, and Devlin Waugh, as well as the old stand-bys Slaine, Strontium Dog, and JD. I think the last decade of the anthology has been the strongest the book has been as a whole in its history, and Matt Smith is the best editor working in the business.
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 11:40:07 GMT -5
Post by fanboystranger on Sept 29, 2015 11:40:07 GMT -5
Slaine. It was a Slaine storyline. Irish rather than Scottish warlords then, I suspect. And yes, I can't fault you on that. Slaine was at one time a very good strip, but sadly it's become increasingly repetitive over the years. It should really have been retired by now, I think. That's strange, though, as Pat Mills has somehow managed to keep his other ongoing series', Savage and ABC Warriors, fresh and interesting for years. I think Slaine is basically self indulgence on his part... Probably more than any other 2000AD strip, Slaine has really had its ups and downs, but the ups are the best stories that 2000AD has ever told. The Books of Invasion were the last time that Slaine was truly outstanding, but before and after that, the strip was kinda a mess. I do think that Simon Davis becoming the regular artist has breathed some new life into the strip-- got really tired of Clint Langely's photo-manip art. Davis presents a grittier Tir-Na-Og (or I guess it's actually Albion now) than we've seen in decades. |
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Post by fanboystranger on Sept 29, 2015 11:43:55 GMT -5
I think my strongest memory of Tyranny Rex was when Soft Bodies ended, and someone wrote in to the letters page to ask what it had actually been about. Tharg replied "it was about 50 pages". My strongest memory of Tyranny Rex is that's where Indigo Prime agents first appear. I love John Smith's work in general-- he's right there with Grant Morrison as far as wild ideas, but doesn't have the same consistancies-- but T Rex seemed to relish in its pretentiousness a bit too much for my tastes. (I realize that's the point of the character as a sort of a cosmic conceptual artist, but I think it gets too specific in its references to truly be timeless like Indigo Prime or some of Smith's other strips like Leatherjack or Devlin Waugh.) |
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 11:46:05 GMT -5
Post by tingramretro on Sept 29, 2015 11:46:05 GMT -5
Major 2000AD fan. My favorite property was Nikolai Dante, but I have a lot of love for Indigo Prime, The Red Seas, Kingdom, Stickleback, The Red Seas, Zenith, and Devlin Waugh, as well as the old stand-bys Slaine, Strontium Dog, and JD. I think the last decade of the anthology has been the strongest the book has been as a whole in its history, and Matt Smith is the best editor working in the business. You really do like The Red Seas, don't you? It's so good, you mentioned it twice!  Actually, on the strength of The Red Seas, Stickleback, Helium and Brass Sun, I think Ian Edginton is probably one of the best writers 2000 AD has at the moment, up there with Mills and Wagner. And yes, Matt Smith is a great editor. The book has gone from strength to strength since he took over. He's now the longest serving Tharg. |
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 11:48:50 GMT -5
Post by fanboystranger on Sept 29, 2015 11:48:50 GMT -5
Sinister Dexter. I never did really get to grips with Durham Red, though; she was fine as a supporting character for Johnny Alpha, but I never really saw the point of her solo series, particularly after she was sent into the far future and separated from the world of the Strontium Dogs. Thing is, though, as an anthology with a constantly changing line-up, I tend to find that there are always at least three out of five strips that I like even if I'm indifferent to or actively dislike the other two. Other strips I really hated were the Mark Millar reboot of Robo-Hunter, the appalling Babe Race 2000 (also by Millar) and the utterly incomprehensible Tyranny Rex. Ah yeah, Sinister Dexter also is one I never cared about, a Pulp Fiction spoof with little world-building. Yeah, I scratch my head when people say they love Sinister Dexter, too. Never could get into it. Abnett's had some brilliant 2000AD strips like his far future Durham Red trilogy with Mark Harrison and the always fun Kingdom, but Sinister Dexter seems to be trying way too hard. |
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Post by fanboystranger on Sept 29, 2015 11:52:22 GMT -5
Major 2000AD fan. My favorite property was Nikolai Dante, but I have a lot of love for Indigo Prime, The Red Seas, Kingdom, Stickleback, The Red Seas, Zenith, and Devlin Waugh, as well as the old stand-bys Slaine, Strontium Dog, and JD. I think the last decade of the anthology has been the strongest the book has been as a whole in its history, and Matt Smith is the best editor working in the business. You really do like The Red Seas, don't you? It's so good, you mentioned it twice! Actually, on the strength of The Red Seas, Stickleback, Helium and Brass Sun, I think Ian Edginton is probably one of the best writers 2000 AD has at the moment, up there with Mills and Wagner. And yes, Matt Smith is a great editor. The book has gone from strength to strength since he took over. He's now the longest serving Tharg. I think I meant to write Leviathan instead of the first Red Seas, but since the books are by Edginton and related, I goofed. You could just as easily slot Brass Sun in there, though. Yeah, Edginton's stuff over the past decade plus has been fantastic. I wouldn't say he's just one of the best writers for 2000AD, but one of the best writers in comics period. He was always seen as Warren Ellis' understudy, but I'd argue that Edginton has had the stronger body of work over the past decade. Stickleback, in particular, is a book that fascinates me. It plays with all those hoary old Victorian cliches, but does so in such a vibrant way that it always seems fresh. I should have seen Stickleback's true identity coming from a million miles away, but I was genuinely surprised when it was revealed. And D'Israeli's art is beyond comparison. Truly one of the greatest artists working in the medium. |
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 11:57:26 GMT -5
Post by Arthur Gordon Scratch on Sept 29, 2015 11:57:26 GMT -5
On a side note, as much as I enjoyed Zenith when I was a teen, when I re-read it some ten years ago, I was floored by how naive and forulaic it actually was. It certainlyy is not that pieceof great meta-fiction that some critics wants it to be, and feels more like Morrison desperatly trying to cash in on Alan Moore's achievements, but quite awkwardly. That being said, the artwark is stunning, maybe the best Steve Yeowell ever produced. The "Sebastion O" Morrison and Yeowell would later produce for Vertigo is much stronger, storywise.
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 12:05:03 GMT -5
Post by tingramretro on Sept 29, 2015 12:05:03 GMT -5
I think my strongest memory of Tyranny Rex was when Soft Bodies ended, and someone wrote in to the letters page to ask what it had actually been about. Tharg replied "it was about 50 pages". My strongest memory of Tyranny Rex is that's where Indigo Prime agents first appear. I love John Smith's work in general-- he's right there with Grant Morrison as far as wild ideas, but doesn't have the same consistancies-- but T Rex seemed to relish in its pretentiousness a bit too much for my tastes. (I realize that's the point of the character as a sort of a cosmic conceptual artist, but I think it gets too specific in its references to truly be timeless like Indigo Prime or some of Smith's other strips like Leatherjack or Devlin Waugh.) I really wish they'd bring Devlin Waugh back. It's been far too long. If they can resurrect Indigo Prime after all thse years, Devlin has to be a contender, surely? |
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 12:11:05 GMT -5
Post by fanboystranger on Sept 29, 2015 12:11:05 GMT -5
On a side note, as much as I enjoyed Zenith when I was a teen, when I re-read it some ten years ago, I was floored by how naive and forulaic it actually was. It certainlyy is not that pieceof great meta-fiction that some critics wants it to be, and feels more like Morrison desperatly trying to cash in on Alan Moore's achievements, but quite awkwardly. That being said, the artwark is stunning, maybe the best Steve Yeowell ever produced. The "Sebastion O" Morrison and Yeowell would later produce for Vertigo is much stronger, storywise. I think what's made Zenith age so poorly is that so many comics have taken their lead from it, so it doesn't seem as radical as it once did. Some of that was actually Morrison himself riffing on the same themes over and over again, but take someone like Jonathan Hickman-- the lead-in to Secret Wars with the incursions and having to destroy other universes was essentially just the plot of Zenith: Phase Three played out in the Marvel Universe. |
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Post by tingramretro on Sept 29, 2015 12:13:53 GMT -5
On a side note, as much as I enjoyed Zenith when I was a teen, when I re-read it some ten years ago, I was floored by how naive and forulaic it actually was. It certainlyy is not that pieceof great meta-fiction that some critics wants it to be, and feels more like Morrison desperatly trying to cash in on Alan Moore's achievements, but quite awkwardly. That being said, the artwark is stunning, maybe the best Steve Yeowell ever produced. The "Sebastion O" Morrison and Yeowell would later produce for Vertigo is much stronger, storywise. I was never really that impressed by Zenith, but then, I'm afraid I've never really rated Morrison that highly. A lot of his early stuff reads to me like, as you say, someone trying unsuccessfully to be Alan Moore, and a lot of his later stuff just confuses the hell out of me. I think the only Morrison stuff I've ever been genuinely really impressed by was Animal Man, though I must admit I did quite like Sebastian O, since you mentioned it. Doom Patrol had its moments, but frequently seemed to just be being strange for the sake of being strange. |
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 12:19:37 GMT -5
Post by Arthur Gordon Scratch on Sept 29, 2015 12:19:37 GMT -5
You may very well be right, I haven't read any Marvel Hickman excep the begining of his Ultimates... But in the end, it just makes Alan Moore's take on modern corporate comics even more valid.  Even if quite basic in so many ways, I always enjoyed reading Harlem Heroes. |
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Post by tingramretro on Sept 29, 2015 12:22:55 GMT -5
Even if quite basic in so many ways, I always enjoyed reading Harlem Heroes. The original series, I presume? |
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 12:23:09 GMT -5
Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 29, 2015 12:23:09 GMT -5
I've never read an issue of 2000 AD. I've read collections of some of the stories. And eventually will get to more.
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2000 AD
Sept 29, 2015 12:43:21 GMT -5
Post by Arthur Gordon Scratch on Sept 29, 2015 12:43:21 GMT -5
Even if quite basic in so many ways, I always enjoyed reading Harlem Heroes. The original series, I presume? Most indeed, I'm not even sure I actually read the revival. The original had the charm of a strong boys magazine serial with Sci-Fi and action focus and a slight political subtext. Even if the art wasn't great, it was at least consistent and filled with details. And let's be honest, it kinda was "Rollerball, the comic" which is in itself a great marketing idea. |
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