Meg Review 204 // 2000 AD Judge Dredd Megazine 204

Welcome back in time to April 8th 2003 and Judge Dredd Megazine 204. Let's get in their Drokk heads.

Cover - Shadow of the Gun (John Higgins)

A dominantly baby blue cover, with what appears to a very young juve holding a gun. The Juve looks noticeably scared as a shadow of a Judge looms over him. Just behind him in what I would describe Serial Killer handwriting is the term"Be Very Afraid!" followed by "Justice Casts its Shadow over Mega-City One". Looks like we could be in a rough story here.

The Meg

Story: Judge Dredd // Monkey on My Back (Part 1)- Set January 2099 during the reign of Chief Judge Goodman just prior to Cal taking control. CJ Goodman decides to relax the laws on mutant control and allows the citizens to police themselves more. Of course Dredd is not a fan, but what could be causing this change of heart in Goodman.

Opinion: It's fun going back to an earlier time and reliving some characters who needed more filling out. It was really great to see Judge Cal again and look forward to seeing where this goes.

Story: Juliet November // Phoenix Falling (Part 3)- Juliet's date has gone hill big time. With her date bleeding on the floor and stuck in a hostage situation. To make matters worst the hostage takers discovers she works for the Justice Department. Soon the situation is completely out of control and Juliet embraces her PSI powers.
Opinion: Sad ending to great a tale. You can't help but get the feels for Juliet. All she wanted was a normal life, instead she is now contained for life with just a memory of a man who loved her.

Story: Slaine // Time Killer (Part 8 to 10)- The weird time wars continue with Slaine in the middle. Though ultimately victorious against the evil, Slaine is seriously injured and teleported elsewhere to recover.

Opinion: Really struggling with this tale. There are lasers (leyser), cthulhu style monsters, hints of nazi's and that the Celts come from Atlantis. This is all too far out there for me, I want high fantasy not sci-fi barbarians. Feel like I'm missing the point of this comic.

Story: Darkie's Mob (Part 8 to 12) - The war in Burma continues and Darkie's Mob are leading the charge! Destroying bridges, comm towers and assassinating Generals, Darkie's Mob are making a lot of noise which has attracted the attention of the British high command.
Opinion: Still one of the stronger tales in the meg. Wagner has written a truly heroic epic that should be a movie. Does seem like the tale is coming to end though, as British high command seem to be coming for Darkie.

Story: Tharg's Future Shocks- The setup for this tale makes you think it's going to be an epic tale of isolation and a descent into madness. Instead it's just a descent into madness as we discover it's just a flight simulator and our poor trainee failed after just 10 seconds!

Opinion: A quick and easy 2 page tale, great artwork, great beginning, a quick and brutal ending the perfect Future Shock.

Story: Sinister Dexter // Gag Reflex- A rare night off for the deadly duo and we join them at Bar None as Sinister attempts to relay a joke to Dexter without much luck.

Opinion: Nice little one page tale, but when will we get a true tale from them, I want a full story!

Story: Black Siddha - Bad Karma (Part 3)- The Karma trial is finally coming to an end. The sentence is past Rohan must become the Black Siddha and pay off his debt. But will Rohan agree?
Opinion: Beautiful artwork is truly saving this strip, but hopefully the tale will pick up pace now that the trial is over.

Story: Family (Part 4)- The Funeral for Christopher Odysseus is underway and the tension between rival families is building to boiling point. Who is this Silver character and why is he offing family members in hopes of starting a war?
Opinion: This tale is still going strong, I want more details on this Silver character he was obviously a family member but what happened!? I also love that the first page and a half had no talking very fitting for a funeral scene.

Story: Devlin Waugh // Red Tide (Part 3)- Having barely survived the original attack the trio are now stuck on a life raft in the vampire filled ocean. Just as it looked liked the end they are saved by a passing Safari boat, but they aren't safe let.
Opinion: Really enjoying this one, great artwork, a story with pace and Devlin Waugh. Pure win. Just waiting for more action to begin.

Story: Apocalypse Soon - Set in the badlands of Dakota we join the horsemen of the apocalypse in cheesy bar waiting the sign for World War Three.

Opinion: Being only a page long it's hard to get a feel for the strip. Dark humour is backed up by the artwork. Will be interesting to see where it goes.

Review

Overall a solid meg the only real let down was Slaine (which I just can't seem to get on with). Sad to see the end of Juliet November and hopefully she will be back. Whilst Family, Black Siddha both seem to be gaining momentum and should become actioned packed. The standout winners of this meg for me has to be Devlin Waugh, Dredd and Darkie's mob. All have great plots, action and artwork. So far this has been the best issue so far. I'm keen to see what replaces Juliet in the next one.

As always thanks for stopping by!