Audio Review 55 // Horus Heresy Warmaster / Kryptos / Wolf's Claw

I am in love with these Horus Heresy short stories right now! I enjoy just being able to plug into an account for 30 minutes or less and get so entranced that I'm left desperately wanting more. This week we dive into three short stories: Warmaster by John French, Kryptos by Graham McNeill and Wolf's Claw by Chris Wraight. I trust all great authors to write a good tale, so let us see if they disappoint.

Title: Warmaster

Author: John French

Fluff: In the strategium of the Vengeful Spirit, Warmaster Horus sets up his assault on his father's Imperium. He discusses his brothers, loyal and traitor, and his hopes and fears for the war he has begun...and whether or not he really thinks it can end it. But just who is Horus talking to as he lays out his plans for galactic domination?

Review: Wow, I know I said these are short stories, but at about 10 minutes long, this was painfully too short. It feels like the recap scene when you start a new season of a TV show. We join Horus on the Vengeful Spirit as he goes over what is happening in this war. He realizes he is paired with the brothers who he would have least likely chosen as allies. I did enjoy him comparing the different brothers against each other and who he would have preferred to fight this war with. It's intriguing to hear the realization that he is on a path he doesn't honestly believe in and that he must continue on it more out of pride and spite than actual belief.

It is an interesting listen, but I am glad I got it in a bundle and didn't purchase solo.

Amazon Purchase: Warmaster

Title: Kryptos

Author: Graham McNeill

Fluff: Bloodied but unbowed, the Raven Guard and the Iron Hands fight on. In the wake of the Dropsite Massacre, the shattered Legions are still prepared to bring the fight to Warmaster Horus and his traitorous allies. On the doomed forge world of Cavor Sarta, two veteran warriors of the Imperium strike deep into the heart of the Dark Mechanicum's territory. With bolter and blade ready to cut down any who cross their path, they will seek out the enemy's most valued asset: the mysterious 'Kryptos.'

Review: This story has us deep in enemy-controlled space with Raven Guard and Iron Hands space marines. Following losses during the Dropsite Massacre. These Legions have paired up to strike down enemy strongholds and avenge their fallen brothers. I personally have been enjoying my time with the Iron Hands Legion, and this continues the trend. A very intriguing story as we experience a Forgeworld that has a soul and aids the duo, a nuclear meltdown, the use of a stasis device to survive the explosion. Lots of action-packed into this one. Another solid McNeill tale and worth the entry price.

Amazon Purchase: Kryptos

Title: Wolf's Claw

Author: Chris Wraight

Fluff: Caught by the renegade forces of the Alpha Legion and forced to take refuge in the Alaxxes Nebula, the Space Wolves are bloodied but unbowed. The young pack leader Bjorn – now known to his warriors as 'the One-Handed' – is desperate to recover his honour in battle, but replacing lost limbs for proud legionaries is not a task worthy of the Iron Priests. If Bjorn is to fight again, he must seek out new claws for himself and christen them in the blood of the traitors.

Review: Another short tale here running approximately 10 minutes in total. We get to continue the saga of Bjorn and his journey to becoming the Fell-Handed. This is a story of two halves; the first showcases the Wolves constantly fighting the enemy at the gates, barely having time to regroup before diving back into the next battle, but it also shows how the stress and constant battling are starting affect them all. Bjorn feels incomplete and missing a hand, goes against his Forge master's wishes and steals a relic claw to graft his arm. Though this will ultimately lead to him becoming a legend, it is a shame-filled way to be an honourable warrior. Surprisingly a good ten-minute listen, but after listening, I can't help but want more Alpha Legion!

Amazon Purchase: Wolf's Claw

These are all solid titles, and I highly recommend picking these up. I was torn between a favourite, but I feel Wolf's Claw gets the top spot out of the three. Do agree? Let me know in the comments.

I hope you enjoyed it? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Book Review 154 // Sludge Harbour Payback by Justin D Hill

Continuing the Necromunda short stories run I am currently on. This week sees us reading a Justin D Hill story titled Sludge Harbour Payback.

Sludge Harbour Payback by Justin D Hill

Interestingly this story follows a character from the Necromunda Rule Book - Yar Umbra. I personally have not read that far into the rulebook to read his background, but I have seen his Forgeworld model and can confirm he is one creepy-looking dude with glowing eyes! A lot of his background is a mystery. Which remains so after reading this title. He is a Void-born human who chooses to hide his face behind a sack; it is due to whatever is under the bag that he was abandoned on Necromunda and now performs bounty hunting duties in the hopes of gaining enough credits to escape the planet.

The story itself is pretty solid, it has us travelling around a lot, and we discover how he ended up left on the planet. This is a very atmospheric story and keeps you intrigued by what is under Yar Umbra's hood. This is very much a character-building story, and I can see it being either a hit or miss with fans. If Ya Umbra intrigues you, it will be an interesting read for sure; otherwise, it may well be a miss as he is no Kal Jericho.

Buy the book: Amazon.ca Necromunda Uprising.

I hope you enjoyed it? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Comic Review 158 // Judge Dredd: Complete Case Files 15 by 2000 AD

It's been a hot minute since I read a complete case files series. The last was of course Case Files 14 which was a true epic. I can foresee this volume being all about the fallout of that story arc and the return of Dredd all of which is very important.

The volume itself contained 17 stories in total with Death Aid and Emerald Isle taking up most of the page space. The first story: Theatre of Death throws us straight into a Judge Death tale and makes sure that we the reader, are not yet safe from this fearsome boogie man! We also get to catch up with everyone's favourite serial killer P.J Maybe, in the greatly titled: Wot I Did During Necropolis. All these tales are happening whilst the Democrats are rising once more in popularity and the Justice Department is stretched thin. Mega-City One is in rough shape and I am not sure how it will recover.

The stories inside this volume are really just a bunch of short tales, meaning fun to read but too short to warrant reviewing everyone. But they do help to rebuild how the new city is doing and grow out sub-plots that will grow in time. Nightmares was a nice nod to the Dead Man saga and see the return of Yassa Povey, a young man who rescued Dredd in the Cursed Earth, but ultimately lost his sight to the Sisters of Death. This story was nice as it brought in the Democrats, Cadet Judge Giant and PSI Judge Anderson, whilst also leading us into the Hunters Club story arc. Speaking of which Death Aid is a bit of comic relief, as Hunter's Club goes on a "Charity Killing Spree" in hopes of raising funds for the impoverished by killing scores of citizens!

We then get a few stories that focus on the viewpoint of the citizens. These are great though short-lived, but they truly help to flesh out the New Normal of Mega-City One. These tales nice lead us into the main focus of the issue - Emerald Isle. In which we see Judge Dredd on a diplomatic mission to Murphyville. His goal was to track down a terrorist who is assisting the local militants to rise up and bring down the local government. Murphyville is an excellent location, showing us how the Ireland of the future managed to survive by becoming a theme park. It is full of skin-crawling stereotypes with cute cottages, pubs serving Guinness and potatoes (tho these are made with rice lol). We also get to meet Judge Joyce (read more here), a man who enjoys a beer and chatting more than working. Overall a great story and I hope we get more of Murphville soon as I want to visit there again.

The rest of the volume is pretty standard Dredd In Return of the King, the animated corpse of Chief Judge Silver returns and attempts to overthrow McGruder until Judge Dredd passes judgement. This for me though a silly piece, starts to move Judge Dredd along the path of being above the LAW. Here he can show his strength and no one stops him, showing how many Judges will treat him moving forwards, Dredd is the saviour, Dredd is never wrong, Dredd is the Law. This is a dangerous path and one that will bite everyone in the arse in future for sure.

Overall an above-average read, the fact that it followed Necropolis, really affected my rating of it. Such an epic story would need these tales to help the read adjust to the new way of life, but it just leaves you wanting more action!

I hope you enjoyed the review? Want to read for yourself? Use my Amazon link to purchase and I will get a sweet payout (Win, win): Complete Case Files 15. Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Road to Necromunda - Ganger

Not much of a gang without a ganger.

So I have last week's leader built, but what now? Well in the rules it is rather clearly written out that for every special gang member you have: Leader, Champion, Juve you must match with a ganger. With this in mind, I built a gang member to chill with the leader. Enjoy the video.

Not a huge amount of thought goes into the creation of my figures. It is very much, what looks cool at the time. The only thing I knew was I needed a rifle, but here I was left disappointed. No actual rifles in a handheld configuration! Yes, there is a shotgun, but where are the autogun and lasgun options? All you get is an autogun in a holster, seriously disappointing GW. With little options, I plugged that on, along with a stubpistol and dagger to help round him out.

I see this model as a supporting character, guarding long tunnels as the others move in. But also wise enough to be prepared for some close combat fighting.

Let me know what you think and as always thank you for stopping by.

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Audio Review 54 // Horus Heresy Strike and Fade/Honour to the Dead/Butcher's Nails

Loving these short Horus Heresy Stories. Not only can I listen to a few a week, but it also helps me get through some of the anthology books as well. Win, Win. This week I managed another three tales. Stike and Fade by Guy Haley, Honour to the Dead by Gav Thorpe and Butcher's Nails by Aaron Dembski-Bowden. This is a killer author line-up and I expected big things from them. So let us see if I was disappointed.

Title: Strike and Fade

Author: Guy Haley

Run time: 12 minutes

Fluff: In the aftermath of the Isstvan V massacre, a group of Salamanders survivors lay a trap for their foes, a group of unwary Night Lords on the hunt for easy prey.

Review: We head back to long-forgotten Istvaan and some survivors of the massacre. A short but fun story pitting the Salamander survivors against the hunting packs of Night Lords. We are quickly introduced to war fatigued teams that are on the edge of death and join them in a conflict against their hated foe. There is a lot to enjoy about this story, sadly the Nightlords aren't one of them. They seemed as deadly as an Imperial Stormtrooper, never hitting a single shot and just dying out in the blasted terrain. Where are the threat and dangers? These Salamanders had some serious plot armour on the side. But a great little fun story to kick us off.

Amazon Purchase Link: Strike and Fade

Title: Honour to the Dead

Author: Gav Thorpe

Runtime: 1hr 10 mins

Fluff: Action-packed audio drama set during the Battle of Calth.

As Calth burns, the Battle Titans of the Fire Masters legion take to the streets of the city of Ithraca, ready to massacre the fleeing civilian population in the name of their new, dark masters. But the remaining loyalist engines of the Legio Praesagius - the True Messengers - still stand ready to defend the Imperium, even in the face of almost certain death. With the nearby Ultramarines forces scattered and lost, the people of Ithraca must fend for themselves as gigantic war machines unleash apocalyptic weaponry across the ravaged skyline...

Review: This was an enjoyable listen. Made more captivating by the voice actors. We got a bit of everything in this story, from striding loyal and traitorous Titans, Ultramarines blasting away traitor troops and the underused viewpoint of Imperial citizens.

I felt tingles at the use of a child throughout the tale and how different Ultramarines felt about citizens in general, this is truly a dark time. But the way they played off each other was spectacular and well-deserving of more audio time. Deep down I am hoping the Child appears in future Thorpe stories, but I fear for its future as he is on Calth. I also really enjoyed Ultramarines being true Space Marines for once, they kicked ass and for once came across as exciting. More please Gav Thorpe.

Amazon Purchase Link: Honour to the Dead

Now to the final short story...

Title: Butcher's Nails

Author: Aaron Dembski-Bowden

Runtime: 1hr 5mins

Fluff: Original Horus Heresy audio featuring the Primarch Angron.

The Primarch Angron: gladiator-king and Horus’s lunatic attack dog. Never having hidden his resentment for his brothers, he now carves a bloody swathe through the galaxy in the Warmaster’s name, with the Heresy providing a convenient excuse to indulge his love of brutal warfare. When they are tasked with a secretive mission alongside the Word Bearers Legion, the World Eaters’ violent tendencies soon attract the attention of Xenos raiders, troubled by the portents surrounding the Primarch’s berserk fury and his ultimate destiny as ‘the Blood God’s son’.

Review: I was excited about this title appearing. 1) I feel like the World Eaters are underrepresented in the series. 2) They are normally poorly portrayed by authors, who just make them murdering madmen and 3) Kharn, I love Kharn during the Heresy, he is a truly noble soul who in any other legion would have been a true legend.

But back to Butcher's Nails. This story is set at the onset of the Shadow crusade with Angron and Lorgar travelling to Ultramar space. We have an upset Lorgar who is annoyed as Angron attacks every world and rage-filled Angron who is feeling stifled by his brother. The true highlight of this tale is actually the way these relationships all play out. We could have easily seen the story swing two ways - 1) Angron and Lorgar fight ultimately destroying each other or 2) they go their separate ways weakening Horus's forces. Instead, we actually get a third option, 3) a threat that ultimately unites them and forms a bond between the two brothers...well done Eldar forces, and allows them to go and rampage through Ultramarine turf.

Amazon Purchase: Butcher's Nails

And great way to end these three reviews. These are all strong titles and I highly recommend picking these up. I was torn between a favourite, but out of the three, I feel Gav Thorpe's Honour to the Dead gets the top spot. Do agree? Let me know in the comments.

I hope you enjoyed it? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms that I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Book Review 153 // His Terrible Visage by Gary Kioster

My short story reading is continuing at a healthy pace. I am really enjoying the freedom of not having to worry if I like a story or not as I know it will be finished soon. This has to lead to me taking some risks I may have avoided, one example is trying out new authors. With this in mind today I am reviewing a new to me, author and his Necromunda tale. So let's go!

Title: His Terrible Visage.

Author: Gary Kioster.

I am straight up happy for a Cawdor story, my main love is House Delaque (check out my youtube channel for Delaque fun) but closes behind in the rankings comes Cawdor. A house completely devoted to the God-Emperor and living off the trash of the other houses. To me, they come across as the ultimate underdogs.

This story is to be read as a reintroduction to the Cawdor way of life. But updated to the all-new setting. It showcases everything I enjoy about them, from the trash picking to only needing the will and glory of the Emperor to keep them alive. Though great from a lore angle I did find the overall idea a bit straight forward and I fear it should have just belonged in the rulebook on the fluff pages. Interesting to lore fanatics but can be easily ignored for better titles.

As always I hope you enjoyed this review. Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details.

Looking for a great Necromunda read? Follow this Amazon link to Necromunda Uprising (yes I get a kickback lol).

Cheers to reading this.

Comic Review 157 // Karyn: Concrete Sky by 2000 AD

As I continue to dig through my comic backlog, I discovered this week's issue. It sprang out as a must-read for a couple of reasons. 

1.  It carries on the theme from a couple weeks back of PSI (See Janus Volume 2)
2. It has Vampires! It's October, it is Halloween.
3. I actually didn't like my introduction to Karyn, so I am hoping this will turn it around.

Karyn Concrete Sky Collection

A collection of four stories from the world of Judge Dredd. The cover shows an Angellic Vampire swarming over Karyn with screaming faces. This picture is stunning and gives me hope for the stories within so let's go!

Instant heartbreak as I open the cover and see the blocky black and white imagery from the Janus issue...

Story: Karyn: Concrete Sky

Writer: John Freeman

Artist: Adrian Salmon

Okay, let's get into the story, a solid tale for the title piece. The MegaCorp are rebuilding damaged mega-blocks and a team has gone missing, as the supervisor goes to investigate he discovers their corpses. Soon the Judges are on site, but this time it is the exorcist branch. A rarely seen team who fight the paranormal. Judge Karyn is also on hand and is met with sexism and aggression from these Exorcist Judges, but she ultimately discovers the truth that the head vampire is in fact an infected judge who went missing a while back. Turns out he has been aiding the Vampires in rebuilding Old New York. Here the story gets a bit dull, as we discover the Vampires are just basically buying time to flee the underworld. Which they succeed in doing. The artwork as I mentioned in passing is not to my taste, I find the blocky black and white too jarring and it distracts from what could have been an interesting tale. It is also hard to side with the Vampires, as they could have fled without the Judges ever finding them. I just find it all a bit hastily written towards the end.

Story: Karyn: Beautiful Evil

Writer: John Freeman

Artist: Adrian Salmon

Urgh! Another Salmon drawn piece. I can understand this art direction. Judge Karyn was meant to fill a void left by Judge Anderson leaving, but it seems like they didn't want to give her a proper chance. Freeman has written interesting enough stories, but the art is a fail for me. I can fully understand why it failed. In this short one shot, Judge Karyn is investigating a murder of African art. She soon discovers one piece in the collection contains a cursed spirit who kills along near the stolen stone. Soon she is fighting the creature before ultimately destroying the art piece. A very good one-shot story, let down by the art. If Karyn had got more of these she may have been popular, sadly that didn't happen. It also seems to be the end of the Judge Karyn arc for now as we move on to a new character.

Story: Cabal

Writer: John Freeman

Artist: Adrian Salmon

Okay seems like the whole issue to given over this duo. A new character has been created and it would seem a colourist has been hired. Straight up the colouring really helps, it makes me want to go back and try it on the Karyn stories. In this story, we once again follow the PSI Exorcist Squad as they battle demons. Whilst this is happening with have Judge Shenker discussing the Exorcist Squads' future within the department with Chief Judge McGruder. Overall a strange tale, it was definitely a set-up for a new series, but seems to have failed as the character of Cabal is never seen again lol. Not the worst story, but with a lack of follow up there are way too many unanswered questions. Colouring Salmon's work was the true highlight here.

Story: Judge Hershey: True Brit

Writer: Alan Grant

Art: Doug Braithwaite and Dave Elliot

A confusing add-on to the collection. So far it has been PSI-filled and now we get a random Hershey story. Plus side Alan Grant is taking the lead, backed up some great artists. In this story, we discover that Chief Judge Silver and the Council of Five are on the verge of signing an agreement with Brit-Cit only problem is Hershey is late for the signing. Turns out she is busy fighting an Anti-Brit terrorist group. Classic Mega-city story and the strongest piece in this collection.

Overall this collection is a hard miss for me. Can't get past Salmon's work. This is the joy of art, it either hits or misses. Let me know what you think of his art style if you have read these stories.

I hope you enjoyed the review? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Road to Necromunda - House Delaque - WTF am I doing?

Something a little new today. I have waited and waited but now seems to be the right time to enter the hive. That's right! Time to start Necromunda. I'm not sure how far down the rabbit hole I will go, but I had the urge to make some Delaques, so I dusted off the Rulebook and Gang War tomes, but honestly, I couldn't be bothered with the rules, so I just started gluing models.

I had this idea of Delaque's being akin to spiders and ultimately downright creepy characters. So as I was imagining how the boss would look I started to collect parts. I like the cane as a suggestion of age, but can use it as a shock maul, I wanted him bent over, he spent his prime crouching and creeping which has lead to the curved back. 

With these basics sorted it was time to glue. I hope you will watch and enjoy the video. If you can go over to Youtube and subscribe you would make this old spider happy!

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Audio Review 53 // Horus Heresy Shorts - Serpent/Riven/Veritas Ferrum

Tripleheader today! I am slowly working my way through a load of Black Library Horus Heresy short audiobook/dramas, I have collected over the years. Conveniently most of these also fall under the umbrella of Legacies of Betrayal book 31 of the Horus Heresy series. So I can at least save some money and not purchase that book hahaha. Let us jump into this triple feature.

Serpent by John French and read by Toby Longworth

The first of two shorts by John French. I have found his work in the past to be enjoyable, so I have high hopes. If I remember correctly I got this as part of the Xmas advent calendar bundle. It really doesn't push the series forward in any real way. But what it does give us, is a rare insight into the Serpent Cult of Davin. How this cult works and how corrupted they are. It is an interesting story to listen to if a fan of lore and knowledge, but not really needed.

Veritas Ferrum by David Annandale and read by Toby Longworth

So in theory this story came before my Damnation of Pythos review and follows the main characters from this tale, as they ventured into the Istaavan system. We see through their eyes the destruction wrought on the Imperial forces and ride along, as they make extremely hard choices like aiding their following legions when aid is asked for. I am surprising myself with how much I am enjoying the Iron Hand stories. I have never really been that fond of them, but I have to admit that I am finding them surprisingly enjoyable. It's a great story that I honestly wish I had done before Pythos. 

Riven by John French and read by Toby Longworth

My third and final tale for this review, see us still with the 10th Legion aka Iron Hands. Focusing on Brother Crius, who it would seem has spent time in jail with traitors. This is due to the Imperial Fists being over-cautious following the open betrayal of their fellow legions. To say he is pissed is an understatement. Soon at the request of Rogal Dorn, Brother Crius alongside a force of Imperial Fist head off in search of survivors in the void. Sadly for him, he discovers a dead Primarch and broken-spirited brothers. Once again another amazing Iron Hands story, full of heartbreak and pain, it also contained a great void ship battle that was worth the price of admission alone. I feel this is a great introduction to Crius and I really hope the Black Library team has allowed him to do more with him.

With this, we are done for today. I hope you enjoyed and I hope you take a moment to check out my social media channels and feel free to use the Amazon links to get your own copies. Thank you for reading.

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Serpent by John French

Veritas Ferrum by David Annandale

Riven by John French

Book Review 152 // The Birth of Hunger by David Annandale

Got a few short stories reviews incoming in the upcoming weeks. They are all from the Necromunda title Uprising by Black Library. Mostly release during the Dark Uprising game release they seem to follow a theme of making the rules seem exciting and interesting.

The first title in the series is The Birth of Hunger by David Annandale. This opening tale is only twenty pages long but God Damn! does it set the mood and make me crave more of Annandale's writing. It does a great job of introducing us to the all-new Corpse guild and the newest Necromunda gang the Corpse Grinder. This is a sticking and eerie tale following one man's descent into the ultimate horror of cannibalism. 

This is dark, seriously dark, even for the Grim Dark Future of 40K. It is so well written and captures everything that I love about the setting. This would be the story I recommend to friends to introduce them to the setting. It has really made me want to pick up the game, but can my wallet afford it?

Buy the book: Amazon.ca Link

I hope you enjoyed it? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms that I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Comic Review 156 // Bad Manners by John Wagner and 2000 AD

I love knocking some titles off my TO BE READ pile of shame. This comic was brought over to Canada nearly 6 years ago and has sat waiting to be read ever since. Bad Manners collects three stories together tracking the final year of Judge Manners career. It tracks how the Justice Department s flawed in many different ways and shows the cracks appearing in a broken system.

The short series starts with the title piece Bad Manners. All the stories are written by John Wagner so you know you are in for a ride, but damn is this a dark opener! We follow a Juve who unluckily for him cross path with a Judge who is handing out a harsh side of justice. Soon this Judge is terrorizing the Juve and beating the crap out of him. Fearing for his life whilst still believing in the Justice Department the Juve reaches out to Judge Dredd for help. Unfortunately, Judge Manners discovers the call to aid and frames the Juve as a drug dealer, killing him in a failed arrest attempt. The artwork by John Burns is beautiful and really adds to the dark moody feel of the piece. This is a great opener.

We follow this up with a title called Flippers, once more John Wagner takes the lead, with the artistic skills of Wayne Reynolds. Before we get fully into this tale I should mention that Judge Manners is a bit of character in this story. He has at best five lines but does continue to show his character and a Tech Judge is becoming suspicious of his story. But with Judge Dredd around you know something will happen. Instead, this story follows a pair of judges who have taken their teamwork to the next level. Having discovered a child is on the way the pair attempt to steal money and flee, but sadly they are caught by Judge Dredd, moments from freedom. Overall a good story, interesting to see that Dredd really was obvious to them right up to the end. If they paid more attention to the world around them they may have escaped.

The final tale of this collection is called Rotten Manners - written by John Wagner and artwork by Paul Marshall. Once again Judge Manners has crossed paths with Dredd. With Manners being reassigned out of his old sector for unproven excessive use of force. Whilst on a routine patrol Manners discovers a guy handing out democracy fliers and gives him a beating, unknowingly leading to the perps death. As the case is discovered, Dredd remembers Manners being in the area and finally calls him for his corruption. Facing a one-way trip to Titan (a Judge Prison), Manners chooses to face off against Dredd. In an interesting turn of events, Dredd refuses to fight Manners, not wishing to grant him an easy way out. But as Manners draws his gun other Judges in the area gun him down, bring the reign of Manners to an end.

Overall this was a great read! It shows how all the perfect qualities of a Judge are actually only a short step away from a sociopath. It shows how the fear of the Judges can affect everyday people and worst of all it shows how those with the most power can abuse the system to the extreme. I feel this is a very valid view point of justice in general and shows the continuing flaw in the system.

I hope you enjoyed it? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms that I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

Miniature Monday // Oldhammer Spitgun Suzi

Something a little different today. I am painting up a 1980's 2000 AD Judge Dredd RPG miniature produced by Games Workshop. Titled Spitgun Suzi this model came in three styles. A long-barreled rifle, a shorter barreled version (this model) and a pistol corrupt version. As you can see there was no real attempt made to make them look different.

I decided to paint my version up to fit in with my local Block Gang the Blood Pact, hoping she will blend into this rough and ready group from Sector 102.

This was filmed on my new Sony ZV-E10 camera and is a part of my Adventure with Peps blogging: Solo Link to all my socials. As always thanks for watching!

Audio Review 52 // Brotherhood of the Storm by Chris Wraight

It was a nice short audio drama this week. I wasn't feeling a 10-12 hour epic this week so I hit up the Black library short; Brotherhood of the Storm. Let's go!

Title: Brotherhood of the Storm (buy with Amazon Link)

Author: Chris Wraight

Narrator: Jonathan Keeble and Penelope Rawlins.

Fluff: As word of Horus’s treachery spreads to fully half of the Legiones Astartes, Terra looks to the remaining loyalist Space Marines to defend the Imperium. One group, however, remains curiously silent despite apparent efforts from both sides to contact them – the noble Vth Legion, Jaghatai Khan’s fearsome White Scars. In the ork-held territory of Chondax, a bitter war has been raging since the Triumph at Ullanor, and only now do the sons of Chogoris return their gaze to the heavens...

Running time: 4 hours

Music: Jai Channa

Publisher: Black Library

Review

Here we go! An actual background building White Scars story. I know very little about them and sadly have not seen/read enough to get me to take interest. As I download this I was hoping to change this arc for me.

Boy, did this book deliver? I have a much better understanding of the White Scars culture and why they behave the way they do. I also now understand why no one was sure of which side they would join during the Heresy. As a legion, they believe strongly in honour and who they have given their word to. Which during this novel it is discussed that Horus has their support (this is pre-heresy), but the Scars also vowed to serve the emperor, so it seems like it comes down to who they will dishonour by not supporting and I hope this is discussed more in future novels. Their allegiance is also questioned by those around them as they are a very elusive legion. But what is perfectly explained is the fact that they are constantly pushing the boundary of know space and are actually at the forefront of most conflicts. Combine this with their style of warfare and language barriers and a lot of the known issues become more understandable.

Their way of warfare is really explained well in this and Chris Wraight does a great job at it. This was a great listen and told from multiple viewpoints, giving me the listener a great understanding of everything. Then we finally get Jaghatai Khan. He is such an out-there character compared to the other Primarchs and this truly is refreshing.

Overall this has left me excited for more Scars! I hope you enjoyed my quick review? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details.

Cheers to reading this.

Comic Review 155 // Janus, Psi-Division Volume 2 by 2000 AD

After last week's Janus, Psi-Division review I was biting at the bit to get into the second issue. I was excited to see how Faustus would end and what other stories we would get treated to. With this in mind let us jump into this week's read.

Title: Janus, Psi-Division Vol. 2

Author: Mark Millar, Grant Morrison, John Freeman.

Illustrators: Paul Johnson, Adrian Salmon.

Notes: Originally serialized in 2000 AD Progs 1028-31 & Judge Dredd Megazine 2.56-2.61. Published 2014 by Rebellion

Review

The issue started off strong with the final of Faustus revealed. I really enjoyed this story, I loved the idea of the Future creating the past to ensure the future happens so they can manipulate the past (confusing right!). The story was ultimately well-conceived and beautifully executed on the art front, I felt bad for Judge Mookie, but even he rose to be a selfless hero of MC-1.

It was at this stage that the disappointment hit. This was the final story of Janus in the issue! Yep, half a story. This disappointed me more than you could realize as I had grown fond of Janus and the artwork. From this point on we just had some Judge Karyn stories. For those who don't know Karyn and Janus were attempts at replacing Anderson as she travelled the stars. Sadly Karyn never really found herself and was soon forgotten by 2000 AD or used as a filler character. Her stories here aren't very interesting, which is unfortunate as I am sure they could have captured the audience's imagination. Sadly from my viewpoint, the artwork is jarring and I lose all focus on the story. I really wish these tales had not been included. I also wish they had made a big single volume Janus tale and skipped these stories completely. Oh well, can't win them all.

My final thought for this issue is that it is worth it for the second half of Faustus but then stop reading. The real question now is what to read next?

Book Review 151 // The Entrant - Antigravity Racing League - Book One by Rock Forsberg.

As I continue to explore more and more authors in a world outside of Black Library. I joined up with a company called Love Books Tour. Their goal is to pair bloggers with small-time authors and together promote exciting new books. What does mean? Well it means now and again, I get a free book to review and I get to widen my experiences whilst helping someone out. Win, win. Now to today's book:

Title: The Entrant - Antigravity Racing League - Book One

Author: Rock Forsberg.

To kick-off let us discuss the cover. I am getting a serious 1995, PS1 Wipeout vibes from this. How could I turn down this book based on the cover alone? It captured my imagination straight away and the plot teaser was great. It seems to suggest that there is more going on than straight-up racing and boy does it deliver.

I’m sure by now you all know I love a little sci-fi and this is pure sci-fi. It introduces a galaxy that seems to be at peace (rare for my reads) and that has allowed for a galactic sport known as the ARL, to grow. The ARL or Antigravity Racing League is the futuristic version of Car Racing. The machines are scary, fast and have so many moving parts that can break. A large part of the book is dedicated to this, with heart-pounding qualifiers and races, but the plot is much deeper than the racing. We get to chart the starting career of an ARL pilot named Zane. Zane was the child of a famous pilot who spectacularly died whilst racing, and as Zane attempts to start his career, he finds his father’s shadow is harder to step out of than planned. Then as things seem to be improving for the young driver, he discovers a seedy underbelly to his much-beloved sport and is stuck deciding whether this is the sport he wishes to be a part of.

Hugely enjoyable, a solid story arc. That opens up further avenues of exploration in future books and I hope Forsberg is not too far off the second novel? I want to see where Zane is headed. Available now on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2YuYOwX

I hope you enjoyed the review? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.

A #gifted book from @lovebookstours in exchange for an honest review.

Miniature Monday // Denizens of Mega-City One by Warlord Games and 2000 AD

Hey! Welcome to another Adventures with Peps unboxing. I have added another set to my growing collection. This 2000 AD, Judge Dredd by Warlord Games kit is called Denizens of Mega-City One. Made up of some instantly recognizable characters from the comic strip.

Inside this pack, we find five, 28mm wargame sci-fi figures, representing Karl Raider, Oola Blint, Homer Blint, Sov Genetik Construkt and a Futsie. Four-unit cards, one Armoury card and one Big Meg card.

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Audio Review 51 // Alien: Covenant - The Official Movie Novelization by Alan Dean Foster

Oh, what a surprise more Alien! Yep, I am addicted and love a good Alien product. I personally was a fan of the Covenant film. It felt fitting and deserving of its telling, did it fit with the OG films? Nah, but it expanded the galaxy and the setting and this I can appreciate. So let dive into the audiobook:

Title: Alien: Covenant - The Official Movie Novelization
Author: Alan Dean Foster
Fluff:
Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created, with Alien: Covenant, a new chapter in his groundbreaking Alien adventure. The crew of the colony ship Covenant, bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise. But it is actually a dark, dangerous world.

When they uncover a threat beyond their imaginations, they must attempt a harrowing escape.

Acclaimed author Alan Dean Foster also returns to the universe he first encountered with the official novelization of the original Alien film. Alien: Covenant is the pivotal adventure that preceded that seminal film, and leads to the events that will yield one of the most terrifying sagas of all time.

Listening Time: 8 hrs 58 mins

Review

Let's get some facts out there.

1. Alan Dean Foster is a great movie to a novel writer. I enjoy his work.
2. This feels like Ridley Scott and has us focused on the Alien.
3. I enjoyed the film and novel.

So let us get into it. We discover the fate of the Prometheus and Elizabeth Shaw and David. We also get an all team of people to enjoy and of course Walter. We also get the Neomorph, a new sub-species created by the joining of a Fungus spore/virus and a human, rather than the traditional facehugger to human. In the film it was gross, whilst in the book, it was terror-inducing, pure body horror taken to a new level. Basically, this form will track you and infect you, before turning your own body against you. All this and the virus is microscopic so you can't even fight it!

The cast in my opinion is your standard movie characters. A strong female lead, a religious man who cares too much for the opinion of others, macho action characters who die off quickly and an overconfident pilot. A blessing of the novel format is the fact we learn more about them, it answers questions I had about them and actually makes me want to care about them. A definite plus. Daniels is of course the stand-out character. A strong female lead, who though obs broken by mental trauma is able to rebuild herself and come back stronger every time something goes bad. Such inner strength is her main feature, no mothering nature of Ripley, just pure self-survival instincts and I love it. If I was ever in this type of situation I would also like to think I had the resolve to just worry about the next step and not get overwhelmed by the disaster.

Overall it rang true to the book, it added depth and was an enjoyable listen. Go treat yourselves!

Buy the audiobook: Alien: Covenant

I hope you enjoyed the review? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.