Audio Review // Judge Dredd: Crime Chronicle – Blood Will Tell

Mutants, Ex-Judges and a Secret That Could Bring Down Mega-City One. I'm back with another one-hour Judge Dredd audio drama!

This time we're heading back into Mega-City One with Blood Will Tell, and considering how much I enjoyed the previous Crime Chronicle, I was looking forward to seeing what this one had in store.

The Details

Title: Judge Dredd: Crime Chronicle – Blood Will Tell
Author: James Swallow (Great Author)
Performers: Toby Longworth & Paul Davin-Gough
Running Time: Approximately 1 hour

Publisher: Big Finish (Please re-release these!)

The Blurb

When a frenzied mutant attack on Mega-City One's shield wall turns out to be a cover for a group of infiltrators, Judge Dredd is forced to confront an enemy from his past. Garris Hale.

Once destined to become one of the Justice Department's finest Judges, Hale was discovered to carry a mutant strain and was exiled to the Cursed Earth. Now he's back. And he's brought a dark secret with him. A secret powerful enough to plunge Mega-City One into anarchy.

Review

I'm really starting to enjoy these Crime Chronicle audio dramas. Like the previous story, Blood Will Tell is essentially carried by two actors. Toby Longworth returns as Dredd, while Paul Davin-Gough takes on the role of Ex-Judge Garris Hale, and there was another little surprise for me. The story was written by James Swallow. If that name sounds familiar, it's because I’ve reviewed a ton of his Horus Heresy titles. So, having enjoyed those, I went into this expecting good things.

Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed.

One of the things I enjoyed most about this audio is how the story is presented. Rather than simply following Dredd as events unfold, the entire thing is framed as an after-action report to the Special Judicial Squad. Dredd is being questioned about his hunt for Garris Hale, and that immediately gives the story another layer. We're not simply listening to what happened. We're listening to Dredd explain what happened, and the SJS clearly aren't entirely convinced that Dredd's actions were above question.

Which is where things get interesting. Who Is Garris Hale? Hale was once considered one of the Justice Department's rising stars. Think Judge Giant-level potential. Unfortunately for Hale, the Justice Department discovered that he carried a mutant strain, and we all know how Mega-City One feels about mutants. Hale was then quickly exiled to the Cursed Earth.

Rather than simply disappearing into the radioactive wasteland, however, Hale survived, and actually thrived. Over time, he became stronger and gathered a group of powerful mutants around him, people who shared his hatred of Mega-City One and the Justice Department.

Now he's returned, and he's not particularly happy. At first glance, this could easily have been a straightforward revenge tale. Ex-Judge gets screwed over by the Justice Department, ex-Judge disappears into the Cursed Earth, and ex-Judge comes back looking for revenge. Simple, right. Except this is Mega-City One. Nothing is ever that simple.

There are questions surrounding why Hale has returned, what he's discovered and exactly how much the Justice Department knows. Then there's Dredd. Because it becomes increasingly obvious that Dredd isn't completely comfortable with what happened to Hale. There is a sense of guilt hanging over him. Did Dredd simply enforce the law? Or did he play a role in destroying the life of someone who might have become one of the Justice Department's greatest Judges? And is that guilt now affecting his judgment? Those questions are what really elevate the story for me.

I enjoyed the fact that there are several things happening at once. We've got the mutant attack. We've got infiltrators. We've got an ex-Judge returning from the Cursed Earth. We've got a potentially explosive secret. We've got a Justice Department cover-up and then we've got the personal history between Dredd and Hale sitting underneath all of it. The story keeps peeling back another layer as it goes.

It isn't simply about stopping Hale. It's about understanding why Hale is doing what he's doing, and whether Dredd is actually the hero of this particular story.

The Audio

Once again, Toby Longworth is excellent as Dredd. I don't think I'll ever get tired of hearing that voice. The two-actor format works particularly well here because the story is so focused on the relationship between Dredd and Hale. There's plenty of narration and storytelling, but it never felt like someone was simply reading a book at me. The performances give the characters enough personality to keep the drama moving, and, as with the previous Crime Chronicle, it's exactly the sort of thing I can throw on while walking to and from work.

An hour disappears surprisingly quickly when you're wandering around with Judge Dredd in your ears.

Sector 102 Thoughts

But thoughts can be dangerous; naturally, my brain couldn't leave well enough alone. Because the mutant element immediately got me thinking about Sector 102. You know I love the mutants, and I especially love the idea of people who have been pushed out of Mega-City One and forced to survive in the Cursed Earth.

It makes me wonder how many mutants could have made their way back into the city over the years. Perhaps some escaped exile. Perhaps some have been hiding in the Spillways. Perhaps there are entire communities of mutants living beneath Sector 102 that the Justice Department simply doesn't know about. Or worse...What if they do know?

The idea of a former Judge being exiled and eventually returning is also something I'd love to explore. Someone who knows how the Justice Department works from the inside. Someone who knows the procedures, the weaknesses and the secrets. Someone who has a personal reason to hate the Judges. That's a pretty dangerous individual to have wandering around Sector 102. So yes, James Swallow has once again given me something else to add to the Sector 102 idea pile.

My notebook is getting ridiculous.

Final Thoughts

Blood Will Tell is another excellent little Judge Dredd audio. It's not a massive, universe-changing story, but it doesn't need to be. Instead, it's a tightly focused mystery with mutants, ex-Judges, Justice Department secrets and a personal story sitting underneath it all. I particularly enjoyed the way the story questions Dredd's actions.

He's still Dredd. He's still going to do what Dredd does. But there's a hint that even he isn't completely comfortable with the consequences of his decisions, and I like that.

It's another solid listen and one that worked perfectly as part of my morning and evening walks. Definitely recommend if you're a Dredd fan, and if you've got any suggestions for what I should listen to next, let me know in the comments. Because apparently I've now entered the phase where every Judge Dredd audio drama I find becomes an excuse to create another Sector 102 subplot.

Until next time, Drokk heads!