Review: AD Prog 1950

2000 AD is something of an institution in the world of comics, and the world of British comics in particular. Which is why I find it something of an embarrassing admission that I’ve never actually read an issue before this one. But after reading Prog 1950, I think that is something I will be rectifying immediately.

I’ve read through a few of the Judge Dredd trades, and am familiar enough with the inhabitants of Mega City One that  the phrase ‘Gaze into the fist of Dredd’ makes me grin like an idiot whenever I hear it. But by and large I was ignorant of the finer points of 2000 A.D’s back catalog. Which makes me precisesly the audience this issue is going for. Prog 1950 is supposed to be a jumping on point for those of us who’ve yet to get into 2000 AD, and comprises of four distinct stories. A Judge Dredd story titled ‘Serial Serial’, the historical zombie horror Defoe, high concept sci-fi in the form of Brass Sun, and Bad Company, which struggles for concise description aside from the fact that’s it’s exactly what the name 2000 A.D brings to mind, that is to say drawn in black and white, with ugly, almost cartoonish characters and an equal mix between ultra violence and psychological horror.

There’s a page at the start of the issue which serves to explain the backstory of each of the four worlds, and for the most part it does a pretty good job of giving the reader at least a vague idea of the events before these issues.

The Judge Dredd story was the one I found it the easiest to get into, as it features a more instantly familiar character and world, with the titular Judge hunting a serial killer. The art style is also the most ‘comic book’ of the four stories, which also serves to make it more accessible from the outset.  Although it by no means skimps on the violence, it doesn’t stress the gory details too much. While those with a more sensitive disposition might find this a blessing, I sort of hoped that this version of the Mega City would look a little dirtier.

Defoe really isn’t messing around

That’s not an issue for Defoe however, as the black and white renderings of slavering zombies and horrified onlookers is almost skin crawlingly resonant. Although I enjoyed the art immensely, I’ll admit to finding the story and characters a little lacking. It’s not that any of them seem particularly bad, or poorly written for an outside perspective, but given the limited amount of space in the comic they just don’t do a lot to grab your attention.

The same can’t be sadi of Brass Sun, the most interesting title, utterly unlike anything I’ve read in the pages of a comic before. The art aims for stylistic rather than detailed, but it works well with the characters and the world it’s trying to build. This issue, combined with the backstory given in the text box on the first page makes me keen to read the rest of the series.

Brass Sun REALLY isn’t messing around

Bad Company left me with mixed feelings, as I enjoyed the artwork and all the gory details it showed off, but the story left me a little cold and again it seems as though the history show of the comic was a big component to understanding the context. Not necessarily a problem, but it did not quite grab me enough to make me find out all that has happened previously.

Although not entirely perfect, Prog 1950 serves as an excellent entry point into the 2000AD universe, and I look forward to reading more. If you’ve never picked up one of their comics before, then you’ve found your perfect entry point.