2000 AD > Reviews (7)

If you love comics and your very patriotic, there is only one comic which I could suggest and that is 2000 AD. A comic started in 1977 has survived times when most of it’s competitor’s have had their downfalls and today it is going from strength to strength with introduction of brand new series and re-emergence of old favourites.

The magazine itself is published every Wednesday (except over the Christmas period) and is available at most main stream shops (I get mine from WHSmith) and all comic shops. It is printed on 30 A4 glossy pages, which has only changed from paper pages in the last 4 years. The glossy pages mean, however, that the artwork is pristine and it helps the magazines to be kept in near mint condition.

The format of the magazine is a first page editorial and then straight into the storyboards. As ever, since programme No.2, the first story is Judge Dredd, and if you’ve only seen the Sly Stallone film this doesn’t give you any facts on the true Judge Dredd. A future lawman, where the Judges dispense the law, Dredd is THE law. All his scripts are brilliant and can be a mixture from the gritty to the downright comical. The main reason I buy some of the comics is to see the feature length stories based round his world.

The rest of the comic has another four stories that can be anything from new stories such as the recent Necronauts series- a Dark Horror based on Houdini’s death to old series Favourites, lately the return of the Button Man has been a real highlight, as the former bounty hunter runs from his employers.

Also in the comic is the ‘Input’ page, which is basically where the letters, avid fans send in, get printed. The best letter even gets to win a prize, and most letters can be funny and many a time I have looked back in my issues to verify a comment that a letter has made. In some of the comics as well there is a subscription page and a few contain freebies such as posters and postcards.

I have been collecting the comic from Prog. 1000 about 5 years ago and have only missed a few which are easily picked up at comic markets and the 2000 AD site has back issue inquires as well (see www.2000adonline.com). At the last comic market I went to the first few programmes of 2000 AD were on sale for around £50, a considerable increase from their original 5p price. So they are definitely collector’s items and I hope that my collection will be worth a lot at some time in my life.

I love reading 2000 AD because of its variety and fresh look at modern graphic stories. The best of British Writers and Artists such as John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra really know how to thrill the reader and some of the art work can be breath taking- take. For example the ‘Glimmer Rats’ series- some of the most original and visually stunning art I have seen for ages. My personal favourite stories are the Sinister Dexter scripts. The two gunmen working for anyone with the money is the funniest script in the magazine at the moment, the series always bringing me into fits of laughter.

If you like all the American comics but are feeling a little guilty of not investing into some true British talent then go out and buy the latest 2000 AD and see what you think. If you’ve never bought anything like this before it is definitely worth the money as after a few years my collection is fairly large and the stories concealed inside are some of the best.