The worlds of 2000 AD as a shared universe have never been as intertwined in the same way as their American counterparts. There were obvious links between some strips in the early years (Dredd/Flesh/Harlem Heroes) but they were largely meant to stand alone. Some references across serials were far more tangential (the Smiling Chukwalla from Strontium Dog turning up in Blackhawk, or the same brand of alcoholic drink appearing in both those strips and Ace Trucking Co.). As the years progressed that approach would evolve, particularly in the Pat Mills stable of characters (Invasion/Ro-Buster/ABC Warriors/Nemesis the Warlock) but it was still a rare enough phenomenon that it felt quite special when there was some form of crossover (the Ennis/Ezquerra Dredd story ‘Helter Skelter’ with its colliding realities for example.) Dredd himself, of course, would later go on to meet plenty of his anthology co-stars to varying degrees of success, including Johnny Alpha, Rogue Trooper and Sam Slade.
All of which brings us to the Judge Dredd: One-Eyed Jacks collection which pulls together Dredd and the 1970s character “One-Eyed” Jack McBane, from the pages of UK weekly title Valiant, in an era-spanning adventure. The latter, a violent cop character influenced by the contemporary Dirty Harry movie, was also in no small part the spiritual precursor to Dredd. Something which adds an extra layer of the meta to this tale in both creative terms and possibly, as observant readers may infer, in story ones too.
Judge Dredd: One-Eyed Jacks collects two strips from the pages of the Judge Dredd Megazine. The first titular one is the team-up between the two characters that sees the Mega-City lawman investigating murders with an anachronistic twist, as apparently impossible objects from two centuries before are found at the scene of the crimes. Meanwhile in 1975 New York detective Jack McBane is at the other end of this temporal mystery dealing with a cult looking to take its followers to a utopian future of free love. Adding to the time-travelling complications, McBane’s fellow cop is Eartha Fargo, a vital part of Dredd’s bloodline.
Writer Ken Niemand provides a plot that is atypical of the usual predictable time-travel narrative manoevring, neatly paced for both the serialised and collected reading experiences, which ties the worlds of the two characters together without seeming forced and contrived. While the jump from Ian Richardson to Kieran McKeown on the art front is a little jarring, both match the high-energy action of Niemand’s story with McKeown ably fusing the disparate elements of overt sci-fi and street level drama in the story’s latter pages.
It’s in the second story where the visuals really stand out though as 2019 Broken Frontier ‘Six to Watch’ artist Anna Readman displays just why she’s one of the true rising stars of comics right now. ‘Fargo & McBane: New York’s Finest’ sees One-Eyed Jack on the run after being fitted up for crimes he didn’t commit and Fargo on the case, albeit slightly manipulated, in a quest to clear his name. Niemand unashamedly leans into the period elements, with Readman’s detailed, slightly caricatured art really tapping into a sense of urban decay and almost grubby, often morally compromised characters. There’s something visceral and uncomfortable about the environment she creates here, all intensified by Quinton Winter’s moody colouring and Annie Parkhouse’s ever reliable lettering.
A strong compilation which, while relying on a foundation of established continuity, is still accessible and inviting to those unfamiliar with the characters’ histories. And that Readman art alone is more than worth the price of admission.
Ken Niemand (W), Kieran McKeown, Ian Richardson, Anna Readman (A), Quinton Winter (C), Annie Parkhouse (L) Rebellion, $16.99
Review by Andy Oliver
