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Judge Dredd Classics Vol. 1: Apocalypse War

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    Nolando
    Senior Member

  • Judge Dredd Classics Vol. 1: Apocalypse War



    Released by: IDW Publishing, Inc.
    Released on: Apr. 30, 2014/May 13, 2014
    Purchase From Amazon


    This collection features stories by John Wagner and Alan Grant (writing as “T.B. Grover”). Art by Mike McMahon, Ron Smith, Steve Dillon, Brian Bolland and Carlos Ezquerra. The colors are all new here, courtesy of the talents of Charlie Kirchoff. It combines the 2000 A.D. publications of Block Mania and Apocalypse War.

    The first story keeps the playful aspect of the series at the fore as Mega-City One's citizens beginning succumbing to the mysterious disease known as “block mania.” Anyone exposed to this condition begins exhibiting irrational violence in support of their City Block, the massive structures housing thousands of citizens each. Named after a variety of characters ranging from the likes of Mario Lanza to Sirhan Sirhan, block after block begin fighting, quickly trying to fully destroy other blocks while aligning together at other times.


    This irrational behavior's violent consequences are the top concern for the Judges and while attempting to minimize loss of life they are getting overwhelmed and quickly. Even Judges succumb to the disease and join in their own blocks' battles. Dredd, however, remains impervious and, while taking a lead role in quelling the chaos, also knows they have to find the source and, thus, potentially an antidote as well.

    The battles rage and get worse for all involved until Dredd's informant, the dapper Max Normal, appears with not only some information but, curiously enough, free from the effects of block mania. While they're investigating this Dredd gets a call from someone who claims to know the real reason behind all this. But before that citizen can talk he's taken out by an unknown assailant.


    That turns out to be Orlok, a particularly evil Judge from the Sov side in East-Meg One. He's putting chemicals into the water supply of Meg-City One so the exposure is significant. Dredd discovers that the water supply's to blame and puts the word out to protect those resources. So when Orlok attacks one station - successfully - his description is released and the Judges are after him. But Orlok is both talented and determined, finally gaining access to the Weather Control Station above the city. He manages to dump the chemicals there and then start a torrential downpour, literally covering the city in a deluge of poisoned water.

    Dredd, though, is also talented and determined and soon captures Orlok. The criminal spills the fact that this is actually all a Sov plot to attack Meg-City One. What he doesn't detail - and what comes in the next section of the story - is that this is only part one of their plan. East-Meg One's supreme judge, Bulgarin, launches part two where their nuclear arsenal attacks Meg-City One and Sov troops knock out enemy satellites, underwater missile protection sites and any and all City defenses…



    The effects are tremendous and of course Meg-City One's own nuclear defenses retaliate. But the Sov leadership has considered this and can accept the “minimal” civilian casualties worth it, as they themselves hide in a protective bunker. The scale of this attack proves too much for Meg-City One's defenses and, soon enough, the missiles are taking a massive toll, even causing massive tidal waves that are both destructive and disruptive. Dredd is working to save the chief justice but his ship is soon downed but he's able to get the wounded leader to their own underground bunker. But with the chief justice wounded and unconscious as well as the chain of command totally broken it's up to Dredd to take charge.

    And, boy, does he, in pure resolute Dredd fashion. With the citizens still insane with block mania he knows he's got to do what's best for them all. So he defies the Sov leaders who communicate their wish for his city's surrender. Meg-City One still has destructive TAD missiles and Dredd launches all of them at East-Meg One. But they have planned for this and divert all their city's power to a covering force-shield that causes the TADS to get warped to an alternate-dimension Earth that's “never known war” and is soon completely destroyed…




    This allows the Sovs to start the final push, part three of their plan, moving in with ground troops under command of sadistic General “Mad Dog” Kazan. With their resources already at the straining limits, the Judges do their best to fight back. But the Sovs soon learn that the disease-ridden citizens are fighting everything that moves. So Kazan has them aerially disperse the antidote as they still want these people as Sov slaves. [A humorous sideline involving Dredd's landlady, Maria, and his over-affectionate housekeeper robot, Walter, comes up here, too, a great bit for long-time fans of the series.]

    Freed from block mania the citizens now listen to Dredd's call to arms and, together, they all begin to fight back against the East-Meg invaders. But the Sov troops are very advanced and numerous so Dredd has to resort to dangerous, barely-tested weapons - “Stub guns” - that begin to help fight them off. Dredd also manages to get the chief justice on a spacecraft and out to safety, an inspiring sight of resistance to all Meg-City One's citizens fighting. Now, Dredd is able to marshal what forces he can and perform hit-and-run attacks, cutting off pathways the Sovs are using to invade.

    The costs are high but Dredd manages to hold the line and soon it's he and Kazan directly responsible for the war taking place on the streets. Kazan, however, has other plans as he laughs at Bulgarin and stages a coup of his own to take over the leadership of East-Meg One for himself in the middle of it all. He also manages to intercept the chief justice spacecraft and implants his brain with a complicity module that makes the chief justice Griffin do Kazan's bidding (evil!). He thus puts the chief justice on the air, on a talk show, to get him to convince the citizens of his city to lay down their arms and welcome their invaders as “liberators.”

    The Judges know this has got to stop so Dredd embarks on a solo suicide mission to shut him up, permanently. Which he does, of sorts - being Dredd, of course, he has a plan. Dredd “executes” Griffin on live broadcast and then gets cut down himself so everyone involved thinks them both dead. But his plan is soon revealed and Dredd tries to escape or, at least, go down with a fight. However, his loyal robo-servant Walter has been fighting his own way to Dredd with the lone person still suffering from block mania - his landlady, Maria - in tow. He has Dredd's spare helmet and manages to locate and rescue Dredd at the last possible minute.

    Restored to health back at the Judges' new command space, Dredd assembles a new team of tougher Judges to help lead the new resistance. Kazan believes he's won, what with millions of Meg-City One's inhabitants fleeing their city, only to be unceremoniously dumped back there by the devastating storms raging outside. Dredd's long-time partner Anderson also shows up then to help out, making it a total of nine Judges heading to take out East-Meg One on their own.

    They manage to stealthily steal one of the Sov Strato-V warships for themselves and, thanks to Anderson's psychic abilities, they soon have all the information to control the fully-armed warship. Dredd plots a course straight at East-Meg One and launches a bunker-buster at one of the Sov silos. The Judges abandon ship and follow the tunnel the undetonated missile made, down to the ops center, to take control of the silo's arsenal. Which, being led by Dredd, they do and Dredd's able to launch the full payload against East-Meg One which they are not prepared for. So he basically terminates half a billion people in order to put an end to the war.

    Dredd then surprisingly surrenders and he and the others are taken to Kazan's orbiting command station. There, they are all psych-tortured by the sadistic Zoltan. But, back on Earth, the tide has finally turned in Meg-City One as the Judges there are able to rally their forces and begin to actually repel the invaders. And back on Kazan's station it's clear that he's pushed one particular Judge Izaaks of his own judges too far with his sadism. Izaaks then releases the prisoners and urges Dredd to execute Kazan who's clearly gone mad. Izaaks also takes to the intercom and convinces every other Sov guard to follow suit, leaving Dredd to deliver sentence and punishment. He also dictates the terms of Sov surrender as unconditional and they readily agree. That leaves the survivors to rebuild and Dredd to, well, remain Dredd.

    This hefty and impressive collection also comes with a cover gallery. It features the IDW reprint covers by Jim Fern as well as the original 2000 A.D. publications. This TPB covers a massive storyline, one of - if not *the* - biggest in Dredd's history (of consecutive stories, that is) and is an outstanding value for fans of any level.
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