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haxankatzen's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
shutupitybi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 01 collects the Judge Dredd stores from 2000 AD #2-60.
Like a lot of people, I only know Judge Dredd from the pair of movies and the times he teamed up with Batman. In my quest to fill in some gaps in my comics knowledge, I picked this up.
This is a collection of 4-8 page shorts, some linked, featuring Judge Dredd, lawman of the post-apocalyptic future. He patrols Mega City-1, a sprawling metropolis that encompasses half of North America from what I gather.
This volume collects Judge Dredd's earliest appearances. Dredd fights street crime, quells a robot uprising, and goes to the moon and back again. The writing is nothing spectacular in and of itself. World building takes a back seat to dark humor and violence. The stories remind me of EC crime or war comics more than anything else, what with the short length and punchiness.
The art ranges from crude to spectacular. Brian Bolland is on the spectacular end of things. It's no wonder he was tapped to do The Killing Joke a few years after this.
Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 01 is fun and darkly humorous. I might take a crack at some newer Dredd once I knock out a few other things. It was never a "drop everything to read" kind of book, though. 3 out of 5 stars.
Like a lot of people, I only know Judge Dredd from the pair of movies and the times he teamed up with Batman. In my quest to fill in some gaps in my comics knowledge, I picked this up.
This is a collection of 4-8 page shorts, some linked, featuring Judge Dredd, lawman of the post-apocalyptic future. He patrols Mega City-1, a sprawling metropolis that encompasses half of North America from what I gather.
This volume collects Judge Dredd's earliest appearances. Dredd fights street crime, quells a robot uprising, and goes to the moon and back again. The writing is nothing spectacular in and of itself. World building takes a back seat to dark humor and violence. The stories remind me of EC crime or war comics more than anything else, what with the short length and punchiness.
The art ranges from crude to spectacular. Brian Bolland is on the spectacular end of things. It's no wonder he was tapped to do The Killing Joke a few years after this.
Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 01 is fun and darkly humorous. I might take a crack at some newer Dredd once I knock out a few other things. It was never a "drop everything to read" kind of book, though. 3 out of 5 stars.
rocketiza's review against another edition
2.0
I had remembered this being a bit more... nuanced? With less silliness.
jbmorgan86's review
2.0
I read this simply because Forbidden Planet called it the #6 graphic novel of all-time. I'm sure these comics were essential to the development of graphic novels as we know them, but they just don't hold up well over the course of 50 years.
The story is set in the future in Megacity #1 (an American city . . . which is interesting since this is a British graphic novel). Universal wealth, weather control, subservient robots, etc. Crime runs rampant. The Judges aggressively stamp out crime. Judge Dredd is the most famous of all of these.
This collection is the first 60 issues. Each issue is about 5 pages. The jokes are corny. The social commentary is trite. Everything is over-explained by characters ("I'll escape by killing a guard, taking his gun, and shooting my cuffs!"). Dredd takes on a weird group of villains including the KKK, King Kong, and a mafia of apes. Some social issues in the comics are now . . . awkward (such as the stereotyping of Dredd's Italian maid).
The mythology is a great idea. The potential for great characters is here. But it is just not developed at this point in the comic's history.
The story is set in the future in Megacity #1 (an American city . . . which is interesting since this is a British graphic novel). Universal wealth, weather control, subservient robots, etc. Crime runs rampant. The Judges aggressively stamp out crime. Judge Dredd is the most famous of all of these.
This collection is the first 60 issues. Each issue is about 5 pages. The jokes are corny. The social commentary is trite. Everything is over-explained by characters ("I'll escape by killing a guard, taking his gun, and shooting my cuffs!"). Dredd takes on a weird group of villains including the KKK, King Kong, and a mafia of apes. Some social issues in the comics are now . . . awkward (such as the stereotyping of Dredd's Italian maid).
The mythology is a great idea. The potential for great characters is here. But it is just not developed at this point in the comic's history.
stiricide's review against another edition
3.0
I've been meaning to dive in to Dredd for a while, so when I saw this at my new library, I snagged it. No surprises to anyone passingly familiar with the Dredd-iverse, but nothing too earth shaking, either. (I suspect if I'd come across it 30 years ago, it would have been.)
There are 24 volumes of this? Sure, I'll hide in this for a while. As this kleptocracy develops, I'm finding that the only way I can cope is by delving ever-deeper in to stauncher dystopias. 'Sup, Overton window shifts.
There are 24 volumes of this? Sure, I'll hide in this for a while. As this kleptocracy develops, I'm finding that the only way I can cope is by delving ever-deeper in to stauncher dystopias. 'Sup, Overton window shifts.
jobby's review
4.0
I always loved Dredd as a kid so it's nice to go back to the earliest stuff. Going by the storylines it seems the 70s was a crackers place to live! The artwork is great and the stories range from amazing to bizarre. Some of the ideas are so mad that you can't help but love the writing.
arthurbdd's review
3.0
Alright, but it's compiling the earliest Judge Dredd stories - and therefore the roughest-around-the-edges ones, which largely hail before the truly iconic tales like The Day the Law Died. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2009/03/16/a-judge-a-bounty-hunter-and-a-warlock-walk-into-a-bar/
librarycobwebs's review
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5