Judge Dredd Case Files Overview PART 3! Complete Case Files 13-24 | Garth Ennis | Grant Morrison

It is finally here! Today I continue my journey in the world of Mega-City One when I bring back the Judge Dredd Complete Case Files overviews! I take a look at a series that my wonderful viewers have been wanting me to read for years. So join him as he gives us a detailed overview of the Judge Dredd: Complete Case Files 13 to 24 from 2000 AD.
Part 1: • Judge Dredd Case Files...
Part 2: • Judge Dredd Case Files...
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[@CraigGrannell]

Kudos to you, Omar, for selecting John Cassavetes is Dead from that first volume in this selection. To me, that kind of thing sums up the best Dredd as much as any epic. Those tiny five- or six-page stories that punch you in the gut and make you think. They pack so much into so little. That one is one of my absolute favourites, not least because it shows that tiny glimmer of movement with Dredd. (Bury My Knee At Wounded Heart in #20 is just as good, which is just as well, given how rough much of that volume is!)

[@NearMintCondition]

It's so hard just to choose one, but that one stuck with me for a long time after reading.

[@CraigGrannell]

@@NearMintCondition It’s such a good story. And in a volume that contains the sublime Young Giant, the really funny In The Bath, a PJ Maybe tale, and the pivotal Letter to Judge Dredd. But Cassavetes would be my pick too. That it’s so topical says a lot as well. BTW, do you remember Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee, with that old geezer trying to get his wife into the graveyard? That one also gave me a massive kick in the feels. Another tiny nugget that’s easy to lose among a ton of big strips, but that’s part of the reason I’ve kept reading 2000 AD all these years.

[@bungleist1]

You're onto the comics I grew up with! My first issue of 2000AD was 905, although being part two of Wilderlands I had to hunt down a copy of 904. I remember being blown away by both the art and story. It's amazing that elements of these stories are still being carried on in modern issues, e.g. the Mechanismo judges. The Pit remains my favourite Dredd story arc to this day.

[@locusmortis]

Those were awesome stories, both mainly with Carlos Ezquerra art. John Wagner is an expert at planting seeds that grow years, sometimes decades later.

[@JWEntertainment77]

ALWAYS BEEN A DREDD HEAD! Thanks for the video!

[@cullenn2100]

Thanks for this overview, Omar! I've always appreciated Dredd, but only so far as collecting a handful of 2000AD + US reprints. This helps with figuring out where to start

[@SuperLaughHard]

As a lifelong reader of Judge Dredd, I think it's funny when people talk about "where to start reading the Case Files?", and how the "ups and downs" are perceived by fans of the series. For me Dredd gets better and better by reading the stories multiple times. It's so rich, very character driven and in my humble opinion, continues to be a wonderfully engaging read. After 46 years I think I'm actually starting to like Old Stoney Faced Joe. He's not all bad considering what he was born into 🙂

[@ste1bro]

Agree with all of this. Judge Dredd is pretty much the best ongoing comic strip in both Britain and America, and has been for god knows how long.

[@SuperLaughHard]

​@@ste1bro Yup. Judge Dredd is both hero and villain depending on the story and it is fabulously thought-provoking. (please edit your comment to say "Grud" instead of "god", lol)

[@fireboy312002]

Sylvester Stallone was my introduction to this character. Only been going up since then haha

[@SuperLaughHard]

@@fireboy312002 "I knew you'd say that".

[@fireboy312002]

@@SuperLaughHard I'm reliable

[@sharebear421]

Blessed us with this one!! Love the dredd overviews

[@RodrigoSanchez-ry7hr]

@NearMintCondition we need part #4!!

[@NearMintCondition]

Coming this year. I love these books

[@RodrigoSanchez-ry7hr]

so do I! waiting for much needed reprints of some volumes, though

[@Dreddzone]

Eagerly awaiting part 4!!!!

[@igorgakalo4412]

Thanks a lot! Love the top stories list from the Case Files :) I do hope we won't need to wait another year for the follow up video ;)

[@mandysageek5943]

A zarjaz (2000ad slang for excellent) overview of the case files. Can't wait for you to look at strontium dog and other 2000ad strip collections

[@SuperLaughHard]

Your 100th video celebration of all things 2000AD was an enjoyable and heartfelt dose of opinions that was hard to argue with 🙂

[@mandysageek5943]

@@SuperLaughHard thanks 🙂

[@DanSentinel76]

The Judge Dredd Megazine was a spin off title created by John Wagner. I think he negotiated a better royalty rate for stories in the Megazine which is why he stepped back from 2000 AD. As a reader back then, there was a noticeable drop off in quality after Wagner quit, in fact the 90s were a bad time for 2000 AD as so much talent had gone to work for DC and Marvel.

[@sharebear421]

Can’t wait for part 4,

[@mauricioozaki]

Wow! 24? Here in Brazil they've started last year... still number 2... oh God!

[@SuperLaughHard]

Case Files 42 is getting released in four months time and takes us about halfway through the mega-epic that is Dredd thus far 🙂

[@JoeLovesComics]

Great video! This was really interesting.

[@IcyShades31]

The colors are so vivid😁

[@Massimo-ti6ei]

Cool, so cool. I like this format!!!

[@CarlosDias-er6dd]

This video got you 3 thumbs up from me 🤣 I watched the other parts first...

[@saito0969]

Do Strontium Dog next. :P

[@ianfleetwood8804]

The strontium dog books are not all in print. A review would had to be done via the two hardcovers and the ultimate collection

[@SuperLaughHard]

@@ianfleetwood8804 I sent Omar the first two Search and Destroy hardbacks, so hopefully he will one day find the time to read and review them.

[@fireboy312002]

I loved Raider, the art was amazing. Also the Robo judges are amazing. Need read more

[@SuperLaughHard]

The artist on the story is the living legend that is John Burns. He is 85 years old and still going strong. His diversity of work is breathtaking...the wonderful thing about 2000AD is that you often get to see the same great artists draw various characters...Burns painted Nikolai Dante and Sinister Dexter equally as well as Dredd. 'The Order' which is still ongoing is also excellent....en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_M._Burns#Bibliography

[@fireboy312002]

@@SuperLaughHard going to color was hard since some of it was mess. That was the first one that blew me away. Love to read more of his stuff.

[@SuperLaughHard]

@@fireboy312002 Just be pleased you read the reprints that were printed on a better quality of paper. Early issues/Progs of 2000AD have been compared to toilet paper and when the comic went colour most of the work looked very "muddy" and didn't do the art a lot of justice (pun intended). You can blame the success of 'Slaine - The Horned God' for the influx of painted art in 2000AD in the 90's....but in the long run it was a good thing. It was doing something different to US comics at the time and I was grateful for the juxtaposition of styles....something the comic has continued to do and for this I am constantly surprised and engaged by.

[@SuperLaughHard]

P.S. I will hook you up with a nice selection of 2000AD goodness my friend.

[@eldritchmorgasm4018]

Nicely done! Personaly I'm not a big fan of Judge Dredd, but there's good, or at least interesting stuff in there to find. I do like the movies, yes, the 9üs one as well, though it's not realy what it's supposed to be. Funny thing, I found a 90s audioplay on YT, called "Judge Dredd - The Original Adventures: The Day the Law Died", and it's awesome, very funny, it capturew the style & tone, though it's a bit too funny, if you ask me. Still, everybody should listen to this. Btw, can you take a look at other comics, like... 2000AD - ABC Warriors - Flesh - Trash Dark Horse - Age of Reptiles - The Lords of Misrule - Zombieworld (including "Champion of Worms") Dynamite - John Carter & Dejah Thoris - Terminator - Robocop - King Kong: The Great War - Battlefields DC - The Last God - Sgt. Rock vs The Nazi-Army of Darkness (or something like that, it's written by Bruce Campbell)

[@drderrickchua]

Will you be reviewing other 2000AD complete series like ABC Warriors, Nemesis, etc?

[@kuba70834]

Is there a box set of some kind with few books, or they sold seperatly?

[@turtleanton6539]

Sounds awesome

[@RockaRolla69]

Wish we could get reprints of these books

[@mehernoshtarapore8902]

There are reprints on the way

[@RockaRolla69]

@@mehernoshtarapore8902 👀👀👀 link ??

[@mehernoshtarapore8902]

It was solicted in the last preview diamond catalogue the ultimate collection dredd and next month preview has judge Anderson and judge dredd ultimate collection

[@RockaRolla69]

@@mehernoshtarapore8902 ahhh the essential line

[@amorbavian]

Seems like many if not all are in stocks on Amazon?

[@SuperLaughHard]

Thanks again for taking another look at Judge Dredd, Omar. It's facinating to see your take on the character and certain stories. Really makes me want to start my KZbin Channel too!

[@robertday4390]

I wonder if they will ever package these up into omnis? I had the early 2000ADs as a kid and I’d be tempted to buy a nice HC. Thanks Omar!

[@CraigGrannell]

Vanishingly unlikely, on the basis that Dredd - despite existing for over 45 years - is still a relative unknown outside of the US. Honestly, it feels a bit miraculous that ‘complete’ phonebooks like this exist. That said, 2000 AD is recompiling some series in different ways. Strontium Dog is being done in hardcover. And Nemesis the Warlock looks set to soon get the same treatment as the Essential Dredd books.

[@bungleist1]

British comics publishers very rarely publish what American audiences would call an "omnibus" (some companies like Panini publish what they call omnibuses, but these are just thick TPBs). Titan's upcoming Conan omnis are rare exceptions.

[@ianfleetwood8804]

Nice review and you are only half way throught what has been released. I stopped reading 2000ad sometime after necropolis or judgement day, so reading stuff after that is going to be a treat, bug shat j have read of some of current dredd from selected hardcover releases by rebellion are a mixture if good & OK. You should try the big finish audio plays of jd, especially the BBC release of the day the law died and the apocalypse war.

THIS IS THE THIRD PART GUYS

[@MrHateneds]

My favourite comic character, still waiting for a TV[decent]series

[@NearMintCondition]

I’d love a tv series.

[@alfonsovillar3126]

Any chance on hardcover collected editions in the future?

[@CraigGrannell]

Vanishingly unlikely, I imagine. Only the first volume was ever done in HC. That no more were and we’re now up to 42 tells its own story.

[@amorbavian]

Wasn't the comic black and white originally? And if I were to start reading should I just start from vol 1 and take it chronologically or are there volumes you'll recommend to pick up first and then get the others later?

[@Dan200]

Case Files 1 to 11 are in black and white, the rest are colour (bar the occasional story here and there that's black and white on purpose)

[@CraigGrannell]

Dredd was originally mostly black and white. 2000 AD had colour covers and centre spreads, but that was it. In the first dozen or so case files, you’ll therefore get these pages reprinted in a murky greyscale. In one issue of 2000 AD, Dredd transitions into colour within the strip itself, and that’s either in a volume that itself transitioned to new paper and colour, or around that time. If you take Dredd chronologically, the main consideration you need to make is that Dredd takes time to find its feet. The first year or two is kooky. The strip doesn’t know what it is. It’s also written from young(ish) boys. Continuity and even Dredd’s character is all over the shop. It fully finds its feel between Case Files 2 and 4. By 5, it’s blazing along until you hit the rough patch where John Wagner steps back for a while. But that doesn’t last too long and there are still gems among the Morrison/Millar dross. Also, Dredd has at least a couple of major tonal shifts. It grows up quite a lot when it hits the democracy arc (and especially America, which isn’t in the Case Files). It does so again when you hit The Pit, which reframes the strip as a bit more of a procedural and less as Dredd as the straighten in a madcap city. What I will say more broadly is that while Dredd doesn’t arrive fully formed, it’s one of the greatest achievements in comics - yet one so few people talk about. (I mean, I’m in awe of, say, Stan Sakai with Usage Yojimbo. But John Wagner’s Dredds taken alone span over four decades and include some of the best sci-fi comics ever written.) It ages in real time. Events that happened in 1981 still have recpurcsusions today, and yet most Dredd strips nonetheless work as standalone. That’s why sometimes the epics, great as they can be, have more impact if you’ve been reading for some time before you get to them. Er, which is a long answer that doesn’t entirely answer your question. So: 4-7 is a fantastic run of the classic strip. 24 gives you The Pit, which I mentioned before. And if you like those and want more, America (from the Essentials line) would be worth picking up.

[@amorbavian]

@@CraigGrannell thanks. As I'm undeniably a completionist I'll end up getting all of them, then the question is if I'll get to read all of them. I'll definitely start with the first Volume as I'm interested in seeing the birth if you will despite that it might not be as good in art or story as some layer arcs and stories. I also like world building and chronology so skipping ahead I'll always be asking "what'd I miss" even though it might not have an impact on the story. So yea, I'll start with Vol 1 and then maybe skip ahead to those you suggest and some of the later ones recommended in the video.

[@CraigGrannell]

@@amorbavian The reason a lot of people suggest skipping is because of the danger of reading vol 1, thinking it’s naff, and then discarding 40+ years of comics. But if you’re in it for the long haul, there’s still fun to be had in those early stories. Incidentally, if you do want to go down the rabbit hole, there are four ‘Restricted Files’ volumes that compile annual/special stories - 2 and 3 are very, very good. The Dead Man ties into Necropolis. And you’ll without doubt need America, as I noted, but try to read that in sequence for the greatest impact. (The main America series began in the first issue of the Judge Dredd Megazine - Oct 1990 - and so that slots it in towards the end of CF 15. However, the Essentials book covers the main chunk of a democracy arc that you will find in various CF books.) If you do start reading, I hope you enjoy the books. Dredd is a great character, and I did love the phrase John Wagner used, which is that he moves like a glacier. So while Dredd might seem like a stick in the mud, things do shift and change - it’s just the payoffs sometimes happen years later and in unexpected ways.

[@amorbavian]

@@CraigGrannell oh I'll definitely start reading and end up with all of them. I know the character somewhat, have read a few issues here and there but never consistently, and these books seem great for a newcomer.

[@asifchowdhury8005]

ok sooo which case file should i pick up? literally theres too many to choose from lol and i want one to start with as a new reader

[@SuperLaughHard]

Case Files 42 comes out in four months and that takes you to about halfway through the ongoing stories of Dredd. I would suggest you start with the fifth Case Files and if you like it read it until the Case Files goes virtually full color. The Case Files then go through a rocky period and during this era I would go back and read the Case Files that you skipped. They act as excellent flashbacks and are easier to appreciate when Dredd appears to be a game of two half's...Black and white Dredd = Good, and Color Dredd = not so good....not something that remains true for long.

[@CraigGrannell]

@@SuperLaughHard Yeah. I give a… less succinct overview to @amorbavian upthread. But, like you say, colour Dredd = bad really isn’t the case, once Millar and Morrison go away. Looking at the wilderness years, I guess that really starts creeping in with 15. but a lot of that is pretty good (if not great). 16 is a mixed bag of mostly Ennis, but includes the vitally important democracy arc. 17 is rough. 18’s a mix (Mechaniso is the highlight.) 19 is mostly awful, due to the disaster that is Inferno, and the close-to-nadir Judge Tyrannosaur. (Sugar Beat, later on, is perhaps the worst of that era for me.) 20 is dreadful, bar some Wagner moments (Bury My Knee at Wounded Heart being one of the best Dredd one-offs ever written). For me, things start to pick up around 21. Time Machine is solid, but that and the ongoing Conspiracy arc is good. Tenth Planet reads quite well collected. 22/23 are the definition of mixed bag, but then 24 has that masterful return with The Pit. From that point on, I’m not sure Dredd ever went through a lengthy bad patch again. It’s not always been amazing, but it’s been good at worst.

[@SuperLaughHard]

@@CraigGrannell A "bad" Judge Dredd story is usually way better than an "average" superhero comic from the 90's if you ask me. But having had my thrill circuits overloaded many moons ago, I am prepared to be proven wrong....hence my purchases of Marvel Omnibus with content I loathed at the time, lol.

[@jimmyearly6316]

Part 3!?

[@SuperLaughHard]

Part 1: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oIK8hnuKhNSrgKs

[@SuperLaughHard]

Part 2: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKvGmp-VZqmNopI

[@turtleanton6539]

There are many books

[@SuperLaughHard]

​ @Turtle Anton That's half the fun of getting into Dredd if you enjoy the comic...there is plenty to read 🙂

[@locusmortis]

This group of collections is bookended by some great stories but is quite bad in the middle, especially when Millar and Morrison took over, I thought their stories were appallingly bad and disrespectful to the character and John Wagner. Things improved vastly when Wagner came back and brought the character to The Pit, THIS is the real Dredd imo, not Millar and Morrison's pastiche. (It's funny you highlighted Inferno, Book of the Dead and Crusade are these are considered some of the worst Dredd stories ever ). On the other hand you highlighted John Cassavetes is Dead which packed so much content and pathos into 6 pages.

[@CraigGrannell]

I find it interesting what a relative newcomer with a different perspective enjoys. I mean, I can’t stand Inferno but I was glad Omar enjoyed it (and also recognises that it’s a very different take on the character).

[@mehernoshtarapore8902]

Omar Valdivieso pick up the judge Anderson case files

[@SuperLaughHard]

I sent them to him.

[@magnumcornetto]

Quite honestly, I do not like the era of Dredd by Morrison, Ennis, Millar. It has to be the low point in the whole history of Judge Dredd. No one comes close to John Wagner (and Alan Grant). Some of the current writers, like Carroll and Williams, are also pretty great.

[@ste1bro]

Grant Morrison is one of my favourite writers. A stone cold genius. But his Dredd is the all-time worst, and by his own admission he just doesn't 'get' the character. Stripped of all subtlety and satire, it's a dumb 90s action movie version of the character. Inferno is terrible, one of the worst ever Dredd epics. So bad is it that the editor and writers almost completely ignored it. The very next week it was as if Inferno had never happened, save for one solitary follow-up.

[@ste1bro]

It's fascinating to see an American reader go through Dredd from a perspective stripped of a British 2000AD fan's real-time, week-by-week viewpoint. Case in point: 'The Pit' was anything but back to basics, it was an incredible game changer. For the first time, John Wagner was writing Dredd as a forensic, character-based police procedural, and it worked beautifully. It was a story that changed the strip forever, as that forensic procedural style came to the fore more and more. In its own way, The Pit is as influential as, say, The Apocalypse War, in the way it changed the feel of the strip forever.

[@SuperLaughHard]

I used to have a similar viewpoint when the stories were in the Prog but I have grown to enjoy "the dodgy years" by Millar, Morrison and Ennis. It's an interesting look at the development of young creative talents and Dredd the comic needed to evolve......they kind of showed how hard it was to do if you're not called 'John Wagner'. When Omar highlighted Millar and Morrison's effort's I was pleasantly surprised....much to my surprise! I just wish they had included the story called 'Purgatory' in the case files. Its a story about "the bad guy" in 'Inferno' and was published in 2000AD to finish just as Inferno started.....its way more enjoyable if you read 'Inferno' directly after 'Purgatory' like it was in the pages of 2000AD at the time.

[@NearMintCondition]

Okay, I’m so glad to have read this. I was curious how people reacted to Morrison’s stories. Thank You for sharing.

[@CraigGrannell]

@@SuperLaughHard See, I think Purgatory is everything that was wrong with 2000 AD in that era. It is needlessly cruel when it thinks it’s being edgy. It’s devoid of basic logic (dipping people in lava!). And, worst of all, it takes a potentially great antagonist in Grice and totally wastes the opportunity to do something interesting. I hated that period. For some people, Dredd kept them reading 2000 AD during the dark years. For me, it was John Smith. Without his work, I doubt I’d have continued trudging through the Prog, week on week.

[@CraigGrannell]

At the time, there are interviews with Morrison and Millar about how boring Dredd is, and how they’re totally amazing people binning the past. I mean, arrogance is part of that era, but to strip back a nuanced character and rebrand him as a brainless oaf that was everything Wagner was trying to avoid, just strikes me as people who don’t know what they’re doing with a property - or do but don’t care. None of their work on the strip holds up. (And Millar was also busy ruining other strips at the time, like Robo-Hunter.) Garth Ennis, on the other hand, at least tried. He was clearly too inexperienced and arguably too reverential. But I can read back through that area and enjoy some of the work he did. I kind of forced my way through Inferno again in the Ultimate Collection, but I don’t think I’ll ever read it again.

[@Dan200]

Would you say it's a good idea to skip Case Files 15-20? So you miss the non-Wagner era?

[@CraigGrannell]

The problem is, it’s not quite that simple. 16 has chunks of the democracy arc. 18 has Mechanismo. And even though 20 has a lot of dross, there are still gems in there like Bury My Knee At Wounded Heart. (I also love Howler, which is gloriously stupid, and features divisive McMahon art that really works for me.) Wagner never really went away entirely. He just lurked in the Megazine. 19 and 20 are really hard going though, as are some of the nearby books. Once The Pit kicks off, though, Dredd never plummets again (even when Wagner takes long leaves of absence).

[@Dan200]

@@CraigGrannell Hmm. I've read the Mechanismo TPB, and all the Democracy stories from "Essential Judge Dredd: America", so that's most of that stuff covered... I do need to check out Howler though. I know McMahon's 90s art style well from Sonic the Comic :)