Judge Dredd: The Movie - Comicbook Adaptation (2025)

Judge Dredd: The Movie - 30th Anni Ed (2025)

Author: Andrew Helfer (based on a screenplay by William Wisher Jr + Steve E. de Souza) | Illustrator: Carlos Ezquerra | Page Count: 80 [1]

NOTE: this post contains spoilers for the Judge Dredd (1995) movie directed by Danny Cannon.

Thirty years after the first Judge Dredd movie took a giant Flesh-sized shit on the franchise that inspired it, its comicbook adaptation got reissued. Why should anyone care? For one good reason: because it was illustrated throughout by Carlos Ezquerra.

Not the cover art - that's by Dermot Power and is the only time it really looks like Sylvester Stallone.

For reasons that I don't know but are probably to do with licensing and/or Hollywood egos, the interior art wasn't allowed to use Stallone's likeness.

But that turns out to be a good thing. The first 4 pages are particularity great. The Judge uniforms and Lawmasters are movie-specific, but otherwise the linework, angles, and colours all work together to make it feel like a proper Ezquerra 2000 AD strip. It's easy to imagine that the city and its people will feel similarly. But then Dredd appears in full on Page 5 and the illusion begins to crack... 🙁

Doctor Who: Modern Era Davros (2008-15)

Doctor Who: Modern Era Davros (2008-15)

NOTE: there are SPOILERS for a number of Modern Era Dr Who stories below this paragraph. It would be advisable not to read any further if you're not okay with that.

Following on from the Classic Era Davros (1975-88) post, some words on his appearances in the Modern era. He was mentioned a couple of times during Series 01 and 03, but he didn't actually appear until later, in a noteworthy Series 04 adventure.

I won't mention the title of the episode in this introductory paragraph, for anyone that would prefer to enjoy the surprise reveal during a first watch-through. Personally, I feel that's the best way to experience the story, but I'll need to name it if I'm to write about it, so, as already mentioned, SPOLERS below the cut!

The Omen: Films (1976-06)

The Omen: Films (1976-06)

Dirs. Various

01. The film that single-handedly caused kids named Damien to get targeted by bullies at school throughout the 80s (and beyond?), The Omen (1976 / Dir. Richard Donner) is a 1970s suspense / horror film that relies on mood and pace to elicit a progressive sense of dread in the viewer.

Gregory Peck is utterly believable as the American Senator with an evil little shit for a son (Harvey Stephens). Throw in some horror convention, a creepy nanny, a house that lacks life, and a biblical poem and you have a classic that looks dated but still manages to shock and entertain.

In lesser roles are David Warner, Billie Whitelaw, and Patrick Troughton, all of whom are equally great. Prolific composer Jerry Goldsmith's musical score adds an extra layer of palpable eeriness.

Black Diamond (1983-84)

Black Diamond (1983-84)

Author: Various | Illustrators: Various | 5 Issues, approx 34 pages each

"Don't panic! I just want your outfit!"

A short-lived comicbook that presents itself as a movie tie-in, albeit one that launched before the movie it's supposed to tie-in with. So far so good, but the onscreen version never happened, so the comic is all we have to give us an idea of what the movie's story might've been like. (I've added a few promo shots of lead actress Sibyl Danning in costume at the post's end, for anyone interested.)

The basic premise is as follows: Tiana Matthews is a successful fashion model for Multmonde, a role that sees her traverse borders for fashion shoots, etc. But secretly, Tiana is also an agent for INFO COM THREE, a role that sees her traverse borders for spy antics and action shootouts, etc. Her code name in the second scenario is Black Diamond. [1]

Her greatest enemy is an international crime cartel known as QUANSA. If you're thinking that sounds kinda like James Bond and SPECTRE, then your thinking is correct. It's spy fiction with gadgets and ridiculous world-domination plans.