@deansimons
He/Him. UK-based freelance culture writer/journalist [news & features]. Interests: world comics, comics history, digital comics + tech/gaming Portfolio | https://linktr.ee/dean.simons Support my work | https://ko-fi.com/deansimons Follow ≠ endorsement
I also got sick of Duolingo. Found I was managing to sight read just enough French to know roughly what I’m looking at. I spend a lot of time looking at French articles, ref books and comics, not fully trusting the translation software, and pick stuff up by osmosis. My speaking is awful tho
Personally my favourite early Dredd ‘sagas’ are either Robot Wars or Day the Law Died. Both were written by Dredd co-creator John Wagner.
The latter is easy meme material. Basic plot: a crazy narcissist takes over Mega City 1. He even makes his pet goldfish deputy.
…and when Alan Grant teams up with Wagner, the quality jumps even higher.
For newcomers looking for a taste of early-ish Dredd, personally I would say start from Case Files 3. Lots of shorts that are laced with satire, and the character starts to coalesce into the unflinching bastard he is today
Mostly written by Pat Mills, Judge Dredd’s wider world gets filled out over the course of the saga. In the early years the character has a slightly more heroic bent. “Tough but fair”. After around 1979/80, when co-creator John Wagner returns as regular writer, the stories really take off
First published in 1978, Cursed Earth was the second major storyline in the Dredd series after the success of Robot Wars.
Thinking about when Burger Wars was published, first McD and BK in the UK opened in 1974 and 1975. Couldn’t spot a figure for McD but by 1980, BK had 60 locations in Britain.
Been reading Judge Dredd: The Cursed Earth (Uncensored).
Am checking out the episodes that had for decades been redacted for copyright infringement. The first is Burger Wars. It features rival armies of zealots led by Ronald MacDonald and the Burger King in a neverending turf war.
Big question now is who the permanent replacement will be. Sounds like the current person filling Richardson’s shoes is an interim CEO from inside Embracer. Hopefully they headhunt someone that has a decent grounding in the publishing world and knowledge of comics, graphic novels and manga
I sincerely hope to be proved wrong and that the catalogue stays at least as strong as it is today. We shall see. And also that the creators who have imprints under the Dark Horse umbrella get treated right after this dramatic shift during the 40th anniversary year
For me, the original material and the translations of international material at Dark Horse (manga and bande dessinée mainly) are why I check out their stuff.
The press release read like something for shareholders.
Mike Richardson made quite a publisher but sounds like he got shoved out the door
Nintendo Indie Showcase highlights:
- My Little Puppy. So cute and gives slight Okami vibes
- Moonlighter 2. Great to finally see gameplay. First game was an addictive treat.
- Minishoot Adventures. A twin stick shooter adventure RPG
- love the art style of Midnight Walk
-inkombini
- unrailed 2
But what if, hypothetically, men creators just didn’t want to be a part of that particular anthology.
Is it because there are no “men creators”?
Is it because men don’t like comics?
One day I hope to budget a subscription to The Phoenix. It is so hard to consistently find in shops.
Fun fact about 2000 AD and The Phoenix: both British comics are headquartered in Oxford. Rebellion and David Fickling.
(Beano and Commando, the D.C. Thomson stable, are headquartered in Dundee)
Pleasant surprise. Royal Mail actually delivered my subscriber copy of next week’s issue of 2000 AD early. Usually I get it 2 days late. Also: Yay Brink! Love this series.
Also need to budget for a Switch 2 before prices hike
I guess I will spend the rest of this year deciding what starter I will choose in Pokémon Winds/Waves.
The little gecko looks super cute though.
And the fire doggy.
And the grumpy grass owl.
ANGOULÊME: 9e Art+'s Franck Bondoux is striking back with a legal action demanding a halt to plans for a new Angoulême festival and asking for €300,000 compensation for the losses incurred by the collapse of FIBD
I love discovering that stuff. Popular touchstones and frames of reference unique to different cultures.
Btw: this sense of othering also happens to those of other cultures who were born and grew up in the UK. I remember incidences of this back when I was at school. Probably better nowadays
NAACP Image Awards 2026 crowns Duffy & Jennings’ Octavia Butler adaptation PARABLE OF THE TALENTS Best Graphic Novel
Ooo nice. Fleetway Picture Library
There was the Best American Comics anthology series, also out of print.
Most I believe are out of print or slightly outdated. Paul Gravett did a few but not with proper extracts. Just articles on recommended books.
There is a “1,001 comics you must read before you die” released in the 2010s. It is pretty expansive and international. Not sure about availability
I was wondering if I was imaging Twitter - even 10 years ago - was drawing out my worst, more attention seeking, behaviours. That and the growing toxicity at the time (and other reasons) made me pull back from there. Feel Bad Machine sounds about right, and Be Bad Machine too.
Britain’s DENNIS THE MENACE receives anniversary coin from Royal Mint
Released February 19, the new commemorative coin will come with a specially produced Dennis comic featuring the character visiting The Royal Mint itself
America’s drought of Thrill-Power ends in May
LUCKY LUKE live action TV series makes first appearance
The 8-episode adaptation of the classic Franco-Belgian comic is set to release on Disney+ in Europe on March 23, with an international release yet to be confirmed
It’s the same pretty much with anything in translation. Or they edit out/try to cover over anything offensive in the more palatable works. At least they are better at it today (especially with French material)
Very much looking forward to this. Now I just need to hope someone picks up “Spirou: Hope Against All Odds”
Original Batman/Judge Dredd crossover to get 35th anniversary deluxe hardcover
The Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgement on Gotham Anniversary Edition will be based on high quality rescans of the archived film, using modern techniques.
Mina The Hollower is being described as a “love letter to handheld gaming” and those are the only five words I need to hear.
The latest tease was on Sony’s State of Play this evening.
Still no release date. Just Spring 2026.
Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition looks pretty low effort. It seems like the disc of bonus extras you might get back in the day (especially on DVD)…but without the main attraction.
Would have liked to see them remake the original using the Origins/Legends engine. That would’ve been cool.