Judge Dredd: 'Battle Of The Black Atlantic', Part 1

NAME
Judge Dredd: 'Battle Of The Black Atlantic', Part 1

FIRST PUBLISHED
2000 A.D. Prog 128

DATELINE
1 Sep 78

This prog also featured ABC Warriors, Disaster 1990, Blackhawk, Captain Klep and The Mind Of Wolfie Smith strips and a Judge Dredd cover by Ron Smith.

PAGE COUNT
6

REPRINTS
2000AD Monthly 3, The Best Of 2000AD 4, Judge Dredd Classics 69, The Complete Judge Dredd 12, Judge Dredd Chronicles Book 26 and Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 03.

SYNOPSIS
After an uneventful crime blitz, Dredd investigates an East-Meg 1 spy at sea.

FIRSTS & LASTS
First crime blitz and first mentions of the Black Atlantic and 'spy-in-the-sky' hover cameras.

INFORMATION
Mega-City One's coastline borders the highly polluted Black Atlantic. The city is shielded from the Black Atlantic by a plasti-barrier, however there are cracks and repair gangs are expected to be fixing them. The city's jurisdiction of the ocean reaches forty miles from the shore. The docks have a customs area and a harbour gate. The city has a new laser defence system, a Science Institute and The Smiling Burger is on 433rd Street.

Section 59(D) of the Mega-City One Criminal Code is: "A Judge may enter a citizen's home to carry out routine intensive investigation. The citizen has no rights in this matter." This has become known as a crime blitz. Robots repair any damage and compensation is available for any inconvenience caused. Citizens found not to have committed a crime can receive a certificate of merit signed by the Chief Judge.

Judges have recently been equipped with new respirators and have access to 'spy-in-the-sky' hover cameras for surveillance. Named Judges: Judge Gibson, Judge Waldo

Citizens are required to keep credit statements for the last fifteen years. New Mutation is a prohibited magazine, unless you have a permit.

The Sov-Blok is surrounded by atomic desert. The Sovs have a fleet of Anti-Pollution ships.

A Turbo-Mist is a vehicle that was available for sale in 2099.

JUDGE DREDD
He can pilot a ship. He helped in a crime blitz on the home of Mr Sweet that found nothing, which piqued his interest and lead to surveillance of Mr Sweet and then reveals his involvement with an East-Meg 1 Spy. Dredd arrests him and follows Sweet's East-Meg 1 contact to the edge of the Black Atlantic and then into international waters where the Judge attempts to arrest an entire Sov Anti-Pol ship. He crashes into the other vessel and falls into the Black Atlantic.

OTHER CHARACTERS
MR SWEET
A spy passing information to East-Meg 1 posing as a researcher at the Science Institute. He is subject to a crime blitz that finds nothing, which in itself intrigues Dredd.

ARRESTS
One. Mr Sweet is arrested for passing secrets to East-Meg 1. Plus a shipful.

DEATHS
None.

BEST LINES
Dredd: "How many 59Ds you done, Waldo?"
Waldo: "Gee, I dunno - hundreds."
Dredd: "And what's your arrest rate?"
Waldo: "Hundred per cent. Everyone gets a caution at least..."
Dredd: "Exactly!"

WORST LINES
Dredd: "Don't run away, Citizen!"

CATCHPHRASES
None.

CONTINUITY & CROSSOVERS
This story represents an escalation in hostilities since the Sov-Blok were last seen in the Judge Dredd stories The First Luna Olympics and 'Luna 1 War'.

INFLUENCES & REFERENCES
Unknown.

MISTAKES
None.

RETROSPECT
None.

NOTES
None.

CREDITS
Script: John Howard
Artist: Ron Smith
Letters: Tom Frame

REVIEW
The Fascistic presumption of guilt in the crime blitz opening would clearly have been enough material for an entire strip, but here it is merely the springboard for a story that takes on an international dimension with surprising ease.

Crazy Enough To Tangler With You, J. D.! Don't Miss Next Prog!