Judge Dredd: 'Mutie The Pig', Part 1

NAME
Judge Dredd: 'Mutie The Pig', Part 1
(according to Barney this strip is also known as 'Death Of Dredd')

FIRST PUBLISHED
2000 A.D. Prog 34

DATELINE
15 Oct 77

This prog bore a supercover by Trevor Goring and Invasion, Dan Dare, Tharg's Future Shocks, M.A.C.H.1 and Shako strips.

PAGE COUNT
5

REPRINTS
2000AD Progs 351 & 352, Judge Dredd: The Early Cases 4, The Complete Judge Dredd 3 and Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 01.

SYNOPSIS
Dredd's dead. Mutie the Pig commits robberies across Mega-City One

FIRSTS & LASTS
The first Judge Dredd strip to be reprinted.

INFORMATION
The year is 2099 A.D. (Dredd's 'death' takes place on a Friday).

For the first time in over eighty years the Mega-City One's weather controls have been set to winter as a mark of respect for the late Judge Dredd.

Mega-City One Judges have made goodwill visits to Texas City. Judges are trained to support their gun-hand under his free arm. Named Judges: Cicero (left-handed, in hospital) and Peace (left-handed, on a good will visit to Texas City)

JUDGE DREDD
He was born in 2066. Believed killed by a mystery assassin, he is given a funeral with 200 Justice department hover vehicles painted black and buried on the East Side. He is not dead.

OTHER CHARACTERS
CHIEF JUDGE
He speaks at Dredd's funeral and declares a day of mourning.

WALTER & MARIA
They attend Dredd's funeral.

JUDGE GIBSON
He and Dredd were at the academy together. He is left-handed. He speaks at Dredd's funeral and lights the flame of justice on his gravestone. He disguises himself as Mutie The Pig to commit robberies. When Dredd learned of this Gibson shot him, believed him dead and resumed his crime spree as Mutie. Dredd returned to stop him.

ARRESTS
None.

DEATHS
One, maybe. Gibson shoots a bar punter.

BEST LINES
Bar Patron: "We-we ain't gonna give you no more trouble, Mr. Pig"

Respectful.

WORST LINES
Shot Bar Patron: "I'll aagh!"

Aagh just looks wrong.

CATCHPHRASES
Walter says bwave, cwy, Dwedd, Mawia, twy and wemember.

CONTINUITY & CROSSOVERS
Judge Gibson was listed on the honour roll for Dredd's year at 'The Academy Of Law'. Walter cries oil again as he did in 'Walter's Secret Job'. Since Dredd's gravestone confirms that the year is still 2099 and he had his birthday in 'Brainblooms' he must be 33 years old now.

INFLUENCES & REFERENCES
The Chief Judge paraphrases Antony from Act 3 Scene 2 of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar (1599), "I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them"

MISTAKES
Al Bristow describes Maria as Dredd's landlady and takes us live to the scence.

RETROSPECT
None.

NOTES
None.

CREDITS
There are no credits printed in the strip itself and so the following are taken from Barney.

Script: John Wagner
Artist: Mike McMahon
Letters: Tony Jacob

REVIEW
The artwork is great and the set up is nicely done, but it doesn't really fool you into think Dredd is actually dead.