WAGNER, JOHN & MACNEIL, COLIN - JUDGE DREDD – AMERICA in THE COMPLETE AMERICA 2003 Titan Books. 2000 AD
Powerful highly political Judge Dredd
graphic about the fate of democracy in a world where legal precedent and totalitarian protective measures against
crime erode the rights and crush the dreams of ordinary citizens. The book
carries some of the most outstanding images in the history of the comic,
notably the Statue Of Liberty overshadowed by the giant statue of Justice,
(I giant gun toting judge behind it) and a corpse wrapped in the American Stars And Stripes Banner soaked in
blood at the foot of the Statues. The story concerns the story of a woman
called America, named after he country to which her parents have migrated. She
embodies all their hopes and ambitions. When a peaceful democratic march is crushed
by violence, America degenerates into crime and terrorism. She becomes a Judge
killer. Her lover, Bennie Beanie is shocked and begs her to stop. He himself
becomes a rare success story, gaining a popular singing career. He finds that
ended when he tries to talk America out of killing more Judges, when one of her accomplices shoots his vocal
chord out. Bennie survives, but it is touch and go whether he will ever sing
again. The Judges, including Judge Dredd, who makes relatively few appearances
in the story, approaches Bennie and when Bennie learns that America plans to
blow up the now meaningless statue of Liberty, Bennie informs on her, and ends
up witnessing as the judges of Mega City One gun her down. Beanie now has a full body sex change to
become the new America, replacing his vocal chords with her voice, and the
dream lives on. A powerful and highly
relevant use of a popular comic book rough justice cop to speak out on real
issues – a follow up, Fading Of The Light followed, and I have also reviewed
that here. http://www.2000adonline.com/
Arthur Chappell
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