The best stories for a major comic book character, I find, are when you take them out of a familiar setting, perhaps even their comfort zone, and place them somewhere new. With the Cold Wars graphic novel, that’s exactly what happens to the one and only Judge Dredd, and the results are entertaining.
Of the five stories contained within the graphic novel, “Get Sin” features an assault on a fortress in a hostile winter, “War Buds” focuses on a group of former judges coming together to help another from their unit. “Black Snow,” “Echoes,” and “The Stroud” are three connecting stories focusing on Dredd stepping out of his jurisdiction to help a colony in desperate need and what happens after.
Each story has an acceptable length and I felt satisfied each time one was finished. The writing itself is solid and I had no complaints about any story in the book. The writers, Michael Carroll, Rob Williams and the one and only John Wagner, are hopefully proud of what they’ve written in this collection. Over the last couple of years, a lot of unwanted political content has gotten into comics, especially in Marvel comics. I’m pleased to say you won’t find that here, just great storytelling.
The artwork accompanying these stories is also solid. With an art team comprising of Trevor Hairsine, Barry Kitson, Dylan Teague, Dan Cornwell, PJ Holden, Colin MacNeil, Paul Davidson and a cover for the main book by Jim Murray, they put a lot of modern art to shame. The detail in some of the pictures is more than admirable and obviously took time to illustrate, far outdoing some of the Marvel and DC offerings.
This selection of stories is more than enough to give a consumer bang for their buck and comes highly recommended. It is a well-written collection with a main character who is uncaring, lethal and smart. James Cameron once said “the audience appreciates a smart character,” and with this book, that quote rings true with every story.