By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
With the chilling words from a mutant from the Judge Dredd universe registering the imminent, “With the right DNA, Doctor Reinstöt can do almost anything,” I’m immediately captivated. This mad scientist recognizes the possibilities when playing god, and yes, he’s going to make an all-new Modern Prometheus if I’m correctly reading in-between the lines.
Predator vs Judge Dredd vs Aliens is coming July 27th by Dark Horse Comics. If only I had a time machine to leap ahead so I can grab each issue right away, then I would know if my assumption is right or not. This epic story is written by Eisner Award–winning writer John Layman and wonderfully constructed by artist Chris Mooneyham. To add to this comic’s allure is the subtle film-like textures in the backgrounds by colourist Michael Atiyeh. If the fabulous covers drawn by Glenn Fabry are not enough to grab people’s attention at the comic book store, well… The way this team has worked together to make this comic a fun read can be felt on every page. Dredd is always moody (he has to be), and in what I appreciated looking at is in how easy this tale is to read.
While out in the Atomic Wasteland of Cursed Earth, this cop is searching for Archbishop Emoji. He does not realize a member of the Yautja is prowling about and when he does, I can not wait to see how he will react! That will not happen until issue two. In this multi-crossover debut, this Predator is not the hunter. He is prey, and the good doctor’s minions caught him ill-prepared; the targets he is after are perhaps even more resourceful. When these mutants stumble upon his ship and have found a certain “Alien” skull, that’s going to be trouble.
I’m really excited for this multiverse crossover. Judge Dredd is a franchise IDW Publishing owns and releases material for instead of Dark Horse. These two comic book powerhouses worked out a deal for this one-shot which I hope will expand to more than just one encounter. Layman paces the story out very well, and the first issue was a quick read to set up the remaining three. Reinstöt is no doubt going to gene-splice / farm his own type of Alien hybrid. When he’s interbred animal species with humans, just what he can do has me eagerly wondering what he’s going to bio-engineer. When considering the Alien universe’s consistent effort by The Corporation attempting the same thing, to consider what the Dread universe’s science can do will no doubt be even more diabolical! Just how Dredd will survive requires him to outthink his enemy. I’m doubtful that he will co-operate with the other Predators. More of them will be coming. There’s no doubt about it.
I used to follow both Aliens and Predator comic series passionately, but when my budget got tight and some of the ideas (i.e. the DC tie-ins) were just cash-grabs, not every concept made it into my monthly must-buy bin. In what Layman has crafted, these three universes are seamlessly stitched together, better set into a single universe than past attempts. The plot is earnestly laid out in a narrative structure I recognize and the layouts by Mooneyham completely drew me in. This team has certainly done justice to respecting the lore established in each franchise, and that’s a law I can stand behind.
