Nemesis The Warlock #7 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 7, March 1985

Despite allowing renowned artist Kevin O’Neill plenty of pulse-pounding panels within which to depict a truly cataclysmic confrontation between the super-sized ancient automatons Torque-Armada and Mek-Quake, as well as the emotionally-charged, distressing death of the titular character’s wife Chira on the planet Gandarva, Pat Mills’ penmanship during Issue Seven of “Nemesis The Warlock” almost certainly sags during the reprint’s middle portion, potentially promoting the feeling that the “leading light in British comics” had inexplicably become somewhat bored in his exploration of the Siege of Ydrasill Castle, and simply wanted the Terminator’s assault upon Muzurphus’ fortress finished so he could concentrate on providing the “extremely powerful warlock” with a suitably dramatic demise; “Within hours, a group of my assassins will… kill them both and… never will revenge have tasted sweeter!”

This sense of listlessness sadly appears to start just as soon as the “symbol of Termight’s glory” fatally explodes having been inadvertently immobilised by the robot, Fire-Raiser, with the “anti-authoritarianism” author rather contrivingly depicting Sir Evric suddenly being all-too willing to come to an agreement with “the Evil One” simply because the commander is “sick with alien fever” and wishes he “wasn’t so old and tired.” Admittedly, the leader “loyal to Torquemada” is clearly unwell, having seen half his siege machines, including the imperial flag robot, turned into “a heap of scrap”. But there’s clearly still plenty of fire left in the aged warrior’s belly when he remonstrates with his “weirdo” son, Balin, over the adolescent impudently challenging him for being “all eaten up with hate and fear of the unknown!”

However, rather than attempt to kill the deviant, the creator of “2000 A.D.” instead has the soldier surprisingly accept his hated foe’s offer to give him the courage to stand up to Torquemada, a chest full of golden treasure, as well as a promise to make him young again, and dutifully raises the siege against the Basilisks so as to return home at once. Needless to say such a bargain does not ultimately go well for “the sinischal” as “the leader of the bigoted human Terminators” is transmogrified into a truly grotesque-looking young male Catoblepas and subsequently “paraded through the tunnels of Termight”, yet it also brings a presumably planet-wide invasion to an abrupt, unsatisfactory end as well…

Script: Pat Mills, Art: Kevin O'Neill, and Color: Kevin O'Neill

Nemesis The Warlock #6 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 6, February 1985

Despite a somewhat sedentary start mingling with the assorted demonic-looking guests at Chira’s celebratory ‘Hatching’ of her first egg, Pat Mills’ script for Issue Six of “Nemesis The Warlock” must have whipped the comic’s audience into a feverishly frothing frenzy by its end, on account of the sensational giant robot battles he pens later in the book. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine a more impressive series of towering automatons as the ones which prominently feature throughout the Siege of Ydrasill Castle, especially the homicidally violent Mek-Quake, whose over-enthusiasm to “crush those alien hordes” causes him to inadvertently stomp upon Terra’s own terminators, whilst lowering his boarding ridge too early; a decidedly dire decision that sees his ballooning belly’s “serjeant-at-arms” mistakenly lead his fanatical squad straight off the edge of the siege device uttering the words “The moment the tower reaches the wall, that ramp will drop down… I want you out and over the battlements - at the double! Now! Death to all devia…”

Fortunately, these somewhat sentient machines aren’t simply placed into the narrative just for the sake of it either, as there’s plenty of exposition as to just why Sir Evric, “the sinischal in charge of the siege”, requires such fallible colossi to help him breach the outer walls of the Great Donjon of the Basilisks and help “cleanse the galaxy of all aliens!” Motivated by the ever-pervading threat of Torquemada’s infamously lethal dissatisfaction, and plagued by the endless excuses from his siege engineer, Brother Hieronymus, the “bigoted human” soon requires more than boiled Roc’s venom to help his headaches when the titular character arrives on the planet Demotika and pushes his men back into the care of the army’s abusive Vestal Vampires. In fact, this apparent set-back to the knight’s plans only forces the milksop to rely ever more heavily upon the robots which “are hundreds of years old” and date “back to the Lost Age of Science!”

Undoubtedly however, all of this compelling combat wouldn’t prove a tenth as captivating if it wasn’t for Kevin O’Neill’s mouth-wateringly detailed story-boards. Mek-Quake’s over-sized “Big Jobs!” panel alone is well worth this publication’s cover price, and that’s pencilled well before the mobile battle tower inadvertently locks horns with the Imperial flag robot, Torque-Armada; “a giant effigy of the grand Master himself” whose double splash page barely manages to encompass the Man of War’s thirty guns, six catapults and two dart throwers…”

Script: Pat Mills, Art: Kevin O'Neill, and Color: Kevin O'Neill

Nemesis The Warlock #5 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 5, January 1985

In many ways it is hard to shake the feeling that Pat Mills probably didn’t have much more to give his narrative for “Nemesis The Warlock: Book Two” once Brother Baruda escaped the Caretaker of Arachnos’ clutches and Tomás de Torquemada’s host was eerily ensconced within Zelotes’ eight-legged corpse. For whilst this twenty-one page periodical does continue in its depiction of the duo desperately trying to mislead the meeting of the Cabal on Novala into believing that all humans must be destroyed, the lion’s share of the story-telling firmly sits at the feet (or rather hands) of artist Jesus Redondo, as opposed to "the godfather of British comics".

Indeed, just as soon as Nemesis has resigned as leader of the Cabal, and his human friend Purity has discovered that their supposedly captive terminator isn’t anywhere near as helpless as first thought, there’s a decidedly evident absence of dialogue within each panel until the adventure suddenly concludes several action-packed sequences later; “We were wrong to doubt you, Dark Lord. We should have known Torquemada plotted your downfall.” Fortunately, such a shift in workload is in no way detrimental to this book’s quality, as the Valladolid-born illustrator seemingly leaps upon the opportunity to show just how truly terrifying close combat must be when your opponent is giant, bull-sized spider.

Admittedly, the Spanish penciller does slightly skimp on the background details to his drawings, but this technique simply throws the combatants into sharp relief upon the page, and one can actually feel the hairs rise upon the neck when Zelotes leaps upon a befuddled Nemesis’ back, wraps his elongated legs around the warlock’s torso, and sneers into his foe’s ear that he is about to deliver “the death bite!”. In fact, both the “fire-breathing” alien’s battle with his arch-nemesis and Baruda’s swordfight with Purity are so dynamically story-boarded, and resultantly draw its audience into the conflict ever tighter, that these scenes arguably take longer to ‘read’ than Mills’ far wordier passages elsewhere within the comic.

Equally as impressive is this publication’s secondary tale focusing upon Chira and Magna’s ritual joust for Nemesis’ love. Unbelievably well-pencilled by Kevin O’Neill, and simply packed full of armour-shattering weapon impacts, as well as a distinct lack of ‘centaur sportswomanship’, this nine-page tale provides plenty of insight into the Holder of the Sword Sinister’s domestic life, and sets up the groundwork that will enable Ashtar’s daughter to ‘get rid of her rival – forever!”

Script: Pat Mills, Art: Jesus Redondo, and Color: Ian Stead

Nemesis The Warlock #4 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 4, December 1984

Arguably devoting far more time upon the titular character’s arch-rival, the supposedly slain Tomás de Torquemada, than the series’ lead protagonist, Issue Four of “Nemesis The Warlock” must still have delighted it’s ‘schoolboy’ fanbase due to Pat Mills’ spine-tingling premise of having all the galaxy’s human prisoners being guarded on a planet ruled by giant, talking spiders. Indeed, it’s hard to think of a more terrifying fate for the misguided Terminators of Terra, than living out the rest of their lives under the baleful eight-eyes of intelligent arachnids; “It is a judgement on us for not heeding the words of Torquemada!”

Frustratingly however, such a diabolical fate for Mankind’s murderously, blood-thirsty warriors is simply hinted at to begin with, on account of "the godfather of British comics" deciding to start this tome by ‘filling in’ the background as to just “what made Torquemada the way he was”. Admittedly, this short-story depicting a young Tomas being treacherously sold into alien servitude only to escape by biting the tongue of a Manticore, certainly gives the ‘damaged’ adolescent plenty of grounds for hating both extra-terrestrials and the humans who collaborate with them. But for such a momentous tale it is disappointingly brief, and in no way lives up to the expectations set by Jesus Redondo’s sense-shattering splash illustration depicting Brother Baruda fending off a huge black ‘eight legs’, which so promisingly precedes it.

Somewhat contrarily, the Ipswich-born author’s subsequent attempt to resurrect “the most cruel human of all time” within the space of five pages seems incredibly ponderously-paced; especially when six panels alone are dedicated to Sister Alvit playing a game of charades with the other Battle-Maidens due to her being “forbidden to speak”. Surely it would have been far better to have truncated such a sequence, and either provided the narrative with some additional sense-shattering ‘footage’ of the savage battles taking place on “Zonar - planet of the Fachans”, “Remora - planet of the Tritons”, or Garuda - planet of the Rukhans, "who fly into action on their hippogriffs…”?

Regardless, Mills’ script for this thirty-two page anthology really ‘pulls out all the stops’ once Baruda “and four of the toughest Terminators” inject “themselves with a diluted dose” of spider venom and climb the prison’s poisonous web wall. In fact, the party’s pulse-pounding race through the jungle is superbly penned (and pencilled by Redonda), with its “thousands of wild spiders” slowly culling the escapee’s meagre number in all manner of gruesome and agonisingly unpleasant ways…

Script: Pat Mills, Art: Jesus Redondo, and Color: Ian Stead

Nemesis The Warlock #3 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 3, November 1984

Featuring some truly formidable-looking extra-terrestrials and a swashbuckling sword fight which would have tested even the silver screen fencing skills of Douglas Fairbanks or Errol Flynn, Issue Three of “Nemesis The Warlock” brings the “revolutionary” freedom fighter’s fiendish infiltration of the Feast of Zamarkland to a corking conclusion with the rescue of numerous aliens through a dimensional portal, and the apparent final demise of Termight’s phantom Grandmaster. In fact, apart from the narrative’s final few panels, which rather hurriedly ‘skip over’ a “badly wounded” Nemesis’ recovery, and the occupation of “the Forbidden Level” as a resistance base, this particular thirty-two page anthology book is arguably definitive; “Ya fooped out! No bar trogging and trugging. Hip for a snip!” 

Admittedly, Pat Mills’ desire for Torquemada to “always [be] the arch villain” does mean that the titular character occasionally takes a bit of a back seat as “the Godfather of British Comics” focuses much of his creative energies upon having Nostradamus’ grandson phase from corpse to corpse in an attempt to become his fire-breathing foe’s “grim reaper!” But these oft-times gruesome body-swaps genuinely help demonstrate that there is simply no sacrilege imaginable which the determined dictator won’t stoop to in order to defeat the Blitzspear’s owner.

Indeed, the Ipswich-born editor’s carousel of different vessels for the evil “waning” spirit to inhabit is probably what makes this storyline such an enthralling read, especially when it’s set against a backdrop of collapsing architecture, splintering statues, and Terminators being mutilated by all sorts of heavily-armed and viciously-toothed aliens. Certainly, this book's contents makes it crystal clear just why readers regularly voted Torquemada as their favourite villain, and “Eagle Comics” decided to ‘spotlight’ the former leader of The Tube Police even further by including his 1984 “2000 A.D.” Annual appearance “A Day In The Death Of Torquemada” within this tome.  

Equally as successful as the comic’s plot, are Kevin O’Neill’s incredibly-detailed breakdowns. These drawings genuinely capture the sheer grandeur of Termight’s structural design, the frenzied brutality of N’Kognito, Kremlin and Ragnar, as well as the bloodthirstiness of Torquemada as he rejoices “at my own destruction”, and it should therefore come as little wonder that in a 2015 interview with “Big Glasgow Comic.com” Pat Mills stated that the English Illustrator was his favourite artist.

Script: Pat Mills, Artist: Kev O'Neill, and Colors: Kev O'Neill

Nemesis The Warlock #2 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 2, October 1984

Predominantly dedicated to the titular character’s rescue of Purity Brown during the Feast of Zamarkand, Issue Two of “Nemesis The Warlock” provides its audience with both a tantalising glimpse of the “fire-breathing demonic” alien’s family, in the shape of his “Great Uncle Baal”, and “the subterranean city that lies, deep within the Central Abyss of the Earth” called Necropolis. Indeed, the thirty-one page anthology genuinely seems to expand the anti-hero’s universe exponentially as Pat Mills’ narrative progresses, with its inclusion of the short-story “The Origin Of The Excessus” proving particularly broadening, on account of “a simple varkherd called Olric” travelling the Fringe Worlds in search of the sword sinister and encountering all manner of exotic planets and savage beasts at the cost of a couple of his limbs.

The British editor’s exploration of the Termight Empire fairs equally as well however, with Nemesis’ infiltration of the “vast Temple of Terminus” not only providing a wickedly detailed glimpse of the Headquarters of the Terminators, complete with its swinging Pandemonium. But also a mesmerising look at the Inquisition’s Aliens’ Cells, which are packed full of all manner of extra-terrestrial prisoners and the outlandish-looking torture devices designed to make their incarceration as unpleasant an experience as possible. The sorcerer’s co-creator even manages to find the time to pen a thoroughly charming scene depicting the relationship between the Torturer General and his new inefficient apprentice; “It’ll be out of my hands, Son! I can’t keep dead wood! I’ll have to let you go!” 

Perhaps this enthrallingly coloured tome’s greatest sub-plot though, besides the introduction of the familiar Grobbendonk and his Gibberish Fringe World dialect, is the very sudden ‘fall from grace’ of the Executioner of Terminus. Known as “the Scourge of the Alien”, Brother Gogol’s discovery that his “mother was an alien” and “she killed my father” soon turns “Torquemada’s right hand man” into quite the pitiable figure, especially when the Mandrake is forced to aid “The Lord of The Flies” murder Brother Hades, the Pandemonium player, and help “every prisoner in Terminus escape!”

Kevin O'Neill's “imaginative, grotesque art” undeniably assists Mills with this saga’s storytelling, and the London-born illustrator’s attention to detail is absolutely phenomenal. In fact, it soon becomes abundantly clear, when one considers the numerous vehicles which are pencilled traversing The Abyss alone, just why the “efforts he put in to creating” his artwork “led to a low rate of productivity.”

Script: Pat Mills, Artist: Kev O'Neill, and Colors: Kev O'Neill

Nemesis The Warlock #1 - Eagle Comics

NEMESIS THE WARLOCK No. 1, September 1984

The second of “Eagle Comics” thirty-two page Baxter titles, Issue One of “Nemesis The Warlock” not only colourfully delivers the extra-terrestrial freedom fighter’s prologue adventure entitled “The Terror Tune”, but also follows the rise of the “fire-breathing demonic alien” as he momentarily defeats the then Chief of the Tube Police, Torquemada, in the two-parter, “Killer Watt”. These bizarre tales, based upon Pat Mills’ premise that Mighty Terra’s teleport system utilises telephone lines and phenomenally drawn by Kevin O’Neill, really help bring the leader of “the underground resistance organisation sworn to destroy the tyranny of Termight” to life, and additionally provide plenty of opportunities for the “primary antagonist of the series” to show just how evil he is.

Indeed, in many ways the Ipswich-born writer’s early storylines seem to provide the “haughty tyrant” with far more ‘screen time’ than the “fiend from Hell”, and arguably delights in depicting the “fascist human supremacist” both consigning a young mother and her doting infant to being eaten alive by a Concord-like living machine, as well as later ordering “thousands of innocent travellers” to be fatally electrocuted on “a mere technicality!” Such chilling insights into the character's zeal for victory are disconcertingly enthralling, and strongly show just why "the godfather of British comics" would go on to develop a regular series of adventures featuring “The Grand Master Of The Terminators”, after his initial plans for some “one-offs inspired by popular music called Comic Rock” never got going. 

Ultimately however, this publication’s content does eventually steer away from the exploits of Torquemada, and the likes of Brother Behell’s murderous inquisition on the planet Thrum, by fully focusing upon Nemesis bravely battling against the forces of Termight singlehandedly. In fact, by the time this first in “a seven-issue Necro-series” concludes, and the cloven hooved creature has caused a butcher to chop his own hand off, had a robotsmith strangled by “the most dangerous snakes on this planet", and ensured an elderly widow has been smothered by flies, it is abundantly clear just why the horn-headed sorcerer would go on to be “one of England’s most popular and certainly weirdest science-fiction” comic book characters.

Script: Pat Mills, Artist: Kev O'Neill, and Colors: Kev O'Neill

Judge Dredd The Early Years #2 - Eagle Comics

JUDGE DREDD THE EARLY YEARS No. 2, March 1986

There is little doubt that British illustrator Ron Turner could produce some simply stunning drawings, as his artwork on the “The Daleks” serial for the weekly comic “TV Century 21” attests. But the cover to Issue Two” of “Judge Dredd The Early Years”, depicting two giant Heavy Metal Kid industrial robots fighting one another, is a competent piece of work at best. Indeed one could almost be uncharitable and suggest that it is easy to see why the comic book artist abandoned doing cover illustrations in the mid-1960’s and turned to producing ‘paint-by-number’ paintings instead. However this would be mightily unfair as the illustration would actually appear to be a ‘blow up’ of a far smaller picture, minus the kneeling judges, found within the issue. This therefore seems an odd choice of cover art by the publishing company, as there are far larger and frankly, better penciled, drawings spread throughout the book’s pages.

The story choices for this anthology would also appear to be a little bizarre, although all are written by Judge Dredd co-creator John Wagner; albeit “Death Hotel” is credited to one of his pseudonyms Robert Flynn. The conclusion of the multi-issue ‘event’ ‘The Robot Wars’ is an obvious inclusion but following on from its epilogue are arguably three of the Mega-City One lawman’s least memorable early adventures. Admittedly “Dreams That Money Can buy”, “The Wreath-Killer” and “Death Hotel” are all taken from 1977 issues of the British science fiction comic book “2000 A.D.” but none of them pre-date Call-Me-Kenneth’s robot revolution and none are even printed in chronological order.

So where are the very earliest adventures of Judge Joe Dredd? Why is his first ever story, fighting the judge killer Whitey, not included in a collection of republished early stories? 

Admittedly this edition does include some interesting examples of 'primitive' Judge Dredd artwork, with Mike McMahon’s ‘goldfish bowl’ shaped judge’s helmet clearly taken as ‘gospel’ by fellow artists Ron Turner and Ian Gibson. But surely this book would be a great opportunity to show case Massimo Belardinelli’s interpretation of the future lawman, complete with the (censored) revealing of Dredd’s face, or possibly the excellent pencil work shown in “Krong” by co-creator Carlos Ezquerra? Devoted followers might even hanker for the early work of John Cooper, whose five–page treatment of ‘Muggers Moon’, despite not being published in “2000 A.D” until issue 19, was actually the first Judge Dredd story commissioned.

"JUDGE DREDD THE EARLY YEARS" No. 2 reprints stories from "2000 A.D." issues 15-17, 24, 26 & 32

Judge Dredd The Early Years #1 - Eagle Comics

JUDGE DREDD THE EARLY CASES No. 1, February 1986

Collecting some of the earliest appearances of artists Ron Turner, Carlos Ezquerra, Mike McMahon and Ian Gibson from the pages of the British weekly science fiction comic “2000 A.D.”, this first issue of “Judge Dredd The Early Years” understandably provides an eclectic feast of artwork styles and quality.

 

The cover, drawn by the one and only Brian Bolland is a simply superb illustration of a Heavy Metal Kid industrial robot and shows clearly why many regard him as the definitive penciller of the lawman of Mega-City One and why he remains in such constant demand as a cover artist.

 

Unfortunately not all the interior drawing of “The Robot Wars” is of so high a standard, although none of the contributors deliver anything unpalatable. Even the numerous pages sketched by well-known “Battle Action” artist Ron Turner are strikingly well-defined and workmanlike. However it is clear as to why his style was not as popular as the dynamic and vibrant artwork of Ezquerra or McMahon. Indeed one only has to look at Judge Dredd’s initial confrontation with the killer robot Call-Me-Kenneth, manically feeding a cop into a garbage chute, or the Judges pitched battle with the Heavy Metal Kids, to see why the co-creator of Dredd and the British comic book artist were more preferable.

 

Interestingly if anyone actually produces some slightly substandard illustration work for this edition it is actually Ian Gibson, who provides the artwork for the final few pages of the issue. Better known for his pencilling on “Robo-Hunter” and “The Ballard of Halo Jones”, many of Gibson’s panels appear overworked with the main characters being swallowed up by all the detailed background surrounding them. However much of this apparent clutter could well be as a result of some garish colour choices by John Burns, whose use of burgundy, orange, yellow, dark green and light blue makes many of Gibson's panels a Technicolor travesty.

 

On the writing side of things this first in a six-issue ‘mega-series’ has John Wagner and Pat Mills providing a simple yet effectively told tale of robot revolution within America’s Mega-City. Originally spanning several ‘progs’ of “IPC Magazines” weekly comic book, the serialised story is understandably rather episodic in format but this is still arguably the future lawman’s first ‘epic event’. Somewhat simple in plot when compared to some of the later major Judge Dredd storylines, this adventure probably hasn’t stood the test of time all that well. But its main protagonist, Call-Me-Kenneth, continues to hold a prominent place in Mega-City lore and fans' consciousness as the rogue leader of the First Robot War.