Case File
While Dredd’s actions in the Judge Child affair are investigated by the Council of Five, Dredd deals with a deadly fight between two Cityblocks.
Ol’ Stoney Face
Dredd’s back on Earth, and is quickly back on the streets dealing with minor vehicle infractions (“Ten years! Banned for life!”), before partnering with Giant to deal with a Block War.
Dredd is stoic about his actions at the end of the Judge Child mission, and doesn’t give us any more information about his decision to not bring Owen Krysler back to the Big Meg.
Friends of Dredd
Judge Giant welcomes Dredd back to the streets. He knows that Dredd’s actions are being judged, and the word among the Judges seems to be that Dredd’s mission “failed”.
The Big Meg (and Beyond)
Epic battles between adjacent Cityblocks are becoming an “everyday” occurrence. The inter-Block War we see here features one Block using “sucker guns” to fire lines over to the other Block, and then swinging over to battle the other citizens.
The two Blocks that go to war here are apparently “well-off” according to one of the Judges.
Dredd instructs the Judges to fire continuously between the two blocks, halting the attacks. They then fire “scatter shells” which blast windows and pin people down inside the blocks. Dredd then yells at the fighters to surrender – terrified of Dredd’s reputation, they do.
The Law
The Council of Five are based in the Grand Hall of Justice, and appear to be a ruling body of some kind over the Judges. The current members of the Council are: Chief Judge Griffin; Deputy Chief Judge Pepper; Judge Quimby, Chief Accountant; Judge Ecks, Head of Psi-Division; and Judge McGruder, Head of the Special Judicial Squad.
They all seem surprised, at the least, by Dredd’s actions. Quimby is mostly shocked by the lack of record-keeping on expenses, while Ecks seems more concerned with the reputation of his pre-cogs that made the whole “Mega-City One is doomed in a couple of decades” prediction. Pepper and McGruder are more straightforwardly concerned with Dredd’s judgement, and McGruder in particular wonders if Dredd is too inflexible in his thinking.
The Council must decide whether to send out another mission to find the Judge Child, with Griffin certain that if they do Dredd will resign. Ecks, McGruder and Pepper vote to send another crew – but Griffin uses his veto to stop the mission. He reminds them of Dredd’s actions during the Cal crisis, and that Dredd’s “inflexible” approach and leadership has saved the City.
It’s interesting that Deputy Chief Judge Pepper fought alongside Dredd then as well, but doesn’t seem to be as fond of him as Griffin is.
Block Mania
The two Blocks that fight it out are Rita Tushingham Block and Ernest Borgnine Block.
Rap Sheet
A drunk driver is given ten years and lifetime driving ban. Many of the Block War participants will also be going a way for a while.
Resyk
We can safely assume a fair amount of casualties during the brief Block War.
Verdict
Having the characters within the story actually commenting on the Judge Child mission is brilliant, and while it doesn’t absolve The Judge Child from what I believe are its fundamental flaws, at least the series isn’t pretending it didn’t happen – or that there may be consequences.
The episode itself is really good. I don’t know if it’s just refreshing having a single quick-hit after a long run, but this felt snappy and intense. Bolland’s artwork is fantastic as usual, particularly the battle between the Cityblocks. It’s great to get some more information about how Justice HQ operates, and Dredd’s no-nonsense attitude shines through. I wish this epilogue had been to a more satisfying story, but it works all the same.
Daily Dredd 