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Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files + The Restricted Files+ The Daily Dredds
Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 23
Carnage In The Cursed Earth!
In Mega-City One crime is rampant. Only the Judges- empowered to dispense instant justice- can stop total anarchy. Toughest of them all is Judge Dredd- he is the law and these are his stories...
This 23rd volume of the bestselling Case Files series features some of the most bizarre Judge Dredd tales yet, as the Mega-City lawman travels through time to battle a possessed Bill Clinton and teams up with his greatest enemies- Mean Angel and Judge Death- to battle mutants in the Cursed Earth!
Collects Progs 940 to 959 and Judge Dredd Megazine 2.81 to 3.07
In Mega-City One crime is rampant. Only the Judges- empowered to dispense instant justice- can stop total anarchy. Toughest of them all is Judge Dredd- he is the law and these are his stories...
This 23rd volume of the bestselling Case Files series features some of the most bizarre Judge Dredd tales yet, as the Mega-City lawman travels through time to battle a possessed Bill Clinton and teams up with his greatest enemies- Mean Angel and Judge Death- to battle mutants in the Cursed Earth!
Collects Progs 940 to 959 and Judge Dredd Megazine 2.81 to 3.07
320 pages, Paperback
First published August 14, 2014
2 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
John Wagner
1,282 books188 followersJohn Wagner is a comics writer who was born in Pennsylvania in 1949 and moved to Scotland as a boy. Alongside Pat Mills, Wagner was responsible for revitalising British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has continued to be a leading light in British comics ever since. He is best known for his work on 2000 AD, for which he created Judge Dredd. He is noted for his taut, violent thrillers and his black humour. Among his pseudonyms are The best known are John Howard, T.B. Grover, Mike Stott, Keef Ripley, Rick Clark and Brian Skuter. (Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 5, 2021
Contains two of the greatest Dredd stories I ever read!
In one, a surprisingly gentle Dredd meets a young artist who is going blind. A very touching story. The other made me nuts as Dredd is teamed up with Judge Death and Mean Machine Angel! I thought i was going bonkers until the big reveal.
In one, a surprisingly gentle Dredd meets a young artist who is going blind. A very touching story. The other made me nuts as Dredd is teamed up with Judge Death and Mean Machine Angel! I thought i was going bonkers until the big reveal.
June 6, 2025
Okay, I know Garth Ennis was just a young man when he wrote Dredd, and I don't WANT to keep harping on his terrible work on the character... but this volume opens with a nine-part story, "Goodnight Kiss", that is the apotheosis of his worst instincts on Dredd. And I mean that quite literally: this story features Dredd getting crucified (with a gunshot wound to the side for good measure), and then includes multiple uses of Bible quotes that compare him to the Horseman of Death ("... and Hell followed with him!").
Worse, we get more tedious, predictable dick-wagging as Dredd disaptches a whole tribe of the Brotherhood of Marshals-- lawmen of the Cursed Earth that Ennis himself established as nigh-unbeatable warrior toughs. And then Dredd beats an assassin sent to kill him... an assassin whose WHOLE M.O. is that he's exceptionally good at killing judges... in a fist fight.
You guys think the Bat-God is boring? Try Judge-God sometime. There isn't even an EXCUSE given for why he's so much more tough than, say, every other fully-trained judge-- let alone super-strong mutant warriors.
On the other hand, though, I LOVE that this volume contains a retelling and exansion of the original Rico Dredd story by Pat Mills! Of course, this was almost certainly done to tie in to the Sylvester Stallone Judge Dredd movie coming out in 1995, in which Rico was the main villain (played SPECTACULARLY by Armande Assante), but it's still nice to see such a landmark Dredd story given a more prestige presentation.
While it's almost verbotten in fan circles to praise a story for HUMANIZING Dredd, I think this yarn gets into the psychology of what turned the man into the uncompromising force of nature he is more than any other story. Being second-best to his clone-brother Rico at the academy drove Dredd to push himself harder and harder, never questioning his goals, wanting to be THE best... and the guilt of having to later arrest Rico drove him to throw himself into his work, subsuming his regrets with duty.
RICO, meanwhile, never had that inferiority complex to compensate for, which allowed him to see the judges and society with clear eyes... and he immediately cottoned on to the fact that that the judges were just as crooked and oppressive as any criminal organization. Recognizing this, Rico decided to profit from his position of power by running a protection racket-- and the story actually does a pretty good job of showing that his reasoning was pretty sound. (Later stories would suggest that Rico went bad after suffering a serious injury and radiation exposure as a cadet, but personally I think that's a cheap cop-out.)
By the end of the story, Rico is brought low by his hubris, but there's also a glimmer of hope that Dredd could change for the better someday-- that there's actually a human being in there somewhere after all. Honestly, I think it's one of the best Dredd stories ever told.
Worse, we get more tedious, predictable dick-wagging as Dredd disaptches a whole tribe of the Brotherhood of Marshals-- lawmen of the Cursed Earth that Ennis himself established as nigh-unbeatable warrior toughs. And then Dredd beats an assassin sent to kill him... an assassin whose WHOLE M.O. is that he's exceptionally good at killing judges... in a fist fight.
You guys think the Bat-God is boring? Try Judge-God sometime. There isn't even an EXCUSE given for why he's so much more tough than, say, every other fully-trained judge-- let alone super-strong mutant warriors.
On the other hand, though, I LOVE that this volume contains a retelling and exansion of the original Rico Dredd story by Pat Mills! Of course, this was almost certainly done to tie in to the Sylvester Stallone Judge Dredd movie coming out in 1995, in which Rico was the main villain (played SPECTACULARLY by Armande Assante), but it's still nice to see such a landmark Dredd story given a more prestige presentation.
While it's almost verbotten in fan circles to praise a story for HUMANIZING Dredd, I think this yarn gets into the psychology of what turned the man into the uncompromising force of nature he is more than any other story. Being second-best to his clone-brother Rico at the academy drove Dredd to push himself harder and harder, never questioning his goals, wanting to be THE best... and the guilt of having to later arrest Rico drove him to throw himself into his work, subsuming his regrets with duty.
RICO, meanwhile, never had that inferiority complex to compensate for, which allowed him to see the judges and society with clear eyes... and he immediately cottoned on to the fact that that the judges were just as crooked and oppressive as any criminal organization. Recognizing this, Rico decided to profit from his position of power by running a protection racket-- and the story actually does a pretty good job of showing that his reasoning was pretty sound. (Later stories would suggest that Rico went bad after suffering a serious injury and radiation exposure as a cadet, but personally I think that's a cheap cop-out.)
By the end of the story, Rico is brought low by his hubris, but there's also a glimmer of hope that Dredd could change for the better someday-- that there's actually a human being in there somewhere after all. Honestly, I think it's one of the best Dredd stories ever told.
January 8, 2025
4.5
Case File 23 is a stellar showcase of why Judge Dredd remains a pillar of sci-fi storytelling. Highlighting tales like The Goodnight Kiss, where betrayal and vengeance collide, the volume masterfully balances dark humor and emotional weight. The return of Judge Death and Mean Machine brings chaos with their sinister charm, while Bad Frendz explores the seedy underbelly of Mega-City One, blending gritty action with sharp social critique.
This volume exemplifies Dredd’s golden era qualities, delivering iconic villains, layered narratives, and a grimly compelling world. The blend of chilling horror, visceral action, and sardonic wit in these stories marks a creative high point, cementing Case File 23 as a definitive entry in Dredd’s "back to form" period. A must-have for longtime fans and newcomers.
Case File 23 is a stellar showcase of why Judge Dredd remains a pillar of sci-fi storytelling. Highlighting tales like The Goodnight Kiss, where betrayal and vengeance collide, the volume masterfully balances dark humor and emotional weight. The return of Judge Death and Mean Machine brings chaos with their sinister charm, while Bad Frendz explores the seedy underbelly of Mega-City One, blending gritty action with sharp social critique.
This volume exemplifies Dredd’s golden era qualities, delivering iconic villains, layered narratives, and a grimly compelling world. The blend of chilling horror, visceral action, and sardonic wit in these stories marks a creative high point, cementing Case File 23 as a definitive entry in Dredd’s "back to form" period. A must-have for longtime fans and newcomers.
January 25, 2023
After a slightly dull and lengthy Garth Ennis arc this collection really picks up. Overall it has some of my favourite one-off stories in a long while, and though the closing 3 Amigos arc is the closest Dredd has come to a slightly unbelievable fanservice story, it still has some great moments of wit.
April 3, 2023
A mixed bag of Dredd. A turgid, murky Ennis-penned arc outstays its welcome at the beginning, and the awful "Three Amigos" fanservice team up at the end is poor.
But there's some gold in the middle, including an almost out-of-character Dredd interacting with a blind artist, and a few comedy shorts portraying Dredd as the rigid nutcase people forget he is.
But there's some gold in the middle, including an almost out-of-character Dredd interacting with a blind artist, and a few comedy shorts portraying Dredd as the rigid nutcase people forget he is.
October 28, 2024
These are mostly ok. The Three Amigos story works way better than it has any right to. Funny how satire about Bill Clinton falls flat, though. Bill's a horndog! Hilary's a shrew! Meh. I can't even remember if there's supposed to be something clever about Box Clinton?
November 3, 2022
During the days of Stallone's Dredd movie, Dredd comic should've put out the absolute best there is. But for some reason, these stories are just luke warm with some nice hot bits in.
October 14, 2024
Big diversity of art styles in this volume. Somewhat unlikely team up that feels like a bad job someone had to do to bring back some characters
February 10, 2017
These are always good - but this one is astounding. Possibly my favourite so far.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews