Reason #1457 Why Judge Dredd is Awesome: Gays

The title got your attention, didn't it?

Allow me to explain.

Judge Dredd takes place about 100+ years from now.  One of the ways that medical science has advanced in that time is that men can now bear children.  This means that gay male couples can have biological children (cloning and genetic engineering are also well established in the Dredd Universe).  

What is awesome is the way they portray gays in the comic: like normal people.  Especially gay men.  From what I've read they don't tend to portray them as flaming.  In fact, given that the stories often center on lawbreakers, gay men are often portrayed as tough gang members.  This is completely contrary to how gay men are portrayed in basically any genre in the USA.

I just find it refreshing.

Above panels from Judge Dredd Megazine #300 (2010).

Spider-Man in a Tuxedo

From Amazing Spider-Man #322 (1989).


I don't really have anything to add to this.  I just think it's fucking weird.

Honestly, I'm torn.  I can't decide if this is retarded or fucking awesome.

The Random Dredd: Part 13

Today's Random Dredd comes from the early 1990's story "Reptaur", which was recently collected and bagged with The Judge Dredd Megazine #297 (May 2010).  It contains bad-assery beyond approach.



In case you missed that, to prevent himself from falling to his possible death, Judge Dredd STABBED HIMSELF IN THE HAND to pin himself to the pipe he was holding onto!  It made a satisfying "STABB!" sound too.

Bad-ass.

Iron Man: Political Commentator

Iron Man has always been pretty conservative, so it's so wonder that in the late 1980s he went a little Rush Limbaugh.




All the superheroes are always talking about how bad the roads are, but they never do anything about it!  Except, of course, blow them up.

From Iron Man v1 #251 (1989).

Dr Doom: Supervillain, Dictator, Art Critic

From Iron Man v1 #249 (1989).



Say what you will about the man, but Dr Doom is a man of principle.

He's got wheels, and he knows how to use them!

An old friend of mine Tweeted this to me today concerning his Happy Meal toy:

@doktorandy when did Ironman add wheels to his suit?



An excellent question, @Chaddah!  The answer, which you probably were not expecting, is 1963!


Yup, that little slice of awesome appeared in Tales of Suspense #44, the sixth Iron Man comic book!

The Random Dredd, Part 11

We learn in today's Random Dredd that Judge Dredd with straight up ruin your New Years party.


From 2000 AD Prog 45 (31 Dec 1977).

I just don't understand this panel.

I'm sorry, I just don't understand this panel from Iron Man v1 #160 (1982).


I guess Tony is putting on the armor? But why is there a disembodied arm floating around? Is that a leg on the left? If so, what's wrong with the foot?

Ugh, forget it.

Those That Protect Us

From Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. v1 #4 (1968).

That must be some meal!

Wow, a meal that takes two whole days to recover from! Man, that must have been some dessert!

From Iron Man v1 #225 (1987).

Borderline Legal

Being friends with Tony Stark has it's advantages, but more often than not it seems like it's just a pain in the ass. For instance, when he asks you for a favor, RUN.


It really is amazing how many times in the 1980's Tony said "I want to believe in the Law, but..." then broke through a Senator's window, or invaded a country, or punched Federal prison guards. You get the idea.

From Iron Man v1 #225 (1987).

Shrink Down and Get Inside That Woman! It's the Only Way!

Avengers v3 #71 (2003) is pretty gross.


Sweet Zombie Jesus, I hope that's sweat on Hank Pym's body...

That level of trash is pretty much maintained throughout the issue. Then this great (ie. vomit inducing) scene happens.


I would like to point out that Whirlwind is standing on top of a building. As a result of Hank Pym's poor decisions, all children and 67.8% of the adults in the top three floors of said building have been irreparably traumatized. Seriously, none of them could ever look at Snuffleupagus again without entering a catatonic state!

"Earth's Mightiest" indeed!

Iron Man: Airplane Mechanic

One of the advantages of being a millionaire industrialist genius inventor with a flying suit of cybernetic armor is that you don't have to wait for your plane to be on the ground in order to perform repairs.


Of course, one might wonder why you would need a plane in the first place, but they probably aren't millionaire industrialist genius inventors with flying suits of cybernetic armor, so screw them.

From Iron Man v1 #239 (1989).

The part of my brain that processes irony just EXPLODED.

Sometimes you find something in an old comic book that, because of the passage of time, is so awesome that it blows your mind. I experienced that last week when the part of my brain that processes irony exploded all over Iron Man v1 #244 (1989).



Yes, that's right. I found an Iron Man comic book that insults Robert Downey Jr's acting!

I'll accept my award for greatest comic book find of the decade now.

Awkward Praise for Secret Warriors #15

Well congratulations, Jonathan Hickman and Stefano Caselli. I've never been more turned on and simultaneously disgusted by a comic book portrayal of a woman.


Joking aside, Jonathan Hickman is one of my favorite writers and artists (he is mindblowingly awesome at both). Stefano Caselli is my all time favorite comic book artist. He's the first artist that really made me say "Damn, this art is amazing" while I was reading a comic book. When I feel I have some cash to blow I hope to get a Caselli commission. As you can see from the above he is an amazing artist, but where he really shines is facial expressions. Absolutely outstanding.

If you're not reading Secret Warriors you should consider picking it up. It really is great, especially after Bendis left the book... although it appears Caselli is no longer on art duties. It's still solid writing though.

For Fans of Iron Man 2

Does this page from Iron Man v1 #238 (1989) look at all familiar?

I bet you didn't know...

... that Nightcrawler is a B.A.M.F.!

And the ladies love him!


Above panels from Nightcrawler #4 (1986).

The Many Innuendos of... James Rhodes?

For a while now I've been cataloging the many innuendos of Tony Stark, but it looks like all those innuendos are starting to rub off on Tony's best friend, James Rhodes.

Rhodey gets in on the act in Iron Man v1 #234 (1988).


Hey, that's not bad! You might have a future in this, Rhodey! Got any more?


Ugh. Nevermind.

It's Good to be a Playa!

Tony Stark knows it's good to be a playa!



From Iron Man 2: Public Identity movie prequel comic #1 (2010).

If you thought Nick Fury was mean to his enemies...

You should see the way he treats his girlfriend!


From Secret Warriors #15 (2010).