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MEGA CITY’S MOST WANTED: Judge Dredd’s 10 Most Notorious Enemies!

Written By:

Joel Harley
Dredd Enemies

Judge Dredd’s arrival on Netflix has breathed a new life into Alex Garland’s criminally underappreciated comic book adaptation. Released in 2012, Dredd was a (block) riot, finally giving Dredd the movie he deserved, years after the infamous Stallone misfire. Unfortunately, not only did audiences not see it that way, most didn’t see it at all.

Still, Dredd and his world remain as popular as ever. There’s the resurgence of the movie on Netflix; 2000 AD and Penguin’s audio adaptations of The Pit and America; and the impending arrival of a Mega City One TV show. What more excuse do we need to take a look through the rogues gallery at Dredd’s greatest enemies?

Honorable Mention: Ma-Ma Madrigal: What list of great Dredd enemies would be complete without Madeline ‘Ma-Ma’ Madrigal? True, Lena Headey’s drug kingpin may not have originated on the comic book page, but the antagonist of 2012’s Dredd is one of the character’s most memorable enemies. This terrifying presence proved her worth as a great villain; not just a great Dredd villain, but also one of the great cinematic monsters of our time.

10. Orlok the Assassin: The Soviet assassin who heralded the start of the Apocalypse War. Releasing a chemical agent into the Big Meg, Orlok caused a city-wide Block War, successfully distracting the Judges from a series of inbound nuclear attacks by East-Meg One. Orlok remained at large for some time afterwards, only to be captured after his escapades in the floating ‘Sin City’. He was duly executed for his numerous war crimes.

9. War Marshall Kazan: Orlok wasn’t working alone though. Corralling the nuclear arsenal of East-Meg One, War Marshall Kazan spearheaded East Meg One’s attack upon the distracted Mega City, unleashing a series of devastating nuke attacks upon the city across all fronts. It wasn’t called the Apocalypse War for nothing – Dredd only just managed to defeat the Russian forces, obliterating East-Meg One in the process. Unlike Orlok, the survivors of the Apocalypse War didn’t have to wait years for Kazan to be brought to justice – he was executed by Dredd before the rubble (on either side) had settled.

8. Murd the Oppressor: During the Judge Child Quest, Dredd encountered the alien sorcerer Murd the Oppressor and his pet toad, Sagbelly. To complete his quest, Dredd required a substance oozed from one of Sagbelly’s warts. Neither Sagbelly nor his master were forthcoming, and Murd actually succeeded in killing Dredd. The Necromancer used his powers to resurrect Dredd, who returned the favour by killing them both. He makes the odd appearance in flashback sequences (one of which revealed him to be mentor to one Sabbat the Necromagus) and was killed all over again in Helter Skelter.

 

7. Sabbat the Necromagus: During a routine training mission in the Cursed Earth, Dredd and a small group of cadets were shocked to find themselves at the centre of a zombie apocalypse. They fought their way back to Mega City One, only to find that the thing had gone global. The man responsible was Sabbat, an alien necromancer who wore a ponytail, pointed Spock ears and a cloak made up of screaming faces. After bringing the whole world to its knees, Sabbat was defeated by an alliance between Dredd and bounty hunter Johnny Alpha. His undead head currently rests upon his own power source, occasionally bringing the odd zombie to (un)life but otherwise powerless.

6. PJ Maybe: One of Mega City’s most insidious threats emerged from the most inauspicious of beginnings. PJ Maybe was a child genius who committed his first murder at the tender age of 12. Escaping the mental asylum in which he had been imprisoned by Dredd, Maybe amassed a fortune and faked his own death. He was elected mayor of Mega City One, despite the fact his mass-murdering ways remained intact. When he attempted to murder the Chief Judge however, the game was up. Their game of cat-and-mouse continued for years (even during Day of Chaos, in which he amassed a collection of Dark Judges, trapped in wine bottles), before Dredd tracked him down and – you guessed it – executed him.

 

5. Chopper: Marlon Shakespeare, AKA Chopper, highlights the lawman’s firm but unfair outlook. Chopper is essentially a sympathetic character; one of the Big Meg’s bored, lost young people. He started out as a graffiti artist defacing Mega City structures (his scrawl can be seen graffiti’d on a wall in Dredd 3D’s Peach Tree block) before being apprehended by Dredd. He re-emerged as a sky-surfer; a dangerous and illegal hobby which Dredd did not look kindly upon at all. As Mega City chanted his name, Chopper became a public hero. He later escaped to Australia to compete in a sky-surfing competition. He was pursued by Dredd, but escaped again during an uncharacteristic hesitation from the lawman.

4. Chief Judge Caligula: Like his Roman namesake, Cal was a despotic madman who brought Mega City One to ruin during his short reign. With his trusty Goldfish (!) and a man-eating alien named Grampus the Klegg planted as his deputies, Cal implemented a number of ridiculous laws (making happiness illegal) and punishments (he had a confidante pickled because he looked a bit stressed). Dredd rebelled, and Cal’s dream of Making Mega City One Great Again flopped. He was toppled (from a great height) by a sewer-dweller named Fergee. He later returned as the main antagonist of Garth Ennis’s Helter Skelter, and in a recent Dredd/Johnny Alpha Crossover.

Honorable Mention – SJS Judge Pin: The SJS (Judges who judge the Judges) are not shy of a shady figure or two. Lest we forget that Caligula himself rose from the subdivision’s ranks. More recently, Dredd did battle with the crazed Judge Pin; a serial killer with a thing for ‘unworthy’ Judges. She had Dredd on the ropes for a while – blinding him and holding him hostage in her underground lair – but the lawman inevitably broke free and brought Pin to (a particularly grisly) justice.

3. The Angel Gang: A crime family so iconic that not even Sylvester Stallone could screw them up. The Angel Gang first appeared trying to manipulate the valuable Judge Child to their own ends. The notorious Cursed Earth family consisted of Pa, Fink, Link, Junior and Mean Angel. When it was decided that baby Mean just wasn’t mean enough, Pa had him surgically transformed into the Mean Machine; his temper controlled by a dial on his forehead. Although incredibly stupid, Mean was a persistent threat to Dredd over the years. Especially after Dredd killed Pa and his brothers, leaving Mean an orphan. Their vendetta persisted for years, in spit of a number of reluctant team-ups. He was finally rehabilitated and turned over to his estranged son, with whom he lived happily for a while. However, like so many others, Day of Chaos did a number on Mean and, after returning to the Cursed Earth, he was captured by a gang of slavers. Mean Angel went out in a blaze of glory and is currently presumed dead. But this wouldn’t be the first time the Mean Machine has died…

 

2. Rico Dredd: Dredd’s most notable test tube brother was sent to the penal colony of Titan after his little sibling (Dredd is his junior by 12 minutes) arrested him for corruption. He returned to Earth seeking retribution, but Dredd shot him dead during a duel. Like most of Dredd’s enemies, Rico stayed dead. However, he returns occasionally in flashbacks, and his alternate-universe self also made an appearance during Helter Skelter. His Titan adventures are well worth seeking out, in Michael Carroll’s prose prequel Rico Dredd: The Titan Years.

Honorable Mention – Judge Grice: After making an attempt on Dredd’s life during the city’s democracy referendum, the Judge was shipped off to serve time on Titan. Grice led Titan’s revolt and subsequent return to Earth, raining fire, brimstone and a deadly plague upon a weakened Justice Department. Dredd prevailed – turning Grice into paste beneath the wheels of his Lawmaster – but took a brutal beating in the process.

1. The Dark Judges: Mega City One’s most persistent threat, if only because Judge Dredd has executed everyone else. Judge Death and the Dark Judges come from an alternate dimension – the aptly named Deadworld. After noticing that all crime was committed by the living, Judge Death decreed that, logically, all life must be a crime. Transformed by a pair of like-minded witches (The Sisters of Death), he sentenced his whole world to death, and then sought out other dimensions to judge. Death is usually accompanied by fellow Dark Judges Fire, Fear and Mortis. They were responsible for Necropolis. During which they transformed Mega City One into their own private Deadworld. Although the Dark Judges have kept a relatively low profile ever since, they remain an ever-looming threat to Dredd and the citizens of the Big Meg. They are currently off-world, terrorizing other planets and colonies – but no doubt planning their return and revenge. Thankfully, while they’re gone, you can read their spin-off adventures in The Fall of Deadworld and Dominion. Truly, you cannot kill what doessss not live!

Which is perhaps for the best, as Dredd has killed just about everyone else…

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