CHOPPER: WANDERING SPIRIT | WRITERS: DAVID BAILLIE, ROB WILLIAMS, AL EWING, TOM EGLINGTON | ARTIST: BRENDAN MCCARTHY | PUBLISHER: REBELLION | FORMAT: PAPERBACK | RELEASE DATE: JUNE 13TH
Chopper is one of those characters from the greater world of Judge Dredd who tends to be more interesting than Dredd. He started out as just another perp, a graffiti artist who used a flying surf-board to place impossible tags. Over the years he’s become a ‘mystic surf-bum’, a character used to tell weird tales of an irradiated Australian outback and let writers come up with odd and fun ideas.
Alas, with over 40 years of lore invested into the world of Judge Dredd, it’s inevitable that some of the stories are going to get bogged down in the Dredd Mythos. Wandering Spirit is a prime example. It takes ideas from the OZ and Song of The Surfer storylines to creates a load of ropey old nonsense about abandoned technologies and the dream-time. The result is story that is neither exciting nor spiritual and does a disservice to all the characters involved. Fortunately, the Wandering Spirit graphic novel has some bonus strips in the back that are bit better. Though only just.
Al Ewing’s silly tale Doctor What is a predictable parody of Doctor Who. It’s quite fun though, with some nice nods to the whole idea behind The Doctor. It’s just long enough to be entertaining and doesn’t overstay its welcome. Ewing is always entertaining but sadly this story doesn’t save the collection. (And to be honest, you’d be better off reading Ewing’s actual Doctor Who comics.)
Rob Williams short tale The Walking Dredd is equally funny but a bit disappointing and the last story in the set, Hoverods, looks pretty and that’s about it. The collection is rescued by the fact that it’s a showcase for Brendan McCarthy’s art, which is gorgeous throughout. The artist seems to have a lot of fun with some of the weirder aspects of each story, and the entire affair is lavish and filled with colour.
Overall, Wandering Spirit is a disappointing mess. The core story really doesn’t do Chopper any favours, turning this renegade every-man character into some sort of reluctant saviour, which really doesn’t fit with the character’s history. Add to this a whole connection to the concept of dreamtime and what we have is something that really doesn’t work and feels old-fashioned. Retro-2000 AD is good, but modern 2000 AD trying to be retro is often just sad. One to avoid, despite the amazing artwork.
