Pat Mills

Yes, I'd heard. That is so very sad news.

realpaullucas @realpaullucas

@PatMillsComics Hi Pat, I don't know if you've seen this, but there's sad news from Glenn Fabry. https://t.co/2QJvj44HSG https://t.co/exPKNsUKD9

The implication would be that if a heroic Dredd facing impossible odds was the most popular with readers, then it would make sense to do more of the same

Per Svensson @T0802348

@PatMillsComics Classic writing. Put your hero in the worst possible situation. Dredd got to show just how dedicated and unselfish he was. That there were no limits to what he would sacrifice to save people he didn't even know. Gets me right in the guts. Can you elaborate a bit on implications?

Thanks. The Cursed Earth was - at least up to its publication date - the most popular Dredd series. Because it features a more heroic Dredd. The implications have never been fully evaluated

Per Svensson @T0802348

@PatMillsComics The whole point of Destiny's Angels was to erase the humoristic elements of Dredd. It was a success in that regard. I wasn't happy about it. The Cursed Earth is one of my favorite comics ever. Maybe #1. You ended a fantastic run with a banger.

I agree. I think every creator goes through phases with long running characters. I'm not sure age is a factor. Perhaps motivation. Thus - not being paid to develop Slaine into a new phase - I decided to end the character while he was ahead and go out while I was winning

Andrew Podmore @AndrewPodm38954

@PatMillsComics Was John's work less available as a consequence of a change in the political climate in the UK or the effects of getting older? I met Mr Wagner at Cardiff ComicCon before Covid (BC), and he was absolutely charming. His Dredds are by far the most prescient. https://t.co/fhezSsqhIf

RT @JosephKBennett: @AndrewPodm38954 @PatMillsComics Having seen many interviews with the writers, I don’t think it was a reaction to polit…

I'd agree with you.

Muig @Muig

@PatMillsComics For me, Judge Dredd is John Wagner. I'm not too interested in reading any of the pastiches.

I didn't really look at it much after I'd stopped writing it and John's classic black comedy Dredds were appearing less frequently

Per Svensson @T0802348

@PatMillsComics What do you consider after your time? There was a huge shift in tone that was kick-started by the Destiny's Angels story.

I knew he was always going to develop. You can see that in Episode One with time travel and the Drune Lords established for the future. (And also to head off editorial's attempted creative take-over which I write about in Kiss My Axe)

Science Fiction Book Club.org @SFbookclub

@PatMillsComics Pat, did you always know that Slaíne was not going to be an evergreen character, like say Dredd or Holmes?

Yeah, I remember Jack Adrian script. I recall 'prisoner at the electro-bar' & the perp gets a shock. I turned that script down because it was too harsh and I was looking for something 'more' which I found in the Empire State script that was Dredd's first 2000AD appearance

Duke Rogers @DukeRogers13

@DavidFakrikian @PatMillsComics Ah of course -this one is a gem and also has the blood chilling script by Jack Adrian with an execution and a beating from good ol Joe himself. What an intro this one would have been on page! https://t.co/1iVXT5vyfe

I think most long-running fictional characters don't develop much - Sherlock Holmes, James Bond (the books) - because we like the constancy. Slaine develops and it worked, but it's still a risky thing to do.

Duke Rogers @DukeRogers13

@PatMillsComics Is part of the appeal and long run due to Dredd not developing as the world has? His defining two or three arcs stand by themselves pretty well to this day. On a side note, his predecessor, One-Eyed Jack, had a terrific comeback in the recent FARGO & MCBANE-Im an unabashed fan https://t.co/yUGJycUjQB

Just followed you back. The contactees I met didn't go inside UFOs as far as I know. I still have their vast memoir - which I talk about on Substack, Matriarchy versus Patriarchy. Somewhere in it, they talk more about the 'beautiful ships'

Chris Fowler @ChilliFowler

@PatMillsComics Tried to connect with you to chat about ufos after listening to an interview you did. Have video filmed inside a craft, long story...

If memory serves, I think I featured Macrobes in an early b/w Slaine. It's an amazing concept, although I don't recall enjoying Lewis' books, like That Hideous Strength. Or his children's books. Pity cos they're very imaginative

Vince Ulam @VinceUlam

@PatMillsComics Good stuff. Do you draw any line to Lewis' Macrobes?

I wasn't aware of this. Maybe after my time

Al Iguana @aliguana

@quiensabeband @PatMillsComics “Dredd was too popular so the Libs made him evil so people would stop buying the comic” Make it make sense 🤔😂

That would be down to John Wagner. There were 5 different versions before Dredd appeared in the comic. All were produced at speed. It needs time to reflect on the merits and flaws of the 5. But that isn't built into the British comic model and remains the position today.

Double Vision Comics @Michael_Anden

@PatMillsComics That never occurred to me about Dredd. What kind of character would you be interested in him being developed into if there was enough time and leeway to do it?

Dredd - it was always obvious he would be hugely popular. The inconsistencies in the character are down to not having sufficient development time to go through the equivalent of three drafts, which should be the norm. Everything then and now in UK comics is always done at speed

MattBrookes @MattBrookes3

@AppleLion79961 @TSwiftly227 @TheManlet_King I don’t think so, but the great thing about Twitter is you can actually ask the people themselves. Tagging @PatMillsComics if you’d be kind enough to comment?

RT @BungoTelevision: #FanArtFriday: To celebrate David Tennant's birthday, here's his @bbcdoctorwho co-star from 2023, uh... Beep the Meep?…

Good to know https://t.co/xBEWIwgGVq It bears out my view about Scottish leading popular culture. As I talk about in a forthcoming substack blog 'The Ninth Art?' After an English neighbour described my work as 'puerile children's comics.' He's English, so I wasn't offended!