Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Mutie's best friend is his (Strontium) Dog, 26 Feb 2007
This second collection of the complete Strontium Dog saga is absolutely brilliant. Volume 1 was great - this is simply awesome!
It's clear to see just how much the story of Johnny Alpha developed since the early Starlord days, captured in the superb opening story in Volume 2, "Portrait of a Mutant". Here we are told the origins of the mutants, the Mutie War and of course the history of Johnny himself and how he becomes one of the leaders of the mutant army that rebels against the hatred and persecution of the "norms". The story introduces us to colourful characters like Middenface McNulty and the Torso (who will feature in later tales) and reveals a shocking truth about Johnny's past.
This collection is chock full of fantastic stories, such as "The Kid Knee Caper", "The Killing", "The Moses Incident" and "Outlaw".
"Outlaw" is my personal favourite, seeing Johnny and his partner Wulf Sternhammer framed for murders they didn't commit, and having to evade every other Strontium Dog that wants a piece of the huge bounty on their heads, as well as trying to clear their names.
"The Killing" is a great idea - a contest where the aim is to kill all the other combattants and claim the enormous prize. There can only be one winner - all others must die. But both Johnny and Wulf enter the contest - so how can this work out??! You'll have to read it to see. . .!
As with Volume 1 of this series, I cannot rate it highly enough. The storylines by Wagner/Grant are always inventive and exciting, and the trademark artwork by Ezquerra never falters.
These books are not only great stories, but they bring back memories from when I first read them in 2000AD in my youth, over 20 years ago.
Fantastic stuff - can't wait for Volume 3!
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Johnny Alpha, the Alpha male, 6 Oct 2007
I saw this book in a shop in town and had to buy it right there and then. I was so deeply submerged in it that I missed my stop on the bus and had to walk two miles back down the road to get home. It was worth it.
The artwork is great, the stories are better. If I happen to be involved in the great war to end all wars, if by some miracle I survive, and by chance become mutated, possibly to the degree where normal people hate me and by coincidence I get offered a job as a bounty hunter, I promise I will never, ever smile.
Johnny Alpha is a mean, cold, heartless killer with heart. He NEVER smiles. His partner, Wulf Sternhammer is a norse maniac with a sledgehammer. And then theres the Gronk, an annoying, whiny, pathetic, fluffy gimp of a creature who just gets in the way. The greatest graphic anti-hero ever thought up.
And y'know what? compared to some 2000ad characters, even the Gronk could fill you with 'dredd'
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The beginning..., 24 Sep 2007
After finally doing the right thing and releasing Judge Dredd's adventures in chronological order, 2000AD are now using the format for some of it's other quality strips. If any of the other classic 2K characters deserves the treatment it would be Strontium Dog so this collection(including the original Starlord episodes)is very welcome. The strips have also aged considerably better than the very early Dredd strips, the storylines having a grittier feel and the mutant persecution angle gives the ongoing scrapes of Johnny Alpha a humanity that Dredd lacks. It's a massive volume, and another area it benefits over the Dredd Case Files is in the continuity of the artwork. For the most part this is Carlos Ezquerra's show, and all the better for it, his iconic depiction of Alpha and chums being among his best work. When the occasional fill-in artist takes centre stage the blow is softened by the quality of the artists chosen(Ian Gibson in particular does a great job). The stories are great, with the exception of the bonus strips taken from old annuals, but it seems wrong to criticize the bonus material and if anything comletists will be glad they were included. Roll on book 2.
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by Pat Mills
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