Oz (Judge Dredd story)
Encyclopedia
Oz is a mini-series featured in the comic 2000 AD
, running for 26 episodes (progs 545 to 570) from 24 October, 1987
to 16 April, 1988
.
The series was written by John Wagner
and Alan Grant and, due to the short time-frame in which it had to be illustrated by a large number of regular 2000 AD contributors: Cliff Robinson, Jim Baikie
, Brendan McCarthy
, Steve Dillon
, John Higgins
, Barry Kitson
and Gary Leach.
(real name Marlon Shakespeare) is a skysurfer
and graffiti-artist, who has been imprisoned for three years following the illegal Supersurf 7, in which he became a legend among skysurfers by 'shooting the fox' backwards, an impossible manoeuvre involving flying down a road tunnel against the traffic flow.
As the now-legalised Supersurf 10 approaches, Chopper finds his fame challenged by Australian skysurfer Jug McKenzie. Despite calls from the citizens of Mega-City One for Chopper to be released in time for him to challenge McKenzie on his home turf, Judge Dredd
refuses to bow to public opinion.
media as he evades Cursed Earth mutants and travels to the Mex-Zone. Finally arriving at the Pacific Ocean, Chopper faces the decision to return to imprisonment or to strike out 11,000 kilometres across the Pacific to Oz
's megacity, the Sydney-Melbourne Conurbation. As his board runs out of power, Chopper is rescued by a lone ship piloted by a maniac robot chef. Chopper manages to take control of the ship and heads to Oz by sea.
enter the Grand Hall of Justice
. Announcing themselves as "The Judda
" they set about hunting down important judges
, including Dredd himself, and killing them. Dredd succeeds in killing one of the Judda, and scientists discover that he has the same DNA as Dredd, Fargo
and Rico
- he is a clone. The judges realise that the Judda were cloned from DNA stolen from the judges forty years ago by renegade judge Morton Judd
.
Dredd travels to Oz, ostensibly to arrest Chopper and return him to Mega City One and imprisonment. However Dredd is arrested as Chopper arrives in Oz, and apparently placed under house arrest. The Judda attack once more, but Dredd is prepared - his arrest was only a ruse - and he blocks their escape. Using one of the Judda's teleporters he travels into Ayers Rock, where he discovers an army of cloned Judda preparing to attack Mega City One. Dredd teleports to the Grand Hall and transports a nuclear warhead back to the rock, destroying the Judda.
, a Judda cloned from the same genetic material as Dredd, was captured by Justice Department and later featured in the Necropolis
series.
2000 AD (comic)
2000 AD is a weekly British science fiction-oriented comic. As a comics anthology it serialises a number of separate stories each issue and was first published by IPC Magazines in 1977, the first issue dated 26 February. IPC then shifted the title to its Fleetway comics subsidiary which was sold...
, running for 26 episodes (progs 545 to 570) from 24 October, 1987
1987 in comics
- Year overall :* Independent publishers continue to enter the comics arena, including Amazing, CFW Enterprises, Imperial Comics, Matrix Graphic Series, New Comics Group, and Rebel Studios...
to 16 April, 1988
1988 in comics
-Events and publications:* Jack Binder, creator of the original Daredevil, dies at c. age 86.* Tarpé Mills, creator Miss Fury, dies at c. age 73....
.
The series was written by John Wagner
John Wagner
John Wagner is a comics writer who was born in Pennsylvania in 1949 and moved to Scotland as a boy. Alongside Pat Mills, Wagner was responsible for revitalising British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has continued to be a leading light in British comics ever since.He is best known for his work on...
and Alan Grant and, due to the short time-frame in which it had to be illustrated by a large number of regular 2000 AD contributors: Cliff Robinson, Jim Baikie
Jim Baikie
Jim Baikie is a British comics artist, who is best known for his work with Alan Moore on Skizz.-Biography:Baikie began his career illustrating Valentine for Fleetway. Over the next twenty years, he built a solid reputation working for TV comics such as Look-in, including adaptations of The Monkees...
, Brendan McCarthy
Brendan McCarthy
Brendan McCarthy is a British artist and designer best known for his work in comic books, film and television.- Biography :Brendan McCarthy, of Irish descent, was born in London. Brendan soon began painting and drawing his own home-made comics....
, Steve Dillon
Steve Dillon
Steve Dillon is a British comic book artist, from Luton, Bedfordshire, best known for his work with writer Garth Ennis on Hellblazer, Preacher and The Punisher.-Biography:...
, John Higgins
John Higgins (comics)
John Higgins is an English comic book artist and writer. He did significant work for 2000 AD, and he has frequently worked with writer Alan Moore, most notably as colourist for Watchmen.-Biography:...
, Barry Kitson
Barry Kitson
Barry Kitson is a British comics artist best known as a penciler of major superhero comic books published by Marvel and DC.-Biography:Kitson's first professional work was Spider-Man for Marvel UK...
and Gary Leach.
Plot
ChopperChopper (Judge Dredd character)
Chopper is a fictional character in British comics 2000 AD and the Judge Dredd Megazine. He was created by John Wagner and Ron Smith and has appeared in numerous Judge Dredd stories, including "Oz", and has his own eponymous series.-Unamerican Graffiti:Marlon Shakespeare was...
(real name Marlon Shakespeare) is a skysurfer
Sky-surfer
Sky-surfing is a fictional sport practiced in the world of the British Judge Dredd comic books, often featuring the champion sky-surfer Chopper. It is like ordinary surfing, but is done on a surfboard rigged with anti-gravity that floats in the air. The surfer stands on the board and controls its...
and graffiti-artist, who has been imprisoned for three years following the illegal Supersurf 7, in which he became a legend among skysurfers by 'shooting the fox' backwards, an impossible manoeuvre involving flying down a road tunnel against the traffic flow.
As the now-legalised Supersurf 10 approaches, Chopper finds his fame challenged by Australian skysurfer Jug McKenzie. Despite calls from the citizens of Mega-City One for Chopper to be released in time for him to challenge McKenzie on his home turf, Judge Dredd
Judge Dredd
Judge Joseph Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is an American law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
refuses to bow to public opinion.
Chopper's journey to Oz
As Chopper is being moved to a maximum-security isolation cube, he succeeds in escaping from the Judges and flees the city. Chopper makes his way over the 'west wall' into the Cursed Earth. His journey is followed by the Mega-City OneMega-City One
Mega-City One is a huge fictional city-state covering much of what is now the Eastern United States in the Judge Dredd comic book series. The exact boundaries of the city depend on which artist has drawn the story...
media as he evades Cursed Earth mutants and travels to the Mex-Zone. Finally arriving at the Pacific Ocean, Chopper faces the decision to return to imprisonment or to strike out 11,000 kilometres across the Pacific to Oz
Oz (2000 AD)
Oz, officially the Sydney-Melbourne Conurbation, is a fictional mega-city in the Judge Dredd comic, located in the south east of Australia. It was the main setting for the Judge Dredd strip Oz. Like most of the mega-cities of the time Oz is ruled by a Judge system. According to the Judge Dredd...
's megacity, the Sydney-Melbourne Conurbation. As his board runs out of power, Chopper is rescued by a lone ship piloted by a maniac robot chef. Chopper manages to take control of the ship and heads to Oz by sea.
The Judda
During Chopper's journey, three teleportersTeleportation
Teleportation is the fictional or imagined process by which matter is instantaneously transferred from one place to another.Teleportation may also refer to:*Quantum teleportation, a method of transmitting quantum data...
enter the Grand Hall of Justice
Grand Hall of Justice
The Grand Hall of Justice of Mega-City One is a fictional building in the Judge Dredd comic strip in 2000 AD. It actually refers to three different buildings which existed at different times...
. Announcing themselves as "The Judda
Morton Judd
Morton Judd is a fictional character from the Judge Dredd comic strip and appears in progs 559-563 of the British comic 2000 AD, in the story "Oz"....
" they set about hunting down important judges
Judge (2000 AD)
Judge is a title held by several significant characters in the Judge Dredd series, which appears in the British comics 2000 AD and Judge Dredd Megazine...
, including Dredd himself, and killing them. Dredd succeeds in killing one of the Judda, and scientists discover that he has the same DNA as Dredd, Fargo
Chief Judge Fargo
Chief Judge Eustace Fargo is an important fictional character from the Judge Dredd comic strip in 2000 AD. He is Judge Dredd's clone father....
and Rico
Rico Dredd
Rico Dredd is a fictional character in the Judge Dredd comic strip in 2000 AD magazine. He is the brother of Judge Joe Dredd, the strip's eponymous lead character.-Appearances:...
- he is a clone. The judges realise that the Judda were cloned from DNA stolen from the judges forty years ago by renegade judge Morton Judd
Morton Judd
Morton Judd is a fictional character from the Judge Dredd comic strip and appears in progs 559-563 of the British comic 2000 AD, in the story "Oz"....
.
Dredd travels to Oz, ostensibly to arrest Chopper and return him to Mega City One and imprisonment. However Dredd is arrested as Chopper arrives in Oz, and apparently placed under house arrest. The Judda attack once more, but Dredd is prepared - his arrest was only a ruse - and he blocks their escape. Using one of the Judda's teleporters he travels into Ayers Rock, where he discovers an army of cloned Judda preparing to attack Mega City One. Dredd teleports to the Grand Hall and transports a nuclear warhead back to the rock, destroying the Judda.
Supersurf 10
Chopper is narrowly defeated by Jug McKenzie. Dredd is waiting at the finish line to arrest him, but Jug distracts Dredd at the last second, and Chopper escapes. In spite of his defeat, he has gained great admiration and popularity in the local populace and although Dredd still wants to recapture him, local Judge Bruce, fearing a possible riot, blocks his attempts, allows Chopper to escape into the Rad-back and orders Dredd out of Oz and back to Mega-City One.Continuing storyline
The "Oz" storyline had some lasting implications for future 2000 AD storylines. KrakenJudge Kraken
Judge Kraken is a fictional character in the Judge Dredd comic strip featured in the long-running British comic 2000 AD. Although he only appeared in a few episodes, he was nonetheless a very important character in Tale of the Dead Man, in which he was given almost equal billing with Dredd, and in...
, a Judda cloned from the same genetic material as Dredd, was captured by Justice Department and later featured in the Necropolis
Necropolis (Judge Dredd story)
Necropolis is a 26-part Judge Dredd epic by John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra, published in 1990 in 2000 AD progs 674–699. The story was the subject of extensive foreshadowing in the comic, beginning with The Dead Man , followed by "Tale of the Dead Man" , and finally three stories collectively...
series.
Publication
The series originally ran for 26 episodes (Progs 545 to 570) from 24 October 1987 to 16 April 1988 and has been reprinted several times including:- The Complete Judge Dredd in "Oz" (Titan, ISBN 1-85286-436-2)
- Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 11 (Rebellion, ISBN 978-1-905437-79-5)