The Long Walk (Judge Dredd)
Encyclopedia
The Long Walk is an event occasionally depicted in the long-running British comic strip Judge Dredd
, which appears in 2000 AD
and the Judge Dredd Megazine
. It also featured in the 1995 film
starring Sylvester Stallone
.
When a street judge
retires from service at the end of his career, he may choose to leave Mega-City One
and live out his final days in exile outside the city. He may do this either in the Cursed Earth
, a radioactive desert outside the city walls, or in the Undercity
, the paved-over ruins of New York that lie beneath the mega-city. The Long Walk begins with a brief ceremony at the city gates. The retiring judge walks through an honour guard
of judges as they discharge their firearms into the air, while another judge formally bids him farewell. Once they take the Long Walk, judges are expected never to return, but to die "bringing law to the lawless."
Retiring judges may also be given the option to be placed in administrative or teaching posts, instead of taking the Long Walk. The Long Walk may however be the best option open to a judge who has been subject to disciplinary proceedings for misconduct not warranting criminal prosecution.
The Long Walk was introduced in 2000 AD #147, in the 1980 story "Judge Minty," written by John Wagner
.
and Judge Dredd himself:
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...
, which appears in 2000 AD
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...
and the Judge Dredd Megazine
Judge Dredd Megazine
Judge Dredd: The Megazine is a monthly British comic magazine, launched in October 1990. It is a sister publication to 2000 AD. Its name is a play on words, formed from "magazine" and Dredd's locale Mega-City One.-Content:...
. It also featured in the 1995 film
Judge Dredd (film)
Judge Dredd is a 1995 American science fiction action film directed by Danny Cannon, and starring Sylvester Stallone, Diane Lane, Rob Schneider, Armand Assante, and Max von Sydow. The film is based on the strip of the same name in the British comic 2000 AD...
starring Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
.
When a street judge
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...
retires from service at the end of his career, he may choose to leave Mega-City One
Mega-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...
and live out his final days in exile outside the city. He may do this either in the Cursed Earth
Cursed Earth
The Cursed Earth is a part of the fictional universe from the Judge Dredd series that appears in the UK comic book 2000 AD.-Background:...
, a radioactive desert outside the city walls, or in the Undercity
Undercity (Judge Dredd)
The Undercity is a part of the fictional universe featured in the Judge Dredd series that appears in the UK comic book 2000 AD.-Background:...
, the paved-over ruins of New York that lie beneath the mega-city. The Long Walk begins with a brief ceremony at the city gates. The retiring judge walks through an honour guard
Honor guard
An honor guard, or ceremonial guard, is a ceremonial unit, usually military in nature and composed of volunteers who are carefully screened for their physical ability and dexterity...
of judges as they discharge their firearms into the air, while another judge formally bids him farewell. Once they take the Long Walk, judges are expected never to return, but to die "bringing law to the lawless."
Retiring judges may also be given the option to be placed in administrative or teaching posts, instead of taking the Long Walk. The Long Walk may however be the best option open to a judge who has been subject to disciplinary proceedings for misconduct not warranting criminal prosecution.
The Long Walk was introduced in 2000 AD #147, in the 1980 story "Judge Minty," 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...
.
Notable instances
Two unprecedented exceptions to the normally inflexible rule that judges who take the Long Walk do not return from it were Chief Judge McGruderJudge McGruder
Chief Judge Hilda Margaret McGruder is a fictional character in the Judge Dredd stories published in the British comic 2000 AD. She was the first female Chief Judge of Mega-City One, and the first Judge of Mega-City One to become Chief Judge twice...
and Judge Dredd himself:
- Chief Judge McGruder resigned in 2108 when she blamed herself for an error of judgementShojun the WarlordShojun, Warlord of Ji was a fictional villain in the Judge Dredd comic strip in 2000 AD in 1986. He had powerful psionic abilities and attempted to take over the world....
which cost hundreds of lives, choosing exile to the Cursed Earth. Dredd presided over her Long Walk ceremony.
- Dredd took the Long Walk in 2112, after succumbing to doubts he had long held regarding the ethics of the entire Judge SystemJudge (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...
. These were brought to a head after he received a posthumous letter from William Wenders, a child who had been killed as an indirect result of the Judges' suppression of the Democratic MarchDemocracy (Judge Dredd storyline)Democracy in the fictional future city of Mega-City One has been a significant recurring theme in the Judge Dredd comic strip in 2000 AD. In particular, a number of stories published since 1986 have addressed the issue of the Judges' dictatorial system of government, and efforts by the citizens to...
. Whilst roaming the Cursed Earth, however, Dredd learned about the catastrophe known as NecropolisNecropolis (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...
, and so he returned to Mega-City One in order to defeat the Dark JudgesDark JudgesThe Dark Judges are recurring villains in the fictional Judge Dredd universe recounted in the UK comic 2000 AD. They are Judge Death, Judge Fire, Judge Fear and Judge Mortis. Later storylines added the "Sisters of Death" , to their ranks...
, recruiting McGruder along the way. Thus Dredd and McGruder were the first judges ever to return to the city after taking the Long Walk. This later became the focus of former Chief Judge Silver'sJudge SilverChief Judge Thomas Silver was chief judge of the fictional city of Mega-City One in the Judge Dredd comic strip.-Fictional character biography:...
legal challenge to McGruder's return to office, as Silver insisted that McGruder was disqualified from being chief judgeChief Judge of Mega-City OneChief Judge of Mega-City One is the title of several supporting characters in the Judge Dredd comic strip published in 2000 AD. The chief judge is dictator and head of state of Mega-City One, a fictional future city of around 400 million people in 22nd-century America...
as "Judges don't go back." However, Silver did not object to Dredd adjudicating between them even though Dredd had also returned from the Long Walk.
- In the 1995 film, Chief Judge FargoChief Judge FargoChief Judge Eustace Fargo is an important fictional character from the Judge Dredd comic strip in 2000 AD. He is Judge Dredd's clone father....
(played by Max von SydowMax von SydowMax von Sydow is a Swedish actor. He has also held French citizenship since 2002. He has starred in many films and had supporting roles in dozens more...
) takes the Long Walk into the Cursed Earth, and shortly afterwards is murdered by Mean Machine AngelMean Machine AngelMean "Mean Machine" Angel is a villain in the Judge Dredd stories of the British comic book series 2000 AD. He is one of the sons of Elmer "Pa" Angel, and as such, is a member of the Angel Gang.-Fictional biography:...
. (However, the 2000 AD comic strip version of this character never took the Long Walk.)
- The forthcoming fan film "Judge Minty" shows one of the comic's minor characters, Judge Minty taking the Long Walk and his first encounters in the Cursed Earth. (http://www.judgeminty.com/)