David Hine and Shaky Kane‘s ‘The Bulletproof Coffin – Disinterred’ series has been sending ripples through the comics industry recently not least for the format of the latest issue. Taking the form of a Beats-style cut up as the method with which the issue was assembled, it reads in a random array of images in no particular order in the same way that Gysin and Burroughs rearranged cut up texts to create an alternate version of their work. Fairly radical in as far as comics go at present but what really set the cat among the pigeons were images online of Shaky cutting up an original issue of Fantastic Four #2 from his own collection.

I asked David about his intentions with the issue and if – had I bought 2 copies and cut them up – I would be able to discern a linear narrative from it if I’d attempted to rearrange it into a logical order?

“There is no preconceived or ‘correct’ way to view the panels. There are a few that do follow a pattern. There are four images of Hairy Men that revisit the scene in 2001 A Space Odyssey where prehistoric man discovers the first tool/weapon. Some of the images refer back to past issues of the Coffin, some to future issues and a few to a planned ‘biography’ of George Adamski. We’ve also reworked a few panels from my adaptation of Lovecraft‘s ‘The Colour out of Space’ originally illustrated by Mark Stafford. You may also spot other quotes from Lovecraft, Kafka, William Burroughs, Aldous Huxley‘s ‘The Doors of Perception’ and lots of other sources.

The idea is to create an open-ended merging of words and images that set off whole new narratives and are open to infinite interpretations. I’ve found new meanings in the random sequence we ended up with here. The way the last page links four deaths – Kennedy‘s assassination, the death of the fictional Hine, the murder of one of Steve Newman‘s twin ‘sons’ and the murder of one of the scientists from The Colour Out of Space. Purely coincidental.

What I really want is an app that will allow random reading of the digital version of the comic. Ideally one that will allow for alternative captions too – something I played with in the last four pages, where I took four of the panels and created an alternative narrative thread between them.”

Also notable are the text pieces ‘Non-stop Ecstatic Dancing / Stop Dancing’ at the end of the comic: a regular and then cut up version, demonstrating the process again for those who may be wondering what the hell they just read. I think there’s definitely room for a deluxe cut up version of the whole book with each panel printed separately on card to be arranged as you see fit.

Shaky had this to say: “Thanx Kev, note how I spelt thanx with a ‘X’! See- I’m there Kev, I’m there!”

Loving these covers for the comic ‘Spaceman’ by Azzarello and Risso.

There’s been a lot of press in the comics world concerning the return of three of the Dark Judges to the current Judge Dredd epic, ‘Day of Chaos’, in 2000ad recently. Besides them being great characters, who haven’t featured in the comic for a few years now, I’m especially into this because Henry Flint is sharing art duties on this story and he’s never drawn them before save for a few promotional images.

What’s also a big deal is that no one saw this coming and their introduction into the story at this point is one of the biggest WTF? moments, and strokes of genius from writer John Wagner, that I can remember in a long time. What’s so good about the story currently running is that, unlike past ‘epics’ in Dredd’s world, this one hasn’t been trailed in quite the same way. There was no big announcement that the-story-to-end-all-stories was about to begin, more that several slow boiling story lines have come together and built upon each other and snowballed.

The basic set up for this epic in the making is that the Sovs (Soviet Judges) have been planning an attack on Mega City 1 in reprisal for Dredd annihilating East Meg 1 in the Apocalypse War decades ago. This has been a slow burn, deep cover operation where they’ve infiltrated the Judicial system to it’s core. Add to that the kidnap of a scientist who has created a doomsday virus with no cure that’s slowly infecting the population of the city, bogus propaganda (or is it?) that the Judges are simply taking the infected and dumping them into plague pits outside the city and full on city-wide civilian rebellion and we’re firing on all cylinders.

To then ramp things up a gear and drop the Dark Judges into the equation (inter dimensional beings who’s maxim is that life is a crime and the sentence is death) and it’s looking like there is no way out for Dredd, or the city for that matter, this time. All the praise that’s being heaped on this story is justified and it seems lapsed readers are returning to the comic after years away and being wowed.

If you want to see what the fuss is all about you can read two chapters over on CBR and an interview with Henry, John Wagner and second artist Colin MacNeil. There’s also a ‘Day of Chaos’ catch up on the 2000ad site too and with the rest of the comic bearing rich fruit and the impending Dredd film at the end of the year, it’s turning out to be a very good year for the title.

This week’s Prog, Henry Flint on the art. Beyond excited to read this, hurry up Mr Postman!…

Leviathan first appeared some years ago in the pages of 2000ad comic. It’s a dark tale, set within a city on a ship, adrift for 20 years after its maiden voyage (very well timed). A series of murders lead Detective Sgt. Lament into the depths of the ship where dark secrets lurk. Written by Ian Edington and illustrated by D’Israeli, this is well worth a look, in fact you can read the first 5 pages over on CBR now.

Courtesy of Henry Flint, a 4-page ad for a certain forthcoming comic, from the pages of Buster back in 1977.