Predator vs. Judge Dredd

by John Wagner, Enrique Alcatena (Illustrator)

Dark Horse re-presents the action-filled Predator vs. Judge Dredd miniseries in one package! In a tale of the far-flung future, a rogue Predator comes to Mega-City One looking for the ultimate hunt . . . and the city's toughest lawman, Judge Dredd, is its prey!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Action, Comic Book, Dystopia, Horror

80 pages, Paperback

Published November 11, 1998

About the author

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 2000 AD, for which he created Judge Dredd. He is noted for his taut, violent thrillers and his black humour. Among his pseudonyms are The best known are John Howard, T.B. Grover, Mike Stott, Keef Ripley, Rick Clark and Brian Skuter. (Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Sr3yas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 1997 intercompany crossover threads the same trail left by 1990s Predator 2, with the big ugly once again landing on Earth and beginning an urban warfare against law enforcement.



Even with the similarities and age old formula, I found the story entraining enough, especially the parts where Predator enters undercity and takes out the war machines. Also, the final battle between Uniform-less Dredd and Predator was a decent way to end the story.

But I despised the character of Schaefer lady, a Psi and great-great-great-granddaughter of Arnie from original predator movie. It was a rather unnecessary throwback to a classic.



Overall, a mixed bag.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Don't go in there! That thing might still be alive!" -- Judge Tulk

"That's why I'm going in." -- Judge Dredd

As other reviewers have already noted, this volume somewhat rehashes the theatrical Predator 2 (1990) plot - substituting Dredd and his amalgam law officer / magistrate colleagues in the place of Danny ("I'm getting to old for this . . . " - sorry, wrong franchise!) Glover's character and his doomed detective squad - though it's not a bad thing. The storyline is tight and absolutely cuts to the chase whenever possible in regards to the (often gory) action sequences. Really, it's the Predator arriving in direly futuristic Mega City One to do his usual thing, and being pursued by a vengeful Dredd until the inevitable physical confrontation climax. The entire thing can be read in just twenty minutes, so while not being a memorable must-read it really doesn't have the chance to become boring, either. It was fairly similar in quality and style to Batman vs. Predator from earlier in the same decade.

[Benji's Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

It does everything a crossover should do: entertain. I'm glad I finally got around to reading this. I actually read the two sequel series first a few years back (Judge Dredd/Aliens: Incubus and Judge Dredd vs Predator vs Aliens or whatever it's called). The art in this one was fantastic and while the story might have been lacking, it was never once boring.

Recommended!

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely as not good as the Judge Dredd vs. Aliens: Incubus inter-companies crossover, but this Dredd vs Predator volume, found for half of its price at a comic-con here in Rome today, was far better than I used to remember.



A brutal storyline with a strong Predator 2 flick vibe, great artworks and the add of Schaefer's (Schwarzenegger's character in the first and best Predator movie ever) descendant was a funny touch for me.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice story mixing up these two characters. good read. Recommended

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this one overnight, as I was at work. This was a pretty good read. The writing was good and I liked the art a lot. It kind of reminds me of a younger Tim Truman. The story takes place outside of MegaCity One and then of course the Predator moves into the city to wreak havoc. He decides to start killing Judges and claiming their skulls as trophies, as Predators are wont to do. Dredd runs afoul of the creature and a terrible battle takes place.
This one was great fun, but i have to admit I wanted it to be longer, wanted more. I would like to search for others in this vein and hope that they are out there. I would recommend this one to both Dredd and Predator fans. Fun times indeed!!! Very quick read, but worth it!

[Rodolfo Santullo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un posteo en FB de los amigos chilenos que representan a Quique Alcatena en su país me dio a conocer esta obra. ¡Alcatena había dibujado Depredador contra Juez Dredd! ¡Eso había que verlo! Y mi alegría se vuelve alegrón cuando descubro que además el guión de esta miniserie corta -tan concreta como efectiva- de tres episodios corría a cargo de no otro más que John Wagner. Wagner maneja perfecto a ambos personajes -no en vano creó a uno y bien podría haber inventado al otro- y apuesta a una historia cargada de acción, nada de misterio (se devela enseguida que se trata de un Predator lo que asola Mega City One y qué clase de ser es), que tiene en el enfrentamiento sangriento del cazador intergaláctico y los jueces toda la carne que se quiera pedir. Wagner no se queda sólo en eso, sino que aporta mucho con el propio Dredd, los otros jueces que se enfrentan al alienígena y hasta un guiño/homenaje a Dutch Schaeffer que emocionará a los fans de la película. ¿Y qué decir del dibujo? Un Alcatena a full, entregando un trabajo de primerísimo nivel (y eso, cuando hablamos de Alcatena, es muchísimo). El arte se complement, además, por unas enormes portadas de Brian Bolland, Dermot Power y Martin Emond.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really good, but not really anything out of the ordinary. A Predator shows up and starts killing Judges, and Dredd and the Predator face off. There is an interesting connection to Dutch Schaeffer from the original Predator, but other than that this is a pretty typical Predator story. It's still a cool crossover, and the art is good as well.

[Ill D · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I've generally enjoyed the Predator crossovers more than the Aliens ones, this one felt pretty bland. Crossover boilerplate.

[Jordan Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

While Predator vs. Judge Dredd isn't a totally terrible story, it's far from a great one and easily the worst Dredd tale yet.

This 3-parter seems to get a fair amount of flack and criticism, and though I try not to grade any of the Dredd stuff too harshly, it's pretty easy to agree with the majority here.

The problem is that this entire arc is totally unnecessary and pointless. Everything that happens was already done before in Predator 2. Yeah, we get Judge Dredd in place of Danny Glover (probably the only redeeming factor), but it's still the same exact plot, same exact premise, and hell, the judges are chasing the predator through a city, just like the film. Then there's the inclusion of Arnold's character's great-great granddaughter which was pretty stupid (and even stupider with the fact that she's part of the psi-division but can't do a damn thing with her skills) did absolutely nothing except try to be a badly placed easter egg for eagle eyed fans. I suppose that had this been expanded into 5 or 6 issues (instead of a measly 3), there could have been more exposition and back story to help strengthen the overall plot, but this collection only take a measly 25 min to read through and ends up being a rather big disappointment.

I did raise the rating up a star to a 2 because at least the illustrations (line work, inks, color) was decent and easy to see. It's a big step up from the old 1980's art of the Dredd progs, but as a whole Predator vs. Judge Dredd is ridiculously forgettable.

[AintGotTimeToRead · Rating 3 out of 5]

Does exactly what it says on the tin, and little else.
If you like Dredd ,and you like the Pred, you'll probably enjoy this.

Judge Dredd takes his upper attire off as well for the showdown. I guess this how you solve intergalactic conflicts in the future, a bit of skin and skin tussling to secure the fate of the altercations. Clearly then, UFC is a forward thinking enterprise and the future form of diplomacy for our race.

[Микола · Rating 2 out of 5]

Класична схема бойовиків 80-90х, тільки про суддю Дредда. Злий бос вбиває всіх, кого може. Головного героя з видатною щелепою він вбити не може. У фіналі головний герой робить фаталіті злому босу.
Який спеціально прилетів сюди, щоби взяти участь у сутичці, з якої не вийде переможцем. Злий бос помирає і хоче померти переможеним, бажано — Дреддом.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually brilliant. It's surprising how well the Predator fits into the Dredd Universe, and I liked the call backs to the original Predator film. The story is simple, and bit of a rehash of Predator 2, but its still very enjoyable. It's not best Dredd crossover I've ever read, but its worth giving it a go

[Donavon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greatness.

[Julian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought these issues were great when I was younger (I still have a coverless version of the 3rd issue in a box). In hindsight this story is nothing special. We get a cameo from Dutch's (ie. Arnold Swarzenegger's) great-great-great-granddaughter who is psychic and, upon drinking a sample of the Predator's blood, can enter into its mind. Every common Predator plotline is present so the story comes off largely redundant and uninteresting if you have watched or read anything about Predators before. The only interesting parts were when the psychic great-great-great-granddaughter was able to empathize and reveal things about the monster, but all of those elements were jammed into the last section. If you want a better Predator mashup look to Batman vs Predator (which has the benefit of some O.K. sequels as well).

[Gonzalo Oyanedel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Un crossover a la altura de ambos personajes, con un Predator desatado en Mega-City frente a unos jueces en clara desventaja. Destacan el equilibrio conseguido entre los universos de ambas franquicias, sobre todo por el nexo obtenido con las cintas que dieron popularidad al implacable cazador.

[Michael Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always nice to read some Dredd and this did a decent if unremarkable job of dropping the Predator down into the middle of Mega-City One. It's certainly a lot better than many of the Predator crossovers out there.

[TJ Shelby · Rating 2 out of 5]

...yawn...Dredd vs Predator...predictable and lame. Decent artwork was the only reason this got 2 stars.

[Joseph Ritsch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Simple, short story that you will soon forget. The artwork and coloring was decent. Hopefully you didn't buy this.

[Darkcharade · Rating 3 out of 5]

The name really says it all. You get out of it exactly what's expected nothing more nothing less. I wish the final fight had been better but still a solid short piece.