2000AD Customs by Kambei

[Kambei]

Been reading 2000AD (on and off) since my mum bought me issue 1 back in 1977. The owrld's longest continually running sci-fi and fantasy anthology comic. I have to admit that my main interest are the stories from the 1970s and 1980s. I have done a few customs over the years, but I thought that I would revisit some of them and make some new ones.

First up:

Strontium Dog.

Way back in 2005 I remade a Johnny Alpha 'Strontium Dog' custom I had originally had a go at way, way back in 1985. While I am still happy with the Alpha custom, I was never very happy with teh one I made of Wulf Sternhammer, and I always meant to revisit the topic someday.

First of all, both Johnny Alpha customs from 20 years apart:



Wulf Sternhammer (with his Happy Stick)








Archibald McNulty, aka Middenface McNulty, The Tartan Terror




George Moore, aka The Torso from Newcastle




Evans the Fist from the Rhondda Wastes




STRONTIUM DOGS



All from the storyline Strontium Dog that started in Starlord and continued into 2000ad.

All but Wulf Sternhammer are mutants. Unlike the ones in Marvel comics, it is rare for mutants in 2000AD to have superpowers. Most have physical deformities caused by two nuclear wars; one in 2070 and the second in 2150. Continuing the theme from Judge Dredd, mutants have very few rights and those that do not leave Earth are herded together in ghettos. One of the few jobs open to the hardest and meanest is bounty hunting, regulated by the Search/Destroy Agency headquarted in the Doghouse space station in orbit above Earth. Taking the initials for the agency and nicknaming them after the type of nuclear fallout most common after the last war, they are generally referred to as 'Strontium Dogs'

 

[Iok]

Awesome stuff!

Strontium Dog was my favorite 2000 AD/Starlord series. It pissed me off so much when they took the route they did in later years and introduced Feral and Durham Red. Piss off you Johnny-wannabes!

 

[Kambei]

I am actually working on a Durham Red custom, but based on her first appearence. Also working on Harvey, Kid Knee and the Stix brothers. Going to try making a third version of Dredd. For now, here is another of my favourites:

Sam Slade, Robo-Hunter








I know who my money is on!

Sam Slade, Robo-Hunter is a character from the very early days of 2000AD. Slade is a robot bounty hunter. Think Blade Runner (4 years before the movie) but with a very dark, anarchic sense of humour. One example of this is Commander Jim Kidd who ends up as a 37 year old baby. A blaster-toting, cigar smoking, hard drinking and swearing 18 month old baby. Decades before Stewie Griffin. Written by John (Judge Dredd, Strontium Dog) Wagner and illustrated by Ian (Judge Dredd, Halo Jones, Star Wars) Gibson. It is set circa 2148 and Slade hunts down robots that have gone amok or thrown off their programming. The first story, Verdus, is a classic. He is accompanied by his best 'friend', a QT-4 Robometer (Cutie) attached to his belt, who has developed a love for Sam and ultimately sacrifices herself to save his life. Some of the later stories were good, but things started getting too silly with the story 'Football Crazy'. I am still trying to pass off the much later colour stories as a bad dream.

This is the second version of Sam that I have made, and I am far happier with this. I had always meant to remake it. This time I used Marvel universe parts with a Build'n'Brawl head. The blaster is an oddity. Back in the mid 1980s, Citadel/Games Workshop, for some unknown reason, released two sets of weapons on sprues in 1:18 scale. I bought both packs but sadly that is the last one I still have. Big regret.

 

[Meddatron]

The "than and now" picture is awesome. It's great to see the evolution of a customizer.

Some really fantastic work here brother!

 

[Iok]

I am Carlos, The Stoagie from Cuba,
I prefer castanets to the Tuba,
Like Sinatra I sing doo-be-de-doo,
But I do it much better than he do!

Again, a great character they ruined with the stupid ghost/clone thing.

 

[Kambei]

I am Carlos, The Stoagie from Cuba,
I prefer castanets to the Tuba,
Like Sinatra I sing doo-be-de-doo,
But I do it much better than he do!

Again, a great character they ruined with the stupid ghost/clone thing.

'The Killing of Kidd' was the last good story IMO. The only truly great story was Verdus. They jumped the shark with 'Football Crazy' and it just went downhill like an Olympic luge event from there.

If you like your classic 2000AD, you will like the custom I am posting tomorrow night.

 

[Monkeywrench]

Very cool!

 

[Kambei]

Another of my favourite characters from the golden days of 2000AD: Rogue Trooper. Rogue is a GI: Genetic Infantryman bred and cloned to be virtually impervious to the pollution and chemical warfare that have made Nu-Earth virtually uninhabitable for normal humans. He is the sole survivor of the 'Quartz Zone Massacre' where a traitor on the General Staff caused the whole GI regiment to be wiped out by the Norts. He is accompanied on his search for the traitor by three of his 'dead' friends; their personalities saved onto bio-chips and grafted into his rifle (Gunnar), helmet (Helm) and backpack (Bagman) until they can be re-cloned.

 

[Dogarc]

I like your rogue are you going to do any of the norts or the southers or maybe the traiter general

 

[Kambei]

I like your rogue are you going to do any of the norts or the southers or maybe the traiter general

Got a few ideas. Norts are on the back burner as is the Traitor General. Venus Bluegenes is on the list as well.

Got some plans for little known 2000AD characters. 'sright! Mainly from the (some very) early days.

 

[Iok]

Very cool! I always thought it odd that Rogue Trooper never wore a shirt though. It seemed odd.

And again, a character they decided to screw up by rebooting him (and then trying to hammer both continuities together, at which point I'd stopped reading...)

I look forward to seeing your other stuff. Maybe a Bill Savage or the Harlem Heroes!