2000 AD #84

History

Prog 84, dated 30 September 1978, appeared during one of the most turbulent editorial stretches in 2000 AD's early life: editor Kelvin Gosnell was simultaneously overseeing the imminent merger with Starlord, IPC's short-lived sister title, which folded into 2000 AD just two issues later with prog 86. The 'Cursed Earth' serial itself was written primarily by Pat Mills (parts 1–10 and 21–25) and John Wagner (parts 11–16 and 19–20), with art divided between Mike McMahon and Brian Bolland. The 'Walter the Wobot' backup strip in this prog was scripted under the house pseudonym G. P. Price (likely G. P. Rice) with art by B. McCarthy, and Mek-Quake's appearance here was a deliberate cross-promotional crossover from Starlord's Ro-Busters strip, which had been running since Starlord No. 1. The issue also contains an apology strip drawn by Brett Ewins, published in direct response to legal pressure from McDonald's, Burger King, and the Jolly Green Giant following the satirical 'Burger Wars' episodes published earlier in the Cursed Earth run.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Published as 2000 AD Prog 84, dated 30 September 1978, by IPC Magazines.
• First appearance of Mek-Quake — a demolition robot of low intelligence and destructive tendencies — within the Dreddverse, crossing over from the Ro-Busters strip then running in IPC's concurrent sister comic Starlord.
• First appearance of Maria (Judge Dredd's housekeeper character) within the 'Walter the Wobot' backup strip.
• The prog falls near the climax of 'The Cursed Earth' (progs 61–85), the landmark 25-part Judge Dredd epic written by Pat Mills and John Wagner with art by Mike McMahon and Brian Bolland, in which Dredd crosses the radioactive wasteland between Mega-Cities to deliver a plague vaccine, accompanied by outlaw biker Spikes Harvey Rotten and aardvark-like alien Tweak.
• The issue contains an in-comic apology strip drawn by Brett Ewins, published as a direct consequence of the trademark lawsuit brought by McDonald's, Burger King, and Green Giant over satirical use of their mascots in earlier Cursed Earth instalments ('Burger Wars', progs 71–72).
• The 'Walter the Wobot' story is titled 'Meet Mek-Quake, Part 1'; the Walter strip's script is credited to G. P. Price (believed to be a pseudonym for G. P. Rice), with art by B. McCarthy.
• Mek-Quake's catchphrase 'Big Jobs!' debuts here; the character would go on to become a long-running figure in Ro-Busters and the ABC Warriors across decades of 2000 AD continuity.
• The Cursed Earth serial, which this prog is part of, was reprinted in Rebellion's Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 02; certain earlier episodes (progs 71–72 and 75–76) could not be reprinted for decades due to the trademark settlement, until changes in parody law enabled a fully uncensored collected edition.

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