Random Happenstance

Sometime back, we saw an issue of Cybercrush: Robots in Revolt, but I thought I had covered at least a couple of these: they were in the same boat! Late era Fleetway/Quality reprint books, with better print quality and paper, a bit more expensive, and almost always with covers having nothing to do with the reprinted stories within! From 1992 (or thereabouts) Time Killers #3, cover by Rich Larson and Steve Fastner. 

 

The first reprint was from 1991's 2000 AD #739, an Indigo Prime story featuring Winwood and Cord. I don't know much about that one, but they're investigating what feels like a Doctor Who situation: Victorians with a time machine, one of whom might be (as in, totally is) Jack the Ripper. (Written by John Smith, art by Chris Weston.) Also weirdly: I don't have a ton of actual 2000 AD progs, but I feel like I have this particular one? Or maybe I've seen the Dredd story from it reprinted somewhere: the cover seems familiar, but Cliff Robinson does such a good job of aggrieved, "well, I never" kind of faces.

Next, "Shadows, part 3" was from 1990's 2000 AD #674, and I think I've read a chunk of that serial: Peter Milligan maybe wasn't big yet, but was on his way. Young "knowledge broker" Nina Coltrane had perhaps seen something she shouldn't, and was being erased from society. This chapter, her lover and her mom are killed, and her artist friend has a crisis in conscience while turning her over. The artist is killed by spherical drones, and Nina is forced to flee where she feels she now belongs: underground, "the world of shadows." (Art by Richard Elson.)

Son of a gun--I actually have the next prog as well! From 1992, 2000 AD #776, "Tales from Beyond Science" presents "Long Distance Calls" Written by Mark Millar, art by Rian Hughes. The pipe-smoking Professor Tremayne presents accounts of the voices of the dead, recorded on tape; and Guglielmo Marconi's experiments in contacting the dead, trying to reach his lost brother. The presentation feels exceedingly British somehow: "The dead seem to be trying to warn us all the time; I prefer not to speculate why..."

After a quick Future Shocks, another chapter of "Dry Run," from 1990's 2000 AD #690, written by Taisto Vahimagi, art by Kevin Hopgood. The Albion British Comics Wiki has a brief entry on it, set in a future earth where the seas had dried up; but the entry mostly didn't like the balloons used for the telepathic characters. (I had momentarily thought this would've been in Dredd continuity, like a Cursed Earth run, but nope!) 

Time Killers only ran seven issues, best guess I have two. Still, I kinda want whatever book the covers promised there...