A one-shot that continues the "Countdown to Necropolis" by John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra. Here we see Kraken take Dredd's name, badge and reputation and hit the streets. Wagner's crisp and checklist-like narration (Item!) encourages as to view Kraken as a machine, a force not of nature but of design. We keep getting references to the bloodline, to the idea that there's something at the very core of both Dredd and Kraken that ties them to the City - and to being a Judge.
I think Wagner is drawing some subtle distinctions between Dredd and Kraken here. Dredd can often just be seen as an all-action Judging machine, but his recent doubts have humanised him. Is Kraken here much different to what we've seen Dredd do before? But here we're made to question it, to wonder whether it's right. Every small crime picked up, every sentence harsh.
It's fascinating watching Wagner use Dredd's absence to really examine the the lawman, and not just who he is but what he means. You can't help but think that the brief sliver of frame that holds Dredd's badge splattered with blood doesn't bode well for how well Kraken will take up that mantle.
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