2000 AD #1273

Prog 1273 opens the new year with a commanding close-up of Judge Dredd's battle-worn face dominating the entire cover — his golden helmet and distinctive red eagle visor filling the frame with quiet, weathered authority in a painted portrait by Greg Staples. The tagline at the bottom reads "If you can read this you're standing too close, creep," a perfectly dry touch that captures Dredd's no-nonsense character. Inside, Gordon Rennie and Jock team up on "Safe Hands," with colors by Chris Blythe and lettering by Tom Frame — a solid creative lineup to kick off 2002 in style.