2000 AD #534

Aug 1987 · IPC · 0.28 GBP

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“The Royal Affair, Part 3”

★ 1st appearance — P. J. Maybe

About this Issue

Prog 534 holds a dual distinction in British comics history: it is the first appearance of P.J. Maybe, the child serial killer who would grow into one of Judge Dredd's most enduring and darkly comic adversaries across three decades of stories. Arriving in the final weeks of 2000 AD's original IPC era — the publisher transferred the title to Fleetway just one issue later — it captures the anthology at a transitional creative peak, with flagship strips Strontium Dog and Nemesis the Warlock both in mid-arc alongside this audacious Dredd debut. P.J. Maybe's introduction, framed as an eight-page self-contained horror-comedy about a 12-year-old who deploys a robotic bug to commit random murder, immediately established the satirical, pitch-black register that would make the character a fan favourite and a showcase for the Dredd strip's unique tonal range.

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writer Alan Grant · artist, inker Carlos Ezquerra · letterer Aldrich.3 · cover Liam Sharp

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History

The 'Bug' story introducing P.J. Maybe was written by the then-dominant Judge Dredd team of John Wagner and Alan Grant and drawn by Liam Sharp (credited as Liam McCormack-Sharp), one of the artist's earliest major 2000 AD appearances. Prog 534 was published under IPC Magazines, which had produced 2000 AD continuously since 1977; the very next issue (#536) would carry the Fleetway Publications imprint following Robert Maxwell's acquisition of IPC's comics division in 1987, making this issue an unwitting farewell to the original publishing era. The issue also carried a self-contained Nemesis the Warlock photo-story 'Bedtime Story' — a rare format experiment for the anthology — bridging the gap between the Torquemada the God spin-off and the forthcoming Book VII of the main Nemesis serial.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of P.J. Maybe (Philip Janet Maybe) in the Judge Dredd story 'Bug' — an eight-page standalone episode written by John Wagner & Alan Grant, drawn by Liam Sharp (McCormack-Sharp).
P.J. Maybe debuts as a 12-year-old child prodigy who conceals his genius and commits his first murders using a remote-controlled robotic bug, establishing the darkly comic voice that defined all subsequent appearances.
Prog 534 is the penultimate issue published under the IPC Magazines imprint; numbering transferred to Fleetway Publications with prog 536 in August 1987 following Robert Maxwell's purchase of IPC's comics division.
The Strontium Dog serial 'Bitch' — featuring Johnny Alpha and Middenface McNulty — was running in this period, with episodes appearing in and around prog 534 as part of the ongoing Wagner/Grant era storylines.
The Nemesis the Warlock segment in prog 534, 'Bedtime Story', is a one-off photo-story interlude featuring Nemesis and Torquemada — a rare non-drawn format — placed between the Torquemada the God spin-off (progs 520–524) and the forthcoming Book VII: The Two Torquemadas.
Prog 534 is the final issue covered by what fans call the 'Prog 534 Club' — a tongue-in-cheek reader community for those who began collecting 2000 AD around this issue rather than from prog 1.
'Bug' has been reprinted in Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files Vol. 11, 2000 AD Extreme Edition #2, Judge Dredd: The Complete P.J. Maybe (Rebellion, 2006), and the Hachette Judge Dredd Mega Collection: The Life and Crimes of P.J. Maybe.
P.J. Maybe went on to become Mayor of Mega-City One (in disguise) and appeared across more than 25 years of Judge Dredd stories — all traceable back to the character concept introduced in this single episode.