2000 AD #73
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join free2000 AD Prog 73 delivers the debut of Satanus — a cloned, rampaging black Tyrannosaurus Rex — one of the most memorable creatures in Judge Dredd's history, whose lineage threads directly back to Pat Mills's earlier 2000 AD strip Flesh. By engineering Satanus as the son of that strip's antagonist Old One Eye, Mills created one of British comics' earliest deliberate cross-strip continuity links, binding separate corners of the 2000 AD universe together in a way that was genuinely novel for weekly anthology comics in 1978. The episode sits at the heart of 'The Cursed Earth', the first Dredd storyline to exceed twenty parts and the arc widely credited with establishing the character as more than a recurring feature — transforming him into the centerpiece of an expanding mythological world. Prog 73 is also notable for carrying the supporting cast of Spikes Harvey Rotten and Judge Jack deep into that landmark saga, adding texture to the moral complexity that distinguished Dredd from straightforward action strips of the era.
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The Cursed Earth story running through Prog 73 was written primarily by Pat Mills, with John Wagner contributing a separate block of episodes and Chris Lowder handling others; art duties across the saga were split between Mike McMahon and Brian Bolland. The Satanus episode specifically is credited to Mills and McMahon. Prog 73 fell during the editorial tenure of Kelvin Gosnell, who oversaw 2000 AD from prog 17 through prog 85, though in practice assistant editor Nick Landau carried much of the day-to-day editing through 1978 while Gosnell was simultaneously launching IPC's sister title Starlord. The Cursed Earth itself was openly inspired by Roger Zelazny's novel Damnation Alley, a debt the creative team acknowledged.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Prog 73 is dated 15 July 1978 and was published by IPC Magazines.
- The issue contains 'The Cursed Earth, Chapter 13 – The Coming of Satanus!', episode 13 of the 25-part Judge Dredd saga running from progs 61 to 85.
- Satanus — a cloned, black Tyrannosaurus Rex — makes his first appearance in this issue, written by Pat Mills and drawn by Mike McMahon.
- Satanus is established as the son of Old One Eye, the antagonist of the earlier 2000 AD strip Flesh, making Prog 73 the point where Mills formally linked the Flesh and Judge Dredd continuities.
- Judge Jack appears as a supporting member of Dredd's Cursed Earth team; he is later killed by the Legion of the Damned in Death Valley during the same saga.
- Spikes Harvey Rotten — a Cursed Earth squad member and gun-runner recruited by Dredd in exchange for a pardon — continues his role in this issue; his first appearance was in the earlier 'Mega-City 5000' story in Prog 40.
- The Cursed Earth was written by Pat Mills (episodes 1–10, 21–25), John Wagner (episodes 11–16, 19–20), and Chris Lowder (episodes 17–18), with art by Mike McMahon and Brian Bolland across the full run.
- The story has been reprinted in multiple collected editions including Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files 02, Judge Dredd Epics: The Cursed Earth, and the 2016 Judge Dredd: The Cursed Earth Uncensored graphic novel.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Sunny Sun #41 (1983), Judge Dredd #7 (1984), 2000 A. D. Presents #18 (1987), 2000 A. D. Showcase #51 (1990), Dare the Impossible #5 (1992), The Complete Judge Dredd #7 (1992), Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files #2 (2006), Judge Dredd: The Mega Collection #32 (2015), Judge Dredd: The Cursed Earth Uncensored #[nn] (2016), Dan Dare The 2000 AD Years #2 (2016), Ant Wars #[nn] (2018)
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