History is written in this land-mark Dredd story. The severed hand of Chief Judge Fargo, the very first chief judge, is delivered to the Grand Hall of Justice with a ransom note. Dredd and his team must travel into the Cursed Earth to try and recover the body of the Judge Father. But this is more than just a journey across America, this is a journey into the past and into the history of the Judges and Mega-City One itself!

2008-05-15 The Dredd Bible

It's a solid gold classic.

After 30-odd years John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra, finally let us in on what went before. Fargo, the cursed earth, Dredd and Rico, Mega City 1, the Judges themselves, we see the humble beginnings of everything here for the first time. Ezquerra's artwork is up to his usual high standards, and Wagner's writing has you hooked from the start. I'm glad I missed this story in the pages of 2000AD, as there's no way I could have waited 7 days for the next handfull of pages, after each instalment.

Add to that the fact that you're eased into it with an introductory story illustrated by Kev Walker's unrivalled mastery of shadow-building inks, and you've got the best 8 quid you'll ever spend.