“Planet of the Dead, Part III”
First print date: July 15 1978
Prog appearance: Starlord Issue 10
Writer(s): John Wagner
Artist(s): Carlos Ezquerra
Total episodes: 3
News of Johnny and Wulf's escape from the trap set by McIntyre reaches the huge computer, who orders robot squads into the city to take care of him. The bounty hunters, however, are already inbound back to the city, where they have a score to settle with McIntyre. Nobody likes to be used, and Johnny's ire is up. When shooting the robots sent after them becomes too easy and unsatisfying, Johnny leaps in with his own version of the Viking berserker fury, wielding the deadly electronux, which allows him to go hand-to-hand with the robots. Watching from the palace, Crynge can't believe the two humans are taking on their finest, and despatches their biggest robot, a giant aptly called Big Boy, to crush them.
With Wulf ready to fall back against the massive robot's assault, lasers bouncing off its portable force field, Johnny uses the electronux to create a gap in the field (narrowly avoiding being squashed like a bug) and Wulf throws a thermo bomb through the space. Teh robot is torn to pieces, leaving no further resistance as the two make their way to their confrontation with the city computer. But realising that McIntyre is totally dependent on Crynge, Johnny decides that instead of destroying the huge computer, he will instead name his reward. One thing of value from the city, Crynge had said, and now Alpha takes it, choosing Crynge himself. Left without his eyes and ears, McIntyre wails into the unforgiving silence, left to rule alone, over nobody and nothing, unaware of what is happening around it, truly a king ruling a planet of the dead.
Quotes
Crynge: “The Strontium Dog and his partner escaped the explosion we used to kill the Jox, Sire. I've ordered all robot squads out to hunt them down.”
McIntyre: “What's that, Crynge? What's that you say? Eh? Eh?”
Crynge: “I said, the Strontium Dog and his partner are still at large!”
McIntyre: “Well why didn't you say that in the first place? What are you waiting for? Order all the robot squads out to hunt them down!”
Wulf: “He has der killing frenzy, like my Viking ancestors they got. He is very dangeorus like this, but to himself too!”
Crynge: “Never seen anything like it, Sire. They're destroying the robots --- every last one of them! We'll have to send out Big Boy!”
McIntyre: “Power's no good if there's no-one to boss around!”
Tools of the Trade
Johnny again uses the
electronux, which we saw him use previously and also this episode he employs a
thermo bomb, or Wulf does anyway. We're not told specifically what that is, but as it's a force capable of melting even the massive Big Boy, then it can be reasonably assumed that it is a miniature thermonuclear bomb. As the robot is encased in a forcefield, and Johnny's electronux only temporarily disturbed that in order to make a gap through which Wulf could throw the bomb, the entire force of the explosion is contained within the forcefield when it is re-established.
Letter of the Law
Here we see Alpha divert a little from his up to now unswerving dedication to the law. Rather like Dredd, he often undertakes jobs that he may not agree with, but always plays within the limits of his authority and what is legal. Here though, he turns on his “employer”, considering, but not implementing in the end, the destruction of the machine which is, like it or not, the legal authority on this planet. Of course, he has been brought here on false pretences and the computer did try to get him killed, so I guess you can cut him some slack. Plus, who wants to be known as the man who was tricked into completing the extinction of an entire race?
Show no mercy?
You could say he does. He is angry enough to blow the computer to bits, but in the end opts for what could be seen as a crueller punishment for McIntyre. Like Wesley in
The Princess Bride, on this occasion he prefers not to fight to the death, but to the pain. Forcing McIntyre to live the rest of his --- possibly immortal --- life without the assistance of his robot Crynge is truly a living death for the computer, and while it has already begun to show signs of madness, this will surely only worsen in the years, decades and centuries ahead. He has spared the computer's “life”, but condemned it to a living Hell. And so, in retaining his reputation for showing mercy, he has in fact been the most brutal he has been so far.
Messages
There are of course two morality messages in this story. One, that the likes of Neutron bombs are too horrible to even consider being used, and that man should try to avoid ever being forced to employ such weapons of mass destruction. And two, that, like much of 2000AD seems to preach (especially Judge Dredd), robots and computers are not to be trusted. Hand power to one and you have a Skynet situation. There is I suppose a third message, this being that power corrupts, no matter your biological or technological makeup. And finally, a fourth even: that those who serve in a lower place can often wield the true power. Without Crynge to tell him what is happening and carry out his orders, McIntyre is nothing more than a massive hunk of metal, just as many presidents, kings and despots have found that without their most trusted advisors they are unable to function.
PCRs
Not quite one, but Johnny does refer to McIntyre as a “tinpot dictator”, a popular term for any third world ruler who seized power and then became a tyrant, or probably more accurately, any “dictator” who didn't fall in line with the wishes of the major powers, mostly America.
There's also something of a reference to two old original Star Trek episodes in the final panel, where we hear the pathetic voice of McIntyre crying out to space that he doesn't want to be alone.
Also, the name of the massive robot is very close to that given to one of the atom bombs dropped on Japan at the end of the Second World War.
Houston, we have a problem!
All right then, let's get into it. How in the hell did this loopy computer get in touch with Johnny? Does S/D advertise its services, or take in commissions? Well I suppose it must, and technically the computer (which, had it contacted the agency, is unlikely to have allowed the fact that it is not human to have been known) was and is the legal authority in City 4, so perhaps it could have asked for help. Still, it would have been nice to have had a quick line explaining this, as otherwise it could be argued that McIntyre contacted Wulf and Johnny personally and directly, so that this would not be an official commission and might therefore have allowed them more scope as to how they carried out the job.