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Batman

Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgment on Gotham

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NM/Mint. Simon Bisley. Trade paperback.

62 pages, Comic

First published January 1, 1991

4 people are currently reading
499 people want to read

About the author

John Wagner

1,282 books187 followers
John Wagner is a comics writer who was born in Pennsylvania in 1949 and moved to Scotland as a boy. Alongside Pat Mills, Wagner was responsible for revitalising British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has continued to be a leading light in British comics ever since. He is best known for his work on 2000 AD, for which he created Judge Dredd. He is noted for his taut, violent thrillers and his black humour. Among his pseudonyms are The best known are John Howard, T.B. Grover, Mike Stott, Keef Ripley, Rick Clark and Brian Skuter. (Wikipedia)

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5 stars
333 (27%)
4 stars
386 (32%)
3 stars
348 (29%)
2 stars
107 (8%)
1 star
22 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
Profile Image for Ill D.
Author 0 books8,594 followers
March 22, 2018
Let me tell you about a cool cat named Stewart. Not only does he read all the hip comics these days but, always has a groovy recommendation to share. So when he recommended me the first Batman/Judge Dredd crossover I was all over it.

What starts as an erstwhile Batman hunts-down-the-bad-guys-affair swiftly devolves into a cacophonous otherworldly journey into the dimension(?) of Judge Dredd's plane. Phenomenally well put together art works straddles the line between the hallucinatory and the ribaldry realistic. Glints and gleams of both worlds in character and art enflesh this story of epic proportions.

When Judge Death hooks up with Scarecrow (natch) it's up to Batman and his newfound otherworld ally to save the day. First spikes and then an utter deluge of the subconscious roars across the pages with unfiltered atavism. With more right hooks than the Thrilla in Manilla, your eyeballs will be overwhelmed by the sheer illustrated force of this comic.

The typical comic book hijinks graft themselves unto a plot so diabolical in nature it threatens the very nature (also natch) of Gotham City. Will the Batman be able to save the day? Will Mean Machine be able to fix his clock of doom so he can be right more than twice a day? And will Judge Dredd be able to administer justice upon a crime so demented and foul?

You'll just have to read it yourself and find out.

One and a half guilty thumbs up.
Profile Image for Urbon Adamsson.
1,743 reviews77 followers
July 24, 2024
The artwork is impressive and offers great fan service for fans of Batman and Judge Dredd. However, the story itself is somewhat lacking.
Profile Image for Juho Pohjalainen.
Author 5 books350 followers
July 4, 2022
On one hand, Dredd is even more unreasonably hardline here than usual, drawing a lot of artificial conflict out of his strange need to put Batman behind bars. On the other hand, there's Judge Death's greatest fear and his brief stint as a rock musician. They balance each other out I guess.
Profile Image for Frank Schorr.
1 review
March 28, 2014
One of the biggest reasons I got into painted comic books. A slew of less than stellar ones came out after this one and never made the same impact. Only the works of Dave McKean and Bill Sienkiewicz arguable could match or excel this particular work of art. The story was funny and moved you along, but the book is about the art. It can almost stand on it's own, but the writing can't do that. I rate it 5 stars because it's a landmark book and in the 90's it jump started the craze into international more adult kind of books and open up the doors or help bring those talented "Bastiches" to the American audiences in a big way. This one did a lot because of Batman. If he weren't there it wouldn't be as monumental a work of art.
Profile Image for Alex.
21 reviews1 follower
July 18, 2016
Batman, Dredd and Anderson vs Death, Mean Machine and Scarecrow on the dark streets of Gotham, the perfect setting for the macabre and bizaree worlds of these two anti-heroes to collide. As the protagonists come to blows (vigilantism is, of course a crime in MC1) the gigantic personalities are amelorated wonderful by Anderson's comic interjections. The villains of the piece meanwhile are wonderfully psychotic and the imigary of 'what would scare death himself?' is a beautiful counterpoint to the brutal setting of Gotham.
Profile Image for James.
2,567 reviews76 followers
October 17, 2020
This was decent. Had some cool/weird art going on. Some creature called judge death, warped to this dimension and was causing trouble. Batman swoops in and stops him only for his spirit to leave looking for another host. Bats grabs this guys stuff and gets warped to his dimension only to be locked up by some Judge Dredds. From here it was all about getting out of that pickle and getting back to Gotham to stop this Judge Death. Not the best comic in the world but not the worst.
Profile Image for Mat Davies.
409 reviews4 followers
May 21, 2023
2nd time and still rocks!

This was a funny and beautifully drawn crossover. This is my introduction to Simon Bisley's art and he sure did not disappoint. It was really cool to see Alan Grant and John Wagner as scriptwriters, too! It does work, most importantly! Then again, you could stick Judge Death and Butting Head Man in My Little Pony and it would get a thumbs up.

Speaking of My Little Pony - brill joke with Judge Death's nightmares courtesy of the Scarecrow!
Profile Image for Little Timmy.
7,301 reviews58 followers
February 4, 2016
Very good team up story. Batman and Judge Dredd are both tough crime fighters and work well together in a story. Recommended
5,870 reviews144 followers
February 4, 2021
Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgment on Gotham is a one-shot comic book crossover featuring a crossover between Batman and Judge Joseph Dredd, a law enforcement officer in the dystopian future city of Mega-City One. It was written by Alan Grant and John Wagner with art by Simon Bisley, and was published by DC Comics and Fleetway Publications.

The story deals with a time-travel belt, which gives villains from the Judge Dredd universe the ability to travel through time to wind up in Gotham City and teaming up with Batman's villains, which leads to all sorts of shinanigans. Judge Death, an alien specter that can possess dead bodies, The Scarecrow, and The Mean Machine. It is up to the combine efforts of Judge Dredd and Batman to not only save the day, but time as well.

Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgment on Gotham is written and constructed rather well. Grant and Wagner created a wonderful and somewhat believable narrative to bring these two different people from different times with different procedural methods together their villains to justice. However, one must suspend much disbelief and just enjoy the narrative. Bisley's does an admirable job in penciling the tale.

All in all, Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgment on Gotham is a wonderful graphic novel that postulates the team-up between Bruce Wayne as Batman and Judge Joseph Dredd and how they would fair with each other and in capturing their respective villains.
Profile Image for beafish.
12 reviews6 followers
April 29, 2020
“THE CRIME ISSS LIFFFFE— THE SSSENTENNCCCE ISSS DEATHHH!”

God, I loved this book. Two of my favorite comic book characters, Batman and Judge Dredd, together for the first time, and what a ride it was! I adore when books like this don’t take themselves too seriously. The world of Dredd is deeply satirical (though it varies from writer to writer), and he’s best written as an over-the-top critique of the American judicial system and our culture’s police worship. Judge Dredd, good guy with a gun? Eh.... When compared to Judge Death, though, he must be. Judge Death is one of my absolute favorite comic book villains (and the supplier of the quote you see above). What is he? Where did he come from? Not very important. He’s here to do the devil’s business, and he has a blast the whole time he’s doing it. The whole story was fast-paced and deeply, darkly humorous, with so many scenes of laughs undercut by shocking and purposely excessive violence. The art helps in this regard, as it perfectly matches the tone of the book, all of its surrealism and excess. I’ll have to look more into this Simon Bisley guy, because he reminds me of some of my favorite artists of his era, like Dave McKean or Bill Sienkiewicz (did i spell that right?). Anyway, it may be blasphemy to give this pulp the same amount of stars as The Great Gatsby, but I just adored every second of reading this. Definite recommend to anyone that loves absurd 90’s comics with crazy art and a plot that doesn’t matter much compared to the joy you feel reading it.
Profile Image for Ian.
1,280 reviews5 followers
August 10, 2020
Whilst Judge Death is set loose in Gotham and forms an unholy alliance with the Scarecrow, Batman finds himself transported to Mega-City One, where he runs afoul of Judge Dredd.

Batman and Dredd are two of my all-time favourite comic book characters and their respective narrative tones compliment each other very well.
That said, thanks to 2000AD legends Grant and Wagner, the overriding tone here is that of Dredd's world. There's a grimness to the violence and horror, whilst also maintaining a certain dark humour too. In fact, my favourite scene in the whole book is a perfect example; wherein Judge Death murders Scarecrow's henchman but is then subjected to fear gas which reveals his darkest fear to be cuddly, Disney-esque cartoon animals.

Don't get me wrong, this book is very short (you'd definitely be better off finding the collection 'The Batman/Judge Dredd Files' instead) but what there is of it is great fun to read.
On top of that, Simon Bisley's artwork is always an absolute feast for the eyes.

* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.com/ *
Profile Image for MatiBracchitta.
581 reviews
April 17, 2024
No sé si hoy en día este tipo de crossover se siguen realizando, pero lo cierto es que en los noventa eran sumamente populares (o al menos sumamente comunes). En este caso le toca a Batman encontrarse con un irascible Juez Dredd y una sexy Jueza Anderson.

Personalmente no leí absolutamente nada de Dredd antes, pero todo me lleva a pensar que la estética de la historia se inclina más hacía su estilo y no tanto al de Batman. Por otro lado, la historia, obviamente, no aporta nada al mundo o a la vida, dado que no volverá a ser retomada jamás, no tiene ningún tipo de consecuencia y ni siquiera llega a ser interesante.

Sí me resultó entretenido ver ese choque de mundos entre dos personajes violentos a su manera. Hay un lindo contraste entre los valores morales de Batman y los del Juez Dredd. También creo que la elección del Espantapajaros es realmente acertada, lamento que su conflicto se haya cerrado de forma tan anticlimática y abrupta, pero era de esperar con la poca extensión de la historia.

No queda mucho más que decir. Es una historia simpática, pero no la recomendaría.
Profile Image for Christian.
335 reviews2 followers
December 10, 2024
Wow ok. This was very unexpected. What a little gem. I’m not much for team ups or heavy metal for that matter. And this is very heavy metal.

The art and writing match each other perfectly. Both are ridiculous, characterful and awesome.
Not many pages passed each time before I chuckled or laughed at either the dialogue, characters or the art. It’s a trip for sure, but it’s very well done. The writing is great and the story was actually engaging from beginning to end. The art is a strange combo of beautiful and hilarious.
I have to check out more from these creators.

If you are OK with a Batman story that doesn’t take itself too seriously, then give this a shot. It’s short and sweet and I can’t find a good reason not to give it a 5/5
Profile Image for Bruno Poço.
141 reviews2 followers
September 5, 2021
Um ser diabólico de nome juiz death lança o caos em gotham e só o batman o consegue parar mas com isso vai parar a uma outra dimensão , à dimensão do juiz dread , batman coloca se em confusões com o bandido anjo vil dessa realidade e terá de lidar com o júri e juiz dread que o quer encarcerar ao mesmo tempo que em gotham juiz death faz parceria com o espantalho preparando se para lançar o caos em gotham

Que história louca , tão parva eu só me ria , do mais tresloucado que já li , mas no bom sentido , tem muitas vibes de marshal law , que eu adoro

A arte , um desbunde , n Sou fã desta arte mais estilizada em mensais de super heróis , mas aqui casa na perfeição , bisley está monstruoso
Profile Image for David Grimstone.
Author 59 books10 followers
January 10, 2022
My final read of 2021 was a graphic novel I loved as a teenager: Judgment on Gotham. I was always more of a Batman fan than a Judge Dredd fan but as an avid reader of 2000AD, I didn’t really care who won in this clash of the titans….as long as it wasn’t Scarecrow, Judge Death or Mean Machine from The Angel Gang. Beautiful artwork by Simon Bisley makes this a real nostalgia trip and completely brilliant as a standalone read: it certainly refreshed my memory, especially when Judge Anderson arrived! Fantastic storytelling by Alan Grant and John Wagner. If you love Batman, Dredd or both then you should definitely check it out.
Profile Image for Etain.
442 reviews1 follower
May 27, 2023
A fuck-ton of fan-service!
While it's not a top tier story for either the lawman or the caped crusader, if you're a fan of both, which I very much am, then it's a must-read. Where else are you going to see judge death sing "sympathy for the devil" plus it features a large dose of judge Anderson Which is always a treat. (Those nude shots of her are most definitely "fan service") on top of that the art is just wonderful worth a read for that alone
Profile Image for Sean Flatley.
297 reviews2 followers
May 12, 2025
I am on a Judge Dredd marathon bing reading of all the Judge Dredd graphic novels book since his appearance in 1977. I have already read them all over 10 years ago, so it was a trip down memory lane to relive these brilliant times and to thoroughly enjoy these graphics novels once again. I simply love the stories plots, the drawings and the dialogue as well.
Overall a brilliantly graphic novels. Best wishes Sean
Profile Image for Devero.
4,944 reviews
November 25, 2021
Troppo cara per le mie tasche all'epoca dell'uscita in Italia, me lo sono recuperato per caso.
Probabilmente se fossi un fan dei personaggi, l'avrei apprezzata maggiormente anche se la trama di Grant non è niente di particolare, e i disegni virati sul grottesco di Bisley non mi hanno mai conquistato. Inoltre la colorazione è troppo satura.
2 stelle.
Profile Image for Konstantine.
326 reviews
June 22, 2022
feel like batman does best when embracing the sort of gothic atmosphere around his character, the camp aspect, or in an over the top punkish setting and dredd essentially embodies all three of those so naturally it brings out the best in both. very much elevated by simon bisley’s art but the writing is still very fun regardless
Profile Image for Kelvin Green.
Author 15 books7 followers
August 16, 2022
Less a crossover, more a Judge Dredd story with a Batman guest appearance, this is often stupid, always violent, and pretty funny throughout. Grant and Wagner refuse to take any of it seriously and Bisley proves equally good at both ultra-violence and comedy timing. This is great fun, and the world needs more funny Batman comics..
Profile Image for Timo.
Author 3 books16 followers
September 21, 2022
Ensinnäkin: Kuvitus on jumalaisen kaunista, Bisleytä parhaimmillaan. Toiseksi: Tarina tutustutti sopivasti kaikki henkilöt niille, jotka ovat huonoja eivätkä hahmoja entuudestaan tunteneet. Kolmanneksi: Kirjoittajat tuntevat hahmot, joten osasivat käyttää heitä oikein. Neljänneksi: Juoni on hyvä, nokkela ja täynnä hyvää. Viidenneksi: Suomennos yrittää liikaa ja on huono.
Profile Image for Gonzalo Oyanedel.
Author 22 books75 followers
January 13, 2024
Una historia, un planteamiento y un giro a los personajes que en conjunto recuerdan más la versión "Heavy Metal Dredd" (de mayor gusto en los Estados Unidos) que su línea clásica. Una afirmación rematada en el aporte gráfico de Simon Blisley, con gran pirotecnia visual. Nostálgicos y fans empedernidos de ambos protagonistas rescatarán sus méritos.
Profile Image for Esteban Maldonado.
31 reviews
August 13, 2025
It’s a peak 90s comic story.
The art is incredibly amazing. The back and forth between Batman and Dredd is perfect, it’s a match made in heaven. Batman gets compared a lot to Dredd, but we can clearly see the differences here when they’re side by side. This is the best Batman crossover outside of DC for me. Anderson is also awesome, she carries the story many times throughout.
164 reviews
February 13, 2019
Bisley on art, Grant on lyrics - doesn’t get any better than this. The story is a brief folly, but well rounded and not anachronistic. The main characters are some of the strongest in comic books. Fantastic. Only sad that it had to end.
Profile Image for Pavel Pravda.
600 reviews9 followers
December 2, 2023
Tak tohle je parádní drsňárna. A navíc je to vtipné, bezesporu i díky překladu. Je to skvělý crossover! Je to svižné a z Dredda i Batmana je tam to nejlepší. Skvělá je i kresba. Bisleyho specifický styl mi někdy úplně nesedne, ale tady je to dokonalé. Jaké by to asi bylo ve velkém formátu?
Profile Image for Rey.
258 reviews23 followers
August 21, 2024
Found the art style very annoying.

Story also odd wherein supposed death decides to got to a rock concert and play.

Dredd is stuckup, batman just shoves away goes for the bad guy, they part ways.

Forgettable overall.

Profile Image for Frederick.
212 reviews
September 1, 2025
Simon Bisley's art is really very good and the story as far as crossovers go is pretty strong with heavy 2000AD influences which is unsurprising given Alan Grant's and John Wagner's involvement in the writing. Definitely recommended.
Profile Image for Chris.
704 reviews2 followers
September 13, 2017
My first experience with a Judge Dredd comic. While probably not a typical example of JD, it was an enjoyable story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews

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