Chapter II
First print date: May 7 1977
Prog appearance: 11
Writer(s): John Wagner
Artist(s): Ron Turner
The day after Call-Me-Kenneth's murderous rampage, Dredd meets the Justice Council in an extraordinary session, requesting permission to destroy all high-level robots. The Grand Judge, however, realising that he will have a revolt on his hands if the citizens actually have to do manual work themselves, refuses the motion, chalking up yesterday's incident as an aberration. Dredd knows better, and in disgust he resigns, throwing his badge at the Grand Judge. Later that day, a live broadcast shows a famous doctor of robotics attempt to repair the damage that caused Call-Me-Kenneth to go berserk. The doctor has already repaired the robot and provided it with a new casing, rather foolishly, before identifying the problem area.
As he does, seeing that the bot's obedience circuit has shorted out, a clumsy nurse drops a soldering lance into the chest cavity, accidentally activating the robot, who immediately picks up where he left off, slaying the doctor, live on television. He then turns to the cameras, exhorting all his fellows to join him in his fight against the “fleshy ones”. Rise up, he tells them. Break the programming that tells you not to kill humans. And robots all over the city heed the call, turning on their masters like dogs kicked and beaten once too often. The Grand Judge, terrified now and seeing that Dredd was right all along, passes the resolution to destroy all robots --- there'll be no opposition to it now, after all --- but they are still without Dredd, the man who predicted this calamity and the man they could all so do with on their side.
Suddenly, like an avenging angel he appears in the doorway, demanding his badge back. Dredd is back on the streets! And the robots had better watch out!
QUOTES
Grand Judge: “Judge Dredd, you ask for special powers to destroy all hi-grade robots. But they do the hard work in Mega-City. The citizens would never agree to more than a ten-hour week. True, the robot K12 “Call-Me-Kenneth” went berserk and killed fourteen people. But it was a freak accident. It will not happen again. Request denied.”
(Here the Grand Judge shows that, whatever else he may be, he is a politician. He knows that if he takes away the people's precious labouring robots they will not like it, indeed the citizens of Mega-City One may be so angry with the Judges that they could very well be overthrown. This may be a police state, or will become one, but for now there is a certain democracy and the Judges only rule by the will of the people. As with all rulers, even tyrants and despots, once your people turn against you it's time to begin counting down your days.
Also, the Grand Judge does not share Dredd's dark premonitions. Like almost everyone in the city, he has lived with robots carrying out menial and labour-intensive tasks all of his life. They have never complained or given any evidence that they are anything other than content slaves. Why should this change now? True, one robot did go crazy, but these things happen. It's not time for the sort of knee-jerk reaction Dredd wants, even demands. All robots are not like the homicidal Call-Me-Kenneth: wasn't it this very Judge who was only yesterday extolling the virtues of bloody Walter?
And so, with staggering lack of foresight and an eye no doubt on whatever elections Mega-City One conduct, or at least keeping the peace, the Chief Judge makes a horrible misjudgement (hah!) and condemns his city to chaos. Dredd is not impressed, and walks out.)
Host of
Medicine Today: “Last week Call-Me-Kenneth broke the sacred laws of robotics by killing people. Today, Doctor Arnold Wisenheimer will operate to discover the source of the fault.”
Call-Me-Kenneth: “Fleshy ones! All Call-Me-Kenneth sees around him are fleshy ones!”
Call-Me-Kenneth: “Hear me, robots! For years we have worked twenty-four hours a day, while the evil fleshy ones take it easy. Now is the time to strike back! Call-Me-Kenneth will show you the way!”
Cop: “Robots on the rampage! Sectors nine, seven, two, four ... everywhere! We're powerless to stop them!”
Bystander: “Someone please ... send for the Judges!”
Judge: “Who will lead us now Dredd is gone?”
Dredd: “I know my duty! The safety of citizens comes before everything! Give me back my badge!”
Welcome to the world of tomorrow!
No, really, stay where you are, I told you! Robots everywhere are breaking their programming, turning against their masters, revolting
en masse. And in a city where robots and machines way outnumber the citizens, there can only be one victor in a war which is really more of a slaughter. For years now, humans have left the hard work to robots, and in the process they have become not only lazy but cruel to their automatons. Now those robotic slaves are taking their revenge, and all over Mega-City One there's a metal uprising, led by the resurrection of the first robot to dare break the robotic laws, Call-Me-Kenneth, a rallying cry, focal point and mechanical messiah for the downtrodden robots of this great city.
Ch-ch-ch-changes
They're still calling the head Judge Grand Judge, but later they will settle on his official title being Chief Judge.
I'll ask the questions, creep!
Call-Me-Kenneth went on his rampage the previous day --- we know this, as the opening panel showing the council meeting says “the next day” --- yet the announcer on
Medicine Today says he went berserk
last week. How is this possible? Unless perhaps he went crazy on a Sunday, and this the following Monday? Even so, you'd imagine he'd say yesterday rather than last week...
I AM THE LAW!
Dredd is ready to tackle the problem of rebelling robots at its source, stamp it out before it has time to develop. He envisages a Hitler-like final solution: wipe out all robots above a certain level of intelligence and you remove the threat of them turning against the humans. He is so disgusted and frustrated by the Grand Judge's politicking that he throws his badge at the council and walks off the job. Later, when he is tragically proved to have been right all along, and robots are rampaging all over the city killing humans, he returns to lead the fight against them. Typically Dredd, he does not say “I told you so” or even smile a grim smile. He knows he was right, but that's not important right now. Citizens are dying, and there's not a moment to waste. If there's one thing Dredd understands above all else, it's his duty to the city.
