Comics

2000AD Covers Uncovered – Prog 2000: Digety-Don’t!

25th September 2016

Prog 2000 is here with, count ’em, THREE scrotnig covers by some of the best artists in the galaxy! Tharg has commissioned some of the greatest artdroids ever assembled to celebrate this magnanimous event in zarjaz style! Obviously, if we’re talking about top quality cover artists, then we have to be talking about the wonderful Mr Cliff Robinson. As if producing a cover for the illustrious Prog 2000 wasn’t exciting enough, this is actually Cliff’s 100th Prog cover, making him the first artist to reach triple figures! Congratulations Cliff, here’s to 100 more!

Cliff told us how he created his centennial masterpiece, he said “Originally I had Tharg just holding onto the current Logo as it and everything else in the picture is being sucked into a black hole. Tharg suggested a star going ‘super nova’ instead of a black hole would be better and he also had the great idea of Tharg surfing on the ‘Space Spinner’.”

Below we see Cliff’s roughs…

Tharg doing his best Peter Shilton impression

Lo-going, going, gone!

With the composition decided, Cliff powers on. He continues “Tharg, the spaceship and the characters were all drawn separately and cobbled together on the computer.”

I love, love, love seeing Cliff take on other characters and he didn’t certainly disappoint below…

“Drokking back seat drivers!”

If Savage was here, would he have called Shotgun?

Duck! Here’s that supernova, yikes!

This is actually what a Rigellion Hotshot looks like.

Everybody’s goin’ surfin’, Surfin Betelgeuse.

“Oh, we’re all going on a, Summer Holiday! No more working for a, week or two!”

With all the elements prepared, it’s time for Cliff to assemble the ingredients into a tasty thrill powered cake. However, Cliff noticed a bit of a snag… “As Tharg was going to be holding the main 2000ad logo, I only drew his left hand thumb, figuring it was a waste of time drawing his other fingers when they’d be covered up once the Logo was added. So I was a bit surprised to see the cover appear on the 2000ad website minus all the Logo’s. I guess a small meteorite could have taken off Tharg’s fingers, but if so, would he be smiling so broadly? Of course that could be a symptom of hypoxia due to his space suit being compromised. If anyone should come across Tharg’s fingers, please return them to the Quaxxann lost & found office.”