Missed opportunities: Revisiting two lesser known comic titles to create an epic saga.

Back in 2015, 2000ad set about explaining and advertising the rich worlds and stories that have been a mainstay of the beloved comic for the last 40 years through a series of short web videos. As a newly returned 2000ad fan it has been a true delight to both rediscover old titles that made me such a fan in my formative years as well as discover titles that I had missed. As a result of this fantastic series I began to collect older back issues of The Galaxies Greatest Comic, much to the frustration of my beloved wife (she objected to constantly having to go with me to collect parcels from the post office).

It did not take long to notice a certain pattern emerge in 2000ad that piqued my creative curiosity. Ever since I was a boy I have held an odd fascination for books, comics & series that were never given a full run. The possibilities that were commonplace in series I have long held as beloved to me have often burned my imagination with possibilities and have served as something of a backbone to my creative thinking.

2000ad, unlike other more popular comic book titles, does not operate on the single issue, single lead standard. Instead it has long held the anthology format. Six stories are printed in weekly episodes usually containing six page per issue or prog as they are known. This has allowed certain advantages as the standard comic book format usually stands at 30 pages per episode so it allows long term storytelling to spread out for the length of years but it also allows the editors to prematurely axe stories they deem unsuccessful.

In this blog I will attempt to re-sell two of 2000ad's lesser known titles into a sprawling epic: Tao De Moto & Tiger Sun, Dragon Moon.

Both titles were separated by a good decade or more but shared enough similarities to be worth revisiting under the right creative direction.

The History:

Tao De Moto follows the story of a young exotic dancer down on her luck. Out of work and risking eviction Tao agrees to be the surrogate mother for a strange alien race called the Emperiums. It doesn't take long before she realises that she has probably made a mistake and so goes on the run to avoid her legally contracted obligations. Hunted by the very people who employed her Tao reunites with old friends as she travels the galaxy to retain her individuality and to shirk her responsibilities.

Lacking the action 2000ad fans had come to expect and being printed as two or three page issues, Tao De Moto was hard for fans to invest in properly but at its core lay an intriguing story. As a leading character Tao was was written to ultimately fill the void left by Alan Moore's classic, again unfinished work, Halo Jones, and was intended to be as common as the girl next door. There was nothing spectacular about her she was simply the right person at the wrong time. She was excellently written and wholly believable and was a solid lead in an otherwise lack lustre story that could have done with a touch more fleshing out.

If Tao De Moto held the foreground with an engaging lead then Tiger Sun, Dragon Moon definitely held the background.

Set nominally in Dredd's future and taking place in the eastern block, Tiger Sun, Dragon Moon told the story of a warlord called Chang who rises to power believing that he is the reincarnation of Genghis Khan. Chang's fragile ego is manipulated by power, sorcery and manipulative advisors and as a result he is searching for a fabled weapon, Dragon Moon, that will give him dominance over the world. Once he finds it his sights are immediately set on Hondo City and their ruling royal family who possess their own supernatural sword, Tiger Sun, as the first realm he wishes to conquer.

Like Tao De Moto, Tiger Sun lacked certain elements to truly give it the kick that it needed in order to solidify it among other known 2000ad classics. It's true failure was that there was no solid leading character to hold onto. The royal children, while obviously intended to be the main focus, were pushed aside in favour of thrilling action sequences between Chang's forces and the Imperial bodyguards. With no central character to focus on the story felt as though it was trying to come into being without knowing what it was.

On the surface it would seem that two such radically different stories would bear little in common aside from their shared Chinese/Japanese/Mongolian artwork but given the right thinking, could become something truly special.

The Pitch:

Ever since I read through both of these titles that old familiar writers itch has been scratching away at the back of my skull. The remedy to these two stories is so obvious to me that a child could have put it together and made it work.

Both of these titles possesses what the other lacks and both have the potential to be astounding but let me tell you how I see these two stories combining.

Like any great saga the story, which we will for the time being call "The Phoenix Child", it begins with a funeral.

It is the year 3000 and mankind has gone to the stars. Exiled from their homeland, Earth, the human race has flourished out in the thousand colony worlds that have made up their empire. Ruling over mankind are the Golden Emperors, a sub-race of humanity who have been genetically altered to give them long life and powers to guide mankind out to the stars.

At the books beginning, Emperor Kangxi has died and the funeral is being held in the royal burial temple on the moon. The funeral is attended by the Emperor's twin sons, Chang and Sashi. Each of them holds one of the two royal swords, Tiger Sun and Dragon Moon, that are said to be the key to unlocking a force field surrounding Earth. Before either one can inherit the Empire, and the title of Ruler, they must first solve the riddle of the force field which holds three keys, two made for the legendary swords and a third which has remained a mystery.

Both princes are equally ambitious and eye Earth enviously. Unable to access it due to the force field that surrounds the planet which will only unlock for the next emperor, both sides plot to destroy the other, threatening to plunge the galaxy into civil war. However, they remain unaware that their father has foreseen the intentions of both men and, as such, has prepared for the war that is threatening to emerge.

Before he died the Emperor sent his Major Domo and most trusted advisor, Ducard, on a mission across the colony worlds to find a genetic descendant of the great Emperor Qianlong and use their genetic material to clone a true heir worthy of the title of Emperor.

His mission takes him to a far flung colony out on the furthest reaches the territories and to the city of Snitches Point. Here under the guise of a corporate figure seeking viable candidates for medical experiments he finds Tao De Moto, an out of work stripper hard on her luck and in need of money to get her back on her feet. After passing the initial tests, Ducard sees that she is in fact the descendant he has been looking for and offers to pay her handsomely to carry the child he has been ordered to create.

Tao is skeptical at first but her circumstances have forced her into a situation she has no choice but to accept. As the book progresses so does Tao's pregnancy. She is moved into a luxury home and attended by a nurse from the Celtic colony world of New Connaught by the name of Sinead.

But Ducard isn't the only one who is searching for Tao. The war has already begun and both sons have sent their own men to find the one who would threaten their claim to the throne and to eliminate them. It's only when an attempt is made on Tao's life that she is told the full extent in her role in the war to come and that her attending midwife is in fact one of Ducard's agents sent to protect and defend her from those who would see her, and the child she carries, dead.

The tale would move forward and new characters from Tao's past would come to her aid. Figures such as her estranged pirate mother would enter the fray, taking no sides but her daughters in a desperate bid to save her life and that of the child she carries. The story would continue on through several books, leading inevitably to The Phoenix Child's birth and his being raised by Tao and Sinead as they become something of an unlikely family unit.

As the child grows so too does his abilities and he would be forced to face his destiny along with his mother as the civil war between the two royal princes spirals out of control and threatens to destroy everything the Emperors have built.

All of this is but a taste of what could have been and does not even begin to scratch the surface of a multi faceted saga that could have gone on for years.

In Conclusion:

There is a great deal to be said for this concept and the swelling mass of possibilities that it could contain. The limits of where this story could go are only restricted to the imagination of whoever would undertake its execution. Under the guiding hands of someone like Dan Abnett, Ian Edgington, Gordon Rennie and a whole host of other writers and artists, this could be the kind of science fantasy that readers would eagerly eat up.

The above talent has never been afraid to push boundaries and as such themes of race, class and sexuality could just as easily be interwoven into a new kind of science fiction epic. Matters such as economical inequality could be addressed. The expectation of becoming a parent being argued against the very desire to become one could also be explored. Issues such as social media and body image could become true themes so long as the writer executed it within the confines of a very real and structured world. All of this and more could be given a platform if 2000ad were brave enough to go back and take a chance on two stories that never had their day

Had I the time, means and ability to do it myself there would be no doubt that I would spend my time penning the story rather than a thought piece on the possibility of its existence. As such, this is mere speculation, the tortured fantasy of a fan and writer lamenting at what could have been as opposed to what was.

The likelihood that 2000ad would revisit these two titles is remote at best. Neither one truly drew an audience worthy enough to bring about a revival, yet the material left serves as an interesting writing experiment for brain addled fools, such as myself, with too much time on their hands and too big of an imagination to keep under control.

For those who would like to know more about Tao De Moto and Tiger Sun, Dragon Moon please view the 2000ad ABC in the links below and, hopefully, enjoy what you see.

Tao De Moto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU3Y6Z8MFjo

Tiger Sun, Dragon Moon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-aewWf4hhs