Earlier this year, IDW put out a handful of one-shots called Deviations, built around the idea of stories that asked what if things happened differently in stories of their classic characters, leading to some kind of "else world." As familiar as that idea might be, it produced some really amazing stories that took concepts like "What if Cobra Commander won?" or "What would happen if the Ghostbusters never crossed the streams?" and did some pretty fantastic stuff. And now, they're coming back for a second round.

In March, IDW is launching another five-week Deviations event, and it's kicking off with a Judge Dredd story where the always amazing John McCrea asks what Mega City One would be like if its toughest lawman had never recovered from that time he was briefly a werewolf.

 

Judge Dredd, IDW
Art by Ryan Brown
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No, really, that happened.

 

Judge Dredd: Cry of the Werewolf, 2000 AD
Art by Steve Dillon
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The original story was called "Cry of the Werewolf," and it ran in the pages of 2000 AD progs #322 to #328 back in 1983, from John Wagner, Alan Grant, Steve Dillon and Tom Frame. It told the story of a werewolf invasion of Mega City One, and while it ended with what might be one of the most groan-worthy puns in the storied history of the UK's greatest comics magazine, it also had some of the best moments in Dredd history. Like, say, this one:

 

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Art by Steve Dillon (Click for full size)
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Here's the solicitation for IDW's sequel:

Judge Dredd: Deviations
John McCrea (w & a & c)

In a world where Judge Dredd turned into a werewolf... and stayed that way! The legendary creator of Dogwelder, John McCrea, takes a sideways look at one of the more celebrated Dredd stories, “Cry of the Werewolf” by John Wagner & Alan Grant and the late, great Steve Dillon. Brace yourself for... “Howl of the Wolf!”
FC • 40 pages • $4.99

Judge Dredd: Deviations —Mash-Up Variant
John McCrea (w & a) • Andrew Currie (c)
FC • 40 pages • $4.99

 

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