Jack Point

Jack Point is also a character in The Yeomen of the Guard.

Jack Point aka "the Simping Detective" is a character in the comic Judge Dredd Megazine, a spin-off from 2000 AD. He was created by Simon Spurrier and Frazer Irving.

He was originally a Mega-City One Judge but took to working undercover, with his cover story being he was dismissed as a Judge for excessive use of force to become a private detective. He works in Sector 13 (Known as Angeltown), a notoriously corrupt sector of Mega-City One run by the mysterious Boss, and is well-known for his distinctive speech patterns and high perversity as well as his preference for whiskey (particularly Jack Daniels).

Fictional character biography

His first major case involved investigating the Crystal Blue drug, which led him into a conspiracy involving the corrupt new Sector Chief Daveez, a nun-run school for troubled juves (who were producing the drug), and the vicious alien predators known as the Raptaurs, whom the drug is manufactured from. He just barely managed to destroy all the Raptaurs and adopted the offspring of one - dubbed Cliq - as a pet and back-up. He has since been involved in several cases alongside and conflicting with fellow PI Galen DeMarco, as well as investigating a new incarnation of the mass-murdering Hunters Club. He made an ally and crush in the mysterious PVC-clad Miss Ann Thropé, who helped him on several cases; it turned out she was manipulating him to kill Cliq & gain a nest of new Raptaurs as a result. She is currently trying to get him to quit the force and join her team of ex-Judge mercenaries.

Name

The nickname the "Simping Detective" comes from his habit of wearing clown accoutrements like a rubber nose and bow tie - in the fictional universe of Judge Dredd, "Simping" is slang for dressing like a fool or simpleton. It is also a play on The Singing Detective. The name 'Jack Point' itself comes from the character of the same name from the Gilbert and Sullivan operetta 'The Yeomen of the Guard,' who is a wandering jester.

Quotes

• "The Simping Detective has established itself as a dyed-in-the-wool, stone-cold classic" - Alan Barnes, editor, Judge Dredd Megazine.

Characters

Characters who have appeared in the series include:

• Jack Point himself
• Judge Dredd
• Judge DeMarco
• Raptaur - Jack has had two Raptaurs, Cliq and Larf.
• Sector Chief Daveez - Jack's corrupt boss. Since the strip Marauder has established another judge in Daveez's job, his fate is presently unknown.
• Miss Anne Thrope - A mysterious ex-Judge turned mercenary, trying to recruit Jack
• SJS Judge Kovacs - Investigating Jack for procedural indiscretions
• "The Boss" - An unseen criminal mastermind who runs "The Firm", the main criminal organisation in Angeltown

Appearances

• The Simping Detective (by Simon Spurrier and Frazer Irving, trade paperback, 144 pages, September 2007, ISBN 1905437447)^[1] collects:
  • Mega-City Noir: "Gumshoe" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #220, 2004)
  • The Simping Detective:
    • "Crystal Blue" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #221-223, 2004)
    • "Innocence: A Broad" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #224-226, 2004)
    • "Dorks of War" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #227, 2004)
    • "Playing Futsie" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #234-236, 2005)
    • "Fifteen" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #237, 2005)
    • "Petty Crimes" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #238-239, 2005)
    • "No Body, No How" (in Judge Dredd Megazine #253-257, 2006/7)

References

• 2000 AD profile
• International Hero entry

Footnotes

External links

• Interview with Frazer Irving