Sinister Dexter
Encyclopedia
Sinister Dexter is a long-running comic series in British
comics anthology
2000 AD, created by Dan Abnett
and David Millgate.
Set in the near future, it features the exploits of gun sharks (hitmen
) Finnigan "Finny" Sinister and Ramone "Ray" Dexter in the city
of Downlode, sprawled across Central Europe "like a hit and run victim". Occasional stories have taken place in other cities, or off planet. The size of Downlode is never specified in the strip, but it appears to stretch from Spain
to eastern Europe
.
The appearance of the city largely depends on the artist of the particular storyline, often it appears to be styled after the former soviet bloc, with many statues and wide boulevards, plus dilapidated cars such as Trabant
s and VW Beetle
s. However in other strips the city looks clean and futuristic, like Mega City One. The story "London Town" shows that London
and Great Britain
still exist separate from Downlode.
Police drive generic saloon cars resembling Ford Crown Victoria
s, painted as the cars of the Los Angeles Police Department
; black on bonnet
and boot
, with DCPD written on the white doors. In early strips the police used hovercars with "Polizei
" written on the side, and this hovercraft
technology appears in later stories, retrofitted to old cars such as Checker Cabs. Sinister and Dexter themselves drive a 1950s Edsel
, this started out as a hardtop but in the story "Alibi Of Broadway" had its roof torn off and was re-built as a convertible
.
Advanced robot
s are occasionally seen in the stories, but appear to be very rare, and are usually controlled by humans and are unable to think for themselves. Some characters also have several cyborg
implants, including Ramone himself who has a "Fony Headcase" television implanted into his eyes. In one story a malfunction in this temporarily gave him the ability to see in infra-red and detect a small hole in a crime-bosses' personal forcefield (referred to as a very rare and expensive technology).
The atmosphere of the stories suggests a time of economic recession
. Sophisticated army hardware is sold off to the highest bidder, usually criminal gangs. Additionally many strips feature the city looking worn and run-down even in "rich" areas. In the story "Mother 'Lode And The Red Admiral" it is mentioned that Korea
has developed cold fusion
and become the world's richest nation.
Ramone uses a pair of "Ruger
Nines", often drawn as silver 9mm pistols, or occasionally as revolver
s. Sinister's "Minigun" (not to be confused with General Electric
's Minigun
) has been drawn differently by different artists: small pump-action shotgun
, large double-barrelled revolver and small machine pistol. It can fire different kinds of bullets, including high explosives.
Sinister Dexter is a play on words; in Latin sinister means 'on the left side' and dexter means 'on the right side'. It can be traced back to the Principia Discordia
, quote: "Sinister Dexter has a broken spirometer."
The initial inspiration for Sinister Dexter came from Samuel L. Jackson
and John Travolta
's characters in Pulp Fiction
. However Dexter is designed to look like Wesley Snipes
.
Eventually a large price is put on the head of Holy Moses himself, expecting Sinister and Dexter to take the contract he sends hit-men to kill them, after killing these they decide to take the contract, as their reputation would dictate they have to take the toughest jobs. After a battle which results in the duo both being nearly killed Holy Moses is killed and the person who put out the contract is revealed to be his wife, Demi Octavo.
A brief period of gang violence follows as various gangs attempt to take control of the city's underworld for themselves. Eventually The Czar, moblord of the Russian mafia calls a conference of gang leaders in an attempt to resolve the situation and hires Sinister and Dexter as security for the meeting. During the meeting, Sinister and Dexter discover that, naturally, every single gang has made plans to assassinate the other gang leaders. After these are fought off The Czar reveals "himself" to be a robot double outfitted with a close-focus nuke in its chest cavity. With the gang leaders dead The Czar is able to take over the underworld for himself.
Following the gang-war, Sinister and Dexter are hired by an accountant working for a Mr Bronsky "Ballpeen" Hammer as protection to 'expedite' the handover of the year-end accounts. The rendezvous between the accountant and Mr Hammer's men in Fred Quimby Municipal Park is violently interrupted by the Department of Taxation, causing the "Infamous Audit Showdown of '66". As a result of the carnage, Sinister and Dexter decide to take a holiday and The Czar recommends that they visit a nightclub in Asbestopol known as the Bawdwalk. At the club a pair of hired muscle known as Buddy Boom and Buddy Bing are threatening the club owner, Kilopatra, so Sinister and Dexter step in to help him and scare off the heavies, thus picking themselves up a holiday job.
Kilopatra sends the pair off to pay a visit to local mob-king Philly O'Fisch, as it was he who sent the two heavies after Kilopatra. Sinister and Dexter kill the two Buddies and warn Philly off Kilopatra under threat of taking one of the many contracts that Philly has on his head. When they return from this job, they run into Demi Octavo who is at the nightclub under a pseudonym, she tells the pair that the word spread that she was the one who put out the hit on Holy Moses Tanembaum so she decided to escape Downlode. The Czar suggested that she head to the Bawdwalk, which convinces Sinister and Dexter that The Czar has set them all up.
The pair invade Philly's island lair and kill him and all of his minions and return to Downlode to take out the Czar using a giant, cyborg alligator that ticks (referencing J. M. Barrie
's Peter Pan
). After this, Demi Octavo takes over as mob-queen and hires Sinister and Dexter as her personal guardians.
Stories from now on generally revolve around them protecting her empire, though occasionally they also take contracts from other people. During this time Demi's kid sister, Billi Octavo, decides to become a Gunshark, but a misunderstanding results in her killing some respected city dignitaries. During the ensuing police chase Sinister explains the unwritten "Gunshark Code" that they never kill cops or "innocents". Later Billi hacks into the police database and finds the dignitaries she killed where actually guilty of "perverted" crimes and it had been covered up. She released this data to the media and the police where forced to abandon the hunt. It is also revealed most rank-and-file police officers actually support Gunsharks, because they only kill other criminals which results in less criminals overall.
Later Dexter begins to see visions on his "Headcase" TV which suggest he is a wanted serial killer, the Blemvoi Butcher. It turns out the actual killer also has a "Headcase" and the signals have got confused. The Butcher lures the pair and two police officers, including the "by-the-book" Tracey Weld, into a trap. Dexter kills the butcher and this eventually leads to his becoming romantically involved with Weld.
Later Demi Octavo is killed and the city once again descends into turmoil. During this time the pair "train" another Gunshark, Kal Kutter.
Another mob boss, called Apellido, begins to take over the city and sends a huge squad of "bullet monkeys" (inferior but cheaper gunsharks) after Billi Octavo. Sinister attempts to get her out of the city but the other hitmen are chasing the two. Meanwhile Dexter is with Detective Weld when he hears the news and rushes out of the house with his guns drawn. By chance he is seen by a police officer who tells him to freeze, before going to get out his handcuffs. Dexter misinterprets this as the officer going for his gun and kills him, thereby breaking the gunshark code. He escapes but doesn't get very far before being surrounded. Fearful of being tortured in prison a standoff ensues, and he is eventually shot by Weld. Sinister is last seen speeding out of the city, with a wounded Billi octavo in the car, still pursued by the bullet monkeys.
The story line at the end of 2005 (over the instalments "...and Death shall have no dumb minions" and "Festive Spirits") seemed to suggest that the deadly duo were both dead. However, this didn't stop some one-page "gag strips" from appearing in the Judge Dredd Magazine
This issue has now been addressed in passing as part of the twist in the, initially apparently unconnected, series Malone. The "Festive Spirits" story, in which both appeared as skeletal zombies who where apparently ignored by their old friends, is hinted at merely being one of Malone's dreams.
After surviving the showdown with his boss, Apellido, Sinister changed his face
and took drug
s to try to forget his past, fleeing offworld to Generica. It wasn't until Rocky Rhodes told him of his true identity
that he returned to Downlode City
to get revenge on Apellido making sure he knows that he's now alive. It was also revealed that Ramone also survived the shooting but was rendered quadriplegic.
Sinister allowed himself to be captured and was sent to the same prison as Ramone, with a plan to escape. After enlisting the help of two other prisoners, he executes the breakout and escapes with Ramone in a wheelchair. Heading to an old doctor friend it is revealed Ramone has been kept immobilised by an implant in his spine. With this removed, and surviving an attack by another Apellido hit-squad, the head for a run-down lockup. There Sinister stashed the Edsel and their old guns. They collect these and drive back into Downlode to again work as gunsharks, bringing the series full circle.
. The "Downlode Tales" story arcs published between progs #1144 and #1168 have been omitted, despite these stories forming an important part of the main narrative.
Volumes published so far:
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comics anthology
Comics anthology
Comics anthologies collect works in the medium of comics that are too short for standalone publication.- U.S. :- UK :British comics have a long tradition publishing comics anthologies, often weekly...
2000 AD, created by Dan Abnett
Dan Abnett
Dan Abnett is a British comic book writer and novelist. He is a frequent collaborator with fellow writer Andy Lanning, and is known for his work on books for both Marvel Comics, and their UK imprint, Marvel UK, since the 1990s, including 2000 AD...
and David Millgate.
Set in the near future, it features the exploits of gun sharks (hitmen
Hitman
A hitman is a person hired to kill another person.- Hitmen in organized crime :Hitmen are largely linked to the world of organized crime. Hitmen are hired people who kill people for money. Notable examples include Murder, Inc., Mafia hitmen and Richard Kuklinski.- Other cases involving hitmen...
) Finnigan "Finny" Sinister and Ramone "Ray" Dexter in the city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
of Downlode, sprawled across Central Europe "like a hit and run victim". Occasional stories have taken place in other cities, or off planet. The size of Downlode is never specified in the strip, but it appears to stretch from Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
to eastern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
The appearance of the city largely depends on the artist of the particular storyline, often it appears to be styled after the former soviet bloc, with many statues and wide boulevards, plus dilapidated cars such as Trabant
Trabant
The Trabant is a car that was produced by former East German auto maker VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau in Zwickau, Sachsen. It was the most common vehicle in East Germany, and was also exported to countries both inside and outside the communist bloc...
s and VW Beetle
Volkswagen Beetle
The Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...
s. However in other strips the city looks clean and futuristic, like Mega City One. The story "London Town" shows that London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
still exist separate from Downlode.
Police drive generic saloon cars resembling Ford Crown Victoria
Ford Crown Victoria
-1992–1994:Released in March 1991 as an early 1992 model, the Crown Victoria sedan was completely redesigned with a rounder, eight-window roofline . The redesign reduced the coefficient of drag from 0.42 to 0.34; the suspension setup was also heavily revised...
s, painted as the cars of the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
; black on bonnet
Hood (vehicle)
The hood or bonnet is the hinged cover over the engine of motor vehicles that allows access to the engine compartment for maintenance and repair. In British terminology, hood refers to a fabric cover over the passenger compartment of the car...
and boot
Trunk (automobile)
The trunk or boot of an automobile or car is the vehicle's main storage, luggage, or cargo compartment. Trunk is used in North American English and Jamaican English; boot is used elsewhere in the English speaking world. Trunk is also primarily used in many non-English speaking regions, such as...
, with DCPD written on the white doors. In early strips the police used hovercars with "Polizei
Polizei
Polizei is the German word for police. It might refer to:-National agencies:*Bundespolizei - Federal Police of Germany*Bundespolizei - Federal Police of Austria*Bundeskriminalamt - Federal Criminal Office of Germany, comparable to the FBI...
" written on the side, and this hovercraft
Hovercraft
A hovercraft is a craft capable of traveling over surfaces while supported by a cushion of slow moving, high-pressure air which is ejected against the surface below and contained within a "skirt." Although supported by air, a hovercraft is not considered an aircraft.Hovercraft are used throughout...
technology appears in later stories, retrofitted to old cars such as Checker Cabs. Sinister and Dexter themselves drive a 1950s Edsel
Edsel
The Edsel was an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company during the 1958, 1959, and 1960 model years. The Edsel never gained popularity with contemporary American car buyers and sold poorly. Consequently, the Ford Motor Company lost millions of dollars on the Edsel's development,...
, this started out as a hardtop but in the story "Alibi Of Broadway" had its roof torn off and was re-built as a convertible
Convertible
A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...
.
Advanced robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s are occasionally seen in the stories, but appear to be very rare, and are usually controlled by humans and are unable to think for themselves. Some characters also have several cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
implants, including Ramone himself who has a "Fony Headcase" television implanted into his eyes. In one story a malfunction in this temporarily gave him the ability to see in infra-red and detect a small hole in a crime-bosses' personal forcefield (referred to as a very rare and expensive technology).
The atmosphere of the stories suggests a time of economic recession
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
. Sophisticated army hardware is sold off to the highest bidder, usually criminal gangs. Additionally many strips feature the city looking worn and run-down even in "rich" areas. In the story "Mother 'Lode And The Red Admiral" it is mentioned that Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
has developed cold fusion
Cold fusion
Cold fusion, also called low-energy nuclear reaction , refers to the hypothesis that nuclear fusion might explain the results of a group of experiments conducted at ordinary temperatures . Both the experimental results and the hypothesis are disputed...
and become the world's richest nation.
Ramone uses a pair of "Ruger
Sturm, Ruger
Sturm, Ruger & Company, Incorporated is a Southport, Connecticut-based firearm manufacturing company, better known by the shortened name Ruger. Sturm, Ruger produces bolt-action, semi-automatic, full-automatic, and single-shot rifles, shotguns, semi-automatic pistols, and single- and double-action...
Nines", often drawn as silver 9mm pistols, or occasionally as revolver
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
s. Sinister's "Minigun" (not to be confused with General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
's Minigun
Minigun
The Minigun is a 7.62 mm, multi-barrel heavy machine gun with a high rate of fire , employing Gatling-style rotating barrels with an external power source...
) has been drawn differently by different artists: small pump-action shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
, large double-barrelled revolver and small machine pistol. It can fire different kinds of bullets, including high explosives.
Sinister Dexter is a play on words; in Latin sinister means 'on the left side' and dexter means 'on the right side'. It can be traced back to the Principia Discordia
Principia Discordia
Principia Discordia is a Discordian religious text written by Greg Hill and Kerry Thornley . It was originally published under the title "Principia Discordia or How The West Was Lost" in a limited edition of 5 copies in 1965...
, quote: "Sinister Dexter has a broken spirometer."
The initial inspiration for Sinister Dexter came from Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
and John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
's characters in Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction (film)
Pulp Fiction is a 1994 American crime film directed by Quentin Tarantino, who co-wrote its screenplay with Roger Avary. The film is known for its rich, eclectic dialogue, ironic mix of humor and violence, nonlinear storyline, and host of cinematic allusions and pop culture references...
. However Dexter is designed to look like Wesley Snipes
Wesley Snipes
Wesley Trent Snipes is an American actor, film producer, and martial artist, who has starred in numerous action films, thrillers, and dramatic feature films. Snipes is known for playing the Marvel Comics character Blade in the Blade film trilogy, among various other high profile roles...
.
Plot
In early stories the duo work as freelance hit-men, taking contracts from their "fact-totem", a PDA-like device, and killing people for money. The kingpin of crime in these early stories is Holy Moses Tanenbaum.Eventually a large price is put on the head of Holy Moses himself, expecting Sinister and Dexter to take the contract he sends hit-men to kill them, after killing these they decide to take the contract, as their reputation would dictate they have to take the toughest jobs. After a battle which results in the duo both being nearly killed Holy Moses is killed and the person who put out the contract is revealed to be his wife, Demi Octavo.
A brief period of gang violence follows as various gangs attempt to take control of the city's underworld for themselves. Eventually The Czar, moblord of the Russian mafia calls a conference of gang leaders in an attempt to resolve the situation and hires Sinister and Dexter as security for the meeting. During the meeting, Sinister and Dexter discover that, naturally, every single gang has made plans to assassinate the other gang leaders. After these are fought off The Czar reveals "himself" to be a robot double outfitted with a close-focus nuke in its chest cavity. With the gang leaders dead The Czar is able to take over the underworld for himself.
Following the gang-war, Sinister and Dexter are hired by an accountant working for a Mr Bronsky "Ballpeen" Hammer as protection to 'expedite' the handover of the year-end accounts. The rendezvous between the accountant and Mr Hammer's men in Fred Quimby Municipal Park is violently interrupted by the Department of Taxation, causing the "Infamous Audit Showdown of '66". As a result of the carnage, Sinister and Dexter decide to take a holiday and The Czar recommends that they visit a nightclub in Asbestopol known as the Bawdwalk. At the club a pair of hired muscle known as Buddy Boom and Buddy Bing are threatening the club owner, Kilopatra, so Sinister and Dexter step in to help him and scare off the heavies, thus picking themselves up a holiday job.
Kilopatra sends the pair off to pay a visit to local mob-king Philly O'Fisch, as it was he who sent the two heavies after Kilopatra. Sinister and Dexter kill the two Buddies and warn Philly off Kilopatra under threat of taking one of the many contracts that Philly has on his head. When they return from this job, they run into Demi Octavo who is at the nightclub under a pseudonym, she tells the pair that the word spread that she was the one who put out the hit on Holy Moses Tanembaum so she decided to escape Downlode. The Czar suggested that she head to the Bawdwalk, which convinces Sinister and Dexter that The Czar has set them all up.
The pair invade Philly's island lair and kill him and all of his minions and return to Downlode to take out the Czar using a giant, cyborg alligator that ticks (referencing J. M. Barrie
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
's Peter Pan
Peter and Wendy
Peter and Wendy, published in 1911, is the novelisation by J. M. Barrie of his most famous play Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up...
). After this, Demi Octavo takes over as mob-queen and hires Sinister and Dexter as her personal guardians.
Stories from now on generally revolve around them protecting her empire, though occasionally they also take contracts from other people. During this time Demi's kid sister, Billi Octavo, decides to become a Gunshark, but a misunderstanding results in her killing some respected city dignitaries. During the ensuing police chase Sinister explains the unwritten "Gunshark Code" that they never kill cops or "innocents". Later Billi hacks into the police database and finds the dignitaries she killed where actually guilty of "perverted" crimes and it had been covered up. She released this data to the media and the police where forced to abandon the hunt. It is also revealed most rank-and-file police officers actually support Gunsharks, because they only kill other criminals which results in less criminals overall.
Later Dexter begins to see visions on his "Headcase" TV which suggest he is a wanted serial killer, the Blemvoi Butcher. It turns out the actual killer also has a "Headcase" and the signals have got confused. The Butcher lures the pair and two police officers, including the "by-the-book" Tracey Weld, into a trap. Dexter kills the butcher and this eventually leads to his becoming romantically involved with Weld.
Later Demi Octavo is killed and the city once again descends into turmoil. During this time the pair "train" another Gunshark, Kal Kutter.
Another mob boss, called Apellido, begins to take over the city and sends a huge squad of "bullet monkeys" (inferior but cheaper gunsharks) after Billi Octavo. Sinister attempts to get her out of the city but the other hitmen are chasing the two. Meanwhile Dexter is with Detective Weld when he hears the news and rushes out of the house with his guns drawn. By chance he is seen by a police officer who tells him to freeze, before going to get out his handcuffs. Dexter misinterprets this as the officer going for his gun and kills him, thereby breaking the gunshark code. He escapes but doesn't get very far before being surrounded. Fearful of being tortured in prison a standoff ensues, and he is eventually shot by Weld. Sinister is last seen speeding out of the city, with a wounded Billi octavo in the car, still pursued by the bullet monkeys.
The story line at the end of 2005 (over the instalments "...and Death shall have no dumb minions" and "Festive Spirits") seemed to suggest that the deadly duo were both dead. However, this didn't stop some one-page "gag strips" from appearing in the Judge Dredd Magazine
This issue has now been addressed in passing as part of the twist in the, initially apparently unconnected, series Malone. The "Festive Spirits" story, in which both appeared as skeletal zombies who where apparently ignored by their old friends, is hinted at merely being one of Malone's dreams.
After surviving the showdown with his boss, Apellido, Sinister changed his face
Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. Though cosmetic or aesthetic surgery is the best-known kind of plastic surgery, most plastic surgery is not cosmetic: plastic surgery includes many types of reconstructive surgery, hand...
and took drug
Drug
A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...
s to try to forget his past, fleeing offworld to Generica. It wasn't until Rocky Rhodes told him of his true identity
Identity (social science)
Identity is a term used to describe a person's conception and expression of their individuality or group affiliations . The term is used more specifically in psychology and sociology, and is given a great deal of attention in social psychology...
that he returned to Downlode City
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
to get revenge on Apellido making sure he knows that he's now alive. It was also revealed that Ramone also survived the shooting but was rendered quadriplegic.
Sinister allowed himself to be captured and was sent to the same prison as Ramone, with a plan to escape. After enlisting the help of two other prisoners, he executes the breakout and escapes with Ramone in a wheelchair. Heading to an old doctor friend it is revealed Ramone has been kept immobilised by an implant in his spine. With this removed, and surviving an attack by another Apellido hit-squad, the head for a run-down lockup. There Sinister stashed the Edsel and their old guns. They collect these and drive back into Downlode to again work as gunsharks, bringing the series full circle.
Characters
- Finnigan Rapunzel Sinister, is an IrishIrish peopleThe Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
hitman who is known to be superstitious. He is married. - Ramone Algonquin Winnibago Dexter is SpanishSpanish peopleThe Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
and is known to be a "fashionFashionFashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
guru" and womanizer.
- AssociateVoluntary associationA voluntary association or union is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement as volunteers to form a body to accomplish a purpose.Strictly speaking, in many jurisdictions no formalities are necessary to start an association...
s include:- Satan Brink (Deceased), fellow gunshark and street fighterStreet fightingStreet fighting is a colloquial term used to denote unsanctioned, illegal in some countries, hand-to-hand fighting in public places, between individuals or groups of people....
from TasmaniaTasmaniaTasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart... - Anopheles Bunkum (Deceased), former police detectiveDetectiveA detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
- Floppy Dick (Deceased), a friend of the hitmen
- Billy Fix, a Tourettes sufferer in Download PenitentiaryPrisonA prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
- Wendy Go, Rocky Rhodes' wifeWifeA wife is a female partner in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the wife regarding her spouse and others, and her status in the community and in law, varies between cultures and has varied over time.-Origin and etymology:...
and barmaid at the BarBar (establishment)A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
None - Carrie Hosanna, Finnigan's wife and fellow gunshark
- "Nervous" Rex Monday (Deceased), snitchInformantAn informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
and friend to the hitmen - Billi Octavo, younger sisterSiblingSiblings are people who share at least one parent. A male sibling is called a brother; and a female sibling is called a sister. In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood socializing with one another...
of Demi and friend to the hitmen - Demi Octavo (Deceased), girlfriendGirlfriendGirlfriend is a term that can refer to either a female partner in a non-marital romantic relationship or a female non-romantic friend that is closer than other friends....
of "Holy" Moses Tannebaum and former crime boss - Rocky Rhodes, a former cop and friend, owner of the BarBar (establishment)A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
None - Lizzy Solemnis, a singer on the planetPlanetA planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
Generica - The SurgeonSurgerySurgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
, a surgeon for the criminal underworldOrganized crimeOrganized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are... - Clayton Tushman, Sinister & Dexter's LawyerLawyerA lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
- Tonto Vega (Deceased), a SiouxSiouxThe Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
IndianIndigenous peoples of the AmericasThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
and wannabe gunshark - Tracy Weld, a rookieRookieRookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
cop and Ramone's girlfriend - Deakus Whisk, a bank robberBank robberyBank robbery is the crime of stealing from a bank during opening hours. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, robbery is "the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of...
in Download PenitentiaryPrisonA prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime... - SteamPunk Willy (Deceased), a former gunshark whose brainBrainThe brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
was encased in a total body prosthesisProsthesisIn medicine, a prosthesis, prosthetic, or prosthetic limb is an artificial device extension that replaces a missing body part. It is part of the field of biomechatronics, the science of using mechanical devices with human muscle, skeleton, and nervous systems to assist or enhance motor control...
. - Kal Cutter, former studentStudentA student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...
of Sinister & Dexter
- Satan Brink (Deceased), fellow gunshark and street fighter
- Major villains include:
- The Apellido Mob:
- Apellido, current Crime LordCrime bossA crime boss or boss is a person in charge of a criminal organization. A boss typically has absolute or near-absolute control over his subordinates, is greatly feared by his subordinates for his ruthlessness and willingness to take lives in order to exert his influence, and profits come from the...
of Download City - Ronko, Apellido's chief enforcerCrimeCrime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
. Described as being "like the bog roll: Rough, abrasive and hard on everyone's ass". Killed by Dexter. - Lars Maybach, Apellido's chief bankerAccountantAn accountant is a practitioner of accountancy or accounting , which is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers, investors, tax authorities and others make decisions about allocating resources.The Big Four auditors are the largest...
- Charlie Bigelow, one of Apellido's enforcer
- Chevy Brakes, a minor enforcer
- Apellido, current Crime Lord
- The Mover's Mob:
- "Holy" Moses Tannebaum (The Mover), first Crime Lord of Download City. Was killed by the duo on the orders of Demi Octavo. Recently, another "Holy" MosesParallel universe (fiction)A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
revealed himself to be "The Mover" - Miss Deeds, The Mover's assistant
- John Croak, his Second-in-commandSecond-in-commandThe Second-in-Command is the deputy commander of any British Army or Royal Marines unit, from battalion or regiment downwards. He or she is thus the equivalent of an Executive Officer in the United States Army...
- Cane Broadus, Kal Cutter's partner in crimePartnershipA partnership is an arrangement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests.Since humans are social beings, partnerships between individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments, and varied combinations thereof, have always been and remain commonplace...
- "Holy" Moses Tannebaum (The Mover), first Crime Lord of Download City. Was killed by the duo on the orders of Demi Octavo. Recently, another "Holy" Moses
- Telemachus Gore (Deceased), corruptPolice corruptionPolice corruption is a specific form of police misconduct designed to obtain financial benefits, other personal gain, or career advancement for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest....
cop and former Crime Lord/Marshal - Serge, a gangsterGangsterA gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Some gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from mob and the suffix -ster....
on the planet Generica
- The Apellido Mob:
Collected editions
The comics have been collected into trade paperbacksTrade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
. The "Downlode Tales" story arcs published between progs #1144 and #1168 have been omitted, despite these stories forming an important part of the main narrative.
Volumes published so far:
- Gunshark Vacation (collects "Gunshark Vacation", 128 pages, RebellionRebellion DevelopmentsRebellion is a British computer games company, based in Oxford, who are most famous for the first Aliens vs. Predator computer game. It has published comic books since 2000 and launched its own book imprint, Abaddon Books, in 2006.-History:...
, September 2004, ISBN 1-904265-16-2, DC ComicsDC ComicsDC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, October 2004, ISBN 1-4012-0391-4) - Murder 101 (collects 2000 AD #1051-1082, 160 pages, Rebellion, January 2005, ISBN 1-904265-26-X , DC Comics, ISBN 1-4012-0575-5)
- Slay Per View (collects 2000 AD #1084-1124, 240 pages, Rebellion, May 2005, ISBN 1-904265-38-3, DC Comics, June 2005, ISBN 1-4012-0587-9)
- Eurocrash (collects 2000 AD #1125-1139, Prog 2000, #1181 and #1189-1999, 160 pages, Rebellion, March 2009, ISBN 1-905437-93-5)
- Money Shots (collects 2000AD #1200-1211, 1220-1228, 1231-1235 and Prog 2001, 192 pages, Rebellion, October 2009, ISBN 1-906735-17-4)
External links
- Sinister Dexter at 2000 AD online