Lobster Random

Lobster Random
	Lobster Random as seen in the cover of the 2000 AD #1349; by Graham Rolfe
Publication information
Publisher	Rebellion Developments
First appearance	2000 AD #1342
Created by	Simon Spurrier ; Carl Critchlow

Last updated June 10, 2019

Lobster Random is a character in the comic book 2000 AD . He was created by Simon Spurrier and artist Carl Critchlow.

2000 AD is a weekly British science fiction-oriented comic magazine. As a comics anthology it serialises stories in each issue and was first published by IPC Magazines in 1977, the first issue dated 26 February. IPC then shifted the title to its Fleetway comics subsidiary, which was sold to Robert Maxwell in 1987 and then to Egmont UK in 1991. Fleetway continued to produce the title until 2000, when it was bought by Rebellion Developments.

Simon "Si" Spurrier is a British comics writer and novelist, who has previously worked as a cook, a bookseller, and an art director for the BBC.

Carl Critchlow is a British fantasy and science fiction comic illustrator. He is best known for his character Thrud the Barbarian, which originally appeared in White Dwarf magazine, and for his work for the Lobster Random comics.

Overview

Ugly of temper and with a pair of claws surgically grafted onto his sides, Lobster Random was a genetically modified soldier, adapted to never need sleep or to feel pain. After being discharged from the military he found his talents lay in the art of torture, and hired out his services for any client who required information and wasn't squeamish about the methods employed to get it. "Lob" is a cranky old bald man with two huge lobster claws emerging from his back, and is part of a long tradition in 2000 AD giving their protagonists a distinctive visual appearance at odds with the comic book stereotype of square-jawed, good-looking action heroes. Lob's character is portrayed as extremely grumpy, cynical and sometimes psychotic (all resulting from both decades without sleep and his experiences during the time after his discharge from the military). Lob has also had his left arm amputated on three separate occasions (twice was this self-inflicted).

The art, by Carl Critchlow, represented a departure from his older painted style and instead used a computer-based line drawing technique that he developed in his self-published Thrud the Barbarian.

Thrud the Barbarian is a comics character created by Carl Critchlow in 1981. Although Thrud himself is a parody of Conan the Barbarian, particularly as depicted in the Arnold Schwarzenegger films, inspiration for the character's adventures and adversaries has been drawn from several fantasy sources.

Lobster Random debuted in an eight-part adventure in 2003, entitled "No Gain, No Pain." (progs 1342-1349). A hardback collection of this 45-page story was released by Rebellion Developments for the European market in April 2005.

Rebellion Developments Limited is a British video game developer based in Oxford, England. Founded by Jason and Chris Kingsley in December 1992, the company is best known for its Sniper Elite series and multiple games in the Alien vs. Predator series. Rebellion has published comic books since 2000, when it purchased 2000 AD, the publisher of characters such as Judge Dredd and Rogue Trooper.

Notable events of 2005 in comics. See also List of years in comics.

The second series, "Tooth and Claw," ran for nine episodes (with a double-length finale), from progs 1411-1419 (October to December 2004).

The third series was called "The Agony and the Ecstasy".

"The Vort" and subsequently series

Writing under the pseudonym G. Powell, Spurrier introduced a world called The Vort in its own standalone series. At the conclusion, it was revealed that one of the main characters was a hideously scarred Lobster Random.

A pseudonym or alias is a name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which can differ from their first or true name (orthonym).

It was followed by the fourth series of Lobster Random entitled "The Forget-Me-Knot" starting in prog 1601 in 2008.

Bibliography

The character has appeared in his own eponymous series, the first instalment now reprinted as a trade paperback by Rebellion Developments, and The Vort:

In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually presenting either a complete miniseries, a story arc from a single title, or a series of stories with an arc or common theme.

Lobster Random (by Simon Spurrier and Carl Critchlow):
- "No Gain, No Pain" (in 2000 AD #1342-1349, 2003, tpb, 48 pages, March 2005, ISBN 1-904265-63-4)
- "Tooth and Claw" (in 2000 AD #1411-1419, 2004)
- "The Agony & The Ecstasy" (in 2000 AD #1482-1490, 2006)
- "The Forget-Me-Knot" (in 2000 AD #1601-1610, 2008)
The Vort (by G. Powell and D'Israeli, in 2000 AD #1589-1596, 2008)

International Standard Book Number Unique numeric book identifier

The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a numeric commercial book identifier which is intended to be unique. Publishers purchase ISBNs from an affiliate of the International ISBN Agency.

DIsraeli (cartoonist) British comics artist, colorist, writer and letterer

Matt Brooker, whose work most often appears under the pseudonym D'Israeli, is a British comic artist, colorist, writer and letterer. Other pseudonyms he uses include "Molly Eyre" for his writing, and "Harry V. Derci"/"Digital Derci" for his lettering work.

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References

Lobster Random at 2000 AD online
Lobster Random at the Comic Book DB

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