Judge Griffin

Superherobox


caption = Chief Judge Griffin (drawn by Brian Bolland).
character_name = Judge Griffin
publisher = Rebellion Developments
debut = "2000 AD" prog 27 (1977)
creators = John Wagner, Alan Grant and Ian Gibson
alter_ego =
full_name =
species =
homeworld =
alliances =
partners =
aliases =
supports=
powers =

Chief Judge Griffin is a fictional character in the "Judge Dredd" comic strip in 2000 AD. He was chief judge of Mega-City One between 2101 and 2104.

Before becoming chief judge he was principal of the Academy of Law, and personally trained whole generations of the city's judges, including Judge Dredd. He was foremost among Dredd's band of resistance fighters against the insane tyrant Chief Judge Cal who had usurped control of the city. Following Cal's death, Dredd was the unanimous choice of the judges for the office of chief judge, but Dredd declined and nominated his old mentor Griffin instead. ["2000 AD" #108] Griffin maintained a great respect for Dredd; when the other members of the Council of Five questioned Dredd's actions after the Judge Child quest, it was Griffin who staunchly defended Dredd and his judgement, reminding the others of Dredd's actions during the reign of Judge Cal. Griffin vetoed an enquiry into Dredd and the possibility of another quest to find the Judge Child. ["2000 AD" #182]

Griffin was leader of his city during its peak, and proved to be a capable ruler. However his term of office sadly proved to be a short one. Early in the Apocalypse War of 2104 he was captured by the enemy and brainwashed, to be used as a puppet quisling leader for propaganda purposes, to encourage the surrender of the war-weary population. Since a rescue operation would have been impossible, Dredd found it necessary to assassinate him instead. Griffin actually managed to fight back through the brainwashing to confess his guilt live on air just before this event. ["2000 AD" #261]

He was succeeded by Judge McGruder, who was the sole member of the ruling Council of Five to survive the war. ["2000 AD" #270]

"Judge Dredd" movie

A different version of Judge Griffin appeared in the 1995 Judge Dredd film, played by Jürgen Prochnow. This version was unpopular with fansFact|date=February 2008 since he was depicted as an unpleasant and evil traitor. He effectively fills the role of Judge Cal (ironic considering he fought Cal in the comic.)

References