Glimmer Rats

"Under the autocratic rule of a federal Europe, all prisoners are press-ganged into the military to fight an incredible war against an unbelievable enemy: unearthly monsters from another dimension known as the "Glimmer." As the reluctant troopers soon learn, the Glimmer is ruled by the "Geist" -- the malevolent spawn of hell that can rend, kill, and destroy humans in a thousand different ways. The only way to survive is to be meaner, fight dirtier, and kill faster than the Geist..."

Glimmer Rats is a comic strip by Gordon Rennie and Mark Harrison. The first episode appeared in 2000 AD prog 2000 (published December 1999), and the story was continued in progs 1174 to 1182. Pictured is the cover Harrison created for prog 1177.

Rennie recalls how "The strip certainly divided people — some loved it, some utterly loathed it. That's better than general indifference, I suppose" (Thrill-Power Overload by David Bishop). A letter in prog 1194 (published in the year 2000) from fan James Leighton said that "Glimmer Rats had by far the most impressive work I have seen since I started buying 2000 AD in '95. The art definitely helped bring out the dark plot, and really pulled you into the story. I hope Glimmer Rats returns within the year." Sadly for James, it didn't, although there is a trade paperback available (ISBN 1904265006).