The Ballad of Halo Jones

Story

This science fiction comic strip is set in the distant future in the 50^th century. It follows the life of teenager, Halo Jones, and covers over ten years of her life as she tours through the futuristic universe. The reader follows her from her life on earth, through the death of her best friend, her travels as a stewardess on a space voyage and finally as a soldier in an interstellar war. This is a tale of one woman’s search for her place in the universe and her adventures along the way.

Why we chose it

An iconic comic strip character created to introduce a female character into the overwhelming male line up. It was considered a groundbreaking story, the story about an ordinary woman who felt to her many avid readers, like a real person whatever she did and wherever she went.

Where it came from

The plan around the comic was to move away from the typical 2000AD storylines of ‘guns, guys and gore’ and create a science fiction strip that was based around an ordinary unremarkable woman. Moore talked about the strip following Halo’s whole life and ending with her as an old woman.

Where it went next

Halo Jones was planned to run for nine books to span Halo’s whole life, from adolescence to old age, but the series was cut short due to a dispute about property rights. Over the years fans have been hopeful for a fourth book to be released and the writers have never completely shut down the idea of returning to the story. The three volumes were reprinted and rereleased in 2018 with new colourising by Barbara Nosenzo.