 "Die Laughing" had the Dark Judges encased in plasteen crystals, which is how they would always be shown in later stories and the "" video game; the 2002 story "My Name is Death" had Dredd refer to "that Gotham clown".Lobo, the intergalactic mercenary, became a popular character when Alan Grant took on the writing duties so a run-in with Dredd was a logical progression.The Predator has made many visits to Earth throughout history, and in a number of parallel universes, so it was almost inevitable that they would eventually clash with Dredd.