Marvel: Mm, this Diamond boot tastes delicious. DC: Look at us! We have one whole digital comic that no one asked for! We're rebels! 2000AD: Diamond who?
Nah, he's doing it because Devlin killed his mom waaaaay back in the day. Devlin's the rich dude, this was supposed to be a nice vacation for him and his occultist friends. And then Blondie and his ancient gods had to go and ruin it for everyone.
It might be easier to find a character or a setting that you like and just track down the progs that they're in. Some of them (Rogue Trooper, Johnny Alpha, and, of course, Dredd, have collected editions.)
One of the beauties of the anthology format it has is that you can pick up just about any issue and find yourself at a starting point for something, or at the very least coming away from it with the knowledge of what you're likely to run into.
That said, with 2000AD in particular, I'd probably still suggest starting at the beginning. It's pretty rough at spots, especially since it takes them a while to find the formula that works, but there's some genuine gems there.
I'm sorry, it's probably not the answer you wanted, but when we're talking about a 43 year old comic with more than three hundred different series (of varying lengths, some go on for decades and others end after a heartbeat), it's kinda hard to pick and choose.
I didn’t have any problems starting judge dredd from Case Files 1 even if the tone is a bit silly before it settles, and the early stories are still very punchy and entertaining
Oh, hm, Well, Dredd and his spinoffs are generally favorites (most of the time, the quality can drop right into the toilet now and then). Sinister Dexter (A comedy/action series about a pair of hitmen in the cyberpunk future) isn't the best, but it can be pretty entertaining.
I liked the first bits of Nemesis the Warlock, but it really kinda... didn't go places I liked. (Series about an alien fighting against a xenophobic empire.)
i hate him specifically and intensely because his themes and ideas are right up my alley, the kind of work i would like to make.... if it wasn't so puerile, sexually self-obsessed, misogynistic, and shallow
"but they're the bad guys" is not fooling anyone you LOVED getting to call a woman who needed to be broken into sensuality by your self insert a "smelly little lesbian"
DC: Look at us! We have one whole digital comic that no one asked for! We're rebels!
2000AD: Diamond who?
How to win friends and influence people, by Devlin Waugh.
I mean
I can't blame your assumption