By Corporals Enfantino and Seabrook
Grandenetti |
"Target for an Ammo Boy!"
Story by Robert Kanigher
Art by Joe Kubert
"Snipers Roost!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Mort Drucker
"Tell Baker I'll Be There!"
Story by Ed Herron
Art by Russ Heath
PE: The deadly sharpshooter in the "Snipers Roost" remains mostly unseen to us throughout the story. We catch glimpses of his trigger finger and unfocused eye but, for the most part, he's a faceless killing machine. On the other end of the scope, our G.I. (the sniper's target) is a fearless predator, intent on putting an end to the menace in the bell tower. "Snipers Roost" is a lot of suspense packed tight in a five and a half page package with stark, minimalist art and narrative ("The sniper fixed the two tiny figures in his sight like flies on a large saucer..."). As the G.I. nears the tower, the previously unwavering marksman loses his cool and, even though we're meant to root against this Nazi monster, the claustrophobia is palpable and we feel his fear. Artist Mort Drucker is known primarily for his long career with Mad Magazine but he also found time to illustrate several DC war stories. "Sniper" was Drucker's thirteenth job for All American Men at War.
JS: I like "Target for an Ammo Boy!," which looks like the first story featuring a soldier known as T.K. or Tank Killer and his sidekick, a younger man who loads his bazooka for him. The "Kid" narrates the story and at first he is frustrated because all he does is carry the bazooka around--T.K. always has the thrill of firing it. They get into quite a few sticky situations with tanks firing at them but T.K. always manages to blow up the lumbering machines with a well-placed shot from his bazooka. Kubert's art is sharp, especially in the faces, and there's a fair amount of action. I liked this story and am looking forward to see if it becomes a regular feature, though I can't imagine they'll just keep wandering around shooting a bazooka at one tank after another--that would get old fast.
Grandenetti |
G.I. Combat 74
"A Flag for Joey!"
Story by Robert Kanigher
Art by Ross Andru
"Six-Gun Beach-Head!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Russ Heath
"No Word for a G.I."
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Bob Forgione and Jack Abel
PE: "No Word for a G.I." suffers from that annoying habit war writers had: take a word and run it into the ground. In this case, the word is "committed," which we learn means an outfit that has been given orders to stay on the battlefield no matter what (in other words, a suicide squad). At first, the word is meant to educate us (and it does) but then Haney gets carried away, overeducating us. "Committed" is used 35 times in 6 pages and, by the end of the story, I needed to be committed.
We figured Joey's days were numbered. |
Kubert |
"Laughter on Snakehead Hill!"
Story by Robert Kanigher
Art by Irv Novick
"Flameout"
Story by Hank Chapman
Art by Ross Andru
"Cleared to Combat!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Bob Forgione
PE: In "Flameout," our narrator, a fighter pilot, watches helplessly as his brother Joe (also a pilot in the same squadron) is shot down and killed by the enemy while attempting to stop a munitions train. Seizing vengeance by the reins, our nameless Captain redoubles his efforts to destroy the train before it enters a tunnel. Two unfortunate incidents happen almost simultaneously: the bomb he drops "hangs up" on him (it doesn't completely disengage) and his jet has a "flameout" (the engine stalls). With not enough time nor altitude to restart the engine, he aims the plane at the tunnel, ejects, and blows the train to hell. As I've mentioned, it's hard to find fault with any of the war stories if for no other reason than most of these writers experienced the hell of combat and I haven't. Reading some of these stories is both enlightening and exciting. When our Captain's jet effectively becomes the bomb, I could feel the tension come off the page. What the hell do you do in that situation other than prepare for the worst (you're gonna be blown to pieces) and hope for the best (lots of broken bones)? Outside of The Amazing Spider-Man, I've not seen much of Ross Andru's work and here his art has a nice Alex Toth vibe to it. Andru might benefit from the fact that there's only one character illustrated here and his face is covered with an oxygen mask the entire time. There are several artists I've encountered over the last few years of comic blogging that might have come out the other end with a more checkered career had these ideal restrictions been in place for them (Frank Robbins, take a bow). "Cleared to Combat" suffers from a problem I have with several of the war stories: the writer feels the need to educate rather than entertain. Can war comics be entertaining? Yes, they can, by telling an involving story rather than, like "Cleared," finding a phrase and running it into the dirt. My problems with the story do not translate to the art. I see Bob Forgione did several jobs for both DC and Atlas in the 1950s so I'm eager to check out some more of his work there.
We'd know those Ross Andru eyes anywhere! |
Kubert |
Our Fighting Forces 47
"TNT Birthday!"
Story by Robert Kanigher
Art by Jerry Grandenetti
"Pigeon for a Tiger!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito
"The Three Unknown Commandos!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Russ Heath
PE: In "TNT Birthday," Gunner's birthday party is continuously interrupted by enemy attacks. Unlike Sgt. Rock, the "Gunner and Sarge" strip featured a heaping helping of humor and this may be why I don't like it very much. Of course, it might also be the vacuous characters, a surprise when one realizes that its author, Robert Kanigher, was also responsible for Rock. I shouldn't be so hard on the injection of humor into "the hell of war" here and there since one of my favorite TV shows, Combat, did so as well (and usually very successfully). Much better is "Pigeon for a Tiger," wherein a fighter pilot is shot down by the infamous ace "Tiger," but gets his revenge in the end, aided by the enemy's firepower. The art by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito (who would partner up several hundred times over the years, most notably on Wonder Woman and The Amazing Spider-Man) is not great, the Asian enemy ace looking as though he should be spouting "Ah, So!" lines and our hero barely fleshed out, but Bob Haney's story's an exciting one.
"Pigeon for a Tiger!" |
Jack: I liked "TNT Birthday!" precisely for the reason you didn't--the humor. Gunner and Sarge aren't much different than Tank Killer and Kid (see All American Men at War, above) but the story is different from any other I've read so far this month because of the birthday angle and the humor. It's a nice break from all the grenades. "Pigeon for a Tiger!" is notable only for the art and for being yet another example this month of how the Japanese were still being drawn, 14 years after the end of the war. I don't think Asians got a break in popular culture in the U.S. till at least the 1980s--watch any sitcom from the 1970s and cringe at the Asian jokes.
Grandenetti |
"Jet on My Shoulder!"
Story by Robert Kanigher
Art by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito
"A Stripe for St. Lo!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Mort Drucker
"War Doesn't Sleep!"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Jack Abel
PE: "War Doesn't Sleep!" explores the ironies of "The Grass is Always Greener..." in wartime. One morning, a tank driver, heading off to battle, sees a sleeping soldier in a foxhole and wishes he had it so well, snoozing the war away. Of course, once the night comes, the reverse happens. "Jet on My Shoulder" suffers from the "running the phrase into the dirt" ailment mentioned previously. A new pilot attempts to show his squad he can keep up with them while his aircraft continually "tells" him "Show Me!" When the young man has finally broken through and applied himself to his task, his jet replies, "Showed Me!"
"A Stripe for St. Lo!" |
JS: I didn't know what the heck was going on in "Jet on My Shoulder!" except that Ross Andru was drawing another guy wearing a helmet while flying his plane. I kept thinking that there was some secret he didn't know about his plane. Alas, 'twas not the case. "A Stripe for St. Lo!" was a goodie. I thought the old soldier was the C.O. tricking the Buck Private I was surprised to see he was a general!
PE: And here's a good place to give a shout out to those incredible covers. The stories and art inside the titles may not always rise to the top but the majority of the war covers are knockouts!
All credits found at the Grand Comic Database.
Next Week! |
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