Star Spangled War Stories #158

Star Spangled War Stories #158 (On Sale: June 17, 1971), has an Unknown Soldier cover by Joe Kubert.

We begin with the Unknown Soldier in "Totentanz" by Bob Haney and Joe Kubert. The Unknown Soldier is sent to the Totentanz concentration camp to rescue Erika Hauser, code name "Berengaria," who helped hundreds of important people and children escape from the Nazis. Furthermore, she is deeply tied to the entire network of underground fighters in Germany. Berengaria was captured by the Gestapo, but they do not yet know of her identity.

The Soldier allows himself to be capture and taken to Totentanz. After smuggling a packet containing his disguise to the camp, he then disguises himself as Obersturmführer Adolf Eichmann and tricking the camp commandant Colonel Schneider into releasing Berengaria to his custody. The ruse is eventually discovered when the real Eichmann was on his way to the camp. Fortunately, the Soldier and Berengaria successfully escape to Switzerland. Reprinted in Showcase Presents the Unknown Soldier Vol. 1 TPB (2007). 

This is the kind of book that made the "25 cents bigger and better" slogan hard to swallow. The 11-page Unknown Soldier story is the only new content in this issue.

Our first reprint is "The Flattened Point" by Robert Kanigher and Irv Novick and reprinted from Our Fighting Forces #74 (1963).

This is followed by Enemy Ace in "Enemy Ace" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and reprinted from Our Army at War #151 (1965). Hans von Hammer celebrates his 50th kill when he is grazed by the wildly fired bullet of his 51st victim. He hovers in and out of consciousness but still manages to land his plane. He broods on the fact that even in the arms of a beautiful nurse and among his fellow pilots, he still feels lonely as if they stand apart from the "killing machine". 

He finds some solace in taking a rifle into the forest and hunting for a while with another predator, a wolf, who recognizes a kindred spirit. Then, Hans takes to the skies once more to defend a zeppelin on a bombing run from three enemy fighters. He manages to shoot two down, but the third deliberately rams his damaged plane into the zeppelin.

We end this issue with "Lame Duck Glider" by France Herron and Russ Heath and reprinted from All American Men of War #57 (1958).

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #157

Star Spangled War Stories #157  (On Sale: April 20, 1971), has a cover by Joe Kubert, which purports to be about The Unknown Soldier meeting Sgt. Rock, but this is not THE Unknown Soldier whose exploits we have been reading for a while now in Star Spangled War Stories. In fact, this is a bullshit reprint issue in the guise of a team-up. As a kid, buying this off the rack, how could you not feel ripped off?

"(I Knew the Unknown Soldier)" is purely a Sgt. Rock reprint by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert from Our Army at War #168 (1966). This reprint has been heavily modified. The original story was 15 pages. Only twelve pages are reprinted here and a new splash page introduction is included. Sgt. Rock and Easy Company are pinned down by an enemy gun position located on a cliff. Rock witnesses a lone soldier swing down from the top of the cliff and destroy the enemy guns. However, the soldier disappears. When the soldier saves Easy again, Rock wants to know who the soldier is. However, the other members of the company think Rock is imagining the phantom soldier.

Rock then moves forward alone and encounters enemy tanks. A flash of light temporarily blinds him, but he hears another soldier destroy the tanks. The soldier then leads him back to Easy before dying while covering the rear. The soldier's body is recovered, but his identity is unknown. The body is taken home and buried in the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. See, not the guy whose exploits we have been reading about and expected to read about this issue.

The backup is Enemy Ace in "Fokker Fury" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and reprinted from Our Army at War #155 (1965). During a fierce aerial battle, Enemy Ace pursues an English plane and shoots it down. Only too late does he realize that the enemy plane's guns were empty. He returns to base feeling bad for killing an unarmed man.

Later Von Hammer receives a challenge from Alan Iver, a pilot in the RAF. The Englishman wants to duel with Von Hammer because he killed the unarmed pilot. Enemy Ace meets the challenge with his own guns empty. He dodges the English pilot's shots until both are out of ammunition. The Englishman realizes that Enemy Ace is a man to be respected. Both men come to an understanding and salute one another, knowing that tomorrow will be another day when they will do their utmost to send the enemy plane crashing to the ground.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #156

Star Spangled War Stories #156 (On Sale: February 23, 1971), has a terrific Unknown Soldier cover by Joe Kubert

We begin this issue with the Unknown Soldier in "Assassination" by Bob Haney and Joe Kubert. The Unknown Soldier meets a British agent who tells him of a meeting on July 20th which Adolf Hitler will attend. Disguised as a German lieutenant, the Unknown Soldier infiltrates the Wolf's Lair and plants a bomb intending to kill Hitler. 

One of Hitler's own advisers, Colonel Von Stauffenberg also carries a bomb to the meeting. He leaves it in the meeting room concealed in a briefcase. However, a soldier returns the briefcase to the colonel outside the room just as it is about to go off. The explosion does not succeed in killing Hitler. The bunker is sealed and the Unknown Soldier's bomb is uncovered. Fortunately, he was able to get outside before the doors were shut. The Soldier, disguised as an old woman, escapes to Switzerland. This story was reprinted in Showcase Presents the Unknown Soldier Vol. 1 TPB (2007).

The backup is "A Dream Came True" by Hank Chapman and Irv Novick and is reprinted from Our Army at War #154 (1965). A one-panel cameo of Enemy Ace has been added to introduce this story, with art by Joe Kubert. During World War I, an American pilot named Mike Mason is humiliated because he never shoots down any enemy planes. One day, he lies to his commanding officer and says he shot down five Germans. However, he knows his lie will be exposed when the intelligence officers are unable to confirm the kills. The next day, Mason is sent on a solo mission, and he manages to shoot down two zeppelins and three planes. His dreamed-up tale has become a reality.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #155

Star Spangled War Stories #155 (On Sale: December 24, 1970), has a cover by Joe Kubert featuring the Unknown Soldier. 

We begin with the Unknown Soldier in "Invasion Game" by Bob Haney and Joe Kubert. The Unknown Soldier assumes the guise of a salesmen and is dropped into occupied France between June 2nd and June 5th, 1944. He meets up with a French resistance leader named Chat Noir. The leader was a former U.S. Army sergeant who was railroaded because he is black. Chat Noir and his group, the Nightingales, then help the Unknown Soldier in an attack of Fleur-Le-Duc. The attack is successful, but the Nazis regroup to take back their position.

Chat Noir gets the Unknown Soldier to safety after the latter is injured. He is upset that so many of his men have been killed. The Unknown Soldier then reveals that the attack was a feint to draw the German military away from Normandy so that the D-Day Invasion could commence the following day.

The Unknown Soldier and Chat Noir then return to America where they become friends and confidants. This was reprinted in Showcase Presents The Unknown Soldier Vol. 1 TPB (2007).

We end with Enemy Ace in "Killer of the Skies" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and reprinted from Showcase #57 (1965). Continuing from the last issue, while returning from a mission low on fuel, Enemy Ace is attacked by a French plane. He manages to escape the enemy's sights, then returns fire. He downs the French fighter and a bomber, but he is wounded in the encounter.

After returning to base, Von Hammer witnesses two German pilots fleeing from a Canadian ace called the Hunter. Enemy Ace forces the pilots to meet Hunter's challenge. They are both shot down by the Canadian's superior flying skills. Enemy Ace vows to meet the Hunter in the skies at a later time.

Von Hammer recovers from his wounds and takes to the air to meet the Hunter. Both pilots are skilled and manage to damage their opponent's plane. Both pilots bring their planes in for crash landings. Von Hammer is uninjured, but the Hunter soon dies from the injuries sustained in the crash.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #154

Star Spangled War Stories #154 (On Sale: October 22, 1970), has an Unknown Soldier cover by Joe Kubert. The cover promises to reveal the "Origin of the Unknown Soldier."

We begin with the Unknown Soldier in "I'll Never Die," which is written and drawn by Joe Kubert. An unnamed man and his brother named Harry enlist in the United States Army two months before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. They are assigned to the Philippines when the Pacific War breaks out. The Japanese soon invaded the Philippines where the brothers fight off wave after wave of invading Japanese soldiers.

In their foxhole, Harry tells his brother not to lose hope even though they are outnumbered, because "one guy can affect the outcome of a whole war! One guy in the right place… at the right time…" Eventually, a grenade lands near their foxhole and Harry throws himself on it and is killed instantly. But the explosion also injured Harry's brother's face. Deeply distraught and enraged by the loss of his brother, the man single-handedly beats the remaining Japanese soldiers. Two G.I. medics soon find the man and take him to a First Aid station. However, the doctors are unable to restore his face.

The soldier is flown back to America on the last aircraft leaving the Philippines before it falls to the Japanese. He recovers in a veterans hospital outside of Washington until being discharged, and soon he is awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions. But the man declines the medal and, inspired by Harry's words, wants to become that "one man in the right place." His previous identity is erased and he undergoes intensive training to become an intelligence operative code-named "The Unknown Soldier." This story depicts him with his trademark bandaged face for the first time and was reprinted in Showcase Presents the Unknown Soldier Vol. 1 TPB (2007).

Our backup story is Enemy Ace in "Killer of the Skies" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and is reprinted from Showcase #57 (1965). While returning from a mission low on fuel, Enemy Ace is attacked by a French plane. He manages to escape the enemy's sights, then returns fire. He downs the French fighter and a bomber, but he is wounded in the encounter.

After returning to base, Von Hammer witnesses two German pilots fleeing from a Canadian ace called the Hunter. Enemy Ace forces the pilots to meet the Hunter's challenge. They are both shot down by the Canadian's superior flying skills. Enemy Ace vows to meet the Hunter in the skies at a later time.

Von Hammer recovers from his wounds and takes to the air to meet the Hunter. Both pilots are skilled and manage to damage their opponent's plane. Both pilots bring their planes in for crash landings. Von Hammer is uninjured, but the Hunter soon dies from the injuries sustained in the crash. Though a reprint, this story has been heavily reworked, including two new half-page panels. 

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #153

Star Spangled War Stories #153 (On Sale: August 20, 1970) has a nice, dramatic cover by Joe Kubert. By looking you would guess this might be an Unknown Soldier cover, but in reality, this book features, for the most part, reprints and the Unknown Soldier is only a used in a framing sequence. this cover features a new logo and the new round icon in the upper left corner.

"Everybody Dies" is our cover feature, an eight-page reprint from Star Spangled War Stories #36 by Robert Kanigher and Irv Novick, with a new one-page introduction by the Unknown Soldier. As a kid, I remember feeling ripped off by this book.

That reprint is followed by another: "Fokker  Fury," an Enemy Ace story from Our Army at War #155 by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. During a fierce aerial battle, Enemy Ace pursues an English plane and shoots it down. Only too late does he realize that the enemy plane's guns were empty. He returns to base feeling bad for killing an unarmed man.

Later Von Hammer receives a challenge from Alan Iver, a pilot in the RAF. The Englishman wants to duel with Von Hammer because he killed the unarmed pilot. Enemy Ace meets the challenge with his own guns empty. He dodges the English pilot's shots until both are out of ammunition. The Englishman realizes that Enemy Ace is a man to be respected, and the warring pilots depart the scene intact.

The book ends with the only new material, a four-pages U.S.S. Stevens story, "Double Rescue" by Sam Glanzman.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #151

Star Spangled War Stories #151 (On Sale: April 21, 1970) has a new main feature and new logo this month with the introduction of The Unknown Soldier in a cover by Joe Kubert.

We begin with "They Came from Shangri-La," the 14-page introduction of the Unknown Soldier by writer/artist/editor Joe Kubert. It is 1942 and a mysterious soldier who possesses intimate knowledge of military history and strategy is brought to the Pentagon to accept an assignment. The Unknown Soldier is a master of disguise, with his true face is known only to his friend, a sergeant in the army (we only see him in shadows, but it is clear that he is not wearing the facial bandages he will sport in subsequent stories). For this assignment, he assumes the identity of army air force pilot Captain Shales.  

He is sent from Washington to the Pacific where he leads a bomber mission against the major cities of Japan. This is the first attack on Japan's mainland during World War II and follows a string of American defeats in the Philippines. The bombers make their raids, then crash land in Chinese territory. They are attacked by the Chinese and only Shales and two of his crew manage to get away. They eventually meet up with a group of Chinese guerrillas who, after Shales fights their champion, conduct them to safety in Chunking.

Following the mission, the Unknown Soldier returns to Washington and pays his respects at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. OK, not the flashiest of introductions and there are still a few things they need to iron out in the character.

The back-up is  "Flaming Bait" a 12-page reprinted Enemy Ace story from Our Army at War #153 (where it was 14 pages long) by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. Before leaving on a new mission, a photographer asks to take Hans Von Hammer's picture, but due to his superstitious nature, he refuses. Another pilot, Erich Schloss, does not share Von Hammer's fear and allows a photo. On the mission, Erich is shot down, lending credence to Von Hammer's superstition.

On the next flight, Erich's brother Werner has his picture taken. During the mission, Von Hammer tries to protect Werner, but anti-aircraft fire downs Werner's plane. Von Hammer blames himself for the death of the brothers.

To thwart the curse, Von Hammer allows his own picture to be taken before the next mission. He survives several near miss encounters, but he brings his plane back intact. However, the photographer that took his picture was killed on the ground.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #150

Star Spangled War Stories #150 (On Sale: February 19, 1970) has an Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

This issue begins with our Enemy Ace cover-story, "3 Graves to Home" written and drawn by Joe Kubert. I liked this story a lot; the reader is asked to imagine themselves in Rittmeister Hans Von Hammer's place, soaring through the air in a wood-strutted, fabric-covered flying machine, high over hostile French territory and suddenly set upon by a squadron of French sopwiths. Kubert is just a master at these aerial fight scenes and the four pages of flying carnage is a wonder to behold.

Von Hammer watches two of him men go down in flaming coffins and he personally dispatches the two sopwiths which took them down. But now he finds himself in the sites of three remaining sopwiths, and as his plane erupts in flames he goes into a power dive hoping to blow out the fire around him. But unable to put out the fire he instead attempts to land the plane. Jumping from the burning wreckage before his fuel tanks blow Von Hammer realizes for the first time that he has been shot in the leg. He finds himself, wounded, alone and hunted in enemy territory.

Despite his injury, he has to move fast and by dusk finds a lone farmhouse. Von Hammer speaks perfect French and as the fates would have it, the woman inside the house is blind. She dresses his wound and then shows him a picture of her son in front of his flying machine for he is a French flier. Von Hammer recognizes the marking on the plane and thinks back to two week prior when he shot this reconnaissance plane out of the air. They are interrupted by a knock at the door and thinking Von Hammer is just a young man in trouble with the local police, she hides him in her vegetable cellar. When she finds out that he may be the Enemy Ace, she points the soldiers to his hiding place. But Von hammer has escaped out an outside door.

Moving only at night Von Hammer slowly makes his way back toward Germany. On the dawn of the third day a young boy finds him sleeping in the family barn. The boy sees that Von Hammer is a pilot, and tells him of his brother, also a pilot and once again Von Hammer shooting down the planes of the brother's squadron. Not knowing Von Hammer is German, the boy gives him cheese and bread before he leaves.

Somehow Von Hammer makes it to the high country bordering Germany and awakens one morning to the lapping of sheep at his face. The young shepherdess who finds him speaks of her fiancé, a pilot in a plane adorned with two hearts entwined. Von Hammer says he does not know of such a plane, but of course he does and recalls how it flew too close to the French reconnaissance balloon it was guarding when Von Hammer riddled the balloon with bullets and it exploded, downing the French plane.

He cannot look the woman in the eyes and leaves quickly. That night during a snow storm Von Hammer finds a cave and builds a fire which he tends through the night. But he is not alone, in the flames he sees the images of all the warriors he has killed in aerial combat and thinks, "The dead are fortunate!...Never again must they wrestle with conscience! It is for us, the living...who must justify war's wanton killing!"

The next morning he makes his way down the mountain and to his Jagdstaffel and the morning after that he finds himself on the tarmac, ready to once again embrace the killer skies. This story was reprinted in DC Special Series #18, Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Next we have a Viking Prince reprint from Brave and the Bold #12, "Monster of the Viking Sea" by Bob Haney and Joe Kubert. The fishing nets of Olaf's village are found cut. Jon investigates and discovers a hidden cavern containing a dinosaur. The dinosaur is trapped inside, but can reach through a small hole to cut the nets.

While Jon plots a strategy to deal with the monster, Ulric, his rival in the tribe plots against Jon. Ulric causes a rockfall which releases the monster. It then attacks the village. Jon forces it out to sea, where Ulric plans to kill Jon. Instead, the monster attack Ulric, taking them both to their deaths at the bottom of the ocean.

We end the issue with "Great Battles in History -- The Marne" drawn and I would guess written by Ric Estrada. The story entails how in 1914, for the first time battles were often wages and lost and won on the telephone.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #149

Star Spangled War Stories #149 (On Sale: December 18, 1969) has an Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

This issue begins with Enemy Ace in "Reach for the Heavens" by the normal team of Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. This is another in a long line of neat little war stories by Kanigher and Kubert, this one revealing the origin of the scar on Von Hammer's face.

One evening Von Hammer thinks back to the days when he was a raw recruit, he and the other young men with him, waiting to learn how to fly. One man though was driven, Heinrich Muller did not want to join the others in youthful camaraderie; all he cared about was learning to fight to kill the enemy.

One day the men played a prank on Muller and he demanded satisfaction from Von Hammer, singling him out. The next morning they dueled with swords till Muller drew first blood and Von Hammer apologized for himself and the men. Muller's reply was, "The scar I put on your face is the only apology I want, Herr Von Hammer!"

From then on the men get serious and finally the day comes when they will get to go up in the planes for the first time. Von Hammer and Muller go together in the rear cockpit on the training mission. Once aloft they spot a French fighter. who, knowing they are training leaves them alone. But Muller pulls out his pistol and begins shooting at the Frenchman against the protest of Von Hammer. When they land Muller cannot understand why he is not commended for shooting down the French fighter.

Back in the present when the morning arrives, Muller is at the Jagdstaffel, assigned to Von Hammer. Muller looks more bitter and determined than ever. That day on patrol they run into an enemy patrol and Muller murders an defenseless British pilot who is out of ammunition. This distracts Von Hammer to the point where he is shot down. As his plane heads for the ground Muller dives after him and Von Hammer jumps from his burning plane to the landing gear of Muller's plane. The English attack till they are all out of ammunition and Muller gently lays the plane down allowing Von Hammer to hit the ground safely. When Von Hammer goes to thank him for saving his life he finds that he is dead. "I felt my heart cry bitter tears...as my dry eyes reached for the heavens...to the killer skies!"

This story has been reprinted in DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest #21, Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Next is the Viking Prince in "The Terror Stone" reprinted from Brave and the Bold #11 and also the work of Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. All weapons of metal are being seized by a mysterious power from the village of the Viking Prince. Even Jon's boat is torn asunder as the nails are pulled from the boards and disappear out to sea. Jon has a small boat made with wooden nails and carrying only wooden weapons he sets out to see what is causing the strange actions of all metal. He finds the ship of his enemy Baron Thorvald carrying a large rock that fell from the sky and which is the source of the strange metal attraction.

Jon boards the ship and when the rock is pushed overboard, he uses his wooden sword to sever the rope keeping it captive. His men then show up in the ship that has been secretly tailing him and Thorvald is defeated.

Lastly is "Boadicea Queen of the Iceni" the work of the late, great Ric Estrada.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #148

Star Spangled War Stories #148 (On Sale: October 16, 1969) has another wonderful Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

We begin with Enemy Ace in "Luck is a Puppy Named Schatzi" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. This is just a neat little tale of Von Hammer and a puppy. It is the kind of story that Enemy Ace was created to tell, for it gives you an unsettling feeling of death waiting around every corner, of the uneasy feeling of being in war and Hans Von Hammer's acceptance of this unreal reality and his small part in the bigger picture. This is wonderful stuff and Joe Kubert was at the top of his game in 1969, of that there is no doubt.

A small puppy sniffs around the Jagdstaffel field before running out to play in the grass, not knowing that he is playing on a runway until a squadron returns and lands almost on top of him. Von Hammer finds the dog under his plane, his foot damaged and he takes the dog in. The other pilots cannot believe that the Hammer of Hell is cuddling a puppy, but hammer sees Schatzi as another soldier injured in the perilous war. The next day Schatzi rides with Hammer to the coast near Cuxhaven where English planes have been using a battle ship for an air base and inflicting much damage.

Hammer's squadron arrive to find Cuxhaven in flames and as they move in closer the English fly out from behind the columns of thick black smoke and attack. Hammer watched one of his men, Kurt, on his second patrol, go down in flames. Hammer gets his men under control and they begin to attack the English who quickly turn and run back through the dark pillars of smoke. Hammer and his men follow only to find the battleship off the coast, now shooting at them. Hammer maneuvers the English Sopwiths in behind him and they follow as he hoped they would. he then dives toward the battleship and sips sideways between the ships funnels, while the less maneuverable Sopwiths impact into the ship in a fiery crash.

When they return to base his men congratulate Hammer but he asks them who will congratulate Kurt (whose name has morphed into Josef in the last three pages) who went down in flames over Cuxhaven? Hammer then takes his good luck charm Schatzi off into the woods to meet the black wolf who sometimes seems to be Hammer's only real friend. When they return to the Jagdstaffel Hammer is informed that his squadron is to provide air support for a drive into France.

In perfect Kanigher fashion they fly into France though a downpour and Hammer tells Schatzi, "Stay under my collar, little one...this rain will not last for long...then the sun will dry us out! Do not whimper, Schatzi...only the heavens my cry in war!" They fly into a pitched battle with the British depicted with amazing skill by Joe Kubert. It is during this battle that the cover scene happens, as Hammer summer-saults to dislodge a pursuer, Schatzi falls from his cockpit. In other comics there would have been some amazing heroics to save the small pup, but this is Enemy Ace and Schatzi falls to his death...and Von Hammer goes berserk! Or as Kanigher puts it, "Like a madman, the Hammer of Hell tears into battle--wreaking a terrible havoc..."

In the aftermath his men return to Germany and their Jagdstaffel, but Hammer does not return with them. One says they saw him land amidst the dead, "It--it was horrible! Like something out of Dante's Inferno! Perhaps...he landed to confirm his kills! He is truly a killing machine!" But of course he landed to properly bury Schatzi. Reprinted in Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents:Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

The back-up is "The Fall of the Red Knight" drawn by Ric Estrada. I wouldn't be surprised if Estrada also wrote this short retelling of how Captain Roy Brown shot down the most famous of all WWI aces, and the obvious template from which Hans Von Hammer sprang, Rittmeister Baron Manfred Von Richthofen, the Red Baron.

We end with at two-pages spread Battle Album on aircraft carriers drawn by the wonderful Ken Barr.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #147

Star Spangled War Stories #147 (On Sale: August 19, 1969) has an Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

"A Grave in the Sky" is by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and, my god, is Kubert on fire this issue. The story surrounds a British pilot who as a child was obsessed with the story of St. George and the Dragon. Years later he is still obsessed and sees the RAF as a way of attaining knighthood and flying a steed and using machine guns as his lance.

The delusional pilot wears the top half of a suit of armor when he flies and believes himself to be the reincarnation of St. George. As with all Enemy Ace stories, the real story is about the killer skies and the terrible strain leading men into battle is for Hans Von Hammer. It has some amazing Kubert artwork, bringing the aerial dogfights of Fokkers vs. Sopwith Camels to glorious life. Kubert in his early 40s at this time was a master of the brush for sure, but it is his amazing story-telling abilities that make these books come to life.

Suffice to say that in the end St. George is defeated by his own personal dragon, Hans von Hammer, the Enemy Ace. This story was reprinted in Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #146

Star Spangled War Stories #146 (On Sale: June 17, 1969) has an Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert and a declaration that this is a "Special Issue!" That is of course DC talk for reprints!.

There is a very short Joe Kubert drawn framing sequence around the two reprints regarding a new pilot who, as von Hammer puts it, is "mistaken...if you believe only you live in fear of the killer skies!" The first is (Balloon for a Hawk) from Our Fighting Forces #60 by Bob Haney and Russ Heath and concerns the first American to fly with the French. The unnamed Lieutenant plays a bar-room game his first night in France with the French pilots where they throw darts at balloons representing the Germans. The Lieutenant hits the balloon representing the German ace known as the Hawk. But real combat proves more difficult and on his first mission he is shot down by the Hawk, barely making it back to the field before crashing.

When he recovers he is grounded by the French Colonel. But one day, as a Spad is landing The Hawk shoots it down and the Lieutenant leaps for a nearby plane and gives chase. However, the Hawk is a better pilot and slowly lures the Lieutenant's plane over his own filed where he shoots it down and he is taken prisoner. He makes a run for it and hops into a hot-air balloon used to guard the field against strafing. He casts off and is soon facing down the Hawk again, balloon against Fokker. The balloon eventually catches fire and he once again plummets to the ground, only the torn balloon gets caught in a tree breaking his fall and as the Hawk moves in for the kill, the Lieutenant fires the balloons guns and blasts the Hawk out of the sky.

The second is "Brother Enemy" from All-American Men of War #101 by Hank Chapman, Ross Andru and Mike Esposito. This story begins with the sinking of Titanic and identical twins Richard and Carl being put on separate lifeboats, while their parents perish. They never do get back together and five years later Richard joins the Air Force and hopes to find Carl also in the service. Everywhere he goes he asks if anyone has seen someone who looks exactly like him, but they always answer in the negative.

One day in a bombing run over Germany Richard gets into a dogfight with a German Black ace, Richard's gunfire rips into the German's cockpit splattering oil into the face of the German ace, who rips off his goggles to see and Richard finds himself looking into his own face. The German ace is his brother Carl. Richard pulls off the fight and lets Carl get away, but back on the ground his loyalty is questioned. On their very next mission they meet the Black Squadron again and this time it is Carl who sends bullets into Richard's cockpit, shattering his goggles. When Richard takes them off Carl sees that it is his brother and this time he is the one to pull out of the fight. He too is reprimanded when he lands.

The next day the two squadrons meet for a third time in the killer skies and Richard and Carl go after each other with everything they have, eventually both running out of bullets. They play a dangerous game of chicken in the air and neither pulls out. Their planes crash into each other. Carl is knocked unconscious and Richard leaps to Carl's disabled plane and while the two squadrons watch, they fall to the ground. Two battered figures crawl from the burning remains and embrace each other as the brothers they are.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #145

Star Spangled War Stories #145 (On Sale: April 15, 1969) has another Joe Kubert Enemy Ace cover.

"Return of the Hangman" featuring Enemy Ace is by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. After a successful battle with a squadron of  British planes, von Hammer turns over the reigns of  his squadron to three veteran pilots. However, one of them is soon killed by the Hangman, who von Hammer had thought he had killed

The Hangman survived his crash and was nursed back to health by his sister. Von Hammer is unable to stop the vengeful French pilot from killing the other two of his squadron leaders.

Finally the Enemy Ace meets the Hangman in the killer skies. The battle is fierce, but von Hammer leads the Frenchman into some powerlines, resulting in the Hangman crashing once again. Von Hammer's plane is battered, forcing an emergency landing in the woods.

He crawls from the wreckage to find a pack of wolves closing in on him. At the last moment, his hunting companion, the black wolf, shows up and protects the injured von Hammer from the pack. This story was reprinted in Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #144

Star Spangled War Stories #144 (On Sale: February 18, 1969) has a cover Joe Kubert.

Enemy Ace stars in "Death Takes No Holiday" by Robert Kanigher, Neal Adams and Joe Kubert. Von Hammer and his Jagdstaffel face a squadron of French fighters who wear skeletal attire. In their first encounter with the ghostly French squadron, one of von Hammer's men, Stephan, crash lands into a cemetery and Hammer leaps from his plane to pull him from his burning wreckage, just as it explodes. Somehow Hammer manages to get Stephan back to their field, but the Enemy Ace's hands are badly burned and he leaves Wilhelm in charge as he and Stephan head for the hospital.

Stephan has horrible nightmares of the burning plane and the French fighters sending him to "hades" while von Hammer is haunted by their ghoulish skull faces. Even when propositioned by the lovely Marlene von Hammer sees the skeletal images and knows he must return to his men. He and Stephan return to a shell-shocked Jagdstaffel as Wilhem's plane returns on fire and he barrels into the tarmac.

Hammer pulls him from his burning Fokker, but Wilhelm dies and Stephan states that he cannot fly again. Sensing that if Stephan does not return to the air now, he never will be able to, von Hammer orders Stephan to be his gunner and they head out to search for the hidden field of the French ghost squadron. They spy the squadron, but Stephan is at first paralyzed with fear, unable to shoot. Hammer does not fire his guns, waiting for Stephan to save himself and von Hammer. It works. When he finally snaps out of it, Stephan cuts down plane after plane. That night von Hammer is again plagued by the skull apparitions.

At dawn the ghost squadron attacks von Hammer's field and as Hammer takes off he finds a ghost plane on his tail, in the kill position. Just then Stephan comes out of nowhere and smashes into the trailing plane, saving von Hammer's life at the sacrifice of his own. Hammer follows one of the smoking French planes down and discovers the squadron's secret field, which he strafes repeatedly exploding fuel and ammo. The squadron takes to the air and follow von Hammer back to his field, where they surrender knowing they could never get back to a base of their own.

Von Hammer laments about the death of his country's youth and wonders what good it does, but as a soldier he knows he must return to the killer skies again and again until he himself must pay the ultimate price.

Alex Toth had asked to do an Enemy Ace story and Joe Kubert, being under the gun with his new editor duties on top of his existing artist duties readily agreed. Now Alex Toth had a reputation for taking liberties with scripts, so when Kubert gave Toth the Kanigher script, he instructed Toth not to change the story, which Kubert had already read and edited.

However, Alex Toth being Alex Toth, when Kubert got the artwork, it bore little resemblance to the Kanigher script. In Bill Schelly's Kubert biography "Man of Rock" Kubert says he told Toth: "...beautiful story, but it's not the one that Bob wrote...I will not publish it." This caused a rift in the friendship Kubert and Toth had developed over the years. I have seen versions of this cover where the box in the lower right corner read "Special Issue Story Illustrated by Alex Toth."

As for the Alex Toth Enemy Ace artwork, it was destroyed by water damage after Toth kept it in the trunk of his car for months.

Like last month's Teen Titans book, this is another case where Neal Adams came in and saved an editor's butt. Also according to "Man of Rock", Adams offered to help Joe out saying "It would be a great honor for me if you would allow me to pencil this book. You have a very, very tight deadline, you have other stuff to do (and) my schedule is not bad." After seeing the finished result, Kubert said of Adams' work here "It was like somebody had crawled into my mind."

Thanks to Steve Rowe and Sharon for helping me out on this one. It really helps to have readers who know their comics! Reprinted in Sgt. Rock #14, Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #143

Star Spangled War Stories #143 (On Sale: December 17, 1968) has an Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

"The Devil's General" is by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and was reprinted in DC Special #26, Sgt. Rock #15, Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 2 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #142

Star Spangled War Stories #142 (On Sale: October 17, 1968) has an Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert featuring a new Enemy Ace logo.

Enemy Ace stars in "Vengeance is a Harpy" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. It has been reprinted in Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 1 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #141

Star Spangled War Stories #141 (On Sale: August 18, 1968) has a not so impressive Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert. It is also the last issue to use this lack-luster Enemy Ace logo.

Inside we have Enemy Ace in "The Bull" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. This story was reprinted in DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest #7, Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 1 HC and Showcase Presents:Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #140

Star Spangled War Stories #140 (On Sale: June 18, 1968) has a nice Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

"The Face of the Hangman" is by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. It has been reprinted in Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 1 HC and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #139

Star Spangled War Stories #139 (On Sale: April 16, 1968) has a nice Enemy Ace cover by Joe Kubert.

Enemy Ace stars in "Death Whispers -- Death Screams" by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. This story was reprinted in Sgt. Rock #18, Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 1 HC and Showcase Presents:Enemy Ace Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Joe Kubert.

Star Spangled War Stories #138

Star Spangled War Stories #138 (On Sale: February 22, 1968) has a nice cover by newly promoted editor Joe Kubert featuring Enemy Ace, who takes over a book for the first time in his first appearance in three years.

"The Slayers and the Slain," featuring Baron Hans Von Hammer, Enemy Ace, the German ace fighter pilot of 1917, is by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. This story has been reprinted in Star Spangled War Stories #161, Sgt. Rock #17 and Enemy Ace Archives Vol. 1 HC.

Edited by Joe Kubert.