Redartz: Greetings everyone, and salutations on this Memorial Day (US). On this weekend we honor those who have served so gallantly in the armed forces. In this spirit, today we will look at some of Marvel and DC's 'war comics'. This is a genre of comics I'm admittedly less familiar with. I've read a few Sgt. Fury stories. From DC, I've read some Sgt. Rock stories, "Haunted Tank", "The Losers" and "Enemy Ace". Therefore my comments will be brief, and I trust all of you to further educate me on these comics.
From my very limited exposure to these comics, I have noticed a general difference in tone between the companies (and this may not be accurate, so all of you who have read these stories are free to correct me here). Marvel's war books seem to be fairly straightforward battle/combat issues, heavy on action. DC's books, to my eye, have a somewhat darker, more thoughtful feel. That may be a reflection of the team of writer Robert Kanigher and artist Joe Kubert, who produced most of the DC war stories I've seen.
Plus, in the case of Marvel's Sgt. (and later Col.) Nick Fury, the character has been deeply involved with many other elements of the Marvel Universe. He was an early crossover in "Fantastic Four", he met Captain America, and of course later was involved with S.H.I.E.L.D. Over at DC, although their battle veterans have made numerous appearances (Sgt. Rock teaming with Batman in Brave and the Bold, Enemy Ace appeared in Justice League), they don't seem to have the same prominent level of involvement. They seem almost to occupy their own 'pocket universe' all their own.
At any rate, the writing and art in many of these books is striking. Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Arnold Drake, and Gary Freidrich were among Marvel's battle writers, and Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers, and John Severin drew many of those stories. For DC, Kanigher and Kubert were a great combo. with more fine art from the likes of Mort Drucker, Russ Heath and Severin. All well worth a look. And this reader shall: as the years pile up on this Bronze ager, my comics tastes have widened greatly. As much as I love those costumed heroes, it's been rewarding to explore other genres too. Many of these stories (particulary the Kanigher/Kubert) give the reader some fodder for serious thought. That has to be good...
And now, let's look at some covers:
