new comic

Wow! There a lot of words in the Crowded Sky it almost should have been called the Crowded Page. I'm not saying that's a bad thing either. In a few short pages there is no doubt why Weymann (a German with a conscious) is so keen to fight the Nazis.

Just before the war begins he is approached by one of his countrymen who wants to escape Germany with his family. Weymann is affronted and considers the man to be a criminal. However he is brow beaten by an Englishman (Stowell) who offers to help the man. Weymann believes he is only naturally defending his country and cannot understand how Stowell can protect someone who is clearly a criminal. However Weymann's fast track to redemption begins when his own family is murdered by the Gestapo.

The story then sees Weymann escaping Gemany and joining the RAF. However it's not all plain sailling - you can take the boy out of Nazi Germany but you can't always take the Nazi Germany out of the boy. In other words he's not very good at being one of the chaps and this raises some tension and suspicion with the rest of the crew. However his Teutonic sense of duty, obligation and leadership sees him coming through for his crew.

Everything is going swimmingly until the navigators brother - the Englishman who saw Weymann when he was being patriotic - turns up one day. So in a nice moral twist Weymann is now the very same type of criminal that he would have once denounced and Stowell would have defended.

But of course there's always that one more mission to fly.

So in the end Weymann's sense of obligation is so great that he saves his crew from their crippled Blenheim and then he attempts to bring the aircraft back to base. The outcome has already been provided by the prophetic words of the CO concerning Spartans and their shields earlier in the story.

In the air there is a feast of early model Blenheims, tri-motor Junkers, trainers, Spitfires, Messerschmidts, Whirlwinds and even a gratuitous Lysander. The line work on the aircraft is well done as well as the composition and layout of the panels.

Not only is this a well written sophisticated story with excellent artwork  - it's also a planefest and you've got to love that!





...and do you know why you'll lose the war Jerry? Because we British know how to stand with our hands on our hips better than you can.

Weymann walked away because he knew he had been defeated by the better man.


Templehof airport looks more like Rick's Bar.


A civilian aircraft! You don't see many of those around these parts.

Crashed, upside down, dark, petrol, burnt oil, soar arm and German. Not a good day at the office.

That's right just like the Spartans. Except we're the pipe smoking, scarf wearing, dashing tash type. If you chaps want to be like Spartans you need to look like me!


Nice picture of a Blenheim.


An even nicer panel! However I can't help feeling the pilot of that 109 isn't the brightest crayon in the box.


Excellent gratuitous Lysander.


When things start reeking you know you're in trouble, big trouble.

How good is this pilot and his Whirlwind!












Whirlwind again!Damn right! Don't tell me what to do!

Yaaah! is like Aaagh! except it's the sound you make when you're stickin' it to the other guy.




What a great bit of ink work! I love it!! There's so much going on in this one panel.



I don't understand. All the good guys are heroes aren't they?




I've had it so tough that getting shot at by Nazis and shouted at by NCO's is a paradise.


What work!



Never has a destroyed Grant (or should that be a Lee) been so lovingly drawn.
















This is desperate stuff.


Bloody Australians and their disregard for class.



Time to man up Frank and drink that cup of cement.





Never too late to sing "I did it my way..."

What an ending! Finally a last page with an open and worthy ending.

Take one sleepy tropical island, a mysterious beachcomber, an unbending police chief, a bunch of happy natives and a number of harsh Japanese racial stereotypes and believe it or not you have the ingredients for a good story.

Fraser (the beachcomber) is the kind of guy who likes to get around with his shirt off and keep fit by swimming out to reefs and hiking through swamps. He makes friends with the natives and picks fights with plantation owners at the Hibiscus Bar.

There is an air of mystery about him and in a triumph of story telling his past is not fully revealed nor is it the reason (or justification) for his actions. This is a sophisticated bit of writing.

When war comes to the island Fraser pulls together a desperate defence using the natives, the police and a handful of Aussie stragglers. This adhoc force manages to fiercely and comprehensively destroy an unsuspecting Japanese landing force.

The Japanese realise they now have to fight for the island and set about it in the appropriate manner by using bombers to soften up the island's defenders in preparation for a full assault landing.

A British destroyer arrives with orders to evacuate all the white men from the island. Fraser argues in vain with the destroyer captain to evacuate the islanders as well - but the orders are "whites only". He then turns to the islanders to have their women and children evacuated - but the islanders flatly refuse him. The island is their home and they will stay and defend it, no matter what the odds or consequences.

The final panel of The Last Stand shows Fraser and the islanders waiting the onslaught of a fresh Japanese invasion.


Why are there no women in the Hibiscus Club?
It's one thing for a character to be racist - but the narrator as well?
What's with the hat? Also what's the purpose of that control panel?
Nice panel. The guys getting slowly sucked to the bottom of the swamp look uncomfortable.
That's a bit harsh.
Yeah Aussie! We didn't start the fire...
Look at those shoulders!
This panel really makes the story.




Quick! Back to the Hibiscus Club!!
That got him! Good perspective.

Australians! A pretty good story even though the artwork is a bit bumpy at times. Take our friend to the left here. Despite the fact that he doesn't appear in the story and he's the only shirtless Australian to be found in The Digger Breed - look at his slouch hat! What the hell is going on there? That hat is an abomination. Now that I've got that off my chest - here's the plot.

The Digger Breed starts off with Australia's baptism of fire at Gallipoli. A young soldier (who we only get to know as "Rusty") is facing battle for the first time doubts his own courage. He survives his first encounter with the enemy and through the guiding hands of his comrades he manages to find his place. However he panics while out on patrol causing all his comrades to be killed.

Fast forward to World War Two. Three Australian veterans are disembarking in North Africa. One of them is "Rusty" - but which one? Is it Lieutant-Colonel Bradbury or Sergeant Shaw or Private "Croc" Wheeler? There's a hint is given early in the story and then followed up with a red herring or two.  I found myself saying "of course!" when his identity is revealed. But that is only my ego compensating for the fact that I didn't figure it our for myself. 

The Italians in North Africa receive a favourable treatment from the author. But the Australian slouch hats don't deserve the treatment they receive from the illustrator. They are just awful. There are also some very odd looking German tanks. Some of the panels appear incomplete and the composition at times is messy. However at the same time there is also some truly outstanding artwork. The illustrator obviously feels really comfortable when he (sorry for the assumption) gets to leave the ink in the well and sets out to convey the action in as few lines as possible.

The Digger Breed is a well written story and shows that a good drama can be achieved in 64 pages.





My oath sergeant what is wrong with that man's hat?




Why are those boots in the air?




Bad hats again. These really make me mad!










Now this a great panel. Feel the white space.




 An unusual panel for a pocket war library comic. Having said that it looks unfinished.



This is a good one. Gives you an appreciation for the vastness of the desert.



 Now that's an AAAGH!



 Here's one for the good guys handbook. If you're out on patrol with a guy called Jimmy odds are you'll be coming back alone.



Feel the fear.