Star Spangled War Stories #183: Unknown Soldier in "8,000 to One"

Download Star Spangled War Stories #183





"Remember, soldier, one slip-up and 8,000 innocent people... will die!"

I recall purchasing this comic book when I was a kid because I found the Joe Kubert cover very intriguing, but I came away from the experience genuinely moved by the story inside. In "8,000 to One," the Unknown Soldier is forced to choose killing a collaborator or permit 8,000 others to perish. The final scenes are very dramatic and worth the read to get there. While the Unknown Soldier was created by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert and first appeared in Our Army At War #168, this story was written by David Michelinie and illustrated by Gerry Talaoc.

The back-up story features the Balloon Buster, whose real name is Steve Savage, Jr. Born and raised in Mustang River, Wyoming, Savage was trained by his poverty-stricken father to be a consummate marksman, learning that the gun is merely an extension of the man who wields it.

Enlisting in the Army Air Corps at the onset of World War I, Savage repeatedly disobeyed orders, breaking formation to attack and destroy the German combat balloons, which earned him his nickname.

















"Hell's Angel! Featuring Enemy Ace and the Balloon Buster, Part III: To End in Flames!" is an Enemy Ace back-up story, which was written by Robert Kanigher and illustrated by Frank Thorne.