All-Winner’s Squad: Band of Heroes #3: Review

Paul Jenkins shares with Ed Brubaker (in his Captain America and Marvels Project comics) the idea that Timely comics in the Marvel Universe were propaganda. But to Brubaker this meant that they were mostly fiction. Jenkins has them mainly fictionalised versions of real events in the war, as in the comic story shown in #1 which mimicked the actual actions of Blue Diamond and Invisible Man in Occupied France. (As an aside, it is astonishing how few real Timely stories were actually set in the actual war. Even after Pearl Harbor. And even Captain America stories. In fact it might be true that Sub-Mariner spent more stories fighting Nazi troops than Cap did.) Vagabond wasn't just a 1-issue wonder. He had stories in USA Comics #2-4, Young Allies #4 and Comedy Comics #11 (and he may have been Fighting Hobo in USA#5). He was one of the strangest of heroes with his hobo persona and his clownish costume (as seen in Bill Bryon's memory) and antics. Davey Drew and the Demon are taken from Mystic Comics #7-10. Davey fought the evil Demon, protected by a mystical cloak and with the help of the Prince of Good. His pointed ears here suggest that Davey and the Demon have merged. I don't know who the man with goggles is. The flying helmet he wears inside the comic suggests he may be American Ace (or one of the other pilots) mentioned last issue. Looking at the finned helmet and goggles on the cover makes think of the undersea hero Fin from Daring Mystery Comics #7-8 and its successor Comedy Comics #9. He did get a mention in Jenkins' interview. But the rest of Fin's costume is nothing like that on the cover. We still have no confirmation that Archie the medic is Archie the Gruesome (also mentioned in Jenkins' interview). His lone appearance in Comedy Comics #10 hasn't been reprinted, so I have no idea if his child-like speech pattern is a clue.

If the intro page was helpful, the covers get more misleading. There is a Victory Boy there, as misplaced as he was last issue. Blue Diamond and Transisto-Mech are similarly no-shows. Captain America is depicted in WWII battle gear, although he only appears this issue in present-day civvies. Father Time is shown (not Moon Man). The only valid entrant is Young Avenger. And maybe the guy in goggles and a finned helmet is supposed to be the one in goggles and aviator's flying helmet inside? Cap and Bucky aren't in the WWII bits this time, despite accompanying the squad in their landing on Guadalcanal a few days ago (last issue). Modern Cap says he stayed part of the squad until after the Ardennes Offensive (Battle of the Bulge), Dec 44-Jan 45. (But that makes his stint (since early 1942) cover most of the US's part of the war, hardly the short period he describes it as to Alyssa.) Of course Cap would have to frequently leave the Crazy Sues to fit in his adventures with the Invaders, and all the other WWII stories modern Marvel has told about him. Not to mention all the Timely tales (but see below). There are other characters from #2 that I can't see in this one:- Father Time, Fighting Yank, Flash Foster, Taxi Taylor and Transisto-Mech. And Blue Diamond and the Victory Boys from #1's 1944 scenes still haven't joined. The intro page repeats the idea that the only comic issue containing Captain Flame was pulled from distribution because of his death. But #2 shows his book being on hold in 1942, and #1 has him still in action in 1944 events in #1. Hopefully more light will be shed on this in future issues. This issue continues to show that the Marvel Universe's Timely comics differs from ours. We see an issue of an imaginary Boys' Hero Action Comic, starring Cap and Bucky, Blue Diamond, Vagabond and Taxi Taylor, and supposedly introducing Moon Man.

In Paul Jenkins' interview in marvel.com he said that the central character of the series would be Slo-Mo Jones. But the 1st 2 issues were told from Young Avengers' POV. This issue we are presumably witnessing the switchover to Slo-Mo. I don't know whether Loki was the mystery man lurking in a trenchcoat in #1. It doesn't seem his style. When he popped up at the end of #2 I entertained the notion that he might be Alyssa's ally. But now he just turns out to be one of the bad guys. There is a question of when the present-day portions of this series happen in Marvel chronology. The presence of adult Loki suggests it precedes the Siege event (or is in the future after adult Loki doubtless returns). Steve Rogers' appearance in this issue is out of costume, allowing it to be between his return from 'death' and Siege. But this assumption could be shattered if he is shown as Captain America in later issues. In #1 and #2 I complained that it wasn't easy to connect names to faces in the crowded war scenes. And I was only able to figure out who a lot of the characters were by reference to Jenkins' interview (and Timely reprints and helpful Internet sites like www.internationalhero.co.uk). This time there are helpful names and pictures of some of the cast on the introduction page. For instance that's the only way I would have known that the red-bearded guy who appears in one panel is Vagabond. On the other hand this appears to be contradicted by the page of Bill Bryon (Young Avenger)'s memories which shows 3 costumed heroes (in comics panels) and 3 deaths-in-action. Moon Man is clearly seen in costume and death. But Vagabond-in-costume is accompanied by a dead man who definitely doesn't have a red beard (or red hair). On the third hand Young Avenger-in-costume obviously didn't die in action, and is pictured next to a dead Victory Boy (possibly his cousin Piotr, see #1).

#4 makes it clear I misread part of this issue. It wasn't Johnson who had the death wish, it was Davey Drew. And as with #2, I think I missed spotting an unremarked Blue Diamond. The man on the cover with a finned helmet is confirmed to be Fin next issue. But the man with goggles inside this issue still doesn't look like him. It's not American Ace, who only joins next issue. He could still be one of the other unnamed pilots Sgt Byrd mentioned last issue. Another goggly possibility is Taxi Taylor.