Military Medicine TRUE COMICS "Call Him 'DOC'"

They're Celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the US Army This Weekend...

...so let's tell a real story about a real medic!

I'm not sure if this never-reprinted tale from Parents Magazine Press' True Comics #33 (1943), is, in fact, true!

But it is just unusual enough to be believable.

Military Medicine OPERATION: PERIL "Mauling Medic"

If You're a Combat Medic...

...what do you do when a wounded enemy wants you to treat them?

Note: May be NSFW due to racist language common to the time period.

This never-reprinted Korean War tale from ACG's Operation: Peril #15 (1953) by editor/writer Richard Hughes, penciler Dick Beck, and inker Leo Morey shows the American medic does treat the Communist Chinese wounded...by taking them as prisoners back to his HQ, with as much medical supplies as he can steal!
I leave it to you to judge the levels of compassion and self-serving hypocrisy in the story.

Military Medicine FRONTLINE COMBAT "Combat Medic!"

Sometimes a Dedicated Medic...

...at the front is the only person standing between life and death for a wounded combatant!

And, sometimes, no matter your dedication and determination, and even if you follow all the correct procedures, your efforts just aren't enough!

This tale from EC's Frontline Combat #4 (1952), was written by Harvey Kurtzman and illustrated by Jack Davis (both WWII-era veterans, though neither saw combat).

Support Medical Comics and Stories

Visit Amazon and Buy...

EC Archives

Frontline Combat

Volume 1

Which Reprints this Story!

Paid Link

Halloween Hospital Horrors HAUNT OF HORROR "Nightmare Patrol"

We lead off out annual Halloween Horror-fest with a fascinating Vietnam War-set tale...

...created in 1974, just after American participation in the drawn-out conflict ended!

This never-reprinted tale from Marvel's Haunt of Horror V2N1 (1974) was part of a wave of horror tales prompted by the loosening up of the Comics Code to allow "traditional" monsters (who had been banned since the mid-1950s) back into comics!

DC was having some success with their new Weird War Tales book as well as the long-running Our Army at War/Sgt Rock and several others, but Marvel's war titles had been reduced to just Sgt Fury and His Howling Commandos...and that had just gone reprint!

So a new war-oriented title was out of the question, and the story found a home in the premiere issue of the second version of Haunt of Horror (the first was a short-lived digest featuring novelettes and short stories).

Please Support Medical Comics & Stories
Visit Amazon and Order...

Showcase Presents
Weird War Tales
Volume 1
Paid Link
And Check Out the Other Kool Ghouls at
Countdown to Halloween 2024

NEW HEROIC COMICS "Modest Medic"

Even a Layman with Some Basic Medical Training can Save a Life...

...as shown in this never-reprinted featurette from Eastern Color's New Heroic Comics #61 (1950)!

While I'm unable to trace if this story, illustrated by Jerry Fasano, is true or not, I'm willing to accept it as authentic, since it reads and feels like something that would occur in real life.

Judge for yourself.

Military Medicine BATTLE ACTION "Unarmed"

A soldier is supposed to be brave when in combat...

...but is he as brave as someone who's on the battlefield without any weapon?

This never-reprinted tale from Atlas' Battle Action #2 (1952) was part of the effort by the comics industry to be as gung-ho about the Korean War as it had been about World War II.

The plot about someone who may have failed earlier in life and being underrated/misunderstood by others, only to succeed in the cauldron of combat...even to the point of sacrificing his life...is a familiar trope, but this retelling of it works well, especially with the narrator's own words showing how wrong he was about the medic!

Note: the fact that prolific writer Hank Chapman scripted this melancholy story has been confirmed by access to his personal files.
But, since Atlas Comics' (now Marvel Comics') records from this period are (to put it politely) incomplete,  the question of who drew it is in doubt as the art matches the style of both George Tuska and Pete Morisi, both of whom were freelancing for Atlas (among other companies) during this period!

Please Support Medical Comics and Stories

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Our Artists at War

Best of the Best American War Comics

Featuring tales from DC, Timely/Atlas/Marvel, EC, Harvey, Fawcett, Quality, Warren, etc.

Paid Link

Military Medicine G.I. COMBAT "Medic in the Dark"

Though medics are supposed to be non-combatants...

...there are times when, to protect life, you have to take life!

Written by Robert Kanigher under the pen-name "Bart Regan" (who was a DC Comics character!) and illustrated by Ric Estrada, this never-reprinted story from DC's G.I. Combat #186 (1976) does pose an ethical dilemma...should a non-combatant defend himself and his helpless charges with lethal force?

Please Support Medical Comics and Stories

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Our Artists at War

Best of the Best American War Comics

Featuring tales from DC, Timely/Atlas/Marvel, EC, Harvey, Fawcett, Quality, Warren, etc.

Military Medicine G.I. JOE "Medwick the Medic"

This never-reprinted comedic tale from Ziff-Davis G.I. Joe V2#11 (1952)...

...which isn't related to the action figures or spin-off comics/movies/etc., does contain unrealistic depictions of religion, yoga, and the practice of meditation.
Context is everything!

Keep in mind that this 1952 story, illustrated by George Oleson and probably written by editor Jerry (Superman) Siegel, takes place only a few years after Korea was split in two in 1945, when the North became Communist.

At the time, religion, though disapproved, was not persecuted if it was practiced behind closed doors.

As a result, it's not unreasonable to believe the North Korean troops shown here included numerous Buddhists.
Of course, the portrayal of yoga and meditation is exaggerated and played strictly for laughs.
BTW, though many of the characters in this tale were ongoing featured players, Medwick was a one-shot character.
Other, unnamed, medics were shown in stories before and after him.

Please Support Medical Comics and Stories

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Our Artists at War

Best of the Best American War Comics

Featuring tales from DC, Timely/Atlas/Marvel, EC, Harvey, Fawcett, Quality, Warren, etc.