''Enemy Ace'' (german: Feindliches Ass) is a

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

property about the adventures of a skilled but troubled German

anti-hero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform action ...

and

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Hans von Hammer, known to the world as "The Hammer of Hell". Debuting in 1965, the comic was written by

Robert Kanigher Robert "Bob" Kanigher (; June 18, 1915 – May 7, 2002)Social Security Death Index, social security #116-07-5117. was an American comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for ...

and drawn by

Joe Kubert Joseph Kubert (; September 18, 1926 – August 12, 2012) was a Polish-born American comic book artist, art teacher, and founder of The Kubert School. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawkman. He is also kno ...

and the character has been revived several times since by other writers & artists.

Overview

Enemy Ace first appeared in ''

Our Army at War ''Our Army at War'' was an American comic book anthology published by DC Comics that featured war-themed stories and featured the first appearances of Sgt. Rock and Enemy Ace. The series was published from August 1952 to February 1977, then ...

'' #151 (February 1965), in a backup story that quickly gained popularity. As a

pilot flying for the

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

, his stories told the German side of the war, in which Hans von Hammer was a man of honor and chivalry, a flying knight in his Fokker Dr.I, but he was haunted by his duties and the constant death surrounding them. The early series stories centered around World War I Air Combat and the strategies, tactics and honor employed by the early knights of the air. The stories were often a stark contrast between the dark brooding character Von Hammer and his softer, kinder side as in Star Spangled War Stories No 148 where Von Hammer rescues a little dog he names "Schatzi" and proceeds to befriend him, even introducing him to his dark hunting companion the gray wolf who accepts little Schatzi rather than eating him. But the Von Hammer stories were not big on happy endings, and Von Hammer goes on to lose Schatzi in a haunting scene by dropping him accidentally from his Fokker during air combat. He grieves the loss of the dog, then proceeds to massacre the remaining British pilots in an act of bloody revenge. Von Hammer was a dark character, portrayed as the inevitable result of war. Unlike most comic book characters, Von Hammer does not have an arch-enemy, though a French pilot known as The Hangman was a persistent opponent. The majority of Von Hammer's opponents followed the same code of honor as he did, which included not attacking a helpless pilot. Created by

and

, the Enemy Ace was taken loosely from the real-life Red Baron,

Manfred von Richthofen Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of ...

. Both flew Crimson Red Fokker DR1 Triplanes. Both were of

aristocratic Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...

blood. Both awarded themselves a trophy with each downed enemy plane. Both were the highest scoring

of the First World War. The main difference between the two was that Von Hammer survived to old age, whereas Von Richthofen was shot down and killed before the war ended. The character's stories have been praised as among DC's strongest war stories of the

Silver Age of comic books The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and widespread commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those featuring the superhero archetype. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an in ...

. He was revived for a few

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

s. The first was ''Enemy Ace: War Idyll'' (

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...

) by George Pratt,''Enemy Ace: War Idyll''
at the Grand Comics Database where Hammer is revealed to have lived until 1969, dying peacefully upon turning over his memoirs to and concluding his interviews with a troubled

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

veteran-turned-journalist. Tim Truman's ''Guns Of The Dragon'' 1998 mini-series saw Von Hammer in 1927 China teaming up with an elderly

Bat Lash Bartholomew "Bat" Aloysius Lash is a fictional Western (genre), Western superhero character in the DC Universe. A self-professed pacifist, self-professed ladies' man, and gambler, Bat Lash's adventures have been published by DC Comics since 19 ...

and Biff Bradley, the brother of

Slam Bradley Samuel Emerson "Slam" Bradley is a fictional character that has appeared in various comic book series published by DC Comics. He is a private detective who exists in DC's main shared universe. The character concept was created by DC Comics founde ...

against Miss Fear and

Vandal Savage Vandar Adg of the Blood Tribe, more widely known as Vandal Savage, is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is said to be a Cro-Magnon warrior who gained immortality and advanced healing abilities after encount ...

on an adventure to Dinosaur Island. A more recent work is

Garth Ennis Garth Ennis (born January 16, 1970) is a Northern Irish–American comics writer, best known for the Vertigo series ''Preacher'' with artist Steve Dillon, his nine-year run on Marvel Comics' Punisher franchise, and '' The Boys'' with artist Dar ...

's ''Enemy Ace: War in Heaven'' ( 2001), with art by

Chris Weston Chris Weston (born 1969) is a British comics artist who has worked both in the US and UK comics industries. Biography Weston was born in January 1969 in Rinteln, Germany, and lived in various countries as a child. His career began when he was ...

and

Russ Heath Russell Heath Jr. (September 29, 1926 – August 23, 2018), was an American artist best known for his comic book work, particularly his DC Comics war stories and his 1960s art for ''Playboy'' magazine's "Little Annie Fanny" feature. He also prod ...

. Here, von Hammer's character and story arc is based on several real-life German pilots, notably Adolf Galland. The series recounts the pilot's activities during

where he is persuaded to once again fight as a pilot of the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

. Von Hammer is placed in charge of his own gruppe and initially serves on the Eastern Front. Though no friend to the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

regime, he rapidly amasses numerous kills flying a red-painted Bf 109 against the

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 '' Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

, and later in defense of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(flying a scarlet

Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the German ...

) against American bombers. Nevertheless, von Hammer becomes increasingly disillusioned as he continues to witness the horrors of war. During a battle, he is shot down and crashes near Leningrad. In his attempts to make it back to his own lines, he witnesses many horrible sights on the Russian front, including cannibalism. In 1945, after bailing out of his damaged aircraft, he inadvertently parachutes into the Dachau concentration camp and is outraged to discover the German perpetration of

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

. He proposes a mutiny upon returning to his airbase and later surrenders his Jagdverband to advancing Allied troops, namely Sgt. Rock's

Easy Company E Company, 2nd Battalion of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division, the "Screaming Eagles", is a company in the United States Army. The company was referred to as "Easy" after the radio call for "E" in the p ...

, after setting fire to the fighter unit's remaining aircraft. Von Hammer makes a guest appearance of sorts as an opponent of

General Wade Eiling General Wade Eiling, sometimes known as The General, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Publication history Wade Eiling first appeared in ''Captain Atom'' #1 (March 1987) and was created by Cary Ba ...

's father in a tale set during the First World War. In

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, he is featured in Bruce Jones' ''

The War that Time Forgot ''The War that Time Forgot'' was a comic book feature published by DC Comics beginning in 1960 in the title ''Star Spangled War Stories'', created by Robert Kanigher, Ross Andru and Mike Esposito. It ran for eight years, ending in 1968 and return ...

''. He also appears in ''

Booster Gold Booster Gold (Michael Jon Carter) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Dan Jurgens, the character first appeared in '' Booster Gold'' #1 (February 1986) and has been a member of the Justice League. ...

'' in 2009, during World War I. When Booster is thrown back in time and caught in the middle of the war, alongside Cyrus Lord, the ancestor of

Maxwell Lord Maxwell Lord IV is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in '' Justice League'' #1 (May 1987) and was created by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire. Maxwell Lord was ...

, von Hammer aids their escape from captivity behind German lines rather than abet their torture and further stain his hands with blood. During the " Dark Nights: Death Metal" storyline, Enemy Ace is among the superheroes that were revived by Batman using a Black Lantern ring.

Von Hammer's descendants

A possible descendant of Von Hammer appears in the story "Ghost of the Killer Skies" in '' Detective Comics'' #404 (Oct. 1970). Batman investigates sabotage and murder taking place during shooting of a biographical film based on Von Hammer. The mastermind behind the sabotage is stunt pilot Heinrich Frans, who bears a strong resemblance to Von Hammer and claims that he was his ancestor. Believing that Von Hammer was a ruthless man, Frans is outraged that the film's story has his ancestor showing respect and mercy to his enemies, despite Batman countering that Von Hammer's story is more one of "a man caught between his feeling of duty and his own best instincts". Frans falls to his death during an aerial duel with Batman, both men using vintage World War I planes. During the duel, it is heavily implied that the spirit of Von Hammer helps Batman pilot his craft far better than the crimefighter could on his own. At the end, it is not confirmed if Heinrich Frans was indeed Von Hammer's descendant. In issue #139 of the '' Robin'' series, von Hammer's great-granddaughter Lieutenant Ilsa von Hammer appeared as part of a group of soldiers that included Johnny Cloud's grandson and a legendary soldier known only as the Veteran. This group, handling missions which may be more unusual than the normal military is equipped for, recruits Robin to assist on their missions. Another possible descendant appears in ''Superman'' #689. Will Von Hammer works as a private investigator in Berlin. He possesses some superhuman invulnerability as he is also the descendant of World War II hero Stormy Foster. In DC's 'New 52' ''Shade'' mini-series, Will helps the Shade in tracking down the latter's past. ''Swamp Thing'' #86-87 revealed von hammer and his father, Otto von hammer, to be ancestors of the Arcane clan (Anton, Gregori, Anais, Aniela, Abigail, Tefe and others).

Von Hammer's aircraft

* Fokker Dr.I—

* Messerschmitt Bf 109F—Early

Messerschmitt Bf 109G Due to the Messerschmitt Bf 109's versatility and time in service with the German and foreign air forces, numerous variants were produced in Germany to serve for over eight years with the Luftwaffe. Additional variants were produced abroad tot ...

— Eastern Front *

Messerschmitt Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germ ...

—Used late war until surrender. ''Note: Not only are all of Von Hammer's aircraft painted bright red, his World War II aircraft lacked the standard swastika insignia on the tail, which causes friction with one of his officers who is fervently loyal to the Nazi Party.''

Collected editions

There have been a number of trade paperback collections as well as original graphic novels: * ''Enemy Ace: War Idyll'' (by George Pratt,

, 128 pages, hardcover (1990), softcover (1995), ) * ''The Enemy Ace

Archives An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...

'' (by

and

): ** ''Volume 1'' (212 pages, October 2002, hardcover, , collects: ''

'' (1952) #151, #153, #155; ''

Showcase Showcase or vitrine may refer to: *Cabinet (furniture) *Display case Music * ''Showcase'' (Bill Anderson album), 1964 * ''Showcase'' (Patsy Cline album), 1961 * ''Showcase'' (Buddy Holly album), 1964 * ''Showcase'' (Philly Joe Jones album), 1959 ...

'' (1956) #57-58; '' Star-Spangled War Stories'' (1952) #138-142) ** ''Volume 2'' (196 pages, September 2006, hardcover, ), collects: ''Star Spangled War Stories'' (1952) #143-145, #147-150, #183, #200)DC profile for ''The Enemy Ace Archives Volume 2''
/ref> The copy on the dust jacket does not accurately reflect the contents. It says "completing the collection of all of the original Kanigher/Kubert Enemy Ace tales (and adding in collaborations with artists Neal Adams, Russ Heath and Frank Thorne), this volume's ten stories display some of comics' greatest talents at the peak of their creative powers..." The book contains 13 stories and does not include any stories by Neal Adams, but is credited with one story as artist WITH Joe Kubert (issue #144-"Death Takes No Holiday"..). Two Enemy Ace-branded stories from ''Our Army at War'' #146 are not included in this collection as they are not, in fact, Enemy Ace stories. They were both retitled reprints of previously-published non-Enemy Ace stories ("Balloon for a Hawk" from ''Our Fighting Forces'' #60, retitled as "No! I will not go up in that papier mâché coffin!" and "My Brother, The Enemy Ace!" from ''All-American Men of War'' #101, retitled as "Brother Enemy!"), each with a single Kubert-drawn introductory page added (featuring Von Hammer). * ''Enemy Ace: War in Heaven'' (by

and

, with art by

, Christian Alamy and

, collects 2-issue mini-series and ''Star Spangled War Stories'' #139, 128 pages, 2003, ) * ''

Showcase Presents ''Showcase Presents'' was a line of black-and-white paperback books published by DC Comics (from 2005 - 2016) at an average rate of two per month. Much like Marvel Comics' ''Essential Marvel'' volumes, each book usually included over 500 pages of r ...

: Enemy Ace Volume 1'' (552 pages, Black & White, January

, , collects: '' Detective Comics'' (1937) #404; '' Men of War'' (1977) #1-3, #8-10, #12-14, #19-20; ''Our Army at War'' (1952) #151, #153, #155; ''Showcase'' (1956) #57-58; ''Star Spangled War Stories'' (1952) #138-145, #147-150, #183, #200; '' Unknown Soldier'' #251-253, #260-261, #265-267)

In other media

Television

Enemy Ace appears in the teaser of the '' Batman: The Brave and the Bold'' episode "Aquaman's Outrageous Adventure", voiced by

John DiMaggio John William DiMaggio (; born September 4, 1968) is an American actor. His various voice roles include Bender on ''Futurama'', Jake the Dog on ''Adventure Time'', Marcus Fenix in the ''Gears of War'' series, Dr. Drakken on ''Kim Possible'', H ...

. Enemy Ace tries to shoot down Batman's

Batplane The Batplane, Batwing, Batjet or Batgyro is the fictional aircraft for the DC Comics superhero Batman. The vehicle was introduced in "Batman Versus The Vampire, I", published in ''Detective Comics'' #31 in 1939, a story which saw Batman travel to ...

before he convinces him to team up to destroy an alien cannon. After Batman leaves, Enemy Ace says that for Batman's sake, he hopes that they do not meet again in combat.

Toys

A deluxe action figure has been released which includes Black Wolf and a smaller scale version of his Fokker DR-1.DC's deluxe action figure model

Novels

* Von Hammer appears as a vampire in

Kim Newman Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula'' at ...

's ''

Anno Dracula ''Anno Dracula'' is a 1992 novel by British writer Kim Newman, the first in the ''Anno Dracula'' series. It is an alternate history using 19th-century English historical settings and personalities, along with characters from popular fiction. ...

'' universe novel ''The Bloody Red Baron'', alongside other fictional German pilots and von Richthofen himself. * During the 1970s, Enemy Ace was parodied in ''Sparky Comics'' as Baron Von Reichs-Pudding, an incompetent German pilot from the Great War.

References

External links

*
Enemy Ace
at Don Markstein's Toonopedia
Archived
from the original on June 17, 2016.

{{DC Comics War Titles, state=collapsed 1965 comics debuts Comics characters introduced in 1965 1990 books 1990 comics debuts 2001 comics debuts DC Comics graphic novels Fictional air force personnel Fictional aviators Fictional German people Fictional German military personnel Fictional World War I veterans Fictional World War II veterans Comics set during World War I DC Comics set during World War II DC Comics military personnel Characters created by Joe Kubert Characters created by Robert Kanigher Aviation comics Fictional fighter pilots