''The Desert Peach'' is a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

created by

Donna Barr Donna Barr (born August 13, 1952) is an American comic book author and cartoonist. She is best known for ''The Desert Peach'' and ''Stinz''. She was born in Everett, Washington, the second child in a family of six siblings. Life and education ...

, chronicling the adventures of the

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

protagonist, Erwin "The Desert Fox" Rommel's fictitious homosexual younger brother,

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

Manfred Pfirsich Marie Rommel (1900–1990), nicknamed the "Desert Peach". Early issues of the comic focused on the Peach's command of a misfit unit of the

Afrika Korps The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the ...

from 1940 to 1943; subsequent issues have explored the pre- and post-war lives of Pfirsich (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

for "

Peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-f ...

") and his supporting cast.

Publication history

''The Desert Peach'' was first published in 1988, by Thoughts and Images, later by MU Press/AEON, and still later by A Fine Line. 32 issues were released throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, and subsequently re-released in eight collected volumes; as well, a Desert Peach musical was produced in 1992, and ''Bread and Swans'', a Desert Peach novel, was released in 2005. With the exception of the musical, all Desert Peach material has been created entirely by Barr. Barr took ''Peach'' to the

Modern Tales Modern Tales was a webcomics subscription service active from 2002 to 2012. Joey Manley was the website's publisher and original editor. The site featured a roster of approximately 30 professional webcomic artists. Shaenon Garrity, one of the s ...

webcomics Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on a website or mobile app. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books. Webcomics can be co ...

collective, where she explored Pfirsich's afterlife: wracked with guilt for having failed to save enough people from 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 sentenced himself to Hell. The website ceased operations in 2012 and the comics were removed.

Inspiration

Barr has said that she was inspired to create the character while working in the file office of the University of Washington, which was being painted a "horrible half-pink, half-tan color." Searching for a color name, she stumbled upon "desert peach", and was immediately inspired by the pun upon "The Desert Fox," the name given to Field Marshal Erwin Rommel during

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 ...

. According to his biographers, Rommel had a youngest brother, named Manfred, who died in infancy—Barr said she only developed a personality who the universe had prematurely discarded.

Supporting cast

The Desert Peach commanded the 469th

Halftrack A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cro ...

, Gravedigging and Support Unit of the Afrika Korps: a catch-all for misfits, mavericks, and otherwise peculiar soldiers who, for whatever reason, were not suitable for service in the German Army but nonetheless were enlisted. In the words of their medical officer (a psychiatrist assigned to the 469th because his specialty was considered a "

Jewish science Jewish Science is a Judaic spiritual movement comparable with the New Thought Movement. Many of its members also attend services at conventional synagogues. It is an interpretation of Jewish philosophy that was originally conceived by Rabbi ...

"), it was a unit composed "entirely of stray puppies". The 469th was based on an escarpment by the sea. Pfirsich was of the opinion that a commander should not merely lead his troops but protect them, and arranged with local Allied commanders that there would be no fighting in that area (although newcomers did not always accept this '' modus vivendi''). Throughout the series, Barr focused on many characters; the following list includes some of the most prominent. *

Obergefreiter Obergefreiter (''abbr.'' OGefr.) is an enlisted rank of the German and Swiss militaries which dates from the 19th century. In today's Bundeswehr, every ''Gefreiter'' is normally promoted ''Obergefreiter'' after six months. The NATO-Code is OR-3 ...

Udo Schmidt: Pfirsich's

orderly In healthcare, an orderly (also known as a ward assistant, nurse assistant or healthcare assistant) is a hospital attendant whose job consists of assisting medical and nursing staff with various nursing and medical interventions. The highest ro ...

and aide-de-camp. Scruffy, dirty, ill-tempered, dark-skinned, secretly Jewish, and with a habit of using pages from '' Mein Kampf'' as

rolling paper Rolling paper is a specialty paper used for making cigarettes (commercially manufactured filter cigarettes and individually made roll-your-own cigarettes). Rolling papers are packs of several cigarette-size sheets, often folded inside a cardbo ...

s, Schmidt was the 469th's only card-carrying member of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

. He claimed that his reason for joining was that he had been very young and a desperate Party recruiter had bought him beer. *

Leutnant () is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") from Middle High Ge ...

Kjars Dagobert Winzig: the 469th's self-appointed political officer. A concert pianist in civilian life, the blond, blue-eyed Winzig was an enthusiastic,

armband An armband is a piece of material worn around the arm. They may be worn for pure ornamentation, or to mark the wearer as belonging to group, or as insignia having a certain rank, status, office or role, or being in a particular state or condit ...

-wearing supporter of Hitler and Nazism. However, he was not actually a party member, since (as he shamefacedly explained) "party members have to pay dues". * Oberleutnant Rosen Kavalier: ace

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 ...

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

, and the Peach's

fiancé An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

. A cheerful adventurer, bold and brash, Rosen (whose real name, thanks to his British father, was Melvin Gonville Ramsbottom) once got Pfirsich drunk enough to have heterosexual sex for the first time, claiming that he should experience it at least once. This encounter led to the birth of Pfirsich's son. *

Heinrich Dobermann:

munitions Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...

expert. As the result of a training accident on a minefield, Dobermann was brain-damaged, mildly insane, and addicted to several

painkiller An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It i ...

s and

psychotropic A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, psychoactive agent or psychotropic drug is a chemical substance, that changes functions of the nervous system, and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behavior. Th ...

medications. As well, he adopted a live Tellermine 42 as a pet, naming it "Fridl". * Kristof Falbe: the 469's mute radio operator. Never speaks, just taps the radio microphone to communicate. Always seen holding a small stuffed dinosaur.

Bibliography

* Thoughts and Images: **The Desert Peach #1: Who is This Man? **The Desert Peach #2: The Bar Fight **The Desert Peach #3: A Day At The Beach **The Desert Peach #4: Is There A Nazi In The House? **The Desert Peach #5: Flight Of Fancy **The Desert Peach #6: A Day Like Any Other **The Desert Peach #7: Spoiled Fruit **The Desert Peach #8: Dressing Down **The Desert Peach #9: Scourge Of Love **The Desert Peach #10: Two-Timers **The Desert Peach #11: Straight and Narrow **The Desert Peach #12: Child Of The World **The Desert Peach #13: Nobody **The Desert Peach #14: Surprise, Surprise **The Desert Peach #15: The Triangle Trade **The Desert Peach #16: Plight Of The Phoenix **The Desert Peach #17: Culture Shock **The Desert Peach #18: Musical Program **The Desert Peach #19: Self-Propelled Target **The Desert Peach #20: Fever Dreams **The Desert Peach #21: The Good Uncle **The Desert Peach #22: Lady Luck **The Desert Peach #23: Visions **The Desert Peach #24: Ups And Downs **The Desert Peach #25: Beautiful **The Desert Peach Collection: Beginnings (issues 1 - 3) **The Desert Peach Collection: Politics, Pilots and Puppies (issues 4 - 6) **The Desert Peach Collection: Foreign Relations (issues 7 - 9) **The Desert Peach Collection: Baby Games (issues 10 - 12) **The Desert Peach Collection: Belief Systems (issues 13 - 15) **The Desert Peach Collection: Marriage and Mayhem (issues 16, 17, 19) **Ersatz Peach **Peach Slices (first edition - sold out) * A Fine Line Press (available at mupress till #30) **The Desert Peach #26: Miki **The Desert Peach #27: New And Different **The Desert Peach #28: Tongue **The Desert Peach #29: Out Of The East **The Desert Peach #30: Headaches **The Desert Peach #31: Pithed **The Desert Peach #32: Keeper **Peach Slices (second edition, with additional artwork and Desert Peach #25) *Seven Peaches contains the first seven Desert Peach issues *Bread and Swans, the Desert Peach Novel
Robot Comics has announced that it will re-release Desert Peach titles
on the Amazon Kindle.

References

External links

Don Markstein's Toonopedia: The Desert Peach
{{DEFAULTSORT:Desert Peach, The Comics publications LGBT characters in comics Fictional gay males Fictional German people Works about Nazi Germany Cultural depictions of Erwin Rommel