Blackhawk Archives - Volume 1

Rating:
Summary: A beautiful slice of cultural history
Review: Blackhawk, along with Sgt Rock, is arguably one of the finest war comics ever. Months before America entered World War II following the attack on Pearl Harbor, readers thrilled to the adventures of these seven international aviators, none of them American, rallying behind Blackhawk, a Polish flying ace. While these stories are sheer pulp adventure, they possess a hard edge marking them as more than mere kiddie fare. Perhaps not as sophisticated as today's adult-oriented comics, but I found the stories to be engaging and exciting nonetheless. The emphasis is on plot and action, but there is also a surprising amount of character and emotion, compared to other stories from the period. Some of the stories hold up better than others, but overall, this is an entertaining collection.

What truly makes it special, however, is the art. In his introduction, Mark Evanier describes how the late Chuck Cuidera and Reed Crandall were responsible for making Blackhawk one of the best looking comics of its time, and he's not kidding. The art, reminiscent of the great Milt Canniff, is dynamic, expressive, detailed, and cinematic. Even the clunkiest of stories in this book is redeemed by the art.

Having said all that, politically correct readers should be warned that this volume does feature horribly negative stereotypes of Germans and Asians. While this is understandably a by-product of the time in which these stories were produced, I don't think they should simply be dismissed with a simple, "Well, that's how people thought back then." I do think these sorts of stories should be kept in print, warts and all, not just because they are good adventure stories with a great deal of artistic merit. Seeing how recently such racist attitudes were viewed as acceptable helps remind us how far we still have to go in terms of race relations. This sort of casual racism should be acknowledged as having existed, and not swept under the carpet.

Still, occasionally awkward stories and overt racism aside, this is still an excellent volume, and a worthy addition to any comics lover's collection.

Rating:
Summary: A beautiful slice of cultural history
Review: Blackhawk, along with Sgt Rock, is arguably one of the finest war comics ever. Months before America entered World War II following the attack on Pearl Harbor, readers thrilled to the adventures of these seven international aviators, none of them American, rallying behind Blackhawk, a Polish flying ace. While these stories are sheer pulp adventure, they possess a hard edge marking them as more than mere kiddie fare. Perhaps not as sophisticated as today's adult-oriented comics, but I found the stories to be engaging and exciting nonetheless. The emphasis is on plot and action, but there is also a surprising amount of character and emotion, compared to other stories from the period. Some of the stories hold up better than others, but overall, this is an entertaining collection.

What truly makes it special, however, is the art. In his introduction, Mark Evanier describes how the late Chuck Cuidera and Reed Crandall were responsible for making Blackhawk one of the best looking comics of its time, and he's not kidding. The art, reminiscent of the great Milt Canniff, is dynamic, expressive, detailed, and cinematic. Even the clunkiest of stories in this book is redeemed by the art.

Having said all that, politically correct readers should be warned that this volume does feature horribly negative stereotypes of Germans and Asians. While this is understandably a by-product of the time in which these stories were produced, I don't think they should simply be dismissed with a simple, "Well, that's how people thought back then." I do think these sorts of stories should be kept in print, warts and all, not just because they are good adventure stories with a great deal of artistic merit. Seeing how recently such racist attitudes were viewed as acceptable helps remind us how far we still have to go in terms of race relations. This sort of casual racism should be acknowledged as having existed, and not swept under the carpet.

Still, occasionally awkward stories and overt racism aside, this is still an excellent volume, and a worthy addition to any comics lover's collection.

Rating:
Summary: A Disapointment
Review: I fondly recall "Blackhawk" of the late 50's and early 60's. This archive is the origin of Blackhawk, and the first few issues of Military Comics, with Blackhawk as the feature lead.

Storywise, each issue is more or less the same. Something evil happens in the world, and Blackhawk and his comrades swoop in, make a few initial mistakes, and then win the day. Being expert pilots, they shoot every enemy out of the sky.

The prejudices of the day are very apparent; from the evilness of the Japanese and Germans to the depiction of Chop-Chop, the Chinese Blackhawk member who was initially there only for comic relief. Material like that today would not be tolerated.

Some things in the stories are entirely unbelievable. For instance, flying all the way around the world from their secret Atlantic Ocean based Blackhawk island (in propeller planes, no less) to land in downtown Tokyo for no known reason. Also, when they are low on fuel one time, they land on a Nazi aircraft carrier(?!), overcome all the necessary crew, refuel, and take off again. Several times someone crashlands, only to walk away each time unscathed. Come on, where is the credibility? Were the people in the '40s that gullible to accept anything?

OK, there was a war going on, and people wanted to root for the good guy, because the outcome of the war was then in doubt.

The art, meanwhile, got better and better each story. The page layouts changed, and detail got finer and finer. Kudos to the contributing artists.

If you want to feel the pulse of the early WWII, this is the book for you. For anyone of Silver Age era or later, this is how the world was then.