What I Miss About Comics — Boss Battles

This panel reminds me of when extreme boredom would drive a few grade schoolers to play war on a sheet of loose-leaf paper. Essentially two or more boys would start carefully drawing out soldiers, jeeps and tanks on that sheet of paper, and at a point where the young artists were satisfied with the quality and quantity of their combatants, graphite gunfire would erupt. The kids would battle it out taking turns scribbling the trails of bullets and using an eraser to destroy the enemy. The page soon became a ragged mess filled with pencil scrawls and eraser crumbs. This anarchic panel from a story titled Charlie Never Dies in G.I. Combat No. 267 reminds me of that.

It was either that or kids would compete to see who could draw the coolest car.

Kids thought this was a cool drawing some time during the Nixon administration.

G.I. COMBAT No.267 - 1984

Published by DC Comics in 1984.

This is one of the comics I picked up from a seller in The Italian Market. Usually the market on South Ninth Street in South Philadelphia is where one goes for meat, produce or specialty cheeses, but not comics! When I was walking through the market and I saw covers by the incomparable Joe Kubert, I knew I was going to spend some money. I couldn’t resist!

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2 Responses to What I Miss About Comics — Boss Battles

  1. Old NFO says:

    That could never be printed today… sigh

  2. Joe says:

    Probably not in America, but maybe in Japanese Manga or French Bande dessinée which have much healthier comics industries.

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