SGT Rock vs The Army of the Dead

 

TITLE-DC Horror SGT. Rock VS The Army of the Dead

FORMAT-Hardcover

Over the past 4 years I have re-discovered my love for the War genre of comic books. I have a circuit of thrifts/junkstores/pawn shops/antique malls I hit up a few times a month. At one at the booth where I normally find comics and dvds cheap I saw a huge stack of late 70s/early 80s Charlton War comics. Grabbed an issue with a Vietnam War cover. 

Then as sometimes happens that comic sat unread for over a year. Late one night when I couldn't sleep I did what I have always done if it is late and I can't sleep. I grabbed a stack of unread comics and sat at the bar in my kitchen listening to music and reading. 

After reading that Charton war comic,Battlefield Action, I went and set my clock. I wanted to get up and be back at that Antique Mall as soon as it opened. Knowing that odds are good most of those war comics are still there.

3 hours of sleep and I am off ot Vendors,yes the Antique Mall I wrote about close to 10 years ago. Go straight to the booth and not only is those Charlton War books there but so is a nice stack of DC War titles.  And seeing a cover of Sgt Rock I had a memory flash back on me.

When I was a kid on my mother's side I was the only grandchild for right at 6 years. Usually once a month my parents would drop me off at my Grandparents' home on Friday and I would stay there until Sunday or Monday. And every Sunday after Church Grandpa would drop Grannie off at the house then him and I would walk to a local newstand. Grandpa would grab the local Sunday paper and the New Orleans Sunday paper. Tell me "Grab you some comics." Which I quickly learned grab 3 bucks worth of  comics,and back then that was 4 to 6 comics. And Grandpa would grab either a SSgt Rock or GI Combat comic. If there was none of those he would grab whatever Charlton War comic was available and had a WWII story.

Sure as a kid I knew Grandpa had served in the  navy. But I really had no clue that this World War II I was reading about was the time when Grandpa served.

Once back to the house,while Grannie made us lunch Grandpa would read his comic and newspapers. Then he would have me read him at least a story or two out of whatever comic Grandpa got.

So I am standing in Vendors,head full of memories of my now dead Grandpa. I bought every war comic in the bin. And since I have learned how much fun these comics could be.

In early 2023 I heard about how Bruce "Ash from Evil Dead" Campbell was writing a Sgt Rock mini series for DC. Thought it was odd that an actor mostly known for horror&comedy was writing a war comic. Then saw this mini series would be part of the DC Horror line.

With the mini series being 6 issues and the average comic now priced at almost 5 bucks an issue I decided to wait till this mini came out as a TPB. I love horror and love SGT Rock. But wasn't ready to drop 30 bucks to read a story. Not when I knew the TPB would be 20 bucks.

Skip ahead to a few days after Xmas 2023.Flush with Amazon giftcards,and wanting comics to read I saw that not only was SGt Rock vs the army  of the dead was out in collected form but also Amazon had the hardcover for cheap. Thinking it was 12 bucks shipped. Ordered it along with a pile of other TPBs.

Been after dinner a few nights a week sitting at the bar listening to a podcast or music and reading a tpb/hardcover/OGN out of my huge unread stack. The day Sgt Rock came to the house I was reading it while having dinner.

Under that gorgeous Gary Frank cover to issue 1 this tale starts. Nearing the end of the war Germany is losing. Low on supplies and troops Adolph Hitler has one last hope. One of his scientist thinks he has come up with a way to reanimate the dead.

After some US soldiers encounter these Zombie Nazis the comic gets going. Sgt Rock and Easy Company are stuck with a boring duty. When Rock gets a message telling him they are needed for a top secret mission he is ready.

In this first issue Bruce Campbell shows he is a Sgt Rock fan. This series is made for the older audience. Which means we get an unrestricted war book. And Bruce uses this to give us the SGT Rock that was always hinted at in the old series.

Rock and Easy get outfitted with top of the line weapons and gear. Then are told what they have to do. They gotta go deep behind enemy lines And do whatever it takes to destroy the Nazi Zombies and how they are being created.

Issues 2,3,4&5 are just jam packed with action. Pages full of Easy Company doing what they do best. Killing Nazis! With issue 6 containing what we have all been waiting for. A fight that anyone that has ever read any SGT Rock before has wanted to see. Sgt Rock vs Hitler during the last days of World War II.

The twist is this Adolph Hitler has been injected with the serum that reanimates the dead. Yep Zombie Hitler vs SGT Rock!!

Of course SGT Rock wins. Hitler dies. Skip ahead and Rock is in the hospital recovering. Where we get a hint that we might get another SGT Rock mini series. 

Yea the story is damn good,the art is really good. And let me speak on the art a bit. The main covers,this series had a pile of variant covers,are by Gary Frank. An  artist I have enjoyed since the 90s. The interiors are by Eduardo Risso. Eduardo's art is nice. Has this dark feel to it that works well with the horror story.  My only real complaint about this hardcover is I do wish Gary Frank had did the interior art.

Being a hardcover I was expecting this to have some extras. Which it does. The art above is one of the variant covers. And a pile of variant covers are reprinted after the main story. Another extra and I have noticed DC does this often,is under the dust jacket on the front cover is an Army Sgt's rank patch. Little small things like this make this Hardcover stand out.

If you like horror comics grab this and read it. If you like war comics grab this and read it. 

DC Horror SGT Rock vs The Army of the Dead Hardcover gets a B+