Congo Chronicle 28: The One-Man Army!

Though he enjoyed the second longest running feature in Action Comics behind Superman himself, Action Comics #52 (September, 1942) would be Congo Bill's only cover appearance in that magazine.  And what a cover!  America was fully engaged in the war by now, and her four-color masked men were doing their parts to sell war bonds and the like. (There's actually a clever, in-story explanation as to why Superman didn't just hop across the pond and bash Hitler's face in, involving dark magic and the Spear of Longinus, which I won't bore you with here.) Anyway, sharing the spotlight here, from left to right, are Bill's fellow archetypal he-men Mr. America, The Vigilante, Superman, and Zatara the Magician.

 So, where were we then?  Ah, yes, Bill has left The Flying Tigers behind and continued on to mainland China, where he's leading a band of brave resistance fighters against the Yellow Peril!

 Surveying an occupied village, Bill meets up with a rude and opinionated Japanazi rat!

 Uh-oh, Tojo....you don't wanna mess with our man Bill!  Ka-POW!

 His honor satisfied, Bill continues on his way, and is pulled aside by a Chinese beggar.  But, what's this?  That's no beggar, that's Ting Ho, a Chinese-American, working undercover!  And he's got a mission for an adventurous daredevil!

 

Bill's luck runs out as he's leaving the village, and is captured by the same soldier he decked earlier!

 Worried?  Me either! Not when Bill can put his Jungle Skills to good use!

Well, bully. Now he has a jeep.  But...he's somewhere in the middle of China. And it's raining, so he can't use the stars as a guide. What now?!?

Another clue to Bill's past - he was apparently a Boy Scout! Since we know Bill fought in World War I, and the Boy Scouts were founded in 1910,  we can assume that Bill was born sometime around the turn of the 20th Century, and was probably a charter member!

In a clever bit of lifesaving and educational business, Bill uses the minute hand of his watch, a helmet, and rainwater to fashion a makeshift compass which leads him to the Chinese Commander's village. Now, I know what you're thinking - all this trouble for a lousy pack of cigarettes?  But you see...

'Atta boy, Bill! Show those brave Chinamen the true meaning of Yankee stick-to-it-iveness!

Congo Chronicle 27: Congo Bill Joins The Flying Tigers!

Finally fully compensating for the loss of Professor Kent and the absence of close male companionship in his adventuring, Action Comics #51 (August, 1942) sees Bill join The Flying Tigers, the elite volunteer force formed in the wake of Pearl Harbor to defend Chinese interests in the Pacific (clearly this tale was written before the Tigers were absorbed into the 23rd Fighter Group in July of that year).

Let's meet our cast of All-Americans, shall we?

We know that Bill was an air ace in the first World War, so he has no trouble falling in like Flynn with this new group of youngsters. Just one problem though - -

Almost immediately, Bill starts piecing together clues to the identity of the queer saboteur!

A furious aerial battle with the Japanese ensues, and some of our brave boys don't make it back!

But later that night, Bill is investigating the airfield and comes upon a no-goodnik!

As Bill's a crack shot, he knows he hit the saboteur right where he wanted to! All the more curious, then, when the next day....

We're ALL wondering, Bill!  No time for that, though, look who just crawled out from the Burmese jungle!

Luckily, Tex kept his wallet with him through his ordeal, only dropping it as he re-entered camp...giving Detective Bill the final clue he needs!  Can you guess the identity of the saboteur now, gentle reader?

Never fear, Congo Bill will lay it all out for us!

 

Ha ha, stupid Nazi!

Tex is finished off by an attack from his own Japa-Ratzi "friends", and the Tigers live to fly another day!

Congo Chronicle 26: The Man Of A Thousand Lives!

Well, we're right back into the thick of Nazi-fighting in the good ol' British-controlled Egyptian Sahara! Right away in the establishing panel, things aren't looking so good...but let's get to the bottom of things, shall we?



Seems a platoon of British boys are under attack from a mob of angry Arabs and their "foul Mu'min". Mu'min is a term from the Qu'ran meaning, literally, "faithful believer", so it seems our Church of England soldiers are none too keen on fellows of differing faiths!






In the nick of time, a plane strafes the battlefield, and out hops  Congo Bill, fresh from last month's Chinese adventure, and eager to spout off words that can be quickly translated into their foreign equivalents, and vice-versa! Seems the Egyptian bedouin, or nomadic tribes (see, I can do it, too!) have mysteriously been whipped into an anti-Allies fury by Allah-knows-who!

 Correction: Allah knows - - and so does the British spy who infiltrated the tribesmen. He's literally dying to utter his last words in the manly embrace of Congo Bill!

 Bill heads to Cairo and dons his white linen jacket and pipe, all the better to put his crack detective skills  into action...

And then - Gott in Himmel!  Has Bill turned Ratzi?!??

 The method behind Bill's madness will be revealed in due time - suffice to say he tracks the stranger to the underground offices of Mr. Hoffer, where he overhears a villainous plan laid out in classic 1940's comic-book-pidgin-Germanese!

But as we Congo Billions know by now, things rarely tie up so easily on page 3 of a 6-page story, so... KA-POW!

Bill wakes to, um....throbbing consciousness, and then....errr, squirms and strains and probes his pockets (listen folks, I didn't write it, I just report.)

And though his thoughts are surely only of warning the British about the plan, don't think he's forgotten how to deliver a good old fashioned Yankee smack down! Auf Wiedersehn, Adolf!

Bill tracks down the "Mu'min"and discovers, to no one's surprise who's been paying attention:

I mean, probably anyone would jerk to attention if a nattily-dressed American man shouted "Achtung" out of a Middle Eastern window, but whatever. Let's get back to beating the crap out of Nazis!

I know what you're thinking: "How is Congo Bill, noted man of action, going to create a lasting peace between the British soldiers and the riled-up bedouin?  Why, with diplomatic aplomb, silly!

And thus began the glorious era of American-Egyptian friendship and cooperation, and the end of using religion for treacherous causes. The end!

Congo Chronicle 25: The Last Shipment!

Now that we're officially at war, Bill heads stateside for a pow-wow with the big guy himself!

Bill makes his way to "somewhere in China" quick-as-you-please, and vows to do his level best, which believe-you-me, is PLENTY GOOD ENOUGH!

But before the adventuring starts - an inspiring Braveheart-like speech!

No sooner if the convoy underway, when a stowaway is discovered tagging along. Bill makes chase, only to find...

(By "Great Scott", I think he probably meant "Ick"!)

Since she is plain, Ah Hee probably bears no relation to the famous Ah Hee Diggings in Oregon.  Though, like all comic-book Asians, she is a sallow yellow color.  I guess we should be thankful that that artist Fred Ray was progressive enough not to furnish her, or any of the other Asians in today's strip, with comically-oversized teeth or coke-bottle glasses.

In a plot twist I'm too lazy to explain,  the convoy is overtaken by an American air ace, "Broadway Charlie", who proves to be on the up-and-up!

But - what's this? Ah Hee love Broadway Charlie long time!

In another plot twist, the convoy has fallen in with a group of Chinese guerrillas who have arrived to accompany the shipment to Chiang Kai-shek. But Bill has a hunch that something's not on the level!

Congo Bill sees th - - WHAAA?  Japanese people walk differently than Chinese?!?

Well, actually, the Japanese DID cultivate a specialized way of walking the Namba Aruki, through the 19th Century, so I suppose this could be what Bill is referring to. Suffice to say, he knows a rat when he smells one!

Having been captured and bound, Bill overhears an ambush in the planning!

Heh. "Rough pole".

After his inevitable escape, C.B. and B.C. try to out-manly-man each other in their attempt to outwit Tojo's army. Ka-POW!

But...while Bill and Charlie are putting the drop on each other, Ah Hee out-mans them both!

Since, with the advent of war, we've apparently done away with recurring supporting characters, Charlie's heroic act ensures the death of both he and Ah Hee.  But not before Bill gets in a few righteously indignant zingers!

Bill's own showbiz aspirations have already been revealed, so it's only natural that he'd want to share one last manly embrace with the like-minded Broadway Charlie.  And...what's that, Charlie?  

"A-a-a-h....Ah WHO?"  Only natural that you would forget your would-be war bride after experiencing the musclebound jungle embrace of Congo Bill!

Congo Chronicle 24: Suddenly - WAR!

Suddenly is right.  Without so much as a fare-thee-well, Bill has thrown over erstwhile companion-and-Professor-Kent-substitute Janet Logan, left East Africa (or maybe Libya),  and is tooling downriver "somewhere in the [Dutch] East Indies" with stereotypically-British Lt. Barlow of the RAF, missing in action for the past three months!

One might surmise that, with Action Comics #48 (approximate on-sale date, March 19, 1942) publication lags had finally caught up with real world events, namely the attack on Pearl Harbor and America's entry into WWII (the big one).  While Bill has taken the measure of a fair share of African Nazis, now he can pound the bejeezus out of the Axis powers with the full faith and credit of the U.S. of A.!

But back to our story - Bill senses something wrong and as we know from past experience, Bill's jungle hunches are usually right on the money! Finding a seemingly abandoned village, Bill and Barlow reconnoiter to find - -

The Japanazi officer lays out his plans to attack a US Marine garrison on Webb Island (which, um is in Antarctica...I'm not sure how much good the Marines there will be in stopping the Axis takeover of the Micronesia...)  Bill and Barlow are to be executed at dawn - or so the Nips think!!! Have a little JUNGLE JUSTICE, Jap!  Ka-POW!

Bill and the Lieutenant make their break, but are separated.  Bill finds an abandoned boat stocked with provisions and makes a desperate, shirtless, week-long ocean voyage toward Webb Island!

No sooner does Bill clean up and explain the danger to the island - -

Needless to say, the Japa-Ratzis are no match for our homegrown fightin' Leathernecks!

        

After the skirmish is over, a final plane is spotted over the island. To everyone's surprise - -

Our brave Limey ally had made his escape, stolen a Japanese plane, and made his way to the island after all!    

Now, a final plan is launched to warn the Navy of the presence of the enemy! Bill, shirtless, will swim out to the Japanese destroyer off the coast and radio the Yankee fleet, while Barlow bombs the destroyer into oblivion!  Bill's part of the plan goes off without a hitch, naturally...

Airman Barlow's, however...

A little kamikaze trick borrowed from the enemy, and good enough for 'em!!!

All's well that ends well, and what would a war story be without a poignant ending, eh what?