All-Star Squadron #115, homage to Sub-Mariner issue #5

No sooner had I finished posting the previous one, when another one popped into my inbox. So...

New commission: All-Star Squadron #115, art by new-to-my-commissions British artist John Howard, homaging as always the cover of a comic written, plotted or scripted by Roy Thomas, in this case Sub-Mariner #5, art by John Buscema and Frank Giacoia.

Title: "Sharks In The Water!"

Story: After agreeing to help the Navy department in Annual #7, Neptune Perkins and Tsunami are on a ship in the Atlantic, looking to solve the mystery of attacks on vital shipping. Reports from rescued sailors have determined that a human figure, rather than a U-Boat, has sunk the vessels, and the Navy have leaked false reports that a critical cargo is being transported in this convoy.

The Nazis have clearly intercepted those reports, as a nearby ship is attacked. The captain orders the heroes into the water - his men are trained to rescue the survivors from the stricken vessel - and they give chase to the vanishing attacker.

When the figure vanishes into an enormous underwater Nazi craft, the heroes are sure that the villain is Axis Amerika member Sea Wolf, and infiltrate the giant U-Boat. However, they're captured by the crew and dragged to face ... General Haifisch, the Nazi Killer Shark (from Blackhawk #269-270)!

(Yes, I know Mark Evanier said that he thought his run featured the Earth 1 Blackhawks, but there's nothing to stop the character having a counterpart on 'my' Earth, which features all the wartime DC, Quality, Fawcett and Charlton heroes.)

The heroes are defiant - they know that the Nazi "secret weapon" is Sea Wolf. But Haifisch laughs, and beckons a shadowed figure forward --- to be revealed as a swastika-wearing Aquaman!

To be continued - next issue!

This is the first piece John Howard has done for me, but it won't be the last - I think this is outstanding.