Whose Side are the Elephants On?

 

cover art by Al Bryant

Blackhawk #9 (Winter 1944) has the Blackhawk operating in Burma, strafing Japanese soldiers who are trying to build a road through the jungle. The script is uncredited, with art tentatively credited to Max Elkan.

But war is dangerous work, even for the best Allied pilots in the business. Blackhawk's plane is hit by anti-aircraft fire and he's forced to bail out. Soon, he's captured by the Japanese.

He's not a prisoner long, though. An elephant charges out of the jungle, scares off the Japanese, then grabs Blackhawk in his trunk and makes a run for it.

So Blackhawk is rescued. Wait-a-minute. No, he's NOT rescued! The elephant is one of many trained and operated by a guy named Burma Jack, who explains to Blackhawk that the pilot is still a prisoner. Burma Jack rents his elephants out to the Japanese and he figures he can get at least ten grand from them for Blackhawk.

Two of the other Blackhawks, Andre and Olaf, have landed in a nearby clearing in hopes of finding their boss. But they are captured as well. Burma Jack--traitor and war profiteer--now has three prisoners he can sell to the enemy.

Except that's not the case. Burma Jack agrees to use his elephants to move some Japanese artillery, but once he's on site, he cuts the Blackhawks loose, gives them Tommy guns and starts using his elephants and a few grenades to wreck havoc on the enemy.

Burma Jack was a good guy all along, playing the role of war profiteer to put himself in a position to do a lot of damage to the enemy. He goes from being despicable to being pretty cool in the space of just a few panels. That's quite an accomplishment.

The story is a good one, with strong art, good pacing and a surprise plot twist that really is a nice surprise. It is a product of its times in how Asians are drawn and in the racist insults casually used by the good guys. As I've written before about stuff like that--if it bothers you enough to spoil your enjoyment of the story, then that's a perfectly legitimate reaction. If you can recognize it as wrong but still enjoy the story, then that's okay as well.

You can read the story online HERE. 

Next week, we'll visit with "Travelin' Toughy," who is tasked with doing at least one good deed a day.