G-8 vs. Enemy Ace: who would win?

[FenrisUlf]

Yet another pulp poll...

In his trusty Sopwith, we have G-8, the Flying Spy (http://members.aol.com/battleaces/home.html) meeting the greatest of all German pilots, Hans von Hammer, the Enemy Ace (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enemy_Ace) in his favored fighter. Both men are alone, no other planes nearby (Nippy and Bull got lost, the dummies), and one man won't be leaving this fight alive.

Who returns to his aerodrome in victory, and who plunges to the unforgiving earth, another victim of the war?

I'll be going with von Hammer, because (a) I'm German, and (b) his flying career wound up doing better than even G-8.

[steamteck]

I'll go with Von Hammer too but mainly because I've got found memories of his adventures. In Pulp tradition however, G8 is the hero and would thus triumph.

[Lawnmower Boy]

Wait 'till G-8 gets his hands on an SE-5!

[st barbara]

This is too difficult for me to judge as, while I have read some of the adventures of "Enemy Ace", I have never read a "G8" story. I may try to remedy that in the future but, for now, i'm going for "The Spider", "Jimgrim" and "The Avenger" with my overseas book orders (Pulp category) !

[bubba smith]

both men out of ammo return to the respective bases

[FenrisUlf]

both men out of ammo return to the respective bases

Ooh, good one. I should've added that.

[bubba smith]

Ooh, good one. I should've added that.
i got that from the forced to retreat option where else would the characters retreat to?

[Roter Baron]

Der Baron says: Hammer him, Hans! Hands down!

[FenrisUlf]

Der Baron says: Hammer him, Hans! Hands down!

Hmm, out of curiosity, were any of the DC Enemy Ace stories actually sold in Germany? I can't imagine that any of their other war comics would have gone over very well...

[Roter Baron]

Nein, not to mein best knowledge, mein Herr.

I am just supporting Hans because ... well ... I am German, ain't I?

Actually, comic haven't been that big in Germany: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, some homegrown funnies (Fix & Foxy), some Marvel and Dc titels but even today you would see a significant difference when you compare comic book shops in Germany and the USA or, say, Ireland: In the USA it's three thousand titels and series of supers, in Germany imported supers, nothing homegrown in that direction, but quite a lot of French and sometimes Spanish historical or Fantasy/ SciFi titels and graphic novels. Even Western (Blueberry). It's significantly less on supers. German comics are usually funnies and VERY popular - at least two made it to the silver screen, two made it to theater and one funny/book became a musical.

Actually, Germany has a very healthy pulp culture - varies Western titels (Lassiter amongst the most popular), horror (John Sinclair, now in titel 1000something), scifi-space opera (Perry Rhodan, thousands of issues - some in the 5th (!) reprint, starting from titel 1), hospital romances, mountain romances (Heimatroman - usually set in the Alpes or the Schwarzwald (Black Forest) region) and "Landser"-war stories.

And that would be the equivalent to the Enemy Ace. But all Landser-novels are set in the Second World War and usually tell stories about the Eastern Front. That's were 80-90% of the German fighting took place.

Germany is pulp country - and a comic bokk diaspora. Still is.

[FenrisUlf]

Nein, not to mein best knowledge, mein Herr.

I am just supporting Hans because ... well ... I am German, ain't I?

Actually, comic haven't been that big in Germany: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, some homegrown funnies (Fix & Foxy), some Marvel and Dc titels but even today you would see a significant difference when you compare comic book shops in Germany and the USA or, say, Ireland: In the USA it's three thousand titels and series of supers, in Germany imported supers, nothing homegrown in that direction, but quite a lot of French and sometimes Spanish historical or Fantasy/ SciFi titels and graphic novels. Even Western (Blueberry). It's significantly less on supers. German comics are usually funnies and VERY popular - at least two made it to the silver screen, two made it to theater and one funny/book became a musical.

Actually, Germany has a very healthy pulp culture - varies Western titels (Lassiter amongst the most popular), horror (John Sinclair, now in titel 1000something), scifi-space opera (Perry Rhodan, thousands of issues - some in the 5th (!) reprint, starting from titel 1), hospital romances, mountain romances (Heimatroman - usually set in the Alpes or the Schwarzwald (Black Forest) region) and "Landser"-war stories.

And that would be the equivalent to the Enemy Ace. But all Landser-novels are set in the Second World War and usually tell stories about the Eastern Front. That's were 80-90% of the German fighting took place.

Germany is pulp country - and a comic bokk diaspora. Still is.

Thanks for the answer, Roter Baron.

And I must admit to some surprise at the comment about the Landser stories. I can't help but to think that they have only been available in the eastern half of Germany since the wall went down.

[Twilight]

A bit of quick research reveals that neither man was ever shot down, so clearly such a fight must have gone to a draw. ;)

[Thia Halmades]

In pulp fashion, the Great and Honorable Enemy has to escape to attempt to foil the Hero another day; I say they're forced to retreat, truly equal.

[Roter Baron]

Thanks for the answer, Roter Baron.

And I must admit to some surprise at the comment about the Landser stories. I can't help but to think that they have only been available in the eastern half of Germany since the wall went down.

Oh no - quite to the contrary: The myth of the honorable Wehrmacht-soldier who fought the black-hearted Bolshevik for the wrong Führer but for the right reason (or the other way around; or something in between; or upside down etc.) was alive and well in those pulp stories. Actually I have seen them more often when I was in my teens than I see them today. I don't know if they sell any better in the East.

Another "myth" is "the Russian" in those stories:
1) Bloodthirsting fanatical raping red-armist only worth a bullet to the brain
2) coldly-calculating Soviet with a fist of iron
3) mindless red peasant who does not know any better (canon-fodder)
4) red-blooded Russian patriot who is basically just your equivalent (just doing his job)
5) the jovial and friendly bearded (or beardless) cossack who does not like the Soviets
6) and - of course - the female Russian "Hiwi"-girl helping the Germans because she fell in love with one of the soldiers (she usualy gets killed by the bloodthirty Russian brutes).

These are just some stereotypes from German war movies from the 50s and 60s - West German war movies! Most of them are just excuses for the audience of that period of time for their war atrocities or because they didn't do anything to prevent them.
The "ordinary" German soldier never did anything wrong OR he was a 110%-Nazi and/or member of the SS. And if he did ... well: "Krieg ist die Hölle!" (War Is Hell!) :ugly: