There they are... the Bluecoats I'm to council, fleeing in the Stuart M3 from the enemy! I should've known they'd have no belly for fighting! 
G.I. Combat #203 is an issue of the series G.I. Combat (Volume 1) with a cover date of September, 1977.
Synopsis for Haunted Tank: "To Trap A Tiger!"
Lt. Jeb Stuart has reported to his commanding officer at their desert HQ, just in time to overhear a radio message picked up from their surveillance team from a German Panzer commander. They translate the message, which tells them that the El Satar Oasis has filled up again and the Germans plan on using it to replenish their water supplies. This is the break the American forces need, and the commander orders Jeb to lead a team of tanks there before the Germans and ambush them. Unknown to them, the message is a fake, sent by the Germans to lure the Americans to the oasis and into their own ambush. As Jeb leads his squadron of tanks towards El Satar, the ghost of General J.E.B. Stuart appears, and warns Jeb that "a trap has many teeth".
As the tanks thunder along towards their goal, the sand underneath them begins to erupt. They have entered a anti-tank mine field, and one tank is destroyed. Jeb orders all tanks to stop immediately in their tracks, and then orders Gus, Rick, and Slim to get out and probe the sands in front of them for mines. They walk carefully, watching their every step. One by one , they begin to slowly pull the mines from the sand and clear the ways from the tanks to continue. But before they can finish, the squadron is attacked by two German Messerschmitt planes. The planes begin to swoop down to strife the three in the minefield, but Jeb covers them with the machine gun and destroys the first plane. Two other tanks begin to fire, taking out the last plane in a fiery aerial explosion. The three from the Haunted Tank finish clearing the way and return, and Jeb orders the squadron to continue on through the desert while the Haunted Tank follows far behind to cover the rear.
On their way to the rendezvous at the oasis, the Haunted Tank spots a group of desert nomads being used as target practice by a column of Nazi armored half-tracks. The enemy quickly spots the Haunted Tank and turns their attention towards them. Gus loads up the cannon, and Rick fires. With three shells Rick is able to take out all of the half-tracks. With the enemy destroyed, Jeb tries to talk to the nomads, but they seem to be unable to understand him. Uncomfortable with the way the nomads are eying him, Jeb orders Slim to give the tank all the gas and get out of there, heading once again towards the rendezvous at the oasis.
When the Haunted Tank arrives at the El Satar Oasis, they find the entire squadron destroyed. The tanks smoking from the fires inside, and the men dead in the sand with the vultures circling above them. Jeb realizes that the whole this was a trap and the message must have been a fake to lure them there. He fires his gun into the sky at the vultures in anger. A distance away, the Germans hear the gunfire, and the commander can see the Haunted Tank through his binoculars. He orders all his tanks to open fire and blitz the Americans. All around the Haunted Tank, the shells burst setting the desert sands alight in flames. Jeb has to think fast, and he and his men douse their shirts in oil and light them afire, creating a huge smokescreen shielding them from German eyes. The German tank commander thinks that the Haunted Tank has been destroyed, and calls for his tanks to cease fire. In the chaos, the Haunted Tank slips away from danger into the desert.
The next day, at German Artillery HQ, the German radio operators pick up a message from the Americans that orders their tanks to occupy the Nez Gela Ridge and wait to ambush the Germans on the road below. The Germans laugh, and the tank commander says that it will be he that will be waiting to destroy them all. At the American HQ, Jeb Stuart listens as their radio operators finish the message. It is all a trick, using the Germans' own method of deception to lure them into a trap. The Artillery C.O. orders Jeb to take the Haunted Tank to the ridge alone, to be used as bait while the main force stays out of sight awaiting to ambush. Jeb is certain the plan will work, but Rick isn't so certain. The Haunted Tank then leaves for the desert to begin with their plan.
On their way to the ridge, the Haunted Tank comes across a squad of American Infantry who look like they've just come from a heated battle and limping back to base. They decide to stop and help them. As Jeb and his men exit their tank, the soldiers reveal their true identity... that of German soldiers in disguise! They had fallen for a counter-deception laid out by the German tank commander. The commander orders his men to bury the four up to their necks in the sand, and then they steal the Haunted Tank and move to a position nearby where they can ambush the American tanks when they stop to help their trapped comrades. They sit helpless under the desert sun for hours, with vultures circling above them waiting for their deaths. Then, Jeb sees men stepping out of the haze, lifting their rifles to shoot away the birds. Jeb thinks he's seeing a mirage, but it is the Nomads again, come to help them out from their trouble in the sand! The Nomads dig the four out, and Jeb notices that many of them are carrying TNT. He comes up with a plan...
Meanwhile, at the Nez Gela Ridge, the German Panzers along with the stolen Haunted Tank take cover in the ruins of an ancient desert castle to await the arrival of the Americans. When the American tank squadron arrives, they are ambushed and under heavy fire. They attack, determined to fight till the last man at all costs, but they wonder what had happened to the Haunted Tank. Inside the castle, the German Commander laughs from atop the Haunted Tank, watching as the Americans make a suicide charge. Them, a hand grasping a stick of TNT bursts out from underneath the sand on the ground, More hands appear out of the sands, placing TNT sticks on each of the tanks. They explode, one by one, taking out the German tanks. The Tank Commander screams in fury, before the fire engulfs him. How could they have blitzed them first? He had thought of everything! Jeb, Slim, Gus, and Rick watch as black smoke rolls from the castle as the tanks all go up in flames. They are sad that they had to destroy the Haunted Tank with it, but sneaking in and placing TNT on the enemy tanks was the only way to save the squadron. Then, as the smoke begins to clear, the Haunted Tank slowly rolls out without a scratch. Jeb is shocked, but then the Ghost of General Stuart appears and tells him that he couldn't let their tank be destroyed. Jeb is about to say something, but he overhears Rick say that they managed to make it through an entire battle without Jeb ranting to his imaginary ghost. So he just smiles.
Appearing in Haunted Tank: "To Trap A Tiger!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Captain Diest (Dies)
- German Radio Operator sergeant
- German Artillery soldiers
- German pilots (All Die)
Other Characters:
- American Artillery officer
- American Radio operator Schmidt "Buster Six"
- American Radio operator "Buster One"
- American Artillery soldiers
- Desert nomads
Locations:
- Nez Gela, Africa
- El Satar Oasis
Items:
- Anti-tank mines
- Vultures
- TNT dynamite
Vehicles:
- The Haunted Tank
- German Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter plane (Destroyed)
- German Sonderkraftfahrzeug 251 half-track (Destroyed)
- American M4 Sherman tanks
- German Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B (Destroyed)
- German Volkswagen Type 82 Kübelwagen car (Destroyed)
- German 88s (Destroyed)
Synopsis for O.S.S.: "The Bride Carried A Tommygun"
Two agents of the O.S.S., Agent "Reed" and Agent "Jeanne" have been secretly wed in German-occupied France, witnessed by two other agents from the agency's Unit 4, code-names "Rene" and "Marcel". The marriage had been forbidden by the O.S.S., who worried that the two's feeling for one another would jeopardize the secret operations of Unit 4. Control must never find out about it.
That night, their honeymoon was spent wiring explosives to a vital bridge over a river crossing. Rene and Marcel whisper to one another that for the good of their friends, they must notify Control about the marriage. They decide to wait until after the operation is finished. After the explosives are places, they move to the hillside to watch. When dawn approaches, a squadron of Panzer tanks begin to cross the bridge. Reed orders the others to take their positions, and that when he blows the bridge to head down river towards a waiting fishing boat that will take them to safety. He says goodbye to his wife Jeanne, and then she and the others leave. Reed waits until the Panzers are in position on the bridge, and then throws the lever. The bridge explodes, taking the squadron of tanks with it. But as the others are escaping up the river, they are ambushed by a German patrol. Jeanne throws a grenade, destroying the German halftrack firing on them. More soldiers ambush them, and both Rene and Marcel are killed. Jeanne escapes, and is able to rendezvous back with Reed. Reed orders Jeanne to jump int the river to escape while he covers her, but Jeanne tricks him and pushes Reed into the water. She then throws a smoke grenade to hide their actions. Reed sinks into the water, carried away by the swift currents. Germans begin to fire into the water, and a bullets slashes him across the forehead, knocking him unconscious. The Germans take Jeanne prisoner. The Nazi officer in charge informs Jeanne that he knows all about Unit 4 and their movements, including her secret marriage. They plan on using Jeanne as bait to trap Reed. Two miles down river, Reed is fished out of the water by the men on the escape boat. Realizing that the others must be either dead or captured, they set off towards the English Channel where they will be picked up by British naval ship and taken back to England.
At a London hospital, the leader of the O.S.S., Control, visits the now-conscious Reed. Control tells him that while their mission was successful, Rene and Marcel were killed and that Jeanne is now a prisoner of Major Flucht at S.S. Headquarters. Reed tells Control that with Jeanne locked up at S.S. Headquarters, they may have a chance at destroying the files the enemy has on the French Underground. Reed has a plan. Control agrees with the plan, however his conscience is troubled that he has acted as much of an executioner as the German Major Flucht.
One week later at German HQ, Major Flucht receives a radio message stating that Reed will surrender to him if he releases Jeanne. Flucht is overjoyed that his plan has succeeded, and accepts Reeds terms for the exchange. Forty-eight hours later, a British seaplane arrives off the French coast and begins to circle a bell buoy in the waters below. On the plane, Reed looks down and sees Jeanne tied to the buoy The plane lands in the water next to the buoy, and Reed jumps out to untie his wife. However, Jeanne tells Reed that Major Flucht has injected her with a slow-acting poison, and that she is dying. Reed realizes that he's been double-crossed, just as Jeanne dies in his arms. A German boat then appears heading towards them, shooting and destroying the seaplane. Reed lets Jeanne's body slip into the water and be washed away by the currents, before being taken prisoner by the Germans. Major Flucht tells him that he did keep his word and delivered her to him alive, but he never said how long she would remain alive. That night, in the courtyard of S.S. Headquarters, Reed is brought out and his hands are tied behind his back, ready for execution. Reed tells Flucht that he doesn't want to be shot by firing squad, as it sometimes doesn't kill a man right away, and he requests that he be hanged instead. His request is denied. The firing squad takes their position, and Flucht gives the order to fire. The shot doesn't kill Reed, only wounds him. Major Flucht walks up to him, pulls out his pistol, and shots the man in the head. Then, a tremendous explosion rocks the area and destroys the headquarters, killing Flucht and the other Germans inside.
Later, in London, Control meets with the surgeon at the hospital to thank him for his good work. He had planted a deadly micro-explosive within Reed's head, to be set off should a bullet he shot into his head. This was Reed's plan, knowing that Major Flucht could not resist making the kill shot himself. Reed's brain was a time bomb, but it took his fighting heart to trigger it off.
Appearing in O.S.S.: "The Bride Carried A Tommygun"
Featured Characters:
- Agent "Reed" (Dies)
- Agent "Jeanne" (Dies)
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- German Artillery soldiers
- German S.S. Major Flucht (Dies)
- German Infantry sergeant
- German Infantry soldiers
- German Radio operator
Other Characters:
- Agent "Rene" (Dies)
- Agent "Marcel" (Dies)
- French priest
- French Underground Resistance fighters
- British pilot (Dies)
- British doctor
Locations:
Items:
- TNT dynamite
- M2 grenade
- Smoke grenade
- Bell buoy
- Micro-Explosive implant
Vehicles:
- German Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B (Destroyed)
- German Volkswagen Type 82 Kübelwagen car (Destroyed)
- French speedboat
- British Short S.25 Sunderland seaplane (Destroyed)
- German patrol boat
Synopsis for Haunted Tank: "No Hiding Place For the Artillery"
The crew inside the Haunted Tank once again hear their commander, Lt. Jeb Stuart, talking to his "ghost" during a mission, and Slim and Rick, worried that Jeb may be cracking, decide to have a talk about it to their C.O. once they get back to headquarters. They talk to Skipper, who tells them to leave it to him to take care of. Skipper calls Jeb into his tent, and orders him to take a three-day pass. Jeb worries about his crew, but Skipper tells him that he'll take over the Haunted Tank until he gets back. Jeb agrees, and decides to take a jeep into Paris for a little R&R.
Night has fallen, and Jeb is still on the road. In the distance he can hear the sounds of the war. Jeb is tired, but decides to keep going until he reaches Paris. As he rounds the corner, he now sees the origin of the sounds. A Line of Long Tom cannons are battling it out with a German plane. One of the guns is knocked out of action. The Commander of the cannons spots Jeb, and orders him to load up his jeep with as many shells as he can and pass them out to the batteries. As Jeb begins to load the jeep up, the plane catches sight of him and begins to fire. He jumps in and drives his jeep from one cannon to another, handing out supplies and dodging bullets along the way. As he approaches another cannon, the crew is shot down. One survives, and orders Jeb to help him load the cannon while he fires. The plane swings around for a final attack, and the cannon fires destroying the plane. As dawn begins to streak the skies, Jeb helps load the wounded into the ambulances. As he drives off towards Paris, he realizes that being in the artillery is rough as they have no place to hide.
Jeb drives a little farther, but then comes across a German Panther tank attacking another gun battery on the field. Only one cannon is left, manned by a lieutenant, so Jeb stops to see if he can help out. The Lieutenant tells Jeb that they're a sitting duck, and the two hitch the cannon onto the back of the jeep and haul it out of the Panther's firing sites. The Lieutenant is wounded by enemy fire, and Jeb gets an idea. He begins to drive the jeep and cannon up a steep hill and over the top. The Panther follows, but once it gets to the top it gets stuck on the edge. Jeb has been waiting, and has the cannon in position on the other side at the bottom of the hill. He fires, sending a shell up the side of the hill and right into the heart of the Panther tank, dest6roying it.
Later, as the injured Lieutenant is loaded up into another jeep to be taken back to hospital, Jeb is thanked by the general that's in command of the artillery division in the area. He realizes that Jeb has used up his three-day pass helping them out, and tells him that for his help he's going to issue the man a ten-day pass. Jeb refuses the pass, and has decides to return to his own unit, where he can get some peace and quiet!
Appearing in Haunted Tank: "No Hiding Place For the Artillery"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- German pilot (Dies)
- German Artillery soldiers (All Die)
Other Characters:
- American Artillery Captain "Skipper"
- American Artillery soldiers
- American Artillery general
Locations:
Items:
- American 155 mm gun M1 "Long Tom" field guns
Vehicles:
- The Haunted Tank
- American Willys MB U.S. Army Jeep
- German Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter plane (Destroyed)
- American Dodge WC-54 Ambulance
- German Panzerkampfwagen V "Panther" tank (Destroyed)
Synopsis for Haunted Tank: "The Floating Bull's Eye"
At a North African embarkation port, Lt. Jeb Stuart watches as the Haunted Tank is brought on boat a ship by crane. The ghost of General J.E.B. Stuart appears next to him, and Jeb explains that there wasn't room for them with the rest of the squadron below, so they're keeping their tank up top on deck. Jeb asks if the voyage to Sicily will be calm and quiet, and the ghost tells him that he's got a general on board "who'll kick up a storm". Jeb realizes that he must be talking about General Bannion, the commander of the invasion forces. Elsewhere on the ship, General Bannion and his adjutant is also watching the Haunted Tank being loaded on board, and disapproves of tanks being used in the war. He was a cavalryman during World War One, and he believes real men fight hand to hand, not with tanks.
As the convoy sails for Sicily, Jeb's crew check out the Haunted Tank for any issues. It's in tip-top shape, and to bring them good luck during the invasion, Slim tapes up a pin-up of Esther Williams to the wall inside the tank, stating that with Esther riding with them they'll have nothing to worry about! Then, the ship is attacked by a German Heinkel plane. It makes its first attacking strafe, then swings around for another attack, this time at the bridge. Jeb and his crew jump on board the Haunted Tank. The bridge is riddled with bullets, killing the driver and nearly hitting General Bannion. The plane begins to make another pass, but this time he moves right into Rick's sights and is destroyed by a blast from the Haunted Tank's cannon. Rick smiles, and says that this kill was for Esther. The Captain of the ship is impressed by the Haunted Tank's skill, but General Bannion isn't and feels this war is being fought by mechanics and not soldiers. The men get no chance to take a breath, as the ship is now under attack by a German sub that has appeared off their port bow. Jeb spots a torpedo heading their way, and Rick is able to get a well-aimed shot that destroys it before it reaches its target. Jeb orders Rick to continue firing in the area where the torpedo came from, and after a few shots he hits the sub causing it to rise out of the water and explode into a great fireball. Rick kisses the pin-up of Esther, and claims she helped them again!
Later during the trip, a dense fog begins to envelope the convoy. The Captain of the ship doesn't worry, as the fog will mask them from any enemy attack. Hours pass, and finally the fog lifts, revealing sunny Sicily's coast in the distance. But Jeb is the first to spot the German Pocket battleship hiding in the cove nearby and heading right for the lead convoy ship. There's no chance to avoid it, so the Captain orders full speed ahead to ram the enemy ship. The American ship slams right into the bow of the German ship. Jeb immediately wants to take advantage of the confusion and the fact that the two ships are together, and he orders Slim to move the Haunted Tank forward and onto the deck of the German ship. General Bannion has made it down to the deck, and climbs aboard the Haunted Tank just before she takes off. As soon as the tank makes contact on the enemy ship, the Germans aboard start to fire back. Jeb tells Bannion to get inside to avoid being hit, but the General won't hear of it and grabs a rifle. He finally has the face-to-face conflict he's been craving for. The German ship is alight, bursting into flames from the collision and attack. The Germans aboard begin to abandon ship. The Captain of the American ship believe that the General and the Haunted Tank have went up in flames with the enemy, and orders his men to reverse the engines and separate the two ships before theirs catches fire as well. As soon as Jeb sees the boats beginning to separate, he orders Slim to back up and jump the decks back onto the American ship. The tank is engulfed in flames, and the heat catches the pin-up of Esther Williams a fire, burning it up. Slim is distraught at the lost of their beautiful idol, until Rick tells him not to worry. They have a replacement, and Rick pulls out a pin-up of Veronica Lake! Back safe on the ship, General Bannion asks Jeb if he'd be able to ride along with him. Jeb tells him that it'd be his pleasure to have a real general on the Haunted Tank and not a ghost, leaving Bannion a little confused with the remark!
Appearing in Haunted Tank: "The Floating Bull's Eye"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- German pilot (Dies)
- German U-boat Captain (Dies)
- German U-boat seamen (All Die)
- German Navy seamen (Many Die)
Other Characters:
- General Bannion
- American Infantry officers
- American Infantry soldiers
- American Navy captain
- American Navy seamen
Locations:
Items:
- Photograph of Esther Williams (Destroyed)
- Photograph of Veronica Lake
Vehicles:
- The Haunted Tank
- American Convoy ship
- German Heinkel He 111 bomber plane (Destroyed)
- German U-boat submarine (Destroyed)
- German Deutschland class "Pocket" battleship (Destroyed)
Synopsis for Weird War Tale: "The Sub With 2 Lives"
The U.S.S. Swordfish speeds through the Pacific waters towards Guadalcanal, where the Japanese Destroyer Kaitu has been sinking American subs in the Savo Straits. The Captain of the Swordfish is determined to be the one who sinks the Kaitu, as one of the subs recently sank was commanded by his brother. Off Guadalcanal, the Swordfish begins to track an enemy warship that is shelling the Marine forces on the island. They fire two torpedoes, destroying the enemy ship and sending it sinking to the bottom of the ocean. Then the Swordfish Captain spots the Kaiku. They attempt to fire two more at their target, but the torpedoes malfunction and jam halfway out of the tubes. The Captain orders the Swordfish to surface. As soon as the Swordfish breaks the water's surface, the Kaiku immediately begins to shell them. Riddled and broken, the Swordfish sinks to the bottom with its dead crew still manning their posts within the steel coffin.
Night and day, the bitter struggle off Guadalcanal continued in a hell of blasting ships and exploding shells. Aboard the Kaiku, the Japanese Captain celebrates his kills. Then, its crew spots an American sub surfacing in front of them. They fire, but their shells just pass right through the sub without damage. The Japanese Captain spots the marking on the side of the sub, it is Number 117, the Swordfish, the same sub they sank only a few days before! The ghost sub rams the side of the Kaiku, and the jammed torpedoes that were sticking out of their tubes ignite destroying the Kaiku. The broken sub and the shattered destroyer, the victor and the vanquished, plunge to the bottom of the sea. The face on the body of the Swordfish's Captain, still in his place at the periscope, grins a ghostly smile.
Appearing in Weird War Tale: "The Sub With 2 Lives"
Featured Characters:
- American Navy captain (Unnamed) (Dies)
Antagonists:
- Japanese Navy captain (Dies)
- Japanese Navy seamen (All Die)
Other Characters:
- American Navy seamen (All Die)
Locations:
Items:
- Torpedoes
Vehicles:
- American submarine "Swordfish" (Destroyed)
- Japanese destroyer ship "Kaiku" (Destroyed)
- Japanese battlecruiser ship (Destroyed)
Synopsis for Women at War: "The Pin-Up Was a Lieutenant!"
The invasion of the Japanese-held island in the Pacific is over. Laden with wounded from the battle, a hospital ship breaks through the waves heading homewards through a blinding fog. Below decks, many of the nurses are tending to their patients, Marines who were injured in the battle for the island. One nurse, Second Lt. Fran Paley walks in to find her patients leering over a poster of Rita Hayworth hanging on the wall. She tells them it's time to strip out of their dirty uniforms and clean up for the doctor, and stop raising their temperatures by staring at that poster. Just then, the hospital ship is rocked by a thunderous blast. The ship has rammed a deadly floating mine, and it has set the ship on fire. Fran ushers her patients out of the hold and up on deck, where they are engulfed by smoke and fire. She leads them to the lifeboats, only to find that the explosion has jarred them loose. They're only way to stay alive is to dive overboard into the uncertain waters below, and wait until the flames are put out and they can be picked back up.
Once in the water, she gathers everyone into a huddle, helping those who can't swim to stay afloat. With luck, they manage to find a life raft that had been thrown into the sea. The men climb aboard, and then help Fran out of the water. They begin to try and row out of the flog, but along the way they spot a periscope peeking out from the waters nearby. Realizing that it's from an enemy sub, they try to shoot at it but their rifles are too waterlogged to function. Fran gets an idea, and she has the men row the boat up along the back of the periscope. Taking one of the soldiers' helmets, she places it over the periscope, blocking their view. They then try and get away, but within moments the sub begins to surface near them. The Japanese captain appears atop his sub, and spots the life raft. He orders his men to shoot them, but Fran and her men duck down and row away. The Japanese captain orders his men to stop firing, and that they will follow the raft hoping they will lead them through the fog to the main ship. As the raft approaches the hospital ship, the fog lifts, and Fran realizes that they've led the sub right to them. She has the men turn the raft right. The sub pursues, not realizing that Fran is leading them right into another floating mine nearby. The Japanese sub hits the mine, and explodes into a huge fireball on the water. The guys all cheer Fran, and tell her that they can forget Rita Hayworth. Fran Paley is their new pinup now! She tells them that it's against regulations, but she can't stop them from dreaming!
Appearing in Women at War: "The Pin-Up Was a Lieutenant!"
Featured Characters:
- Navy Nurse 2nd Lt. Fran Paley
Antagonists:
- Japanese Navy captain (Dies)
- Japanese Navy seamen (All Die)
Other Characters:
- American marines
- American nurses
Locations:
Items:
- Poster of Rita Hayworth
- Life raft
- American G.I. helmet
- Floating mine
Vehicles:
- American Hospital ship
- Japanese submarine (Destroyed)
Synopsis for Haunted Tank: "Even Generals Obey Orders"
During a hot day somewhere in Belgium, the Haunted Tank is clanking towards a waterfall when the ghost of General J.E.B. Stuart appears before them to block their way. He warns Jeb to "beware the fire behind the water". Lt. Jeb stuart thinks it over, then immediately orders Rick to fire into the waterfall. Rick questions the order for a second, and during his hesitation the tank is attacked from a blast coming from behind the waterfall. Rick opens fire, drawing out a hidden Panzer tank from behind the water. Rick doesn't hesitate this time, and he destroys the Panzer5 before it can get off another shot. Jeb thanks the General for his help, and remarks that the ghost has helped them so many times in the past. But what made the General to be their ghostly guardian? The General smiles, and tells Jeb that he didn't chose them. He was against it!
The General then begins to tell the tale of how he managed to become the protector of the Haunted Tank and its crew. It all started long ago, during the Civil War, when General Stuart commanded the cavalry for the Confederate Army under General Robert E. Lee. It was soon after the battle of Gettysburg, when he and his cavalry were chasing the Union back across the Patomac and out of their territory. It was at the Battle of Yellow Tavern on May 11th, 1864 when the General suffered a fatal wound. He dies, and found himself in a cloudy realm where time didn't exist. He was surrounded by the greatest leaders and warriors in all of history, the best and the worst. Each were assigned to be the guardians of the mortal realm. Attila the Hun is assigned to be the guardian of Panzer tank #417. General J.E.B. Stuart is assigned as the guardian of a tank named after him, but the General rejects his assignment because the crew are Yankees, and believes that this is his punishment for his independent action on the battlefield that left General Lee open to attack.
The General finds himself now standing on a snow-covered field, where he finds his namesake tank defending itself against two Panzers. The Haunted Tank turns and begins to run, which makes the General unhappy to see his charges act so cowardly. In the tank, Lt. Jeb Stuart orders his crew, Slim, Rick, and Arch to take the tank around 90 degrees. With the snow hiding their moves, they are able to sneak up behind the pursuing Panzers and attack. Their first shot destroys one Panzer, and a second carefully aimed blast takes out the second and final. The General watches as the Haunted Tank leaves, unsatisfied wit their actions and doubting their bravery. Jeb receives a radio alert that the Engineers are being pinned down by an enemy 88 near the river. Jeb orders Slim to increase speed. On the way they are blocked by a large lake. Since the lake is frozen over, Jeb decides to cross it, but as they begin to move onto the ice they are attacked by another Panzer from the north. The Panzer pursues, but then the ice begins to crack underneath it and it begins to sink. The enemy tank starts to fire frantically at the small American tank, but Rick swings the turret around and destroys the Panzer. The General has been watching the whole battle, and while he is beginning to be impressed with their "hatful of tricks", he is certain they will fall apart under real pressure.
The Haunted Tank arrives at the river to find the engineers pinned down behind the rocks while they are being bombarded by shells from the German 88 on the other side. Jeb sees that the engineers have been constructing a pontoon bridge over the rive, and have it halfway completed. He orders Slim to take the Haunted Tank onto the bridge and right up to the end. Slim slams on the breaks when they reach the end, and the bridge slowly begins to sink into the water under the weight of the heavy tank. Thi is exactly what Jeb had wanted, and with the tank now at an angle, Rick can get a clear and easy shot at the 88 on the other side. Rick fires, and the enemy cannon is destroyed! Jeb orders Slim to back the tank up, but the vibrations from the blast have begun to shake the bridge apart and they are sinking even more. Then, on the other side of the river, a Panzer appears. To Jeb's surprise, the ghostly figure of Attila the Hun appears above it. Attila laughs as the Panzer begins to fire mercilessly at the Americans. The General can stand no more, and appears in the area to attack Attila. Jeb watches in shock as the two ghosts battle one another, then remembers the trouble they are in themselves. He continues to order Slim to lay it in reverse as the bridge tears itself apart underneath them. They come back out of the water, and Rick has a straight shot at the Panzer in front of them. He fires, and hits the enemy tank, destroying it. Now back on safe and dry ground, Jeb looks up as the ghost of his ancestor, general J.E.B. Stuart appears before them. He has vanquished Attila, and he tells Jeb that his tank is haunted, and that he will always be there to protect them.
Back in the present, General Stuart tells Jeb that he never thought he'd see the day when a Yankee would proudly fly a Confederate flag into battle. The General has followed Jeb and his crew through battle after battle, and from tank to tank, and now they are manning a Sherman tank, one named after the general who torch his beloved South. But the General realized long ago that it's not the steel that's around them by the men who bravely fight inside, and that he will be there to fight alongside no matter what tank they're in.
Appearing in Haunted Tank: "Even Generals Obey Orders"
Featured Characters:
- Haunted Tank
- Lt. Jeb Stuart (Flashback and Story)
- Gus Gray (Flashback and Story)
- Slim Stryker (Flashback and Story)
- Rick Rawlins (Flashback and Story)
- Arch Asher (Flashback only)
Supporting Characters:
- General J.E.B. Stuart (Flashback and Story)
Antagonists:
- German Artillery soldiers
- Attila the Hun (As a Ghost)
Other Characters:
- American Infantry soldiers
- American Combat Engineers
- American Confederate Cavalry soldiers (Flashback only)
- Major General Philip Sheridan (Flashback only)
- American Union Cavalry soldiers (Flashback only)
- Alexander the Great (As a Ghost)
- Genghis Khan (As a Ghost)
- Julius Caesar (As a Ghost)
- Hannibal (As a Ghost)
- Napoleon Bonaparte (As a Ghost)
Locations:
- Belgium
- United States of America (Flashback only)
- Maryland
- Yellow Tavern, Virginia
- Richmond, Virginia (Mentioned only)
- Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (Mentioned only)
Items:
- German 88s (Destroyed)
Vehicles:
- The Haunted Tank (Flashback and Story)
- German Panzerkampfwagen V "Panther" tank (Destroyed)
- German Panzerkampfwagen #417 (Destroyed)
- German Panzerkampfwagen IV tanks
Notes
- Between story one and two there is the 1-page "Combat Curiosities", a look at some of the oddest weapons used during World War 2. Shown is the Krummlauf, a bent barrel attachment for the Sturmgewehr 44 rifle that included a periscope sighting device for shooting around corners from a safe position, the Flying Grapples, grapple hooks attached to long steel cables that were fired from British merchant ships to try and snag attacking German fighter planes, and the Goliath, remote controlled mines with tank treads attached to them used by the German Army as disposable demolition vehicles.
- Between stories six and seven is a 1-page "Famous Fighting Outfits: The 3rd Armored Spearhead Division", a history of the heavy armored division during World War 2 that led the way for the Allies into victory. The 3rd Armored Division was the first to succeed in many things, including the first to cross the German border, to capture a German town, to breach the Siegfried Line, shoot down a German plane over their own soil, begin an artillery strike on German ground, and be the first to invade Germany since Napoleon. Written by Murray Boltinoff.
- Also between stories six and seven is the 1-page "The Grenade of World War II: The Pineapple", an illustrated look at the M2 grenade, one of the most used explosives in World War 2. Shown is a cut-away and assembly of the grenade, how to use and throw it, and details and explosive nature of the device. Art by Dick Ayers.
- Included between stories six and seven is the 1-page "Battle Brain-Teasers" game page, written by Bob Rozakis, using art by Sam Glanzman and Joe Kubert. It includes a "find your way" maze, a word game asking you to turn the word TANK into the word SHIP by changing only one letter with six tries, and finally a "memory game" asking you to pick out the four heads of the Haunted Tank crew from a selection of ten heads. The answers are given at the bottom of the page.
Trivia
- The final story in this issue retells the origin of the Haunted Tank and their first meeting with their ghostly guardian General J.E.B. Stuart. This was first shown in issue #114, however the circumstances and location of their first meeting are very different between the stories. In issue #114, it is Julius Caesar who gives the General his orders to protect the tank, and shows Lt. Stuart and his tank first arriving in Africa at the beginning of the war. In this issue, the General is given the order by Alexander the Great, and first meets them at some unnamed location during a battle in a snowstorm. This doesn't fit with the known continuity of the Haunted Tank, as it has been shown many times that they began their war years in Africa, and it would be difficult to fit the pine trees and massive snowstorm into their African tour.
See Also
Recommended Reading
- World War II Recommended Reading
- Adventures in the Rifle Brigade (Volume 1)
- Adventures in the Rifle Brigade (Volume 2)
- All-American Men of War (Volume 1)
- All-Out War (Volume 1)
- Blackhawk (Volume 1)
- Blitzkrieg (Volume 1)
- Capt. Storm (Volume 1)
- Four-Star Battle Tales (Volume 1)
- G.I. Combat (Volume 1)
- Men of War (Volume 1)
- Military Comics (Volume 1)
- Our Army at War (Volume 1)
- Our Fighting Forces (Volume 1)
- Sgt. Rock (Volume 1)
- Sgt. Rock (Volume 2)
- Star-Spangled War Stories (Volume 1)
- Unknown Soldier (Volume 1)
- Weird War Tales (Volume 1)