You saw a fighting heart keep Kid Andy going... even if you don't believe it, Vic! And you'll see it again in this dog fight... before it's over! 
- — Private Jim
G.I. Combat #45 is an issue of the series G.I. Combat (Volume 1) with a cover date of February, 1957.
Synopsis for "Fireworks Hill"
Appearing in "Fireworks Hill"
Featured Characters:
- Vic (Single appearance)
- Jim (Single appearance)
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Kid Andy (Flashback only) (Single appearance)
- Slugger Simms (Flashback only) (Single appearance)
Locations:
- Fireworks Hill
Items:
- Heavy Machine Gun (Destroyed)
- Grenades
Synopsis for "Frogman vs. Sub"
Appearing in "Frogman vs. Sub"
Featured Characters:
- Jimmy Weeks (Single appearance)
Supporting Characters: Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Harry (Flashback only) (Single appearance)
- Sally (Flashback only) (Single appearance)
Items:
- Mines
Vehicles:
- Nazi Submarine (Destroyed)
Synopsis for "The TNT Tank"
A young artillery driver, Private Joe Gibbs, has been given the task of driving six cans of nitroglycerin to a bridge in the middle of enemy territory. The bridge is currently being held by a squad of Army Engineers, who plan on blowing the bridge to stop the Germans from sending a tank division over it to attack. En route to their position, his tank is attacked by a lone German Stuka plane. Worried that any hit could set of the highly volatile nitro, he zig-zags his tank to avoid the enemy fire and then takes refuge in a nearby cave. Private Gibbs remembers back to when he volunteered for this assignment, and was given his mission by his sergeant. They put him in a special tank with the words "TNT Express - Give Me Room" painted along each side, and was given orders to don't go fast, don't fire his guns, and steer clear of anyone, both Germans and Americans. Now, hiding in a dark cave and sitting on enough explosives to blow him and his tank to pieces, he's beginning to regret his decision to volunteer.
Private Gibbs waits patiently in the cave until he can no longer her the sounds of the German Stuka outside, then he slowly reverses out of the cave and back on the chosen path. However, soon after he begins to hear the sounds of snapping from beneath his tank treads. At first he believes he's just drove into a field of anti-tank mines, but fortunately he soon realizes that it was just the sounds of fallen tree limbs snapping beneath his weight. As he gets further down the road, he is spotted by the Stuka again, who has swung around to attack. Private Gibbs is forced to increase speed despite the danger, heading for a crop of trees ahead. he takes shelter underneath the trees, but then he begins to hear thumping against the shell of the tank like ricochets and begins to disturb the nitro cans. He looks out to see his tank being bombarded by apples falling from the trees, shaken loose by the Stuka's gunfire and flyover. The apples finally stop falling, and when Gibbs realizes that the Stuka has left again, he drives his tank forward out of the trees and back onto the path.
Finally, the tank reaches the hills overlooking the bridge. Gibbs stops when he realizes that the Engineers are being pinned down by shells from a nearby German 88 Flak cannon. One of the Engineers tells him to drive the tank onto the bridge and park it in the middle, hoping that the enemy fire will set of the nitro and destroy the bridge for them. Gibbs does what he's asked, and parks the tank right in the middle of the bridge. He then jumps out and quickly runs off the bridge for cover. Unfortunately, the German guns stop firing. The enemy has realized what the Engineers are trying to do, and have sent their troops out onto the bridge to take control of the tank and remove it. Gibbs takes cover and open fires at the Germans with his machine gun. Then, from out of the blue, the Stuka reappears! It spots the tank and open fires, setting off the nitro. The explosion destroys the tank, the bridge, and the Stuka as well.
Later, the Sergeant pulls up next to Private Gibbs in his jeep and offers the man a lift. After the dangerous and nerve-wracking ride he's just had, Gibbs turns him down, preferring to walk the rest of the way back!
Appearing in "The TNT Tank"
Featured Characters:
- Private Joe Gibbs
Supporting Characters:
- Unnamed American Artillery Sergeant
Antagonists:
- German pilot (Dies)
- German Artillery soldiers
Other Characters:
- American Artillery soldiers
- American Engineers
Items:
- Nitroglycerin Cannisters
- Apples
- German 88mm Flak anti-tank gun
Vehicles:
- Tank 313 "The TNT Tank" (Destroyed)
- German Junkers Ju 87 "Stuka" ground-attack aircraft (Destroyed)
Synopsis for "The Flying Mustang"
An American P-51 Mustang, crashed and left to deteriorate on the edge of a mountain cliff, looks up into the sky and remembers her pilots of the past. She thinks back to how she met each of her former pilots, and the battles she fought with them. The first one, Lieutenant Charlie Loft, was a bit of a joker, but a top-notch pilot. One time the two fought against a tricky German Heinkel, and with some skilled maneuvering they were able to take down the enemy and destroy it. Charlie places the first swastika on her fuselage. But during one ferocious battle, Charlie's leg was hit, and while they were able to make it back to the airfield, the pilot's flying days were over
Her second pilot, Captain John Forrest, was also a great pilot and as cold as ice. The Mustang learns a trick or two from this new pilot, including hi-tailing through a whole formation of enemy planes destroying everything it its path. The Captain added many more swastikas to her and became her ace pilot. But eventually their time together came to an end, when in one battle the Captain was forced to make an emergency landing after their tail had become riddled with bullets. Even with the rudder damaged and the throttle jammed, he was able to bring them in to a safe landing in a field. It was shortly after that when the Captain was sent back to the States to take his new position as a flight instructor.
The third pilot, Second Lieutenant Billy Briggs, was barely of age and very unsure of himself. The Mustang could feel the kid's uncertainty, but even though he couldn't fly like the others the Mustang liked him the best. He was young, untried, a fledgling, like he had been once right off the assembly line. It wasn't long before they were in their first dogfight together. He made a flying error, and an enemy Messerschmitt was on his tail. The Mustang tries to tell Billy to pull up, and Billy grabs the throttle and pulls the plane up and into a loop to come behind the enemy plane and destroy it! It was as if he had heard the Mustang. Billy made two more scores that day, but then was jumped by the enemy. Unable to keep the Mustang in the air, Billy was forced to jump and parachute to safety. The Mustang crashes and come to rest on the chalk cliffs overlooking the English Channel, forever to watch the newer planes fly overhead and remeber his times not so long ago...
Appearing in "The Flying Mustang"
Featured Characters:
- Lieutenant Charlie Loft
- Captain John Forrest
- 2nd Lieutenant Billy Briggs
Antagonists:
- German pilots
Locations:
Items:
- Parachute
Vehicles:
- American P-51 Mustang fighter plane (Defunct)
- German Heinkel He 111 bomber (Destroyed)
- German Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter aircraft
Notes
- The fourth story on this issue, "The Flying Mustang", is told from the viewpoint of the P-51 Mustang fighter plane itself.
- Also in this issue:
- "Medal of Honor", the history of the Medal of Honor in three panels.
- "Can Do!", a brief history of the 15th Infantry Regiment, and the birth of it's motto: "Can Do!". Former members of the 15th included President Dwight D. Eisenhower, General Mark W. Clark, General Matthew B. Ridgeway, and Chief of Staff George C. Marshall.
- "Flying Rescue Ship", a one-paged text story.
- "Private Pete", a humor strip. Private Pete is cleaning up cigarette butts from around the barracks, but his friend misunderstands what he's doing and buys him a carton of cigarettes! Originally appeared in Star-Spangled War Stories #4.
See Also
Links and References
Look at how sad this is making Batman. You did this.