Star Spangled War Stories

"Luck is a Puppy Named Schatzi!"

Cover Date January 1970
Issue #148
Pages 23
Type Original Story
Cover Price 20¢
Featured Character Hans von Hammer

Synopsis

A stray puppy wanders into the Jagdstaffel's aerodrome and is adopted by the squadron as a mascot. Von Hammer watches the men's attachment to the animal with his characteristic unease, luck, sentiment, and the irrational comfort of small creatures have no place in the calculus of war, yet he finds himself unable to dismiss what Schatzi represents.

Collector Notes

One of the more humanizing entries in the run. Kanigher periodically broke from pure aerial action to show the domestic texture of wartime life, and the puppy story is the warmest of these. Kubert's ability to shift register, from the ferocity of a dogfight to the vulnerability of a small animal, is what makes these tonal shifts work.

Creative Team

Writer Robert Kanigher
Penciler Joe Kubert
Inker Joe Kubert
Letterer Ben Oda