Synopsis
Scripted by Robert Kanigher with fine-line production artwork illustrated by Dan Spiegle, the story centers around standard DC World War I aviator Lt. Steve Savage (The Balloon Buster) flying dangerous combat drops over the front lines. Hans von Hammer explicitly co-stars across this 8-page sequence as the prime aerial adversary, solidifying his signature dogfight rivalries into late-Bronze Age war continuity. In Chapter One of the three-part series, Lt. Steve Savage (The Balloon Buster) is stationed with the Allied 27th Aero Squadron. Savage leads a high-altitude patrol over enemy territory, aggressively hunting down imperial targets. The standard Allied squadron formation is suddenly intercepted and torn to shreds by an elite hunting pack of German Fokker Triplanes led by Rittmeister Hans von Hammer. Rather than a simple, clean dogfight, the aerial duel establishes the central thematic rivalry of the miniseries. Savage targets the solid-crimson Triplane, and the two masters engage in a fierce, high-speed dogfight that stretches both of their flying capabilities to the absolute limit.
