By [ad_1]
The birth of the American superhero comic book industry is intertwined with the events of World War II, often depicting the Nazis as villains in many early stories. Iconic moments include Captain America punching Hitler in the face on the cover of his first appearance as well as the covers of both Superman #12 and #13 which depict the Man of Steel encouraging American’s to join the military while punching a Nazi warship.
Justice Society: World War II is one of the latest DC Animated Original Movies and sees the Golden Age superhero team fight against the Nazis and the Axis powers in World War II. However, this isn’t the first time fans have seen DC heroes take on Nazis. The classic matchup has been depicted across almost all DC Animated properties from the Max Fleischer cartoons of the 40s to CW’s “Arrowverse” spinoff, Freedom Fighters: The Ray.
6 The Justice Society Takes Down The Nazi’s With The Help Of An Alternate Flash
The Justice Society of America was created by Sheldon Mayer and Gardner Fox and debuted in All-Star Comics #3. The JSA was the first superhero team in comics and consisted of the Golden Age heroes like Doctor Fate, Hourman, The Spectre, Sandman, Atom, Flash (Jay Garrick), Green Lantern (Alan Scott), and Hawkman.
In 2021, Warner Bros. Animation and DC released its 41st DC Universe Animated Original Movie, Justice Society: World War II, directed by Jeff Wamester. The story follows a modern-day Flash (Barry Allen) who, while trying to stop a kryptonite bullet from hitting Superman, accidentally enters the Speed Force. He arrives in the past, later revealed to be an alternate Earth, where he joins forces with the Justice Society of America to defeat the Nazis. The story takes place within the new DC Animated continuity that started in Superman: Man of Tomorrow and could have repercussions moving forward as this version of Barry Allen made a cameo in the end credits scene of Batman: The Long Halloween alongside Green Arrow.
5 The Justice League Must Assist The Allied Forces To Correct The Timeline
One of the more memorable depictions of Nazis in DC Animation was the three-part Justice League episode called “The Savage Time.” The story features 6 members of the league, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Martian Manhunter, and The Flash, as they end up in an alternate Earth where Vandal Savage had supplanted Adolf Hitler as the leader of the Nazi Regime with help from his future self.
These episodes feature appearances by other notable DC characters including an alternate Batman who has formed an underground resistance. Additionally, Wonder Woman teams up with Steve Trevor to help him in his effort to provide intelligence of a pending attack on England to the Allied forces; Hawkgirl and Superman team up with the Blackhawks, an independent multinational team of pilots fighting against the Nazis; lastly, after running out of juice in his ring, John Stewart, uses his military background to team up with Sgt. Rock and the Easy Company in the effort to find and destroy Savage’s hidden runway. While the team is successful and ultimately arrives back in the correct timeline, the repercussions of this adventure are referenced throughout the DCAU, including the two-part JLU Season 1 finale, “The Once and Future Thing.”
4 General Wade Eiling Uses A Secret Nazi “Super-Soldier” Serum To Defeat Superman
“The Savage Time” wasn’t the only mention of Nazis in the DC Animated Universe (DCAU). In the Justice League Unlimited episode “Patriot Act” it’s revealed in a flashback that during World War II the vigilante, Spy Smasher, defeated the evil Captain Nazi and stole an experimental super-soldier serum which is currently being kept at Project Cadmus. The episode centers on General Wade Eiling, a recurring antagonist throughout the series and an outspoken critic of superheroes and the way they don’t answer to the U.S. government. After being foiled by Superman and the league several times, he is demoted and assigned to desk duty which angers the General and leads him to inject himself with the experimental super-soldier serum.
Eiling becomes a monster with super-strength and invulnerability and rushes off to take revenge on Superman. When he arrives in the city, he is met with resistance from several non-powered heroes who make up the Golden Age team known as The Seven Soldiers of Victory including Vigilante, Shining Knight, and Green Arrow. After almost killing the heroes and putting many other innocent lives at risk, Eiling realizes that he has become the thing that he hated most and flees to never be seen again in the series.
3 The Events Of “Crisis On Earth X” Brings Nazi’s To CW’s Arrowverse
CW’s Arrow was a massive success for the channel and for DC, spawning several series that take place within the same universe and multiverse, including The Flash, Supergirl, and more. In 2015 the Arrowverse made its first attempt at an animated series with Vixen, a web series exclusive to CW Seed, CW’s online streaming platform. Vixen had two seasons and led to another animated web series called Freedom Fighters: The Ray. This web series spun out of the events of the Arrowverse crossover event “Crisis On Earth X” which revealed that there was an alternate universe called Earth-X where the Axis powers were victorious in World War II.
Freedom Fighters: The Ray follows Ray Terrill a.k.a. The Ray who is displaced from Earth-1, the main Arrowverse universe, as he leads a team called the Freedom Fighters consisting of Citizen Cold, Guardian, General Winn Schott, and Red Tornado. The team fights against the New Reichsmen, a modern Nazi regime led by Overgirl (Supergirl of Earth-X) and Black Arrow (Green Arrow of Earth-X).
2 DC’s Iconic WWII Veteran, Sgt. Rock, Defeats The Nazis With Help From A Vampire & Warewolf
DC Showcase is a series of DC animated shorts that focus on a particular character and are often included as bonus content to the main DC animated movies. The home release of Batman: Hush in 2019 included DC Showcase: Sgt. Rock, which featured the titular character who first appeared in the military comic, Our Army at War, in 1959. Sgt. Rock is best known for leading his unit of Easy Company during the events of World War II.
The animated short followed flashbacks by Sgt. Rock when he lead a team called the Creature Commandos consisting of three enhanced soldiers, each one themed to a classic storybook creature including a wolfman, a vampire, and a Frankenstein-like Monster. The team is tasked with capturing a German Nazi scientist who is currently hiding out in a medieval castle. The mission was derailed when it was revealed that the scientist is working with Sgt. Rock’s archenemy Iron Major who has turned Sgt. Rock’s squad, the Easy Company, into undead soldiers. Realizing that the U.S. Army wants the scientist to create an undead army of their own, he takes it upon himself to kill the scientists and burn down the lab, assuring that these kinds of experiments wouldn’t be used on anyone ever again.
1 Superman’s First Animated Series Included Nazis In The Jungle
The Man of Steel’s first animated outing was in the 1940’s film series by Fleisher Studios and later Famous Studios. The series had a total of 17 animated 10-minute films that featured Superman fighting giant robots, gangsters, natural disasters, and, in one episode, Nazis.
The film, titled “Jungle Drums,” is the 15th produced and was released in March 1943. The film begins with a tribe of aboriginal warriors deep in the African jungle whose leader is revealed to be a Nazi commander and whose temple is actually a Nazi outpost. After shooting down a U.S. military plane, the mortally wounded Lieutenant hands secret documents to Lois Lane, the only survivor from the crash. She proceeds to be captured by the native tribe but is ultimately saved by Superman and uses the documents to help the Allied Forces win the war.
About The Author
[ad_2]
