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It is April
1945, and General Otto Von Margen sits in a cell in Stadtheim
Military Prison near Nurenburg, awaiting a dawn appointment with
a firing squad. Von Margen has been found guilty of crimes
against the Third Reich, including cowardice, high treason,
disobedience and defeatism. As the clock ticks through the
General's final night, he recounts his tale to the prison guard
watching his cell. Far from being the traitor his Nazi
inquisitors suggest, Von Margen is a man of honour, with many
decorations for his previously distinguished career as a panzer
commander. From his early career as an inexperienced Infantry
Major to his final stand against the SS, who order him to murder
a group of children, Von Margen is accompanied by his loyal
right-hand man, Feldwebel Korder. As dawn approaches, the US
Army are nearing Stadtheim, but will they liberate the prison in
time?
The General
Dies at Dawn was part of the build up to Battle's
200th issue, and ran for eleven weeks. Each episode counted down
another hour of the General's life, in a clever plot device from
Finley-Day, leading to the dramatic conclusion as the US Army
reach Stadtheim. Finley-Day was writing a number of strips at
the time, including Skreamer of the Stukas, but The
General Dies at Dawn is something of an undiscovered classic
from this much maligned writer. Fresh of of a long run on
Dredger, John Cooper's art is excellent throughout the
series, lending a gritty realism to his final strip before
tackling Johnny Red from issue 200 onwards. |
