'Death Squad' – Hebden, Bradbury & Ezquerra (Rebellion)

It's going to be a quick one today as the rest of Saturday got filled up with all sorts of interesting stuff and there isn't a lot of time left for anything too in-depth. That's ok though as I've been rooting around my TBR piles, just recently, and came up with 'Death Squad', a comic book that I bought back in February when I was mid-way through a Sven Hassel phase (and I really need to dig out those books, that I haven't read yet, and keep reading) and Amazon suggested that I picked up this book as well. So that's exactly what I did and several months later, here I am. Better late than never and all that ;o)

I never read 'Battle' comic when I was a kid (I got the 'Victor' comic and I was happy with that, thank you very much) and I'd never really read it as an adult either so was interested to see what I'd get here. Lets just say it's got me in the mood for a little more Sven Hassel in my reading...

Meet the deadliest band of fighters on the Eastern Front!

During world War Two the Eastern Front was hell on Earth. German Punishment Battalions were thrown into the thick of the conflict where they were  expected to fight well and die hard. In these harshest of conditions only the strongest warriors survived. Enter the Death Squad, Granddad, Swede, Licker, Gus and Frankie. Alone they were failures and outcasts, but together they were one of the most formidable combat units the Russians ever faced!

'Death Squad' isn't as 'full on horrors of war' as Sven Hassel's boosk but it's not far off and as a result, I read the book in pretty much one sitting and had a lot of fun in the process. It's a very straightforward read (and that's another reason for this post being a short one) with the Death Squad being pitted against what is almost an 'enemy of the week', probably understandable given the episodic nature of the overall story. What really lets it stand out though is sheer amount of Russian firepower that Hebden puts the Death Squad through and a little bit of ingenuity, but mostly sheer bloody-mindedness, in achieving victory.

Not only this though, as the story goes on, we get to see the characters (making up the Squad) grow and develop until we get the kind of camaraderie that Hassel let his soldiers enjoy. Not only do we get to see the Squad grow together but we can really feel for soldiers thrown into one of the nastiest fights of World War Two, with no choice but to fight against the threat of death from both the enemy, and their own side if they don't find. I've always been a big fan of watching a soldier's daily struggle play out in fiction and Hebden does it brilliantly here. What made me laugh though was watching Hebden trying to be on both sides when the Death Squad face off against British commandoes in France; trying to show a little loyalty to his characters but also being well aware of the fact that his readers would be rooting for the British soldiers. It's a fine balancing act and Hebden just about manages it (I don't envy his job there...)

I'll sign off here by saying that 'Death Squad' doesn't do much that is new but what it does do is done very well and accompanied by Bradbury and Ezquerra's artwork, really capturing the essence of what was a particularly bloody part of the war. I really am going to have to find those other Sven Hassel books now.