Battle #18

Atlas Comics' Battle #18 from 1953 delivers a gripping cover by Russ Heath that puts you right in the trenches — a steel-helmeted soldier fires his weapon with fierce determination, the muzzle flash blazing orange as enemy combatants in red uniforms scramble in the background. Headlining the issue is "Escape!," promising the kind of tense, boots-on-the-ground combat drama that made this series a staple of 1950s war comics. At just ten cents, this was an action-packed monthly that wore its "Battle Adventures of Troops in Combat" tagline with honest conviction.