Tomahawk #28
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeTomahawk #28 marks the first appearance of Lord Gerald Shilling, the British nobleman and master-of-disguise spy who would become Tomahawk's defining arch-enemy across the remainder of DC's long-running Revolutionary War series. Shilling's debut gave the book something it had previously lacked: a recurring antagonist with a personal grudge and a memorable calling card — a perforated shilling coin left at the scene of each mission — elevating the title toward the kind of villain-driven serial tension more common in superhero comics of the era. His introduction also seeded a broader villain family, as Shilling's death eventually prompted his sister to adopt the identity of the Hood and carry on his war against Tomahawk, a narrative thread that lasted well into the Silver Age. For a genre title competing in the crowded mid-1950s western-frontier market, gaining a genuinely memorable nemesis was a creative turning point.
In "The Mask of Lord Shilling!", Buzzy and Wolfie take on temporary jobs at a grocery store, where their contrasting work ethics quickly come into focus—Buzzy proves reliable and diligent, while Wolfie’s lack of effort leads to consequences. Written by Jack Schiff and brought to life with crisp, expressive art by Win Mortimer, this 1954 issue captures a moment of quiet humor and consequence, all under the bold cover by Fred Ray.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
By November 1954, the Tomahawk series — launched in September 1950 and set during the American Revolutionary War — was firmly in the hands of writer France Herron and artist Fred Ray, the creative partnership that defined the book throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Ray, whose meticulous historical research was praised by comics historian R.C. Harvey for bringing 'absolute authenticity to his rendering of colonial America,' both drew and inked the lead story introducing Lord Shilling; the issue also featured interior work by Jim McArdle and Bruno Premiani with Ray Burnley. Editorial oversight at National Comics Publications fell to Whitney Ellsworth as credited editor, with Jack Schiff as managing editor and Murray Boltinoff as art editor. The specific script credit for 'The Mask of Lord Shilling' is not confirmed in available GCD records, though Herron is the well-documented primary Tomahawk writer of this period.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Lord Gerald Shilling, the British nobleman, spy, and master of disguise who becomes Tomahawk's principal arch-enemy.
- Cover-dated November 1954; on-sale date recorded by the Grand Comics Database as September 6, 1954; published by National Comics Publications, Inc. (DC).
- Lead story title: 'The Mask of Lord Shilling,' with cover and story art by Fred Ray.
- The issue is an anthology containing three additional stories: 'The Son of Chief Deer-Trail' (Fred Ray), 'The Triumph of the Jaguars' (Jim McArdle), and 'The Lafayette Triangle' (Bruno Premiani, inks Ray Burnley).
- Lord Shilling's signature trait — leaving a single shilling with a hole bored through its center after completing a mission — is established in his debut appearance.
- Supporting character Dan Hunter appears alongside Tomahawk in the lead story, set in the American Wilderness Frontier.
- After Lord Shilling's eventual death battling Tomahawk, his sister Lady Shilling adopts the masked identity of the Hood to continue his vendetta, extending his narrative legacy across later issues.
- The cover of this issue was reprinted in the French publication Big Boy (Arédit-Artima) #5 (February 1957), evidence of the series' international reach during the 1950s.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Seriemagasinet #10/1956 (1956), Big Boy #5 (1957), Big Boy #6 (1957), Seriemagasinet #5/1958 (1958), Tomahawk #2/1965 (1965), Tomahawk #4/1975 (1975)
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