True Comics #22

General Bernard L. Montgomery rises from a military family steeped in discipline to become one of Britain's most formidable commanders, earning his stripes through World War I and the grueling early campaigns of World War II. When Churchill places him in command of the Eighth Army in Egypt in 1942, Montgomery faces off against General Rommel's Afrika Korps in a carefully orchestrated battle that will test everything he's learned about modern warfare. His meticulous planning, rigorous training of his troops, and personal mastery of every piece of equipment prove decisive in one of the war's pivotal desert campaigns.

When ambitious Washington businessman Dorsey Baker and his partner Joseph Ladd set out to build the Pacific Coast's first railroad in the 1860s, they faced obstacles that no amount of determination could fully overcome—from skeptical teamsters and resourceful engineering with makeshift tools, to wolves hungry enough to devour the rawhide binding that held their wooden rails together. This six-page True Comics story chronicles the audacious, ingenious, and ultimately ill-fated venture that proved vision alone wasn't enough to tame the untamed frontier.

During the American Revolution, General Washington faces a desperate situation with the British fleet blockading Manhattan—until an inventor named Ezra Lee approaches with an audacious proposal: a boat that can travel underwater and carry a bomb to the enemy ships. Lee's submarine craft succeeds beyond expectation, scattering the British fleet and allowing Washington's army to escape to New Jersey, earning Lee a place in history as the first recipient of America's Distinguished Service Medal.

Jim Thorpe arrives at Carlisle College for Indians in 1907 with no particular interest in athletics, but his natural talent for football becomes immediately apparent—he races untouched for touchdown after touchdown, earning him fame as a standout player alongside teams like Yale and Harvard. His athletic prowess reaches its peak at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, where he dominates both the decathlon and pentathlon, shaking hands with the King of Sweden himself. However, a scandal threatens to undo everything when it's revealed he once played professional baseball before the Games, forcing him to return his medals and navigate a new chapter in his storied career.

Over five centuries of invention and refinement shaped the parachute from a wild carnival stunt into a life-saving technology that now protects thousands of American paratroopers and serves far beyond the battlefield. This account traces the journey from Leonardo da Vinci's designs and a Siamese king's daring tumbler through the pioneers and experimenters who proved the device's worth, chronicling the breakthroughs and tragedies that drove safer, more reliable designs. Today's parachutes represent rigorous testing, strict government standards, and military precision—essential tools not just for combat, but for rescue, exploration, and civilian safety in the modern age.

In "Time Out for Victory," Kalva Rossuck—a woman with deep ties to Russia, America, and China—channels her heritage into service by joining the Republic Aviation Corporation, dedicating her skills to building planes during a time of global need. Her story is a quiet testament to loyalty, resilience, and the power of one person to contribute across borders.

Born crippled in Denver, Homer Lea became obsessed with military strategy and Napoleon's campaigns, eventually convincing himself he could save China from the Manchu dynasty. In 1899, he sailed to Asia, studied Japan's territorial ambitions and Pearl Harbor's vulnerability, and arrived in Canton determined to train a revolutionary army to overthrow the Empress—a mission that would reshape his adopted nation and later vindicate his warnings to America about Japanese expansion in the Pacific.

An eight-page history of Brazil tracing the nation from Portuguese discovery in 1500 through its pivotal declaration of war in 1942, spanning centuries of colonial settlement, independence, and modernization. The story follows Brazil's transformation from a resource-rich colony contested by rival powers into an emerging republic that industrializes, abolishes slavery, and ultimately joins the Allied cause against Nazi aggression. From the Amazon's untapped wealth to Rio de Janeiro's transformation into a thriving center of commerce, this is the story of a nation forging its identity and place among the great powers.

George Beurling, a determined young Canadian rejected by two air forces, finds his way to Britain's RAF and pilots a Spitfire over Malta during World War II, where he rapidly racks up an impressive tally of enemy kills and earns multiple decorations. Driven by fierce resolve, Beurling pushes himself harder with each mission, refusing to stand down even when offered leave—until circumstance forces him to confront the dangers that come with relentless combat. His story captures the grit of a pilot who refused to take no for an answer and became one of the war's youngest aces.