Freedom Fighters Pt. 10: Freedom Fighters #8

After his newly developing mental powers aided the Black Condor against the Elf, these same abilities caused the hero to go berserk, and fly off -- with a helpless Uncle Sam hanging on to him.

Oops... Black Condor drops Uncle Sam into Niagara Falls.

As for the rest of the fugitive sixsome, immediately after defeating the evil Elf, they too took to the skies -- and have been attempting to catch up with their teammates…

The Ray doesn’t have the speed to catch Uncle Sam, so he uses heat power to evaporate the water. It turns out Uncle Sam can save himself, but the Ray’s actions cause a huge blackout in upstate New York.

.

Meanwhile, D.A. Pearson is surprised to meet The Crusaders, whose adventures he used to read in “the funny books.” He authorizes them to apprehend the Freedom Fighters...

.

...who are hiding in an abandoned refreshment stand at Niagara Falls. They agree that while it won’t fix his mistake, The Ray could help the situation by using his power to light Buffalo.

The Ray is soon attacked, though, by Fireball and Sparky of the Crusaders. Before long, the battle expands and it’s patriotic World War II superhero team vs. patriotic World War II superhero team. Uncle Sam socks Americommando. Phantom Lady phases away from Barracuda while the Human Bomb pushes him into the falls.

.

Just as Martha appears with her camera, Rusty grabs Doll Man:

Black Condor protects his hands with his cape to punch Fireball while The Ray draws away his flame. The battle seems to be going well for the Freedom Fighters; however, Martha hangs over the falls, Uncle Sam loses his hat, Phantom Lady lies unconscious, and the Human Bomb explodes.

Notes

.

Who are these Crusaders who seem not-so-vaguely familiar? The Freedom Fighters seem to have met their match with them in Freedom Fighters #8... more on this unusual team in the next couple of weeks. You're going to be surprised... more surprised than you are by the final panel of #8? Maybe not, but I promise you it'll be fun.

.

When they cause the blackout, D.A. Pearson has more of a reason to blame the Freedom Fighters in this issue than he's had in previous issues. However, if you're still weary of the subplot, the editors promise on the Freedom Fanmail letters page:

Next issue marks the final confrontation 'twix the D.A. and the Freedom Fighters. It's not what you expect!

The editors also spend two paragraphs once again recapping the changes that team members experienced while traveling to Earth-1. I'm not going to repeat them here; I've done it in previous weeks.

.

Finally, if you were a kid reading comic books in the mid-70s, you were probably also excited about the remake of King Kong which hit theaters on December 17, 1976. Therefore, this ad would have sent you running to your parents asking for a little more allowance:

---

Title: Freedom Fighters

Issue #: 8

Cover Date: May/June 1977

On Sale Date: Feb. 15, 1977

Writer: Bob Rozakis

Penciller: Dick Ayers

Inker: Jack Abel

Editor: Tony Isabella