Johnny Cloud was destined to fight against evil. This was made clear shortly after his birth when his father, a great chief, witnessed an apparition in the sky that depicted a warrior riding a winged stallion. So too, young Cloud saw the same apparition many times while growing up -- he called the Great Warrior his Big Brother in the Sky.
As noted in my last post, the Smoke-maker gave Cloud a glimpse of his destiny -- that is, to lead a flight of warriors into battle ... all this, long before WW2 had been declared, and long before the P-51 had been designed and built.
Once he had his wings, Cloud risked his life many times to complete his mission. His complete mission statement was revealed in the closing scenes of AAMOW#84: I fought not for myself alone … but for all men who never had the American chance of battling tyrants who called themselves the “master race” – face to face – man to man.
Out on patrol, Cloud reminded himself that he was fighting against the foes of freedom. His mission statement is similar to those made by Superman and Batman, only here it is shaped by a melding his Navajo perspective with the ideals of American Freedom.
Consequently, Cloud volunteered for extra missions despite mounting stress that kept him awake at night. And when the medical officer grounded him for combat fatigue, Cloud pleaded: “Not now Doc – not now – when every pilot is needed in the air every hour of the day and night! You can’t ground me now!”
Cloud was particularly concerned about the Nazi terror rockets – V-1 and V-2 bombs that rained down on Britain late in the war. He witnessed the terror directly during a five-day R&R pass to London when a young girl named Lily handed him a flower – “from one ally to another” she said – but moments later she was killed by a V-1 bomb. Cloud abruptly cancelled his pass, and the next day found him leading a patrol called Lily Flight.
Without a doubt, Cloud’s devotion to duty took precedence over his own safety. He sang his Death Song at least 14 times in combat. Take aerial ramming for example: He had little hope of survival, yet he chose to gamble his life with taren on eight different occasions. As previously noted, he once rammed two bandits at once to save a B-17 returning from a reconnaissance mission with information about terror rocket launchers – as such, he risked his life for his bomber buddies and for civilians like Lily.
Another one of Cloud’s priorities was to protect his men, particularly the new pilots with no combat experience. We learn early on that Cloud adopted the credo from his first flight leader Mack. Never lose a man on their first flight.
In his second adventure, Cloud nearly loses Tex who, by his own arrogance, gets shot down after ignoring Cloud’s pleas to hang back. The next day, Cloud risks capture by rescuing Tex in occupied Holland. Tex is incredulous, but he is schooled by his flight leader’s gallantry, and he devotes himself to protecting Cloud from then on.
As these examples show, Johnny Cloud was wholly devoted to the mission. He was born to be a winged warrior. So, what’s the verdict on Mission? Does Cloud’s devotion push him into superhero territory? Again, he squeezes in by a wingtip. Even if he goes home after the war, and never flies again, he will have proven the point.
AAMOW#84 (April 1961). Story Art: I. Novick; Writer: R. Kanigher.
Johnny Cloud TM DC Comics
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