The world may have put an end to Hitler and his Nazi Regime in World War II, but not on DC's Earth-X - which means it's time to call in a new generation of the Freedom Fighters.
The team of costumed heroes operating under Uncle Sam - the physical manifestation of the American fighting spirit - have undergone more than one re-imagining in the DC Comics Universe. But the time has come to take the alternate history of the Nazi-controlled Earth-X all the way up to the modern day. The first heroes to stand up against Hitler's America in the 1960s? They're gone. And in our exclusive preview of Freedom Fighters #1, fans have their first glimpse of how Hitler's metahuman soldiers won the war... for now.
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Screen Rant had the chance to interview Freedom Fighters writer Robert Venditti, who is making the shift from emerald-ringed space cops and golden-winged strongmen to a different kind of fantasy. A fantasy that still embraces the spirit of America, yes. But before new heroes rise in the modern day to take on Hitler's heirs, Venditti and artist Eddy Barrows must turn their imaginations towards a far darker victory.
Check out the preview pages of Freedom Fighters #1 below:
From the first pages, fans can get a sense of how much of American history is going to be rewritten in this Freedom Fighters series. Beginning with November 22, 1963, no longer a day to mourn on behalf of President John F. Kennedy, but for the death of a different American dream. An American resistance, actually, led by one of the most iconic American Olympians in history. Venditti explained his reasoning for selecting Jesse Owens as the face of his original Freedom Fighters:
It seems to me that one of the very high things on his to-do list, if Hitler had won World War II, would be to go find Jesse Owens and make an example of him. Because of the way Jesse Owens had performed at the Berlin Olympics in front of Hitler, and humiliated him on the world stage. And basically, through athletics, deconstructed... his entire worldview [laughs]. On a global stage, you know? Hitler would not let that stand. Priority number one would be, 'We gotta find this guy, we gotta make an example of him"... We all know who Jesse Owens is, so to put a character like that in this situation and build it around that, lets everybody kind of understand: this is where the world is right now.
Fans will be able to read the rest of the issue, and see how the story jumps from the past to the (alternate) present when Freedom Fighters #1 hits physical and digital shelves on December 19th. In the meantime, read on for the full synopsis and details below:
- FREEDOM FIGHTERS (2018) #1
- Published: December 19th, 2018
- Writer: Robert Venditti
- Art: Eddy Barrows
- Cover: Eddy Barrows
- Variant Cover: Ben Oliver
- Line up for this all-new maxiseries set on Earth X, where the Nazis won World War II! Twenty years after invading and occupying America, Germany wiped out all metahuman resistance, including the original Freedom Fighters. Fast-forward to the present day, and a new team of Freedom Fighters emerges to challenge the Nazi occupation once again. But if they’re to have any chance of victory, they’re going to need Uncle Sam—who disappeared after his original team was killed. The 12-part epic “Death of a Nation” storyline kicks off here!
Freedom Fighters #1 will be available December 19th from DC Comics.