World War II

World War II
Type:	Real event
Category:	War
Dates:	1939-1945
Locations:	Europe; England; France; Germany; Japan; Atlantic Ocean; Pacific Ocean

World War II is an armed military conflict involving multiple nations that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The two major opposing country alliances formed during the war was the Allied Forces, which included most of Europe as well as the United States, and the Axis Powers, which included Nazi Germany, Italy, Russia and Japan. It was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100 million people serving in military units from over 30 different countries. The most notable aggressor in the war was German reich chancellor Adolf Hitler who led the armies of the Third Reich and perpetuated an initiative whose goal was the extermination of the entire Jewish culture.

World War II has played a major role in speculative fiction since its very inception. It has been presented in numerous films, television programs, novels and comic books, many of which utilize the storytelling trope of "alternative history", in which static historical events are prsented in a manner that is different from the official record. Time travel stories invariably involve World War II to some extent or another and has been featured in such TV shows as Star Trek, Doctor Who and Timecop.

In superhero fantasy, World War II has played a major role in the development of the internal chronologies of both the DC Universe (DC Comics) and the Marvel Universe (Marvel Comics), which present fantastical scenarios depicting costumed superheroes taking an active role in World War II. Even iconic figures who are not traditionally associated with the event, such as Superman, have had a hand in creating WWII-era comic stories.

Season one of the 1975 TV series The New Adventures of Wonder Woman took place during World War II. Most of the episodes took place in the United States, but there were occasional scenes that showed the Nazi secret headquarters in Berlin, Germany.

Events

Battle of the Bulge

The Battle of the Bulge was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. It was launched through the densely forested Ardennes region of Wallonia in eastern Belgium, northeast France, and Luxembourg, towards the end of World War II. The surprise attack caught the Allied forces completely off guard. American forces bore the brunt of the attack and incurred their highest casualties of any operation during the war. The battle also severely depleted Germany's armored forces, and they were largely unable to replace them. German personnel and, later, Luftwaffe aircraft (in the concluding stages of the engagement) also sustained heavy losses.

War That Time Forgot

The War That Time Forgot is one of the more bizarre events to take place during World War II, with the majority of activity being focused on a mysterious place called Dinosaur Island, which Batman has once described as a chronomaly: Places that exist outside of normal space and time. Where the laws of physics take liberties. During World War II, a rag-tag military unit labeled Squadron S was assigned to a mission to Dinosaur Island and they soon began calling themselves the Suicide Squadron, because being assigned to it was considered grounds for suicide.

Organizations

Superhero teams

• All-Star Squadron
• Invaders
• Justice Society of America

Military units

• Boy Commandos
• Easy Company
• Howling Commandos

Appearances

Films

• Captain America: The First Avenger
• Mummy's Tomb, The
• Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge
• X-Men: First Class (Magneto origin only)

Television

• Amazing Stories: The Mission
• Timecop: Rocket Science
• Time Tunnel: Invasion

Comics

• Boys, The 19 - Flashback to Pacific Ocean aerial battle.
• Captain America 298 - Flashback to Red Skull origin.
• Detective Comics 66 - Boy Commandos story.
• Detective Comics 74 - Boy Commandos story.
• Invaders 1 - Invaders fight in European campaign.
• Invaders 2 - Invaders fight in European campaign.
• Man-Thing 4 - Foolkiller's dad dies in 1945.
• Miss America 1 - Miss America fights Japanese villains.
• Secret Origins Vol 2 14
• Star-Spangled War Stories 90
• Tales of Suspense 66 - Flashback to Red Skull origin.
• Tales of Suspense 68 - Nazi spy steals Project Vanish.
• Unknown Soldier 205 - Battle of the Bulge.
• Unknown Soldier 268 - Unknown Soldier kills Hitler and Eva Braun.
• Valkyrie 1
• Weird War Tales 50
• Wow Comics 32 - Phantom Eagle & Commando Yank stories.

See also

• World War II appearances

---