In 1965, the United States Special Forces (USSF) A-Team designated A-342 was assigned to be advisors to a rag-tag bunch of Vietnamese farmers, tribesmen, 'draft dodgers' and neighboring Cambodians. It was the soldiers' mission to train these volunteers into fighters against the forces of the National Liberation Front. Due to their location, these trainees would be among the first line of defense against the Vietcong Army.
Stationed at a makeshift base in Dong Xoai, the USSF team were getting very high indications of an attack. Several spies were caught around the base perimeter and nearby smaller villages were being raided by the VC. The advisers made a request for further reinforcements. They were granted a grand total of 9 Seabees, Navy personnel whose expertise is in building temporary and permanent military infrastructures.
At nearly midnight of 9 June, VC forces began their attack of the Dong Xoai compound. Artillery and ground forces numbering anywhere from 2-4,000 VC troops swarmed the combined forces of American and South Vietnam troops (50 years later and both sides still can't confirm the exact number of soldiers or fatalities). The first attack lasted until late morning the next day. As it appeared that the Communists were going to win the battle, nearly all of the native and Cambodian forces fled the base leaving a handful of Americans to battle for their lives until their extraction, around 2pm.
After nearly 13 hours of fighting, 3 of A-342 and 2 Seabees lost their lives in the battle. The remaining American soldiers were taken to the relative safety of the Phuoc Vinh Base Camp. Every survivor required medical attention ranging from minor to critical. A fourth member of the USSF team died of their injuries in transport.
The slew of South Vietnamese forces aided by American 'advisers' retook Dong Xoai just a couple of days later. The battle was considered a turning point in the Vietnam conflict and resulted in President Johnson increasing the number of military trainers to be sent to the region. At least 4 of the members of A-342 returned to active duty. The team's Executive Officer, Charles Q. Williams earned the Medal of Honor, with 3 members receiving distinguished service crosses. Numerous Bronze and Silver stars were awarded and every American soldier involved in the first night of battle earned purple hearts.
In the late 2000s, war art legend Joe Kubert decided to chronicle the battle. Dong Xoai, Vietnam 1965 features artwork that is very much like and unlike the numerous works of Kubert devoted to the history of the fighting forces, both real and imagined. Every pose is action packed and the faces of the characters bear that Joe Kubert trademarked pained look of 'war is hell'. However, Kubert decided to not ink this book. Instead all 166 pages of story are penciled sketches with some images still bearing the establishing marks artists use to frame faces and physiques.
At the end of this book, surviving members of A-342 crafted an extensive dossier on the events leading up to the battle of Dong Xoai, along with an hour-by-hour narrative of the attack and a brief follow-up into the post-Vietnam lives of the veterans. These pages are filled with dozens of photos and charts that make the reader feel even more familiar with these heroes. (When I learned that one of my favorite characters in the book died in 2008, I was heartbroken.)
Before one gets upset that I refer to these real life members of American history as characters, it's important to point out that in Kubert's narrative, the participants in Dong Xoai really are characters. None of the soldiers' real names are used in Kubert's account. Like with a 'based on a true story' movie, some of the events are edited or condensed to make for a more cohesive story. Some actions that one soldier performed are given to another, possibly to make the artwork or script a bit more polished. There are literally dozens of names floating around in this historical graphic novel and truly it is an undertaking keeping everyone straight. Especially if you try to read the dossier simultaneously with Kubert's story.
The Vietnam War is a complicated subject in American history. There are still citizens that adamantly despise anyone who fought in the conflict even though hostilities ended way back in early 1975. For those veterans who are still alive, the scars of the war still bleed. Love them or hate them, the men of A-342 and that tiny group of Navy Seabees were heroes. Grossly out-numbered, this small handful of men did not back down nor did they stop fighting until they breathed their last breath. And 5 of those men did this very thing in the battle of Dong Xoai.
For those who served in not just Vietnam but at any point during wartime and peace- thank you for your service.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.
Completing this review completes Task #24 (A War Comic/Graphic Novel) of the 2023 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.
No comments:
Post a Comment