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Two workers in the WW2 military-industrial complex fall in love while
competing for the same job, and eventually plot to kill their own
boss after discovering he is arms dealing to the Nazis...
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​Pages are set to start releasing in September 2024,
but for now, scroll to see the intro and concept art!
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âš This comic is intended only for mature readers.
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~ Art and story ©2024 Jules Premus ~
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ACT 1
man - to - man
​"Relax, it's just a steel bat..."​​​​
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In this historical fiction romance set in New Jersey during WW2, we follow Robert Cordero, a hunky 25-year-old war worker at the Shoreline B24 Bomber Plant. At 4’2”, Robert is the only mechanic on the line who can rivet inside the B24's center wings and install insulation in the fuel cells. This essential labor has integrated him into a military workforce that previously rejected him, and Robert is basking in his new status as a man in the war effort. Plus, he needs the cash while his dad and friends are fighting overseas.
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But the job is dangerous and has taken its toll on him over the past year. His arms are covered in rivet gun scars so brutal that his Air Force friend, Clark, compares them to combat wounds.
"You know, Cordero, if you're getting beat up like a G.I., you oughta get paid like one too..."
Robert realizes that Clark is right, and decides to leverage the foreman's dependence on him into demanding equal pay.
​​​​​But the money-hungry foreman barely tolerates Robert’s presence as is, and believes he may have found a dark horse to train into a cheaper, quieter replacement: the 5'1" fuselage welder Natasza Loumenny, aka Loum...
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​Loum is an Italian-Jewish immigrant from a family of butchers. She takes pride in her ability to handle the sight of blood and her near-surgical precision when cutting meat - or sheet metal. After her brothers enlisted, Loum was eager to see combat herself but failed to qualify as a soldier in the Women’s Army Corps. She has since been trying to win her American citizenship - and honor - through military labor. In only two months she earned her Production E Award in welding, and follows orders without question- all qualities the foreman is looking for in his new “workhorse.” He offers her Robert's job - and an endorsement for citizenship - if she can figure out a way to outpace the riveter by June 30th, 1943 - only 26 days from now. She's never worked center wing before, but she's ready to perform her duty. With a bandana wrapped tightly over her eyebrows, Loum salutes the foreman with the cold stoicism of a knight.
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"Nothing will stand in my way..."
