"First things first. I want to make things clear. I love my country."
—American
Cla$$war was a six-issue miniseries created by Rob Williams and Trevor Hairsine, and published by Com.X in 2002.
In a world not unlike our own, the United States government developed its own superhero team, code-named "Enola Gay", and deployed them in Iraq during the Persian Gulf War. As a consequence, Iraq pulled out of Kuwait within 48 hours of Enola Gay's debut, and history changed forever, creating a world where the US has an unchallenged hegemony. But then Enola Gay's figurehead, American, becomes disillusioned at the things that have been done in his name, and decides to push back, putting him in conflict with his former teammates.
This series contains examples of:
- 0% Approval Rating: In the wake of "American-Gate", the President's approval rating went down twenty points.
- Alternate History: Enola Gay made their debut during the U.S. presidency of George H. W. Bush and were involved in ending the Persian Gulf War within 48 hours and suppressing the L.A. riots and the Waco siege. Issue four reveals that the origins of the superhumans are based on a Nazi science project.
- The Big Guy: Heavyweight, Enola Gay's token black guy, is size-changing bruiser.
- Back from the Dead: Downplayed. Confusion creates an illusion of the deceased Young American (Charlie) to be used briefly against the American.
- Body Horror: Mr. Jefferson's transformation into a superhuman to become American's replacement in which his transformed body rejects his internal organs.
- Bring Me My Brown Pants: After American drops the President and only Icon's intervention prevents him from getting splattered on the pavement, he asks his aide to bring him some fresh pants.
- Captain Patriotic: The American. Even after defecting from his government, the American still retain his ideals in American democracy.The American: I believe in the foundations that America was built upon. I believe in truth and justice and democracy. I believe in the beauty of every individual. I have not turned my back upon our country. I am going to be fighting for America and its people... those who believe in the same ideals held sacred by our fore-fathers. You are being lied to, people of America. It's time to do something about it.
- Defector from Decadence: American became disillusioned with the U.S. government, which is being run by the rich and powerful, who used him to commit heinous acts for the nation's self-interests.The American: First things first. I want to make it clear I love my country. I have always considered myself a patriot. A good American. Just as my daddy taught me. I was born to serve my country. I was made in America. I have served this land. I have done its bidding. But now I find that I have discovered certain... truths. I have been misled. I have been used. And now, all this. All that I previously believed in... I'm going to destroy it.
- Isaac worked for the government as a black-ops agent and went rogue in 1968 after he assassinated a black preacher.
- Icon eventually defects after the government launched a nuclear missile on Glenada with her teammates still on it.
- Disposable Woman: In the first issue, Charlie, American's sidekick, is enjoying a hookup with a groupie when the members of Enola Gay show up. The groupie is promptly killed by Burner, as they didn't want any surviving witnesses.Burner: This your girlfriend Charlie? Sorry doll, no witnesses. Wrong place, wrong time. Nothing personal.
- Doctor von Turncoat: Dr. Von Freyseng was a Nazi scientist who was principally involved in making attempts to creating superhumans for the Nazis. He became the first and only successful superhuman after the 526 test subjects died, but it was too late for Nazi Germany. Once the war was over, Freyseng was smuggled to America, changed his name to Ellard, and worked for the Americans to continue the superhuman project for his new benefactors, thus creating Enola Gay.
- Do Not Adjust Your Set: In issue one The American and Isaac broadcast the truth of the American government's very shady acts, in which the former even admits to participating some of them and giving the reason why he is acting out against the government. They had also mailed copies of their evidences to every major newspaper in America to back their claims.
- Dreaming of Things to Come: Confusion sees a horrific vision of a giant mutated Mr. Jefferson leaving a path of destruction in Washington, Enola Gay and the American lying dead on the streets.
- Eagleland: Cla$$war, being written by a Welsh writer and originally drawn by a Brit, paints a very Type-2 portrait of the United States, in which the government is run by corrupt thugs and the populace is largely distracted by sympathetic media.
- Even Evil Has Standards: In the first issue, Icon chokes Burner for needlessly killing a young woman and then blaming Alice for the fact that her paramour nearly killed him in a rage.
- Everyone Has Standards: The President is unwilling to launch a military invasion of Glenada at the whims of "certain friends of the government" so they can profit off from selling weapons and diverting the public's attention from "American-Gate". However, he is forced to change his mind after his aforementioned "certain friends" threatened his life. He is even guilt-ridden when he reluctantly orders a nuclear missile strike on Glenada to kill the American along with the island's population of 97,312 people.
- Fall Guy: Following "American-Gate", the government's shady backers tries to repair the PR damages by having Confusion to mind-control a politician to take the fall for embezzling drug money used by the CIA and then committing suicide.
- False Flag Operation: The U.S. government engineers a war in the Caribbean nation of Glenada to justify their defense budget and earn "a few billion" in weapon sales, and diverting the American public's attention from "domestic issues" caused by "American-Gate". The American and his allies are trying to prevent this until the government decided to nuke the island and framing it as a nuclear terrorist attack.
- Implied Death Threat: The President was not too happy to find out that he is a Puppet King to a secretive group who really runs America. When he refuses to follow what they tell to him do, they sent him a looping TV stock footage of JFK's assassination - clearly warning him that they won't hesitate to arrange his assassination and that he is expendable to them.
- The Man Behind the Man: The President turns out to be a Puppet King for a very shady cabal who runs the United States. Even the President doesn't know about this until they remind (and threaten) him of who is really in charge.
- Mark of Shame: American uses his eye-lasers to write the word "LIAR" across the corrupt U.S. President's forehead.
- Meaningful Name: Enola Gay are named after the WWII bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Ironically, they later get nuked by a nuclear missile.
- Monumental Damage: Icon survives the nuclear destruction of Glenada and she responds to the government's betrayal by destroying the Washington Monument as a message.
- Neck Snap: The Young American (Charlie) meets his end by having his neck snapped by Icon.
- No Ending: The series was planned for twelve issues, but cut to only six. The American and the survivors of Enola Gay survived a nuclear missile strike ordered by the President that destroyed Glenada. Icon has defected, the American and Isaac continued their crusade against the U.S. government's injustice while Mr. Jefferson has become a "super-deterrent" whose having trouble controlling his unstable powers and might become a global threat.
- Nuke 'em: The President very reluctantly orders a nuclear missile strike on Glenada in order to kill the American, along with Enola Gay as collateral. However, they except Heavyweight survives; The American withstood the blast while Icon had quickly flew away, and Confusion protects herself and Burner with a psychic shield. The American retaliates by sinking some Navy ships, including the submarine that fired the missile.
- Really Gets Around: While serving in the Gulf War, Heavyweight remarks that American had "[screwed] the entire audition queue for the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders."
- Scandalgate: The fallout of American's defection and broadcast of the government's corruptions, which includes the CIA using funds from cocaine sales in Los Angeles to fund Nicaraguan freedom fighters, is dubbed as "American-Gate".
- Shout-Out: Just as Henry the cameraman is about to upload the Glenada footage to the Internet, he remarks "The truth is officially out there."
- Stupid Jetpack Hitler: The origins of Enola Gay and their powers are originated in a Nazi science project. In 1939, an elite group of Nazi German scientists worked on creating superhumans. 526 people were experimented and died from the results after they thought they were only testing flu vaccinations. Only one of the group's members, Dr. Ellard/Von Freyseng, became the project's success and later smuggled to the United States and worked for their government after the war, thus building the machine that would create Enola Gay.
- Unfriendly Fire: During their false flag operation in Glenada, Enola Gay and some U.S. soldiers killed a squad of U.S. soldiers in order to draw out American. This turns on them when the surviving soldiers winds up saving American.
- Villain with Good Publicity: Enola Gay are heroes in the eyes of the American public, but they are hired killers working for a corrupt government.
- Wham Line: Isaac's horrified reaction to the nuclear missile strike on Glenada.Isaac: They killed them. They killed all those people.
