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Old 04-26-2018, 04:05 PM
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Arrow 'Terminal Lance' and life in the Marine Corps

'Terminal Lance' and life in the Marine Corps
By Mike GlennApril 26, 2018
RE: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/loc...id=chronstrrpc

Note: Go to the site link below for some good comic book slides by Maximilian Uriarte you may find them interesting. https://s.hdnux.com/photos/72/75/45/.../3/920x920.jpg

Maximilian Uriarte, creator of the "Terminal Lance" comic strip which enjoys a cult-like following among the most junior U.S. Marines, admits he drew a blank when people first began comparing him to legendary World War II-cartoonist Bill Mauldin.

Like Mauldin's long suffering front-line infantrymen "Willie and Joe," the two primary characters in "Terminal Lance" – Abe and Garcia – try to carry out their mission as Marines while enduring the many petty indignities that come with being low men on the military totem pole.

"I had never read Bill Mauldin's work at all. I had no idea who he was," Uriarte said in a telephone interview to promote the release of "Terminal Lance: Ultimate Omnibus," a collection of his comic strips published by Little Brown.

Uriarte, who served two tours in Iraq as a Marine, has since familiarized himself with Mauldin's "Willie and Joe" comics and is honored by the comparison.

"He had that unique experience of being a World War II veteran," Uriarte said from his home in the Los Angeles area. "His comics – just like 'Terminal Lance' – identified and resonated with the 'real guys.' He was not concerned with how the military wanted to portray itself."

For those who have been there, "Terminal Lance" is true and vital and hilarious. Now click this link for another comic posting: https://s.hdnux.com/photos/72/75/45/...3/920x1240.jpg

Uriarte enlisted in 2006 while the Global War on Terror was in full swing. He always considered himself a storyteller and was looking for stories to tell. He choose the infantry, though his enlistment test scores were high enough to get him a more comfortable job in the Marine Corps. "I needed to go experience some crazy life. What's the craziest thing I could do as a 19-year-old male – join the Marines," he said.

He started publishing the strip on his website, as his four-year enlistment in the Marines was coming to an end. ("Terminal Lance" refers to the Lance Corporal rank in the Marines. Uriarte was discharged before being promoted to Corporal.)

Though his army of fans often send him ideas for strips, Uriarte said much of "Terminal Lance" is informed by his own service in the Corps. While the character Jesus Garcia is a generally good-natured Marine who takes military life in stride, Abe (full name Abraham Belatzeko) is a smart ass who often complains when he's not drunk or playing video games in the barracks.

"He (Abe) is a fictional representation of me," Uriarte admitted. "His story is a fictional representation of mine." Another comic link: https://s.hdnux.com/photos/72/75/45/...3/920x1240.jpg

Note: The characters of "Terminal Lance" aren't likely to show up on any Marine Corps recruiting poster.

Rudyard Kipling famously said, "Single men in (barracks) don't grow into plaster saints" and what was true for the British Army in the days of the Raj is also true for today's post-9/11 enlisted troops. The characters of "Terminal Lance" aren't likely to show up on any Marine Corps recruiting poster. They binge drink to make up for the boredom of barracks life; they chase bar flies because of the loneliness; they harass Marines just out of basic training – the hated 'Boots' – because finally someone is lower ranking than they are. Their language is frequently filthy, because that's how teenagers talk when they are expected to risk their lives for their fellow countrymen.

For those unfamiliar with military life, it could be horrifying. But for those who have been there, "Terminal Lance" is true and vital and hilarious.

Though the famously spit-and-polish Gen. George S. Patton hated Mauldin's unshaven and unsightly "Willie and Joe," Uriarte has had better luck with the top brass in the Marine Corps regarding his characters. He said Gen. Robert Neller, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, has been supportive.

"He likes 'Terminal Lance.' It's honest," Uriarte said.

While the "Terminal Lance" comic strip is clearly meant to be funny, Uriarte went beyond mere military joke-telling with "The White Donkey," a searing graphic novel about Marines under fire in Iraq – and later attempting and sometimes failing to readjust to civilian life – using the same main characters. He did not include easy laughs.

"The story was supposed to be upsetting," he said. "I felt the book was supposed to be disturbing."

Uriarte is currently working on his second graphic novel, which will be based on the Marine Corps experience in Afghanistan.

He dedicated "Terminal Lance: Ultimate Omnibus" to the Lance Corporals in the Marine Corps.

"I didn't do this for the Marine Corps – I did for the Marines," Uriarte said. "I honestly think that active duty Marines are the funniest people on the planet."

Note: This article may be more accommodating to the older Marines.
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O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
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