I remember when I first saw this strip when I was 12. The shocking thing to me wasn’t the spine shot, but that (I’m guessing that’s Captain Napalm) he was punching a woman! I’m also guessing that the woman is Amazon Babe, mentioned in an earlier strip.
I can still remember seeing this strip when it was originally published; I was only in 1st grade. I remember trying to describe it to one of my friends but it went completely over their head. I was disappointed because I wanted to share it with them.
This was one of the first Calvin and Hobbes strips I ever saw. My dad showed it to me (because of my love for military aircraft) and I instantly fell in love with this comic. By the way, I think it would have been neat if it was an F-15E Strike Eagle-that way Hobbes could have been in the backseat! XD
He should read Iron Man’s “Demon in a Bottle”, “The Killing Joke”, the “Dark Phoenix” saga, and Walt Simonson’s Thor run.