Superman #216

1. Cover by Joe Kubert.
2. "The Soldier of Steel!" "The Soldier of Steel!" part 2 "Command-Kill King Cong" part 3 written by Robert Kanigher, penciled by Ross Andru and inked by Mike Esposito.

While U.S. involvement in the Vietnam war continued, writer Robert Kanigher and artist Ross Andru crafted a story that took Superman straight to the battlefield. Whereas DC's war comics too place primarily in World War II, this issue marked the first time that any DC publication had sent one of its heroes to Vietnam. The overall story provided little social commentary regarding the war itself. Nevertheless, "The Soldier of Steel" story was a landmark moment in the Man of Steel's history and was topped off with a rare Superman cover by Joe Kubert.

Superman involved himself in the conflict when U.S. soldiers flooded the offices of the Daily Planet with letters asking for his help. Clark Kent and Lois Lane enlisted as a medic and a nurse respectively, to acquire stories from the soldiers' point of view. However, it wasn't long before Superman was dispatched to rescue the troops and a local orphanage from enemy forces - chief among them' Johnny Morley, a meek U.S. soldier who was forced by the evil Dr. Han's medical herbs to transform into the monstrous King Cong. The Man of Tomorrow eventually isolated the giant long enough for the herbs to wear off, enabling Morley to help rescue troops that were under fire.