The Pacific - New HBO Series

[jollyjacktar]

For those who so desire, if you were to go to such a site as The Pirate Bay, you will be able to download up to the current episode 4 which aired last night.  I have been impressed with the attention to detail and CGI with makes things indeed look real.  It meets my expectations of Spielberg, Hanks and Dye.

 

[1feral1]

Well, parts 1 and 2 aired on the 7 Network on Wendesday night from 2030-2230h. Overall, very well done, and I look forward to the remaining 7 parts each Wednesday night.

The terrain is so familiar  :nod: , as there is something facinating about the living 'J', I curse it and love it all at the same time, ha, the humidity, the range of birds/fury creatures,  insects, snakes and spiders (not including the crocks and wierd vegetation), plus the smell, and the wetness.

OWDU

 

[LineDoggie]

Y'all are going to love the Peleliu sequences.

Look for Sledges Gunnery Sergeant on Pavuvu, makes Lee Ermey look like a schoolgirl and is based on a real vet. Elmo M. Haney, veteran of the 5th Marines and Bellau Wood.

 

[SeanNewman]

I'm still just not feeling it compared to Band of Brothers.

It's not a matter of it being in the middle vs BoB being seen as the whole thing, either...right from the first episode BoB had me hooked.

I think they did a better job with character development in BoB or something more so than what theatre it was in, because there's no reason The Pacific can't be as good of a story.

There's nobody to relate to like the troops in BoB, and there's nobody who stands out as awesome or terrible to relate to like Winters or Sobel.  Any leadership character only seems to get 2 minutes on one episode then he's done.

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

I have not seen it but have it preordered with Amazon.

 

[heavygunner]

Look for Sledges Gunnery Sergeant on Pavuvu, makes Lee Ermey look like a schoolgirl and is based on a real vet. Elmo M. Haney, veteran of the 5th Marines and Bellau Wood.

;D  he was nuts!

HANEY, Elmo M., GySgt. K-3-5. Now deceased, was awarded the Silver Star for heroism on Cape Gloucester and was at least 50 years old on Peleliu. A combat veteran with the 5th Marines in France during WW I.

 

[LineDoggie]

I'm still just not feeling it compared to Band of Brothers.

It's not a matter of it being in the middle vs BoB being seen as the whole thing, either...right from the first episode BoB had me hooked.

I think they did a better job with character development in BoB or something more so than what theatre it was in, because there's no reason The Pacific can't be as good of a story.

There's nobody to relate to like the troops in BoB, and there's nobody who stands out as awesome or terrible to relate to like Winters or Sobel.  Any leadership character only seems to get 2 minutes on one episode then he's done.

Some of the things people who rave over BoB need to remember. BoB was about 1 Rifle company of the 506th from Training to V-J day and mostly about Dick Winters.

This is about 3 main characters who likely never met  during the war from 2 different Regiments, and one wasnt in combat till 44. I think of it more like Gettysburg than BoB. It's ambitious and they have made some mistakes with Weapons (M1903A3's instead of plain '03s).

 

[1feral1]

Part 3 aired on the 7 Network last Wednesday.

Took place (and filmed in Melbourne). All about training and resting up, charming the local Sheilas etc. Very well done, and I look forward to part 4 this coming Wednesday. A bit more charcacter building, which was good.

A crop of new and old Aussie actors were present.

If you're reading this post, you must read the link below.....

Reality check

Back in 1942, with the US 'invasion' of Brisbane, many locals and Diggers viewed the US Forces as "those bloody Yanks...over paid, over sexed, and over here". Things boiled over.... yes, and got out of hand....  Wiki's version of what happened - The Battle of Brisbane - Fair dinkum!  :nod:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Brisbane

OWDU

 

[mariomike]

Part 3 aired on the 7 Network last Wednesday.

Took place (and filmed in Melbourne). All about training and resting up, charming the local Sheilas etc. Very well done, and I look forward to part 4 this coming Wednesday. A bit more charcacter building, which was good.

A crop of new and old Aussie actors were present.

If you're reading this post, you must read the link below.....

Reality check

Back in 1942, with the US 'invasion' of Brisbane, many locals and Diggers viewed the US Forces as "those bloody Yanks...over paid, over sexed, and over here". Things boiled over.... yes, and got out of hand....  Wiki's version of what happened - The Battle of Brisbane - Fair dinkum!  :nod:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Brisbane

OWDU

I wonder if the retort was something like in the ETO: "Under-paid, under-sexed and under MacArthur/Eisenhower!  ;D

"The lingo: listening to Australian English". Some ditties such as, "When they send the last Yank home: All they'll have is some clothes, and a kid that talks through its nose."
http://books.google.ca/books?id=ht8jrt3HBmEC&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=underpaid+under+sexed+under+macarthur&source=bl&ots=N3sYKLRH0I&sig=hUZTSpvuTw0sAtftyOYTgDailyQ&hl=en&ei=EFXTS6qVFMGclgfw76HuDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CA4Q6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false

( The above sung to "When they sound the last all clear" sung by Vera Lynn - still going strong! )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdsH6c6T9lc

I also wonder if they will show the Zoot Suit Riots In L.A. involving sailors and marines? That would likely be too hot a potato.

Hey, Wes. I saw episode number 6 the other night on TMN. I have not seen "Band of Brothers" which is what most seem to compare it to.
Sometimes, the "Beer and Skittles" seem to have gotten a bit out of hand:
http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/ozatwar/altercations.htm
Read about Eddie Leonski!

 

[Ignatius J. Reilly]

I had been looking forward to 'The Pacific', having thoroughly enjoyed 'Band of Brothers'. That said, I have to say that perhaps my expectations were too high.
Granted, I am viewing in Taiwan, where HBO is heavily censored. But it seems there is a definitive lack of a thread with which to tie it all together. I've only seen the first four episodes, perhaps it will get better. But it says something when the first four episodes do not draw the viewer in.

 

[mariomike]

I watched Episode 7: 'Peleliu Hills'. It showed four-man USMC litter ( stretcher ) teams in action. I was wondering if they had securing straps for folding canvas stretchers during the war. It turns out they did. "A kind of elasticated canvas strap designed to secure the patient to the Litter. The straps featured two sprung metal clips attached to either end, and designed to fit around the tubular poles of the Litter. The strap was adjustable."
Attached is a photo of what they looked like from a Medical Supply Catalog of 1 March, 1944.

 

[CEEBEE501]

For any one wanting to catch up or view on your own times.

http://tvshack.net/tv/The_Pacific/

 

[Infantry_wannabe]

I think the Peleliu episodes were excellent. Though the series has its weaknesses it's worth seeing even just for those episodes. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

 

[1feral1]

Well, watched Pt 4 last night, again very well done.

That officer who stole the chest and pistol was a real classic or what, eh.

It reminded me of a certain someone on my deployment, althought not a thief, he had the rests of the traits that most are disgusted with. This individual nearly kicked a dog to death in front of us (it was our 'pet') as punnishment to the men for not heeding his warning he did not want the dog around. There were a few who wanted to sort things out a la old school.

Looking forward to Pt 5 next Wednesday.


OWDU

 

[mariomike]

Episode Nine: Okinawa 1945:
"The battle resulted in one of the highest number of casualties of any World War II engagement"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Okinawa

Okinawa: "THE BLOODIEST BATTLE OF ALL":
http://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/14/magazine/the-bloodiest-battle-of-all.html?pagewanted=all

 

[SeanNewman]

I've now given it 9 hours of my life and my opinion hasn't changed that Band of Brothers was far better with character development.

I just don't have that emotional investment of "I know guys like that" as I did with Garnere, Lipton, Winters, Sobel, etc.

I don't think it has anything to do with the theatre they were in or the missions they were doing; character development is an art and I feel like they missed it here.

For three of the episodes, they sort of focussed on a guy and he got killed.

 

[jollyjacktar]

I have watched both series, both well done.  But my money is on the Pacific, I enjoyed it more.

 

[mariomike]

Here is an article from Time magazine from November 1944.
"Which is the tougher war—in Europe or in the Pacific?":
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,796908,00.html

Long before either TV show, the war in the Pacific ( land, sea and air ) held more interest for me because of the intensity of the Japanese resistance.

Had Japan not surrendered after the A-bombs:
"Casualty predictions varied widely but were extremely high for both sides: depending on the degree to which Japanese civilians resisted the invasion, estimates ran into the millions for Allied casualties and tens of millions for Japanese casualties.":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall#Estimated_casualties

The USN:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nrvMNf-HEg&feature=related

The USAAF:
http://www.warbirdforum.com/lastraid.htm

I just don't have that emotional investment of "I know guys like that" as I did with Garnere, Lipton, Winters, Sobel, etc.

The Pacific gave you characters like "SNAFU" playing beer pong with half empty craniums.

Snafu: What you doin’ Sledgehammer?

Sledge: I though I’d bag me some Jap Gold.

Snafu: You don’t wanna do that.

Sledge: Why not? I saw you do it.

Snafu: Don’t. You shouldn’t do it. The germs. Doc Caswell says all these dead nips have germs.

Sledge: Germs.

Snafu: Bad Germs. Diseases that will make you sick.

 

[SeanNewman]

I don't think the part about which one was "harder" is really in question.

Even if you took the beaches in Africa, Dieppe, Sicily, Italy, and Normandy, at the end of the day you still lived in a relatively civilized place (Europe) by modern standards, and when you weren't fighting battles there were French and Dutch women to take care of you.

That was even mentioned in episode 10 last night when a Europe vet got home earlier than a Pacific vet and said (to paraphrase) "I might have jumped into Normandy, but I can't take that money from you because you had the really hard go with Malaria, etc".

While I wasn't at either, everything I've read from people who were at both tells me that life in general was much worse in the Pacific, which is part of the reason the Marines are so passionate about not being confused with vets from Europe.

 

[SoldierInTheMaking]

I just want to say both Band of Brothers and The Pacific, are my 2 favourite show's on television, both equally are amazing films/series.