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*** OFFICIAL The Pacific Thread *** (1 Viewer)

What happened to run the *** navy off? One night they were crawling all over the canal...the next thing we see is the American navy back to pick up the troops after the victory.
Well, the entire episode as shown here was roughly 7 months condensed down into it's basic elements.And most of the naval battles were fought on the opposite side of the island out of view of the 1st Marines. So to that effect it was realistic. There were several key naval engagements, but the one that IIRC was the most crucial came when Japan over played their hand thinking they had knocked out the airbase with a large naval bombardment only to be met with significant air bombings only hours afterwards. I do believe there was an engineer that got CMOH honors for this amazing feat. Gradually the soldiers on the island took complete control of the seas during the daytime via airstrikes and harassment while the enemy had it at night, and finally the us navy took control of the seas at night. Game over.
:goodposting: It seems like BoB had more narrative detail.
For the most part Guadalcanal was enough of a story to tell in 10 parts or whatever. Some of the back end of this series is pretty well known.
 
Jesus I need to take a trip to Australia in my Army uniform. Loved the "stay here and bed my daughter Yank while you are in town!!! "

 
from avs

Leckie and others of the 1st Division where issued New Zealand Army shoes rather than Marine bookdockers while in Melbourne. The stiff black leather shoes with unbending soles where very different to the buckskin and rubber boondockers, and served to incapacitate a quarter of the Division. Leckie talks of blisters "like udders" hanging from both balls of his feet. The NZ shoes were not issues again.

Leckie drew the pistol on Lieutenant "Ivy League" due to drunkenness, and resentment. When they left Guadalcanal, Chuckler and Leckie had given their cigars to the lieutenant to bring onto the boat, as only officers had sea bags. The lieutenant proceeded to give Leckie and Chuckler's cigars away to his superior officers to curry favor, and Leckie resented him for it.

Much of the episode involving Stella's Greek family was not in the book. Leckie mentions being "friendly" with a Molly initially, and later a drink waitress, and then a Sheila who is closest to the Stella character. Leckie and Chuckler met on a tram to St. Kilda. They both spent the night at her house in the suburbs, Chuckler upstairs and Leckie in the woodshed outside where Sheila came to visit him. Leckie dated her for a month or so, until she left to go to Tasmania. She was also married, and no mention of her being Greek, although he did say he spent hours drinking tea and talking about America to her lame and widowed mother.

There was a lot more debauchery in the book than in Part III. But not unexpected with only 45min of air time. Still, a very good episode, and very close to the book with the extra story components to keep in interesting.

 
I did not mind the episode. It allowed the viewer to "feel" what the characters might have been going through. Going to war and then trying to be assimilated back into a civilian life a little bit and how they reacted is not seen by many, nor felt by many. The sex was not needed just like in Band of Brothers, but anything to show a boob I guess. I think the ultimate goal of the episode was to give us a taste of the war, episode 1 and 2, and give us a break with 3 and now we are going to see some stuff that will probably be shocking to those not familiar with what is to come. We saw a little of that already, with the suicide grenade and the charging to the Japanese as they were gunned down, but I think there is more crazy stuff that they will be showing us.

If they do the next episodes and the psychology of the war right, we may see some things that when we wonder, "why does Grandpa not talk about the war or what he did?" That question may be answered for most of the people in the coming episodes as to what Grandpa saw and possibly did in order to stay alive. I am not going to say these events were more damaging than had they been in Europe but probably quite different with different circumstances.

 
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I did not mind the episode. It allowed the viewer to "feel" what the characters might have been going through. Going to war and then trying to be assimilated back into a civilian life a little bit and how they reacted is not seen by many, nor felt by many. The sex was not needed just like in Band of Brothers, but anything to show a boob I guess. I think the ultimate goal of the episode was to give us a taste of the war, episode 1 and 2, and give us a break with 3 and now we are going to see some stuff that will probably be shocking to those not familiar with what is to come. We saw a little of that already, with the suicide grenade and the charging to the Japanese as they were gunned down, but I think there is more crazy stuff that they will be showing us.If they do the next episodes and the psychology of the war right, we may see some things that when we wonder, "why does Grandpa not talk about the war or what he did?" That question may be answered for most of the people in the coming episodes as to what Grandpa saw and possibly did in order to stay alive. I am not going to say these events were more damaging than had they been in Europe but probably quite different with different circumstances.
Very well said. Many vets never talk about what they saw or did except with other vets.
 
I think I have posted this before (maybe even several times), but as a result of Band of Brothers, I got to thank Don Malarkey in person (while he was snacking on french fries at the Florham Park, New Jersey McDonalds years ago - on his way to West Point to speak to the cadets).

:flag:

God bless em all.
I remember that story from on of the BoB threads floating about here. That's really cool, especially when it's not something planned or at an event. I had that opportunity twice a few weeks ago, in a restaurant and a mall, two older gents with WWII vet hats on along with the various insignia of their outfits. Thanked them both and after they figured out I wasn't trying to sell them something or mug them you could tell they were kinda taken aback. I think it's because it doesn't happen enough. No cooler feeling than to see an old vets eyes light up when you offer a hand and thank him for his service.Most the of the BoB guys, at least who are still alive have politely asked to be excused from the public eye. I think the spotlight was fun for most of them for a while but age, health and the constant pull to be somewhere or sign something has taken a toll on them.
Ya, I debated even approaching him. The quick "thank you" seemed to be well received.
 
well, for those that don't like the non war stuff it looks like the next episode has little, if any, war action in it.
Who exactly would watch the Pacific if not someone interested in war stuff? :confused:
I dunno. This episode is going to be skippable I guess. Instead of doing a boot camp episode I guess they decided to to it this way.
BoB had two of these.Boot Camp

And the the concentration camp episode.

Great episode nonetheless.

 
And is running full speed with a bayonet, at night, in a jungle, while being shot at, in a bog a good idea?
There's a reason they lost the war.
They lost the war before Guadalcanal.
Can you unpack this. I'm not well versed in WWII.
The Japanese failure to sink our carriers at Pearl Harbor, Coral Sea and Midway along with their loss of three carriers at Midway crippled them. From then on it was just a matter of us grinding them up in the island hopping campaign.
Ok, this is something I'll definitely have to read about.
 
Finally getting caught up via ninjavideo.net.

Fantastic series so far. I don't mind the departure from the war for an episode. It's humanizing the characters a bit. This series seems a bit more melodramatic than BoB but I'm sure it will settle in.

 
Finally getting caught up via ninjavideo.net.

Fantastic series so far. I don't mind the departure from the war for an episode. It's humanizing the characters a bit. This series seems a bit more melodramatic than BoB but I'm sure it will settle in.
:goodposting: A little plot and character development goes a long way in a series such as this. Through the first 2 episodes I was having trouble identifying who was who. I watched each episode twice to get a feel for names and where the fit into the story. It's much clearer now.

 
Part IV was harsh & disturbing.

Being in that hell hole, soaking wet, covered in mud and wearing the same clothes for up to 3 months would drive me insane as well.

 
Well, apparently the Japanese have not changed tactics that much is ~1 year. The higher ups appeared to have abandoned some of their soldiers though otherwise those soldiers were stupid in trying to wage war with 100 vs 1,200.

As far as our soldiers go, no telling how anyone would behave after a month in damp, rainy, watch-your-back type environment. They did not see any Japs but never becoming complacent is something that would wain on anyone. Watching this episode was a little discomforting but also gave more credence to the fact that not many veterans talked about the war. What is worse, seeing these images now or having grandpa tell you a story while he painted these images in your young mind when you were a kid? I think this series is going to be remembered, at least by me for now, as things are better left unsaid sometimes. So far, I can only think about and thank those who went through it and also thank them for never wanting to relive the most horrific times of their life. I know I would not want to relive most of this stuff we have simply seen so far.

 
despite being a history major, i didnt know a ton about the pacific campaign going in.

All that time laying in the rain and mud must have been absolute hell. For me, that kinda thing would be right up with what the airborne dealt with at Bastogne. The actual fighting/artillary bombing was probably worse for the guys in europe. But the uncertainty of fighting in the jungle and the isolation on an island would really get to me. I'm guessing they felt very, very alone.

I can see how guys went off the deep end.

 
The soldier that Leckie gave the smokes to in the hospital, is that the same guy that we saw choke a Japanese to death?

 
The portrayal of the landings at Peleliu was the most intense battle sences I have ever watched and out did anything that was in Band of Brothers.

The show struggles from not being able to follow a core group as they could in Band of Brothers but the intensity and the struggle these guys went through is conveyed brilliantly.

 
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Redwes25 said:
The portrayal of the landings at Peleliu was the most intense battle sences I have ever watched and out did anything that was in Band of Brothers.

The show struggles from not being able to follow a core group as they could in Band of Brothers but the intensity and the struggle these guys went through is conveyed brilliantly.
Yea, there's a little something missing here. I like this series, but it's not one I'm going to run out and add to my collection. Overall, it's good. Some parts are even great. But just some parts.

 
Olivia Dunham put in a nice almost nood scene this week, so there's that.

I read Sledge's book a few months ago and really didn't get the impact of the landing craft that were used on Peleliu. What an incredibly stupid way to exit a vehicle. Not there is probably a good way to get out of a landing craft when 7,000 Japanese are trying their best to kill you but I gotta think that going over the top has to rank pretty high on the "not real smart" list.

I'll say it again, the Pacific is not Band of Brothers so you can't watch it and compare the two regardless of the similarities. There are three separate but interwoven stories going on. It's always difficult to follow along in war movies because everyone looks the same during battle segments so you never really know what's going on unless the camera focuses on a main character. Had the same issues with BoB the first time through.

I thought the landing scene was accurately portrayed compared to Sledge's book, my problem is they are going to cut short Peleliu big time with only one episode more devoted to it so I get the feeling that it will seem rushed next week. I understand it and realize you can't do 5 episodes on it and then cover everything else they need to but 10 episodes for this series seems way too short IMO. Shame, because I'm sure they will gloss over some very important facets of the war in the Pacific due to time constraints.

If they would have called and asked me I would have recommended they cut down on the 8 minutes of credits to start and tell more of the story but alas my phone never rings. . .

 
beer 30 said:
Olivia Dunham put in a nice almost nood scene this week, so there's that.

I read Sledge's book a few months ago and really didn't get the impact of the landing craft that were used on Peleliu. What an incredibly stupid way to exit a vehicle. Not there is probably a good way to get out of a landing craft when 7,000 Japanese are trying their best to kill you but I gotta think that going over the top has to rank pretty high on the "not real smart" list.

I'll say it again, the Pacific is not Band of Brothers so you can't watch it and compare the two regardless of the similarities. There are three separate but interwoven stories going on. It's always difficult to follow along in war movies because everyone looks the same during battle segments so you never really know what's going on unless the camera focuses on a main character. Had the same issues with BoB the first time through.

I thought the landing scene was accurately portrayed compared to Sledge's book, my problem is they are going to cut short Peleliu big time with only one episode more devoted to it so I get the feeling that it will seem rushed next week. I understand it and realize you can't do 5 episodes on it and then cover everything else they need to but 10 episodes for this series seems way too short IMO. Shame, because I'm sure they will gloss over some very important facets of the war in the Pacific due to time constraints.

If they would have called and asked me I would have recommended they cut down on the 8 minutes of credits to start and tell more of the story but alas my phone never rings. . .
They clearly had the same problem with Guadalcannal and will have it with Iwo Jima and Okinawa. These are battles that lasted months and doing a single episode or part of an episode doesn't cover what went on. That is especially true of Peleliu which is sometimes ignored since it was such a waste and had little strategic value. My favorite fact about Peleliu is that the last Japannese soldiers did not surrender until 1947.

 
I'm loving the fact they're hitting on things I never would of thought of during island warfare.

Like crabs clicking their claws & crawling into your pants at night

 
I'm loving the fact they're hitting on things I never would of thought of during island warfare.Like crabs clicking their claws & crawling into your pants at night
One of the marines mentioned it in this last episode about Pavuvu, about just how God awful it was a place to be and this is where they sent the marines to regroup, rest up and get ready for battle. In Sledge's book he mentions that either an NCO or officer told him that the idea was to make it so miserable for the men there that they would think anything is better than living on that rock and want to get off, including bloody hand-to-hand fighting with a hysterical enemy that wasn't above eating you to survive. It was also used to piss the marines off and get them in a sour mood so they would be that much more inclined to fight harder.I'll say this, there is no good war, there is no good place to fight a war and as far as I can tell from history while many good things have come about because of a war, the costs far outweigh the benefit but if there was a more inhospitable place to fight a war than the Pacific you'd be hard pressed to find it. Just for the shear non-stop, never ending deluge of disease, insects, heat and the constant rain. Some really brutal fighting conditions.
 
"What did the seizure of Peleliu cost? Marine casualties numbered 6,526, including Navy corpsmen and doctors, of whom 1,252 were killed. The 81st Division totalled 3,089 casualties, of whom 404 were killed in action. Total U.S. troop casualties was 9,615 for Peleliu, Angaur and Ngesebus, with 1,656 dead.

By inflicting that many casualties, the Japanese were successful in implementing their longstanding "delay and bleed" strategy. The actions cost them an estimated 10,900 casualties, all but a tiny fraction killed. Just 202 prisoners of war were captured, only 19 of whom were Japanese military (seven Army, 12 Navy). The others were laborers, largely Korean. Among the Japanese military defenders, less than two per thousand were captured."

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/ex...137-00/sec1.htm

Really good link I just discovered today about the battle. While I considered posting in spoiler tags if you don't know the general way the war turned out by now, well, sorry.

 
beer 30 said:
Olivia Dunham put in a nice almost nood scene this week, so there's that.

I read Sledge's book a few months ago and really didn't get the impact of the landing craft that were used on Peleliu. What an incredibly stupid way to exit a vehicle. Not there is probably a good way to get out of a landing craft when 7,000 Japanese are trying their best to kill you but I gotta think that going over the top has to rank pretty high on the "not real smart" list.
It's better than what they did at Normandy when they just opened up the front and gave the German machine gunners a nice concentrated target.
 
"What did the seizure of Peleliu cost? Marine casualties numbered 6,526, including Navy corpsmen and doctors, of whom 1,252 were killed. The 81st Division totalled 3,089 casualties, of whom 404 were killed in action. Total U.S. troop casualties was 9,615 for Peleliu, Angaur and Ngesebus, with 1,656 dead.

By inflicting that many casualties, the Japanese were successful in implementing their longstanding "delay and bleed" strategy. The actions cost them an estimated 10,900 casualties, all but a tiny fraction killed. Just 202 prisoners of war were captured, only 19 of whom were Japanese military (seven Army, 12 Navy). The others were laborers, largely Korean. Among the Japanese military defenders, less than two per thousand were captured."

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/ex...137-00/sec1.htm

Really good link I just discovered today about the battle. While I considered posting in spoiler tags if you don't know the general way the war turned out by now, well, sorry.
Doesn't casualties mean dead? What am I not understanding here?
 
"What did the seizure of Peleliu cost? Marine casualties numbered 6,526, including Navy corpsmen and doctors, of whom 1,252 were killed. The 81st Division totalled 3,089 casualties, of whom 404 were killed in action. Total U.S. troop casualties was 9,615 for Peleliu, Angaur and Ngesebus, with 1,656 dead.

By inflicting that many casualties, the Japanese were successful in implementing their longstanding "delay and bleed" strategy. The actions cost them an estimated 10,900 casualties, all but a tiny fraction killed. Just 202 prisoners of war were captured, only 19 of whom were Japanese military (seven Army, 12 Navy). The others were laborers, largely Korean. Among the Japanese military defenders, less than two per thousand were captured."

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/ex...137-00/sec1.htm

Really good link I just discovered today about the battle. While I considered posting in spoiler tags if you don't know the general way the war turned out by now, well, sorry.
Doesn't casualties mean dead? What am I not understanding here?
Casualty = wounded, dead, captured or missing.
 
"What did the seizure of Peleliu cost? Marine casualties numbered 6,526, including Navy corpsmen and doctors, of whom 1,252 were killed. The 81st Division totalled 3,089 casualties, of whom 404 were killed in action. Total U.S. troop casualties was 9,615 for Peleliu, Angaur and Ngesebus, with 1,656 dead.

By inflicting that many casualties, the Japanese were successful in implementing their longstanding "delay and bleed" strategy. The actions cost them an estimated 10,900 casualties, all but a tiny fraction killed. Just 202 prisoners of war were captured, only 19 of whom were Japanese military (seven Army, 12 Navy). The others were laborers, largely Korean. Among the Japanese military defenders, less than two per thousand were captured."

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/ex...137-00/sec1.htm

Really good link I just discovered today about the battle. While I considered posting in spoiler tags if you don't know the general way the war turned out by now, well, sorry.
Doesn't casualties mean dead? What am I not understanding here?
Casualty = wounded, dead, captured or missing.
Interesting, I've never heard of casualty being used for wounded, captured, or missing.
 
"What did the seizure of Peleliu cost? Marine casualties numbered 6,526, including Navy corpsmen and doctors, of whom 1,252 were killed. The 81st Division totalled 3,089 casualties, of whom 404 were killed in action. Total U.S. troop casualties was 9,615 for Peleliu, Angaur and Ngesebus, with 1,656 dead.

By inflicting that many casualties, the Japanese were successful in implementing their longstanding "delay and bleed" strategy. The actions cost them an estimated 10,900 casualties, all but a tiny fraction killed. Just 202 prisoners of war were captured, only 19 of whom were Japanese military (seven Army, 12 Navy). The others were laborers, largely Korean. Among the Japanese military defenders, less than two per thousand were captured."

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/ex...137-00/sec1.htm

Really good link I just discovered today about the battle. While I considered posting in spoiler tags if you don't know the general way the war turned out by now, well, sorry.
Doesn't casualties mean dead? What am I not understanding here?
Casualty = wounded, dead, captured or missing.
Interesting, I've never heard of casualty being used for wounded, captured, or missing.
:excited: That's always been the definition.
 
"What did the seizure of Peleliu cost? Marine casualties numbered 6,526, including Navy corpsmen and doctors, of whom 1,252 were killed. The 81st Division totalled 3,089 casualties, of whom 404 were killed in action. Total U.S. troop casualties was 9,615 for Peleliu, Angaur and Ngesebus, with 1,656 dead.

By inflicting that many casualties, the Japanese were successful in implementing their longstanding "delay and bleed" strategy. The actions cost them an estimated 10,900 casualties, all but a tiny fraction killed. Just 202 prisoners of war were captured, only 19 of whom were Japanese military (seven Army, 12 Navy). The others were laborers, largely Korean. Among the Japanese military defenders, less than two per thousand were captured."

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/ex...137-00/sec1.htm

Really good link I just discovered today about the battle. While I considered posting in spoiler tags if you don't know the general way the war turned out by now, well, sorry.
Doesn't casualties mean dead? What am I not understanding here?
Casualty = wounded, dead, captured or missing.
Interesting, I've never heard of casualty being used for wounded, captured, or missing.
:excited: That's always been the definition.
I never said it wasn't. I just said I had never heard it used that way. I always assumed it meant deaths.
 
I read Sledge's book a few months ago and really didn't get the impact of the landing craft that were used on Peleliu. What an incredibly stupid way to exit a vehicle. Not there is probably a good way to get out of a landing craft when 7,000 Japanese are trying their best to kill you but I gotta think that going over the top has to rank pretty high on the "not real smart" list.
reading it now. he says "My knees got weak when I saw it wasn't one of the newer models with the tailgate ramp for troop exit..."
 
If I had to pick a few words to describe last night's episode it would be "meat grinder". :eek:
I was absolutely blown away by this episode.....the action was probably the best war action I've ever seen. My jaw was open throughout the whole episode. This is one episode I will probably watch many times.
 
I wonder why they felt the need to cross that airfield during daytime hours. I would think the "meat grinder" effect would be much less at night.

 
I wonder why they felt the need to cross that airfield during daytime hours. I would think the "meat grinder" effect would be much less at night.
The US liked to fight during the day, the Japanese at night. One of the biggest reasons was ground support provided by Navy & Marine fighter-bombers.
 
I'll never understand how WWII fortifications could withstand such instense shelling without caving in or killing the occupants with the concussions. The only ones I've ever seen were at normandy and they didn't seem to be supernatural or anything.

 
I'll never understand how WWII fortifications could withstand such instense shelling without caving in or killing the occupants with the concussions. The only ones I've ever seen were at normandy and they didn't seem to be supernatural or anything.
From what I remember reading about the Japanese block houses was that they were positioned such that only a direct hit would take them out. They were typically constructed specifically to withstand this type of bombardment and they also made great use of tunnels connecting them all together as well as being built into hillsides. Remember the Japanese had years to prepare these areas in anticipation of exactly what was taken place, amphibious landings with frontal assaults.Best episode of the series so far but this battle alone goes on for another 7 months. Everything you saw in these last two episodes on the island happened within the first week of being there. As Christo and others have mentioned before, I don't know how they wrap these up and move on to more prominent battles without leaving huge gaps. This series really needs to be 20 episodes rather than 10.
 
I'll never understand how WWII fortifications could withstand such instense shelling without caving in or killing the occupants with the concussions. The only ones I've ever seen were at normandy and they didn't seem to be supernatural or anything.
From what I remember reading about the Japanese block houses was that they were positioned such that only a direct hit would take them out. They were typically constructed specifically to withstand this type of bombardment and they also made great use of tunnels connecting them all together as well as being built into hillsides. Remember the Japanese had years to prepare these areas in anticipation of exactly what was taken place, amphibious landings with frontal assaults.Best episode of the series so far but this battle alone goes on for another 7 months. Everything you saw in these last two episodes on the island happened within the first week of being there. As Christo and others have mentioned before, I don't know how they wrap these up and move on to more prominent battles without leaving huge gaps. This series really needs to be 20 episodes rather than 10.
I think the better approach would have been to concentrate the series on just GC or Pelileu. Both IJ and Okinawa are already fairly well known stories. They seem to be concentrating on the biggest events on these islands and leaving out the mop-up.
 
http://www.breakingentertainmentnews.com/w...iu-hills/888444

A new episode of The Pacific awaits us today on HBO. If you’re interested to know how to watch The Pacific season 1 episode 7 online or looking to get a sneak peak of the new episode named ‘Peleliu Hills’ – then read on.

Watch The Pacific Season 1 Episode 7 Online

You’re favorite War Drama is back for episode number 7 of the new season and once again you will need to tune in at 21:00 ET on HBO to watch it on TV. Here’ a short preview of Peleliu Hills:

The battle continues against the extremely determined Japanese. Terrible acts of barbarism are conducted by both sides and Sledge questions his own moral compass after the loss of a leader. The Marines eventually secure Peleliu with the help of their newly christened ‘Sledgehammer’ and return to Pavuvu, changed men forever.

To stream The Pacific Peleliu Hills online you can head over to the official website to get access to some great content: http://www.hbo.com/the-pacific/index.html

 
very good episode tonight. The tension and atmosphere was unreal.

Unfortunately, the character development has been really weak. But at this point, i can just enjoy it for what it is.

 
TLEF316 said:
very good episode tonight. The tension and atmosphere was unreal.

Unfortunately, the character development has been really weak. But at this point, i can just enjoy it for what it is.
Seriously....I was disappointed with this one after episode 6. Don't know, something is just missing from this series. I am enjoying it like you, but it seems so rushed.....like the scope and length of how long these guys are in the field is not being projected nearly enough.
 
TLEF316 said:
very good episode tonight. The tension and atmosphere was unreal.

Unfortunately, the character development has been really weak. But at this point, i can just enjoy it for what it is.
Seriously....I was disappointed with this one after episode 6. Don't know, something is just missing from this series. I am enjoying it like you, but it seems so rushed.....like the scope and length of how long these guys are in the field is not being projected nearly enough.
with band of brothers, you really got a chance to learn about the guys' personalities. you got to know them as individuals and as a group. You knew all their names.I think i know the names of 3 guys on The Pacific, and one of those guys is John Basilone, who i've known about for 20 years (i'm from the town next to his town and drive over the John Basilone bridge 10 times a week)

 
with band of brothers, you really got a chance to learn about the guys' personalities. you got to know them as individuals and as a group. You knew all their names.I think i know the names of 3 guys on The Pacific, and one of those guys is John Basilone, who i've known about for 20 years (i'm from the town next to his town and drive over the John Basilone bridge 10 times a week)
And that's what made making the Pacific so difficult. There wasn't one group that you could isolate like group that went through the ETO in the Pacific. Too many island campaigns that chewed up whole divisions. You can tell the story but you are never going get that same "I know that guy" feeling like you did with BoB. The series is based on books by Sledge, Leckie and the well known exploits of Basilone. Those are the guys you get to know because they are some of the few that:1. stayed relatively healthy through more than one campaign and;2. wrote a detailed book about what happened to themNot too many vets made it through one island let alone two and much like Lewis Nixon being one of the few with 4 combat jumps to his name, anyone who made it through three island campaigns is almost unheard of. In fact, I don't know of any front line grunts that did. If anybody does that would be some cool reading.
 
Damn, not knowing the story of Basilone and now just watching last nights episode hit me hard. The battle of Iwo Jima was bad and the way the show depicted it, it must have been brutal for anyone who made it out alive.

Most would probably not like episode eight but I thought it was one of the better ones because it had the human element in it and showed the war at the end. Yeah, not mush action but I would rather not see people getting shot left and right with blood splattering all over and not know the inter personal stories of those involved.

 
it was so strange watching Basilone last night knowing that he was gonna bite it at some point.

Apparently they took some liberties with the way he died. (shooting as opposed to a mortar shell). I also wasnt digging the whole "leonidas at the end of 300" overhead camera shot.

 

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