The Pacific

Discussion in 'Cactus Cafe' started by texas_ex2000, Mar 9, 2010.

  1. texas_ex2000

    texas_ex2000 2,500+ Posts

    I don't have cable...anyone seen it yet? Thoughts?
     
  2. Third Coast

    Third Coast 10,000+ Posts

    Part 1 doesn't air until this coming Sunday, but the previews look awesome.
     
  3. someone

    someone 250+ Posts

    if it is half as good as BOB it will be awesome.
     
  4. AhhhCraig

    AhhhCraig 100+ Posts

    I have high hopes for this series. Thinking it's going to be awesome.
     
  5. J D the Obscure

    J D the Obscure 250+ Posts

    **************** SPOILER ALERT ****************


























    We win!

    USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
     
  6. Third Coast

    Third Coast 10,000+ Posts


     
  7. pasotex

    pasotex 2,500+ Posts

    next thing you are going to tell me is that some of the guys die
     
  8. El Torito

    El Torito 1,000+ Posts

    **SPOILER ALERT**





    I'm sure the action gets fast and furious after the Germans bomb Pearl Harbor! [​IMG]
     
  9. Nolalonghorn16

    Nolalonghorn16 250+ Posts

    Germans?

    Seriously though, I haven't had HBO since moving to my new place but I plan on getting it solely to watch this series.
     
  10. Third Coast

    Third Coast 10,000+ Posts

    My dad was a Naval Officer in The Pacific and when I was very small he used to tell me stories about one of the main real life characters in this drama, legendary Medal of Honor and Navy Cross recipient Marine Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone. Talk about heroes ...
     
  11. huisache

    huisache 2,500+ Posts

    My dad fought in the pacific late in the war; Phillipines, Ie Shima, Okinawa.

    He said none of the movies made about the war were accurate unless you soiled your pants watching them.

    They were just "entertainments."

    I disagreed at the time but now I have to wonder why we watch this junk. A bunch of actors playing like they are heroes and us sitting on our couches taking vicarious pleasure in watching this gory ****. Why?

    Compared to most of what passes for entertainment in this debauched society it may be "well done" but so what?
     
  12. majorwhiteapples

    majorwhiteapples 5,000+ Posts

    Why do we watch these things. I like to learn from history and take the good and understand what the bad is about.

    To understand or get a feeling from what true pressure or fear is like. It may not be the real thing but it is about as close as one can come and I try to learn from it, that's why.

    If you have a problem with it, don't watch.
     
  13. notreally

    notreally 1,000+ Posts

    its about history to me. you can tell the story in a documentary, but it is just not as emotional. as humans, i think that is pretty normal. we respond to stories.

    this is about as good of one as you can possibly have.
     
  14. Longhorny630

    Longhorny630 1,000+ Posts

    I recall most of the Band of Brothers had very good things to say about the way Ambrose researched and wrote his book and the way they made the TV series. The veterans met with the actors and enjoyed spending time with them, as did the actors. These shows may be nothing more than money makers to HBO, but to the people involved, they serve as tributes to what these guys did. 20 or 30 years from now when Capt Winters is dead or when EB Sledge is gone, all of us will still be able to relive some of the horror and glory of what these guys went through, as will their children and grandchildren. Obviously we don't **** our pants when we watch it because we know flying pieces of shrapnel aren't going to come through the TV and blow off our limbs, but it's as close as we can come to immortalize what these guys did for us so that we could be free.
     
  15. TRRW#31

    TRRW#31 250+ Posts

    These shows do give insight to those who weren't there, but I hate to say some things do get left out. I was watching "Shootout" on the History Channel. They were analyzing the assault on the three batteries that were taken by Easy Company during the Normandy invasion. It pretty much covered every detail just like the series did, but there was one difference. When the skirmish was over Captain Winters walked by a wounded or dying Nazi soldier, and shot him while he was still living. Now I can understand why it was left out of the scene, but these things are always left out to make characters more endearing. So what we see is not always what really happen.
     
  16. WorsterMan

    WorsterMan SEC here we come!!

    Longhorn630 said it well. BofB was a very well made and important series. I made my teenage sons watch it several times with me and explained that American generation, the world, the threat (their GF was a Navy Officer in the Pacific) the sacrifice, heroism, etc.

    I don't subscribe to HBO so I will have to live this out thru some of you and wait for the DVD like I did with BofB. I am pretty well read on WWII history so I am very anxious to see this series. [​IMG]
     
  17. huisache

    huisache 2,500+ Posts

    Read a very complimentary review of it in the NYT today.

    They made the point that a lot of what happened in the Pacific had been unknown at the time and forgotten since. And that this series addresses that fact in a respectful fashion.

    And I sometime forget that I heard a lot of this stuff firsthand from my dad and uncles when I was a kid and a lot of people did not.

    I apologize for my condescending attitude.
     
  18. Scipio Tex

    Scipio Tex 100+ Posts

    If you get a chance to read Sledge's book, With The Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa, I highly recommend it.

    Some images in it won't leave your mind.
     
  19. pasotex

    pasotex 2,500+ Posts

    Eugene Sledge died in 2001.
     
  20. texas_ex2000

    texas_ex2000 2,500+ Posts

    I'd like to see a mini-series focused on carrier-warfare in the Pacific. Maybe set it on the Enterprise for the entire war. It would be like a real version of Battlestar Galactica.
     
  21. pasotex

    pasotex 2,500+ Posts

    There is a documentary on the History Channel called Battleground 360 that does exactly what you described. It follows the Enterprise from begining to end. I think it is 6 episodes.
     
  22. texas_ex2000

    texas_ex2000 2,500+ Posts


     
  23. Texanne

    Texanne 5,000+ Posts

    Huisache,

    if your dad talked about his experiences in WW2, then he's different from my own dad and other gentlemen that I know who fought in the war. My did NEVER discussed what he did or saw, other than to tell us how his unit pioneered the use of whole blood in combat situations. That was it.

    It wasn't until a few years ago that I knew he was sent to the Pacific when Europe was over and that he was recalled for Korea.

    He died in 1983, so I'll never get to hear his stories.

    Not everyone is as lucky as you
     
  24. Nolalonghorn16

    Nolalonghorn16 250+ Posts

    Episode 1 thoughts anyone? I was a big fan. I think my biggest worry going in is that it won't come close to matching the incredible depth of character development that they had in BoB. If the first episode is any indication then this is going to be a very well done series that'll join BoB on my DVD shelf.
     
  25. Longhorny630

    Longhorny630 1,000+ Posts

    The History Channel show featuring the Enterprise really is well done. They do incorporate characters, some of whom appear on the show. They talk about certain individuals who performed above and beyond and helped influence the battle and follow their path throughout the battle. I can't recall them off the top of my head but they'll follow a squad commander on a bombing run or a lookout pilot who spots a Japanese fleet and talk about how they ended up faring in the war. Really good series.


    First episode was great, not as much character development compared to the first BoB but I would assume since they are focusing on 3 main guys they have more time to spend since they aren't developing a whole company.
     
  26. general35

    general35 5,000+ Posts

    I dont have an opinion on it yet. It looks like this series could be more raw, more racially charged, motivated, etc. So far, there appears to me one character that is a moral compass for the group. There wasnt much background on the characters, a few minutes. B of B spent two episodes on set up before normandy invasion didnt they? They did about 15 minutes for Pacific.
     
  27. wolfman

    wolfman 1,000+ Posts

    I liked the first episode. The series is off to a good start.
     
  28. RamjetFDO

    RamjetFDO 25+ Posts

    I thought it was a bit slow to get rolling in Episode 1, but the production values are high and the last 1/2 was very good. I'll be watching every Sunday night now.

    Like others, I have a Grandfather who fought in the Pacific in WWII - he was a B29 Flight Engineer and was stationed on Tinian with the Enola Gay crew. And, like others, he doesn't talk about his experiences, either.
     
  29. Joe Fan

    Joe Fan 10,000+ Posts

    I had an uncle who survived Guadalcanal. Like some others said above, he did not elaborate much on events there. He did say he lost alot of friends, it was very difficult and he did not know how he made it. He also remarked about how he was just a kid, and how they spoke differently about the Japanese soldier back in the day.

    That last point is something they seem to be going to great lengths to show in this series. I dont really have a problem with it, as long as they are accurate. No reason to whitewash it. It was what it was. However, it would be best if they offered some of the reasons underlying the animosity and there are many (other than just a simplified Americans are/were racist, as Tom Hanks appeared to be saying and which, if so, would be a whitewashing of history).

    Anyways -- RIP Rudolph Masters of Odessa, survivor of Guadalcanal. A great guy.


    As to the first episode -- they tried to cram alot into 1 hour. I did not feel the character development is near as good as BoB, but maybe that will come. I was able to start to get a grip on them in the final 10 minutes. Like someone else said above, if it is just half as good, that should good enough.
     
  30. Bob Wills

    Bob Wills 500+ Posts

    Great start.

    For those that don't have HBO, check hbo.com to stream the full episode.
     

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