Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: SuBWaYCH on May 09, 2010, 09:03:04 PM
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I am truly speechless.
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Same as well.
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There's one image it's going to take a LONG time to get out of my head.
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Read the book.
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My wife and I have been watching these each week. The have done a real good job of triing to capture the look and feel of that part of the war. And I have learn a few new thing from it. But the look of it is great. My wife has gotten a better apprecation of what the military goes through in a war.
But I think each show needs to be 2 hours long, not 1 hour. There is just too much missing from each part. When it ends, I always think there needs to be more to it. I was just thinking that with other mini serise, the did pretty with the hour. I just wish they used more time on each part. Part 9 need more for that battle. I cann't wait for the set to come out.
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One thing they could have done for Bassilone was spread out his romance with Sgt. Riggi over more of the series. Bassilone was at Pendelton by Dec. 1943 and met her at that time, and they married in July 1944. The miniseries gives the implication Bassilone was still on the War Bond drive until after Peleliu (September-November 1944). I saw a lot of complaints about Part 8 by the decision to squeeze his entire relationship with her into the episode (although I thought it was rather effective). They could have EASILY improved the pacing by spreading them out across several episodes.
The biggest problem The Pacific faces is one of scale. Band of Brothers followed its characters over about a year and a half. The battles they were involved in were generally short-term affairs of a couple days to weeks at most (even The Battle of the Bulge only lasted about a month). The Pacific is covering a FAR larger timescale (1942-1945) and land battles in the Pacific were of FAR greater duration, with combat lasting for several MONTHS. Of the five battles covered by the series, the shortest was Iwo Jima at about a month. The rest dragged on for from three to SIX. Peleliu was the obvious "set piece" of the series, and rightfully so, but they could have easily made an entire miniseries about just ONE of these battles. I don't think an extra hour for each episode would have really done the trick. They almost needed another 5 or more episodes to REALLY tell the story they wanted to tell.
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I have only seen the first and the eight episodes and I thought that both were done well. I agree that they should have spread out the romance a little more but it was a tough one to know that shortly after they got married Bassilone would be dead on Iwo Jima.
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I have only seen the first and the eight episodes and I thought that both were done well. I agree that they should have spread out the romance a little more but it was a tough one to know that shortly after they got married Bassilone would be dead on Iwo Jima.
And the other challenge would have been to cut away from the drama of Peleliu in episodes 5-7 to give Manila John 5-10 minutes of love story each episode. It wouldn't have meshed well. The bottom line is that they could have made 20 episodes of this story, and still skimmed the wave tops on some of it.
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yep. I was a little apprehensive of the series for the first three episodes but with each successive episode the Pacific has simply improved to a breathtakingly superb quality. Just wrapped up no. 9 and it was stunning, tragic, frightening, sorrowful, had a very very deep emotional quality to it. Superb film making. I will be viewing the entire series again once it comes out on DVD and I expect it will be even better with subsequent viewings.
All I can say about Band of Brothers is that this Series, the Pacific, is the left hand and BoB is the right hand. They are a complimentary set, and go hand in hand together.
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I will be viewing the entire series again once it comes out on DVD and I expect it will be even better with subsequent viewings.
I've had great access to the episodes between my DVR & OnDemand services. They do get better with each viewing, like a really good book that needs to be read 2 or 3 times.
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+1. For my birthday, I got the book "With The Old Breed" And I'm currently reading it now.
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parts 5, 6, 7. peleliu.
my storyline favorites of the series.
but i'd call the naval night battle of part 1 as striking to me as the air-drop of BoB (part 2.)
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I just now got to watch part 9. I think i need counciling. :cry
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i don't have HBO :cry
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The biggest problem The Pacific faces is one of scale. Band of Brothers followed its characters over about a year and a half. The battles they were involved in were generally short-term affairs of a couple days to weeks at most (even The Battle of the Bulge only lasted about a month). The Pacific is covering a FAR larger timescale (1942-1945) and land battles in the Pacific were of FAR greater duration, with combat lasting for several MONTHS. Of the five battles covered by the series, the shortest was Iwo Jima at about a month. The rest dragged on for from three to SIX. Peleliu was the obvious "set piece" of the series, and rightfully so, but they could have easily made an entire miniseries about just ONE of these battles. I don't think an extra hour for each episode would have really done the trick. They almost needed another 5 or more episodes to REALLY tell the story they wanted to tell.
Well said. They had to compress so much into so little time it's amazing they covered what they did as well as they did.
When you see Tom Hanks name on a patriotic story, you can be assured it will be quality bar none.
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i don't have HBO :cry
Neither have I.
But I have seen all 9 episodes.....
:noid
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I wish I had HBOShow. I would defintaly watch it. It looks good and sounds great!!!
Guess I got to stick with Band of Brothers. ;)
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Well said. They had to compress so much into so little time it's amazing they covered what they did as well as they did.
When you see Tom Hanks name on a patriotic story, you can be assured it will be quality bar none.
I've read on AV Club that the current series was pared down from the original plan which included episodes dealing with more detail on naval and air operations, and a significant beef up of the Basilone/Iwo Jima storyline where his hard lessons taught at Pendleton saved guys lives from his platoon on Iwo Jima etc.
Tronsky
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Ive been watching all of them. There just.... Moving, almost
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Ya 5,6,and 7 could be a movie all by itself. The first few just didnt grab me.
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I think they are all good in their own respects.
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Neither have I.
But I have seen all 9 episodes.....
:noid
How? :eek:
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This series does only touch on a few things , it could have easily been 40 episodes and still not gotton it all in . They have done a fantastic job though considering the amount of time they had to work with . I really enjoy this series alot and look forward to part 10 tonight .
Nutte :salute
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Let Tom Hanks know on his twitter....twitter@tomhanks
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Loved Part 10. BoB ended without us seeing anything about how the characters handled returning home. How much more powerful would it have been if we had actually SEEN Nixon's personal troubles, rather than Winters's voiceover describing it? Or seen Spiers return to his mistress in England to learn that her husband WASN'T killed as they thought, and that she made off with all his war loot?
I was hoping in their on-screen epilogue they would have mentioned what happened to J.P., as from what I gather he WAS a historical figure (unlike Manny in Parts 1 and 2, who was a combination of several individuals). I tried a Google search and all I could find was a Sgt. J. P. Morgan killed in a plane crash in 1942, which wouldn't work considering "our" J. P. was on the Canal at the time....
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the ending episode was deep & meaningful.
i am still in awe at how much sacrifice the greatest generation made for all of us.
:salute
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I dont think it could end any better.
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That was great. Really emotional stuff.
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Part 10 was very moving. Sometimes it feels like they don't make folks like that anymore.
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Very powerful filmaking. Im still taking it all in. Great series!
Just this evening I ordered the book set "with the old breed/helmet for my pillow" by E. B. Sledge and Robert Leckie respectively from military book club. Looking forward to the reading.
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That is why there are no glorious living, but only glorious dead.
Heroes turn traitor, warriors age and grow soft -
but a victim is changeless, sacrifice is eternal.
(Helmet for My Pillow, pages 303-305)
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Part X, wonder how you can come home and life normal after going through such an
long horror. Everyone is for sure not the same guy again.
A very good series, never seen any movie who describes the horror of war that close,
its horrible what this guys went through. At some parts of the movie i almost git sick :/
The movie is very intense, it starts like an adventure but changes to an uncomfort
feeling to want to leave this place asap but you cant, like an nightmare where u get
stuck.
actually now i think the some longer "love-parts" are important, to let the viewer calm
down, see this young guys in a "different-normal" light before going back to the nightmare.
R
Gh0stFT
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Very good series overall, and a very moving conclusion.
I feel blessed to have lived with and known members of that generation and it is such a shame they are now rapidly passing from us. However, they have earned their place in history whilst I suspect my generation will be remembered for nothing much at all.
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Very powerful filmaking. Im still taking it all in. Great series!
Just this evening I ordered the book set "with the old breed/helmet for my pillow" by E. B. Sledge and Robert Leckie respectively from military book club. Looking forward to the reading.
I ordered the same set back when the series first started. Can't believe that I never read these before. Of the two, I liked Leckie's writing style better. The Military Book Club also offers a companion book to the series called "The Pacific." In this book it tells the stories of the other two men whose stories are not told in the HBO series. One is a soldier who was in the Phillipines when the war started, and ended up fighting with Fertig and the guerillas, and the other is about a naval aviator bomber pilot who starts off flying SBD's, then Helldivers, and finally F6F Hellcats. Also a very good and informative book.
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Part 10 was very moving. Sometimes it feels like they don't make folks like that anymore.
It's very rare now.
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I personally was rather peeved at the fact Iwo Jima was 20 minutes long. I think that the Battles shouldve been given two episodes each.
Guadalcanal, Pelelieu (cbf spelling it properly), Iwo Jima, Okinawa with the first and last episodes introducing and concluding the characters.
That is what I think should have been done. But obviously side stories of mental hospitals and heroes at home looking for love and sex take precedence to maintain interest in the female market.
But the bits that do stay on topic are done absolutely superbly.
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Well, Manila John was killed early on the first day, so if they're only covering him, Iwo was doomed to short coverage in this series.
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Neither have I.
But I have seen all 9 episodes.....
:noid
How? :eek:
Its called illegal downloading.... all 10 are available to download through torrents and are of DVD quality. Dont ask me how but I have seen them. ;)
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Rather disappointed at the series. Can't belive. I kept HBO for five months for it.
Semp
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If you're disappointed in the series I suggest you read the books. It puts a whole new light on what little they were able to portray with the short time they had to work with.
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If you're disappointed in the series I suggest you read the books. It puts a whole new light on what little they were able to portray with the short time they had to work with.
I agree wholeheartedly Golfer. And, for those of you that thought they could have done with more Pelileu/Iwo/Oki, and less of Melbourne and the lovey-dovey stuff, you've got to understand that the experience these guys went through was a comprehensive one. If you've ever been thrust into a situation where you don't know when or if you're coming back, life tends to get very condensed. You play harder, you live quicker, and you love much faster. Those things, whether they quench your desire for more action or not, are just as important for this type of tale as the shooting, in my opinion. Besides, who doesn't like all the boobs? Especially the chick from Law & Order. How many times have you been watching L&O and said to yourself "man, I'd love to see her naked..." Well, now you have. :aok
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I haven't seen any of this series, did Okinawa get snubbed?
My great grandfather was drafted late in the war and fought during that one battle and has always said he has not seen any movies or series about it.
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I cried when Sledge hugged his mom. I know what that's like.
Sledge's and Leckie's books are both excellent, and are two of the best memoirs ever written. Leckie is amazing for his prose and the way his eye interprets the world around him. Sledge is amazing for his raw, yet eloquent descriptions of some of the worst battles humankind has ever seen. The companion book to the series is also quite good, but I'm finding it a little dry for what I expected. It really is a companion book, and doesn't stand as tall on it's own. Still, I highly recommend it. I especially appreciate the inclusion of the pilot and the POWs. It brings a larger dimension to the capturing of the pacific war than the series was able to do with it's necessitated focus on the Marine Infantry.
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Well, Manila John was killed early on the first day, so if they're only covering him, Iwo was doomed to short coverage in this series.
As brutal as Iwo was, the fifteen minutes they spent on it pretty well summed it up. Hell on Earth.
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I cried when Sledge hugged his mom. I know what that's like.
Sledge's and Leckie's books are both excellent, and are two of the best memoirs ever written. Leckie is amazing for his prose and the way his eye interprets the world around him. Sledge is amazing for his raw, yet eloquent descriptions of some of the worst battles humankind has ever seen. The companion book to the series is also quite good, but I'm finding it a little dry for what I expected. It really is a companion book, and doesn't stand as tall on it's own. Still, I highly recommend it. I especially appreciate the inclusion of the pilot and the POWs. It brings a larger dimension to the capturing of the pacific war than the series was able to do with it's necessitated focus on the Marine Infantry.
I was really impressed by the prose and writing exhibited by Leckie, just finished his book a couple weeks ago. I think I posted another passage earlier in this thread but this one was one of my favorites as well.
I got up and made for the airfield. About twenty yards away was a burning tank. Some of the enemy dead were inside. The snipers hung in their nests like dolls stuffed in a Christmas stocking. I turned to go, and as I did, nearly stepped on someone's hand. "Excuse me," I began to say, but then I saw that it was an unattached, hand, or rather a detached one. It there alone - open, palm upwards, clean, capable, solitary. I could not tear my eyes from it. The hand is the artisan of the soul. It is the second member of the human trinity of head and hand and heart. A man has no faculty more human than his hand, none more beautiful nor expressive nor productive. To see this hand lying alone, as though contemptuously cast aside, no longer a part of a man, no longer his help, to see war in all it's wantonness; it was to see the especially brutal savagery of our own technique of rending, and it was to see men at their eternal worst, turning upon one another, tearing on another, clawing at their own innards with the maniacal fury of the pride - possessed.
The hand saddened me and I offered it a respectful inclination of the head while recovering my balance and making a careful circle around it.
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This (http://www.hbo.com/the-pacific/talk/news/2010-05-27-eugene-sledges-widow-sent-joe-mazzello-his-pipe?cmpid=ABC126) really struck me. Wow.
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That's awesome!