On Vox: tv thoughts: The Pacific - Part 1 (2010)

[orangerful]

The Pacific (HBO Miniseries)

I'm a HUGE fan of the 'Band of Brothers' miniseries.  To me, it is THE best show made about World War II.  I was both excited and skeptical about this new addition to the Spielberg/Hanks WWII epic. 

My knowledge of the Pacific front is minimal, to say the least.  In school, it is mentioned that Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese and then the textbooks tend to just skip over the rest and the next thing you know, the bomb is falling on Hiroshima. 

Clearly, Mr Hanks knew that I was ignorant though, because the first episode of The Pacific (which aired last Sunday on HBO, part II airs tonight) begins with a voice-over, trying to sum up the United States involvement on the Pacific front. 

The writers of this series were very careful to make sure it wasn't just Band of Brothers Remixed - from the start was can see the main story will focus on a select few Marines and the people they left behind. 

As the boats filled with soldiers head towards Guadalcanal, a sense of dread begins to build in the viewer - we've all seen 'Saving Private Ryan' and we know what a death trap those transports turned out to be.  But we quickly learn that the way the war was waged in the Pacific is nothing like the war that Easy company faced in Europe.  It's not fought on open fields, the rules of war are different, and after the first battle sequence, the Marines and the audience realize this will never be easy.

Within the hour, I went from skeptical to impressed to completely sucked in to this program.  The love and care that Spielberg/Hanks & Co. put into this program is obvious.  It's going to be another story that stays with me. 

Originally posted on orangerful.vox.com

Comments

[faeriesfolly.livejournal.com]

I really want to see this, because my Grandpa (the one who passed away in Sept) was among the first wave of Marines on Guadalcanal. I want to watch it when my Dad is around too, so I might have to OnDemand it when I'm back at the house. I've heard a lot of his stories about the Pacific side of WWII, but like you said, most everything focuses on the European front. (I also was a huge fan of Band of Brothers.) :)

[marshmallow.livejournal.com]

I always meant to watch Band of Brothers, but never quite got around to it. I wanted to be sure to catch this, because my grandpa was in the Pacific and I wanted to be able to talk about it with him, but seeing the quality here made Band of Brothers head right up to the top of my to-watch list too. I was just blown away by the first episode last week, and can't wait for the next installment tonight.

[anakinfancheryl.livejournal.com]

I'm REALLY loving this series. I'm such a WWII buff anyhoo, but I digress. If you like it, the History Channel is showing a series called WWII In HD. It has actual, color film footage of the campaigns, including the Pacific Theatre. The dialogue is from the actual veterans and interviews with them. Here's an overview of the narration:
This 10-hour series is narrated by Emmy Award winner Gary Sinise and voiced by some of Hollywood's top talents:

Jack Werner: Justin Bartha
Rockie Blunt: Rob Corddry
Richard Tregaskis: Tim DeKay
Archie Sweeney: Mark Hefti
Jimmie Kanaya: James Kyson Lee
Charles Scheffel: Ron Livingston
Shelby F. Westbrook: LL Cool J
Robert Sherrod: Rob Lowe
Bert Stiles: Josh Lucas
Jack Yusen: Jason Ritter
June Wandrey: Amy Smart
Nolen Marbrey: Steve Zahn

You can watch a previews at:
http://www.history.com/shows/wwii-in-hd/videos/playlists/web-exclusives#battle-okinawa