Why Band of Brothers is a Timeless Masterpiece - The Stories that Really Matter 

That almost certainly will be my next Band of Brothers video. First I have to actually read Winters' book though.

@@master_samwise It's a fantastic read; you'll enjoy it. Thank you for making this video essay!

@@master_samwise he is very understated regarding his contributions in it, so there’s some reading between the lines to be done for sure with that work.

​@@master_samwiseBeyond Band of brothers and Biggest Brother are great reads to get an idea of who Winters was. My wife happened across a double first of his memoir and it's one of my cherished possessions.

Just as Henry V was Shakespeare's thesis on good leadership ('a little Harry in the night', et.al.) Band Of Brothers is very much a reflection of Winters as a leader.

It's my favorite thing to ever be put on a screen. Just incredible in every aspect.

It's just sliiightly historically inaccurate, but then, it's a drama, not a documentary

Same, my favourites growing up were Saving Private Ryan, The Thin Red Line, Band of Brothers

Used to play GI Joes or legos while watching the show as a kid. Great time.

Winters was just incredible. An unbelievable man and leader.

I watch both annually

That’s true, but he requested trial by court-martial because Sobel was trying to get him in trouble for his own mistakes. Anyone with a spine and sick of taking someone’s shit would do the same.

Also because you almost never heard a good Cajun accent on TV or movies

Sometimes on cold winter days I luke to watch the battle of the buldge episodes makes my situation paradise

Agreed. Curious about how Masters of the Air will be. Very excited for it.

The Pacific is still great but its a different kind of story imo

The Pacific was meant to show the sheer brutality of the Pacific theater which was more in line with combat on the Eastern Front. These were soldiers fighting in brutal conditions for much longer than any of the ones in France. It showcased the mental toll that this specific kind of war took on them not to mention the raw, encompassing hatred that both sides felt for each other. It's a mistake to compare the two. Each showcased a different kind of war.

@@ashman8891I agree. I think they’re both masterpieces in their own right.

In Eugene's book "With the old breed" he puts a lot of emphasis on how crucial the brotherhood between the marines and their espirt de corps was in order to endure all the sheer terror of the pacific campaign, but the show downplays it and focuses on other things for the sake of the narrative they went for

Yeah the show mentions that Easy Company's maneuver used to take the German artillery on D-Day is still (as of 2001) used as an example of how to assault a fixed position.

@@master_samwise That's so cool.

Same.

I just finished it two weeks ago. Phenomenal. There's a reason its considered one of the best memoirs of history.

Somebody just liked this which reminded me about this comment. I loved it, 10/10. I even ended up reading Major Winter's memoir, thank you

The fact that my video caused you to go watch this show brings me so much joy, you have no idea.

@@master_samwise I get it. It's like when one of your friends finally watches a recommendation that you know they'll like after asking them for so long lol. Seriously it was a phenomenal show, I watched 2 episodes a day till I finished and ended up reading and doing a lot of research on everybody. I think an avatar video of yours brought me here, good stuff.

As a musician, the score is what drew me in originally. Just a beautiful soundtrack. I had to purchase the series so I could rewatch as a reminder of those who paid for our freedom.

Agreed 👍

could you tell me whats the name of the book? Im interested in reading it after I watched the series

@@davitavazneli3506 Here you go! Happy reading: www.amazon.com/Band-Brothers-Regiment-Airborne-Normandy/dp/074322454X

@@davitavazneli3506 It’s the same: Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose.

Couldn’t agree more. Greater love hath no man than this, to lay down his life for a friend…

The Pacific and Generation Kill ❤️ BoB is super good too

Hahaha I'm glad you're excited. I hope it didn't disappoint.

Yeah I get that. Obviously there are serious limits of filmmaking that required a smaller cast, but also the sober fact that of those 140 men not very many were still with Easy Company by the end of the war comes into play. Even some who were there from beginning to end (Christensen, for example) are hardly featured at all in the series.

No need to tear down The Sopranos just because Band of Brothers is really good. They're both masterpieces.

@@KyleOfTheNorth The Sopranos is often described as “the best of cable and HBO” while disregarding Band of Brothers.

We'll see with Masters Of The Air if Hanks-Spielberg can pull it off again. The book by Miller gives them plenty of fine source material to work with.

The wire>>

I think you mean Gen Z nd Millennials disinterest in history, not GEN X. GEN X is the last patriotic Americans (as a generation, not individuals).

Is that still happening? I’ve been waiting forever.

It's not. Nothing will touch bob dude. Just gotta appreciate what we have. Writers and creativity have taken a huge fall.

It’s very good, but nowhere close to as good as Band of Brothers. Over 20 years later and Band of Brothers is still in a class of its own

@@Giannis_Antentokounmpo amen.

So many moments in that show are just heartbreaking. And they let you sit with them. They really dwell on the experience of these young men watching their friends die in their arms. As much as the show is about the incredible filial love of Easy Company, it acknowledges the very real pain that accompanies that brotherly bond.

I wouldn't say that's why the Pacific failed, but rather was THE POINT of the Pacific. It showed an entirely different side of war, especially the war in the Pacific vs that in Europe.

My wife and I actually just finished the Pacific last night. Her first time watching it, my second. Really, really incredible show but yeah, in a different way, largely since the fighting was so different on the two fronts. Definitely will be making more BoB and Pacific content in the future. It may not be super popular, but it's important to me.

@@master_samwise it's super important to me to thank you! I want to show my girlfriend but i think it might be a bit much. Can't wait to hear your take looking forward! Also your wife's take as a first time viewer!

Both The Pacific and Band of Brothers are amazing. I love them both. But I personally think they can’t be compared to each other because their both so different from each other. Apples and Oranges

@@wattsnottaken1 I agree different for sure but to me the emotions felt are very similar and that's the comparison I was trying to make. I agree different though completely glad to find some people that watched them both though!

My wife just said to me the other night "Band of Brothers is a show I can watch more than once a week." The Pacific is just so brutal (rightfully so) that we had to take significant breaks between episodes. She definitely liked it and appreciated both its high quality and its mostly unfiltered take on the combat, but yeah, it's a bit much.

I’m really sorry to hear that. Hope you find happiness.

@@Eilonwy95 it's from Office Space. I don't work in a cubicle... Thanks anyway for being so kind though.

@@slicedbread5692 oh that’s right. lol. Quality reference. Sorry I was confused.

Agree on the overuse of sex scenes, disagree on the not enough battles. Combat in the Pacific absolutely SUCKED to a level that I could hardly stomach watching it. I wish they had instead spent more time developing side characters. Yeah when you read the book, Market Garden happens quite differently. In the show you don't really get a sense of what Easy is trying to accomplish other than capture a town for some reason. There's no added context, that that town is an essential link along the highway which is the only line of supply for the whole operation.

@@master_samwise The combat in the Pacific was so brutal, it should have gotten more attention. The famous "thousand yard stare" was the image of a man in the Pacific Theater for a reason, even though the phenomenon was found everywhere.

We already know about battles. Battles weren't the point of BoB either but the men. The Pacific is about the men but in other aspects that are important to understand.

@@kevinzhang6623 The men in BoB were all from the same company going through similar experiences. The Pacific covered men whose paths never crossed, and so the smooth continuity of story wasn't there.

A Bridge Too Far did a better job with the 101st and they had very little screen time in that movie!

No, actually. I've read and watched many war stories and have thought quite a bit about war and violence, but have never actually served.

I thought the same. Band of Brothers is one of my favorites (if not the favorite) series. I've watched several times. But I coudn't get past the second episode of The Pacific. I could not care for any character

Yeah it was pretty weird to put in a love/lust story when you barely have a connection with any of the characters.

The stories are incredibly different. You can't go in to the Pacific expecting it to be Band of Brothers. I love them both, and BoB is the clear winner IMO, but the stories could hardly be more different despite their apparent similarities. The Pacific is far more focused on the horrors of war and the negative effects that enduring those horrors has on the men who fought their way across the Pacific islands than it is in on the brotherhood of the men involved. It's a much less inspiring story and more of a caution or a jolt of reality. Some shows/movies, even Band of Brothers, could possibly cause people to glorify war because they see how it brought these young men together in a beautiful way. Band of Brothers certainly depicts the horrors of war, but not in an overwhelming fashion. The Pacific absolutely inundates you with horror after horror in a way that no one can ignore. And that's not for everyone, and that's okay. You're not going to get as invested in the characters, but rather in the journey as a whole. It's a show to be watched slowly, letting it sink in and letting yourself get over the shock of what you just witnessed before diving back in. My wife and I only watched about 1 episode a week of the Pacific, while I could happily watch most Band of Brothers episodes back-to-back.

@@master_samwise Agree! I think many people went into the Pacific thinking it was going to be the same as BoB but in the Pacific. Both shows have their merits and are good shows but as you put it, in different ways. My only complaint of the Pacific was the episode of Leckie in the mental hospital but I understand why they put it in there. Speaking of that, Episode 10 in the Pacific was powerful as compared to the last episode of BoB to show how difficult it was to adjust to being back home. Thank you for the content!

The pacific was a big pile of shite

That was the mentality at the time, though, some men would outright commit suicide if they were judged unfit to serve. Others were shamed for dodging service. Different times, different circumstances.