The better series: Band of Brothers or The Pacific?

[Bri2k]

I was disappointed to hear The Pacific was about the Marines. Not that the USMC doesn’t deserve a lot of credit, but I keep hoping someday someone will do justice to the “forgotten paratroopers” of the 11th Airborne Division which helped liberate the Philippines. My father served in that unit as did Rod Serling. Giving the “Angels” the “Band of Brothers” treatment would certainly be a keeper in my book.

Bri2k

[Malthus]

@Sailboat

I think it’s interesting that so many commenters have noted the greater “distance” from the individual characters in, and the “sterility” of, The Pacific. That difference seems to be reflected in the names of the series – one series is named after the characters (Band of Brothers) and the other after a geographic feature (The Pacific).

The problem lies in attempting to follow three seperate storylines. In the confusion, the individuality necessary to empathize with the characters as characters is somewhat lost - and they can’t name it the “Pacific Band of Brothers” or suchlike because it isn’t one “band”, but potentially three.

[Damfino]

@Siam_Sam

Yes, Thailand was involved but as a country largely sat out the war while under Japanese occupation. The Death Railway and Bridge over the River Kwai (BTW: The movie was laughable; it was finally destroyed toward the end of the war by aerial bombing) were Japanese operations inside Thailand. Have visited them several times. There are a couple of military cemeteries containg the graves of the prisoners who died working on the railroad, and the province is a mecca on Anzac Day. WWII is only barely touched on in high-school history; it’s only in the past couple of decades that high school even became mandatory.

Thanks (belated) for the answer. Three of my friends have been to Kanchanburi. On my list if I ever go to Thailand.

Since seeing the series I’ve read Sledge’s and Leckie’s books, and though I liked them I found BoB far superior as an adaptation. The story could be followed while I found “The Pacific” confusing .

Aren’t the theme tunes similar?

[interface2x]

Somewhat: Band of Brothers vs. The Pacific. I personally prefer the Pacific opening.

[bump]

That’s a hard call.

I enjoyed both quite a bit- BoB just on its own merits, and The Pacific because I’d read “Helmet for my Pillow” and “With the Old Breed” prior to watching The Pacific. (and am about halfway through Sgt. Burgin’s “Islands of the Damned” right now)

If you’ve read the books, The Pacific is pretty great, even when they do take some dramatic license in certain points. They did a great job of fleshing out a lot of stuff that was kind of hard to visualize in certain scenes.

However… it was less compelling overall. The story basically follows the 1st Marine Division, via Leckie, Basilone and Sledge. Problem is, all 3 were in different outfits at different times, so there’s very little continuity, despite their efforts to give it some.

BoB follows the same company from its inception through the end of the war, and you get to know the men over the course of the show.

[wolfman]

For me no contest.

BOB was my favorite dramatic series of all time.
The Pacific I made it through 10 minutes of each of the first 2 episodes before forgetting I was watching it and getting distracted.

[Laggard]

BOB. Not even close.

[Damfino]

@interface2x

Somewhat: Band of Brothers vs. The Pacific. I personally prefer the Pacific opening.

Thanks for the links. I slightly incline towards “The Pacific” but it’s close.

[Siam_Sam]

@paulbunyan

I liked BOB better, but so do most Americans. We prefer to think of the ETO in Ww2 when we talk about war because we showed up after years of pressure from the soviets, and kicked the hell out of stretched thinner troops. Also, it turns out they were committing horrible atrocities against a third party.

Who wouldn’t prefer to remember that war compared to different wars where the enemy isn’t so clear cut evil?
We popularize World War two more than other wars in our culture, and I think we popularize the European theater IMO.

@Malthus

I dunno, the Japanese gov’t and army in WW2 was plenty evil and committed numerous atrocities against third parties, such as the Chinese, POWs and all those unlucky enough to get stuck in the “co-prosperity sphere”.

@Chefguy

Re: “years of pressure from the soviets”. Your history is a little fuzzy here. Germany and the Soviet Union had a pact up until 1941, when Germany invaded. The US became involved in the ETO when it committed troops to the African Campaign in 1942 which eventually brought them to Sicily and into Italy. So it was only one year. The US played an important part in the ETO, but the troops were green and only ‘kicked the hell’ out of the Axis Army because of the joint effort with the British, and to a lesser extent, the French. US troops were seen by both American and allied commanders as having no stomach for war, and it took serious bloodletting before they were truly committed to the effort.

On the Pacific Front, after the initial shock of Pearl Harbor, US forces won most of their engagements against the Japanese, though not without serious losses. The stories of survivors of Japanese prison camps tell about a merciless culture that had no qualms about torture and human degradation, and the Japanese behavior during their occupation of China certainly shows the face of evil.

Indeed. Again, I’m an American and the more I think about it, the more I liked The Pacific, but just a little more. I find it odd that so many people have thought it confusing, but to think that the Pacific Theater involved no clear-cut evil enemy who were not masters at torturing third parties is a tad bizarre. I’ve never thought of just Europe when the topic of WWII has arisen.

[furryman]

I liked Band Of Brothers much better. The characters (or actors) in The Pacific were flat and lifeless. I especially would like to point out two quotes from the character Profiles included in the extras.
About John Basilone:
“He was a fun loving guy.”
“He was always willing to go along with a joke.”
Really? I would have never guessed it from watching this series.

[dropzone]

@Chefguy

The US played an important part in the ETO, but the troops were green and only ‘kicked the hell’ out of the Axis Army because of the joint effort with the British, and to a lesser extent, the French.

And the Poles. We’ve forgotten the role they played in Normandy and at Monte Cassino. And the French Colonial troops, who weren’t–how can I say this delicately?–white.

The Pacific lost me when Basilone burnt his palm on his machine gun barrel and the doc pronounced it a 3rd-degree burn, but he was back in action the next day–without treatment–rather than spending the next six months at Pearl getting skin grafts. It’s hard to imagine how quickly an untreated burn on Guadalcanal could kill you. Steve and Tom, his exploits were amazing. There is no point in gilding the lily.

[Kiwi]

BoB was a real human drama.
TP was a melodrama.
No contest.

I particularly hated the way they “hollywoodized” key events to make them more “dramatic”. Particular the death of John Basilone.

[Chadwick]

I’m in the minority it seems, but I preferred The Pacific. Europe and the Pacific were two very different places. Europe has been done so much already, and it was refreshing to see a different side of WW II. The Japanese were ruthless, and their will to kill their “enemy” did not come in the way of their own lives. I think The Pacific offered a better storyline with the characters, which made for a better connection with the audience. The series also focused on the psychological effects of the war, particularly with Sledge. I’m only on episode four of BoB, and the psychological route that the series took with Blythe seemed a little far-fetched and drawn out. And I could not get pass Schwimmer playing a serious role. AllI saw was his friends role.:smack

[Kushagra]

I would rate The Pacific higher as the over impact is much more lasting. Band of Brother is a great drama, no doubt, but the focus there is more on glorification. Especially when you consider that Americans suffered the least in the ETO. Soviets were the real heroes(watch Stalingrad. Saving Private Ryan, though a great film, just doesn’t bring the horror of war down to the common foot soldier as accurately as Stalingrad) distantly followed by the Brits, French & Americans.
Oddly, a criticism often labeled towards The Pacific is that it’s confusingly plotted and is often lacking in focus or a sense of cohesion. This seems strange to me. While Band Of Brothers dealt with a huge array of characters, and often lost its grip on their individual storylines, The Pacific aims its sights specifically at three characters, whose experiences showcase the war in different ways.
This allows the show to give us three distinctive pictures of warfare – from the surrealistic experiences of the poet Robert Leckie , the patriotic heroism of John Basilone and the loss of innocence for the young Eugene Sledge. The three actors are outstanding in their roles while the narrative which satisfyingly weaves the lives of the three characters through its ten hour span is nothing short than epic.