Generation Kill

[Saya]

http://i27.tinypic.com/8zg2f6.png

Here's the first trailer of David Simon's (The Wire) newest series:

http://www.hbo.com/events/generationkill/

Definitely looks interesting enough. It's only seven episodes though.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I'm in.

[Saya]

Cool, I just noticed that Ziggy from The Wire is in it. :)

[number8]

I hope there's something more to it than just the usual "idle soldiers" portrayal.

[MadMan]

Hey is this based on the book by the same name? I'm guessing it is. That book was actually really great, and I wonder how the series will capture its essence and expand upon the book's material.

[ledfloyd]

Hey is this based on the book by the same name? I'm guessing it is. That book was actually really great, and I wonder how the series will capture its essence and expand upon the book's material.
yep. based on the book.

[Qrazy]

Random...

[Saya]

The first episode, Get Some, will air this sunday. Can't wait!

[Ezee E]

Anyone watch this?

The first episode practically felt like Jarhead without Deakins. However, I can tell that it's simply the buildup to something great. I can't wait for the rest.

[Saya]

I will probably watch it later today.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Watched the first episode tonight. Pretty good start. I'm a little disappointed in what seem to be typical army character cliches (the asshole superior, the unstable grunt, the grisly leader, etc.), but there's plenty of time for them to surprise me. I loved the feel of the last half of the episode. As they progress through Iraq, I was on edge the entire time, just waiting for something to happen, and it struck me how the soldiers over there must have that feeling all the time, and how exhausting that must be both physically and emotionally.

Overall, a solid setup. I'm eager for next Sunday.

[number8]

It has Beecher!

[number8]

"Man, when our band opened for Limp Bizkit in Kansas City, we sucked. Then again, so did they. But they became famous, and I became a marine."

[Saya]

That was great first episode. Loved it.

[Ezee E]

It has Beecher!
And Ziggy.

I like what K-Fan had to say about the tension building during that last half. It was nearly all dialog, and perhaps it's because we've seen too many war films, but I was gripped the entire time as well. My ma was watching a scene and figured they were going to be blown up any second as it was all just interesting ramble at the time.

I didn't see the preview for next week's episode.

Also, how does that Ziggy guy go from obnoxious in The Wire, to pretty damn cool in this, while basically playing the exact same guy?

[number8]

Really? I thought he was pretty obnoxious still. I think that's the point of the character too, judging from the pussy speech scene. He's less annoying, for sure, but that's because we haven't seen him do anything idiotic yet. Ziggy did a lot of retarded shit.

[Ezee E]

Really? I thought he was pretty obnoxious still. I think that's the point of the character too, judging from the pussy speech scene. He's less annoying, for sure, but that's because we haven't seen him do anything idiotic yet. Ziggy did a lot of retarded shit.
Good point.

His partner was certainly annoyed by him, but Beecher loved him.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Really? I thought he was pretty obnoxious still. I think that's the point of the character too, judging from the pussy speech scene. He's less annoying, for sure, but that's because we haven't seen him do anything idiotic yet. Ziggy did a lot of retarded shit.

My thoughts exactly. Hopefully he's a bit more competent, but as far as irritating goes, he isn't far from Ziggy at all.

[number8]

:) Should we just refer to those two as Ziggy and Beecher for the entire series?

[Kurosawa Fan]

:) Should we just refer to those two as Ziggy and Beecher for the entire series?

The funny thing is, I noticed in this show that aside from The Godfather, names aren't very prominent. They didn't bother with the typical introduction of names, so I still have no clue who half the characters are. Even if they had introduced them properly, he'll always be Ziggy to me. :)

[Ezee E]

The only bad thing is I don't know what to call the other characters.

[Qrazy]

Hmmm I'm somewhat disappointed. Ziggy was the same and still very obnoxious. But Simon just seems to be carrying the exact same Baltimore subtext over to Iraq. Central problems are the lack of funding as per usual, the bosses while not about the stats game yet are all about abusing power by enforcing minor regulations (the moustache thing), there's the typical macho role-playing and it's unclear how to fight the 'enemy' properly. Now all of these themes are interesting and valuable but I just feel like they're being dealt with in the same manner as the previous series. I feel like I'm watching The Wire in Iraq.

[Ezee E]

Hmmm I'm somewhat disappointed. Ziggy was the same and still very obnoxious. But Simon just seems to be carrying the exact same Baltimore subtext over to Iraq. Central problems are the lack of funding as per usual, the bosses while not about the stats game yet are all about abusing power by enforcing minor regulations (the moustache thing), there's the typical macho role-playing and it's unclear how to fight the 'enemy' properly. Now all of these themes are interesting and valuable but I just feel like they're being dealt with in the same manner as the previous series. I feel like I'm watching The Wire in Iraq.
You say that like it's a bad thing. :)

I can see where you're going with this, but it was the first episode. It'll be easier to see where it's going by the next episode.

[number8]

The Wire kind of repeats itself every season anyway. The fascinating bit is seeing how the same problem is continually regurgitated in different institutions (drug trade, police department, school, mayor's office). Just think of this as another season of The Wire, then, focusing on the military.

[Qrazy]

The Wire kind of repeats itself every season anyway. The fascinating bit is seeing how the same problem is continually regurgitated in different institutions (drug trade, police department, school, mayor's office). Just think of this as another season of The Wire, then, focusing on the military.

Yeah it's just I find the mechanics of the dramatic reveals are starting to wear thin.

i.e. First Iraqi civilians and we fuck them comment (all of the innocents that got screwed over in baltimore)... moustache shouting (number game)... lying to higher ups to cover your men's asses (Daniels, Carver, etc)... directly pointing out the absurdity of the unit falling apart as a result of a stove explosion (missing camera and the mass effect of other similar minutiae leading to fuck ups).

I just think there are other dramatic angles they could take but it's starting to feel somewhat formulaic. I minded less in The Wire because that was a formula it had invented, but applied to a new location, new characters, etc.... ehh...

I actually felt The Wire showed the problem in a new light in relation to Drug Trade, Police, School and Politics but it started to wear thin by the time the paper came around.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I was a little put off by the end, with the credits rolling and voices coming in over the radio. That was a little too wink-wink for me. I can totally see where Qrazy is coming from, but like E said, it's only the first episode. I'm hoping he takes it in a different direction, or at the very least, makes it feel new.

[Qrazy]

I was a little put off by the end, with the credits rolling and voices coming in over the radio. That was a little too wink-wink for me. I can totally see where Qrazy is coming from, but like E said, it's only the first episode. I'm hoping he takes it in a different direction, or at the very least, makes it feel new.

For sure, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt. I'm guessing the narrative trajectory and character treatment will be pretty solid given that that was a strong suit of each season of The Wire.

[Ezee E]

They're managing to create great tension out of the cliches we're use to seeing in war films. Meanwhile, when reality sits in, it's neat to see it affecting each soldier different than the others.

However, I am thinking that the war film has shown us everything it possibly could at this point, as it's just a different group of characters going about it this time. Sure, we hear them complain about the lack of funding, or the intelligence of the enemy, but in the end, how much different is this from Jarhead? How much different is this from the war scenes in Saving Private Ryan?

Luckily, it is a good cast of characters. If anything, the LACK of training we're seeing displayed may bring about something new. We shall see. I will be there.

[Qrazy]

I kind of forgot about this, downloading eps 2-5 now.

[number8]

Last ep tonight. This has been a little disappointing, but I still think it's very well done. I love the nice touch of having them sing a popular song from that year at the end of every episode.

[Acapelli]

great finale

[Qrazy]

Last ep tonight. This has been a little disappointing, but I still think it's very well done. I love the nice touch of having them sing a popular song from that year at the end of every episode.

Yeah I felt it hit it's stride around episode 3-5. Although I still haven't watched ep 7 yet. Many of my problems with it have remained and it's stuff we've all seen before (for the most part). But with so many Vietnam, WWII and other war films out there I think it's important this series was made. Even if it is stuff we've mostly seen before, every war does have it's own unique flavor and presents it's own lessons to be learned. I didn't find many of the characters particularly interesting or memorable and all the technical jargon while relevant in a sense often felt fairly extraneous and disposable. That said, when the series does hit it's stride it's because it presents us with detailed world building and engaging narratives for these men. While I suppose it's important to initially set the scene (earlier eps) it's much more interesting to see starving soldiers making mistakes behind enemy lines.

[Saya]

Just watched the last two episodes tonight. I don't think there was a bad episode in the series. Loved the finale and I will check out the book sometime.

Also, I thought it was pretty cool that Rudy "Fuity Rudy" Reyes played himself in the series.

Remember that scene in the first episode where he is cleaning himself?

Apoxyomenos (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoxyomenos)

I got that from another site and it fits in perfectly with David Simon's love for greek tragedies, mythology and symbolism.

[Morris Schæffer]

Generation Kill is a mini-series from creators David Simon and Ed Burns that follows the fortunes of the 1st Recon Marines during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, based on the book by Rolling Stone reporter Evan Wright. It's got the same microscopic attention to detail as The Wire but, y'know, with bigger guns.

http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=24308

There's a clip in that link.

[Kurosawa Fan]

The series finished it's run a long time ago over in the States. In fact, there was a thread dedicated to it. I'll find it and then merge them.

[number8]

Poor Morris.

[Morris Schæffer]

Oooops