I've kinda started getting into US TV shows again and wanted to share this one with you guys. Here's a quick blurb about it:

"A Rolling Stone reporter, embedded with The 1st Recon Marines chronicles his experiences during the first wave of the American-led assault on Baghdad in 2003."


Someone described it as "Sex in the City for men", set in Iraq. Those of you who are easily offended should probably not watch it.

I found the first episode fascinating. Especially the raport the Marines have with each other. A lot of people seem to be horrified by the language they use the references they make, but hey, they're in the middle of the desert.... having been sent to a war they're not sure about with no real Rules of Engagement. They even have one Marine playing himself in the show.

For those of you who like HBO shows, this is made by the same people who made The Wire. It also has our favourite cellmate Beecher (Lee Tergesen) playing the Rolling Stone reporter.

Only one episode is currently available since it's new new new. I think I'll follow this one to the end  

Sounds like something I should take a look at

I would not watch 'Sex and the City' if you paid me but I am watching the first episode of this show.
I watched that series in the 80’s (was it) about the War in Vietnam and the guys. What was the damned name, it had great music in it? Absolutely loved it especially the main guy in it with dark hair. Great action, great jungles. Not sure this will be as good with just sand, sand and more sand in it.

ADENDUM: don't like it. It just didn't grab me and is not really full of action. More like 'Boys Own' club which is great considering they are in the most inhospitable of places. 'Tour of Duty' (the TV show I was trying to remember from the 80's) is by far a superior production IMHO. I was 14 when the war in Vietnam ended so that war impacted more on me than any other.

Well, it essentially is just a bunch of guys sitting in the desert talking trash  
I love the dry humour though. What had me in stitches was the Marine getting yelled at for his moustache - "PO-LICE that MOOOOOOstache!" (and his mate in the background goose-stepping and pointing to his own Hitler-esque moustache)

Could you pick out the real Marine in that first episode?

Yeah the trash guy talk got to me a little although I don’t mind a bit of trash talk it got a little much for me.
The real Marine? I’ll guess the guy who can’t talk loudly, the one who has a husky whispery voice. Am I correct? Nah… just looked it up and I don’t think I am right.
Love the journalist, as an actor and character. What they did to him was funny.
It's a six hour mini series type thing.

Yeah, it's going to be non-stop trash talk. Being in the desert and having nothing else to do and all that.

Actually, the real Marine was "Fruity" Rudy. The metrosexual who wanted to live in San Francisco because he didn't want to live around fat people. Who would have thought! Apparently, when they tried to get an actor to play him, the actor read the lines (what Rudy actually said) and thought it was the biggest load of crap. Then he met the real Rudy and realised that only Rudy could play Rudy. If you didn't know he was a real Marine, you would have thought that character was invented and so NOT Marine material.

And yes, it was nice to see Beecher again. HBO seems to 'recycle' it's actors as a lot of them turn up on other HBO shows.

HBO has cutting edge stuff. Wasn't The Sopranos, Rome and Deadwood all on HBO? Loved them all.

Having watched the fist two episodes to and fro work I think it's great. It puts a human face on the people who have (wrongly) been deemed a bunch of trigger happy assassins, and while they may not be the brightest sparks in the world they're not idiots (apart from Captain America).

And they managed to find a CO who sounds even scarier than Bill Adama  

Quoted from Vecordious

Well, it essentially is just a bunch of guys sitting in the desert talking trash  
I love the dry humour though. What had me in stitches was the Marine getting yelled at for his moustache - "PO-LICE that MOOOOOOstache!" (and his mate in the background goose-stepping and pointing to his own Hitler-esque moustache)

Yeah that was one of the funniest bits, though I thought the sitrep on J-lo's condition was better!

Well, I think Captain America has a new rival for Idiot of the Year - Encino Man.

"The enemy is.... THE ENEMY!"

The pace has picked up a bit more since they're starting to engage in battle. Love the way Americans do things: Marines recon a town and report NO hostiles. Army comes in and blows it to kingdom come anyway.


Only two more episodes to go  

Watched the last episode coming into work today it was truelly an outstanding series. Favourite lines from the closer episodes, apart from just about everything Ray said:

"Ya inappropriating ya chemical filtration device by attempting for-nication wis. Jeezus does I have to tell ya not desecrate ya mask with perversions? WHERE DA F*CK ARE YA HELMETS?"*

"Ya all get some free pa-ce on the hootch tonight, but tomoree ya all tighten up ya aceholes."*

Anyone else notice anytime Godfather speaks Sixta has a big smile on his face like Godfathers his summer love?


* May not be 100% accurate due to being translated from "retardese".

Quoted from MorganPym

You really think this is as good as," over there "?  

I couldn't say, I've never seen Over There.

Quoted Text

Anyone else notice anytime Godfather speaks Sixta has a big smile on his face like Godfathers his summer love?

I thought Sixta was a complete "acehole" until the last episode when we find out that he does that so the Marines are united in who they hate (him) instead of fighting with each other or being upset because their wives filed for divorce while they were deployed.

I think Encino Man was more in love with Godfather. It wasn't until Evan spoke to Godfather at the end that I realised why he did nothing about Captain America. Apparently, he was an intelligent man and no one expected him to go insane when faced with real combat. I read some follow up and Colbert was getting ready to go back for a 3rd tour... poor guy probably doesn't know anything but war. I liked his character, but you could see that this was all he had.

This show does give a more human element to the soldiers, but it also shows you just how messed up some of them are. In some cases you wonder what on earth possesses the government to put a gun in the hands of a psychopath  

It was in one of the early eps he asked how moral was and if it got to bad he'd stir them up over grooming standards