Masters of the Air: Episode Discussion 5

[muccamukk]

In which we (hopefully) welcome directors Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck!

Rules:

1. Don't be a dick. Specifically (but not limited to):


1. Not liking something is fine, and negative comments are fine. Please do not directly tell other participants why the thing they like is bad or that they are bad for liking it.


2. Kink shaming will be deleted.


3. Racism, homophobia, transphobia, antisemitism, misogyny, etc will be deleted.


2. Discussing material from the books is fine, but if you're going to discuss something that happens in future episodes, or the fate of historical characters, please put it under a cut and title the comment Book spoilers! or something similar.


3. Likewise, wanting to treat the show as a self-contained unit and not engage with the books/history is perfectly valid.

How to do an in-comment spoiler cut:
<details><summary>Describe what you're spoiling here</summary>All the spoilers go in this part.</details>

Comments

[muccamukk]

I quite liked that one. We focused on a small enough group, and I can tell Rosie and Egan apart by their eyebrows, so that worked. Plus this mission is pretty famous, so I knew what was happening anyway. Some nice bits of characterisation like Egan trading out the jacket.

The subplot with Bubbles and Croz was appropriately gutting, ditto Rosie's ship being the only survivor.

The music in the key of "well, we're fucked" as they were leaving worked for me.

I was thinking the other day that the only NCOs we're really gotten to know are Lemmons, and the two guys on the run last episode, who I'm not sure we'll see again. HBO War shows tend to be a lot more about EMs and NCOs, at least as much if not more than officers, so this show's a bit of an oddity. I do think all those gunners etc getting shot up would be more meaningful if we had any idea who the fuck they were.

Sad lack of Meatball, but nice bit with Lemmons and the kids. I thought one of the kids was a girl, but I guess he's a boy with longer hair? Or are there different kids sometimes?

They actually talked about maybe bombing civilians is bad, but then the bombs were perfectly on target again. Wonder if they'll ever get around to addressing how often that wasn't the case.

Voice over continues completely pointless.

[sovay]

I do think all those gunners etc getting shot up would be more meaningful if we had any idea who the fuck they were.

I think we were supposed to, but none of them had distinctive enough eyebrows.

I thought one of the kids was a girl, but I guess he's a boy with longer hair? Or are there different kids sometimes?

Genuinely not sure. I thought more kids showed up last time, too, but wouldn't swear to anything without a rewatch.

They actually talked about maybe bombing civilians is bad

I appreciated that the pushback came from Egan in obvious revenge mode, so that the audience would not be tipped to settle down to the idea that actually indiscriminate area bombing is fine. (Wouldn't they know about carpet bombing, even without being involved in Hamburg etc.?)

Voice over continues completely pointless.

This is obnoxiously true.

[muccamukk]

They don't really show the gunners etc on the ground very much though, not like the pilots, anyway. We see a bit more of them with Rosie's crew, but Egan's gunners idk if I've ever seen them before in my life! Lemmons and Quinn are the only two EMs I could so far name.

They're really failing to mention the area bombing, or mentioning it as if it's just the RAF that's doing it. Which, to be honest, is kind of what I was expecting to not like about this show, rather than not liking that the first four episodes were technically Not Very Good.

[sovay]

We see a bit more of them with Rosie's crew, but Egan's gunners idk if I've ever seen them before in my life!

Fair! I assumed I'd just failed to recognize them.

They're really failing to mention the area bombing, or mentioning it as if it's just the RAF that's doing it.

Based on the experience of the Dresden firebombing survivor my mother met in the parking lot before the last ice age, I also was expecting the question to be a factor. I will consider it sub-optimal if they just leave it out completely.

[muccamukk]

I may also have failed to recognise them. I do know we haven't gotten non-airplane scenes with the NCOs much/at all so far. The debate about the cow was probably the longest crew interaction I can remember.

Dresden was in the book, in quite a bit of detail, so there's that at least. The show's up to October 1943, so far, and Dresden was February '45. We saw a brief clip of D-Day in the opening credits, so they're at least getting to summer '44?

[wearing_tearing]

They actually talked about maybe bombing civilians is bad, but then the bombs were perfectly on target again.
I appreciated this little bit they decided to include and the sharp contrast of Egan going: so what this is war.

Wonder if they'll ever get around to addressing how often that wasn't the case.
RIGHT?? I'm waiting for a scene where they mess that up.