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"Masters of the Air" (Band of Brothers/The Pacific Companion) finally gets a Premiere Date and First Look Images

Giallo Corsa

Giallo Corsa

Gold Member
Insane Metal said:
This can't be. I loved The Pacific.
Click to expand...

its not, show's mediocre to say the least.

- Fucking bombastic/heroic music in every G'damn scene that won't shut the fuck up.

- Actors with absolutely z-e-r-o chemistry.

- Mediocre acting , although this is mostly due to the bad directing.

- Terrible CGI, and the worst thing, it's always present (obviously)

- Terrible exposition bits with terrible acting in some scenes (very apparent during the bar intro).

- Everything feels..."fake" for a lack of a better word, it's like a WW2 diorama if that makes any sense, a far, far cry from Band of brothers' and its realism/lived in sets.

This is the typical Apple TV bullshit production where it thinks it's smarter/better than it actually is - this is regarding the 1st episode at least which I found to be incredibly mediocre.

If this shit continues like this...it's gonna be way worse that the Pacific, feels completely soulless.

Catch 22 was very decent, this on the other hand...
Go watch that if you want to see some fly boy stuff.
 
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AJUMP23

AJUMP23

Gold Member
Thaedolus said:
I…I like flyboy stuff…

My grandmother’s first husband was a gunner who was killed before he turned 20 in Europe and they were married less than a year…I’m imagining this could be a hard watch. But I’m gonna give it a shot tonight
Click to expand...
Ya my great uncle was shot down over holland. And was hidden by the Dutch.
 
Men_in_Boxes

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
Giallo Corsa said:
its not, show's mediocre to say the least.

- Fucking bombastic/heroic music in every G'damn scene that won't shut the fuck up.

- Actors with absolutely z-e-r-o chemistry.

- Mediocre acting , although this is mostly due to the bad directing.

- Terrible CGI, and the worst thing, it's always present (obviously)

- Terrible exposition bits with terrible acting in some scenes (very apparent during the bar intro).

- Everything feels..."fake" for a lack of a better word, it's like a WW2 diorama if that makes any sense, a far, far cry from Band of brothers' and its realism/lived in sets.

This is the typical Apple TV bullshit production where it thinks it's smarter/better than it actually is - this is regarding the 1st episode at least which I found to be incredibly mediocre.

If this shit continues like this...it's gonna be way worse that the Pacific, feels completely soulless.

Catch 22 was very decent, this on the other hand...
Go watch that if you want to see some fly boy stuff.
Click to expand...

Did you like Midway?

I feel like a lot of your complaints could be (justly) labeled to that movie...but I loved Midway.
 
Giallo Corsa

Giallo Corsa

Gold Member
Men_in_Boxes said:
Did you like Midway?

I feel like a lot of your complaints could be (justly) labeled to that movie...but I loved Midway.
Click to expand...

Hey Men, i haven't, i'm just comparing it to both Band of brothers (GOAT) and the Pacific.

Maybe this gets better later on but the 1st episode didn't leave me with the best impressions, again, everything feels "fake", overproduced and just plain mediocre.

Cheers
 
AJUMP23

AJUMP23

Gold Member
Show has a very blue filter and I think it mutes the colors.

first 2 episodes are good. I think in the end this series will have the same disconnect as the pacific. BoB gets the real men to talk so you feel a connection to their story. These men are no longer around and their voices are mostly lost.
 
StreetsofBeige

StreetsofBeige

Gold Member
I'll give it a go at some point. Band of Brothers was awesome, Pacfic was meh. I gave up on the Pacific on around the 5th episode as it was boring as hell compared to BoB. The second episode of BoB where all the planes go on the offensive was better than all the Pacific episodes I saw combined.
 
GudOlRub

GudOlRub

Neo Member
I curse anyone who disses The Pacific, it's as good as Bob, it's just different.
This show isn't as good, but it's still pretty fucking good, due to the nature of this type of combat and the casualty rates of the 100th it was obvious it was never going to be another BoB, so I really never expected the cast to stand out much, but man I'm really loving the battle scenes.
And I don't understand what's so bad about the CGI, what were people expecting? For them to shoot up a bunch of real B-17s? The only thing I noticed was how stupidly fast the german fighters were, other than that it looked pretty good. I've seen people comparing the show to Memphis Belle and saying it's shit, I don't think those people have watched Memphis Belle recently...
 
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newtypepilot

newtypepilot

Member
So far this is the weakest of the three series. The main issue is that they are portraying the crew as frat boys. Literally the first scene we see are the main characters in a bar drinking with girls, having a good time. This is a huge contrast to BoB and The Pacific, where 101st and the marines are struggling in the front lines. In this series, the crew is partying, hitting on girls, or having fights with the RAF during their down time between missions. We don't really see them struggle as it doesn't seem like they are fighting in a war. Yes, getting shot by flaks and fighters are a threat but not for the main characters. There are simply zero stakes. I doubt they even made the cast go through boot camp like the BoB and The Pacific cast did.

As for the vfx, it is very good for a tv series. They are not going to shoot aerial footage of actual B-17s since there are currently only 4 remaining that are airworthy. Any real B-17s you see will just be used as static props on the airfield. And people simply underestimate how many vfx shots are in each episode. Besides the aerial combat sequeunces, all of the cockpit and fuselage shots are vfx shots, but I don't think it was green sceen but projections on panoramic LED screens similar to the ones used in The Mandolorian, because keying out green screen when there's something transparent like glass is a huge pain in the ass. The only weak vfx shots I noticed were the ones of the bombers taxiing towards the runway.
 
Gp1

Gp1

Member
newtypepilot said:
So far this is the weakest of the three series. The main issue is that they are portraying the crew as frat boys. Literally the first scene we see are the main characters in a bar drinking with girls, having a good time. This is a huge contrast to BoB and The Pacific, where 101st and the marines are struggling in the front lines. In this series, the crew is partying, hitting on girls, or having fights with the RAF during their down time between missions. We don't really see them struggle as it doesn't seem like they are fighting in a war. Yes, getting shot by flaks and fighters are a threat but not for the main characters. There are simply zero stakes. I doubt they even made the cast go through boot camp like the BoB and The Pacific cast did.
Click to expand...

We are only on the first two episodes. I read my fair share of books about aviation, air combat, fighter pilots history, world war etc. Every single one portraits the aviators partying hard because it can be their last day on earth. It's a different mindset than a series focusing on infantry.
I haven't read Masters of Air yet but I'm pretty sure this will take a toll on their mental health later on the series.
 
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Liljagare

Liljagare

Member
Giallo Corsa said:
its not, show's mediocre to say the least.

- Fucking bombastic/heroic music in every G'damn scene that won't shut the fuck up.

- Actors with absolutely z-e-r-o chemistry.

- Mediocre acting , although this is mostly due to the bad directing.

- Terrible CGI, and the worst thing, it's always present (obviously)

- Terrible exposition bits with terrible acting in some scenes (very apparent during the bar intro).

- Everything feels..."fake" for a lack of a better word, it's like a WW2 diorama if that makes any sense, a far, far cry from Band of brothers' and its realism/lived in sets.

This is the typical Apple TV bullshit production where it thinks it's smarter/better than it actually is - this is regarding the 1st episode at least which I found to be incredibly mediocre.

If this shit continues like this...it's gonna be way worse that the Pacific, feels completely soulless.

Catch 22 was very decent, this on the other hand...
Go watch that if you want to see some fly boy stuff.
Click to expand...

What a utter sheit of a review.
 
Tal Shiar Agent

Tal Shiar Agent

Member
Watched the first two episodes and I've really enjoyed it. Not as good as Band of Brothers (The Pacific wasn't either) but I love WWII aviation so this is a treat for me.
 
newtypepilot

newtypepilot

Member
Gp1 said:
We are only on the first two episodes. I read my fair share of books about aviation, air combat, fighter pilots history, world war etc. Every single one portraits the aviators partying hard because it can be their last day on earth. It's a different mindset than a series focusing on infantry.
I haven't read Masters of Air yet but I'm pretty sure this will take a toll on their mental health later on the series.
Click to expand...
I get the point of them living everyday like it's their last day but the show does a poor job conveying that when it starts with them partying hard even before their first mission.

I will give this series a chance, because I think they get a lot of technical details right. The intro pretty much implies at least one of them will get shot down and end up as POW or on the run. I am hoping we'll see some major aerial battles and the chaos within since normally these bombing missions consist of hundreds of planes.

I was wondering about who the narrator was and apparently it's Crosby. It makes sense since he wrote one of the books that the series is based on, but it's weird he's not exactly the central character in these 2 episodes.
 
Burger

Burger

Member
As others have mentioned, I have a nagging feeling that Catch 22 was significantly more enjoyable than this.

This is a bit too saccharine with the good lookin' heroes - who by episode 5 should look suitably dour and shell shocked.

Also - saying the reason precision bombing in daytime was worth it was down to the Norden bombsight - mmm yeah. That thing barely worked.
 
Tal Shiar Agent

Tal Shiar Agent

Member
Burger said:
That thing barely worked.
Click to expand...
Eh, yes and no. It outright did not work in Japan due to the lack of understanding of the jet stream but it was certainly useful in Europe, after bombardiers got experience with it. Eventually you had the most experienced bombardier in the lead plane, using the Norden to get a fairly accurate targets, initiating the bomb release for the entire group which resulted in far more accurate bombings than earlier in the air campaign when every bombardier was trying to figure out the Norden themselves.
 
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J

jason10mm

Gold Member
I just hope this 100% true and accurate story, backed up by authentic archival video evidence, of a damaged B-17 making it back safely is depicted in the show...

mpK4hUG.jpg
 
Hudo

Hudo

Member
They should make a Top Gun set during WW2. And yes, with Tom Cruise (Maverick). Don't explain it, just have him be the protagonist.
 
Gp1

Gp1

Member
After 3 episodes i like what i see even if the show was somewhat repetitive to this point. But as an aviation enthusiast, it's excellent.

But... I hate to say this a straight man, Austin Butter is almost too beautiful for the role. He stands out from the pack to a point of almost being a miscast.
 
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Liljagare

Liljagare

Member
Awesome 3rd episode, shows a mission that was classified for ages (50% causality rates), air craft wreckage dropping all over, FW-190 with rockets.

Not sure, did the CGI get better? Can't complain about any scene, apart from maybe the poor chap who bounced..

Really starting to show the hell that was the daytime bombings.

Love the cast and acting, been missing some proper Fortress action since, well, "We'll meet again". (https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0083501/).
 
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JohnnyPhats

JohnnyPhats

Member
Giallo Corsa said:
its not, show's mediocre to say the least.

- Fucking bombastic/heroic music in every G'damn scene that won't shut the fuck up.

- Actors with absolutely z-e-r-o chemistry.

- Mediocre acting , although this is mostly due to the bad directing.

- Terrible CGI, and the worst thing, it's always present (obviously)

- Terrible exposition bits with terrible acting in some scenes (very apparent during the bar intro).

- Everything feels..."fake" for a lack of a better word, it's like a WW2 diorama if that makes any sense, a far, far cry from Band of brothers' and its realism/lived in sets.

This is the typical Apple TV bullshit production where it thinks it's smarter/better than it actually is - this is regarding the 1st episode at least which I found to be incredibly mediocre.

If this shit continues like this...it's gonna be way worse that the Pacific, feels completely soulless.

Catch 22 was very decent, this on the other hand...
Go watch that if you want to see some fly boy stuff.
Click to expand...
They say opinions can't be wrong. Yet here we are.
 
Giallo Corsa

Giallo Corsa

Gold Member
JohnnyPhats said:
They say opinions can't be wrong. Yet here we are.
Click to expand...

See, this is what I don't get about internet muppet "tough" guys like you, you have absolutely nothing of value to share, you just like to drive-by shitpost as to feel what exactly? superior ?

English MF, do you speak it ?
Care to share your opinion on the show ? Care to actually post your insight/thoughts or are you just going to drive-by shitpost like the stoner Swedish guy a couple of posts above yours ?

Internet fucking tough guys, gotta love 'em
 
JohnnyPhats

JohnnyPhats

Member
Giallo Corsa said:
See, this is what I don't get about internet muppet "tough" guys like you, you have absolutely nothing of value to share, you just like to drive-by shitpost as to feel what exactly? superior ?

English MF, do you speak it ?
Care to share your opinion on the show ? Care to actually post your insight/thoughts or are you just going to drive-by shitpost like the stoner Swedish guy a couple of posts above yours ?

Internet fucking tough guys, gotta love 'em
Click to expand...
Fuck off man. It’s was a fucking joke. Mr serious ass fuck stick.
 
Burger

Burger

Member
Insane Metal said:
Yeah the dogfights were awesome.

Except some of the CGI looks really bad. Like, cheap TV bad. I don't know how they managed to get that horrible CGI with the budget they had.
Click to expand...
You get stuck with bad CGI because someone bit off more than they can chew, or it was underbid, or under supervised, the plates were bad, etc.. No worries, it will get better. Delivery date is immovable and approaching. More notes. More versions. Lets get the colourist to fix what he can. OK, could be better but we have bigger problems.

That's how.
 
Giallo Corsa

Giallo Corsa

Gold Member
Liljagare said:
Oh, the irony. :D
Click to expand...

I told you to go smoke some weed man 😉

Besides, when you post amazing insights in the vein of "lolol sheittt brah hahaha" what do you expect from the other party ? To reply in kind ?

The lack of self awareness is actually amazing, you start shit up and then start crying in a passive aggressive way when others reply to your drive-by shitposts ? How old are you exactly?
Why do other people's opinions trigger you so much as to reply like a muppet ? Do people have to agree on everything all the time ?

Fucking internet man, it's amazing...😁
 
EverydayBeast

EverydayBeast

thinks Halo Infinite is a new graphical benchmark
Wars are associated with planes there’s a ton of people that go into building those things, to me attacker planes are actually history now today they play with drones and space ships.
 
N

negator2vc

Member
The show is decent but it doesn't make you care about any of the protagonists. The fact that none of the protagonists show any emotion even when they should (for ex. in the 3rd episode) don't help.
As for regarding the resistance subplot I could care less if the pilot survives unlike a similar plot in Band of Brothers with the "Bull" character.
 
xrnzaaas

xrnzaaas

Member
I don't think it's a surprise no one made this show in so many years since BoB & The Pacific. It would always be more expensive to have a show that doesn't stay on the ground and unless you want to throw Rings of Power amount of money at it it's gonna show.

But yeah, other than that, very little chemistry between the actors and very few likeable characters. Pretty much the opposite of what BoB was loved for, even if you consider that WW2 pilots usually didn't survive too many missions and their lives were short.
 
newtypepilot

newtypepilot

Member
Action packed episode. I think they should've shown this battle as a flash forward in the first episode so we can understand their mindset better.

And people shitting on the cgi, do you even know what's bad vfx? The aerial battles are very well done here. The only notable vfx shot that looks off is the one where the bomber crash lands onto the field. That camera pan to the right as plane lands is a weird choice, especially when you start with the camera looking up at the plane to looking down. It makes it look like a toy. Why is the camera at that height?? It makes no sense.

You can see some behind the scenes stuff



Also a good video about what 8th AF went through. Note that it does talk about some battles that will most likely appear in future episodes.
 
kruis

kruis

Exposing the sinister cartel of retailers who allow companies to pay for advertising space.
I watched the 3rd episode yesterday. That was the best episode so far, but only because it was the most action packed. I don't care about any of the protagonists (yet) and personally I hope I'll never ever see a show/movie starring Austin Butler, he's got a pretty face but he can't act to save his life.

I found it funny how the Flemish resistance spoke French amongst each other instead of Dutch/Flemish. That was an pretty dumb mistake.
 
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