Questions about the TV Show Over there

[brettdale]

We haven't got this show yet, from what I read on DU its not as bad as it could be.

I have some questions though.

Has any character mentioned that the war was a lie and they want to go home?

Has wmd's been mentioned by any character?

Has anyone mentioned Bin laden's name?

Has Bush's name been mentioned by any character?

Has their been any funeral scenes?

What are the accents of the actors?

Have their been any suicide scenes?

Have they shown any scenes of Iraqi families grieving?

Any scenes of Marines mistreating prisoners?

Any scenes involving Helliburton workers?

Any scenes of Marines losing it mentally?

Have they shown the true horror of what happens when a Marine is shot, and what a bullet actually does to a body, or has it been hollywood special effects?

Have they shown Marine's reaction to when their fellow marines are shot and the grief that they are going through?

Any scenes of family members coping with a loss of a love one back in the states?

Anything political?

[still_one]

1. I refuse to watch it

when a country such as ours, censors news coming out of Iraq on a war based on a lie, I do NOT need to watch a fictional account of what is happening. The horror is the reality of the war itself...

[AtomicKitten]

2. The wingnuts are taking this show as "proof" there was no torture

They apparently missed the memo that this TV series is fiction.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Fx is owned by Fox owned by Murdoch. Damn some people are dumb.

[Strelnikov_]

9. Guess They Didn't See The Preview For Next Week n/t

[noamnety]

3. I had the show on tonight, but was doing other stuff during it

so I can't answer all your questions - and it's quite possible someone will chime in and correct me if I missed a scene.

The producer has said he's not trying to make it political. So no, there is no specific Bush bashing. Neither is there Bush glorification.

They definitely showed the horror of both a soldier getting shot, in a grim way, as well as the reaction of the soldiers when they've had to kill someone - and when they've realized they've killed a child (shown explicitly).

It's not a political show, any more than ER was a political show, so those on the left and the right will be disappointed if they are hoping for any obvious political slant.

I don't want to do spoilers, but last week was mainly intro to the characters, some heavy battle scenes, a soldier getting seriously injured. This week's episode was mainly IEDs and the infamous checkpoints on the highway, when you can't tell who's a civilian, who's an insurgent - there's just no way to know, and if you guess wrong either you kill them or you get killed.

Keep in mind there have only been two episodes. In a typical 60 minute show (again, think ER or NYPD Blue, you couldn't possibly cover everything on your list, unless you glossed over each subject in 3 minutes or less. I don't think that's what they are going for.

[FreedomAngel82]

5. I've heard

that it's not based on anything and it's fictional but the plot does sound like Iraq. :shrug: I haven't seen it yet though.

[KerryOn]

4. I'll give it a try...

After two epesodes..

Has any character mentioned that the war was a lie and they want to go home? NO.

Has wmd's been mentioned by any character? NO.

Has anyone mentioned Bin laden's name? NO.

Has Bush's name been mentioned by any character? NO.

Has their been any funeral scenes? NO.

What are the accents of the actors? None that I can detect, other than an Arab.

Have their been any suicide scenes? Attempted car bombings in tonights show.

Have they shown any scenes of Iraqi families grieving? NO.

Any scenes of Marines mistreating prisoners? NO.

Any scenes involving Helliburton workers? NO.

Any scenes of Marines losing it mentally? Not quiet yet but it may be coming. One Marine having night mares in the VA hospital in tonights show. (He lost his leg by an IED.)

Have they shown the true horror of what happens when a Marine is shot, and what a bullet actually does to a body, or has it been hollywood special effects? No special effects. They are showing a good variety. Battles, VA hospitals, and effects of family.

Have they shown Marines reaction to when their fellow marines are shot and the grief that they are going through? Yes.

Any scenes of family members coping with a loss of a love one back in the states? Not yet but it will come.

Anything political? No.

I would post more but I got to hit the sack.
Good Night All.

[Todd B]

6. It generally stays pretty apolitical..

It generally stays pretty apolitical (as apolitical as can be when dealing with Iraq) by focusing on the fictional combat unit and their families back home.

There has only been two episodes so far, but the action is pretty similar to what you saw in a Band of Brothers type movie. I didn't feel like it was excessively filled with special effects.

I'd recommend at least watching one episode - it's at least something that you can start a discussion on with your friends.

There was a good interview with one of the writers/co-creators of the series on "On Point" a few weeks ago, if you're interested.

http://www.onpointradio.org/shows/2005/07/20050727_b_main.asp

[mcctatas]

7. I am a bleeding heart liberal to be sure...

and both times I have watched this show I have been reduced to tears. This week they are following up on a soldier who lost his leg from an IED explosion...took a week to notify his wife in the states and when she said she needed to get to him and help with child care, she was told the military isn't in the child care business. Perhaps because I am already anti-war, this show inflames my conviction that this war is wrong, points out how many of the "grunts" are poor and had few choices besides the military, and shows the turmoil that they feel about being over there. I see every guy from my classes, my little brother, and kids I tutor in their faces and I think it is a horror what they are going through for a lie. Of course they could touch on more issues, of course you can take it as pro-war rah rah if you support the war to begin with, but maybe by avoiding the politics, you can really focus on how awful it is for individuals.

[noamnety]

8. You didn't ask these questions

Have they addressed gender issues among soldiers? Yes
Have they addressed racial tension among soldiers? Yes