‘Band of Brothers’ Recap – ‘Part One: Currahee’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Damian Lewis as Lieutenant Richard ‘Dick’ Winters in Episode 101 of ‘Band of Brothers’ – ‘Part One: Currahee’. (Photo Courtesy of HBO.)

One particular truth about war that each and every one of us come to understand in adulthood, is that it is hell and often unnecessary. For people die, people suffer, and destruction is everywhere, often in the name of greed or ego or ideology. Which has forced Americans, to spend most of the 20th Century and a fair chunk of the 21st, surrounded by it as American interests brought forth seemingly endless and needless wars in Vietnam, Korea and even the War on Terror went on for far too long, and did not provide the end result we wanted it to. Leaving all of us to wonder why we even bother with war anymore. But there was a brief moment in time, where war was something else, where it was a noble and just cause. 
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For back in the 1930s and 1940s, the world and all of humanity, stood on the brink of real devastation. For Adolf Hitler and his Third Reich Nazi War Machine, had captured a fair chunk of Europe, and plunged it into fascist chaos. The kind that brought about atrocities and genocide in the process, and the unchecked nature of the spread of the Reich, left the world to wonder… if a dark age was upon humanity. Where the Reich would rule all. But the United States, and Europe and the other Allied Forces of the world, opted to stand tall and stop the Nazi regime from spreading its very real evil around the world and that… is quite the noble cause. One that fought for freedom, fought for what was right and fought to shun evil from this world, and since the world once again stands on the brink of concern… now it is more important than ever to reflect on that noble fight, and why we stepped into it, and what better way than through three stories that will showcase and showcased what we are capable of when we unite against the evil of the world. 

After all, we are but twenty days away from the release of Masters of the Air on Apple TV+, and this third entry in a bold trilogy of stories about the brave souls that fought in the Second World War, will undoubtedly inspire us, and remind us of why we fight. But truly, it is best to start at the beginning of this journey and revisit Band of Brothers. A story that was released 24 years ago but still holds up and still features gravitas. For it was a supremely accurate re-telling of the men of Easy Company. The 101st Airborne, who quite literally leapt into the war on D-Day to fight the Nazis and well… their story is important to revisit. For they weren’t Hollywood heroes and fighting machines. They were men, barely men in some cases, that signed up to defend their country after the events of December 7, 1941, and their story started where the story of so many other soldiers began… in boot camp.

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David Schwimmer as Captain Herbert Sobel in Episode 101 of ‘Band of Brothers’ – ‘Part One: Currahee’. (Photo Courtesy of HBO.)

Because training is essential to making a soldier the dynamic warrior they are expected to become. But this story deserves extra scrutiny on that training. For the 101st was in fact, the real paratrooper squad for the United States Armed Services in World War II and underwent unique training for certain. The kind that ‘Part One: Currahee’ explored in fascinating detail. Since we learned a new regiments training, required new thinking for how we train soldiers to fight. Especially ones that would do more than just charge ahead and open fire. For these men would drop from the sky and offer different support for missions in this war and the wars to follow. Which in turn allowed for us to see that perfection was the name of the game for this regiment back in the day. For they had to be perfect and needed their wits about them at every turn. Which is why we both love and hate Captain Sobel in this tale, because while his methods are at times, excessive and pedantic… they did demand perfection, and they did achieve it.
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Since this episode also features the growth of Easy Company. To the point where Sobel has little impact upon them near the end of their training, for they understand his message, THE message that all needed to comprehend for this fight. In that, the Axis war machine was just that. Well-oiled and hungry, and it would take a perfect fighting force to stop them. And this regiment became so good, so flawless, they were forced to dump Sobel, mainly because… he didn’t understand war… just how to prepare men for it. And that was indeed important. Because bloused trousers and fine stitch points for a sergeant mean nothing in the heat of battle. Creativity, and a drive to do what must be done had to come into play and Sobel simply didn’t have that. And while Easy’s methods for changing leaders may not have been ideal, it got the job done and had them ready to truly fight.

All of which brought forth, a fascinating story. One that showcased boot camp in a realistic light for a change, free from the bombast that we tend to usually see in such stories and truly reminded us… that this was a different war. One where people joined up for vastly different reasons than they do now and understood what was at stake and gave even their training their all. Not to impress an individual man, but to really push back against the Nazis and show them, the world would not go quietly into the night and that alone… makes this episode worthwhile, but it has more wonders to offer than that. Since it also helps us to get to know the many men of Easy Company, everyday gents that we can relate to because they were us, ARE us, even a damn near century later, and it is quite powerful to connect with everyday men, that gave up the mundane and put everything on the line… to ensure a better tomorrow for all of us. Until next time.

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