‘Masters of the Air’ Recap: ‘Part Six’

2/23/2024

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Nate Mann as Major Robert ‘Rosie’ Rosenthal in ‘Part Six’ of ‘Masters of the Air’. (Photo Courtesy of Apple.)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Six of ‘Masters of the Air’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.

If there is one particularly difficult truth we can glean from the Second World War, it would have to be that grieving for the fallen… was damn near impossible for the men and women that served in the last great, noble war. Simply because… for the men of Easy Company, those losses came so quick and they had such tough tasks ahead, that they had no choice but to push ahead and worry about their emotions at another time, and it was a similar story for the Marines that served in the Pacific Theater. Since they were constantly surrounded by chaos and strife, and missions at hand and it was either fight or let grief consume them at the most inopportune moment. All of which has indeed made it clear that grieving was for the end of the war, when absent friends could properly be toasted to.

But believe it or not, a handful of those in our armed forces actually did manage to find time to grieve, specifically, the men of the 100th. For these brave airmen, were more or less forced to receive breaks, especially after the disaster that was their last mission. For the next episode of Masters of the Air on Apple TV+ informed us that with only one barely functional plane on the airfield, there was little for the men to do, but stand and wait, and reflect. Reflect upon how they’d just seen every bomber go down after that Germany raid and well, that prompted the brass to attempt to do something nice for those left behind by sending Rosie’s unit away for an outright retreat to a lovely little getaway in England. Where they could process their grief and re-center their emotions.

Which went easy for everyone but Rosie. Simply because, he didn’t think he needed time away to reflect. He needed to be in the cockpit, mask on and in the skies, with bombs at his back and his boys at his side, dropping bombs on the enemy and teaching them to not mess with freedom. But the brass disagreed, as did the resident doctor there and that allowed for us to watch Rosie, grieve in his own way. Which for him… involving trying to reconcile his own touch of survivor’s remorse, alongside trying to figure out the nature of the war, and the horrors he had now seen. Because such chaos, and such wanton death impacted him deeply. But grieve and rest he did, and that helped him to find enough inspiration and bravery to get back into the cockpit to fight.

Callum Turner as Major John Egan in ‘Part Six’ of ‘Masters of the Air’. (Photo Courtesy of Apple.)

A story that truly allowed for us to see grief be processed for the first time in this saga really, and that wasn’t the only story that took the time to do so. For Captain Crosby was still reeling over the loss of Bubbles and of the men he fought alongside for ages on end. So, the brass sent the captain out in the world to mingle. To just… get lost amongst the pomp and circumstance so he could gently process the pain in his heart and the confusion in his mind. And seeing how others coped with the losses they ordered men into, along with having a good time with a plucky British Officer who kept her rank and purpose a mystery, helped Crosby lose himself in the moment and be reminded that while not everyone goes forward in war, those that do, still have to live. Still have to fight, and honor the fallen as best they can from their respective role, and that gave Crosby enough fuel to burn out his pain and return to duty.

Yet, while those stories would have been enough to carry this episode from beginning to end, since at last… we were seeing grief in action in a war where it seemed to be an impossibility, this episode had more important moments to offer us. Such as following up on the fate of one Major John Egan. Who found himself in the heart of Germany, deep inside enemy lines and despite his best efforts to stay on the run, he was captured, beaten within an inch of his life and eventually, put before German officials who firmly believed he was a spy. Which eventually brought him to a Luftwaffe Stalag deep in Germany, where he would spend the rest of his life if the Nazis had their way, and oddly enough… this rough and tumble and downright scary route to the Stalag, brought him joy in the end.

For in this place, were other men from the 100th, lost in other raids, including… one Major Gale Cleven. A reality that will make John feel at home and feel safe in a place that he knows nothing of, and well… this was a welcome ending for certain. Since we saw men heal from the darkness and came to learn that not all the planes that went down lost their crews. They just found themselves in a tough place, and that journey can now offer up new explorations for this franchise. Since we’ve never been privy to POW stories in this trilogy, but they await, as do more raids from the 100th. For the war still rages on. But while we wait to experience what lies ahead, we can applaud one powerful episode. One that finally allowed for grieving to take place in the midst of a war where sorrow was consistently the order of the day. Until next time.

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