‘The Pacific’ Recap: ‘Part Eight’

1/23/2024

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Annie Parisse and Jon Seda as Lena Riggi and Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone in ‘Part Eight’ of ‘The Pacific’. (Photo Courtesy of HBO.)

If there is one particular question that is on all of our minds after watching a quality story about war and its horrors… is whether or not there can be any beauty to be found in times of war. And we ask that question simply because war is pure hell on Earth. Wherein good men and sometimes men that are barely of age, die horribly, see their own internal organs as they suffer badly on the battlefield. And of course, they see brothers in arms die before them, and they are surrounded by death. Making it really seem as though, there is no chance that beauty can be present in times of war. But believe it or not, it can. It might be brief, it might leave in a bittersweet manner, but beauty can be present in war. As evidenced by the next episode of The Pacific.

A truth that ‘Part Eight’ brought to bear, by taking us stateside for the majority of this episode. Wherein we caught up with Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone, to see where his journey had taken him since we last saw him enjoying the high life as an outright celebrity. Where he romanced Hollywood starlets and was everywhere to be found, and well… not much had changed. For John was still in the limelight, his story was everywhere and well, he began to realize… that he was no longer enjoying being the face of the War Bond effort. In fact, something about all of this was no longer sitting right with him. For all he was doing was putting on a smile when he could be doing something for the war effort, and that prompted him… to demand a change, one that he was granted.

Which allowed for him to make way to Camp Pendleton, wherein he would train new recruits on how to handle a machine gun the right way, and well… that did indeed give John some purpose. Because just like that, he was contributing again, helping the war effort and it was wonderful to see the life in his eyes again. But that isn’t the beauty that this story wished to express. Instead, that came about by way of the most unexpected surprise for John… love at first sight. For while he was just going about enjoying a little chow with his trainees, he met Lena Riggi. A woman that he instantly fell for, and of course… struggled to impress despite using his celebrity ties and standing to catch her eye.

Jon Seda as Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone in ‘Part Eight’ of ‘The Pacific’. (Photo Courtesy of HBO.)

Mainly because she wasn’t interested in a celebrity, but a man that cared for her, and could be more than flash and dash and well… once John came to realize that… everything changed. For just like that, they were in the midst of a torrid and passionate love affair for the ages. One that saw them marry, and enjoy the majestic moments that only lovers can, giving rise… to some genuinely beauty in this tale. The kind that reminded us in part, why we fight wars, to preserve those moments and to make sure that future generations can enjoy them. But more so this sequence taught us that beauty can exist during war time, and it likely does. Since these moments are hard to take away from the everyday folks of the world.

But for the soldiers that fight, that put themselves in harm’s way, those moments may not last, and the bittersweet end to them we made mention of can indeed come into play, and that was most certainly the case for John Basilone. Who decided that he wanted to re-enlist, to continue to fight in the war and do his part. Because he didn’t finish what he started on Guadalcanal and so, he made his way to Iwo Jima. Which was another bloody and brutal fight, one immortalized by the visage of American Soldiers raising the flag on that island… and it was a fight… that was bathed in blood. Including the blood of Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone. For despite being able to once again display bravery, and intelligence and leadership in the midst of combat… a stray bullet ended his life and brought sorrow to his now widow.

Because sadly… that is sometimes how war goes, and the good ones, no matter how good they are at their jobs in the midst of combat, don’t make it home. For war is hell, war is brutal, and no one is immune from the risk of death it offers or its hunger for it. It’s just a matter of who is claimed and when. And that sad reality, made this quite the powerhouse and bittersweet, and downright surprising tale. Simply because, no one expected this story to even examine the possibility of something worth fighting for, of the beauty in this world. But it did, and it was wonderful. Since it did add a very unique air of humanity to this story, and some purpose to the carelessness of war, and it will be interesting to see if any more beauty, and humanity will be found in this series as we near its end. Until next time.

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