‘The Pacific’ Recap: ‘Part Five’

1/21/2024

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Joseph Mazzello as Corporal Eugene Sledge in ‘Part Five’ of ‘The Pacific’. (Photo Courtesy of HBO.)

If there is one old saying that we make use of often that remains as timeless as ever, it would have to be that we need to be very careful of what we wish for. Because time and time again, we’ve either heard stories or been involved in a moment where something we wish for badly, comes true… only for it to outright surprise us with something sour. Wherein we come to learn that said wish wasn’t that great of an idea in the first place and we’ve now bit off more than we can chew, and while one would think that would teach us a valuable lesson… we will do it again and see others do it as well. Because we are beings that hope for the best in everything and pay for that optimism dearly when we don’t look at our wish objectively.

If anything, that particular reality is top of mind today, simply because it was focused upon in the next episode of The Pacific. For ‘Part Five’ of this incredible series, finally brought a plot thread it’s been slowly building to fruition. Specifically, the journey of one Corporal Eugene Sledge. Since he has been quietly training and fighting for a chance to reach the frontlines for some time now. In fact, he has spent all of this series, wishing to get into combat. For he firmly believed that stepping onto the battlefield would do him wonders and help him to feel as though he was genuinely doing something amazing and wondrous for the world. But it didn’t take long for the corporal to learn that lesson the hard way, by way of two key moments.

For his arrival at base, made it clear that war was not something that inspired people through and through. For so many of the soldiers he encountered in this place were salty, mentally off, and truly did not sing the praises of the war effort that Sledge was eager to. Not to mention, even his best friend Phillips was not the same man, he was before he left for the war. He was also a man filled with disdain for it and was eager to get home as soon as possible to no longer deal with its awful nature. All of which confused Sledge to no end and left him wondering why this was what he encountered. But instead of being objective, he still pressed forth on trying to make his wish come to fruition.

The Battle of Peleliu Island Rages on in ‘Part Five’ of ‘The Pacific’. (Photo Courtesy of HBO.)

Which led to an interesting encounter between he and Leckie. Wherein Leckie spoke in a very frank manner to Sledge about how the war had changed him through and through. To the point where he no longer believed in a God. Which was quite the admission to make in 1944, a period in time in America where faith in the Lord and the Church was high and a standard through and through. But this war, and the horrible things Leckie has seen, including what he saw in his hospital stay, was enough to change that. An admission that took Sledge by surprise and left him wondering if by chance, his wish was nothing more than a nightmare and he would come to regret.

But not just because of those moments. It was more so because… of what happened when he was tasked with joining his fellow Marines to invade the island of Peleliu. For this historic moment put Sledge in the thick of the madness. Wherein he was able to see firsthand how war wasn’t glorious or honorable. But nothing more than two sides fighting for land, tearing through one another to get it, and in between all of that would be fear, blood, pain, and terror. But eventually, the first wave of fighting ended, and Sledge came to understand, he should have been careful what he wished for. Because now, this was his life, and his world, and there would be few moments of glory in the thick of it. Just the chaos and suffering that lay before him.

All of which made, for an impactful episode. One that explored the impact of war in a vastly different manner. Simply because we don’t think all that often about the men like Sledge who go off to war and come to learn of its true nature, after taking the time to think that somehow murder begetting murder would be honorable and perhaps beautiful in a way. But thankfully, this show dug into that in great detail and still offered us everything that makes this re-telling of the war so important. For once again, an important moment in history is upon us. And it will be interesting to see how Eugene Sledge handles one of the ugliest conflicts of the Pacific Theater, as the battle for this island continues along. Until next time.

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