TV Eye

Jon Seda in The Pacific

I have never been a fan of war-themed entertainment. The last ones that captured my attention were M*A*S*H (both the film and the TV series) and, to stretch the boundaries a bit, Dr. Strangelove. More serious films, especially the ones with World War II as the backdrop, always glorify war. They show the bravery of hard-fighting men on the battlefield, and we're supposed to feel proud, I guess, but I'm usually horrified. There's something deeply obscene about men barely past puberty killing and dying, no matter what the cause. With that in mind, I was not particularly looking forward to screening HBO's The Pacific, but after watching four episodes of the 10-part series, I know I must watch the rest.

Fictionalized depictions of World War II are usually set in Europe, as in HBO's previous World War II miniseries, Band of Brothers. But this one is set among the many small islands in the Pacific – the Philippines, the East Indies, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands – collectively known as the Pacific theater of operations. This highly buzzed series, executive produced by Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, and Gary Goetzman (the same team behind Band of Brothers), strikes the right balance by not glossing over the unseen wounds of war. Sure, there is due respect given to the fighting men, but without any hint of glamorizing the violence. In fact, some of the most gruesome scenes are splattered not in blood but with the emotional fallout the men experience post-battle or simply in camp. Who knew, for example, that the relentless downpour of rain, as the men experienced in Peleliu, could drive a person mad? While battle scenes are an unavoidable element of any war drama, they are experienced "under the helmet," to borrow a phrase from The Pacific press materials. You sense the fear, you feel the physical discomfort, you smell the rot of their mud- and blood-caked clothes, and you hear the heart pounding between their ears.

The series, which is set just after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, stars James Badge Dale (24, The Departed) as Robert Leckie, Joe Mazzello (the former little kid from Jurassic Park) as Eugene Sledge, and Jon Seda (Homicide: Life on the Street) as John Basilone. They are members of an infantry division of the Marines called "The Old Breed," named such because it is the oldest and largest active duty division of the U.S. Marine Corps.

Based in part on books by Leckie and Sledge (Helmet for My Pillow and With the Old Breed, respectively) as well as on interviews with veterans, The Pacific is written and directed by a talented stable of writers and directors, including Graham Yost (Band of Brothers), George Pelecanos (The Wire), and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer of The Kentucky Cycle, Robert Schenkkan, among others. Due to the rotating crew, the episodes are not uniformly strong, but the performances are, with Seda and Badge Dale giving particularly nuanced performances.

I am still no fan of war or war stories, but The Pacific is a reminder that all stories, no matter how painful, should still be told.

The Pacific premieres March 14 at 8pm on HBO.

Return to 'Carrascolendas'

A few years ago, for the Chronicle's "Lost Austin" issue, I wrote about a TV series carried by the PBS affiliate formerly known as KLRN (now KLRU-TV) called Carrascolendas. It was a Sesame Street-like show about characters who lived in a mythical land (Carrascolendas) where characters spoke both English and Spanish. The piece hit a chord. I received – and continue to receive – messages from readers reminded of warm memories from their childhood and asking where they could buy the series. Now, thanks to the magic of the Internet, you can view seven episodes of the beloved series on KLRU's newly gussied-up website, www.klru.org. And while you're there, you might consider making a donation to the PBS affiliate – you can do so right on the site. It will be starting its March pledge drive soon and would like to remind viewers that short drives come by meeting fundraising goals early.

As always, stay tuned.