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Hey guys!! Hope you had a great Easter weekend. Here's BoB 5 & 6, enjoy! 

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[Full Reaction] Band of Brothers Parts 5+6 - "Crossroads" & "Bastogne"

Comments

Clay F

Thanks for the reaction. I knew Cajuns growing up in SE Texas near the Louisiana border. I also lived in Louisiana a few years and became friends with several Cajuns, some from the heart of Cajun country whose parents spoke broken English.

Anonymous

During WW2 combat medics were chosen just like riflemen, machine gunners, and mortar men. You did not need to have any medical experience before service, an individual could volunteer for medic duty but it was not guaranteed. Eugene Roe dropped out of elementary school to work because of the Great Depression. He worked hard during his training to become a skilled medic and was cited by many Easy Company members as very brave and going above and beyond.

Jay Kawala

From one of the books: One morning, Shifty Powers told the officers that a tree two miles away on the German side of the lines in Bastogne hadn't been there the day before... Shifty's pointing to a forest of thousands of trees, in foggy weather - everyone's cold, hungry, they're surrounded, and everyone's stress levels are through the roof, and Shifty says one tree in a forest doesn't look right... His officers didn't question Shifty's state of mind, as they knew him to be a dependable soldier - so they called up an artillery team with long range optics, who watched the tree for an hour or so, and discovered it was an 88mm gun that had been well camouflaged. They called in artillery, of which there was precious little to go around, and destroyed the position - all because Shifty reckoned one tree two miles away in a thick forest hadn't been there the day before.

Catherine LW

I read Shifty’s book and he made it a point to always memorize the landscape whenever they dug into a new area. He was a true woodsman who probably saved many lives. It didn’t hurt that he was part Indian!

John Thomas

The reason Eugene wrote the "M" on Lt. Welsh's forhead was to signify that he had been given morphine so those farther down the line would know. Great reactions as always Cassie!

Anonymous

There are some good movies about the Battle of the Bulge. I am fascinated by the number of big battles that took place in that are and from so many wars. It was fun watching the reaction, cant wait for more.

Jimmy Crackcorn

Yes. Ep 5 is a bit slower, but very much needed amidst all of the chaos and bloodshed. I really appreciate that episode as it focuses on Capt. Winters, his mindset and his leadership. Ep. 6 is a heartbreaker ... to be sure. There are a couple of rough references to a couple of movies you've already did reactions to. Did you catch them? A couple of hints: 1) Buck Compton mentions the Goths and Visigoths (ie barbarians) coming through those forests to take on the ROMANS. Hmmm. Sound familiar? 2) Doc (a Cajun Louisianan) talks about his grandmother who was a "traiteurs." She could lay her hands on people on heal them. There was another movie you reacted to that was set in Louisiana. It was also centered around a "healer." Hmmm? Anyway, looking forward to your reactions to the rest of the series. Every episode is so very different from the next, but still all so very good.

Catherine LW

Hi Cassie: Just finished watching your reaction to No. 5, Crossroads, which did focus on Winters’ leadership, as you noted. I agree with your comment about your being totally immersed in each episode- no looking at your phone, etc. I also appreciate how you don’t talk over dialogue, which too many reactors do, and they end up missing a lot. You discerned the hints of PTSD, with Buck’s thousand yard stare, and even Winters replaying images of combat while on the train in Paris. He was haunted the rest of his life by killing that young German soldier, who was probably no more than 16 or 17. By then, Germany was recruiting teens and old men. In the end, where Easy prepares to go in to defend Bastogne, is when Germany made one last ditch effort to push the Allied advance back and they made a furious counterattack, where you see they slaughtered the American Seventh Armored Division. The Germans were very good at counterattacks and they caught the Allied forces unprepared. Additionally, the Allies moved too fast and too far, so logistically they were behind the advance through France and Holland. This lack of supplies and the extreme cold made for a miserable time for Easy. It was the coldest winter in Europe for several decades. On to Bastogne!

Catherine LW

Ok, watched Bastogne. The funny guy who does imitations is George Luz. He’s like the class clown. The prayer Doc Roe prays is called the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi- you can look it up. The nurse who was killed was Renee LeMaire, she was called the Angel of Bastogne. They wrapped her body in a parachute and brought her to her parents. She is buried in Bastogne. If you have a Pinterest account, here’s a link to a chart with the names (and funny fan girl annotations) of all of the main Easy Company men. It might help you recall who’s who as well as have a chuckle at the notes. https://pin.it/3OPIzOR Looking forward to the next one. This was tough, but the next one is probably worse. ☹️

Cassie Tremblay

Really? I didn't realize you didn't have to have prior medical experience. I guess they probably learned as much as they could in training and then figured out just like the soldiers. Eugene seemed very brave and heroic, must have been very very hard to see all the injuries and death he did.

Cassie Tremblay

Wow! Thats incredible. Thanks so much for sharing that. As someone who is not always the best at being aware of their surroundings that really amazes me to notice one tree in a forest!

Cassie Tremblay

Ok I totally thought of John Coffee when he was talking about a healer, but didn't want to say anything in case I was way off haha

Cassie Tremblay

You are so right about every episode being so different! It's amazing they were able to do that when it's all just about the war and these same men but each episode has a different feel and focus and I am loving that about it.

Paul G

Cassie, you should do a YouTube search for "Katherine Jenkins Requiem for a Soldier." Katherine is a British soprano who wrote lyrics for the Band of Brothers theme song. There are a handful of videos online of some of her performances and it's really moving.

Paul G

My grandfather was an intelligence officer in the OSS (Office of Strategic Services) which was a predecessor of the modern CIA. He and two other officers were on a reconnaissance mission in a Jeep on the night of December 15/morning of December 16 when they came across the lead elements of the German 6th Panzer division. My grandfather was shot in the neck and one of the other guys was hit in the arm. They all survived though and were credited with being the first American unit to report on the German attack. My mom told me that when she was growing up he never spoke about the war and would get mad if anyone asked him about it. When I was in elementary school I had to do a report about American heroes so I asked my grandfather if he would help me out. He ended up sitting with my mom and I for several hours and basically told me his entire experience. My mom was floored, she had never heard any of it. She didn't know he was in the OSS or even that he had been wounded. I don't know what convinced him to finally talk about it. I only wish I could have appreciated it more but i was too young at the time to understand the significance of it all. What I would give to be able to go back to that day and bring a tape recorder with me. He's been gone for 24 years now. It's up to us younger generations to keep the memories alive now.

Jimmy Crackcorn

Wow. At least you were able to find out his story. I imagine there are thousands of vets who died not having shared their stories with anyone.

Logan Serfass

Battle of the Bulge in a nutshell was Hitler and Germanys last offensive against the Americans and British forces. Their objective was to break through the line to head toward the port city of Antwerp and loop around and crush the allies. Their were to major cities the Germans had to capture Bastogne and St. Vith. Both cities had roadway networks that would have helped the Germans move forward and supply their invasion force. The 4th Division lost Bastonge and that's when the 101st Airbourne was sent in to protect it. If you remember my comment on your SPR reaction. My grandfather fought in WW2. He was in the 2nd Infantry Division. They were attacked at St. Vith and fell back to the "Twin Villages" my paps division held just north of St. Vith at what is called Elsenborn Ridge. Like Sergeant Toye in BOB which got trench foot and refused to go off the line, my grandfather also contracted trench foot and refused to leave. Which physically bothered him later in life as he couldn't be outside in cold weather for long cause of his foot. Parts 7, 8 are a lot more heavy than part 6. It gets deeper. Love watching these videos

Eddie Collison

Wow dude thanks for sharing, that's an incredible piece of history. Like firing the first shot at Gettysburg or something. (Marcellus Jones did that. No relation lol)

Cassie Tremblay

Sorry this is delayed, I read it when you wrote it but just getting a chance to respond. I am in awe of your knowledge about this and want to say thank you so much for sharing. i love hearing the interesting things you have picked up from others' books and your research like about Renee the nurse and I can't believe that it was the coldest winter in several decades!! Also, that Pinterest poster was the BEST! And then got me down a B of B Pinterest wormhole. I cannot believe the casting. They all looked so similar to the actual soldiers!

Cassie Tremblay

That is amazing, your grandpa was a hero. am so glad he did tell you and his story and that must have been very emotional for your mom to finally hear! You are right, it is up to us to keep the memories alive. Watching this has opened my eyes to that realization, I really feel it should be mandatory watching for everyone

Catherine LW

I have 2 Pinterest boards for Band of Brothers- one for the real men and one for the series. I love the pictures of the actors with the real Easy veteran they played. The actors look so awestruck and proud: they usually have a hand on their shoulder or leaning towards them. Neal McDonough, who played Buck Compton, wrote the introduction to Buck’s combat memoir and started: “I would do anything for Buck Compton.” He then writes that he learned what a true man is like from Buck. He and other cast members flew to Buck’s home in WA state to celebrate his 90th birthday. Peter Youngblood Hill visited Shifty at his home and Shifty and his wife wanted to adopt him! Until they saw how much he eats and they said they wouldn’t be able to afford to feed him. 😂

Jack the Narrator

This is a trivial comment, but I always thought it was funny that the medic's name from "Band of Brothers" was Roe, while the medic's name from "Saving Private Ryan" was Wade. Roe v Wade I know, it's stupid and extremely coincidental, but I thought it was interesting.

Tipper1994

The Doc's accent is a Louisiana accent. He's a Cajun, as am I. I have more of a "South Carolina" or "Georgia" accent, I'm told, but I'm very familiar with the accent you were asking about. :o)