Battle 360 - Season One (History Channel) (Steelbook)
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: USS EnterpriseDirector: various
Brand: A and E Home Video
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 470 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-08-26
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: A&E Home Video (New REleaset)
Movie Reviews of Battle 360 - Season One (History Channel) (Steelbook)
Movie Review: Extraordinary Series
Summary: 5 Stars
The Enterprise (CV-6) was one of the three ship Yorktown-class of aircraft carriers which debuted in the late 1930's and were designed from the keel up for this purpose. It is notable that Enterprise was one of only 3 pre-war aircraft carriers that survived WWII (the others being the Saratoga (CV-3) and Ranger (CV-4) while the rest, including Enterprise' two class members (Yorktown (CV-5) and Hornet (CV-8) were sank in various battles throughout the early years of the war. Battle 360 covers the exploits of this remarkable ship, and her even more remarkable crew, and their participation of most of the great moments of the Pacific Theater of WWII.
If you have not experienced this show, then some explanation will definitely be needed. Battle 360 comes in 10 parts, Part 1 beginning with events occurring directly after the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7th, 1941 all the way up to Enterprise's untimely strike by a kamikaze at war's end off of Japan which put her out of the war's waning months. The show relies heavily upon CG animation which recreates the battles Enterprise took part in over her 3 1/2 years in theater. A narrator gives explanations for each sides moves and maneuvers, weapons and aircraft used, and describes life on board the ship. In fact, if you've seen "Dogfights" you'll know what to expect when you view "Battle 360", albeit with a focus on the ship for it's entire career, rather than with a single pilot.
Interspersed throughout the episodes are clips from surviving sailors and marines who served on board the ship, as well as commentary from current fighter pilots and historians. The show is deeply moving and you'll find yourself start crossing your fingers when you start seeing puffy ack exploding around an incoming Japanese attack. The sight of SBD Dauntlesses diving en masse with their dive brakes extended on the Japanese carriers at Midway is an amazing and thrilling sight. And this is one of the very few places you'll get to see the antiquated and doomed TBD Devastator take flight, be it in CG or archival footage, including George Gay's lone assault on the Kaga at Midway.
This is a wonderful series and I hope that they not only have a Season 2 (which would obviously have to be about either another ship or centered on a particular person) but are able to surpass what they have done here. If I have quibbles it has to do with what others have mentioned before me. Many shots used in the series are re-used repeatedly, and some are obviously pulled from "Dogfights" episodes (the Cactus Air Force and F6F Hellcat episodes in particular). I think it's a safe assumption that the folks who made "Dogfights" probably had a hand in this show as well, and this makes me glad since we'll probably not see another season of "Dogfights" on History Channel again anytime soon. Given that so much footage is reused you'll start to notice the same Japanese supply ship getting bombed by the same SBD every other episode, or the Akagi getting hit by another bomb on her bow every third episode. That may wear thin on some folks, and to be honest, I started to get weary of seeing the same clips over and over again. But I think this was originally mitigated by the fact that the show aired one episode a week and the producers must have gambled on viewers not being able to catch issues like this from week to week, whereas with the DVD set the reused footage is pretty blatant.
The set comes in a nicely detailed metal tin which isn't super-huge like "Band of Brothers", or even anywhere near the size of a "Dogfights" season. In fact it is only slightly wider than your average DVD case. In addition to the 10 episodes there is a small featurette highlighting certain aspects of the Enterprise, including the different defensive weapons system used on board the ship to interviews with surviving sailors. This part is more like a highlights reel in that the material contained it is already largely covered by the series itself, but more focused on small particulars. While there are no options to enable closed captioning on the DVD's (that I saw) I found that the CC worked with my TV, so if all else fails one can go that route.
This is a fantastic show and most definitely worth the purchase. If you know of any WWII buffs in your family, or have any friends into the subject, this is definitely a "must" for a gift. They will not be disappointed!
Summary of Battle 360 - Season One (History Channel) (Steelbook)
BATTLE 360:SEASON 1 - DVD MovieIt would be an understatement say that Battle 360: Season 1 has substantial appeal for World War II and naval history "enthusiasts." Considering the depth and thoroughness of the program and the sheer volume of data and information on hand--and with ten episodes, each more than 50 minutes long, there's very little that?s not covered--it?s likely that experts, fanatics, and obsessives will be well satisfied too. Using a combination of extensive computer-generated imagery (CGI), charts, graphics, statistics, file footage, photos, interviews with military men both past and present, and more, the program focuses on the Pacific Theater, where the United States and its allies battled Japan for the three and half years between Pearl Harbor in December 1941 and the end of the war in August 1945. At the center of virtually every battle during that span was the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. Launched in 1936, this Yorktown class vessel, also known as "a fighting city of steel" and "the Lucky E" (for its ability to avoid major catastrophe, at least for the most part), carried 96 planes, a huge amount of weaponry, and a crew whose average was an astonishing 19 years old. Proceeding chronologically, the series details such major conflicts as Midway (when the U.S. disabled no less than four Japanese carriers), Guadalcanal (when the Enterprise suffered serious damage while helping to thwart the enemy?s plans to invade Australia), and Leyte Gulf ("the largest naval battle in the history of mankind"), finishing with the Japanese?s last-gasp use of kamikaze pilots to attack the U.S. fleet. Much of this is genuinely gripping, as the episodes provide literally minute-by-minute accounts of every encounter and the size, speed, function, and firepower of every vessel and aircraft on both sides. But there are notable drawbacks as well, starting with the fact that for all of its detail, we see almost nothing of the Enterprise?s interior or descriptions of daily life on board the enormous vessel. There?s also the issue of how much CGI you can take; although there is some film footage (which may or may not be from the specific skirmish being described), the computer work, while generally pretty convincing, is pervasive and rather like a video game without a controller. What?s more, each episode is kinetic almost to distraction, with a ceaseless flow of pounding music and sound effects, flashing graphics, and macho voice-over detailing the action. On the other hand, the reminiscences of those who were actually there are often very moving, not to mention a welcome surcease from the high-tech assault of the rest of the show. Bonus material is limited--a few additional scenes--but the steel box it all comes in is pretty cool. --Sam Graham
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