Generation Kill

Generation Kill comes from the highest pedigree written and produced by David Simon and Ed Burns (The Wire). However I wasn't sure if I'd like a show about the Iraq War. However I've just finished and loved it. This may sound odd but it is one of the most poignant and yet funny dramas I've ever seen.

Its based on Evan Wright's book by the same name; he was the reporter based in the 1st Recon Marine Batallion in the first 40 days of the Iraq war in 2003.
This means that the events are true to life and brutally realistic. Whilst there is a lot of fighting and shooting in show, it isn't the only thing about the show. The heart of the show really lies in the commradarie of the Marines and the banter between the men. It is hugely crude and in any other circumstance it would not be okay but the middle of war, its kinda understandable. As is their attitude to war. The Marines vary between completely believing in what they are doing and between being completely disgusted in it. Both are completely understandable; for them to be able to fight they have to believe in what they are doing but when they are killing innocent women and children, its hard for many of them not be a bit disturbed by it. There are some shocking moments in the show, but in all honestly there's nothing that hasn't already been reported on the news before.

Like The Wire, the story flows from episode to episode and is really compelling. I ended up watching the 7 full hour episodes over just 5 days! It is a little hard to get into at first, there is little to no exposition, the only explanation is provided by the reporter, whose questions get a few answers for the audience. The military language, especially the abbreviations and use of the phonetic alphabet does make it a difficult to understand what is going on and I am definitely going to re-watch this show to get a better understanding of what exactly was going on!! However by the end of the seven episodes I did have a bit of an understanding of what some of the terms mean.

The show boasts a terrific cast including the gorgeous Alexander Skarsgard and James Ransome (Ziggy, The Wire) and includes real Marine Rudy Reyes playing himself which adds an air of authenticity. It is a little weird, and I didn't realise this until after I had finished watching the show even though its quite an obvious thing, that there are no proper female characters. Though there are some Iraqi women with speaking parts, the cast is entirely male, which makes it a unique show in that respect.


The military and war theme may be hard to get around for some, but overall this is well-written and brilliant show and well worth a watch.