This may have been the roughest episode yet! too much loss in this one.. Watch up to Episode 10 + We Stand Alone Documentary Reaction EARLY & UNCUT over on Patreon! www.patreon.com/spartanandpudgey
If you haven't already seen it, I atrongly recommend the movie "Hacksaw Ridge", as well as the mini-series "The Pacific". "The Pacific" was created by the same people who created "Band of Brothers'
Then, of course, there's the 2 movies, that'll never leave your souls... "The Deer Hunter" (Vietnam war) Spectacular acting by Robert de Niro, and a very young Christopher Walken, who won the Academy Award for his performance in that movie. The 2nd movie is "Killing Fields" from 1985, and it won 3 Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actor. You'll never forget "Killing Fields"...
See the difference in command style: Dike orders his men to go around the town on their own while he stays behind, while Speirs tells them to "follow me" and runs out first.
Shifty is an awesome backwoods crackshot sniper, my favorite thing I learned about him…”Shifty mentioned to his commanding officer that he noticed a tree in the distant forest that was not there just the day before. The "tree" was ultimately discovered to be a camouflaged German artillery piece”
Interestingly, the two deadliest men in the company, universally acknowledged, were Powers and McClung - both of Native American ancestry (and both....... nah, can't say that....... spoilers).
@@peterireland4344 What made Shifty such a good shot was that his family was poor in the Mountains of West Virgina ( Think ofthe T.V. Series, Beverly Hillbillies)and had to eat what the family shot and killed. If you were a bad shot you starved.
Correction: the tree was a camouflaged nest of an forward observer for the German artillery. Once the Americans took care of the tree, they no longer received anymore artillery fire for the rest of that day
Gallows humor. It's incredibly important. Like how a cop will hold up a severed head at a crime scene and say "Hey Joey...it really does weigh the same as a bowling ball"....it's a pressure relief valve
@@TheRagratus Their children and grandchildren have carried on the reunions since all of the Easy members have passed. Our BoB tour guide,George Luz,Jr,is very involved with reunions.
Fun fact: The actual Easy company foxholes can still be visited today in Bastogne. They still remain in those woods. You can also visit the exact building that Shifty Powers shot the sniper through (and see bullet holes on the building. around the window). I know it is kind of obvious, since these are all true stories, but it's amazing to think you can still visit these exact locations today.
Idk if it's true (never been to Foy), but I've heard Shifty's shot at the German sniper was actually harder than depicted in the show. Something about the building actually being farther away and at a worse angle. Don't know if it's true, but might as well be, considering they toned down Speirs' run because it was "too unrealistic for TV"
@@pabloc8808I heard they toned down Shifty’s shot, Spiers’ run & Compton’s grenade throw at Brécort because they believed the audiences wouldn’t believe what really happened.
@@Manolo0528 Yeah, and same with Winters' run at the Crossroads in episode 5. In reality there was no faulty grenade that delayed the rest of the troops, he just straight up left them in the dust because he was in such good shape. When interviewed about it later, he said (I'm paraphrasing) that he had entered sort of a fugue state where it seemed like he was running normal speed but everyone else was in slow motion.
This is the episode where I realized Neil McDonough is a next level actor. Probably my favorite episode as the pacing is relentless even though the first half is actually fairly light hearted.
I've commented this before, but Speirs did in fact shoot and kill one of his own men, but it was self defense. The story in the show is that the soldier was drunk and refused to go on a patrol, but it was the other way around. He was drunk and because of that he was told (by Speirs) that he couldn't go on a patrol, and the soldier became increasingly belligerent and eventually raised his service weapon at Speirs, but Speirs shot first.
I love how Pudgey's face at the beginning of literally every reaction I've watched looks like she has some very funny secret or a very funny joke that she's dying to tell us, but she never does. 😅 I mean if there's a scale with "resting bitch face" at one end, Pudgey's resting face seems to be at the complete opposite end. She must be protected at all costs! 🥰
The run that Lt Spears made was actually longer as was the shot that shifty powers took to kill the sniper. Shifty powers was such a deadly shot that the joke was, only a fool would shoot at shifty when he had a rifle.
You can see that shot distance if you go to google maps and search the exact phrase Bullet Impacts Sergeant D. "Shifty" Powers. If you use street view to move around the building until you can see a small blue tractor in a weeded over back alley, you can see three small windows one above the other with the top one being brick framed. That's the window the sniper was in and you can still see the side of the house being pockmarked by bullets from other soldiers firing at it. Now use streetview to go up the street away from the church going uphill as you do. You will come across a house with a 3 panel windowed wooden door thats numbered 158. The corner of the house where the deep blue Mercedes GLC with a ribbon tied to its door handle is parked at is where Shifty took the shot from. And he got the sniper in the head. From a distance of almost 215 feet. On Iron sights.
Regarding the ticket home for lt.Peacock, the soldiers weren't exactly happy for him, they were more than happy that he was sent away. In Band of Brothers he's depicted as just fumbling or not up to par as other officers. But when reading the memoir of David Webster (title: Parachute Infantry), who was in Peacock's platoon, he absolutely hated his guts. Due to many instances of dubious tactical decisions or ordering menial tasks, e.g. order Webster to take a broom and sweep the entire house where the officers were staying with nice beds and warm water, while the platoon had to sleep outside in wet and cold fox holes in the rain, in Holland. Love your reactions, you two are great!
"Men's souls will be shaken with the violence of war." - President Franklin D. Roosevelt. My maternal grandfather was a combat infantryman with the 99th Infantry Division at the Battle of the Bulge. His baptism under fire began in Elsenborn, Belgium, approximately 50 miles northeast of Bastogne. He survived roughly 100 days of combat "without a scratch" (in his words). But, like Buck Compton and thousands of combat veterans, the violence of war crushed his soul. His 105th birthday was two days ago, and although he passed away in 1990, not a day goes by when I don't think of him. Thank you for your reactions. They mean a lot.
V Corps performance during the Bulge was absolutely amazing - despite everything the Germans threw at them, and that was a LOT, US Infantry and Artillery stopped them cold.
In real life Dyke was a somewhat heroic figure, he won 2 bronze stars in 1944. He was wounded in the shoulder during the attack on Foy, and it was the wound that caused him to stop. Not saying he didn't disappear or was a good leader. But them showing him being an unbrave mess was undeserved.
Being awarded a bronze star or 2 doesn’t necessarily mean he was heroic. Especially if he was a favorite of some general and given certain unit commands to climb the ladder fast. They’ve already shown one guy mangled from head to toe get one Purple Heart. Meanwhile another guy who is all cheery and talkative got several Purple Hearts for minor wounds.
One of my favorite episodes for these scenes: 32:51 Winters is P*ssed ignores the Colonel and assigns Spears to relieve Dike 34:39 The classic Spears Hero run 38:18 The subtle moment where Lip gets a bit of respect
Ronald Speirs was incredible. And to think the show had to make his run shorter than it actually was because it would've been "unrealistic" for the audience. Reality is unrealistic I guess. Matthew Settle did a great job portraying him.
I remember seeing a Hickok45 video where he's showing a Luger and he accidentally fires a second shot when popping the targets. He jokes about how it just did an "accidental bump fire". That's the only video I can recall where he ever did that.
It’s less the trigger it’s as it has a quite firm trigger pull, the problem is it’s exposed and tensioned trigger bar. When you pull the trigger on a Luger the bar flexes and that drops the firing pin and shoots the gun. Because the metal flexing is how the gun operates the trigger pull is different depending on temperature. Most of the accounts of Lugers going off accidentally are in freezing conditions like this that makes the metal more rigid. This also caused the opposite problem where the metal won’t flex meaning you can’t fire the gun. There is a reason the Luger is the only gun that operates like this
These two episode around the Battle of the Bulge were absolutely incredible and intense.. remember the first time I watched them, over 20 years ago now, my palms were sweating. It’s about this time I accepted this was one of the greatest TV shows I’d ever seen.
The series does an excellent job of letting the viewer get acquainted with the company then dealing with the abrupt loss of the individuals - imagine how the men felt and then had to keep fighting. Makes the short interviews with the veterans at episode beginnings more impactful.
Well, it's not just a clever name. Hoobler should have never found his Luger. When Winters tries to go in against orders is heart wrenching. Then sends Speirs in...One of my favorite moments of the series. Him relieving Dike of command, is stunning every single time, he more than put his money where his mouth is what he said to Blythe. When Buck's helmet hits the ground, it's as Earth shattering as the German artillery...Currahee ♠
its one hell of an episode... Leadership and friendship comes to mind, but there's not much to say, words are hard with this one!... Maybe congratulations for the watch!... Its episodes like this, hell every episode... that make this series endure and be one of the best ever!... No one forgets having seen Band of Brothers and giving it praise!... And now we have 2 more with Pudgey and Spartan! Thank You for the watch giving it exposure to younger audiences about what sacrifice of the body and soul means!... About the yawning of Lieutenant Dyke... The constant yawning is a storytelling device to highlight Lieutenant Dyke's lack of engagement, fatigue, and nervousness, especially in high-stress situations. Yawning can also be a common response to anxiety, as the body attempts to increase oxygen intake under stress. The series uses Dyke’s yawning to emphasize his disconnection from his men and his responsibilities, subtly suggesting he was either indifferent, overwhelmed, or too fatigued to lead effectively.
The fact you two know what leadership means is great, no fubar!!, saves lives, even though the book of war goes out the window after the first shot is fired, you still have to adapt to the situation!! , thanks for sharing with us😊👏👏✌️👍🇺🇸🇮🇱
What an episode...the Veterans getting emotional always gets me, no matter how many times I've seen it. Excellent commentary , really enjoy your breakdown.
During my BoB tour this summer,we were able to see Dike`s foxhole in the woods outside of Foy. It is still there. Of course,it was at the rear of all of the other foxholes. We were also able to see the window where the sniper was located that Shifty Powers shot. George Luz,Jr,who`s dad was featured several times in this episode,was our tour guide for the 2 week trip.
We never actually see Spiers shooting the prisoners. In the original scene from the second episode, we only see him crossing path with Malarkey and hear a shooting, so we assume it must be him, but no confirmation. The scene where we see him shooting the prisoners in the 3rd episode is from the rumors of the men, we even see another guy doing it when they talk about alternative stories. Speirs character arc in this series is just a masterpiece in my opinion ; for most of the series, he is this eerie fanatical soldier, but as soon as we see him more on the camera in this episode, we realize how great and genuine this guy actually is. The conversation with Lipton about Tercius and the Roman legion is incredible as well and explains a lot why he chose to let the men speculate about him.
@@blackbenetavo7715 Same. However it was also said that this happening wasn't unique or some act of inhumanity specifically about Speirs. At the point of the invasion when they captured these Germans their positions were far from safe and the success of the invasion still uncertain. They simply couldn't start diverting large amounts of manpower towards guarding and securing prisoners of war. I believe there were even standing orders about not taking captives as well. It's unfortunate, but surrendering soldiers were killed at that stage of the invasion simply because they couldn't take prisoners and keep pushing to secure and capture their objectives successfully.
Winters confirmed everything in an interview at old age. He explaind it wasn't for cruelty, they were on D Day, behind enemy lines, outnumbered, being attacked all the time, they couldn't make prisoners and some officers had specifc orders to not take prisoners. The canadians took it very seriously and killed every single german they saw lol
Speirs did admit two things: one, was that he did shoot unarmed men in two separate occasions: first a group of Germans trying to surrender, and second a group of Germans who had already formally surrendered. However, the Paratroopers had orders from Gen. Taylor (I don't know if that applied to all US combatants in Normandy or only for the Paratroopers) not to take prisoners during the invasion of Europe, as it would slow them down (which is true, taking POWs would've been a logistical nightmare). The second thing Speirs admitted was that he did shoot one of his own men, a Sergeant who was drunk and refused to follow direct orders twice. Speirs said the man became increasingly aggressive, and leveled his rifle as if he intended to shoot him, at which point Speirs shot the man in self-defense and notified his superior immediately, who examined the scene, heard his account and decided that Speirs was right. EDIT to clarify something and not drag Speirs name through the mud: he did not, in fact, shoot 20 German POWs, which is what the story passed around the foxholes in the show says, nor did he do it all by himself. The first group was 3 Germans, he shot one and his men shot the other two. The second group was 4 Germans, so Speirs shot a total of 5.
@@blackbenetavo7715 To be clear, I am not talking about what he did in real life, but what's shown and confirmed in this series. From a cinematography point of view, this series never show or confirm anything about it, so Spartan's claim to have seen it with his own eyes is false.
My favorite episode by far, but I love them all. *edited:* 2 more things to mention; Sgt. Lipton is the name of the one who got promoted, and yawning is often a body's reaction to nervousness - it relaxes your body in times of stress. Add that to being actually tired.
36:16 Not sure if yall noticed but that was Ken Webb who was killed by a sniper.He was the one 14:30 who was the replacement that Luz was introducing to the team when saying that pretty much all of them had got shot in the ass.Oddly enough Webb died trying to save Perconte who got shot in his ass but Webb was not so fortunate as a sniper got him.And the person who took out the sniper is Shifty Powers, he is their sniper and was a damn good one at that.
The guy in the foxhole talking about Spears giving cigarettes to 20 POW's, is Michael Fassbender. He was the one who was caught with an empty canteen in Ep1. You also know him from The 300 movie (fight in the shade joke). In X-Men First Class, he was young Magneto.
48:56 The Sergeant who was promoted, the character who narrated this episode, was Carwood Lipton. They often called him Lip for short. EDIT: I just saw your drop announcement which includes this. Please be sure to watch the unofficial 11th episode, the companion documentary, "We Stand Alone Together". It has more mini interview segments, showing some of the men post-war.
I served in active duty till 2013. Seeing what happened to Buck, I think I understand the main reason why the Army to this day enforces a "no fraternization" rule between officers and enlisted (ironically, in the very first episode, we see Winters scold Buck for this for a different reason). When I was in, this rule frustrated me and came off as elitist, but when you are in command, seeing your people get wounded or killed will hurt you, naturally. But it should not break you, because you still need to be able to command. So you can't get TOO close to them. I don't think any less of Buck as they said; he's still a tremendous hero who also lived an exemplary life after his service, just saying I understand now.
There's also the Hollywood effect. In his memoirs, he said he didn't actually have a breakdown as depicted in the show, he was however incredibly mad that Dyke had walked off and was looking for him. He thinks people mistook that for him having an emotional issue. He also said he didn't make a big deal about it when he saw the show, as he felt it was a situation that did happen with men, and it needed to be shown somehow. What isn't clear to me is, did he actually get removed from the unit? And if he did, then why.
@39:49 OMG MIND BLOWN !! I was obsessed with gossip girl when I was in high school and I had no idea spiers was mr. humphrey! thank you for making that connection, pudgey 🤣 i love this show and everything about world war 2 is so fascinating because it literally shaped the world we live in. excited to watch the pacific with you guys.
34:43 It's so wild to think that Spiers' run would have an audience being like _"Okay, what? Come on. Yeah right..."_ at a scene like that, but... It's history! Men like this *really did* these unbelievable things, throughout that war. It's so remarkable and so humbling when that moment of realization hits you when you're watching or reading about incidents like that. That _Oh yeah, this is... a real guy, on a real day that happened._ My word.
My Boy Scout Scoutmaster had been in a Sherman tank just outside of Foy when they were taken out. He and his teammates were captured and put into a POW camp in eastern Germany. He was the only one who survived. He was 150 pounds when he was captured and 72 pounds when liberated. He stressed cold weather survival and living off the land. He never talked about it but his son did. Good reactions for a non-military couple.
On the truth of Speirs shooting the prisoners; Winters tells a story about getting a call from Stephen Ambrose, the writer of the book Band of Brothers, to tell him the publishers legal department had an issue with that story being in the book, because if it wasn’t true, Speirs could sue them. So, Winters called Speirs and asked him if it was true and if he’d have a problem with it being in the book. Speirs said it’s true and print it.
Hitler had also previously issued the 'Commando Order", that all enemy soldiers captured behind German lines were not to be treated as POWs but shot on the spot, regardless of uniforms, units, etc. This apparently included basically all paratroopers (as these guys were usually fighting behind the front lines.). Patton was formally reprimanded for telling his troops not to take prisoners. And General Taylor gave similar instructions before D-Day.
My great grandfather fought in the battle of the bulge, he said the scariest part was hearing boots crunching in the snow as the germans approached the line.
You keep asking "Why is Dike always yawning" the fact is he is scared. In my day it was called the “Combat Yawn”. Yawning can be a response to high levels of both anxiety and stress. When we are in a heightened state of tension, our body's natural response is to take deep breaths and increase oxygen intake. Yawning helps regulate breathing patterns and can serve as a subconscious mechanism to alleviate stress. This was what the program captured here, yet another attention to detail point among so many.
There was a comparatively high rate of dud artillery rounds in the German arsenal, this was for a couple of reasons. First of all at this stage most of the munitions manufacturing was done by slave labour at concentration camps. Being weak and malnourished the workers could not be as precise as needed and produced more duds. On top of this, some brave prisoners intentionally sabotaged as many rounds as possible as their way of fighting back, which was still incredibly brave because they would be executed if discovered. Finally, the kommandants and overseers in these camps were responsible for quality control, but due to manpower shortages (almost every able-bodied soldier was being deployed to the front) and the fact that their position and life was in danger if they didn't produce the expected quota, they didn't check so many and allowed the duds through as a result. Those prisoners were even braver than the soldiers fighting on the front like Easy company because they were at the mercy of the Nazis and firsthand witnesses to many acts of cruelty. To face that and defy it takes incredible bravery and resolve.
They mention this in “Schindler’s list” when his factory towards the end is suffering from “quality control” and he says something like if any functioning munitions leave his factory he’d be very upset.
33:30 I love this part, shows a lieutenant compared to a leader. Dyke spread them out, disorganized and confused. And with less than 15 seconds, spears would have the assault restarted with vengeance. No bs, here what we do, go.
"We’re all scared. You hid in that ditch because you think there’s still hope. But, Blythe, the only hope you have is to accept the fact that you’re already dead. And the sooner you accept that, the sooner you’ll be able to function as a soldier is supposed to function. Without mercy, without compassion, without remorse. All war depends upon it." Lt. Spiers
What I love about Lipton and Winters is that Lipton knew Dyke would get a lot of men killed in action and he done the one thing he's not meant to do and go over his officers head to the commanding office in Winters and instead of chewing him out and blasting him Winters knew if a man like Lipton is coming to him to do that then he knows he's right and something bad is going to happen
Just for you knowledge of how Battle Field Commissions work, in the Military (I am active) you are separated by rank in three categories. 1- Lower Enlisted: this comprises your Private ranks which fill the bulk of a Battalion Element. 2- Senior Enlisted (NCO's)- these members are the Sergeant ranks that have either served long enough to gain proficiency in there field or several, and are then given the rank Sergeant to Train, Lead, and Develop the lower enlisted for the tasks required to fulfill the current mission. NCO's also could get this rank for having education, but not a 4 year degree. 3- Commissioned Officers (CO's): These were people with formal degrees in study and were trained longer and more broadly in the Field of Leadership and Development. These men (Like CPT Winters and LT Spears) lead the Platoon, Companies, and larger Organizations to direct, brief, and maintain there respected elements. Here is the tricky part; the Lower Enlisted and NCO's cannot become a CO without any formal degree locking them in there selected bracket. Today you can become a CO by forming your education while in the service to achieve a master degree and then through proof and trial of your education can get a promotion to CO whilst formally being Lower Enlisted or a NCO. This process is referred to as "Green to Gold". What makes 1SG Lipton's case very unique is that every now and again (VERY RARELY) an individual will show exceptional Leadership skills in the Combat Environment, beyond that which is recognized as "The Standard" for Lower Enlistment, and NCO ranks. This Is called a Battlefield Commission which is EXTREMELY difficult to get. Some Veterans rumor that a Battlefield Commission is harder to Obtain than some of the most decorated medals that the United States can award (with exception to the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, and Soldiers Medal). I hope this helps you two out with knowing the importance of the event of Battlefield Commissions, and how it separates 1SG Lipton apart as a dedicated, formidable Leader.
Spears was also the officer who spoke with Blith in that foxhole, with the "you need to understand that we're already dead". He also participated in the guns battle in ep.2, he joined with D company in the end and asked Winters (who was commanding Easy) to take the last gun. He agreed and Spears simply attacked that gun directly, with him specifically getting out of the foxhole shooting the german soldiers there from behind (I recommend watching it again).
Artillery is a different beast in combat, typically much more lethal than small arms fire. When the shells detonate they have an instantaneous expansion rate of around 5 miles per second (mind numbingly violent). For comparison the typical rifle round's muzzle velocity is a little over 1/2 mile per second, and they slow quickly from there. Furthermore when engaging troops artillery shell fuzes are often set to detonate just over the heads of the troops so fragments, concussion and heat strike them from above making cover provided by uncovered holes and trenches much less effective, which is why Speers advised those soldiers to improve their position with overhead cover.
My father was fighting with the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment of the 17th Airborne (my avatar is their shoulder patch) in a town called Flamierge about 10 km's from Foy at the exact same time Easy was in Foy. His unit took 30% casualties in 3 days. He only said one thing about that experience: He was lucky to be alive.
I’m from south Philly and met the real Bill Gurnere he used to get his hair cut from my ex girlfriend. He gave me a few medals from easy company. Talked to him many times before he passed away.
Winters was 26 when he jumped into Normandy. Buck Compton was 23 during the advance post Bastogne. I can't even begin to imagine how those experiences affect a person at such an age.
It's important to remember that this series is based on a book, where a lot of it was colored by the particular survivors interviewed 45+ years later. Not every individual soldier is necessarily depicted fairly. In the case of Lieutenant Dike, he earned two different Bronze Stars with the 101st Airborne, including once during Bastogne where he saved three wounded members of his company by dragging them to safety while in full view of the enemy and under small arms fire. He ultimately reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before he retired from the Army.
16:58 Random artillery fire into entrenched positions is to "soften up" targets; cause fear, lower morale, casualties and disrupt operations. Here you see the training and will that differentiate paratroopers from average soldiers. To keep yourself and eachother as a fighting unit longer than the enemy
As you pointed out in the discussion-section, the bond between men at war is something special. Arguably I'd think the bond between warriors is probably among the strongest that exist. Stronger than your average married couple for instance.
Buck Compton played baseball at UCLA, where he was a Law student, before the war. After the War he became a prosecuter in the LA District Attorney's office and prosecuted Sirhan Sirhan, the assassin of Robert Kennedy.
Hoobler joined up with 2 of his buddies from back home, William Hovell and Robert Rader. All 3 of them were in Easy Company together. I believe it was Rader that yelled out when Hoobler shot himself.
Spiers did kill one of his own men. It was self defense and Spiers was cleared based on testimony by his own men. It occurred while they were on a mission behind enemy lines and the guy wouldn't shut up. Spiers ordered him to return to the aid station but the guy rolled around with his pistol out threatening Spiers. He did shoot the prisoners. About 6 not 20. You can't take prisoners when you are behind enemy lines right in the middle of all of them. They'll give away you position first chance they get. There is a great biography about the man. He was a great soldier. He died in 2007 I believe. You guys are great with your reactions. As we say in Texas; y'all be safe. -- Oh yeah, Spiers actually did run the German lines like you saw in the episode.
In defense of Lt. Dyke's yawning, as someone who has done military service, although not in wartime conditions, I can tell you that sleep is something you don't get much of even under peaceful circumstances.
Yes, they were probably all yawning, all the time, but it will be used by the filmmakers to dramatize the characters to fit a 'type'. Dike was actually decorated more than once for bravery in combat, running into fire to drag out wounded soldiers, and according to some Easy company veterans, he was actually shot in the shoulder and losing a lot of blood in his 'breakdown' scene.
It's interesting to me that in most cases, the more well known actors today mostly played smaller roles in this and in most of the more prominent roles the actors didn't become all that big. I think Damien Lewis (Winters) has done well enough. Neal McDonough (Buck) has stayed about level. Maybe Ron Livingston (Nixon) as well.
I love how, like I did in my first watching of the series, you both have become invested in the lives of the men in Easy Company. Lt. Dike was "promoted" to the battalion HQ. And remember, it was Speirs who told Blythe as he cowered in his foxhole that he was scared because he hope. He told him, just accept that you already dead and then you can function as a soldier. And that shows he believes as he runs right through the Germans in the episode to hook-up with "I" company and then back again.
37:50 Fun fact, in an interview Winters gave at one point, he talks about this story about Speirs, and reveals that the story was actually true. Speirs eventually admitted to it. He did in fact kill those 20 Germans that day.
When your attack is being anticipated, as was the case with Easy at Foy, enemy artillery will preplan targets meaning they calculate firing data with predetermined corrections for position errors, etc., (a time consuming manual process back then) ahead of time. Then those targets can be engaged quickly when the attack starts, which is one reason Easy needed to keep moving forward. Any competent company commander or platoon leader would be well aware of the danger, not that the alternative of running full bore into small arms fire is a pleasant way to spend your day (they'd have an overwatch element engaging the enemy at least). BTW, although this is an excellent production heavy guns are shown right up on the line of contact which, while not impossible, is unlikely. Fire support from field artillery is usually delivered from miles away. Observers at the line of contact direct the artillery fire via radio comms.
16:23 they don't got a choice: the ground is frozen harder than concrete. The only way to 'dig' new foxholes is to blast them out--and the Germans can hear that. They can probably drop a bombardment on the soldiers trying to dig new foxholes and catch the whole company in the open.
Like the series and love your reactions. you asked, "Why do they (Germans) shoot now?" . Several ideas. 1. Distract you from seeing what we are doing. 2. Keep you in your hole hiding. 3. Maybe scare you off the line eventually or eliminate you as an enemy. 4. Keep you tired and nervous. 5. Start an offensive and move your way. 6. Make your leaders send more troops here so we can start a movement elsewhere. And many other military or non-military reasons. How does your enemy prepare and hurt you if they are always worried about your bombs and shells falling?
😂😂😂😂 Good advice. Those hundred prisoners probably shouldn't have taken a cigarette from the guy who just ran through their battlefield. Spears is a legend if you go to fort Benning or former fort Benning. Him and several other people are in like kind of a shrine. When you go there you learn all about them. Spears was literally a God among men
43:30 wait, you didn't See spears kill hostages, neither did Malarkey, the only evidence was the sound of a machine gun firing. To me that is not conclusive. Well, I guess he technically did "Yes, he did. Winters confirmed it in an interview, and said that Speirs wrote a letter acknowledging he did it" but still, we didn't see it :D
Was confirmed after the war that Speirs did in fact execute prisoners, and his own man on D-Day. The Sergeant was drunk, giving off their position by being loud, and eventually tried to pull a pistol on Speirs. Man was a fucking legend.
The 101st was surrounded in Bastogne for 6 days. From December 20th to 26th 1944. The Battle of the Bulge was the last hurrah for Hitler's offensive capability
This episode did Dyke dirty: he actually was a pretty fair commander, though not on the same level as Speirs and Winters. He actually was conducting the attack on Foy exactly the way Speirs would wind up doing, but he was shot several times, and his 'freezing up' that you see was him actually going into shock due to blood loss. He was removed from the line and wound up working a desk job after Foy.
I listened to an interview earlier today by Stephen Ambrose for the BoB book. He was talking to Lipton and Guarnere, and they told Ambrose that they didn't rate Dike as a combat leader.
Just wait until the episode “Why We Fight” coming up. Likely one of the best episodes of a show in television history. If you don’t cry, you’re not human!
So the Siege of Bastogne lasted from Dec 20 to Dec 27, 1944. The 101st Airborne and elements of the 10th Armored Division were surrounded by the Germans for a week. The thing about warfare that movies and TV shows don’t really portray very well is just how exhausting it actually is. This is where the “thousand yard stare” comes from. People often assume that that look comes from seeing too much traumatic stuff but it mostly comes from just being absolutely exhausted. Not just exhaustion from physical activities and being under a lot of stress but also from not being allowed to sleep. Even when you and your unit does have an opportunity for sleep, you have to sleep in shifts because you need people to stay awake to pull security while the other guy in your foxhole gets some sleep. Each of These guys would probably get 3-4 hours of sleep a night and that wouldn’t be a consecutive 4 hours but rather , it was more like multiple power naps that, over multiple shifts, would equal 4 hours of sleep.
About Captain Dike. He was a decorated officer. I think there was a little issue of his being an outside officer. I think he was suffering from PTS and his time with Easy was probably his low point.
The 101st was encircled at Bastonge for 6 days until the 3rd Army broke through to help them. Another movie I recommend is Patton. The story of General George Patton commander of the 3rd Army.
Not only were the airborne troops surrounded at Bastogne but the Germans threw the best of what they had left of their military forces at them. US ground troops also got unlucky in that the weather prevented effective air support for some time.
There's a re-write re Hoobler's death. The accidental discharge happened while he was out on patrol, there are also disputes over what weapon he shot himself with. Some veterans remember a Colt .45. Others a Browning pistol and others the Luger. Browning pistol? When John Moses Browning left the USA he moved to Liege in Belgium and set up a factory which was captured by the Germans in both World Wars. The SS cornered the supply of Browning pistols.
Speirs run was much farther IRL. Genuine badass. Lipton was given a battlefield commission to second lieutenant, making him an officer. Shifty shot the sniper between the eyes.
10:15 No, Pudgey, Nixon wouldn't be a good replacement for Dike here for several big reasons. First, he's got a pretty big drinking problem. That's maybe tolerable for a staff officer, but not a combat leader. Second, speaking of staff, Nixon is quite effective in his role as Intelligence Officer for the whole of 2nd Battalion at this point, and as such (third), doesn't have much in the way of direct combat experience.
His friends actually got hit,they didn't realize afterwards, there wasn't anything there,2 humans disintegrated into thin air by artillery. Still hits me hard
See the difference in command style: Dike orders his men to go around the town on their own while he stays behind, while Speirs tells them to "follow me" and runs out first.
A thing to respect about Spiers and you see it in the second episode, he is not willing to give men an order he would not do himself. During the assault at Brecourt Manor he lead the charge on the last gun braving enemy fire himself, here he charges through the German lines no hesitation to lead his men. In my opinion one of the best soldiers in US Army history.
See the difference in command style: Dike orders his men to go around the town on their own while he stays behind, while Speirs tells them to "follow me" and runs out first.
This episode sadly did Lieutenant Dike a bit dirty. He reportedly suffered during the battle due to having been shot, and later in the war he was awarded several commendations for bravery and leadership.
There are arteries in your legs, mainly the femoral artery, where you can bleed out pretty quickly. If the bullet misses it, you can just keep walking with pain...but if you hit it, you're done if the bleeding isn't stopped quickly. Based on where he shot himself, it was the femoral artery.
Fun Fact: Spiers did NOT kill the Germans, that should be clear in this episode when he told the Sargent the story about how rumors and hearsay works. After the war Spiers went on to American governor for Spandau Prison in Berlin at the end of the war, and commanded a rifle company during the Korean war. He retired as a lieutenant colonel. Died in 2007 at the age of 86.
@@owaindavies916 Yeah, I found the video... but even what Spiers told him seemed a bit ambiguous. And it was not referring to the incident shown in the movie. There seems to have been two other incidents. One was a fact that he shot one of his own men, a Sergent that was drunk and refused his orders, then he raised his rifle and Spiers killed him in self defense. This was deemed self defense. There was another story about 3 Germans captured during the fighting and he and two other solders shot them as they could not allow them to stay behind US troops during the attack, and they could not stop the attack to take prisoners. That story too seems to have no real documentation. The story told by Winters was a conversation around the book publisher scared that Spiers might sue them if they said he shot a prisoner, and they refused to publish the book. In order to get them to publish the book he said he would write a letter stating the rumors were true to ease any fear they had about him suing them. Spiers seemed to like the mystery surrounding the rumors. This still leave a lot of ambiguity and not any real witnesses. So who actually knows. One thing is certain, if it happened it was not as depicted in the movie.
@ yeah absolutely, it’s still a little ambiguous. There’s a few errors in the series but that’s due to who Ambrose spoke to and interviewed. People always assume primary sources are 100% accurate, which is a pitfall. I guess we’ll never know.
Actually, nobody saw Spiers shoot those Germans earlier in the series. The shots fired came off camera and Malarkey had his back turned as he was walking back to catch up to the rest. Set up and paid off with the scene/dialogue in the Church.
This may have been the roughest episode yet! too much loss in this one..
Watch up to Episode 10 + We Stand Alone Documentary Reaction EARLY & UNCUT over on Patreon! www.patreon.com/spartanandpudgey
I love you guys, thank you for doing this and all of your other reactions. It takes me out of the real world and gives me time to relax.
If you haven't already seen it, I atrongly recommend the movie "Hacksaw Ridge", as well as the mini-series "The Pacific".
"The Pacific" was created by the same people who created "Band of Brothers'
Then, of course, there's the 2 movies, that'll never leave your souls...
"The Deer Hunter" (Vietnam war) Spectacular acting by Robert de Niro, and a very young Christopher Walken, who won the Academy Award for his performance in that movie.
The 2nd movie is "Killing Fields" from 1985, and it won 3 Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actor.
You'll never forget "Killing Fields"...
As rough as this episode is, there's one coming up that's as as rough, maybe even worse! 😮
Speers would later say about his actions at Foy, he was not afraid of dying, he was afraid of failing his mission, these men were a different breed.
See the difference in command style: Dike orders his men to go around the town on their own while he stays behind, while Speirs tells them to "follow me" and runs out first.
The Greatest Generation...
Shifty is an awesome backwoods crackshot sniper, my favorite thing I learned about him…”Shifty mentioned to his commanding officer that he noticed a tree in the distant forest that was not there just the day before. The "tree" was ultimately discovered to be a camouflaged German artillery piece”
Interestingly, the two deadliest men in the company, universally acknowledged, were Powers and McClung - both of Native American ancestry (and both....... nah, can't say that....... spoilers).
I have read several memoirs from Easy Company, Shifty's is by far my favorite.
@@peterireland4344 What made Shifty such a good shot was that his family was poor in the Mountains of West Virgina ( Think ofthe T.V. Series, Beverly Hillbillies)and had to eat what the family shot and killed. If you were a bad shot you starved.
Correction: the tree was a camouflaged nest of an forward observer for the German artillery. Once the Americans took care of the tree, they no longer received anymore artillery fire for the rest of that day
@@blazingangel5463 that makes sense, thanks for the asterisk!
These dudes literally got their legs blown off and were STILL joking around and shit talking each other. Nerves of absolute steel.
Tough bastards. God bless them.
Shock is a crazy fucking thing.
Gallows humor. It's incredibly important. Like how a cop will hold up a severed head at a crime scene and say "Hey Joey...it really does weigh the same as a bowling ball"....it's a pressure relief valve
@@tidepride86 and in war, it gives them will power to endure the shit they are going though.
@@lyianx 100%
"Wild Bill" Guarnere would live a long life, passing away in March, 2014.
He is the one responsible for starting the Reunions the men of Easy Company went to the rest of their lives.
@@TheRagratus Their children and grandchildren have carried on the reunions since all of the Easy members have passed. Our BoB tour guide,George Luz,Jr,is very involved with reunions.
I love his interviews. The actor played him very well. So funny, tough and troublemaker 😂
Fun fact: The actual Easy company foxholes can still be visited today in Bastogne. They still remain in those woods. You can also visit the exact building that Shifty Powers shot the sniper through (and see bullet holes on the building. around the window). I know it is kind of obvious, since these are all true stories, but it's amazing to think you can still visit these exact locations today.
Was there in the spring. You can look at Foy from the edge of the woods and stand in the E company foxholes. It’s a helluva thing.
@@paulhewes7333 I can imagine. Hoping to visit one day.
Idk if it's true (never been to Foy), but I've heard Shifty's shot at the German sniper was actually harder than depicted in the show. Something about the building actually being farther away and at a worse angle. Don't know if it's true, but might as well be, considering they toned down Speirs' run because it was "too unrealistic for TV"
@@pabloc8808I heard they toned down Shifty’s shot, Spiers’ run & Compton’s grenade throw at Brécort because they believed the audiences wouldn’t believe what really happened.
@@Manolo0528 Yeah, and same with Winters' run at the Crossroads in episode 5. In reality there was no faulty grenade that delayed the rest of the troops, he just straight up left them in the dust because he was in such good shape. When interviewed about it later, he said (I'm paraphrasing) that he had entered sort of a fugue state where it seemed like he was running normal speed but everyone else was in slow motion.
This is the episode where I realized Neil McDonough is a next level actor. Probably my favorite episode as the pacing is relentless even though the first half is actually fairly light hearted.
I've commented this before, but Speirs did in fact shoot and kill one of his own men, but it was self defense. The story in the show is that the soldier was drunk and refused to go on a patrol, but it was the other way around. He was drunk and because of that he was told (by Speirs) that he couldn't go on a patrol, and the soldier became increasingly belligerent and eventually raised his service weapon at Speirs, but Speirs shot first.
I love how Pudgey's face at the beginning of literally every reaction I've watched looks like she has some very funny secret or a very funny joke that she's dying to tell us, but she never does. 😅 I mean if there's a scale with "resting bitch face" at one end, Pudgey's resting face seems to be at the complete opposite end. She must be protected at all costs! 🥰
She's fantastic 😊
I fear for her in an upcoming episode.
@creamsiclem4433 yeah 9 gets everybody
@@scottdarden3091she sounds like a dude with a speech impediment
@@rileyandmike wtf
The run that Lt Spears made was actually longer as was the shot that shifty powers took to kill the sniper. Shifty powers was such a deadly shot that the joke was, only a fool would shoot at shifty when he had a rifle.
You can see that shot distance if you go to google maps and search the exact phrase Bullet Impacts Sergeant D. "Shifty" Powers. If you use street view to move around the building until you can see a small blue tractor in a weeded over back alley, you can see three small windows one above the other with the top one being brick framed. That's the window the sniper was in and you can still see the side of the house being pockmarked by bullets from other soldiers firing at it. Now use streetview to go up the street away from the church going uphill as you do. You will come across a house with a 3 panel windowed wooden door thats numbered 158. The corner of the house where the deep blue Mercedes GLC with a ribbon tied to its door handle is parked at is where Shifty took the shot from. And he got the sniper in the head. From a distance of almost 215 feet. On Iron sights.
That conversation in the church with spiers and Lipton is one of my favourite bits on the whole series
I dunno, I think I preferred the 'dangerous psycho' persona. I wasn't crazy about how they turned him into a 'nice guy' late in the series.
Regarding the ticket home for lt.Peacock, the soldiers weren't exactly happy for him, they were more than happy that he was sent away. In Band of Brothers he's depicted as just fumbling or not up to par as other officers. But when reading the memoir of David Webster (title: Parachute Infantry), who was in Peacock's platoon, he absolutely hated his guts. Due to many instances of dubious tactical decisions or ordering menial tasks, e.g. order Webster to take a broom and sweep the entire house where the officers were staying with nice beds and warm water, while the platoon had to sleep outside in wet and cold fox holes in the rain, in Holland.
Love your reactions, you two are great!
"Men's souls will be shaken with the violence of war." - President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
My maternal grandfather was a combat infantryman with the 99th Infantry Division at the Battle of the Bulge. His baptism under fire began in Elsenborn, Belgium, approximately 50 miles northeast of Bastogne. He survived roughly 100 days of combat "without a scratch" (in his words). But, like Buck Compton and thousands of combat veterans, the violence of war crushed his soul. His 105th birthday was two days ago, and although he passed away in 1990, not a day goes by when I don't think of him. Thank you for your reactions. They mean a lot.
Elsenborn Ridge was a hell unto itself too. Much respect to your gramps.
V Corps performance during the Bulge was absolutely amazing - despite everything the Germans threw at them, and that was a LOT, US Infantry and Artillery stopped them cold.
@@Ajonr The section of the line at Elsenborn was the only section of the American line that didn't get pushed back.
Oh, I am well familiar with the battle, and yeah (although they did withdraw = Fortified Goose Egg).
No way! My maternal great grandfather was apart of the 99th. What regiment?
In real life Dyke was a somewhat heroic figure, he won 2 bronze stars in 1944. He was wounded in the shoulder during the attack on Foy, and it was the wound that caused him to stop. Not saying he didn't disappear or was a good leader. But them showing him being an unbrave mess was undeserved.
They really did do Dike dirty :/
You've got to remember that the show is based on the book which is based on the thoughts and opinions of Easy men, whether true or false.
Being awarded a bronze star or 2 doesn’t necessarily mean he was heroic. Especially if he was a favorite of some general and given certain unit commands to climb the ladder fast.
They’ve already shown one guy mangled from head to toe get one Purple Heart. Meanwhile another guy who is all cheery and talkative got several Purple Hearts for minor wounds.
@@A_massive_wog I've watched this show and read the book once or twice a year since 2001. So I know.
Still makes makes me sad though.
In BoB, Dike served as a sort of composite of several less-than-stellar commanders.
One of my favorite episodes for these scenes:
32:51 Winters is P*ssed ignores the Colonel and assigns Spears to relieve Dike
34:39 The classic Spears Hero run
38:18 The subtle moment where Lip gets a bit of respect
Spiers's run through the town only to turn around and come back was epic....
And that was a REAL person..it is nuts
My favorite scene of the series
He was a beast. All stories are true also. He killed his sergeant and the prisoners. True soldier lol.
The Spiers run is longer in real life, he covered way more distance but they shortened it bc they thought it would be too unbelievable
Ronald Speirs was incredible. And to think the show had to make his run shorter than it actually was because it would've been "unrealistic" for the audience. Reality is unrealistic I guess. Matthew Settle did a great job portraying him.
Legend has it that Superman has a Lieutenant Spiers poster on his bedroom wall. 💪🏻
The German Lugers were notorious for their hair triggers requiring very little to set the trigger off
I remember seeing a Hickok45 video where he's showing a Luger and he accidentally fires a second shot when popping the targets. He jokes about how it just did an "accidental bump fire". That's the only video I can recall where he ever did that.
It’s less the trigger it’s as it has a quite firm trigger pull, the problem is it’s exposed and tensioned trigger bar. When you pull the trigger on a Luger the bar flexes and that drops the firing pin and shoots the gun. Because the metal flexing is how the gun operates the trigger pull is different depending on temperature. Most of the accounts of Lugers going off accidentally are in freezing conditions like this that makes the metal more rigid. This also caused the opposite problem where the metal won’t flex meaning you can’t fire the gun. There is a reason the Luger is the only gun that operates like this
These two episode around the Battle of the Bulge were absolutely incredible and intense.. remember the first time I watched them, over 20 years ago now, my palms were sweating. It’s about this time I accepted this was one of the greatest TV shows I’d ever seen.
The series does an excellent job of letting the viewer get acquainted with the company then dealing with the abrupt loss of the individuals - imagine how the men felt and then had to keep fighting. Makes the short interviews with the veterans at episode beginnings more impactful.
Well, it's not just a clever name. Hoobler should have never found his Luger. When Winters tries to go in against orders is heart wrenching. Then sends Speirs in...One of my favorite moments of the series. Him relieving Dike of command, is stunning every single time, he more than put his money where his mouth is what he said to Blythe. When Buck's helmet hits the ground, it's as Earth shattering as the German artillery...Currahee ♠
In real life, Hoobler didn’t find a luger, it was a Belgian pistol.
I also love how he cuts off the Colonel as he’s yelling at him.
its one hell of an episode... Leadership and friendship comes to mind, but there's not much to say, words are hard with this one!... Maybe congratulations for the watch!... Its episodes like this, hell every episode... that make this series endure and be one of the best ever!... No one forgets having seen Band of Brothers and giving it praise!... And now we have 2 more with Pudgey and Spartan! Thank You for the watch giving it exposure to younger audiences about what sacrifice of the body and soul means!... About the yawning of Lieutenant Dyke...
The constant yawning is a storytelling device to highlight Lieutenant Dyke's lack of engagement, fatigue, and nervousness, especially in high-stress situations. Yawning can also be a common response to anxiety, as the body attempts to increase oxygen intake under stress. The series uses Dyke’s yawning to emphasize his disconnection from his men and his responsibilities, subtly suggesting he was either indifferent, overwhelmed, or too fatigued to lead effectively.
The fact you two know what leadership means is great, no fubar!!, saves lives, even though the book of war goes out the window after the first shot is fired, you still have to adapt to the situation!! , thanks for sharing with us😊👏👏✌️👍🇺🇸🇮🇱
What an episode...the Veterans getting emotional always gets me, no matter how many times I've seen it. Excellent commentary , really enjoy your breakdown.
During my BoB tour this summer,we were able to see Dike`s foxhole in the woods outside of Foy. It is still there. Of course,it was at the rear of all of the other foxholes. We were also able to see the window where the sniper was located that Shifty Powers shot. George Luz,Jr,who`s dad was featured several times in this episode,was our tour guide for the 2 week trip.
We never actually see Spiers shooting the prisoners. In the original scene from the second episode, we only see him crossing path with Malarkey and hear a shooting, so we assume it must be him, but no confirmation. The scene where we see him shooting the prisoners in the 3rd episode is from the rumors of the men, we even see another guy doing it when they talk about alternative stories. Speirs character arc in this series is just a masterpiece in my opinion ; for most of the series, he is this eerie fanatical soldier, but as soon as we see him more on the camera in this episode, we realize how great and genuine this guy actually is. The conversation with Lipton about Tercius and the Roman legion is incredible as well and explains a lot why he chose to let the men speculate about him.
Speirs eventually admitted that the story was true, according to Winters, in an interview I've seen of him addressing this.
@@blackbenetavo7715 Same. However it was also said that this happening wasn't unique or some act of inhumanity specifically about Speirs. At the point of the invasion when they captured these Germans their positions were far from safe and the success of the invasion still uncertain. They simply couldn't start diverting large amounts of manpower towards guarding and securing prisoners of war. I believe there were even standing orders about not taking captives as well. It's unfortunate, but surrendering soldiers were killed at that stage of the invasion simply because they couldn't take prisoners and keep pushing to secure and capture their objectives successfully.
Winters confirmed everything in an interview at old age. He explaind it wasn't for cruelty, they were on D Day, behind enemy lines, outnumbered, being attacked all the time, they couldn't make prisoners and some officers had specifc orders to not take prisoners. The canadians took it very seriously and killed every single german they saw lol
Speirs did admit two things: one, was that he did shoot unarmed men in two separate occasions: first a group of Germans trying to surrender, and second a group of Germans who had already formally surrendered. However, the Paratroopers had orders from Gen. Taylor (I don't know if that applied to all US combatants in Normandy or only for the Paratroopers) not to take prisoners during the invasion of Europe, as it would slow them down (which is true, taking POWs would've been a logistical nightmare).
The second thing Speirs admitted was that he did shoot one of his own men, a Sergeant who was drunk and refused to follow direct orders twice. Speirs said the man became increasingly aggressive, and leveled his rifle as if he intended to shoot him, at which point Speirs shot the man in self-defense and notified his superior immediately, who examined the scene, heard his account and decided that Speirs was right.
EDIT to clarify something and not drag Speirs name through the mud: he did not, in fact, shoot 20 German POWs, which is what the story passed around the foxholes in the show says, nor did he do it all by himself. The first group was 3 Germans, he shot one and his men shot the other two. The second group was 4 Germans, so Speirs shot a total of 5.
@@blackbenetavo7715 To be clear, I am not talking about what he did in real life, but what's shown and confirmed in this series. From a cinematography point of view, this series never show or confirm anything about it, so Spartan's claim to have seen it with his own eyes is false.
My favorite episode by far, but I love them all.
*edited:* 2 more things to mention; Sgt. Lipton is the name of the one who got promoted, and yawning is often a body's reaction to nervousness - it relaxes your body in times of stress. Add that to being actually tired.
36:16 Not sure if yall noticed but that was Ken Webb who was killed by a sniper.He was the one 14:30 who was the replacement that Luz was introducing to the team when saying that pretty much all of them had got shot in the ass.Oddly enough Webb died trying to save Perconte who got shot in his ass but Webb was not so fortunate as a sniper got him.And the person who took out the sniper is Shifty Powers, he is their sniper and was a damn good one at that.
The guy in the foxhole talking about Spears giving cigarettes to 20 POW's, is Michael Fassbender. He was the one who was caught with an empty canteen in Ep1. You also know him from The 300 movie (fight in the shade joke). In X-Men First Class, he was young Magneto.
Did he end up surviving the war?
@@enlistintheempire He did, he married and got kids, he died on december 15, 1999, with his three sons by his side.
@@NecramoniumVideo nice 👍🏻
48:56 The Sergeant who was promoted, the character who narrated this episode, was Carwood Lipton. They often called him Lip for short.
EDIT: I just saw your drop announcement which includes this.
Please be sure to watch the unofficial 11th episode, the companion documentary, "We Stand Alone Together". It has more mini interview segments, showing some of the men post-war.
I served in active duty till 2013. Seeing what happened to Buck, I think I understand the main reason why the Army to this day enforces a "no fraternization" rule between officers and enlisted (ironically, in the very first episode, we see Winters scold Buck for this for a different reason). When I was in, this rule frustrated me and came off as elitist, but when you are in command, seeing your people get wounded or killed will hurt you, naturally. But it should not break you, because you still need to be able to command. So you can't get TOO close to them. I don't think any less of Buck as they said; he's still a tremendous hero who also lived an exemplary life after his service, just saying I understand now.
There's also the Hollywood effect. In his memoirs, he said he didn't actually have a breakdown as depicted in the show, he was however incredibly mad that Dyke had walked off and was looking for him. He thinks people mistook that for him having an emotional issue. He also said he didn't make a big deal about it when he saw the show, as he felt it was a situation that did happen with men, and it needed to be shown somehow. What isn't clear to me is, did he actually get removed from the unit? And if he did, then why.
@@buddystewart2020 good to know! Forgot to account for that.
Dyke yawning is a form of shock being portrayed. Disappearing and sleep being coping mechanisms.
@39:49 OMG MIND BLOWN !! I was obsessed with gossip girl when I was in high school and I had no idea spiers was mr. humphrey! thank you for making that connection, pudgey 🤣 i love this show and everything about world war 2 is so fascinating because it literally shaped the world we live in. excited to watch the pacific with you guys.
34:43 It's so wild to think that Spiers' run would have an audience being like _"Okay, what? Come on. Yeah right..."_ at a scene like that, but... It's history! Men like this *really did* these unbelievable things, throughout that war. It's so remarkable and so humbling when that moment of realization hits you when you're watching or reading about incidents like that. That _Oh yeah, this is... a real guy, on a real day that happened._ My word.
My Boy Scout Scoutmaster had been in a Sherman tank just outside of Foy when they were taken out. He and his teammates were captured and put into a POW camp in eastern Germany. He was the only one who survived. He was 150 pounds when he was captured and 72 pounds when liberated. He stressed cold weather survival and living off the land. He never talked about it but his son did. Good reactions for a non-military couple.
On the truth of Speirs shooting the prisoners; Winters tells a story about getting a call from Stephen Ambrose, the writer of the book Band of Brothers, to tell him the publishers legal department had an issue with that story being in the book, because if it wasn’t true, Speirs could sue them. So, Winters called Speirs and asked him if it was true and if he’d have a problem with it being in the book. Speirs said it’s true and print it.
Paratroopers were told to not take prisoners during D-Day. Which makes sense. They were behind enemy lines and couldn’t hold them anyways.
Hitler had also previously issued the 'Commando Order", that all enemy soldiers captured behind German lines were not to be treated as POWs but shot on the spot, regardless of uniforms, units, etc. This apparently included basically all paratroopers (as these guys were usually fighting behind the front lines.).
Patton was formally reprimanded for telling his troops not to take prisoners. And General Taylor gave similar instructions before D-Day.
Nice spoilers, jerkoff.
My great grandfather fought in the battle of the bulge, he said the scariest part was hearing boots crunching in the snow as the germans approached the line.
You keep asking "Why is Dike always yawning" the fact is he is scared. In my day it was called the “Combat Yawn”. Yawning can be a response to high levels of both anxiety and stress. When we are in a heightened state of tension, our body's natural response is to take deep breaths and increase oxygen intake. Yawning helps regulate breathing patterns and can serve as a subconscious mechanism to alleviate stress. This was what the program captured here, yet another attention to detail point among so many.
There was a comparatively high rate of dud artillery rounds in the German arsenal, this was for a couple of reasons. First of all at this stage most of the munitions manufacturing was done by slave labour at concentration camps. Being weak and malnourished the workers could not be as precise as needed and produced more duds. On top of this, some brave prisoners intentionally sabotaged as many rounds as possible as their way of fighting back, which was still incredibly brave because they would be executed if discovered. Finally, the kommandants and overseers in these camps were responsible for quality control, but due to manpower shortages (almost every able-bodied soldier was being deployed to the front) and the fact that their position and life was in danger if they didn't produce the expected quota, they didn't check so many and allowed the duds through as a result.
Those prisoners were even braver than the soldiers fighting on the front like Easy company because they were at the mercy of the Nazis and firsthand witnesses to many acts of cruelty. To face that and defy it takes incredible bravery and resolve.
They mention this in “Schindler’s list” when his factory towards the end is suffering from “quality control” and he says something like if any functioning munitions leave his factory he’d be very upset.
I don’t think you can really compare the bravery in two completely different situations. They were both brave and that’s that.
33:30 I love this part, shows a lieutenant compared to a leader. Dyke spread them out, disorganized and confused. And with less than 15 seconds, spears would have the assault restarted with vengeance. No bs, here what we do, go.
By far my personal favorite episode, but that doesn't mean much in a series thats this exceptional thank you both ❤
"We’re all scared. You hid in that ditch because you think there’s still hope. But, Blythe, the only hope you have is to accept the fact that you’re already dead. And the sooner you accept that, the sooner you’ll be able to function as a soldier is supposed to function. Without mercy, without compassion, without remorse. All war depends upon it." Lt. Spiers
Lugers are notorious for “accidental” discharges. I own one, and it has what is almost a hair-trigger.
Pudgey’s reaction to Dike was my exact reaction the first time I saw this episode ❤
What I love about Lipton and Winters is that Lipton knew Dyke would get a lot of men killed in action and he done the one thing he's not meant to do and go over his officers head to the commanding office in Winters and instead of chewing him out and blasting him Winters knew if a man like Lipton is coming to him to do that then he knows he's right and something bad is going to happen
Spartan lightly touched on the aspect of viewing each episode through a lense. Ep1 - Winters, Ep2 - Winters, Ep3 - Blythe, Ep4 - Bull, Ep5 - Winters, Ep6 - Doc Rowe, Ep7 - Sgt Lipton
I imagine Spartan at the battle of Stalingrad: "CHILL...you guys have no chill".
3:46 Seeing Pudgey putting on her brave face, Its clear she has the utmost respect in that moment.
Every time I watch the scene when Winters call for Speirs to take the lead I scream inside "Fuck yeah!"
Just for you knowledge of how Battle Field Commissions work, in the Military (I am active) you are separated by rank in three categories. 1- Lower Enlisted: this comprises your Private ranks which fill the bulk of a Battalion Element. 2- Senior Enlisted (NCO's)- these members are the Sergeant ranks that have either served long enough to gain proficiency in there field or several, and are then given the rank Sergeant to Train, Lead, and Develop the lower enlisted for the tasks required to fulfill the current mission. NCO's also could get this rank for having education, but not a 4 year degree. 3- Commissioned Officers (CO's): These were people with formal degrees in study and were trained longer and more broadly in the Field of Leadership and Development. These men (Like CPT Winters and LT Spears) lead the Platoon, Companies, and larger Organizations to direct, brief, and maintain there respected elements. Here is the tricky part; the Lower Enlisted and NCO's cannot become a CO without any formal degree locking them in there selected bracket. Today you can become a CO by forming your education while in the service to achieve a master degree and then through proof and trial of your education can get a promotion to CO whilst formally being Lower Enlisted or a NCO. This process is referred to as "Green to Gold". What makes 1SG Lipton's case very unique is that every now and again (VERY RARELY) an individual will show exceptional Leadership skills in the Combat Environment, beyond that which is recognized as "The Standard" for Lower Enlistment, and NCO ranks. This Is called a Battlefield Commission which is EXTREMELY difficult to get. Some Veterans rumor that a Battlefield Commission is harder to Obtain than some of the most decorated medals that the United States can award (with exception to the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, and Soldiers Medal).
I hope this helps you two out with knowing the importance of the event of Battlefield Commissions, and how it separates 1SG Lipton apart as a dedicated, formidable Leader.
Spears was also the officer who spoke with Blith in that foxhole, with the "you need to understand that we're already dead".
He also participated in the guns battle in ep.2, he joined with D company in the end and asked Winters (who was commanding Easy) to take the last gun. He agreed and Spears simply attacked that gun directly, with him specifically getting out of the foxhole shooting the german soldiers there from behind (I recommend watching it again).
I commend whoevers idea it was to add the screen shaking with the artillery explosions. Really added to the reaction, well done.
Artillery is a different beast in combat, typically much more lethal than small arms fire. When the shells detonate they have an instantaneous expansion rate of around 5 miles per second (mind numbingly violent). For comparison the typical rifle round's muzzle velocity is a little over 1/2 mile per second, and they slow quickly from there. Furthermore when engaging troops artillery shell fuzes are often set to detonate just over the heads of the troops so fragments, concussion and heat strike them from above making cover provided by uncovered holes and trenches much less effective, which is why Speers advised those soldiers to improve their position with overhead cover.
My father was fighting with the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment of the 17th Airborne (my avatar is their shoulder patch) in a town called Flamierge about 10 km's from Foy at the exact same time Easy was in Foy. His unit took 30% casualties in 3 days. He only said one thing about that experience:
He was lucky to be alive.
Hearing you two talkin is more then half of fun of your channel :D
I’m from south Philly and met the real Bill Gurnere he used to get his hair cut from my ex girlfriend. He gave me a few medals from easy company. Talked to him many times before he passed away.
Winters was 26 when he jumped into Normandy. Buck Compton was 23 during the advance post Bastogne. I can't even begin to imagine how those experiences affect a person at such an age.
I am surprise Spears could run as fast as he did with those balls of steel weighing him down. Mad lad running through enemy lines, not once but twice
It's important to remember that this series is based on a book, where a lot of it was colored by the particular survivors interviewed 45+ years later. Not every individual soldier is necessarily depicted fairly. In the case of Lieutenant Dike, he earned two different Bronze Stars with the 101st Airborne, including once during Bastogne where he saved three wounded members of his company by dragging them to safety while in full view of the enemy and under small arms fire. He ultimately reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before he retired from the Army.
16:58 Random artillery fire into entrenched positions is to "soften up" targets; cause fear, lower morale, casualties and disrupt operations.
Here you see the training and will that differentiate paratroopers from average soldiers. To keep yourself and eachother as a fighting unit longer than the enemy
As you pointed out in the discussion-section, the bond between men at war is something special.
Arguably I'd think the bond between warriors is probably among the strongest that exist. Stronger than your average married couple for instance.
Buck Compton played baseball at UCLA, where he was a Law student, before the war. After the War he became a prosecuter in the LA District Attorney's office and prosecuted Sirhan Sirhan, the assassin of Robert Kennedy.
Hoobler joined up with 2 of his buddies from back home, William Hovell and Robert Rader. All 3 of them were in Easy Company together. I believe it was Rader that yelled out when Hoobler shot himself.
Spiers did kill one of his own men. It was self defense and Spiers was cleared based on testimony by his own men.
It occurred while they were on a mission behind enemy lines and the guy wouldn't shut up. Spiers ordered him to return to the aid station but the guy rolled around with his pistol out threatening Spiers.
He did shoot the prisoners. About 6 not 20. You can't take prisoners when you are behind enemy lines right in the middle of all of them. They'll give away you position first chance they get.
There is a great biography about the man. He was a great soldier. He died in 2007 I believe.
You guys are great with your reactions.
As we say in Texas; y'all be safe.
-- Oh yeah, Spiers actually did run the German lines like you saw in the episode.
In defense of Lt. Dyke's yawning, as someone who has done military service, although not in wartime conditions, I can tell you that sleep is something you don't get much of even under peaceful circumstances.
Yes, they were probably all yawning, all the time, but it will be used by the filmmakers to dramatize the characters to fit a 'type'.
Dike was actually decorated more than once for bravery in combat, running into fire to drag out wounded soldiers, and according to some Easy company veterans, he was actually shot in the shoulder and losing a lot of blood in his 'breakdown' scene.
This is the one. This is my favorite episode of this mini-series.
It's interesting to me that in most cases, the more well known actors today mostly played smaller roles in this and in most of the more prominent roles the actors didn't become all that big. I think Damien Lewis (Winters) has done well enough. Neal McDonough (Buck) has stayed about level. Maybe Ron Livingston (Nixon) as well.
I love how, like I did in my first watching of the series, you both have become invested in the lives of the men in Easy Company. Lt. Dike was "promoted" to the battalion HQ. And remember, it was Speirs who told Blythe as he cowered in his foxhole that he was scared because he hope. He told him, just accept that you already dead and then you can function as a soldier. And that shows he believes as he runs right through the Germans in the episode to hook-up with "I" company and then back again.
37:50 Fun fact, in an interview Winters gave at one point, he talks about this story about Speirs, and reveals that the story was actually true. Speirs eventually admitted to it. He did in fact kill those 20 Germans that day.
When your attack is being anticipated, as was the case with Easy at Foy, enemy artillery will preplan targets meaning they calculate firing data with predetermined corrections for position errors, etc., (a time consuming manual process back then) ahead of time. Then those targets can be engaged quickly when the attack starts, which is one reason Easy needed to keep moving forward. Any competent company commander or platoon leader would be well aware of the danger, not that the alternative of running full bore into small arms fire is a pleasant way to spend your day (they'd have an overwatch element engaging the enemy at least). BTW, although this is an excellent production heavy guns are shown right up on the line of contact which, while not impossible, is unlikely. Fire support from field artillery is usually delivered from miles away. Observers at the line of contact direct the artillery fire via radio comms.
Really great point that this series should be essential viewing in school
16:23 they don't got a choice: the ground is frozen harder than concrete. The only way to 'dig' new foxholes is to blast them out--and the Germans can hear that. They can probably drop a bombardment on the soldiers trying to dig new foxholes and catch the whole company in the open.
Like the series and love your reactions. you asked, "Why do they (Germans) shoot now?" . Several ideas. 1. Distract you from seeing what we are doing. 2. Keep you in your hole hiding. 3. Maybe scare you off the line eventually or eliminate you as an enemy. 4. Keep you tired and nervous. 5. Start an offensive and move your way. 6. Make your leaders send more troops here so we can start a movement elsewhere. And many other military or non-military reasons. How does your enemy prepare and hurt you if they are always worried about your bombs and shells falling?
😂😂😂😂 Good advice. Those hundred prisoners probably shouldn't have taken a cigarette from the guy who just ran through their battlefield. Spears is a legend if you go to fort Benning or former fort Benning. Him and several other people are in like kind of a shrine. When you go there you learn all about them. Spears was literally a God among men
Shifty was the best shot in the company. Great reaction!❤❤
43:30 wait, you didn't See spears kill hostages, neither did Malarkey, the only evidence was the sound of a machine gun firing. To me that is not conclusive.
Well, I guess he technically did "Yes, he did. Winters confirmed it in an interview, and said that Speirs wrote a letter acknowledging he did it" but still, we didn't see it :D
Was confirmed after the war that Speirs did in fact execute prisoners, and his own man on D-Day. The Sergeant was drunk, giving off their position by being loud, and eventually tried to pull a pistol on Speirs. Man was a fucking legend.
The 101st was surrounded in Bastogne for 6 days. From December 20th to 26th 1944. The Battle of the Bulge was the last hurrah for Hitler's offensive capability
This episode did Dyke dirty: he actually was a pretty fair commander, though not on the same level as Speirs and Winters. He actually was conducting the attack on Foy exactly the way Speirs would wind up doing, but he was shot several times, and his 'freezing up' that you see was him actually going into shock due to blood loss. He was removed from the line and wound up working a desk job after Foy.
I listened to an interview earlier today by Stephen Ambrose for the BoB book. He was talking to Lipton and Guarnere, and they told Ambrose that they didn't rate Dike as a combat leader.
They were being sarcastic. They were really happy to see Peacock going home.
Just wait until the episode “Why We Fight” coming up. Likely one of the best episodes of a show in television history. If you don’t cry, you’re not human!
So the Siege of Bastogne lasted from Dec 20 to Dec 27, 1944. The 101st Airborne and elements of the 10th Armored Division were surrounded by the Germans for a week. The thing about warfare that movies and TV shows don’t really portray very well is just how exhausting it actually is. This is where the “thousand yard stare” comes from. People often assume that that look comes from seeing too much traumatic stuff but it mostly comes from just being absolutely exhausted. Not just exhaustion from physical activities and being under a lot of stress but also from not being allowed to sleep. Even when you and your unit does have an opportunity for sleep, you have to sleep in shifts because you need people to stay awake to pull security while the other guy in your foxhole gets some sleep. Each of These guys would probably get 3-4 hours of sleep a night and that wouldn’t be a consecutive 4 hours but rather , it was more like multiple power naps that, over multiple shifts, would equal 4 hours of sleep.
About Captain Dike. He was a decorated officer. I think there was a little issue of his being an outside officer. I think he was suffering from PTS and his time with Easy was probably his low point.
The 101st was encircled at Bastonge for 6 days until the 3rd Army broke through to help them. Another movie I recommend is Patton. The story of General George Patton commander of the 3rd Army.
Not only were the airborne troops surrounded at Bastogne but the Germans threw the best of what they had left of their military forces at them. US ground troops also got unlucky in that the weather prevented effective air support for some time.
There's a re-write re Hoobler's death. The accidental discharge happened while he was out on patrol, there are also disputes over what weapon he shot himself with. Some veterans remember a Colt .45. Others a Browning pistol and others the Luger. Browning pistol? When John Moses Browning left the USA he moved to Liege in Belgium and set up a factory which was captured by the Germans in both World Wars. The SS cornered the supply of Browning pistols.
Speirs run was much farther IRL. Genuine badass. Lipton was given a battlefield commission to second lieutenant, making him an officer. Shifty shot the sniper between the eyes.
10:15 No, Pudgey, Nixon wouldn't be a good replacement for Dike here for several big reasons. First, he's got a pretty big drinking problem. That's maybe tolerable for a staff officer, but not a combat leader. Second, speaking of staff, Nixon is quite effective in his role as Intelligence Officer for the whole of 2nd Battalion at this point, and as such (third), doesn't have much in the way of direct combat experience.
His friends actually got hit,they didn't realize afterwards, there wasn't anything there,2 humans disintegrated into thin air by artillery. Still hits me hard
See the difference in command style: Dike orders his men to go around the town on their own while he stays behind, while Speirs tells them to "follow me" and runs out first.
The artillery barrage that killed Muck and Pinkalla lasted for more than an hour, longer than this episode.
A thing to respect about Spiers and you see it in the second episode, he is not willing to give men an order he would not do himself. During the assault at Brecourt Manor he lead the charge on the last gun braving enemy fire himself, here he charges through the German lines no hesitation to lead his men. In my opinion one of the best soldiers in US Army history.
See the difference in command style: Dike orders his men to go around the town on their own while he stays behind, while Speirs tells them to "follow me" and runs out first.
This episode is my absolute favorite of the series
This episode sadly did Lieutenant Dike a bit dirty.
He reportedly suffered during the battle due to having been shot, and later in the war he was awarded several commendations for bravery and leadership.
There are arteries in your legs, mainly the femoral artery, where you can bleed out pretty quickly. If the bullet misses it, you can just keep walking with pain...but if you hit it, you're done if the bleeding isn't stopped quickly. Based on where he shot himself, it was the femoral artery.
Fun Fact: Spiers did NOT kill the Germans, that should be clear in this episode when he told the Sargent the story about how rumors and hearsay works. After the war Spiers went on to American governor for Spandau Prison in Berlin at the end of the war, and commanded a rifle company during the Korean war. He retired as a lieutenant colonel. Died in 2007 at the age of 86.
I actually heard that he DID kill the soldiers, from an interview with Winters?
Spears confirmed he killed them after the war, yes.
He did actually, confirmed by Winters himself. There's youtube videos of the interview.
@@owaindavies916 Yeah, I found the video... but even what Spiers told him seemed a bit ambiguous. And it was not referring to the incident shown in the movie. There seems to have been two other incidents. One was a fact that he shot one of his own men, a Sergent that was drunk and refused his orders, then he raised his rifle and Spiers killed him in self defense. This was deemed self defense. There was another story about 3 Germans captured during the fighting and he and two other solders shot them as they could not allow them to stay behind US troops during the attack, and they could not stop the attack to take prisoners. That story too seems to have no real documentation.
The story told by Winters was a conversation around the book publisher scared that Spiers might sue them if they said he shot a prisoner, and they refused to publish the book. In order to get them to publish the book he said he would write a letter stating the rumors were true to ease any fear they had about him suing them. Spiers seemed to like the mystery surrounding the rumors. This still leave a lot of ambiguity and not any real witnesses. So who actually knows. One thing is certain, if it happened it was not as depicted in the movie.
@ yeah absolutely, it’s still a little ambiguous. There’s a few errors in the series but that’s due to who Ambrose spoke to and interviewed. People always assume primary sources are 100% accurate, which is a pitfall. I guess we’ll never know.
FYI, Dyke was taken to hospital to heal and then promoted.
Actually, nobody saw Spiers shoot those Germans earlier in the series. The shots fired came off camera and Malarkey had his back turned as he was walking back to catch up to the rest. Set up and paid off with the scene/dialogue in the Church.
Spartan & Pudgey Such A Awesome Video Today!!🔥🐐🐐💎
I had an uncle that died at the bulge. My dad said they could've sent him home in a shoe box. 20,000 Americans died at the bulge