Yes - they didn't convert the replicas they had because largely time (reportedly) - believe they got stung in the schedule badly by COVID, though there's doubtless some cost elements there as well. I guess once you decide not to convert physical props then for consistency you probably wouldn't change CGI.

Thank you all for the answers.

Ahh, what a shame. Still enjoyed what we got though. :ok:

Strange thing is, I was reading about the damaged Forts and they had prebuilt sections that could be installed for filming parts of the action then replaced back to show undamaged Forts, Surprised they never did the same with the chin turret.

Well, I did get sniffy about it on first watching and the portrayal of both RAF and Army Officers was pathetic. I was not impressed at all BUT then I watched it a second time around and I have to say that it certainly looked better for another look. I warmed to the four primary characters. The tangent to the Tuskegee pilots seemed ill thought out, perhaps that is down to the missing two episodes ?

One thing I missed on first look was the scene between Rosie and Croz in the mess after the formers return from being shot down. On the mantle was a Robin Hood jug very similar to the one in 12 O’ Clock High…….no doubt everyone else did see it !

OK, finally got around to watching the series (I needed to replace my I-Phone, and the new one came with a complementary three-month subscription to AppleTV).
First couple episodes left me a bit cold, but it grew on me as it went, and I literally could barely wait to watch the final episode. The ended does seem rather rushed - apparently due to the two missing episodes, and the Tuskegee Airmen bit felt a little like it was forced in to make the politically correct crowd happy (although, again, that could be at least in part to the missing episodes).
Didn't realize until the ending that the main characters were based on real people - that should make a re-watch more interesting.
Too much CGI for my liking, and I agree the attacking fighters appear to be going unrealistically fast (based on the real footage I've seen) - and disappointed that they didn't 'upgrade' the B-17s to the 'G' standard.
I also don't think it's as good as Band of Brothers, but since I consider BoB to be arguably the best WWII "movie" ever, that's a pretty high bar. Put it roughly on a par with "The Pacific".
Given I've re-watched BoB countless times (I have it on Blu-Ray), I'll need to give 'Masters' another look before my AppleTV runs out.

As I've not read the book, can I assume this is an endorsement that I should correct that?

​​​​​​​My thought was, as the series is a true account of the 100th Bomb Group, it was to give context to their appearance in the POW camp.

It's a big old lump of a book and it's several years since I read it, but it makes a good companion to reading about Bomber Command.

Just finished watching it and I was reminded, and wondered how they could do it day after day.

In Flypast or the Aeroplane recently they regale the tale of a flight engineer, they were limping back on finals ( Liberator) and the bomb doors were open, they were told to bail, his harness got caught up and he realised an engine was failing due to a split fuel line and they wouldn’t make it, he held both ends of the fuel line together keeping the engine running until it bellied in, he was dragged under the fuselage into the trench cut by the nose wheel and survived covered in fuel…

brave folks indeed.

I wasn’t that impressed tbh and the subject matter is right up my street being a history nut. Some of it was fantastically immersive - such as the scene when the crews are all starting the engines and it switches from plane to plane through the checklist. But, a lot of the aerial combat and even some of the flying sequences looked totally artificial (which of course it was). It reminded me of Star Wars but with B17s. The characters were good though and I thought it was well acted. The Tuskagee airmen part had a feel of an add on and should be a separate dedicated series imho, as there is way too much to cover and it is so important.

I do get a bit sniffy about the needless anti-English and anti-raf scenes, which seem to be thrown in totally without any context or background. I’m reading the very wonderful book at the moment which covers these issues in a very non-partisan way, including the appalling racism of the black airmen by the whites which is ignored - probably because it would make our square jawed heroes look bad and that’s what the RAF are here for. Clearly the native brits were of their time too but the book covers how much better the African Americans were treated by us horrible brits.

So, my conclusion it’s a lazy adaptation of a wonderful book with a wholly white American bias about how wonderful they were and how useless we were. It’s a shame as it takes away from the towering achievements of the 8th AF and it’s men by needlessly elevating them at the expense of their erstwhile allies, who had been fighting and dying in large numbers for well over 2 years before they showed up. Chuck Yeager would be proud no doubt. Read the book instead.

You Tube

Bomber Harris - John Thaw Full Movie (BBC 1989)


It is available with a search

A fairly common theme in some of the work Spielberg has been associated with over the years and I suspect a case of the writing (or in this case screenwriting) for the target audience.

IMHO Stephen Ambrose did similar (and of course at he worked with Spielberg at least once).

Ambrose often appeared very balanced in his early work (sums up Britain’s situation very well in the last episode of The World at War) and his early books (Pegasus Bridge) but then realised there was mileage and probably easy money in simply parroting the lazy stereotypes about the Brits supposedly being far too keen on a stopping fighting for a cup of tea.

RAF Bomber Command and the USAAF 8th Air Force suffered horrendous losses as each conducted operations against the Axis Forces.

Can we not just accept that every effort to portray their service and sacrifice during the War is always going to have shortcomings and variation from actual events?

I wish the Duxford Museum footpath leading to the entrance to the American Hanger has glass panels opposite those for the American losses.

That walk is sobering as it is ....and to add the symbols of an equal loss by the RAF would an effective way to note the numbers of Men lost in the bombing campaign in Europe.

A close family friend did thirty missions as a pilot on Lancaster's and a next door neighbor did twenty five missions as a navigator on Liberators so I was blessed to have a couple of Men who could teach me about their experiences.

One was in the RCAF and the other the 8th Air Force.....both were Americans.

Hollywood is not known for its adherence to historical fact so we should factor that into our evaluation of the series and not give much weight to what it gets wrong but appreciate it done and helps us to understand what those brave Men endured during the War.

Sasless,

Good post. 100% agree with you.

The incredible bravery of both 8th AF and Bomber Command despite the high losses was both very impressive and also very sad.

Films/telly/videos often do dispense with facts in favour of what they perceive to be high drama to ensure the product sells well. Some do recognize the reality of the military, but most don't .

As is almost always the case, these films are primarily made for the entertainment of the general public and not for enthusiasts of any given persuasion. Many great British productions have taken similar liberties with historical fact. I did not like Masters of the Air at first viewing though second time around I found it better. Yes, there are shortcomings with its over reliance on CGI, the screenplay is rather lazy and the eighth episode was simply odd with the inclusion of the Tuskegee airmen - maybe that is all due to the rumoured loss of two episodes. For all that I found the portrayal of the four main characters interesting and in echoes of Band of Brothers, one of the major parts was played by a British actor - Winters/Lewis and Egan/Turner. The only thing that really grated for me was the sneering portrayal of the RAF Officers.

Just watched the accompanying documentary, on the 100th, that came up after the last episode. It featured members of the 100th, including Lt Rosenburg, and the experiences that they recounted featured in the series.

Munster Raid 30:00

https://heideblog.com/wp-content/upl...x800.jpg?w=723

As in all forces involved, you may be unaware but they have erected a British memorial in France ahead of the 80th anniversary of the landings to show the losses of the British soldiers incurred in that area on that fateful day. Such a powerful statement while being thought provoking and somber.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....658142a2d.jpeg


https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....b91e26582.jpeg

https://www.britishnormandymemorial....n-at-memorial/

https://www.britishnormandymemorial....iants-project/