I for one really enjoyed this mini-series, from the first episode to the last, it really has a lot of entertainment value. For the record, I am a currently a double major in history and political science and I would most definitely recommend this to anyone who is interested.Warning: it is fairly one sided towards the American perspective, but that does not mar it in my opinion, it just requires a conscious acknowledgment of that prior to watching it. With that said, for entertainment value it was great ( 10/10 ), turn it up full blast and for a spilt second you might actually forget feel like you are there. The footage was great and very powerful at times.To get the most out of this mini-series I would suggest doing some reading prior to watching it (or after if you are truly impatient), but I believe most will have at least a working knowledge of what Vietnam was about. But like others have said, for a more in depth understanding of this war, it is critical to look somewhere else. Overall this was a thrilling documentary (or mini-series) that holds a lot of entertainment value and for those who can look past the one sided nature and biases of it, you will walk away satisfied. For the more cynical of critics, this may seem like a Hollywood production glorifying the war and justifying American heroes. However, for the most part this does not glorify the Vietnam but rather tries to recount history by jazzing it up a bit.
... View MoreThis series is about war, politics and people. Just like with WWII in HD, I am in awe of history in video, specially in HD. I lived through those times with limited cognisance of what was really transpiring although soon after coming to assimilate what its overall impact would eventually come to be. Listening to and seeing the few participants, interspersed with the reality of that arguably unnecessary conflict is engrossing.Reviews of this, and similar series, should be devoid of political rhetoric and consistent with the presentation quality and viewers objective appreciation of what was created and produced through significant effort.One needs to remember that honour and duty among soldiers in rarely arrogance or narcissism. These human beings were placed in a terrible place and asked to do terrible things, or else rendered criminals in their own country or dishonoured as soldiers. Most were completely ostracized and suffered severe mental depressions, upon returning home to their families and friends. IMO, their "OO-RAH" is purely a sense of camaraderie and commitment to their fellows in the battle zone where there was no time or point to pander politics or resentment to their leadership... lives were at stake.THIS IS A MUST SEE FOR HISTORY BUFFS!
... View MoreThis series is great for anyone who is not familiar with the Vietnam War. The personal accounts are wonderful and really take you inside the mindset of the time. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing from the soldiers, and appreciated the fact that the series attempted to stay away from political commentary / opinions about the war. I watched the series with two good friends who served in Vietnam, and both of them felt that it was an accurate portrayal of the war and the atmosphere at home. While it does gloss over some events, I suppose that cannot be helped since the series is only 6 episodes long, with each episode running about 45 minutes. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a good overview of the war and wants to hear it from the mouths of the men and women who served there. I'm also happy to see that the History Channel is still occasionally producing series with real historical content.
... View Moreyes, the footage is good, but as someone who's (too) familiar with combat situations and the history of war (the Vietnam war as well), I must say this isn't a documentary. The series try too much to show the US as the winning side in the conflict instead of covering the other aspects of the war. see how they emphasize the concept of "winning" after each and every scene and battle. If I had to summarize the purpose behind this series it would be "lets show all the great footage we got and present it as if America actually won the Vietnam war".There are no winners in war. war is nothing more than a military means to a political end. it suck. it's horrific. but this series don't deal with the political aspects around the Vietnam war, so winning has nothing to do with it. This series claim to cover the historical aspect, so what's with all the claims of "we've won" this and "we've won" that.Military is all about combat, tactics, weapons etc. but to understand war is to understand how we, as people, react to all the different aspects of it. If you're interested in the history of Vietnam war then I suggest you look elsewhere. Start by reading the "dull" history facts, then watch "china beach" to learn of the human aspects and the side-effects, and then try to get your hands on "secrets of war - Vietnam - hidden in plain site" (by the History channel) to understand how it looked from the VC side.Learn about war so if you ever forced into one, at least be aware of the true nature and ramifications of it, on both sides.
... View More