"Masters of the Air" Part Six (TV Episode 2024) Poster

(TV Mini Series)

(2024)

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8/10
Episode that reflects the situation
kenstallings-6534623 February 2024
This review is as much about some of the truly ridiculous reviews others have made, as it is about this latest episode.

First, many allied airmen captured were executed enroute to their POW camps. This included when they were captured by a small group of German soldiers, who were often undisciplined and poorly trained rear guard troops, precisely as shown in this episode. For one reviewer to claim this portrayal in the episode is unrealistic enough to warrant calling the series "bad," is asinine.

No, the scenes shown with the character John Egan are not based on his actual experiences upon being captured. But, a number of people after the war were brought up on war crimes for executing allied airmen who were captured.

Many others have castigated the series for the scenes involving tribulation between American and British military personnel. Well, those events also happened more often than many are willing to admit to. And yet, this series has been quite evenhanded in that portrayal, showing far more scenes of harmony between the allies, vice the occasional Brit officer who seems fit to unleash his animosities.

The American bomber crews saw this animosity more than other US service members in Great Britain because their entire tour of duty was based in Great Britain. For two scenes to show this conflict, in six episodes, each lasting just a few minutes, seems an entirely appropriate character development, is a fair representation for what happened in real life.

Other reviewers have called the aerial combat scenes unrealistic, and while quite minor issues are present, these items are so trivial as no one but those who've conducted detailed research would notice the issues, and these people all appreciate the vastly more important things the series worked very hard to get entirely correct.

Frankly, enough is enough! People are free to write the reviews as they wish, but they would do well to to at least root their complaints in truth, vice twist what really happened to suit their narrow and frequently faulty criticisms of this series.

This episode was considerably more tranquil overall, as it was intended to be, given it devoted time to the rest and recreation centers many crews were sent to when things became particularly tough for them.

The scenes of Egan trying to evade capture and his experiences upon capture, while not reflective of his actual experiences, were nevertheless an opportunity for artistic license for the producers to bluntly tell narrations that actually did take place. These scenes provide the conflict in the episode, but more importantly, tell a part of the strategic reality that deserved telling. Many bombers crews survived being shot down, only to be captured and executed.

The episode was a nice change of pace that accurately reflected the lifestyle these bomber crews tried to live through, and most often did not.
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9/10
Please stop rating these episodes based on amount of action!
mikechapman-8457123 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
This is one of the best episodes so far, on par at least with ep 3 and 5. For any BoB and Pacific fans it feels a lot like Crossroads and Melbourne.

The trifecta of Crosby, Rosenthal, and Egan's stories make for brilliantly different views of emotions and situations of these men.

Many seem to be reviewing episodes based on action. Maybe this is what the kids want nowadays, but I feel sorry for those that cant immerse themselves into what really happened, and the stories on the ground that also need to be told.

Yes, the scenes with Egan escaping the lynch mob are a little too much, but remember there is a lot of the air war to tell, and not just the missions. Maybe Egan's somewhat unbelievable escape from the lynch mob didnt really happen, but hundreds of allied airman in WWII didnt escape the lynch mobs- this was a very real and scary situation they found themselves in.

These series sometimes take a holistic approach and flirt with dramatisation, but only to say to the viewer "yes, this happened".

Ep 6 bubbles away nicely (sorry not sorry), and does an excellent job of pausing the action- the physical action that is, not the psychological action.
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9/10
Excellent nuance shown here, sticking to source material
vandykeu24 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
This week we have another 'interlude' episode showing more of the nuance of the air war. Crosby and Rosenthal both go on different forms of leave, and we begin to see the fates of airmen who are captured by the Germans.

Crosby's story here is fantastic, and aside from one detail holds very closely to his memoir. Whole conversations are lifted word-for-word from it, especially those with his British counterparts. I am astounded that they included this in the show, but very grateful that they did. (side note- sorry Brits, but the condescension that some of you are upset about here really did happen according to Crosby).

Likewise, Rosenthal is shown with his officers convalescing in a 'flak house'. His crew is unusual in that they have this opportunity after only 3 missions. It is clear that he is a bit upset at sitting out, but we can see that he has been affected. We get to start to see his growth as a leader here.

Egan's story is probably the most fictionalised, but we are seeing important details reflecting the reality of being shot down in Germany. Unlike parachuting into Belgium, France, or another occupied country, the populace you've bombed is not going to be happy with you, and we see some of the consequences. We also get a FANTASTIC interrogation scene that is quite realistic for the place and time. And, Egan gets to see some familiar faces.

My favourite scene was the end, where Crosby and Rosenthal are shown back at Thorpe Abbotts. One of Rosie's crew is telling a story he heard back at the flak house, and the camera pans. We get to see the men who have survived. Keep in mind that by now, Crosby's crew is basically the last 'original' one left. Everett Blakely is now a major, in command of 418 squadron since Egan was shot down. Both Crosby and Douglass are shown to be captains, and they are now group navigator and group bombardier, respectively. We see Maj. Jack Kidd- the air exec too. And we can see that Rosie's men are now some of the 'old' men. I really liked that touch.
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10/10
A tale of two interrogations
ShippersAreEvil24 February 2024
A masterly juxtaposition of two very different interrogations

One, obvious and pointed, as a smarmy German officer uses every trick he can think of to wheedle information out of Egan, who is far too smart and far, far too loyal to fall for it.

The other, not at all obvious, as a charming and confident - yet coy about her job - British officer befriends Crosby in a most unlikely way. To me it is obvious that she has been sent to see if the best navigator in the 8th is one to get drawn into a compromising position that could leave him open to blackmail, should he be captured by the Germans. This isn't made up - the woman is real and from Crosby's own account(1).

And, of course, there is a third with Rosie's crew sent on R'n'R, but also being assessed to see if they are fit to continue.

This is the part of war we don't talk about being spoken out loud. The grief that stays with you, the suspicion that surrounds you, and the pain and horror that will leave scars for a lifetime.

1. I did like the Scotland reference, allowing the playful idea that the mysterious young woman might be a very young Princess (future Queen) Elizabeth. A nice bit of wit in the darkness.
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9/10
Now that's a straight message
sfh_inc24 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
The Germans were all complicit. After bombing out London for months indiscriminately, after what they did in the Siege of Leningrad, after the Grossaktion Warsaw they get their nose bloodied and immediately turn to lynching and feel justified? You brought this on yourselves and then thought that the bombers would not escalate and retaliate in time? Welcome to the Bombing of Dresden.

It takes a special kind of idiotic population to be able to wake not one, but two sleeping giants consecutively in a single war - first the USSR and then the USA. That's a Darwin Award on a national scale right there and they very much messed up their gene pool once and for all with this move.

As an Eastern European, I am probably rooting for the bombers even more than American viewers are.
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8/10
more action, less padding, thank you!
nerrdrage24 February 2024
This series has been suffering from a dichotomy: whenever there's air battle action, it's great. When it turns to the characters, oof. Not so hot. They are simply too undeveloped and interchangeably bland to work well for drama.

But now we have a third type of action emerging - the POW capture/escape drama. Combine that with more air action and maybe a modicum of personal dramatics back at the base, and we have a good balance.

The pilot trying to get away from cushy R&R just struck me as insane. He should spend his time having fun and smelling the roses at the very pretty estate. Might be his last chance. Is he just so tormented by repressed guilt that he has to risk his neck? Unclear.

The storyline in Oxford was reasonably interesting. But why does this show seem to have it in for the Brits? The snobby guy complaining about Americans fighting and chasing girls in pubs. Like British servicemen weren't doing all that too. The scene was designed to make him look completely insufferable and clueless.

Nice to see that my hunch about a certain character has been proven correct in the final scenes. But what happened to the guys escaping through France, anyway?
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8/10
Episode 106, is the show good now?
nscoby9325 February 2024
I've put off watching this episode all weekend long because, honestly, I just didn't want to watch something that could potentially disappoint and annoy me.

But I am feeling so many things from this episode, I am just so torn because at times there is some really good writing and some beautiful character moments. Then, in others, it kinda reverts to the dullness I have come to expect.

This just makes me so happy and frustrated. Frustrated because where was this quality earlier in the season? Why did we take so long to reach this quality?

What surprised me the most about this episode is the writing. The writing in this show has been dull. The characters in this show have been dull. Then now all of a sudden, I'm taking an interest in these characters? Am I actually starting to care for these characters? I don't know who wrote this episode, but I refuse to believe it's been the same writers. If it is, then well, I guess even a broken clock is right twice.

This whole episode is practically void of action, and it leaves it up to these characters and their dialogue to carry things, and I'm surprised to admit it was good. Maybe it's my low expectations, but I actually really enjoyed this episode. They finally wrote these characters as people just doing their best to live and survive in this horrible war.

Now, this episode is far from perfect and not without critique. In this episode we do delve into the prisoner of war side of things and while it is interesting and I am intrigued to see where they take this I feel I've seen this type of content done better. But it seems they are just getting started with this plotline, so hopefully, this will pick up as it seems it will in next weeks episode.

Anyway, while this and last week's episode has left me surprised in the quality of its content, I will remain skeptical, but hopefully, maybe this show will continue to get better.

IMDb: 8/10 Letterboxd: 4/5

Watched on Apple TV+ in 4k Dolby Vision.
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10/10
Ok but
prandinifrancesco24 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
This episode blew my mind for several reasons. As I have already said several times in previous episodes, as the grandson of two POWs I was moved when Bucky saw the other brothers in arms in the stalag, and I can't imagine what HUGE they felt in that moment. Then I start to become more and more certain that Rosie is my favorite character of the series: the moment in which her plane companion talks about how he no longer felt alone when Rosie sang Artie Shaw in the middle of an air combat is truly truly touching . And the director was excellent in inserting Artie Shaw when Rosie comes back on the plane. Which I hated: why insert a historical fake with Egan involved, when the lynching, the real one, of the American bombers really happened in Russelsheim, but a year later?
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9/10
"Part Six"
allmoviesfan20 April 2024
Warning: Spoilers
"Human beings weren't meant to behave this way," is perhaps the most poignant and correct line of all that have been uttered to this point. Not meant to behave...but somehow we did, and do. Food for thought.

A tense episode. I like how 'Masters of the Air' doesn't just show the fate of the pilots in the air, but also those who are lucky - or perhaps unlucky - to be shot down and survive. The scenes of Americans landing in Germany and set upon by the local populace who call them "terror bombers" (rough, but understandable) are very hard to watch at times. Well done, but hard to watch. That's the mark of good TV though.

Enjoyed hearing the "Over-paid, over-sexed and over here," to describe the American forces in Britain. This was a popular saying here in Australia when the United States Marine Corps arrived in places like Melbourne.

Strong episode. Again.
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7/10
"The brits finally hit something"
johnnyhrris-7415725 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
Loved this episode and the series but the brit bashing is ridiculous "The brits finally hit something" Come on the British hit way more during the war at night than most American crews , especially considering a few months before the munster raid that cost so many American crews, the British had just destroyed 3 dams in the ruhr valley in the famous "dambusters" raid . I'm sorry but no serviceman would be taking that attitude knowing full well what had been achieved a few months prior by the British in heavy bombers. Most of the highly accurate raids of ww2 were carried out by Lancaster crews or mosquito crews and its highly disrespectful to those airmen to make statements like "The brits finaly hit something"
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9/10
PART 6
moviesfilmsreviewsinc28 April 2024
Episode 6 of Masters of the Air showcases the ability to create tension, stakes, dread, and interesting character development without putting its heroes inside a plane. The show's final moments only touch on the air force base, which has been the center of the show. The harrowing storyline begins with Bucky (Callum Turner) landing deep in German territory and being captured by German farmers. He is taken on a series of voyages that show the brutality of war. The scene where Bucky and other unlucky POWs are paraded through a bombed-out German town gives him a new perspective on the war, revealing that Americans are not viewed as the "great liberators" they signed up to be.

From there, Bucky's journey becomes safer, but his fate is essentially sealed. He arrives for interrogation with Lieutenant Haussmann (Louis Hoffman), but refuses to give anything more than his name, rank, and serial number. The scene never rises above "we're not so different, you and I" territory, but it is redeemed by the equally horrific, wordless scene as Bucky is taken to the train. The show has turned a corner and is living up to its potential, demonstrating that it can create tension and stakes without putting its heroes inside a plane. In episode 6, Crosby attends a lecture in Oxford and meets his British counterparts, while Rosenthal (Nate Mann) is sent to a countryside estate to escape recent events. The purpose of this plotline is to give Crosby an outlet for his feelings about the war and the death of his friend Bubbles. He meets Alessandra Subatern Westgate (Bel Powley), an unspecified British member of the RAF who serves as his roommate. Despite her terrible writing skills, Westgate knows the torment soldiers face firsthand and provides a shoulder for Crosby to cry on. Rosie is ordered to take time off at the "flak house," a posh estate in the English countryside, after three missions in three days. He prefers to get back in the cockpit than talk about his feelings. This segment of episode 6 is the most effective, showing the psychological effects of the war in interesting ways. Rosie sees a fellow soldier crying uncontrollably in solitude, a profound moment of introspection for him. The contrast between the endings of Rosie and Bucky's storylines elicits interesting thematic material. Bucky is in a terrible situation in a Nazi POW camp, but he's now reunited with Buck, whom he believed dead. Rosie, in a safer place by the end, is filled with fear and uncertainty. While episode 6 is far from perfect, it's hard to not be excited for the remaining episodes of Masters of the Air.
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7/10
Episode made better by Bel Powley
melissahenninger24 February 2024
Finally, some life and personality in a portrayal from this series! I continue to watch the show despite my disappointment with the overall execution. I just haven't grown attached to any of the characters in particular, and that's unfortunate as there are some talented people cast. Anthony Boyle's character is minimally compelling, but I enjoyed Bel Powley's introduction and flirtation with him. I just hope we haven't seen the last of her.

I felt like the people in Band of Brothers were so well drawn and real, and I just haven't found any depth to these characters. I don't know whether the source material was lacking or what, but no one is here is richly adapted, sadly.
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5/10
Series goes from mediocre to bad
comps-784-3826523 February 2024
Started watching this episode and in my opinon this has now gone down hill to absurd

multiple captured US aircrew taken into a bombed german town and then killed by civilian mob . Just to be clear that the devastation is not the Americans fault it's stated that this was RAF damage. (as if this somehow makes the Americans innocents)

This did happen on both sides but , when aircrew bail out into the population, but, (I suggest) not when they had been captured by the authories, particularly with high ranking air crew prisoner e.g. A Major - They go for interrogation .

The German mob proves incompetent and 2 of the 6 men are left unknowingly alive. Surprisingly the bodies are then taken out into the countryside on a cart, so lazy writing allows one of them to escape . WTF

(Afternote: I have since discovered the 'Rüsselsheim massacre' which is what the scenario is based on. So is based on a real event)

Never the less, this series is a poor relation to the classic band of brothers and war in the pacific which were totally factul accounts.

This series is largely fictional CGI dross, with cardboard caricatures (particularly of the British) It is not worth any further of my time. Deeply dissappointed.
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8/10
A Powerful Interbellum - Episode 6 - "Part Six"
xNanoks7 May 2024
Once again, we are faced with a much calmer kind of episode, after being spoiled by its predecessor. However, this time around, instead of being a cold shower, it's more the phase between two warm baths. One knows the episodes will pack punches again in the not too distant future, and to take the time to heed the tranquility set in episode 6 is both wise and comforting. Do not however, take up too much comfort, as there is plenty to get lost in and make slip your eager mind in this episode also.

After the destructive events taking place in episode 5, episode 6 interludes its own plot by narrating the need for peace and quiet. Albeit for just a few days. Instead of downright defeat in their eyes, our main characters are seen with reflective nature. Nate Mann continues to warrant the question of why we're not able to see him more in other shows, while Boyle and Turner are presenting themselves as the show's most centric pieces, more and more. The dialogue sometimes steers its way into more predictable water, sometimes riddled with clichés, but even that does not take away from the fact that the deliverance on their lines is impeccable. To create tension and unlock emotions from its viewer by not using conversational backdrops is a skill most would be envious of. Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck continue to marvel and daze in that aspect of storytelling.

While the episode omits any form of real combat, the room for breathing is welcome, if paced well. If you interlude, tell your story, and then create a powerful bridge to the next episode, with a touch of humour, anger and tension, the episode plays itself. As a cherry on top of this cake of interbellums, Bel Powley could not have been cast in a better role. Credits for Masters of the Air often goes to combat, CGI and special effects, but my word, costume design, done by Colleen Atwood, is near perfect.

A welcome and well-paced pause amidst a rapidly expanding show, episode 6 scores a very strong 8 out of 10.
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6/10
Could not relate to the characters
trkngp24 February 2024
Warning: Spoilers
In this episode we saw how 2 characters went on a leave due to the loss of their friends in battle. I could not help but remember the episode in BoB where major Winters was sent on a leave to Paris, after operation marketgarden. Him feeling 'out of place' after spending time in the battle field and seeing people go on with their lives, and then, his bus ride back to his hotel, when i saw his ptsd emerging... my heart was hurting for him, this was such an emotional scene, the loneliness he felt, the shame, the confusion. Now looking at Crosby chilling at Oxford parties and his character being so comfortable around them, the scene at the house party was so infuriating in my opinion... all of these privileged kids sitting around playing their guitar while people out there are dying - he has been there, how could he be so relaxed and comfortable around them? Rosenthal at the estate... we should have experienced his discomfort from the situation at a harder level, instead he was falling asleep in an arm chair while a beautiful woman woke him up with a warm blanket. It was hard for me to express any empathy towards them.
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7/10
Masters of the dark
neildodd-3787724 February 2024
Very good series although why are so many scenes filmed in dark you can hardly see anything in some scenes !!!

The lights must have been switched off rather spoils it or is this done for effect.

The flying scenes obviously mostly done in cgi are bright and fairly convincing.

Most of episode is dark and some of the characters are not even visible.

This a Great War movie but could be improved by using better lighting in key scene's.

Like the reconstruction of the airfields and replica B17 bombers although difficult to follow with so many characters follow , Overall an enjoyable series and quite moving in places.
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