Band of Brothers is Coming Back, Soldier!

I was so glad to see the other night on an advert for M-NET Action, which is channel 106 on DSTV, that the great series called Band of Brothers, is coming back next week, starting on the 6th of April.

If you haven’t yet watched it, Band of Brothers first aired years ago, back in 2001. I remember watching it on M-NET in 2003. The series is basically inspired by, and in some ways a continuation of, Saving Private Ryan, seeing as Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg were involved in the project, like they were in the Oscar-winning film before it, as was Dale Dye, acting as military consultant.

And Band of Brothers likely went on to influence some other World War II genre FPS titles just like SPR did- like some Medal of Honor titles [I’m thinking particularly Spearhead or Airborne], Brothers in Arms [definitely], and Call of Duty.

The series tells the tale of D-Day – but not like in Saving Private Ryan, where you witness the GIs storm the beaches of Normandy. This time it’s the paratroopers who land on the 5th of June, 1944; the night before.

The main star would be Dick Winters, played by Damian Lewis in likely his most famous role, firstly a Lieutenant, as the series starts with American paratroopers going through basic training in the States, then preparing for the operation while they’re in England, right across the channel from Nazi-occupied France. And from there we see them dropping into Normandy under the cover of night, and embarking on their mission to not only soften up the Germans from the inside while the ground troops are on the beaches, but to continue on to make another drop in Eindhoven, The Netherlands to take part in the disastrous Operation Market Garden, as well as march in to Berlin, Germany.

It delves into some personal issues along the way, and the relationships that unfold between Winters and the rest of the paratroopers in his company, as he is promoted to Captain just before this invasion. And on top of that, the real stars, the actual veterans who took place in the war, appear and tell interesting little stories about their experiences in the war, and how they’ve never been able to forget the horrors they saw so many years ago.

All in all, if you’re complaining about nothing to watch just lately, then do yourself a big favour, stop whining, and tune in to watch this great WWII experience.

Band of Brothers starts on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 on Channel 106 [M-NET Action], DSTV, at 20:00. Two back to back episodes [two hours] will play for at least the first week. There are ten episodes in the mini-series all in all.

Band of Brothers is Coming Back, Soldier!

It’s Your Birthday: Dale Dye

On October 8th, 1944, Dale Dye was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He turns 65 today.
Due to being poor and not being able to afford college fees he enrolled in and later graduated from Missouri Military Academy. After this he served in the United States Marine Corps for twenty years, including two tours (1964–1965 and 1967–1970) as a Marine Correspondent in Vietnam where he fought in 31 major combat operations. Medals he obtained in the war included three purple hearts (awarded to those who sustain injuries), and the bronze star.

For most of his military career he was an NCO (non-commissioned officer) or enlisted Marine, rising to the rank of Master Sergeant. During the 70s he was chosen to attend Officer Candidate School and was appointed warrant officer. He later converted his commission and was promoted to captain.

Dale also served in the Beirut Peacekeeping Force during the 80s.

Dale has worked for Soldier of Fortune magazine, trained troops in guerrilla warfare in the countries of El Salvador and Nicaragua, and founded Warriors, Inc. where he not only started helping train actors but also began his Hollywood career. In addition to starring in movies, usually in small roles, he usually serves as the senior or assistant military technical adviser. The list of films he’s appeared in includes Forrest Gump, Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, Heaven and Earth and Saving Private Ryan. He usually plays officers or at least a Sergeant in these short roles. Most of these movies no doubt benefited from his expertise, and I reckon he’s at least part of the reason they were as successful as they were. Everything he touches turns to gold.

Not only has he been involved in films, but in radio, and the authoring of several books, but what really led me to discover him was his appearances in video games. Dale worked as a consultant, and as the training mission narrator, on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, which was essentially a video game adaptation of Saving Private Ryan, since it included scenes familiar from the film, such as the landings on Omaha beach. He’s also served in this position for nearly every other Medal of Honor title, including Medal of Honor, Medal of Honor: Underground, Medal of Honor: Frontline, Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, and Medal of Honor: European Assault. It doesn’t look as though he worked on Medal of Honor: Airborne at all, and it still remains to be seen whether he’ll work on the latest Medal of Honor title in development.

Other games he’s appeared in include Brother in Arms: Hell’s Highway where he voiced the character Colonel Robert F. Sink, a role which he also played in the Band of Brothers series.

Interesting tidbits about USMC Ret. Capt. Dale Dye (not to be taken too seriously):

• He was considered for the title role in RoboCop.
• According to some, Dale Dye is fearless, and perhaps enjoyed Vietnam too much.
• Despite being born at the time (1944), and contrary to popular belief, he didn’t actually fight in World War II.
• I believe that Dale Dye may have been the inspiration for the character known as Old Snake, or Old Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of Patriots. Check out the mustache.
• Just like Solid Snake in MGS 4, he seems to have mysteriously rapidly aged over the past few years.
• Dale Dye is often compared to R Lee Ermey (Gunny).
• Despite working for Soldier of Fortune magazine, Dale Dye is not to be confused with John Mullins.

Sources:

http://www.sproe.com/d/dale-dye.html
http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0245653/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale_Dye
http://www.warriorsinc.com/
http://kfi640.com/pages/CaptainDaleDye.html?feed=128004&article=445012

It’s Your Birthday: Dale Dye

World War II: The 70th Anniversary

It’s been seventy years since the beginning of World War II. Today, September 1st, back in 1939, Germany invaded Poland, which is generally taken as being the beginning of the Nazi attempt to take over Europe.

Many video games have featured World War II as a back-story, whether based on real-life events, or entirely fictional. We’ve had many successful series, like Wolfenstein, Medal of Honor, Call of Duty, Battlefield 1942& 3, and Brothers in Arms but to mention a few- and these are only a few of the most popular FPS games. There are also numerous strategy titles like Commandos, Sudden Strike and Company of Heroes too.

I read in two places that there are nearly 200 games based in WW II (183 when the article was published on 1up.com).

These are some of my favourites of all time:

Wolfenstein 3D
Spear of Destiny
ROTT
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault
Call of Duty
Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault
Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30
Call of Duty 2
Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood
Call of Duty: World at War
Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway
Wolfenstein
Commandos
Commandos 2
Commandos 3

I hope sometime in the future to do more features on World War II video games.

Thank you to all the brave men and women who fought or contributed in some way during World War II.

World War II: The 70th Anniversary

Apocalypse Then: Adolf Hitler's Birthday

On this day, in 1889, Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary.

Years later, and World War II took place between 1939 and 1945.

Over the past two decades or more, we've been swamped with movies and video games based on the events that took place during the war, specifically Omaha beach and the D-Day landings at Normandy.

Apocalypse Then: Adolf Hitler's Birthday