BAND OF BROTHERS epi 2 "Day of Days"

"Day of Days" is an episode I will never forget.
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I have unedited watch along on Patreon! You can check it out here here;
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xx
ames

[@chrisg8767]

Some of the survivors recalled that they had trained so extensively at night that they could recognize other members of the company just by their silhouette.

[@holddowna]

WOWWW

[@FrenchieQc]

@@holddowna Or by their gait, too.

[@primary2630]

the night of the bayonet XD the german raincoat really did mess up his silhouette

[@wattsnottaken1]

That’s Easy company for you! ❤

[@clash5j]

Damian Lewis (Winters) has often told a humorous story: He was a young British actor and it was very early in his career. Somehow he got invited to audition for the role of Winters. He gets to LA and they put him up in a fancy hotel. He auditions for Tom Hanks himself and it goes REALLY well. So, it's his first time in LA, he's met Tom Hanks, the audition went fantastic and he's feeling really good about himself. He decides he's going to celebrate and gets absolutely hammered, crawling back into bed around 3AM At 8am, his phone rings. The voice says: "Damian, Steven (Spielberg) would like to meet you now. Can you be here at 9?" 🤣 So, now he's panicking because he's a total mess. He orders room service for a ton of coffee and takes 3 showers to try and get himself into some kind of condition to meet Spielberg. He manages to get to Spielberg's office and he's shaking and sweating from nerves, the coffee and the comedown from a severe hangover. Spielberg is filming him as soon as he enters his office and he offered him the role right then and there. haha BoB was my first introduction to Damian Lewis and I would have sworn that he was American. He did a fantastic job

[@bujin1977]

I remember him from a 3-part mini series a couple of years before BOB called "Warriors", about a British peacekeeping force in Bosnia. It was a pretty harsh series.

[@philipcoggins9512]

This series came out during my senior year (In fact, I think this episode aired the Sunday before 9/11). When I saw Damian on a couple of the late night shows, I thought he was using a English accent in jest.

[@catherinelw9365]

I saw Damian Lewis perform as Posthumus in Shakespeare’a Cymbeline back in 1997, when I was touring the UK. I remember him because he had super long, flaming red hair. Then I saw him in the remake of The Forsyth Saga on tv a few years later, so I knew he was English. Great actor.

[@mestupkid211986]

@@bujin1977 Bosnia was pretty harsh. That whole conflict was fucked up.

[@futuregenerationz]

Man o man, what a good actor! I think I like his Winters accent better than his natural.

[@YN97WA]

Over 2000 American soldiers died on Omaha Beach (the one from Saving Private Ryan). Because of what Easy Company did in taking out those guns, the casualties on Utah Beach were under 200. We owe so much to our greatest generation! I'll never forget what they did. This series is really brilliant, and I look forward to sharing this ride with you. Great reaction. 👍👍

[@WaywardVet]

Utah was legendary. Missed the target. General Roosevelt; "We'll start the war from here!"

[@itzbp9949]

Now we have men dressing up as women and women dressing up as men. Shameful world we live in. Is that what they died for?

[@KaoretheHalfDemon]

Think luck, location, weather, and better training was also involved but taking out those guns definitely helped.

[@ph1shstyx]

@@WaywardVet Yup, the combination of landing 2 miles off target, along a less heavily defended section of the beachhead, and with Winters taking out the gun emplacement as well as finding the map of all the other gun emplacements meant a much safer landing at Utah.

[@hamishsmith2685]

Solid comment brother, this is indeed a journey we’re going on with Ames!

[@KevinThomas-ok2ev]

I almost hate watching this series now. I served in the 506th (Charlie Co., 1st Battalion) from ‘77-‘81, and am a life member of the 101st ABN Association and the 506th Regimental Association. Getting their newsletters, I’ve seen the obituaries of these vets as they’ve passed, and seeing their interviews at the start of each episode is just a reminder of what we’ve lost with their passing. They’re virtually all gone now, Winters, Randleman, Speirs, Guarnere, Lipton, Powers and so on. We are diminished by their absence and owe it to these men to remember their legacy, their sacrifices and their courage.

[@phj223]

Those old men of steel, tearing up and their voices cracking, breaks me every time. ;(

[@youngchell45]

So for some context, in case people forgot, Guarnere (a.k.a. “ Gonorrhea”) had just found out his brother was killed by the Germans at the Battle of Monte Cassino a few hours before he jumped into Normandy. The book goes a little further into this and interviews with him state that he was so angry with the Germans that he wanted to kill everyone of them he could find. By no means does this excuse him endangering everyone else by disobeying Winters, but it does give you a look into his head space and can help you empathize a little with “Wild Bill” Guarnere.

[@gravitypronepart2201]

In reality, he had lost his weapon in the jump, and wasn't armed yet. But he did kill a lot of germans on D-Day. Also, that assault on the wagons was led by LCol. Cole, the 501st Battalion CO. The writers folded events and people together in order to get more content in, and sometimes just got it wrong. For instance, it was Guarnere who missed the one fleeing German, and Loraine who shot him. Also, while Lt. Spiers did kill some prisoners, it didn't happen as depicted. One last thing, the assault on the guns lasted a couple of hours. Private Darmato, who was with Lt Spiers, saw a blond Lt. Sitting weeping with his head in his hands. This was Winters.

[@TheLanceUppercut]

In his words: "I did a lot of killin' on D-Day."

[@THEvagabond29]

I would have been trigger happy if news of my brother is gone by the enemy too.

[@TheLanceUppercut]

@@THEvagabond29 Nobody would blame you. Nobody could blame Guarnere either.

[@moneymastermind2698]

Fair point. I could understand that. Problem was the what ifs, what if instead it just a German, what if it was a squad or battalion, or worse, what if it was a French civilian. I get the context and I know where you’re coming from man. It’s not to knock what you’re saying, I’m just bringing in Winters’ perspective as a squad commander.

[@saaamember97]

My personal motto: "Respect your elders and veterans, for you know not what they have done for you."

[@holddowna]

🙏🏽❤️

[@fozzy1004]

I was in a café with my dad as a boy who was also a career soldier, their was this old man sitting at a table by the window having his breakfast, my dad walked up to him and shook his hand and had a chat with him, when he sat down he said to me "son, see that Cain" I replied yes " that shield is the badge of the Royal Green Jackets (British Army), and that old man was one of the senior NCO's in Normandy that when in on the gliders in front of the main attack force, as they they were silent they were the very first soldiers to hit the ground in Normandy, and that old man fought all the way to Germany and served in one of the most decorated companies in the UK forces, you want to see a great soldier and a man, their he is, respect your elders son" I was just in awe, and when my dad went to pay our bill he also paid for the veterans and shook his hand as we left and I made a point of doing do too. After that day I saw him around many times in my town walking with his Cain, in the café or pub etc and always said hello, he was a very kind old man with a great sense of humour, and was a bonified bad ass, but his quality of man is very rare to find these days.

[@BauerBorn]

This mini series deserves to be experienced by all. These men deserved to have their story told. Rest easy to all of these men of Easy Company and the rest of WWII vets who aren’t here today. Different breed of men

[@holddowna]

❤️❤️❤️

[@Anon54387]

@@holddowna That guy is really not fun to have around. I don't know that anything about that situation was fun.

[@davidevans3175]

My father was a medical in Patton's 3rd from the summer of '43 until the end. He passed away two months ago at 98 years old.

[@corybrown6691]

My grandfather was company 1st sgt in 83rd ID in 3rd army. Wonder if they knew each other.

[@alexvangen745]

@@corybrown6691my grandfather was a highly decorated enlisted man/officer with two purple heats with cluster, 2 silver stars, 2 bronze stars. He served in the 78th infantry division and the 76th infantry division during ww2 in pattons third army. He served for 25 years from 1935-1960. Rest In Peace Grandpa December 13th 1917, December 31st 2013. I miss you

[@MrFletch821]

Bradley Freeman, the last surviving member of Easy Company, passed away in July 2022 at the age of 97. He returned to his home in Mississippi and worked for the U S Postal service for 40 years

[@Cauldronb0rn]

If you weren’t 100% sure, this air drop happened several hours before the beach landings that happen at the beginning of the movie Saving Private Ryan. Also at the speed the aircraft were flying, every second you wait to jump from the last guy puts you almost 300 feet away from him, more if there’s wind. The flash and thunder thing was a set of code words that I believe changed daily, and were words that native German speakers would have difficulty pronouncing correctly. For example a German speaker trying to say thunder would sound more like sunder. Guarnere, the guy that shot before Winters gave the order just found out hours ago that his brother was killed by Germans in Italy which probably explained his actions and attitude in this episode. The other beach names were Sword, Juno, and Gold if I recall correctly. Might be missing one. And finally, for future reference.. Allied tanks were generally a solid darker green while German armored vehicles were mostly gray or tan with some sort of camouflage pattern consisting of reddish brown and green stripes or spots. So Allied armor = plain dark green German armor = plain gray or mostly tan. And a bonus thing I picked up on was that in Saving Private Ryan, when they actually find the real private Ryan in the field the other guy he was with was one of the guys this show follows. Thank you for going on this journey with us! The best part about being passionate about something is being able to share your passion with others!

[@holddowna]

Thanks soooo much for ur comment and for watching!

[@miked6761]

I saw an interview with Buck Compton explaining the malfunction of his Thompson submachine gun. He, as you heard lost his weapon on the jump, he acquired the Thompson from a wounded paratrooper. He didn't find out until later that the firing pin was broken. It is cool how you see him at multiple times trying to fix it, in one of many examples of attention to detail in the series.

[@TheLanceUppercut]

Huh. You know, I've watched this series dozens of times by now and I never knew that about his Thompson. I guess I never even thought about it; considering everything going on, there could be a hundred reasons why his Thompson didn't fire. Thanks for sharing that, I love learning little details like that.

[@franklugo6928]

also, the throw that hit the back of the German with a grenade actually was going to hit him in the head, but it exploded right next to his head and blew it clean off. the writers thought that people wouldn't believe it happened, so they tuned it down to only hit him in the back instead.

[@rollomaughfling380]

Stop with the freakin' spoilers!!! What is the matter with your brain!?

[@agp11001]

@@rollomaughfling380 "freakin' spoilers" for a series that's over 20 years old? You know, there's a line on when spoilers aren't spoilers anymore. What's next? Spoiling the story of Jesus by mentioning he's getting nailed to a cross?

[@rollomaughfling380]

@@agp11001It doesn't matter how old the show is, genius-what matters is *_this person_* hasn't seen it, the rest of us are here to watch her reaction and she has specifically mentioned not wanting to be spoiled. We're here to see a reaction, not read a half-ass lecture series by a bunch of WWII Supernerds. Spoiling like this is what leads a lot of people to not engage with their comment section, which hurts their channel's numbers. It spoils the series for the reactor, it spoils the reaction for the viewer here, and hurts the channel. I don't know why you would want to defend that. Honestly don't get how these people can't just keep it in their pants 'til the end of the series, and post their (spoiling) anecdotes there. "Self-centredness" is the closest I can get.

[@commonsenseisntcommon1776]

Amazing series, and the most amazing part is it's all TRUE!! God Bless America's Greatest Generation!

[@frankrizzo4460]

God bless the greatest generation sadly they are leaving us every day. We'll never see another one like them. My uncle was in WW2 on bombing planes the stories he told me about losing his friends were unbelievable. Thank you to all of them for their service 🙏🇺🇸

[@mysam4504]

Thank you for staying with the series. These men deserve to have their story heard.

[@frankrizzo4460]

Yes I agree, what an outstanding series. Everytime it's on TV I can't stop watching it.

[@chrispyle2942]

9 is going to be rough

[@Activist88]

best WW2 series hands down

[@KristianTDI]

I think the most incredible thing about Brecourt Manor was that fact it was an almost instant improvise of an attack. The only real knowledge they had was it had a trench system, a huge number of Germans and the 4 guns. Prior to going out Winters had gone and taken a quick scan of the area, and worked out how he was gonna do it. Probably why it’s still shown today as to how it’s done. Amazing reaction as always though, I can’t wait for you to see the rest of the series 👍🏻

[@KaoretheHalfDemon]

They wanted to award Winters a Medal of Honor for Brecourt but another member of the battalion also did something medal worthy and politics stopped more then one man in a unit getting a medal for actions during a close timespan. The other man did his things slightly earlier then winters so he got it. Winters got teh Distiguished service cross i stead.

[@BauerBorn]

The details in this series are so good. For example, most people wouldn’t catch it or know but when Buck landed in Normandy he found out his Thompson would not fire (turned out to be a broken firing pin). When they take the Brecourt guns when he hops in the trench and tries to shoot the wounded German, it does not fire. Throughout the entire sequence of taking those guns, he’s seen messing with it trying to get it fixed, unsuccessfully of course, as well as having others provide covering fire instead of himself. Just a small example of the depth they went to portray things throughout this series.

[@holddowna]

Ahh thanks for the facts

[@frankrizzo4460]

I wish they would have made a series like this for the Korean War, my Dad was in that one. He was there for almost two years on the front lines ended up getting injured on Triangle Hill they eventually sent him home but he wanted to rejoin up with his company and didn't like leaving them behind. I can't imagine the bravery of this generation of people and I just will say thank you to them for all they did for us and our way of life.🙏🇺🇸

[@gravitypronepart2201]

I doubt that Spielberg and Hanks would make such a movie, but you are right. That was an important part of our history. Please thank your Dad for his service for me. His was no less great.

[@alexvangen745]

My grandfather served throughout the entire Korea n War as a major in the us army. It’s a miracle he made it because the enemy targeted officers on the front lines. Some officers in the army led their troops from the rear while my grandfather always led from the front lines. He always led missions/ patrols from the point man.

[@francisbrady2739]

This cast was stellar in every respect. My son and I watch this miniseries as well as its sister series Pacific and Masters of the Air every year on Memorial Day. As a Veteran myself, these, Saving Private Ryan and Blackhawk Down represent the most accurate depicitions ever! Well done!

[@edwardwitek6909]

Prior to jumping in Normandy the 101st Airborne adopted the practice of painting a playing card on the side of the helmets of each soldier to quickly identify which unit they were assigned to. Easy Company was part of the 506th PAR and its symbol was the ace of spades. Other regiments had hearts, diamonds and clubs.

[@holddowna]

Yes great idea

[@maumor2]

Courageous young soldiers setting an example. While staying in France years ago, riding my bike I saw a little sign CIMETIERE AMERICAIN it took me to the Meusse Argonne American Cementery where 14246 Americand that died in WWI are buried. I have been to Arlington National Cemetery but this was a shock. Soldiers that died in the Meusse offensive of 1918 lie there. There are several American cemeteries in Europe because at the time it was very hard to bring the bodies home. They rest with their brothers in the land they fought

[@72mossy]

Love your genuine reaction to Band of Brothers. I'm not American but Irish and have been to all Dday beaches several times. This year I was at Utah beach museum, I was at Brecourt Manor, its private property now so saw the 101st memorial near the Manor. There is a lovely statue of Dick Winters between St Marie du mont and Utah beach. We drive around Normandy most years with the kids, we get the ferry over from Ireland and bring the car. My grandfather was in British homeguard during ww2 in London along with his wife. My mother was born in London during the blitz. Luckily they came back home to Tipperary in 52.

[@ryanpauloneeyed9669]

Winters is definitely the symbol of heroism to be me, and my personal hero. An amazing human being.

[@henrygoleau]

Day of Days and Carentan are my favorite episodes of the whole series, but the whole series is just second to none for me. I served in the French paratroops as a conscript. The drop bag is tethered to the parachute harness, it contains your musette or rucksack with your essentials (like rations, possibly other items like sleeping bag, etc.) not sure about the weapon in their case, as that would have needed to be ready as soon as possible upon landing, but that could also depend on the type of weapon, i.e. Garand M1 rifle, BAR or Thompson submachine gun all being different sizes). As you approach the ground during your jump, you release the tethered drop bag so that you don't break your legs because of it when you tuck and roll when landing.

[@holddowna]

Thanks for your comment! I am excited to re watch all these episodes again

[@m_v__m_v]

Finally! Lol... this series gets better and better as you go through the episodes. Yes there will be more tears but it's definitely worth it.

[@jlinkous05]

Better and better, and worse and worse. If this one got her crying, oohhh boy she'd better have a COVID-hoard of tissues!

[@derekharrison1582]

BAND OF BROTHERS has to be one of the best TV SERIES EVER MADE.It’s so hard to believe that this series came out in 2001,and was shown on BBC on a Friday evening.Spielberg and Hanks produced an absolute classic.THE PACIFIC the follow up series is a classic too.There’s a THIRD in the trilogy called MASTERS OF THE AIR, about the US EIGHTH AIRFORCE,coming soon.

[@krisfrederick5001]

"Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops," Eisenhower wrote. "My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone." Dwight D. Eisenhower Supreme Allied Commander. This was his other speech. D-Day was never a guarantee..

[@kissmy_butt1302]

That speech and Nixon's prepared speech if the first Apollo moon landing failed are incredible. Thank god they were never needed.

[@krisfrederick5001]

Amen to that my friend@@kissmy_butt1302

[@Pete-p4l]

Band of Brothers is the best thing ever put on television. The ride will get rougher from here, but every moment is worth watching

[@jakesanchez7235]

The man who was killed asking Lipton “where company command” when they were attacking the artillery guns was named Andrew Hill. There’s a KZbinr (I can’t remember off the top of my head) who does a great video about the paratrooper, but he isn’t named in the series. I thought I’d let y’all know his name at the very least. It’s what Andrew Hill deserves. They brought the flag that was at his funeral to the site that he died! Also, Captain Sobel would’ve been killed IF he wasn’t sent to the other school. The plane that he was going to be on was shot down, including the person who Simon peg played in the first episode. The German soldier that was from Oregon actually worked next door to Malarky but the writers didn’t think it was realistic enough so they made it across the town.

[@daddynitro199]

Malarkey’s encounter with the Volksdeutsche soldier wasn’t until a couple days after D-Day, so he wasn’t on the business end of Speirs’ Thompson. That story was folded into the D-Day episode for narrative purposes, and would have probably been more difficult to integrate into another part of the series.

[@mariuszpudzianowski8400]

Volksdeutsche is a crazy thing to think about, especially since they have been present in european countries like Poland too.

[@ChuckS117]

I didn't know Sobel would have been on that plane. The thought of it must have hit him hard in life.

[@obluraschibus]

@@ChuckS117 that was the company CO plane, Meehan became CO after Sobel got reassigned.

[@debelmeis2311]

Lol of course. But truth is always stranger than fiction

[@andyreeves616]

All for our freedom. God bless them all. Never forgotten.🙏🏻🕯

[@holddowna]

Thanks for watching!

[@drummy2112]

Ames, thank you for watching this series and for your eloquence. The vets and the people back on the home front are the reasons why we are able to live our lives the way we do. 🇺🇲😍 much love to you

[@holddowna]

Thanks for watching ❤️

[@johnh383]

Your in for an emotional roller coaster

[@davidyoung745]

This was my Dad’s war. He was in the 1st Infantry Division from Feb 1941 to Oct 1945. He went to fight in North Africa early in ‘42 where he was wounded and spent 6 weeks in hospital. Then he went on to fight in all 5 campaigns the division was in, although he only received medals for 4 of them. He also received the Purple Heart for being wounded and the Bronze Star for valor. He carried those German she’ll fragments from North Africa in his legs and back until he died in 2008. These men really were the greatest generation.

[@DavidDeBoalt-ll1xv]

Our grandparents and great grand parents were amazing people. Their sacrifices, both at home and abroad, should never be forgotten

[@catherinelw9365]

Parents for some of us.

[@Activist88]

the greatest generation

[@stuntdriver2147]

This mini-series should be required viewing in highschool history classes - period.

[@krisfrederick5001]

Well, this is when the sh*t gets real. "We're not lost Private...we're in Normandy." This one line displays Winter's ability to instill confidence in his men, even unarmed in the face of all adversity. And this soldier wasn't even a member of Easy Company. Currahee ♠

[@SuperHns]

Winters was such an incredible and smart person, he didnt even want to be there and I think this is what kept him on his feet and so ahead of the rest.

[@stephenweaver7631]

The beaches were Omaha and Utah in the American sector, and Gold, Sword, and Juno in the British/Canadian sector. Omaha was a bloodbath. On Utah, as well as the 101st's silencing the German guns at Brecourt Manor, the tide washed the landing forces off course, and General Teddy Roosevelt (the former president's son) took advantage of the situation and made a very successful assault. BTW, General Roosevelt was the highest ranking commander to land on D-day in the first wave, and he survived the landings, but tragically died of heart failure a few days later.

[@holddowna]

Thanks so much for this comment

[@billrab1890]

When general Roosevelt was told that they landed in the wrong location he famously said "then we'll start the war from right here"

[@ghengriff3600]

We all should learn history so that we learn from it. The Canadians in WW II were given dangerous missions and performed exceptionally.

[@holddowna]

🇨🇦❤️

[@alanclontz1783]

You are a angel seeing how you see this has helped me with my PTSD many years thank you young lady

[@robertrouse4503]

Famed actor Jimmy Stewart flew 20 successful combat missions as a bomber pilot during WWII. He eventually became a 2-star General.

[@AbruptandOffensive]

“Follow me!“ - An American officer without a weapon. God bless America The American spirit.

[@seanbumstead1250]

The 5 beaches on D-day were Omaha and Utah for the Americans, Gold and Sword for the British and Juno for the Canadians. My 2 great uncles fought at Juno and there older brother my grandfather was in Italy fighting

[@franklugo6928]

the Aussies landed with the British? i forgot where they landed, but I know they too were there.

[@catherinelw9365]

@@franklugo6928 No, the Aussies went home after the Africa campaign. They wanted to defend their homeland from the Japanese, who bombed Darwin.

[@franklugo6928]

@@catherinelw9365 it was the Canadians that I was thinking about. They landed on "Juno" Although I did find out that over 500 Aussies served on Royal navy vessels that participated on D-Day, and another 2k-2.5k served in the Royal Air Force and that Royal Australian Air Force squadrons took part on D-Day which included fighter and fighter bomber squadrons which operated over the beaches in support of the invasion. 14 Australians were lost on D-Day, 2 members of the navy, and 12 from the Royal Australian Air Force. Another 4 Aussie airmen died the night before in the preparations for the landings.

[@TheLanceUppercut]

If you like the interviews with the real vets the characters are based on, you're gonna love We Stand Alone Together. It's a companion documentary from which all the interviews for the show were lifted. That's the whole thing. It's interviews with the surviving (at the time) members of Easy Company as they go through their experiences with the war and after. It's basically the 11th episode of Band of Brothers and a must watch once the series proper is over.

[@Alte.Kameraden]

13:14 fun fact the grenade that went off was a German Stick Grenade, they were not fragmentation grenades, though did have some fragments from the thing metal casing around the explosives.. but they were not designed to fragment. The Germans used them more as a suppression device, a flash bang in modern sense so infantry could storm a trench. So they were made not to be that lethal. This would change however, as the Germans introduced other grenades, and even fragmentation sleeves that they could put over top their primary grenade. So it's actually understandable and VERY possible for him to survive that grenade without even a scratch.

[@afewsnakes]

I don’t know what it is. I am brought to tears every time I revisit BoB & specifically; when I hear Maj. Winter’s speak. Either Damien Lewis’ portrayal or the various interviews he gave, it breaks me. That quote at the end where he’s reflecting & makes his promise… it’s just so tragic. Human beings are tragic. We all want peace & love but our inherent nature has precluded us throughout history into killing & hurting eachother. An even bigger mindfuck I can’t even begin to wrap my mind around is the fact that after the war when the dust settles & the men who participated in the war realize their enemy was no different than them (not counting the SS & other truly evil arms of the Nazi movement). Just people caught in the wrong place & time. My great grandfather was drafted into the Wehrmacht in 1941 during the Russian offensive. He was captured by the Russians & spent the remainder of the war in some gulag. Following the war when my family had already fled to America, the Red Cross somehow intercepted & notified my family of my great grandfathers status. He went on to live the rest of his years in Germany. My grandmother and her sisters, while they fled from Prussia, to Germany, and finally America had to do shameful things to stay alive; sleeping with German soldiers for rations etc. Point is this war was the direct result of complacency and propaganda. The only people who came out on top were the bank rollers & corporate leaders; Ford, Bush (yes, of *that* Bush name), Rockefeller, just to name a few, were directly responsible for fueling the Nazi war machine. There was even a Nazi headquarters here in NYC leading up to America joining the war.

[@kellywalker9268]

Thank you for bringing awareness to WW2 and all veterans. As a veteran of the war in Iraq, I thank you for using your voice for this.

[@holddowna]

Thank you for ur service! Thank you for watching! I’ve been changed!

[@Bar-Lord]

Neal McDonough seems to be very underrated as an actor. I don’t see him get nearly the credit he should in anything he does. This is a great showcase for him.

[@Zaburino]

It may have been short-lived, but I remember he got a lot of praise while he was on Justified. I have heard he is a devout catholic and lost several roles for refusing to do sex scenes and such.

[@Bar-Lord]

@@ZaburinoI’ve heard the same. More power to him for drawing a line and sticking to it. I remember him getting a lot of hate for his role in the Arrow-verse, which I thought he was quite good given how everything was written.

[@paulf7843]

I've done the D-day tours a few times. Was lucky enough to be over in Normandy and saw when they unveiled the bronze sculpture of Dick Winters. Was a very special moment. Its an important historical document. The book and the series.

[@zurnie]

I have been a gamer most of my life. To put that in perspective, at my age gaming started with pong. When it came out. So, that being said when the game Medal of Honor came out we all dived into the game head first. The game started with the air drop into Normandy. The subsequent attack on the German artillery portrayed in this episode. It may have only been around 10 to 15 minutes of game time but it felt like a life time. Dragging you into the adrenaline rush of those moments. Parachuting through antiaircraft and heavy machine gun fire. You felt it. When the attack on the field guns started I was astonished. I knew it because in the game I had lived it. Complete immersion. Watching you react to these scenes was like seeing a friend or relative viewing a home movie you are sharing with them. Will continue to follow your journey through the Band of Brothers.

[@tduffy5]

Malarkey and the American/German soldier actually worked across the street from each other in Oregon, but the producer didn't think that the audience would believe it. So they made it a hundred miles.

[@eschiedler]

My great-uncle fought in this campaign in France. I've been to the American Cemetery overlooking Omaha beach in Normandy. It was a fine calm day. Later, we bought some cider at a farmhouse from a nice country lady. Completely senseless to fight over such a beautiful civilization but this is the most realistic depiction of how it was done.

[@gravitypronepart2201]

The allies were tight to fight.

[@michaelbriefs9764]

My ex-wife is a huge WWII history fan and we and our daughter all bonded on B.O.B., back when it first came out. My daughter and I still watch it once a year together -- I mean we binge the crap out of it -- and we fall in love with the men that the actors are portraying so well, every year. We love Winters and Nix and Luz and Speirs and the whole crew (except for Sobel, haha)! Great, great show! My Dad was at The Battle of the Bulge (w Army Intelligence) so I think about him every time I see the show.

[@theironherder]

Lady, you never disappoint. Once more, your heart sustains you through the trauma we suffered vicariously. Thank you.

[@holddowna]

Thank u soo much for watching ❤️

[@matthewphillips80]

No matter how many times I’ve seen this series it still gets me every time. The bravery, sacrifice.. it all is so overwhelming. These episodes are so perfectly bridged with the introduction from the actual soldiers themselves.

[@kevinsteiber2001]

My grandfarget stormed the BEACHES AND LIVED. WHAT THOSE GUYS WWENT THROUGH IS AMAZING

[@Insanitywelcome]

For the record, the banter and the insults and cursing at each other. That’s honestly how we talk to each other still to this day lol. Long live the Army!

[@holddowna]

Lol!

[@arwiviv]

Ive seen this series at least 20-30 times. Its that good. I still tear up every time I watch it. Epi 2 was a great episode, but certainly not the hardest for the viewer to emotionally get through. At this point in the series youve just BEGUN to start really getting attached to these men.

[@WaywardVet]

I love the one guy snoozing on the plane because it's realistic. Let the pilot fly, the navigator navigate. I don't see any gunners but if you have one, obviously they gun. Everyone else is cargo. Let that sink in. Many times in the military, you will be nothing but cargo. So have a smoke, or in these days dip. Read a book. Or take a nap. You're just cargo. Enjoy the ride, be refreshed and ready when it's time to move.

[@philipcoggins9512]

The Spade on the side of the helmet was the marker of the 506th PIR. The various regiments of the 101st were demarked by the suits on their helmets, which is a tradition the 101st carries on to this day. Being in the aviation brigade, mine was the Diamond.

[@guymelton1094]

Not just US history , but World history, love the channel, thank you for sharing your views 😊👍✌️🇺🇸

[@reneepope-munro8115]

I say this with utter love - please triple whatever hydration and crying management plans you have loaned for upcoming episodes - all of them, but in particular for 3, 6, 7 and 9. This show is an absolute masterpiece, with the added layer of it being true stories it is an immense emotional undertaking.

[@canadian__ninja]

3 shouldn't be too bad but the rest are tear jerkers for even the toughest people.

[@mrichards6795]

Good reaction! The Americans took (codenamed) Omaha and Utah beaches. (If you saw "Saving Private Ryan", you will know that Omaha beach was extremely difficult to take!) The British took Gold and Sword beaches. (The remnants of the French army that was able to escape to the U.K. at Dunkirk in 1940, fought with the British at Sword beach.) The Canadians took Juno beach (and moved farther inland than the other armies invading Normandy on that day).

[@holddowna]

Thanks so much for watching! And ur comment!

[@joshv9139]

This is a great reaction. Here's a little history. So in saving private Ryan that was the amphibious invasion on Normandy code names Omaha Utah sword and gold. The enemy had the beach line and behind the beach line was artillery that was raining down on the beach. It was the airborne's objective to take out that artillery so that the men on the beach weren't getting bombarded with indirect artillery fire. It's great to watch saving Private Ryan and it's great to watch this because you get the depiction of both the people who landed on Omaha and Utah and gold and sword beach and you get the depiction of the airborne who landed behind the beach line to support everybody on the beach line. Another fact on June 5th the army air corps was supposed to drop bombs along the beach line. But the weather was so foggy that they could not see out of their analog sites. So they just kind of winged it and dropped the bombs when they felt "they were over the beach". It literally had no effect because it just ended up blowing up farmland and cows.

[@johannesvalterdivizzini1523]

I had the pleasure of meeting Dick Winters at a cafe on a military base near where he lived. We enjoyed a drink together and a had a nice chat. He asked, so I told him about my dad's service in WWII and Korea in the Air Force, and my grandfather's in WWL. He was gracious and told me that my dad was a hero and that I should be proud to be his son. Unforgettable

[@AbruptandOffensive]

That one drink from Winters earned the respect of every man in his squad knowing he led them with no fear.

[@andymiller6661]

Winters wasn't a squad leader

[@AbruptandOffensive]

@@andymiller6661 you can be a squad leader without having the respect of your men. And he wasn’t a team leader.

[@andymiller6661]

@@AbruptandOffensive I never said anything about respect. I did, however, have a typo. I meant to say that he wasn't a squad leader. Not at any point in his time in the Army.

[@digitalbegley]

There is never anything that brings it home to you more about your responsibilities as an Army Officer when you have to say 'Follow me'.

[@_MrOcean]

It's hard enough to watch this without crying, YOU AIN'T HELPING LADY :)

[@holddowna]

😅thanks for watching with me!

[@dallassukerkin6878]

I was thinking much the same thing :chuckles:

[@WARdROBEPlaysWWII]

1:18 those veterans make me cry every time and I’ve seen this series at least 4-5 times and in numbered times through these reactions

[@Thunderer0872]

A lot of the Veterans joked proudly that until their reunions in France in the 60's & 1970's they had never landed in an aircraft since the war. After all, their jumps were from perfectly working aircraft and they jumped out of them 5 or 6 times.

[@silvers983]

The 101st Airborne used various symbols (like the suits of playing cards) to identify various regiments. The spade symbols on the side of the helmet were to identify members of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, which is the main regiment the show follows. Diamonds are for the 501st Parachute Infantry, hearts are for the 502nd, clubs for the 327th Glider Infantry etc.

[@TheWindcrow]

You are so wholesome, thank you.

[@scottloy89]

Amazing series and glad it was put out there for the world to discover and remember. Today's society/youth does not understand what was sacrificed for their generations. The time when men were real men and gave all for others without asking for anything in return... unlike today's selfishness. The youth and service members, compared to today's people at the same age, are a whole other world of maturity and difference. I think I was intrigued by your reactions as much as the series. It drew me in to see you respond! I watched all your videos on the series.

[@gordonduke8812]

I don't think anybody who hasn't seen combat can truly understand the true desire for peace. Great reaction.

[@holddowna]

Thanks for watching ❤️

[@Aslaug75]

That moment when the first navy shell goes overhead ... survivors described the sound as something akin to a freight train. The biggest shells were 14 and 16 inch rounds from the various battleships in the channel ... a 16' shell weighing roughly the same as a small, modern car. That is an absolutely unholy amount of "boom" going overhead. Most of the smaller calibre weapons from cruisers and destroyers lacked the range to get very far inland, but they could, on the other hand, fire FAR more rapidly with 5 and 8 inch guns. One Royal Navy ship, the HMS Ajax, already famous for her stuuuupidly accurate shooting, became quite famous for neatly putting an 8 inch shell through the firing slit of a centrally placed, German artillery-bunker, blowing the whole thing to kingdom come. Today, only one of the battleships that took part in that shore bombardment still exists. The USS Texas, originally a WWI "Dreadnought"-style battleship that had been modernised, was there. She's just been repaired and renovated and looks as good as new. I'd like to imagine it's one of her 14' shells going overhead in that scene.

[@mathewwadsworth3015]

I'm not sure if someone else mentioned this already, but the spade on the side of their helmet is a symbol for the 506th Regiment, of which Easy Company was a part. The 101st Airborne Division had 4 regiments at the time, including the 506th. Each regiment had a different playing card symbol on the side of their helmet to help them identify each other.

[@merkury06]

I didn't realize you were Canadian. I'm sure you know many Canadians fought and died on D-Day, which is not covered in Band of Brothers much if at all, including James Doohan, aka Scotty in Star Trek who was wounded in the invasion. This was a very moving episode and you covered it excellently as always.

[@DirtnapJack]

The spade on the helmet was to indicate which regiment a soldier was in within the division. In Easy’s case it was the 506th. The 101st used the suits from cards along with a few other markings. It goes company - battalion - regiment - division. It made reorganizing easier and you could at least tell what units were near.

[@travismorris9303]

Each regiment had its own helmet markings, a spade was for 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment. Officers had a vertical stripe on the back, NCOs had a horizontal stripe.

[@originalequi6043]

oh boy i already have goosebumps when i think about the very end of the series

[@matadustin]

It only gets better. As tough as it is to watch, this series is easily re-watchable and many people, including myself, have seen this series dozens of times. Keep up the phenomenal content.

[@Tipi83]

11:55 "Playing card symbols; hearts, spade, diamonds or clubs, they were used on helmets to quickly identify if you were among your own unit. This was most useful during amphibious or airborne operations where various units could be easily intermixed. While most soldiers would have a division patch on their sleeve, the various regiments and battalions would need a further means of identifying their troops." "The spades seen on the helmets of Easy Company in Band of Brothers were the real symbol of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. As a result, the symbols on soldiers' helmets made regrouping easier, offering a clear and simple way to visually identify a soldier's regiment in the heat of battle."

[@claya7580]

From his book, Winters did lose his rifle and picked up a German weapon while he was lost, but when he fired it, the Americans were so well trained, they recognized the sound and immediately opened fire in his direction.

[@marksabottke338]

The white playing card symbols were used as a quick method to ID the unit that you were assigned to, Clubs, Hearts, Spade & Diamond. This helps soldiers to get organized in the confusion. Easy unit had a Spade, if another soldier had a different symbol, you could know what his unit was from. This is helpful if an officer gives you an order, he could tell if you were from his unit or another.

[@jamesa.6778]

And that young lady is why they call those who fought in that war the "Greatest Generation", because they were.

[@joshuawells835]

Utah and Omaha Beaches were the codenames for the American landing zones. The others were Sword and Gold Beaches (the British landing zones) and Juno Beach (the Canadian landing zone). The Canadians had attempted a similar assault called Operation Jubilee in August of 1942, but failed to secure the beachhead. For the Canadian troops, Operation Overlord was reception for the failures of Jubilee. "To be a good soldier you must love the army. But to be a good commander, you must be willing to order the death of the thing you love. That is a very hard thing to do. No other profession requires it. That is the one reason why there are so very dew good officers. Although there are many good men." General Robert E. Lee, Commander of the Army of Northern Virginia in Michael Shaara's The Killer Angels, later adapted into the film Gettysburg.

[@negativenancy9482]

this together with episode 3 are by far my favorite. what these men did here is truly miraculous. also a nice part about this episode is that throughout the brecour assault you can see him messing with his thompson to get it to work. this is due to the firing pin being broken and that was true in the real life assault aswell i blelieve. i think thats a nice detail

[@TheBrownSys]

The "lucky spade" on the side of the helmet is the symbol of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment.

[@ven_skywalker7007]

i remember reading about how members of the 4th Infantry who landed on Utah beach described hell raining on them and then all of a sudden it stopped and was calm and quiet. or as calm and quiet as you can get in that situation. i cant imagine the adrenaline and relief the men landing on the beaches felt after easy company took out the guns

[@jonathanross149]

The entire show is sadly beautiful.

[@TheTenthWave]

In Guarnere's defense, right before they got on the planes he learned his brother had been killed by the Germans fighting in Italy. He was angry and looking for revenge for the death of his brother.

[@randomlyentertaining8287]

The leg bag worked fine, so long as you used it properly and jumped in proper conditions. Many Americans overloaded their bags and many of the planes they jumped from were going much faster than they should've been. While the jump was chaos, most of the paratroopers landed mostly where they needed to. Considering how things could've gone, the operation was a grand success. Winters' assault on those guns was so perfect, it's still taught in training to this day.

[@martensjd]

Thanks--great reaction. And no need to apologize for tears; effectively the tears show empathy and that's a good thing. I jumped a couple times at a local airport when in college in the '70s using Army surplus chutes. The plane slowed to 80 (knots or MPH, I don't remember which), and those winds were plenty strong. The copilot, just before he was hit, said they were going 150 (knots, probably) when they were 3 minutes from the drop zone. 3 minutes at 150 MPH would put them about 7.5 miles short of the drop zone. At that speed, it's not surprising they lost their leg bags. Anyhow, being just 7 km from the rendezvous is not bad considering what was going on when they jumped.

[@holddowna]

Ahh! Thanks so much for watching and leaving ur comment ❤️

[@youngchell45]

And can we take a second and recognize that, whenever possible, Winters didn’t hang back during the dangerous situations. Army doctrine had him out if the plane first, sure. But when they were sprinting through open field to get to the trenches, his command was, “Follow me!” He was always first. It never even crossed his mind not to lead from the front. If you are any kind of leader, Richard Winters should be who you look up to and aspire to be.

[@davidperkins9603]

Ronald Speirs was an absolute beast of a soldier.

[@solitaryjeff]

Meehan replaced Sobel as commander and it cost him his life. There's a memorial in Normandy at the site where Meehan's plane crashed. The "flash" "thunder" code words were chosen because Germans cannot pronounce the "th" sound. They would say "tunder" so you'd know it was an ally if they correctly replied "thunder"

[@kencray4453]

I agree that Winters was a SPECIAL field commander. But this is combat, and I think they captured that idea perfectly.

[@sweepist]

Spiers is a piece of work . Gives me the creeps but definitely would have wanted him on my side for sure !

[@salmanilla7943]

Recommend watching The History Underground on KZbin. It's a nice companion piece to Band of Brothers. They have several episodes on Easy Co. where they travel to the actual locations from their training at Currahee to Bastonge. There's an episode on this battle at Brecourt Manor, where there is a memorial.

[@holddowna]

Cool thanks for letting me know

[@steveg5933]

As will be stated. You must watch the documentary We Stand Alone Together. AFTERyou finish this series. (The intro clips to the episodes are taken friom this). Also , the series only gets more challenging to get through from here. Episodes 7& 9, at least for me being the toughest. I say that as a 10 year veteran of the US Navy, I was a Hospital Corpsman serving with the Marines.

[@holddowna]

Yes I must watch it!

[@Chicken_Nugget1]

Your service is honoured.

[@stephdegoede8316]

Interesting fact (if you will). The 101st and 82nd airborne divisions are the most famous in the US military. The 82nd has an AA in a blue circle inside a red square. It stands for "All American" as the division intentionally selected members from all states in the US to create a sense of unity. They are still an airborne division, ie, they just from planes with parachutes. During the Vietnam war the 101st changed to a primarily air assault division. They are mostly flown in by helicopters and repel from it with ropes (think Zero Dark Thirty, although that was a SEAL team).

[@raven_1133]

2:45 This is what allied air units called “Flak”. It was basically normal shells, but they were set to a timed fuze, of course some math would need to be put into it, but usually they’d send them up after eyeing the distance and just setting to Fuze to explode at a time which they thought it would detonate at the altitude they think the enemy is at.