Post your questions here for Part Five of "The Pacific" airing Sunday, April 11 at 9:00pm, only on HBO.

Hi Bruce, me again :)

Like any parent you probably try not to have favourites and even if you do, you don't admit it. But when writing three such diverse Marines as Leckie, Basilone and Sledge, did you find one character easier to write than the others? Did you find yourself identifying with, or more sympathetic toward one particular character?
The series began tonight on NZ TV and all I can say is, wow! You must be very proud with what you have created.
Thanks again :)

Simple S --

Thanks. You're right about favorites! I didn't favor anyone of them, but definitely found Leckie the hardest to write. I think all the other writers would agree, all of whom, like me, struggled to find the right balance between Leckie's wit, his humor, his aggression, and his deep suspicion of authority. Basilone was more of an enigma because he never wrote a book, but we had enough of his letters and info from his friends and family that a pretty good picture of him developed. Sledge was, for me, the easiest to write. That's not only because of his book, but because his arc for the Series was more "classical". The first half of the Series is more Leckie than anything; the Second half is more Sledge...so it's hard to say who to be more sympathetic to. They compliment each other. As for Basilone, I loved having him as a character because he really is a classic Greek hero: do or die, which accurately reflects so much of the elan and heroism of the marines in WWII.

Already I'm seeing the difference in Leckie from the beginning of the series until now...he didn't seem quite as "cocky" (maybe that's not the right word) or as willing to flout authority as he has been in the past. At the same time he seems to have turned into a great Marine.

All I know is, at the end of last night's episode I could have watched another 2 hours. When Sledge said something like "tomorrow we go over there" I wanted to see what happens next. I guess that's a sign that I'm hooked.

Now that we're halfway through, is there any part thus far you wish had been done differently from a writer's perspective? I imagine there are always little things that bug you, and I was curious as to what they were.

Thanks for talking to SimSim and myself! I love the series thus far.

Jay --

Thanks. A lot of people who are critical of the Series only watched one or two episodes. When you see all Ten...when you reflect on them, you will see that it really is one ten hour movie. I'm glad you're hooked!

Patton --

THere isn't enough space! There are lots of things I wish we had done differently or better. Not the structure. I think the structure of the Series works. And when you see all Ten episodes, I think you'll agree. But there are individual scenes that I wish I had written better, or I wish had been shot better, or cut better. That's only natural with something this ambitious. Like most people, I wish the episodes were longer!

Hey Bruce,

Last night's episode was absolutely fantastic. I thought the first four episodes were great but 5 was the series I have been "expecting" for the last 6-7 years. Each scene just really flowed together nicely.

One thing I was wondering about...once you had decided to use Sledge's book, were there any ideas about making Phillips the third main character? Possibly still using Leckie's book but flip-flopping their roles and concentrating on Phillips? Not to say it would have been better either way but it seems like this idea must have at least been brought to the table. I think showing some scenes of Sledge and Phillips before the war just goofing off like kids do would have really driven home their youthful innocence. I personally would have loved to see Phillips when he went to enlist and got pulled aside by the Marine recruiter as well as a re-creation of him taking pictures with his family and Sledge in his dress uniform. Anyway, I would just like to hear some insight from you on this.

Thanks for answering all these questions! I have really been enjoying reading your responses.

Silt --

No, As great as Sid is as a character, he's too close to Eugene in temperment (Sid was actually a great jokester...and Sid was a bit more serious). Leckie's temperment, his disillusionment, was so profound, I knew we needed to focus on him. And Sid's out of the war by Episode Five. I wrote the scene of Phillips and the Marine recruiter. Wished it could have been in the Series. And we had a few scenes of Eugene and Sid playing around before Sid joined. But alas...they ended up in Screenwriting Purgatory.

It's important to note that Sid's war...as bad as it was...will prove to be "nothing" compared to Eugene's. That's what makes the Crab torture scene on the beach in ep 5 so poignant. They two have little in common at this juncture...but Eugene's journey will become far darker than Sid's.

The character of Sid almost seemed too mild-mannered or laid-back to be a Marine. I want to read his book to see if that was actually the case in real life. Also, I don't know if J. B. Dale is like his character in real life or if he's just a heck of a good actor.

Looks like the ratings have been pretty consistent. According to my sources (OK, USA Today LOL), last week's episode had 2.7 million viewers. Now that's more than the Treme premiere after it (granted, that was late on a Sunday night) and more than the Tudors premiere. Like I said earlier, I was actually mad when last week's episode was over, as if to say "you mean I have to wait a week to see what happens next???".

Hi Bruce, here's something a few of us over at the fan forum are wondering.

In Helmet for my Pillow, there are several passages that refer to Leckie being, if not a devout Catholic, at least a man of some spirituality. In fact he closes the book with a prayer: "...to that Victim whose Sign rose above the World two thousand years ago, to be menaced now by that other sign now rising, I say a prayer of contrition...dear Father, forgive us for that awful cloud."

I'm wondering how Leckie came to say "I have no use for him" in the scene where he discusses religion and god with Gene Sledge. It would seem the Film Leckie has lost faith, but I'm not sure I caught that theme in the book. Could you talk a little about that? Having only read through the book once, I'm not as familiar with the material as you guys, who lived and breathed the pages for years, so your comments would be appreciated. Thanks!

Jay

Sid is mild mannered. A real gentlemen. But he's not too mild mannered to be a marine. Marines, especially Marines from WWII came in all types and sizes. And JB Dale is a great actor. As for the ratings, you have to take them with a grain of salt. People are watching the Series on the repeat days and Tivoing, all of which skews the numbers. All I know is that HBO is very happy.

Matt --

Good question. Leckie was indeed a very religious man. He wrote a history of the Saints after the war. But remember, he wrote his book ten years after the end of the war, and so I don't actually believe that his prayer at the end of Helmet reflects the state of his soul during the war, particularly on Peleliu. Having said that, I don't think he ever questioned his faith as much as we portray, but he did have a serious emotional crisis in the War. Keep watching, you'll see what happens. Suffice it to say, Leckie's feelings about God evolve.

Hey Bruce.

Firstly, I must thank you for writing a terrific episode. I thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact I believe that this episode surpasses each and everyone of the Band of Brothers episodes in quality. I especially liked Haney and those scenes of Sledge and Phillips on the beach and Leckie and Sledge discussing about God and all. I really hope that all the future episodes will emulate episode five and I can't wait to see episode nine which all the critics have lauded as one of the best 60 minutes ever shot on film.

Anyway, a few questions.

Why are the dates so vague? I really don't understand why September 15 1944 was not written in the place of September, 1944. This is the same for the episode on Iwo Jima where February 1945 is written instead of 19 February 1945.

In 'With The Old Breed' Sledge was transported to the beach on a LVT2, that had no tailgate, but in the series we see him in a LVT4, which had a tailgate. Why was this done? In Episode One, in the Battle of the Tenaru, there was a LVT2 on the river. Why wasn't this used instead of the LVT4?

Will viewers get a function on the DVD/Bluray disc that will allow all the episodes to be viewed all at once minus the intro and credits?

Lastly, if it won't bother you, could you answer the questions posted by TRDG in the episode four forum (you probably missed it. He posted a new thread outside of your one) and these questions that I posted on episode one?

Why was there a close-up scene of Leckie at Cape Gloucester in the pouring rain at the end? That scene really felt so incongruous and funny.

Did anyone complain about the M1903A3s during the shooting of the Guadalcanal scenes? To be honest, they kind of ruin the episode for me and many people feel the same way too. It's understandable if the production couldn't obtain any M1903 Springfields but man they just seem so out of place. It's akin to shooting scenes of Marines with M16A4s during the Vietnam War.

Why weren't some facts included at the end of the episode before the credits?

Thank you and sorry for asking a lot of questions. I hope that you do not mind.

Divine --

Good questions all, although I must say that if getting the model on the Springfields wrong really ruined the episode for you...you might want to take a deep breath and rethink what's important to depict in War movies! (We were told by our armorer they were accurate...but if they are wrong, I have to take full responsibility for that).

I'm glad you like Ep 5. It's really strong and very well directed by Carl Franklin. FIve Six and Seven are the heart of the Series.

Dates....I think the decision to make the dates vague (and it was made above my pay grade) was meant to add a sense of universality to the series...in the sense that the specifics of dates were not as important as the experience of the men...not just on these particular islands, but all over the Pacific, in every branch, and indeed, in all wars and conflicts. It may not work for you, and I respect that.

ah..the dreaded LVT2 issue. I'm glad it didn't ruin Ep five for you! ; )

the LVT2 you see on the Canal didn't have an engine in it. It's just a frame. So we had no choice but to use the LVT4. What's missing from the Episode is a simple line from one of the men "The gate's jammed". That would have solved this anachronism. Blame me for that screw up.

As for the close up on Cape Gloucester. Yikes! What a goof. The only excuse is that when you have people working for YEARS on a something, it's often times hard to see the forest through the trees. This is why you get funny typos in published Novels...even though two or three editors have vetted it a hundred times. This particular shot was added very late in the production...and I think the editor probably didn't know the anachronism. I couldn't be in the editing room 24/7.

Every episode in its script form had facts at the end. They made you think and provided a context for what we had just scene. They weren't included in the final versions. Not my choice, brother. Enough said?

Keep'em coming.

Damn, good answers. Oh well, it's all understandable I guess.

'ah..the dreaded LVT2 issue. I'm glad it didn't ruin Ep five for you! ; )'

The CGI on that LVT4 blowing up kind of did. It just seemed artificial but it was quick so it wasn't really that distracting. It would have been more poignant and rather shocking if it the explosion was rendered more realistic.

Anyway, more questions.

'Ep. 4. Yes. we eschewed training scenes like the plague. The one we show is important to establish Eugene's progression from naive kid to warrior. We shot a couple of others for different episodes, but they didn't work in the Series, so we cut them.'

So were there several long scenes shot of Sledge at the Marion Military Institute (or rather Scotch College Melbourne or Melbourne High School)? If they were (which is very probable due to Dale Dye's mention of this in his blog), please tell me who makes all these decisions to cut the scenes because I really think that it is a gross waste of money to have shot scenes that would not be included in film!

OK, this might sound silly, but were you forced to include sex scenes in the script by HBO? I'm fine with the sex scenes being included in Episode Three but I really felt that the sex scene in Episode Five was gratuitous and unnecessary.

Thanks.

Divine --

There were never any long scenes of Sledge at Marion. They were short, but to the point. The decision to cut them is complicated. No one ever films scenes in a movie with the intention of not using them -- because of the cost. But sometimes the shots don't quite work the way you envision them in script form. It's not that they're "Bad", but rather they just don't quite fit the story you are trying to tell. So they get cut. But as I've said, these decisions were above my pay grade.

As for the sex scene in Five...I'm sorry you felt it was unnecessary. I disagree and I think you might withhold judgement until you've seen the entire series. We are trying very carefully to layer out the progression of John Basilone's character and to understand his motivations. Actually the scene with Virginia Grey is really important for the audience to understand his choices in future episodes. So...just as the combat and violence are never gratuitous in this series, but rather a tool for us to develop the characters, so too with the sex.

Part 5 of this series is the best ave ever seen .It's better than ever it's previous version/.
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