The Pacific

America’s engagement in the Pacific combat theatre of World War II remains a powerful memory for members of “The Greatest Generation.” Now, for millions of viewers the HBO production, The Pacific, takes its place in the general, shared history of those events. For some it will renew personal stories, horribly painful or gloriously heroic. For other viewers, those without personal memories of the times, The Pacific may “become” the war in the Pacific. The series follows the war as it moves across the islands where the fiercest battles took place. The focus on a handful of individuals personalizes the brutality, the terror and the heroism. Each reaction tells us more, but tells it differently. These stories also capture the emotional toll taken on families, on lovers and, to some degree on a national psyche. Additional features help viewers understand the broad scope of this war by surrounding battle narratives with events on the home front. Interviews with surviving soldiers and Marines make the historical moments even more powerful with detailed accounts of their own intense experiences. As both drama and memory, then, this series reminds us of the necessities — and the costs — of service. For this The Pacific receives a Peabody Award.