Marva
It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,
pcarey002
If I had written this review when I was 14 (the year the show first aired) as opposed to now, with hindsight, research, and more than a little experience, I might be as exuberant as an earlier reviewer.Do yourself a favor - read "Baa Baa Black Sheep" by LTC Boyington. Then... if you want the non-biased true story of LTC Boyington and some of the Black Sheep (warts and all), find a copy of "Black Sheep One" by Bruce Gamble. Look (online on You Tube) for the History Channel's "True Story of the Black Sheep".I began reading at the age of four years old, and began reading High School level books at the age of eight. I was enamored of WWII aircraft and war stories, and read hundreds of books on the subject. My interest was helped along by a brother who was in the USAF and father who served in the US Army Air Corps. I was already very familiar with aviation and WWII when this series premiered to my absolute delight."Baa Baa Black Sheep" (later re-named "Black Sheep Squadron" for syndication reasons)is loosely based on LTC Gregory "Pappy" Boyington's memoir of the same name. That book, as well as most of what is portrayed in this, is, as Pappy once put it "Fiction based on reality".Some aspects of the television series are very accurate. For instance, there is an area of the planet Earth referred to as "The South Pacific" and there was an event called World War II. Gregory Boyington was a real person, VMF-214 (Now VMA-214) was a real Marine Corps Fighter squadron, during part of the afore-mentioned WWII they flew the F4U "Corsair" series of aircraft, and the Corsairs were mostly painted blue. Other than that... certain "liberties" are taken with historical fact and the quest for accuracy. This series is a prime example of "fantasy-based history" or "history- based fantasy" however you prefer. It was NEVER meant to be historically accurate. It is, in the words of the series creator Stephen Cannell "entertainment".The stories are, for the most part, fairly simple and some are actually plausible. But anyone who watches this series and expects to gain an accurate knowledge of USMC air, land, and sea operations in WWII needs to do some basic research at their local library.It is the finest example of mid-1970's "campy" television with the worst results. By "campy" I mean.. well, ...corny.It is the typical "fighter-pilot-gets-drunk-and-laid-as-often-as-possible" story, with the usual obligatory bouts of fisticuffs at every opportunity. Add in the usual defiance of the incompetent higher echelon ("Colonel Lard") who is eventually won over by the protagonist's charm and results, and finally the "let's win the war for White America" mindset, and you have the series in a nutshell.But, unfortunately, this was the age of disco, "Charlie's Angels" and long-haired teeny-boys with feathered hair. "Special Guest Stars" like Peter Frampton (bushy fro hairdo and all), George Takei, and others showed that people wanted and needed their "stars" or so the writers thought.It was the addition of the previously mentioned feather-haired teenager "Lt. Jeb Pruitt" (as a teenage flying prodigy who was 15 and sneaked his way through USMC Fighter Pilot training, boot camp, aeronautical school,etc. looking like an effeminate member of the "Our Gang"comedies) and then (gulp!) ..."Pappy's Lambs"- USMC nurses in 1970's Farrah Fawcett-Majors hair, halter-tops and Daisy-duke-style shorts,and loose morals.Why do we try to sneak contemporary aspects of current life and culture into period and historical pieces like "BBBS"? It was simply doomed from the start and the fact that it lasted as long as it did was a miracle.Now - It is being resurrected again on "METV" and I won't miss an episode. What? After all my opinionated drivel regarding what made it so bad? Simple: It has the following very appealing elements:1. It shows the greatest fighter plane ever built (F4U-1 Corsair) flying - both in series-filmed elements and stock footage. Other aircraft are shown often and a lot of gun camera footage.2. It has Robert Conrad, who is the greatest television star/actor of all time.3. It is loosely - very loosely based on the exploits of a great pilot and someone (I too) met as a teenager - LTC Gregory "Pappy" Boyington. His motto - taken from F. Scott Fitzgerald: "Just name a hero, and I'll prove he's a bum" has become my motto and a part of my life.4. Red West - the example of what every Enlisted mechanic in the US Military should strive for.5. It reminds me that television was once fun - very much full of crap when "Crap was King!".. but fun.
southerncrosshr
I remember i was just a kid when i came home from some where and the first episode came on and i watched it with my grand dad i was hooked from then on. my grand dad remembered the black sheep from his days on Guadalcanal and told me about the real Boyington and the black sheep. we knew the TV show was pretty much hokam but we enjoyed the spirit of the show and how good it made us feel. i later was given a copy of the book pappy wrote by my grand mother and i would build corsairs from kits and hang them in my room. i never got to meet pappy before he died but if i ever get back to Arlington national cemetery i will go to his grave as i do grand dads and say a word of thanks. i was also lucky to grow up not far from the little town where Audie Murphy was born in Kingston Texas. and my other favorite military person was general George s Patton Ole blood and guts himself. it is too bad we do not have those type of men around any more but to them all a heartfelt thanks. they were in deed the greatest generation.
njg76
It was an excellent program... and miles above the competition! Baa Baa Blacksheep (Blacksheep Squadron) will always hold a special place in my heart. I not only knew the cast (Great people!), but I was acquainted with the real "Pappy" Boyington as well. He had a great time working the set of Baa Baa Blacksheep and I know it meant a lot to him... Anyone not familiar with Greg "Pappy" Boyington should read the book "Blacksheep One"... It really lets the reader into the kind of person he really was. Highly recommended! Here's to Greg...He was one hell of a combat pilot, and a hell of a man. He is sorely missed.
johnb-10
While the Movie and T.V. show did have some inaccuracies it did provide a thrilling show that I love to this day. When I was small I would sneak up to my room just so I could See "Pappy" and the "Black Sheep" Squadron every week and since as an adult have become intensely interested in history and the role that these true American heroes played in making this a free country. I wish that everyone could see this show.
