Customer Reviews

Battlefield: Guadalcanal

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This DVD gives a broad overview of the Pacific War starting in August 1942 with the Allied invasion of Guadalcanal all the way through to the dropping of the Atomic Bomb and Japan's surrender in 1945. Only the first half actually covers Guadalcanal. As such, the title is quite misleading. With respect to the Guadalcanal portion, much of the "footage" is actually taken from the documentary "With the Marines at Tarawa" and is clearly not Guadalcanal. The maps are very general in nature and little mention is made of the 6 sea battles surrounding Guadalcanal. (The DVD erroneously claims that there were 4 sea battles.) While the USMC did most of the fighting on Guadalcanal, the US Army also had a significant presence and almost no mention whatsoever is given. If you are looking for a more comprehensive DVD about Guadalcanal, I recommend "Guadalcanal: Island of Death".

I like the "Battlefield" series but some of their products are misnamed rather than misrespresented. In this case, the DVD covers Guadalcanal as a *starting point* in the Allied offensive against Japan in the Pacific, leading to ultimate victory.

This DVD covers the preparations for operation "Watchtower" - the amphibious assault on Guadalcanal - as well as the initial landings and subsequent taking of the airfield. It covers the Japanese response, the many battles during the campaign as well as *some* of the naval actions between the Allied navies and the Imperial Japanese Navy with the allies (especially the US Navy) coming off rather badly in many respects.

The video covers the commanders directly involved in the campaign, the weapons used as well as aircraft employed by both sides. It shows the Japanese leadership as well as their men as tenacious and brave yet often foolishly willing to throw away their lives in attacks that are poorly prepared, badly coordinated and unsupported by sufficient firepower or supplies. This is a recurring theme as the video continues.

The video continues with both the advance by MacArthur's Southwest Pacific Command and Nimitz's Central Pacific campaign, highlighting battles for the rest of the Solomons, New Guinea, Morotai, Tarawa, Eniwetok. Spends some time on both the Marianas Turkey Shoot as well as Leyte Gulf and MacArthur's successful return to the Phillipines. The video concludes with Iwo, Okinawa and the use of the atomic bomb to end the war.

Caveat emptor! Buyers who are expecting a DVD on Guadalcanal solely do not get that. This video covers the Allied march to victory against Japan that *began* with Guadalcanal. Guadalcanal gets more minutes of this DVD than other topics but it is still only a part of it. As a video covering the Allied offensive which led to eventual victory, it's quite good. But, it's not what I thought I was buying - therefore, only three stars. If a potential buyer is looking for more about the Pacific war than just Guadalcanal, I'd give it four stars.

As usual Battlefield has done a great job covering Gaudalcanal. For some reason, videos covering Gaudalanal are had to find so this one is appreciated. Broad brush coverage is given to the whole war in the Pacific but detailed coverage is given to Gaudalcanal. I am looking forward to buying many more DVDs of theBattlefield series.