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Over There

I’ll be honest – I had no interest in watching a drama series set during the ongoing conflict in Iraq. When a review copy of the DVD set came into my hands, I figured I’d try the pilot but probably wouldn’t care enough to continue.

The pilot was a little better than I’d expected, the DVD was in, and I wasn’t going anywhere, so I watched the next episode. And the next. Yeah, I was hooked. When I wasn’t watching, the theme song was running through my head. I even dreamt one night that I was in the combat zone. It’s that gripping.

When “Over There” begins, we see each member of the unit bid farewell to family and friends. Soon, they are in the thick of things in Iraq, under fire alongside a veteran sergeant whose just been told he’s stuck in combat for another 90 days. It’s not long before one of the soldiers is seriously wounded by a roadside bomb.

As the series progresses, we learn why these men and women joined up, see them deal with gun battles and personal problems back home, and face the long road to recovery after injury.

The battle scenes are realistically gruesome, but they suffer from trendy editing styles, like superfast motion and jerky camera movements - think “Saving Private Ryan.” The military action, situations, and dialogue are both praised and condemned by those who’ve been to Iraq, so it’s hard to say how accurate the series is. Either way, I came away with a new appreciation for what our real troops in Iraq and Afghanistan are going through in the name of freedom.

Extras include commentaries on several episodes, a featurette on military weapons, and a making-of documentary.

Written by: Auriette Lindsey

Reviewers Rating: 8
Reader's Rating: 10.00
Reader's Votes: 1

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