"Part 2" took a direct route to the action. For the first half of the episode, there was relative calm punctuated by the occasional shelling from the sea. Among the death of war were a few lighter moments: Marines stealing the Army supplies, Leckie being nicknamed "Peaches."
That all goes away halfway into the episode. With thin lines and few supplies, the Marines hunker down as the Japanese start attacking. Basilone performs a feat of legends in an incredible 7-minute scene of heart-pounding action. He gets his arms burned, does some hand to hand combat, and mows down waves of Japanese, all done almost single-handedly. Afterwards, Chesty tells Basilone he is putting him in for a medal.
When the Marines get back onto the ship, the cook tells them they are on the front page of newspapers. Everyone is a bit shocked. They had landed in a place they have no idea about, looks insignificant from the outside, and it turned into a living nightmare. Somehow, recognition for their actions never seemed possible.
Eugene Sledge has a random scene with his father which and could have gone into the last episode or the next episode. His heart problem is gone and he's off to sign off.
I still have no clue who anyone is other than their names and faces, and even then, everyone looks very similar. I'm sure I'll know the characters intimately eventually, but it's frustrating to not know everything on the first watch.
Score: 8.9/10
