Masters of the Air Apple TV+ Recommendation is the easiest of easy recommendations to make. Why? Because Band of Brothers was one of the greatest television shows ever created. At the time of Band’s creation, it was by far the most expensive television miniseries ever created by any network. The budget was $125 million or about $12.5 million per episode. And that show was released in 2001. Masters of the Air cost Apple TV+ $250 million to produce. Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks went in together to make that stunning show, and now, they are doing it again to make Masters of the Air. And if you enjoyed the Band of Brothers, you could also investigate the mini-series The Pacific, which is the second of the three installments.
Masters of the Air is based on the 2007 book, Masters of the Air: America’s Bomber Boys Who Fought the War Against Nazi Germany by Donald L. Miller. The story follows the action of the 100th Bomber Group, which was a B-17 Flying Fortress unit. They unit was nicknamed the Bloody Hundredth because of the enormous losses that they suffered throughout their engagements to the mainland.
I will say that I’m a little shocked by how little hype there is around this show. Do people even know that the first two episodes have even dropped? This show is massive in scale and scope. It took a decade to make. And it’s jam smashed with enormous A-list actors. Barry Keoghan being my own personal favorite (Saltburn, Killing of Sacred Deer, etc., etc). I mean, look at this cast list, it’s as long as your flipping arm!
- Austin Butler as Maj. Gale “Buck” Cleven
- Callum Turner as John “Bucky” Egan
- Anthony Boyle as Lt. Harry Crosby
- Barry Keoghan as Lt. Curtis Biddick
- Rafferty Law as Sgt. Ken Lemmons
- Nate Mann as Major Robert “Rosie” Rosenthal
- Sawyer Spielberg as Lt. Roy Claytor
- Branden Cook as 2nd Lt. Alexander Jefferson
- Josiah Crss as 2nd Lt. Richard D. Macon
- Ncuti Gatwa as 2nd Lt. Robert H. Daniels
- Elliot Warren as Lt. James Douglass
- David Shuelds as Maj. Everett Blakely
- Matt Gavan as Capt. Charles Cruikshank
- Ben Radcliffe as as Capt. John D. Brady
- Darragh Cowley as Lt. Glenn Graham
- Edward Ashley as Lt. Col. John B. Kidd
- Freddy Carter as Lt. David Friedkin
But at the heart of it all is the inseparable duo of Maj. John “Bucky” Egan (Callum Turner) and Maj. Gale “Buck” Cleven (Austin Butler). Bucky is a rabble-rouser and a drinker who fights with passion, while Buck is solid, sedate and tempers Bucky’s fire. Both actors are phenomenal. As quickly becomes clear, their missions are not so much fraught with danger as a compulsory ticket to a mortality lottery with dreadful odds. Every time they depart, there is no guarantee they will make it back.
I’ve enjoyed the first two episodes so far, and can’t wait to see each episode drop – here is the schedule for when they will drop:
- Episode 1: Friday, Jan. 26
- Episode 2: Friday, Jan. 26
- Episode 3: Friday, Feb. 2
- Episode 4: Friday, Feb. 9
- Episode 5: Friday, Feb. 16
- Episode 6: Friday, Feb. 23
- Episode 7: Friday, March 1
- Episode 8: Friday, March 8
- Episode 9: Friday, March 15
Check it out and let me know what you think of it in the comments below.
Edited by: CY