'Masters Of The Air' Brings 'Band Of Brothers,' Horrors Of WWII To The Sky | REVIEW

"Masters of the Air" is a must-watch series for anyone who loves history, America and the brave men who fought in WWII.

There's been chatter for years about the WWII series from Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Gary Goetzman – the same men who made “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific” – but it never seemed like it was going to actually happen.

Well, after years of speculation, it finally has and the first two episodes premiere Friday on Apple TV+. Hype is off the charts and for good reason. Apple gave me the opportunity to watch all nine episodes earlier, and when I say it's outstanding, just understand I'm under-selling it if anything.

The cast includes Austin Butler, Anthony Boyle, Nate Mann, Callum Turner, Barry Keoghan, Isabel May and many young recognizable faces as it follows the 100th Bomb Group - aka, the Bloody Hundredth - as they rain death from above on German forces spread out across the western front in WWII.

Now, the first question everyone is going to have is whether or not the harrowing true story lives up to what "Band of Brothers" fans have come to expect. Well, we're going to get into all that and more.

Let's roll, and hit me with your reactions at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.

What are the positives about "Masters of the Air"?

The great news is there is so much to love about "Masters of the Air." It's a truly elite limited series that will have you standing and cheering at points, wanting to shed tears for the men who never made it home at other times and have you feeling a great sense of patriotism from start to finish. That's the broad assessment. Now, let's dive into a few more specifics while keeping things spoiler free.

Shining a light on bomber crews is a huge positive:

As I've said many times before when previewing "Masters of the Air," there are countless shows and movies about the ground war in Europe and in the Pacific during WWII. "Band of Brothers" is the greatest war story ever told, and "The Pacific" is also excellent.

However, there are very few stories about the bomber crews who fought like dogs to liberate Europe from the grip of the Nazis.

I've always been bothered by that because a family member of mine - Connie - was a bomber pilot in WWII, where he earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses destroying German targets and raining death from above. He was later killed in Korea.

I suppose the belief has always been that there's nothing super sexy about a bomber crew from a film or TV perspective.

"Masters of the Air" successfully changes that narrative forever. The show is unbelievably tense, exciting and keeps viewers on edge of their seats from start to finish.

It's a home run job by everyone involved.

"Masters of the Air" is outstanding. (Credit: Apple TV+)

The cast:

There's nobody in the cast I'd like to single out because they're all great. It's one hell of an impressive ensemble, and while Butler is the most recognizable face thanks to his success as Elvis, everyone around him matches his intensity throughout the show.

If I had to pick an MVP, it'd honestly probably wouldn't be Butler. It would be Anthony Boyle as Major Crosby. There's a scene involving parachutes (or lack thereof) in one of the later episodes, and Boyle brings the heat. It's low-key but super impactful.

Casting a great ensemble for a war series is unbelievably tough. "Band of Brothers" successfully did it, and so has "Masters of the Air."

"Masters of the Air" is a must-watch series. (Credit: Apple TV+)

The cinematography:

If there's one thing that sticks out to me above all else about "Masters of the Air" it's without question the absurd cinematography when it comes to combat scenes in the air.

I have no idea how Apple and the production crew pulled it off, but it's so unbelievable but it felt real sitting on my couch.

The German flak, enemy fighters, machine guns rattling off, bombs falling, guys attempting to bail and everything else in the plane felt unbelievably real. In fact, it felt so real that it was uncomfortable and unsettling at times watching guys die. Be warned, there are some bloody scenes in the planes. Welcome to war.

Prison camp arc:

Now, I want to be very careful here because I don't want to spoil anything, but it's not a secret that a lot of pilots became POWs during WWII. While America treated POWs as the gold standard in WWII, a lot of other countries did not. Germany, while not as bad to Americans as Russians, didn't exactly have outstanding accommodations, especially as the war neared its final days.

The POW camp scenes are harrowing, and you feel such little hope as some men begin to break. At the same time, there are incredible moments of resilience in the face of such an ominous outlook.

And that's about as much as I can say on that front.

What are the best parts of "Masters of the Air"? (Credit: Getty Images)

Were there any negatives?

The only major issue I have with "Masters of the Air" is it was shot when Austin Butler was still rocking his Elvis accent.

I had a chuckle closing my eyes just imagining if Elvis was flying a bomber in WWII because that's legit what it sounded like at times.

The only other knock is Isabel May is criminally underused in "Masters of the Air." You'll understand exactly what I mean once you see it. How are you going to cast the "1883" star and not include her more?

These are relatively small gripes, but gripes nonetheless.

Conclusion:

"Masters of the Air" is outstanding, and worth every second of your time. Does it match "Band of Brothers"? No, and nothing ever will as far as I'm concerned. However, it's every bit as good as "The Pacific," and possibly even better. I'll decide further after re-watching it a few times. It accomplished its goal of sharing the stories of bomber crews in powerful fashion. I give it a firm 9.5/10. Watch it starting Friday with the first two episodes and weekly after that. Have some thoughts? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.