THE PACIFIC - “Part Four” - Episode Review
No more songs
Plot summary: Leckie falls ill as the Marines battle a new enemy: disease.
Written by Robert Shenkkan & Graham Yost. Directed by Graham Yost
Gonna be another quick one, lateness and a humdinger of a LOST review on the horizon as the usual culprits. "Part Four" was one of THE PACIFIC's better episodes so far, short on battle, long on characterization. Continuing Leckie's sad story from last week, his less-than-glorious return to the field leads to another leave from action, this time at a military convalescence/psychiatric hospital. Some Christmas present.
What's interesting here is that the newsreel prologue filled in most of the mindset for the marines on Cape Gloucester -- the running time simply did not allow for a full view of the miserable conditions during that assault. Instead we got a brief snapshot of the rain, the mud, and the loss of morale that made men like Leckie, Gibson and that unnamed suicide so very tired, followed by the extended arc at the hospital. Gibson's mini arc was probably the most affecting, as we see him slide into complete madness after strangling the wounded Japanese solider to death (a really messed up scene). More than anything, "Part Four" was the living example of the torn souls that Sledge's father warned about.
But in the end, it was Leckie's devotion to his companions, which honestly, I really haven't seen in terms of them bonding, that saves him from losing his mind and his soul. But it was a really close call. Next week the Battle of Peleliu begins, which I have no doubt will bring them all to the breaking point.
Episode Grade: B+