The Real Vaulties: Tech Billionaires and Secret Hide Away Bunkers

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly17834524o

Maybe Fallout had it right all along? 

We should find out tomorrow night on Netflix!

"Don't Look Up" - Netflix Film

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbIxYm3mKzI

This seems to have caused rather a Marmite type of separation in opinion .. some love it but then people some hate it.

I love it ;) 

Interesting TV I have "Binged" recently

Some thing also that has been keeping away from blogging is a bit of intensive TV programme binging. Netflix and BBC iPlayer in particular: 

AI related (see below, a BBC Panorama classic IMHO): 

Are You Scared Yet Human: BBC iPlayer

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000wft2/panorama-are-you-scared-yet-human

And following on from that the BBC iPlayer recommended the following series called: "Can't get you out of my Head" which was a bit of a trippy all over the place journey .. sort of related to AI, historical events  of world politics and a dystopian view of the word, ultimately saying "don't change things because you make things worse - make the best of what you have got". I watched it al the way through just to see what sort of ending it came up with (see below, the headlines give you a gist of the confusing things that are going on .. and it is right, I cannot get the thoughts and images out of my head):

Finally I turned to the insanity of the Squid Games, despite what I considered a dodgy popularist theme (as in the kids liked it) and a very slow episode one .. I got hooked and (sadly) can recommend it (though not taking art in one). The eldest kid was slightly impressed that I guessed the ending (see below, it now has a fully fledged cult following):  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqxAJKy0ii4

I am just waiting for the spin-off merchandise to make it to 28mm scale. Although the menacing "Pink Troopers" are probably the more memorable iconic image you take away (see below, perfect for Halloween trick or treating): 

Back to some wargaming now. 

Netflix: The Liberators - WWII Small Unit Action (US GIs in Italy)

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZaIZgkCcXQ

Saw the first episode and I am already hooked (although I had an issue how they knocked out one Panzer III in particular). Also have the "urge" to start making and painting 28mm American GIs for a "Chain of Command" platoon - which cannot be a bad thing, can it? (I do already have them unmade, unpainted and feeling unloved in various Warlord Games boxes).

Footnote: Really impressed with this mini series .. it soon became a story rather than a procession of kit .. the trauma (and story) came through very well.

War Machine - Brad Pitt as General Glenn McMahon - Afghanistan War

Surfing Netflix served this little gem up for me.

It wasn't so much a documentary expose but more of a slow, darkly humourous 'tour of duty' of things going wrong at the pace of treacle flowing downhill. You see the bad things slowly unfolding but everyone is either powerless or too disassociated to bother to intervene.

Disaster duly runs its course: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Machine_(film)

I did not know whether to laugh, but felt my heart slowly sobbing for most of the movie. Things ain't moved on since Alexander' The Greats time!

Stalingrad (2013)

Finally caught up with this one. A gritty extravaganza of set . A ruined city, a downed Heinkel, the statue of a circle of children dancing. Plenty of sustained HMG fire, snipers, Tommy gunners, mortars, a Soviet Scout, artillery barrages and crossing the Volga under fire, Least said about teh love interests the better. From a wargamer's perspective I really enjoyed it (see below):     

Spoiler alert: "Goodbye boys!" but a Soviet win!

PS: I know understand the Chain of Command scenery my friends have been conscientiously making ;) 

Jadotsville 1961

Every now and then you find something "new" and all you can say is: "Well I never!" That is the only way I can convey my amazement on watching "The Siege of Jadotsville" courtesy of Netflix and an amazing eye opener on the history of the Congo in the 1960's (see below, courtesy of NetFlix film):

At first I thought it was a made up story (akin to Apollo 19 Moon Monsters) but the truth was so close to home as shown in the film. Various scenarios immediately shout out probably using AK47?

PS: Best line in the film [Note: As time of writing remembering it] to me was: French (ex)Legionnaire Commander of the Mercenarie s speaking to teh Irish Company Commander. "You Commander have no experience of war." Quinlan (the Irish Commander) "I don't know about that. I have been married for ten years!"

For more information see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jadotville

Dr Strangelove, I finally managed to watch the whole thing :)

Confession: I has seen snippets but not the whole film; so therefore long overdue I treated myself tonight (see posting date) to watch the "whole thing" on Netflix .. "Dr Strangelove; or How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb". Oh boy, do you laugh or cry or laugh crying? Peter Sellers was brilliant multiple time (easy as the comic genius plays multiple characters) over and George C. Scott is no longer "Patton" in my eyes but General Buck Turgidson (see below, I cannot decide which photograph I like or fear better):

The "Thinking General":

Or the "Flustered General":

Meanwhile the President slowly sees his legacy to the world, "Nuclear Armageddon", unfolding before his disbelieving eyes (see below):

But the film is ultimately stolen by the wheelchair bound Dr Strangelove and his rational but crazy thought processes that define the principles of Cold War MAD [Mutually Assured Destruction] (see below):

Our ultimate fate is unfortunately decided (or rather doomed) by good old fashioned American ingenuity and know how that opens the bomb bay doors (see below):

So, how close to the truth was it?
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/almost-everything-in-dr-strangelove-was-true

Even more bizarre are the bits that Kubrik cut from the film because it they were too strange enough or he deemed tasteless:
http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/rare-images-dr-strangelove-custard-pie-fight

On a final note the President ultimately has the last say:
"Gentleman. You can't fight in here. This is the war room!"

Netflix: Road to Victory - US Army in Europe 194-45

Despite the kids having a 99% control of Netflix (true it keeps them quiet) I do occasionally manage to get the odd "time-slice" in. I saw this little treasure trove and liked it, albeit concentrating on the US side of operations only (see below, I really enjoyed it or rather them):

D-Day:
The US invasion beaches (Omaha and Utah) and the American 101st and the 82nd Airborne dropping behind the beaches. The chaos the airborne troops found themselves in (small squads searching each other out) suggests some very interesting skirmish (Chain of Command) scenarios.

Hell's Highway:
Two thirds the way up it! 101st and 82nd perspectives. The incredible river crossing at Nijmegen but them the heartbreaking failure of command (not pushing on while the Germans were completely dislocated). Plenty of scenario (again skirmish) material here.

The Bulge:
Frank description of the battle, bringing out the best and the worst US experiences. Intriguingly it was the small squad sized battles that shaped the course of the battle with the Germans encountered resistance where they least expected it. The Winter seemed to be the worst enemy to both sides

Very interesting to see it from the American perspective (not a "we won the war" but a "this is how we fought it"). It also served as an inspiration to ... paint some US 20mm forces for Chain of Command! If I can do it for Star Gruntz (Yaeter) then I should be able to make an inroads into my WWII American 20mm collection.