A Brilliant Conflict

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

It's 1967 Vietnam. Sgt. Zeke Anderson (Terence Knox) is a veteran on his third tour. After an attack on Firebase Ladybird, he replaces the casualties with new troops. The Bravo company's second platoon gets new leader Lt. Goldman (Stephen Caffrey). After the success of Platoon, a new wave of Vietnam war dramas washed over the TV and big screen landscape. The first season has the platoon operating out of a forward base. It has plenty of explosions while tackling some tough issues. It's never quite cinematic enough although they blow up a lot of stuff in episode 14 Under Siege. It could have gone darker but it's plenty hard-hitting for a network show back in the day. I still remember the tunnel second episode. It misses a good opportunity connecting to the show's title. The show should use a 365 days countdown clock for one of the green new kids.The second season starts with the impending Tet offensive. The platoon is relocated near Saigon and the cast is joined by hot-shot helicopter pilot Lt. John McKay. Psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Seymour and crusading reporter Alex Devlin would come and go. The production moves from the Hawaiian tropics to California. The addition of female main characters seems to be an attempt to attract a more diverse network audience with some romancing. The attempt at going mainstream would extend into a cliffhanger season ending. The effect is to water down the main appeal of the show which is a gritty no-holds-barred vision of war on network TV. The sprinkling of romantic melodrama muddies the brand. Other shows do that aspect better. The base and jungle settings remain relatively good. The back-lot sets representing Saigon fall far short and detract from the show. The second season is a step down into mediocrity. The third season attempts to cleanse the show of romantic entanglements by killing off Alex. It never fully recovers in its third and year but it is overall a compelling network attempt.

I'll admit, I found this show a little boring at first, but within the first couple of episodes I was hooked on it. This is one of those shows that teaches life lessons, that leaves a lasting impression, that has characters that feel real, the kind of show you'd want to pass down to your kids. If we don't learn from the past we'll be doomed to repeat it, and this show portrays the futility of war and the strength of friendship during an exciting and frightening time in history. The bright green of the jungles and vegetation was captured on film, something that digital cameras often can't capture properly. The soundtrack fits every scene perfectly. And don't even get me started on the acting, this show has some outstanding performances. I'm so glad I gave it a chance because it's definitely a show worth watching!

"Tour of Duty" still is the best TV series about war ever made for American TV.The mood is perfect, the acting is great and the story lines are interesting. I haven't see it since it originally ran so I can't tell you if it has aged well but I'm guessing it has. Also, I'm not a Vietnam veteran so I can't tell you how accurate it is. I'm guessing they take some serious liberties with reality!It's not a good choice if you've seen all the episodes of MASH or Hogans Heroes and want something similar--- it's a completely different than those.But it perfectly elicits the mixed mood of agitation, melancholy, moral ambiguity yet optimism of the 60s.

As a former Royal marine and having seen active service i can honestly say this show even with its low budget was brilliant.There have been many films about the Vietnam war and all of them have shown the general horror of combat, Tour of duty sticks with one unit and how the war is effecting each of them. The acting on the whole is superb, all of the main characters must have been through some kind of training with the U.S military to get them ready for this series, you only have to listen to the way they speak to each other to know that as soldiers world wide have a terminology that other soldiers/military personnel would recognise immediately. I can highly recommend this show.