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Generation Kill - Episode 6

Episode 6 - Stay Frosty

April 2-9, 2003

As this miniseries is based on real events, you should know that there are commanders who get fired, even in the field. You hear that many of the Marines have nicknames or callsigns, and that is true I earned my callsign “Chia” which is short for Chia pet as my hair always grew straight like a Chia Pet. If you don’t know what a Chia Pet is a clay figurine, that is used to sprout “chia” (Salvia hispanica). Another thing that you might not understand is that Marines, in general, are some sick and twisted S.O.Bs but we are effective, and we learn to embrace the suck (dealing with things that most people can not or will not deal with), in fact, “Embrace the Suck” is a saying that many Marines use.

As you see in the miniseries, there are some real hardships that the average civilian would struggle to deal with, such as the humanitarian ‘Winning the Hearts and Minds’ parts of the mission, or having to go on a patrol while you are sick with diarrhea or vomiting every few minutes. The war doesn’t wait, period. You are expected to be ready for anything 24/7, regardless of your personal feelings and/or conditions.

There is a scene, where a female Marine (WP) is in the back of a deuce and a half, and the male Marines are going off like a bunch of horny college students. Sadly, that is exactly how many Marines act and it is really sad, that they can’t treat a female with a little respect. Even as a POG (Person Other than Grunt), I saw this behavior way too many times in my ten years on active duty.

There is a scene with friendly fire, actually, there are several scenes in the miniseries. Sadly, friendly fire does happen and

As it would not be safe to film in Iraq, much of the filming was done in South Africa, Namibia, and Mozambique, due to it having a similar landscape. Many of the Marines who were either in OIF/OEF or in the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion state that this is one of the most accurate wartime movies that has been made.