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Miniseries – Generation Kill

Play trailer 1:48 Poster for Miniseries – Generation Kill Jul 2008 Drama War Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
86% Tomatometer 42 Reviews 92% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Highly trained young Marines of the First Reconnaissance Battalion struggle with inadequate supplies, bureaucratic snafus and poor communication as they lead the drive into Baghdad during the first weeks of the war in Iraq, in a seven-part miniseries based on the best-selling nonfiction book by embedded Rolling Stone correspondent Evan Wright.
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Generation Kill — Miniseries

Generation Kill — Miniseries

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Critics Consensus

Generation Kill plunges the viewer into war with a visceral force that's still somehow reined in by masterful storytelling and a strong command of period details.

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Critics Reviews

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Maureen Ryan Chicago Tribune May 24, 2018
Starts to seem like a long, surreal and sometimes heartbreaking road trip taken by a bunch of buddies who just happen to be armed to the teeth. Go to Full Review
Robert Bianco USA Today May 24, 2018
An honest, barely adorned, sometimes painfully vivid representation of life as we live it now. It's journalism converted to art, with both benefiting. Go to Full Review
Tom Shales Washington Post May 24, 2018
An often poignant, sometimes shattering and occasionally criminally funny account of men trapped on a battlefield of confusion, uncertainty and cross-purposes. Go to Full Review
Glenn Garvin Miami Herald May 29, 2018
A raucous, raunchy and utterly loving account of life at the bottom of the military food chain. Go to Full Review
Andre Dellamorte Collider May 24, 2018
You get to live with the men, and feel it, and then experience why the operation... will lead to where we are now. It's powerful stuff. Go to Full Review
Robert Abele L.A. Weekly May 24, 2018
Captures that sense of recent history urgently realized. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Johannes S @RT64416087 Aug 26, 2026 It starts off slow, but I bonded with the characters more and more with each episode. It perfectly encapsulates the futility of the invasion. I always love the comradery and bond between brothers during military movies and series, it's the one thing I miss about the military. See more Jb M @crj256 Jul 8, 2026 Wasted time watching this junk!! How on earth this thing got any decent ratings is an eternal mystery. I kept waiting for a plot, a point, a purpose, and nope, never, not a chance any of those happened at all. Awful, terrible, idiot writing. Looks to have been written by a middle school drama club who had no clue that stories are supposed to have a beginning, middle, end and a point. Absolute trash. Pointless waste of time! See more G W @Tonopah May 31, 2026 The action is a little over-the-top, but the characters, the dialogue and the attitudes all pretty perfectly capture 21st century military life. This is one of HBO's truly great pieces of art. See more JP H @Taocat Apr 19, 2026 Mostly feels realistic. With the exception of the overwhelming amount jargon spoken constantly it comes across well. Now I need to read the book the series was based on to compare it to the screenplay. The reporter who wrote it didn’t realize the troops were using it a lot to screw with him. See more Haytham O @UtahOcean Apr 2, 2026 The more you watch it, the better it gets. It’s difficult for me to put into words, but to this day I still have not watched any show or even movie as good as this. Let me be clear, I’m not exalting anything that happens in the movie as either good or incredible. I write this from two perspectives, my first from when I first started watching this years ago. And now, my perspective as a practising Muslim. The production and editing is incredibly well done. The dialogue is absolutely raw and unaccompanied by fluff. I’ve watched this more times than I can count, because every single time you watch it you notice or hear something new. A scene plays out with two or three characters talking about >whatever<, and either during the scene or in the next scene you can hear other guys or the same guys go off in the background, continuing the conversation. It doesn’t feel scene for scene, more like day by day. Regardless of anything, I highly recommend giving this a try (or three). See more Patrick W @RickShedd1 Mar 7, 2026 Woke garbage before it became a thing. See more Read all reviews
Generation Kill — Miniseries

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Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Jul 13, 2008 Part 1: Get Some U.S. First Recon Marines prepare to invade Iraq; soldiers pass time while awaiting orders; a writer from "Rolling Stone" magazine becomes embedded with the unit. Details Episode 2 Aired Jul 20, 2008 Part 2: The Cradle of Civilization Bravo company heads toward Nasiriyah, where Alpha company is involved in a skirmish; a wrong turn causes Bravo to lag behind other companies. Details Episode 3 Aired Jul 27, 2008 Part 3: Screwby Bravo awaits new orders; Fick tries to take control of a dangerous situation; Godfather orders Bravo to trek through the night, treating all Iraqis as hostile. Details Episode 4 Aired Aug 3, 2008 Part 4: Combat Jack After a supply truck is looted, First Recon is down to one meal a day; Alpha must recover the body of a slain Marine; Bravo sets up a roadblock outside of Al Hayy. Details Episode 5 Aired Aug 10, 2008 Part 5: A Burning Dog First Recon learns of an ambush on a bridge ahead from Iraqi locals; although LAVs assault the bridge first, Bravo still encounters complications when they cross. Details Episode 6 Aired Aug 17, 2008 Part 6: Stay Frosty First Recon must escort civilians fleeing Baghdad down the highway; Ferrando itches to get back to fighting; First Recon has to go up against Iraqi armor with help from Marine reservists. Details Episode 7 Aired Aug 24, 2008 Part 7: Bomb in the Garden Bravo reaches Baghdad; First Recon sends out sporadic patrols into the city for information; Fick becomes disillusioned with the lack of plans; the men celebrate their last night in Baghdad. Details
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Season Info

Executive Producer
David Simon, Ed Burns, George Faber, Charles Pattinson, Anne Thomopoulos, Nina Kostroff-Noble
Network
HBO
Rating
TV-MA
Genre
Drama, War
Original Language
English
Release Date
Jul 13, 2008
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