War Stories

The Smithsonian Channel's War Stories illustrates the face of war in three distinctive episodes. “Carrier at War: USS Enterprise” depicts life aboard a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier—a floating city as long as four football fields, populated by a variety of workers, from the “air boss” who oversees the flights to the cooks and other support staff. Of course, the most interesting are the fighter pilots, particularly one young woman who flies dangerous sorties over Afghanistan's rugged war zones. Telling a story from another era, “The Men Who Brought the Dawn” recalls the deadly missions that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending World War II—although at a horrifying human cost—while pointing the way to today's call for nuclear deterrence. In interviews taped in 1994 (supplemented with archival footage), then-surviving members of the mission describe the secrecy, rigorous training, and moments of incredible tension that preceded their historic flights. None voice any regrets, believing that their actions helped shorten the war, thus saving American and Japanese lives. A fitting final episode, “Arlington: Call to Honor” forces the viewer to ponder war's human cost, as it traces Arlington National Cemetery's history from its days as Robert E. Lee's plantation home to its current role as a revered national shrine to fallen heroes. Recommended. Aud: P. (S. Rees)