The Battle History of the United States Military is a mammoth of information (over twelve and a half hours) about the United States Military. This release is a collection of documentaries created for "The History Channel". There are a total of five documentaries, which originally aired on "The History Channel" from 1997 to 2004, divided into five volumes about the Marines, Navy, Army, Air Force, and Coast Guard.

The content includes information and detail about great achievements in warfare conducted by each branch, as well as key players and moments in military history. The standard documentary approach is taken, which includes narration, historical stock footage, and interviews from historians and retired military personnel. Like most documentaries that fall under the "The History Channel" banner, I felt The Battle History of the United States Military was put together very well. The balance between historical footage & narration and interviews was handled nicely. I found the content to be informative, insightful, and most of all, interesting. For the rest of this review, we will take a brief look at each volume included in this set.

Volume 1: The Battle History of the U.S. Marines

The documentary provided about the U.S. Marines is divided into three TV-hour long segments. In "Born in Blood", there is a general overview provided about the U.S. Marines and their role in United States involvement in early warfare leading to World War I. The World War I discussion covers Japan, Island-Hopping Warfare, and Battle of Saipan. At the end of the "Born in Blood", discussion turns from World War I to World War II with the Re-Taking of Guam. The beginning of part two of the Marines documentary, "Pacific Inferno", the discussion continues with World War II, which includes Battle of Peleliu, Battle of Iwo Jima, Hell's Volcano, Battle of Okinawa, and Japan's surrender. The last part, "Pacific Inferno", begins with the lead into the Korea War. Finally "Tragedy in Triumph" finishes the Korean War, and then introduces the Vietnam War and Desert Storm.

Volume 2: The Battle History of the U.S. Navy

The second volume is about the U.S. Navy and it is divided into four TV-hour long documentaries. The documentary begins with "Born into War", which looks at the early role of the U.S. Navy in history. This begins with a general introduction and then covers the late 18th century and early 19th century, the Civil War, the Spanish American War, and new technologies. I thought the documentary really started to get exciting with part two "Fire & Water". It begins with a short introduction about the Navy's role in World War I and then begins to cover World War II in detail. This includes Japanese as a growing naval threat and leads into the attack on Pearl Harbor, Battle of Midway, and other World War II battles in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. In "Steel Walls of Freedom", World War II continues with dire missions from the Navy, the impeding threat from kamikazes, and finally Japan surrendering. Then the Korean War and Cold War are briefly discussed. "Second to None", provides the final portion to the U.S. Navy documentary. It begins with a short overview of the Vietnam War, and continues with the growing naval threat from the Soviet Union, the Navy's role in Lebanon, Cuba, etc., and the Gulf War.

Volume 3: The Battle History of the U.S. Army

Like the previous volume, this next documentary is divided into four TV-hour long documentaries. The first part is "The Citizen Soldier", which covers the early history of the U.S. Army. It begins with the American Revolution and George Washington leading a small, ill-equipped military force towards gaining and maintaining the independence of the United States against the British. And then it continues with the development of the U.S. Army. The second part, "Sword of Freedom", provides the historical background to the early development of the U.S. Army, then covers the Spanish American War, World War I, and the Army and its downtime between World War I and World War II. In part three, "Soldiers Across the Sea", World War II is covered in detail. This includes the Operation Torch--North African Campaign, Operation Overlord--Invasion of Normandy, Thrust Into Italy, and the end of World War II. The final battle covered is in part three is the Korean War. The final portion of the documentary, "In Wars Undeclared", deals with the Chinese Aggression that led to the Vietnam War, and lastly the Persian Gulf War.

Volume 4: The Battle History of the U.S. Air Force

This documentary about the U.S. Air Force also is divided into four TV-hour long documentaries. "Struggling into the Air" starts the documentary off by detailing the beginning of the Air Force and continues with the Air Force's role in World War I and begins a lengthy discussion about World War II. The coverage on World War II covers all of part two, "Winds Across the World", and the beginning of part three, "Air Wars Hot and Cold". The World War II content includes Operation Overlord, The Enola Gay, Berlin Air Lift, and other related events. The remainder of "Air Wars Hot and Cold" covers the Korean War. The last portion of the documentary, "Over the Jungles, Over the Sands", finishes with the Air Force's role in the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm.

Volume 5: The Battle History of the U.S. Coast Guard

The final volume contains a single documentary about the U.S. Coast Guard entitled "History of the United States Coast Guard: Life Savers to the World". Its runtime is equivalent to two TV-hours. The documentary begins with a general overview of the Coast Guard and its role in its early years. This is followed by its role in the Civil War, the transition from Revenue Cutters to the Coast Guard, Prohibition, and World War II. The World War II includes its expansion as a military body during this time, the Invasion of Normandy, and the Pacific Theater. The final portions include handling refugees from the Vietnam and Cuban Wars and the Coast Guard in the Gulf War.

All in all, The Battle History of the United States Military contains a very thorough and informative outlook on each branch of the United States Military. In my opinion, it should make for an educational and entertaining experience. However, while I did enjoy watching this extensive documentary, I rate it as "rent it" because I cannot imagine watching the documentary over and over again. In other words, this is highly recommended for a rental.

The DVD

Video:
The video is given in 1.33:1 ratio full frame color and black & white. The picture quality is generally good, but it is pretty rougher with the older historical footage. The newer footage shot (interview segments) look clean and crisp. Overall it is a good looking picture for a documentary.

Audio:
The audio is given in English 2.0 Dolby digital stereo sound. The audio track is a plain track that is more than adequate for a documentary. Narration is easy to hear throughout the feature, even when stock footage involving gunshots or explosions are used.

Extras:
The only real item of interest is the bonus documentary included on "The Battle History of the U.S. Marines" volume. The documentary is entitled "Pageantry of the Corps", which is a TV-hour long documentary about the Marine on parade--the Marine Band, the Drum and Bugle Corps, and the Silent Drill Platoon. The other extras hold little interest. They include the history about each branch's Heraldy, and downloadable books "U.S. Naval Aviation in the Pacific", "1884 Soldiers Handbook", "Military Aeronautics 1935-1945", and "Historical Documents" (Coast Guard-related).

Final Thoughts:
Just as the title suggests, The Battle History of the United States Military delivers a detailed analysis of the battle history of the United States Military by looking at all five branches--Marines, Navy, Army, Air Force, and Coast Guard. This is done by looking at major wars not only found in U.S. history, but as well as world history. The events include coverage about general development and history, key players, important strategic development, and other related information. Overall The Battle History of the United States Military is an extensive, informative, and interesting documentary. In closing, I want to comment on why I have rated it as "rent it". I sincerely feel this is worth watching and should make for a great rental, but it is really not something I can imagine wanting to watch over and over again.