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"The Unit" (2006) More at IMDb Pro »

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108 comments in total

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98 out of 122 people found the following comment useful :-
Fired Up! -Please read- Military perspective, 27 September 2006

Author: gparreich from United States

This is a very entertaining show. The writing is good, the characters are both interesting and multi-dimensional. The lighting and set design are very appropriate for a mainstream network series. Excellent use of steady-cam and "documentary style" camera work.

I respectfully disagree with some of the previous comments by my fellow veteran. I believe that he may not have had much contact with the spec ops community in his 10 year career.

We should remember that this is a television series- If the cameras rolled in the average combat spec ops unit, it *might* last a whole episode...*might*.

While the wives in this show do seem to be a very comely group, The same probably applies to the men- as is fitting for a cast of actors.

If anything, the actors seem a little young to be from the unit. The average age in Delta is over 30, minimum age to apply is 22. As far as out of shape, senior soldiers don't fit the 3% body fat runner look that many young garritroopers sport.

The tactics used by the actors would definitely be out of place even in an infantry unit- but I have trained with enough operators to know that they can look sloppy and distracted (unmilitary) a fraction of a second before they tear through the target. I saw one step into a room, draw, engage 5 targets, and holster in 3 seconds - Then almost get tossed off the course for not wearing a regulation helmet.

While the dialog is not what we would hear in the field (too many syllables and too few profanities), it is intended to help the viewer understand and experience the flow of tension and action- which I feel it dies well.

While the homes are officer and senior NCO grade, it is very similar to the newer housing at Ft. Bragg (Where the unit it most expressly not stationed).

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65 out of 97 people found the following comment useful :-
Getting better as it goes!, 2 April 2006
Author: JohnCrow from Albany, NY, United States

I saw the commercials for "The Unit", and was intrigued. Then I started watching this show, and it just seems to be getting better as it goes. It kind of reminds me of a Tom Clancy novel, and the last episode I saw had three seemingly separate plot lines going, which eventually became tied together, two of them ended up being parts of the same main story line. Besides the military thrills from the precision excellence of this black-ops unit (which doesn't exist, of course), there are always personal stories and lots of aspects of this show that most anybody should be able to enjoy. I love it when the good guys kick the bad guys collective asses! Well written, and good acting all around. Interesting plot twists, I was caught by surprise more then a few times. There are some really great lines, and it is so much more than just a shoot-em-up action show. My emotions were running wild. I hope this show stays around for years to come!

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41 out of 50 people found the following comment useful :-
just another day at the office, 12 April 2007

Author: gurghi-2 from Lexington, Kentucky

As of this writing, the best show on television that no one talks about. Is it easier to overlook military-themed shows, being as their viewership is made up of middle America? But The Unit is neither a gussied-up procedural (NCIS) nor a rousing commercial (Jag), and it betrays almost no political agenda. It keeps to these guys, their job, and their families, all facing challenges that are alternately far beyond and extremely similar to those of our own. Like most Mamet, it is characterized not so much by distinctive characters as it filled with plain ol' drama. The show is as clipped, professional, and dutiful as its characters— no 'special-episodes', no sweeps- month stunts.

In a refreshing change of pace from other current (and more-heralded) shows, it's not serialized; every episode does stand alone, though the show also rewards faithful viewership. I love me some 'Lost', but there's plenty to slog through while waiting for the good stuff. The Unit gives no such quarter; it may not enrapture or surprise, but you can count on it to do its job.

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34 out of 44 people found the following comment useful :-
Action, Human Interactions, Explosions, 11 December 2006

Author: secyatlaw from United States

What else could a girl ask for! Great special effects; the actors behave like real people and not cardboard cut-outs. Each character has his or her own very human and very real virtues and shortcomings. A great show with a great cast. The show lets the actors explore the ranges of behaviors one person can experience, from the noble to the questionable, all in preserving the integrity of the team's mission/objective.

No Stepford Wives, either; each female lead is showcased with the same range of emotions, goals, and intense level of commitment to their spouses and "The Unit" itself.

Robert Patrick as their CO is a crafty, sage manipulator and, sometimes, a magician, to protect his teams out there in harm's way.

Dennis Haysbert plays the team captain large and in charge.

Scott Foley is the team's rookie, but not without his own survival skills and tactics.

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42 out of 63 people found the following comment useful :-
Excellent show, worth watching. All of my family enjoy it, even the boys in the army., 11 October 2006

Author: dorsai1 from Australia

I quite enjoyed the first episode in this new series. One of the things i liked was the fact that they show the families and the impact on them as well as the fun and games that the men have. I look forward to the future episodes where they develop the characters. While I was not surprised by the plot line, I thought that it was time that more information about the worlds special forces was released to the public in a format to entertain as well as educate. While the production have taken some liberties to keep us entertained and interested, its better to have it on the Television than yet another aspect of military life ignored as if it doesn't exist. While the people who are in the special forces will probably spot numerous flaws, we, the public do not have their in-depth knowledge. Some of the public will complain because its not fully of 24/7 action, looks at more than death and actually might make us think.

Watch the series and enjoy it. I have and am going to continue to watch it.

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23 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
Please enjoy the show, 15 May 2007

Author: nalrud from United States

I might not be the expert on Special Forces but I do have some military experience. The show is a situational show not a documentary so the authors tried and in my opinion succeeded in illuminating some sides of this mostly secretive part of the military. Some situational mistakes are laughable (black man in Belorussia would stand out as the palm tree in the Antarctica) and language accents are horrific at times but at the end the show is highly watchable and propagates the thought that in real situation members of the real Unit will be up to the task. I think the effort of the cast on portraying the military should be respected and military consultants on the show are respected and well know men. It was enormously satisfying to see the show of this caliber on regular TV. I am looking forward to the 3rd season

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43 out of 73 people found the following comment useful :-
Hollyweird just doesn't get it!, 10 March 2006
Author: (bwainright@yahoo.com) from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The first 57 minutes of this program were outstanding. Real heroes, taking on the bad guys, bureaucracy, the elements, travel…you get the picture, without negativity or defeatism; just getting the job done with honor and professionalism.

THEN – the last two scenes killed the entire program. The commander in bed with the wife of one of his men; the same man he deployed away from her. Kind of breaks the code of trust these men live for AND – our hero, the Top Sergeant, overacts and blows a bad guy away in his mirror… It was going so good.. A testimony to the real heroes in today's Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force… Hollywood just doesn't get it… They were so close.

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21 out of 30 people found the following comment useful :-
Desperate Housewives meets The Rat Patrol, 9 November 2006

Author: (blambert@co.marin.ca.us) from United States

I'm a big fan of Dennis Haysbert so I bought the first season having never seen the show before. The first episode had a couple of scenes that almost killed all my enthusiasm for it, but I hung with it; got into the characters and enjoyed the whole season. It' takes some getting used to watching the episodes cut back and forth to the soldiers on their missions and their wives back home; that just isn't how "war movies" are done my sexist old brain says. But while the action scenes are really well done the "home stories" are surprisingly compelling too. As someone who grew up on 'Combat", 'The Rat Patrol', 'Twelve O'Clock High' I am surprised I liked this new show as much as I did. Well worth purchasing the first season.

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24 out of 37 people found the following comment useful :-
Days Of Our Lives - Military Version, 15 February 2007

Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

Basically, I enjoyed this first season which I saw in its entirety over a six-day span, watching the DVD of the first season. Thus, I got to know all these characters pretty quickly! I got annoyed at a few of them but overall was pleased because almost every episode was entertaining, and, hey, that's the name of the game. I would have preferred they had stuck to the military action stories each week and skipped the soap operas, but I understand they want more than just a male audience. Also, lulls were needed to break up the intense action here and there.

All the characters, male and female, were interesting. Of the males, I had no problem with Dennis Haysbert ("Jonas Blane") in the lead role. His character dominated the action stories. His deep voice and authoritative manner made him a very believable person as the leader of these missions The other, younger guys are fine, too. Their spouses run the gamut from experienced military wives to very young newlywed-rookies. Two of the three major female characters, however, had serious flaws: "Tiffy" as an adulterer, and "Molly" as a frequent liar. Speaking of moral issues, what turned me off more than anything was the commander "Col. Tom Ryan" (Robert Patrick) of this elite unit being the one having the affair with"Tiffy!" Hey, I know everyone is human and subject to many daily sins but this seemed out of place and out of character with most everything else presented here.

Oh, well, for the most part, the characters in this military show are honorable, brave and, hopefully by the second season a little better people, morally-speaking. Kudos to the show's director and producer for making the action scenes very realistic. I am not surprised this show was successful and hope it has many years of entertaining us.

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25 out of 40 people found the following comment useful :-
Peyton Place in the SpecOps Community, 21 March 2006
Author: heathentart

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The first rule of television is to garner ratings. This often, except for exceptional programming on PBS, usually means putting in enough action scenes and sexual tension to keep the folks coming back each week. It often leads to mediocrity. I'd rather see producers try to elevate the viewing public rather than pander to them.

I had high hopes for this show, mostly because of David Mamet's name being attached (Glengarry Glen Ross is unalloyed brilliance in drama), and the acting chops of Dennis Haysbert. But I'm disappointed because it seems to be taking the same road worn with ruts by other military shows.

The characters are pretty cardboard cut-outs. We have the hero, Jonas Blane, leader of the pack, and Regina Taylor as his wife, Molly. Molly is so self-contained, so Hoo-Rah, so blank as to be chilling. It's easy to sense an ax murderess under all that smooth composure. There's the tyro - the Young Turk, Scott Foley as Bob Brown, and his brash, independent wife who needs to be inculcated into the Way of the Unit.

Then there's the burn-out, whose wife is sleeping with her husband's commanding officer.

How much more cookie-cutter Hollywood can we get? Special Forces Operators do the dirtiest work we ask of our soldiers. Regardless if they're Rangers, SEALs, Force Recon or PsyOps, these are highly-trained and motivated people, and I had wished this show would reflect their diversity and complexity.

It sure as heck doesn't. Early days yet, but they have to work much harder at giving us the reality of always living in the shadows, unnoticed by the population-at-large, and going largely unheralded for their accomplishments.

We inhabit a world that needs these folks to take care of bad situations and hopeless causes. We should, if determined to applaud them, give them a much better program than this.

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