A message from Kevin Biege, the creator of “Enlisted”
Kevin Biege, the creator of the new Fox show “Enlisted” writes to you this morning about his TV show. I guess he wants to clear up some misconceptions of his show. I DVR’d the pilot last week and I thought it was pretty funny and fit my perceptions of the “Rear D”. yeah, there were some things that jumped out at me, like the sacrilege of calling a Bradley Fighting Vehicle a “tank”, but to me it’s more about three brothers than it is about the Army, but your opinion may differ.
Hello,
My name is Kevin Biegel. I created a new Fox family comedy called Enlisted. It’s about brothers serving together on a small Army Post in Florida. It’s a workplace comedy, except the workplace is the Army. It’s an extremely personal show, more so than anything I’ve ever worked on. The Army part comes from all my family and friends who served and the monumental effect that experience had on their lives. The brother part comes from my relationship with my two younger brothers, the closest, longest, most beat-the-crap-out-of-each-other-then-say-we-love-each-other-est relationship I’ve ever had.
While a comedy, ENLISTED will be dramatic at times. It has to be. We can never be M*A*S*H – no show can, M*A*S*H is an all-time great – but I wanted to follow its lead in combining comedy with heavier issues. I don’t believe you can do a show about the military in 2014 and not deal with things like PTSD or losing a loved one. We have to write about those things, they have to be part of this world. Both because it’s the right thing to do, and because it’s my duty to be respectful of the men and women who do this job. I’m embarrassed we got some technical stuff wrong in the pilot, but I think you’ll see we course-corrected and got squared away very quickly. We even had a contest about it ( http://youtu.be/_7X56C_cnMQ ) and sent our cast to a mini ‘boot camp’ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_37Mld3eNls&feature=share&list=PLXd9aCB0yKuhKSVy41tTPXyMMWy20c3hA ).
We wanted to make a show that you could watch and enjoy whether you’re six or sixty. I used to love sitting down and watching TV with my Dad, and I think Enlisted is the kind of program that will afford an experience like that for modern audiences, as well as show how funny, noble, heroic, sweet and human the men and women who serve in the military can be. We want this show to be joyous and inviting, and that’s we’re reaching out to you to show you a few episodes.
The pilot episode of the show is available at Fox.com or on Hulu ( http://www.fox.com/enlisted/full-episodes/112801859719 or http://www.hulu.com/watch/581663 ), but we wanted to send along a few more to show you how the show quickly evolved. We delve into some deeper areas as you’ll see, and hopefully families will appreciate the seriousness with which we treat some of the storylines.
Thanks for watching, we hope you enjoy them, and if you do we appreciate you helping us get the word out about this show we’re so very proud of.
Thank you,
Kevin Biegel
Creator, Writer and Executive Producer, ENLISTED
@kbiegel
They sent me some of the upcoming shows, but I haven’t been able to watch them yet. But in the opening of the pilot episode, the star calls for supporting fires in combat in Afghanistan that are denied and so he goes back and punches the pogue officer who wouldn’t give him any. Some people are upset at that, but I’m sure some of you can identify with the feelings that accompany that particular situation.
Here’s the videos of their mini-boot camp at Fort Bliss.
Category: Who knows
I’m always a fan of punching pog officers, I think I might have to watch this.
To the people who are so critical of the show, IT’S A SHOW. It is for entertainment not information. I liked the show and take it for what it is, a comedy about Army life complete with carrying some things to the absurd. Some of these people think “Stripes” is a documentary. Lighten up Francis and enjoy.
Besides, who hasn’t wanted to punch a field grade officer in the face?
McHales Navy, Gomer Pyle USMC, MASH (though sorry this new show is not even in the same ballpark in talent or writing), Hogans Heros, F-Troop…
All comedies, all showing the military in what many of us may consider a bad light, but I enjoyed every single one of them. As well as movies like Private Benjamin and Stripes.
I think maybe it is that after 12 years of continuous War, and the only television show to come out about the Army is this farcial comedey. So much sacrifice, and at a time when we see the efforts of so many just being wasted away in Iraq and knowing the same is coming in Afghanistan… it tempers the mood of many. Maybe I will give it another try, and see if I can get beyond shredding every inconsistency I see. I guess if I drank, I could create one heck of a drinking game out of it. Nice Challeng Coin though.
@2, never met a Field Grade Officer I wanted to punch in the face or anywhere else. Of course I have never met Eric Shinseki either.
It’s got my attention, now to set up the DVR…
I watched this pilot last year, when they were running this the first time. I thought it was funny and the characters were funny, in a Stripes sort of way. I will watch a few more episodes to see how it does and go from there.
@3;They made a show about Iraq called “Over There”. It was so horrible it only made it (I think) seven episodes. It had every Army stereotype in one Squad, from the black dude that wants to be a rapper to the Sergeant that all he does is yell. It made “Hurt Locker” look realistic by comparison.
Okay, more importantly, when do we all get coined from them?
I wrote these guys when I saw their ‘offer’. I never expected ‘Saving Private Ryan’ accuracy. I get that it’s a comedy. Unfortunately there are slapstick things (such as surfing behind a Bradley) that are funny and goofy. Then there are things that are so out of line with the culture that you (as a vet) can’t get past which ruin the rest of the show. For me it was the no hats at any time, and the unzipped ACU top 24/7, even in front of the SGM. I’m not a uniform dick by any stretch of the imagination. Some little things that only Army guys would get actually made it in there, like all the females having pink running shoes. Where I can’t forgive ‘Enlisted’ is the fact that they keep touting how they want to make it ‘right’ and even have a contest to spot the issues, but we have a 10 year supply of combat vets. Why didn’t they poll some of them for help before the thing aired. I know Max over at Terminal Lance was consulted, and I love the guy, but one he’s not a soldier, he’s a jarhead (no offense guys), and two he either was asleep at the wheel or they ignored his input completely if the pilot is any indication. As the negative reactions poured now they suddenly want to ‘honor’ the troops? I don’t think so. This is just another Hollywood stunt for a show that realized they screwed the pooch and are trying to recover before the military viewers poison the well and the thing tanks. Rant complete. Back to work. It’s 350-1 training day!
Since it’s a comedy and not a “factual” docu-drama my expectations for accuracy would be extremely low….
No one was watching Seinfeld and expecting a detailed accurate account of the day to day operations of the Yankees when the character of George was employed there, anymore than anyone expected Elaine’s time at Pendant Publishing to provide extremely accurate operating functionality of the book publishing industry….
If the show if funny I will watch it, if it is not funny to me I will continue to occupy my time with other endeavors….it’s pretty simple. I’m not going to get all indignant over a f#cking sitcom’s portrayal of any profession….I am pretty confident Andy Samberg’s portrayal of police procedure’s in his dopey show is less than accurate….
If you are looking for accuracy in your comedy entertainment medium I would suggest you probably aren’t in possession of any sense of humor in spite of what you might think….
I remember watching the teasers last year and thinking how quaint and out-of-touch the Sgt. Bilko-style humor was.
Considering the show is a mid-season replacement on Fox, it’s not going to last the year, if that.
@7: Remember the trailer for Combat Hospital, with one of the surgeons taking out a 1911 in the middle of the procedure to shoot a snake?
Also, lol Fort Bliss. That’s the second time now I’ve heard of garrison command inviting people on post to do movie or TV stuff. Bunch of spouses even got caught wearing their husbands’ uniforms when the post Facebook was calling for extras in the chick flick? named after same. Doesn’t that come out in a few months? I’m cringing just thinking about it.
wife (also a vet) and I tried to watch this… made it 15 minutes and switched to Blacklist. Far more realistic and ‘way funnier.
Only good scene WAS the punch. And 1.5 seconds can not bring back the quarter hour of our lives we wasted.
I think it is a good show and that the writer takes pains to not show too much to put people off.
Give it time to develop. You may end up liking it a lot.
The way I see it, it’s either this showing the Army in a comedic light or the stupid commercial about the soldier raped and her command says she can’t have answers only orders. I’ll take Enlisted.
The guy can’t be all bad, he’s reached out to Ranger Up for some pointers. You know, besides the biggest of of HAIR CUTS!
I do not think I will be watching this.
Or maybe that could tie it into the more credible and believable NCIS….
Not.
I didn’t get to see it yet, but I watched the Ranger Up crew’s drinking game of the show and it seemed like it was a hilarious show. I’ll check it out tonight.
Enlisted sucked plain and simple, thirty minutes of my life I will never get back. Punching the O5 was the best part.
Since the pilot previewed last fall, the producers have been pretty busy letting everyone know that they hired a military consulting firm for the rest of the season to correct the more glaring mistakes from the pilot. From the journalists and bloggers who have seen later episodes, they keep saying to be patient and accept the pilot as a rough draft. With that in mind, the pilot looked hilarious. The female SGT was a little too motivated in my opinion and the “wargame” was stupid, but the eldest brother and the CSM were spot on.
Immediately after WWII and for years following it, there was movie after movie in which somebody on radio would say, “Over and out.” So much for authenticity. When our war Veterans were in their 40s, “Hogans Heroes” arrived on TV. And although it portrayed the commandant and guards as a bunch of goofs, I don’t recall Veterans getting steamed or demanding that the show be nixed. I do, however, recall some folks being pissed early on. Then there was McHale’s Navy, where 5 o’clock Charlie visited, dropping a bomb or straffing, all in good fun. Of course, the reality was quite different. My point is that Enlisted may or may not be worth watching. I didn’t like MASH in its end years. It went way too left for me and reflected the real-life politics and views of Triple A: Asshole Alan Alda.
Meh…
You forgot about Mike Ferrell, Air Cav. He is a bit worse than Alda
1. Basic cable TV is horrible
2. Basic cable TV sitcoms are worse
3. Over There was downright insulting
4. Archer season 5 just started!
Still a better love story than “Army Wives”?
/snark
Boy they got soft treatment…And that’s coming from a guy who went through AMEDD Officers basic! Haha! Seriously though, the main actor seems very mature, really introspective as to how to accurately portray a soldier, as does the younger fellow with the short cut hair. I wanted to beat the smirk off of the one with the Beiber hairstyle. What a bitch.
@9
Then there are things that are so out of line with the culture that you (as a vet) can’t get past which ruin the rest of the show. For me it was the no hats at any time, and the unzipped ACU top 24/7, even in front of the SGM
That’s what kind of got my attention… and I was just a guy stationed at a hospital in Germany.
I thought those things were just distracting from the show. And as much as people might want to, what are the odds of a junior NCO punching a field grade officer in a war zone, with witnesses, and only losing a stripe and getting reassigned to CONUS?
You are correct, malclave. Because, back in the day somebody (presumably MP’s on the order of said punched O-?) would have been hooking that junior NCO up with a set of made to fit chrome bracelets and parking his ass in a holding cell until a general courts martial was convened OR transfer to a garrison and prison ward in the base hospital or stockade and confined there.
1976, Logan Heights, Ft Bliss, BCT. Watched some of the vids, didn’t know what to expect. Not sure if I’ll watch the show. Just another Gomer Pyle style show. Not to be taken seriously, it’s just entertainment. If the actors want to experience Bliss, sign up for the next Bataan Death march at White Sands.