‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1 Takeaway: Gale Cleven confronts harsh realities of war in Apple TV+'s drama series
Spoilers for ‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1
LONDON, ENGLAND: The first two episodes of ‘Masters of the Air’ have officially dropped on Apple TV+ and if you haven’t watched it yet, now might be the perfect time to do so.
If you were expecting a touch of ‘Top Gun’ mixed with war, you might have to rethink that notion, because ‘Masters of the Air’ goes way beyond that.
In the first episode, viewers are introduced to several characters, part by part, in different scenes and ways. Still, the focus remains on Gale Cleven and John Egan played by Austin Butler and Callum Turner.
While the entire episode can be labeled a cinematic masterpiece, the last few minutes will truly grab your attention.
A somber opening for an epic battle
‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1 starts easy. There are women, there’s banter, and Austin Butler and Callum Turner establish some splendid acting to begin, along with the friendship of their characters, John “Bucky” Egan and Gale “Buck” Cleven.
Don’t let the start of the first episode have you fooled because of the juxtaposition that the viewers face for the rest of the episode in ‘Masters of the Air.’
Buck and Bucky’s friendship will be important throughout the miniseries, but once again, the focus soon shifts to a much darker, and brutal phase once the characters are shoved into the horrors of war.
However, before we dive into that, ‘Masters of the Air’ might just have one of the best opening title sequences in the history of television so far, and the touch of Steven Spielberg is more than evident.
Has Gale Cleven lost hope in ‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1?
There’s a lot to unpack in ‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1. There are several characters, who are most likely played by some of your favorite actors in film and TV, and yes, we are talking about Barry Keoghan and Ncuti Gatwa amongst several others.
In addition to the characters, there’s also action, which has been brilliantly choreographed, however, the focus stays towards the end of ‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1.
Gale Cleven and the gang are summoned for their first mission, and are briefed by Colonel Harold Huglin, and how they are to bomb the U-boats at Bremen, Germany. As this mission commences, with nerves at their peak, things get worse by every minute, something Gale had not anticipated.
The warfare commences when the Germans arrive in their own fighter planes, and three American planes are hit and lost.
After this mission, the focus remains on Gale who is in complete disbelief of everything that escalated, and this expression he holds is one of lost hope, grief, and immense loss.
Gale is reunited with John at the base as the former questions the latter about not being warned about the brutality of war as they drive away, knowing there’s more to come.
‘Masters of the Air’ Episode 1 is now available to stream on Apple TV+