Reviews & Ratings for
"Black Sheep Squadron" More at IMDbPro »"Baa Baa Black Sheep" (original title)

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11 reviews in total

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18 out of 20 people found the following review useful:
A viewer remembers, 24 February 1999
Author: middlega from Monticello, GA

The tales of Boyington's Black Sheep may not have been the most historically accurate, best written, or even best acted WW II series on television.

What it WAS, however, was an entertaining hour in front of the tube, with a likable cast & easy to like/care about characters.

The Bellisaro hand in the casting in easy to see, with a number of familiar faces that returned to become regulars or recurring characters on Magnum P.I.

In short, a usually enjoyable show that never failed to deliver exactly what you expected from it.

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13 out of 14 people found the following review useful:
Excellent Show!, 5 May 1999
Author: John Baker (jabaker@netdoor.com) from Jackson, Missisippi

While the Movie and T.V. show did have some inaccuracies it did provide a thrilling show that I love to this day. When I was small I would sneak up to my room just so I could See "Pappy" and the "Black Sheep" Squadron every week and since as an adult have become intensely interested in history and the role that these true American heroes played in making this a free country. I wish that everyone could see this show.

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12 out of 13 people found the following review useful:
Somewhat mixed but generally quite entertaining, 9 December 2001
Author: Hessian499 from Pittsburgh, PA

Set in the South Pacific during World War Two, the series dealt with a squadron of US pilots known as the Black Sheep (called such due to the fact most were misfits and disciplinary cases before joining the outfit). The best part of the series were the aerial combat sequences; using a mix of archived material from the war, newly filmed sequences, and superbly edited tapings of radio transmissions, the producers made it seem like you were up there in the sky with the squadron in the encounters with the Japanese. On the ground, the dramatic scenes were often done just as well; you got to realize that even though the squadron was made up of screwballs they behaved as a unit and worked as a team to make it through whatever came up.

Later episodes in the series tend to be rather lacking in entertainment value. The addition of "Pappy's Lambs" - a group of nurses assigned to the island - was probably meant to help ratings, but at the same time the focus started to swing towards them and away from the war against the Japanese, which had been the backbone of the more successful earlier episodes. The overall writing of the series seems to have deteriorated as the show got towards the end of its run as well.

While mixed in quality through its run, the show is definitely worth watching, if nothing else for the Corsairs that were restored to be used on the show - great aircraft!

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10 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
Pappy rules!, 21 March 2001
Author: dindy-2 from Maryland

I watch this every day on the History Channel. Great show, maybe not the most historically accurate, but you get a sense of what life was like for these young pilots in the Pacific. Gutterman and Pappy are my favorite characters. Most everyone with a speaking role in the series carved out a nitche for himself and made his character fairly memorable. This is a show the whole family can watch together and learn a little about WW2. One thing I like about the History Channel is that each commercial break has a blurb from a real member of the Black Sheep Squadron giving insights into areas where the show is not accurate.

Why did they cancel this show?? The show went WAY down hill with the addition of the T&A factor (aka Pappy's Lambs). What was a pathetic attempt to boost ratings further detracted from the historical accurateness of the show by depicting woman with no acting talent, often scantily dressed, with 70s hairstyles positioned on the front lines in WW2. Pappy Boyington was a technical advisor to the show and should have put a stop to this!!!

Attention Hollywood: Pappy Boyington and his brave men would make an excellent feature film. The TV series just scratches the surface of the adventures of the Black Sheep.

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9 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
My thoughts on Baa Baa Blacksheep..., 16 January 2007

Author: njg76 from United States

It was an excellent program... and miles above the competition! Baa Baa Blacksheep (Blacksheep Squadron) will always hold a special place in my heart. I not only knew the cast (Great people!), but I was acquainted with the real "Pappy" Boyington as well. He had a great time working the set of Baa Baa Blacksheep and I know it meant a lot to him... Anyone not familiar with Greg "Pappy" Boyington should read the book "Blacksheep One"... It really lets the reader into the kind of person he really was. Highly recommended!

Here's to Greg...He was one hell of a combat pilot, and a hell of a man.

He is sorely missed.

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8 out of 9 people found the following review useful:
Thrilling WWII Action with Flying Leathernecks, 2 February 2001
Author: Troll-19

Baa Baa Black Sheep or Black Sheep Squadron is an exciting TV series about Pappy Boyington's VMF 214, a USMC fighter squadron of WWII vintage. The characters are likeable and Robert Conrad really fills the bill as Gregory "Pappy" Boyington, Medal of Honor winner and multiple ace in the Pacific. The aerial sequences are outstanding and the use of combat footage is skillful. I watch the show every opportunity I can get and enjoy the episodes that feature combat and not the ones where a black sheep is caught behind enemy lines

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9 out of 12 people found the following review useful:
My All Time Favorite TV Show, 25 August 2001
Author: Hank (hankieroseman@hotmail.com) from Ft.Worth, Texas

I loved the "Corsairs" as long as I can remember. I was so disappointed when the Black Sheep series ended I never watched network television again. Pro football was the only network programming I would watch. Then cable came and most recently The History Channel has aired the Black Sheep. I taped as many as I could. Then came my computer and I still haven't watched a network program for over 20 some odd years. I know NBC don't miss me. I don't miss NBC either. God Bless Pappy Boyington. May you rest in peace.

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5 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
brings back memories i shared with my grand dad a marine., 6 July 2007

Author: southerncrosshr from United States

I remember i was just a kid when i came home from some where and the first episode came on and i watched it with my grand dad i was hooked from then on. my grand dad remembered the black sheep from his days on Guadalcanal and told me about the real Boyington and the black sheep. we knew the TV show was pretty much hokam but we enjoyed the spirit of the show and how good it made us feel. i later was given a copy of the book pappy wrote by my grand mother and i would build corsairs from kits and hang them in my room. i never got to meet pappy before he died but if i ever get back to Arlington national cemetery i will go to his grave as i do grand dads and say a word of thanks. i was also lucky to grow up not far from the little town where Audie Murphy was born in Kingston Texas. and my other favorite military person was general George s Patton Ole blood and guts himself. it is too bad we do not have those type of men around any more but to them all a heartfelt thanks. they were in deed the greatest generation.

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4 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
WWII couldn't get any cooler than that, 20 September 2009

Author: jaimehk from South America

They were young, good looking, their lives move around flying those wonderful blue planes, they lived in tropical paradises, and between each flight they used to hang out with really hot girls, mock authority and play sports. What else an anxious pre-teen could ask from a TV Screen? (Actually I saw the reruns in the 80's once and again). Only occasionally they mourned the loss of a fella, and that their business was about killing and hurting other people was of minor importance. A pretty sweetened version of war, indeed. And about historical accuracy, it faired only slightly better than, say, "Operation Petticoat" (another 70's series about WW2) or MASH. In the plus side, it gives good messages about camaraderie, friendship, loyalty, and even tolerance (it wasn't openly anti-jap), and, at least speaking of myself, you fell compelled to learn more about actual history. As a present-day WWII buff, I wouldn't buy a DVD, but I'd gladly spend one hour of my lifetime watching a rerun of some episode. I would recommend it for parents with teens and preteens, but I'm sure they would find it slow and boring.

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2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
Well done series about a WW-II hero and his pilots, 11 February 2007

Author: rwalk09 from United States

Black Sheep Squadron is a series that is fascinating to watch, over and over. I first started watching it on the History Channel and have numerous tapes that are wearing out from use. These are quite interesting since they contain the comments of the original Black Sheep members, as well as some by Conrad.

The stories, for the most part, are quite interesting and the acting is top-notch. Conrad is a seasoned actor going back many years and does very well in all sorts of roles, including this one. Clyde Kusatsu in his role as a captured Zero pilot was believable and has been in many other movies since. The regulars...Dana Elcar, Robert Ginty, W. K. Stratton, Simon Oakland, James Whitmore, Jr. were well-placed in their roles.

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