Generation Kill On Target

From the mean streets of Baltimore to the meaner ones of Baghdad, the force behind The Wire scores a direct hit with HBO's new Generation Kill, writes Brian Lowry for Variety. Following a cast of Marines during the Iraqi invasion’s first 40 days, the 7-episode miniseries may make you forget it's a work of fiction as it "offers offers a chance to see those troops in their full, unfettered, foul-mouthed glory." It begins Sunday.

“The one quibble is that individual characters remain difficult to distinguish, buried as they are beneath so much gear and helmets," writes Lowry. That matters less and less, however, as the series goes on. The show balances its gritty look at war with persistent wit, Lowry notes, "as Marines engage in singalongs to kill time, and one yells, 'Vote Republican' to waving Iraqis." (More HBO stories.)