History Literature / GenerationKill

* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: At the end of the book. Colbert eventually served as an exchange NCO with the [[BritsWithBattleships Royal Marines]]. Fick and some of the other Marines (including Person and Trombley) got out, and some of those would eventually return to Iraq as PrivateMilitaryContractors. Some were killed during the Insurgency that followed.

-->--'''Sgt. Eric Kocher'''

-->--'''Sgt. Brad "Iceman" Colbert'''

* BattleCouple: Subverted; Lilley gets a letter from his wife telling him she's already signed her enlistment papers by the time he's reading it so she can be closer to him. Given the slant towards realism, her letter informing him of such is all we see of her, and the other Marines comment that she's more likely to end up being sexually harassed working in a motor pool than by his side in combat.

* CodeName: Done realistically, code names are only at the company level and numbers added on refer to specific groups. For the focal Bravo company it's Hitman, for Alpha it's Assassin, and the rarely spoken of Charlie is Raptor.

** In the film, Reyes—played by Reyes himself, reportedly because no actor was hot enough (riiiight!)—is initially nude for the scene, then gets dressed. The actual quote is from David Simon, one of the show's creators, who was facing the conundrum of casting someone "who embodied both Reyes' beautiful physique ... and blissed-out, New Age attitude". As Simon says: "He's like a unicorn."

* FelonyMisdemeanor: Do ''not'' bring Charms candy into any Marine vehicle, or even ''eat it''. It's ''bad luck''. [[note]]The book mentions an incident when Trombley quickly and surreptitiously eats a bag of Charms candy, telling the reporter not to tell anyone. Nothing bad happens[[/note]].

** When Sergeant Major Sixta is reprimanding Pappy about his mustache the second time around, another Marine can be seen goosestepping in the background in a Nazi Salute, to mock Sixta, and to remind Pappy that the 'Hitler 'stache' that he wears falls within the grooming standard

** Brad after Trombley [[spoiler:shoots civilians with his ok.]] In the book, Brad is reduced to tears when he comes face-to-face with the aftermath.

* KnightInSourArmor: More than a few of the Marines qualify. As Wright points out, not only are these men generally unsuprised by the idea that their leaders might be corrupt or incompetent, but they have grown to expect it, having all grown up in the post-Watergate era. Their motivations for serving range from purely practical (getting out of bad neighborhoods, for example) to more idealistic (trying to make a CrapsackWorld a slightly better place, or at least prevent it from getting worse). Even the most idealistic member of the battallion, Lieutenant Fick, isn't immune from a growing degree of cynisism while pressing on with his duties.

** In the new afterward for the novel, Evan Wright specifically talked about how various media outlets leapt to conclusions and believed all the Marines featured were violent thugs, thanks to Trombley and Person's "colorful" quotes.

* TropeCodifier: The miniseries reasonably shares the title of defining the 21st century military in media with ''Film/BlackhawkDown''.

* TropeCodifier: The miniseries reasonably shares the title of defining the 21st century military in media with BlackhawkDown.

* BloodKnight: Lance Cpl. Harold James Trombley

* ElitesAreMoreGlamorous: Subverted. First Recon is one of the elite units for the Marine Corps, but the missions they were performing here by tooling around Iraq in Humvees were basic. In the book, it's explained that this was a decision by higher-ups to "confuse" the enemy. The Marines complain about this constantly. Near the end of the series you see what Recon Marines are ''actually'' capable of, when they raid an Iraqi office under protection of other Marines for the giggles.

* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Quite a few straight male characters comment on how hot Fruity Rudy is. Which he seems to revel in, even though he has a steady girlfriend back home.

* KnightInSourArmor: More than a few of the Marines qualify. As Wright points out, not only are these men generally unsuprised by the idea that their leaders might be corrupt or incompetent, but they have grown to expect it, having all grown up in the post-Watergate era. Their motivations for serving range from purely practical (getting out of bad neighborhoods, for example) to more idealistic (trying to make a CrapsackWorld a slightly better place, or at least prevent it from getting worse).

** "Captain America" whose activities include hoarding Iraqi fallen goods, spazzing out on comms about being attacked by every little thing, abusing prisoners, demanding the Marines shoot something or someone at random, shooting at random people when in the convoy, and freaking out at the slightest problem.

* LesCollaborateurs: Played for laughs by Sgt. Espera. He justifies everything that he does in the Marines by saying that the white man has "gotta rule the world".

** The Marines often make fun of the Army, saying how they have it easy due to being more well-equipped and well-funded. In one instance, a Marine mistakes an incoming Marine convoy for an army one and remarks that they convoy is returning to the AAFES to get more tampons.

* LostForever: Conventional example. A valuable supply truck is abandoned and unsurprisingly looted. To great dishonor and chagrin, it transported the battalion colors, carried into battle since Vietnam. Cpl. Person jumps at the chance to [[DeadpanSnarker sarcastically analyze the move]] and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RLlwuSJGUQ delivers]] one of his IdiotHero remarks about the higher-ups.
-->'''Ray''': I’m betting that they were thinking that they could just, you know, leave a fully loaded supply truck laying around, just like you could anywhere in America, you know. I mean, you park your unlocked car in [[GangsterLand Detroit or Baltimore]], I mean, your shit’s going to be there, guaranteed, when you get back from the day spa with your skin all exfoliated and shit, right. I mean, seriously homes, why would our Iraqi brethren want four hundred pounds of C4, claymores and crates of M-16’s. I mean, it just doesn’t make any sense. Oh wait, you know they could be using all that C4 for like a giant Fourth of July celebration.

** Which Person later "pimped out" to someone in Bravo Three for some PEQ-4 Batteries before he got a chance to give it back to Wright.

* TheNeidermeyer:

** In his own book, Nathan Fick explains why First Recon ended up with such incompetent officers. Recon is primarily intended to send small teams of highly-competent troops into enemy territory to perform recon missions. The company and battalion-level officers are primarily assigned to do organizational and logistics work, and were never really intended to command in the field. The enlisted Marines, [=NCOs=], and platoon commanders are extremely well-trained and highly competent men who are supposed to operate mostly independently of battalion and company-level command. Thus, the book and series showcase what happens when you take a unit trained and organized for a specific mission and then use them for something completely different from their original purpose.
* NervesOfSteel: Trombley, in episode 4. When under fire from a self-propelled AA gun, he calmly spots the distance to the enemy vehicle for air support while bullets land inches away from him. He seems fascinated by the volume of fire that AA gun dishes out and has to be pulled away although later he admits to actually feeling ''underwhelmed''.

** Another notable example of excluding something on account of RealityIsUnrealistic; when [[spoiler:Pappy was shot in the foot]] and reported it by first referring to himself in the third person with his tongue planted firmly in his cheek, Doc Bryan started laughing because it meant he was okay. The laughter part isn't in the mini-series, because Wright was worried the audience wouldn't quite understand why someone would laugh, given the situation. The miniseries also left out the fact that during the bridge ambush, while Colbert was calmly gunning down enemy troops, he was singing. Yes, in the middle of a giant ambush, Colbert was quietly ''singing to himself''. There is a ''reason'' they call him the "Iceman." [[note]]''Sundown'' by Gordon Lightfoot, in case you were wondering.[[/note]]

** In the novel's new afterword after the HBO series, he was completely polite after the actors took him out to dinner... and then, shortly after they left, reverted to his old persona and called them pussies and morons for "getting PTSD from filming."[[note]]The actors talked about how hard it was to readjust to civilian life after filming.[[/note]]

* OfficerAndAGentleman: Lt. Nathaniel Fick is easily the most put together officer in First Recon. Captain Bryan Patterson might also qualify.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: If one is already aware of [=SgtMaj=]. Sixta's GenghisGambit, much of his rants and chewing-out of the battalion can seem to be laced with a very subtle hint of trolling. When he lays into Garza for losing his helmet, however, he seems genuinely angry. Given that gear accountability is SeriousBusiness in the military, he would have been totally justified had he [=NJP'd=] Garza. (In the book, Garza did not lose any of his issued equipment during the invasion.)

** Which Person later "pimped out" to someone in Bravo Three for some PEQ-4 Batteries before he got a chance to give it back to said reporter.
* SemperFi: Subverted to some degree. Although there is an amount of "moto" chest thumping, the series does subvert parts of the Marine Corps myth. Examples: "Captain America," "Encino Man," "Casey Kasem," and who could forget the genius idea of re-purposing a reconnaissance unit as a light assault unit in light armored Humvees?

* {{Sergeant Rock}}: Too many to count. Obvious choices are Sgt. Brad "Iceman" Colbert, Sgt. Eric Kocher and Sgt. Antonio "Poke" Espera. "Casey Kasem" would become this ''after'' the events of the novel/TV series.

* SpiritualSuccessor: Another HBO miniseries about a [[Series/BandOfBrothers US military company and the bonds between soldiers]].

* ThoseTwoGuys: Bravo Company commander Captain Craig "Encino Man" Schwetje, and his senior enlisted man Gunnery Sergeant Ray "Casey Kasem" Griego. Note that despite the show's assertion, Casey Kasem could have been either Ray Griego, or his brother Gunnery Sergeant Daniel J. Griego. Wright specifically avoided naming the "incompetent" commanding officers in his book, specifically because he didn't think that most of them deserved the criticism that would be thrown their way for their actions.

** In his own book, ''One Bullet Away'', Fick relates that not only did Encino Man specifically want to call in an artillery strike because "Alpha got to call in one, so I want to call in one", but also that the headquarters Major on the other end of the line (Fick's mentor and friend) got so incredibly angry with Encino Man during that call that he almost got reprimanded for unprofessional behavior and breaking radio protocols. In other words, the strike was never going to happen, at either end.

* InformedAttractiveness: The book unfortunately plays this trope straight with Rudy Reyes. The fact that he later got a modeling contract is good proof that he is indeed attractive.

** In the book, Wright goes on to state "We got a report saying he was OK and he was last seen enjoying a meal. A marine says this probably means someone tossed an MRE at his corpse." In the series, Poke exclaims (in frustration) that "At least we gave him a happy meal before he died!"

* FacialDialogue: Fick and Colbert in ''Cradle of Civilization''. Colbert had just keyed his mic to reply to Encino Man's radio announcement that they were lost because Colbert took a wrong turn (Encino Man had ordered the turn despite Fick and Colbert's protests). Fick [[HeldGaze makes eye contact]] with Colbert and shakes his head silently, and Colbert released the mic without comment.

* EnsignNewbie: {{Inverted}}. Lieutenant Fick, the lowest ranking officer seen in the unit, actually has more combat experience than most of the higher ranking officers, due to how Marine Recon units normally operate (small deployed detachments in the field, with most of the higher ranking personnel looking after the intel and administrative needs of the unit in the rear area). While most of the officers had never been in combat, Fick previously served in Afghanistan[[labelnote:*]]though not in Recon, and he ultimately avoided combat entirely. He was promoted from 2nd Lieutenant to 1st Lieutenant based on his abilities in training, his mission planning prowess, and his obvious aptitude, along with a few connections and mentors. He was actually new to the platoon, barely with them for a month before they deployed to Iraq, but earned their respect ''very'' quickly by being consciencious of their needs and respecting their experience[[/labelnote]].

* ColonelBadass:
** Lt. Colonel Stephen "Godfather" Ferrando in the series only. In the book, he's treated as capable, but generally disliked by his men for his recklessness and his unnecessary adherence to the Grooming Standard. In fact, Navy [=HM2=] Robert Timothy "Doc" Bryan posited that Ferrando might have been deliberately trying to get some of his men killed, so his compatriots don't think he avoided actual combat.
** Ferrando's competence is the most obvious example of what one could say is the 'theme' of GenerationKill; that no one man in a warzone has a full perspective of what's going on. The book notes that Ferrando had never been in combat before and that his previous billet was commander of the parade ground at Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington DC, which he himself described as "the most ceremonial billet in the Corps." Considering this, he certainly could've done a lot ''worse,'' and some of the Marines who openly criticized his decisions during the time the book/series covers later learned of variables they weren't originally aware about that made those decisions more reasonable in hindsight.

** In Episode 1 of the show, Lt. Fick lies through his teeth to Godfather to keep his men from getting in trouble over the malfunctioning portable stove that burnt Person in the face. They had been operating the stove inside a tent in blatant disregard for regulations.
*** Godfather sees through this straight away but goes along with it, snarkily suggesting that Fick write up some of his men for commendation for their efforts.

->''"Dear Frederick, thank you for your nice letter. But I'm actually a U.S. Marine who was born to kill, where you have clearly mistaken me for some sort of wine-sipping communist dick suck. And although peace probably appeals to tree-loving bisexuals like you and your parents, I happen to be a death-dealing, blood-crazed warrior who wakes up everyday just hoping for the chance to dismember my enemies and defile their civilizations. Peace sucks a hairy asshole, Freddie. War is the motherfucking answer."''

-->''"Well sir, it's just that you're incompetent sir."''

This complete lack of political correctness in favor of realism is a major cause of criticism for both the book and series. Negative reactions tend to be [[RippedFromTheHeadlines questioning of the material's validity]] at best, and accusations of it being anti-military, biased and fabricated at worst. The miniseries DVD extras include a discussion with the real Marines, during which this phenomenon is brought up: Ray Person tells a story about meeting people who, despite his own ability to validate the material, refused to believe American serviceman would even swear so much, while Gunnery Sergeant Colbert hypothesized that this mindset among some viewers might be traced back to the tendency of older war movies to depict war as more civilized and glamorous to the point where it's become a case of RealityIsUnrealistic. The author himself has spoken out against media trying to use the book and miniseries as anti-military.

* NervesOfSteel: Trombley, in episode 4. When under fire from a self-propelled AA gun, he calmly spots the distance to the enemy vehicle for air support while bullets land inches away from him. He seems fascinated by the volume of fire that AA gun dishes out and has to be pulled away although later he revealed that he actually feels ''underwhelmed''.