Bucky leads the 100th on an attack of the railyards at Muenster. Meanwhile, the unit is getting frazzled from having to fly back-to-back missions without a break or enough time to replace planes damaged or lost on earlier missions.
Tropes in this episode include:
- Ambiguous Situation: One crewman trying to bail out gets his gear snagged on a hatch. Unable to free him, one of his crewmates pulls the emergency release on the door, popping the hinge loose. While this allows the airman to get free of the plane, we don't see if he successfully gets free of the hatch and deploys his parachute. It's revealed in the subsequent episodes that the aforementioned crewman survived, ending up as a prisoner-of-war in Stalag Luft III alongside Egan and Cleven.
- Book Ends: The episode begins with Crosby and his crew returning to their base and finding out Bubbles had written a letter to Crosby's presumed widow. The episode ends with Crosby going through Bubbles's personal effects and finding the letter Bubbles had written when he thought Crosby was dead.
- Dark Reprise: The show's theme song plays in a minor chord as the bombers launch and form up to attack Munster. On the show's soundtrack, this is appropriately titled "The Bloody Hundredth."
- Double Tap: Done to a bombsight in a stricken plane as part of the bail-out procedure.
- Foreshadowing: As the 100th departs for their target, a Dark Reprise of the show's theme song plays.
- Heroic Fatigue: Due to a shortage of both crews and serviceable planes, many of the airmen find themselves flying back-to-back missions without a break, often in other crews' planes, while dealing with the losses of many of their friends. Even with crews being sent up without rest, the entire Group is only able to muster seventeen planes for the Munster raid, and four of them have to abort due to mechanical problems before arriving over the target.
- He Who Fights Monsters: Bucky is in a very dark mood after the loss of Buck, and not particularly concerned about the possibility that if they miss their target, their bombs might land on a church as people are leaving mass.
- Improbable Piloting Skills: When they realize they're the last bomber left in the formation, Rosenthal puts Royal Flush through a stomach-churning series of maneuvers, engaging in a successful dogfight with four German fighters who were expecting to pick off a straggler.
- "London, England" Syndrome: An airman bails out while on a bombing run in Germany, and parachutes safely to the ground. a Title In not only informs the audience that he has landed in Westphalia, but helpfully clarifies that it is the one in Germany. Granted, there are several other Westphalias, most of them in the United States, but the odds of the airman landing near Westphalia, Texas are presumably slim.
- Mass "Oh, Crap!": The reaction of the bomber crews when hundreds of Luftwaffe fighters descend on them during the approach to Muenster.
- Music for Courage: While the crew of Royal Flush fly through enemy territory completely alone, watching for the inevitable German attack, Rosie begins humming over the intercom, to the baffled amusement of his crew.
- Quieter Than Silence: The scene where Royal Flush realize that they are all alone is eerily silent, without even the sound of their own plane's engines audible to the audience.
- Skewed Priorities: Discussed during the post-mission interrogation of the Royal Flush crew. When the intelligence officers start getting frustrated that they don't have specific information on the fates of the other aircraft in the 100th, Lt. Rosenthal defends his crew by pointing out they were too busy trying to survive the onslaught of German fighters to keep the log book up to date.
- Sink the Lifeboats: A German fighter pilot takes a shot at Bucky as he parachutes to the ground but misses.
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: After they return to base, one of Rosenthal's crewmen throws a fit, insisting that he's never going back up again after watching their entire group get shot out of the sky.
- Slow-Motion Pass-By: When Rosenthal and a German fighter pilot make eye contact as the two planes pass head-on.
- Sole Survivor: Rosenthal and his crew are the only B-17 from the 100th bomb group to make it back alive from the Munster raid, with all of the others having been shot down and destroyed.
- Survivor Guilt: In his letter to Crosby's wife, Bubbles remarks that he wishes it was Crosby sitting there instead of him, or that nobody should have to write a letter to anyone's widow. Crosby reads this letter while sitting on Bubbles's rack, indeed finding himself in the other navigator's place.
- Title In: After Bucky bails out, a titlecard helpfully informs the audience that he has landed in Westphalia, Germany, which serves to illustrate that he is far from being out of danger.
- War Crime Subverts Heroism: Discussed. The target is very close to a cathedral, and the plan is to drop the bombs around the same time everyone would be leaving from the day's church services. Some of the officers are nervous about the risk of hitting the church if they miss their target, but Bucky is feeling vengeful.
