If you’re a fan of Band of Brothers, you’re probably wondering why Masters of the Air Episode 10 hasn’t been released yet — here’s what you should know.
Masters of the Air is the third series in Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg’s WW2 ‘trilogy’, following the men of the 100th Bomb Group from their arrival in England to their final flight back to the US — and the many, many deaths in between, earning them an infamous nickname: the Bloody Hundredth.
In Episode 9, allied troops finally made it into western Europe, with Buck, Bucky, the Tuskegee Airmen, and the rest of the men at Stalag Luft III hoping to make it home alive. To cut an hour-long story short, they succeed and soar off into the clouds.
However, Band of Brothers and The Pacific had 10 episodes — so should you be expecting a tenth episode in Masters of the Air, and if not, why not?
Why isn’t there a Masters of the Air Episode 10?
Masters of the Air Episode 10 doesn’t exist, as the series is only nine episodes long.
This does feel unusual, and it’s something the series has been criticized for — especially with regards to the introduction of the Tuskegee Airmen, shoehorned in during Episode 8 and barely given any character development of their own.
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“I wouldn’t be surprised if the actual plan for the series was 12-14 episodes with a more even split between the 100th in combat and the Tuskegee men being trained and then their combat story. But due to funding running out or getting reduced mid-production had to cut pretty much all of the Tuskegee portion and even had to cut some of the 100th’s story,” one Redditor speculated.
“I thought Episode 9 was way too rushed with ‘scenes of convenience.’ Bucky being at the base, cleaned up and shaved to greet Buck after a what… a four-hour mission at most? The Tuskegee men were a mere afterthought and while I know the show wasn’t about them there definitely seemed to be enough material to go for a 10th episode,” another wrote.
“Really the crux of the issue is that this was written as 10 episodes at an hour each but they had to compact it to nine episodes roughly 45 minutes each. I have confidence in John Orloff’s writing since he was one of the main writers of Band of Brothers, the overall quality was just hampered by a fixed budget,” a third commented, referencing Apple TV’s reported hardline on the show’s expenditure.
There’s also the small matter of global restrictions and lockdowns impeding the show’s production; it’s an expensive decision to halt filming, and that may be another reason behind its compacted back-half.
While Masters of the Air may be over, you can read more about the show’s accuracy, find out more about its enormous cast and their real-life characters, and learn about where it was filmed.
