Rating: 
Summary: Dangerous actions at a dangerous time
Review: When I encounter a veteran of world war II, I always ask them their opinion of either general George Patton or General Douglas MacArthur, depending on what theater they were in. In the case of both generals their opinions show a wide divergence , some think they walked on water while others that they were full of a more objectionable semi-solid. Griffin exhibits elements of both opinions of MacArthur, sometimes referential and other times derogatory. One wonders what his true opinion of El Supremo is.
In terms of story line, the background is the North Korean invasion of South Korea and the American intelligence communities inability to predict it. That was clearly the most perilous time in the entire cold war, the one point where communism had a real chance to achieve world domination. Had the American forces been pushed off the Korean peninsula, the communist forces would have been far more aggressive in expanding their influence in other parts of the world.
Such a critical backdrop always makes for a tense and engaging story, and Griffin delivers a good one. The characters are well developed, with strong personalities that are well suited to the circumstances. They are true military men, devoted to their duty and willing to bend orders to suit the circumstances. The quality of the reading by James Naughton is also very good. He uses tonal infections and emphasis to great dramatic effect and his impersonation of MacArthur is credible.
I enjoyed listening to this story. It had enough historical accuracy to be interesting on that account and the action is engaging and entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: What happened?
Review: I have been following this series since it came out in the 1980s. Being a former Marine and Viet-Nam Vet, I could identify with some of the characters. This is a supposed series dealing with WWII. In the first 8 books all was well. When book VIII ended in 1943, McArthur was preparing to return to the Phillipnes, several characters were stranded in the Gobi desert, The Japanese codes were being read like the Sunday NY Times. I eagerly awaited book IX.
Lo and behold it comes out and it starts up in 1950! What happened!? It appears to me that 7 whole years were lost and no one seems to find this odd but me! You cannot write a series on WWII and have it end in 1943. The war went on until 1945. Yet I keep seeing reviews written and only 1 person so far has alluded to this serious gaffe.
Will some one please offer me a plausible reason for this. It appears that someone at the publisher has gotten the series out of sequence but will not admit it. That is what I think but the publisher is not responding. I guess they feel as if they are so big they don't have to offer an apology or explanation.
Rating:
Summary: Another tale of the Marine Corps
Review: I've read about 20 Griffin books and, frankly, I don't like his characters or a lot of his attitudes. Major Kenneth "Killer" McCoy, the principal character of this and about 10 others of the Marine Corps series is one of my least favorite. McCoy is an arrogant, impertinent, know-it-all twerp and just once I would like to seem him get his just desserts of humiliation, humble pie, and a foxhole for life on the front lines. So why do I read Griffin? Because despite his obnoxious characters, he writes about war and the politics of war and he builds a story with lots of interesting details, mixing fact and fiction. His characters may be incredible, but he spins a mean yarn -- at great length it may be noted, but he's easy reading. He creates an air of authenticity with his military jargon and his confident descriptions of military culture. This is one of his moderately good efforts, about the beginning of the Korean War. Truman is here as a character and MacArthur -- and Griffin can't seem to make up his mind whether MacArthur is more of a great man or a buffoon, which makes Big Mac interesting. I would recommend that the reader start with the first book in the series and then continue reading the series in sequence -- until he can no longer tolerate another word about the detestable Ken McCoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Up to Griffin's Usual Standard
Review: Don't get me wrong -- Griffin could write the phone book and I'd read every word of it. And an average Griffin book is leagues ahead of most other popular authors' excellence. But this one just doesn't sing like most of his other books. I guess I'm getting a little weary of Griffin's trademarked characters who use, in this case, the Marines as their personal country club. I agree with other reviewers who feel that this book has a "churned out" feeling to it. Characters lacked Griffin's usual credibility. Some things border on the incredible, such as allowing McCoy's wife to be in on Top Secret - Presidential plans and some aspects of the lady reporter character. The novel is an excellent primer, however, on the Korean War and the military genius of McArthur. I just hope Griffin's not getting tired. Maybe he needs a little Famous Grouse...
Rating:
Summary: one step forward, one step back
Review: This novel continues the _The Corps_ series by Griffin by skipping the rest of World War II (whatever for?) and jumping right to Korea. The basic opening premise is that McCoy has predicted the imminent Korean War. No one wants to hear it, so the brass cans him from the Corps... or at least, they plan to. While McCoy, the Pickerings, Ernie, Banning and Macklin are all back and being themselves, the majority of what they do in the book is politicking and interacting rather than wage war. The timeframe is the retreat to the Pusan perimeter, but not many of the characters are engaged in the combat. Also, they're great characters, and some good new and old ones make appearances, but not as much effort is put into developing the new ones that show up. Too bad; this has always been a Griffin strength. Some are pretty well absent; what happened to Sessions? Rickabee? At least Griffin has taken one criticism to heart: there is no parade of virgins eager for defloration. That was really getting old. The sex and romance in this book is understated and in proper proportion to the story. Hate to say it, but this one feels 'churned out'. I get the sense that Griffin is a little tired of the series--how else to explain the skipping of two years of action-intensive WWII as well as nearly the whole interconflict period? It's still very good compared to much of what's out there, but Griffin has done better (and, in fairness, worse as well) in this and other series. Most Griffin fans will still like it, but it will not rope the reader in by main force as the early _Corps_ books did.
Rating:
Summary: The Korean War through the eyes of well-heeled Marines
Review: Although I have read and enjoyed the Griffin series on the Army, this was my first delve into his Marine series. I enjoyed it but if one didn't know better, he would believe from this book that all Marines are rich. The hero, Fleming Pikering, owns a steam ship company and his wife owns a very large hotel chain. One sidekick is married to a billionaire of a wife and the other has a Chinese wife who has made a fortune in business. They spend much of their time sipping drinks ("Famous Grouse" scotch that seems to mysteriously pop up wherever in the world they happen to be) and hopnobbing with the likes of General MacArthur and President Truman. The two sidekicks, both from humble backgrounds and without college nevertheless speak Korean, Chinese, and whatever foreign language the situation requires. The books strong points are its description of how the military works, what its equipment was during this war, and, of greatest interest to me, the clearest explanation of the difficulties to be encountered in the Inchon invasion that I have ever seen.
Rating: 
Summary: Under Fire - Another Great WEB Griffin Book
Review: As a devoted fan of WEB Griffin, I found "Under Fire" to be a wonderful book that adds to the "Mystique" of the U.S. Marines; and as a retired Army Major, and a veteran of two tours (post-war) of Korea, I found a lot of good, solid, and entertaining reading. Yes, there were typos - and I think more meticulous proofreading would have caught them - but overall, I thought it was another great book in the WEB Griffin collection. I was somewhat disappointed by the lack of information as to the characters in the previous books - such as Jim Weston - (who did he finally end up with?), but I will no doubt get over it. And as far as Macklin goes, I cannot believe that he would have lasted in the Corp, regardless of what their personnel requirements were. All in all - I was totally satisfied. Keep them coming!!!
Rating:
Summary: Under Fire
Review: Another great work by WEB. Great characters and plot. Too many typos that actually slow the reading down to where you've got to go over it a few times to figure out the real meaning. Like one of the other critics the questions begging to be asked is"... Where's the rest of WWII????? And when is his next book coming out????
Rating:
Summary: Under Fire on One Page
Review: I have read every one of WEB Griffins books, all of the series, and have enjoyed them all. But I must say this book feels like he wrote it in his sleep. Out of the book's 600 plus pages, there was one page, that's right, one page, of "shots fired in anger". I just couldn't believe it. Never have I felt so betrayed by an author. This could have been, MIGHT have been, put together from excerpts of his other books. Mostly character descriptions, descriptions of past events tying characters together, explaining relationships and the like. But no action to speak of, and when it shows up, it's not worthy of the Killer. This book is not worthy of Killer McCoy. It makes me sad. The loss of the money is one thing, the demise of an excellent character is far sadder. Don't buy this book.
Rating:
Summary: Round up the usual suspects.
Review: In Casablanca, when Claude Rains utters "round up the usual suspects," undoubtedly he had no idea his throw away line would be used over and over again 60 years later. And that's the key to Griffen's success. He keeps rounding up the cadre of his friends and ours, puts them in harm's way, saves them and moves on. The two things that tire me are present in all of the Griffen novels. Each time he introduces a character for the first time in THE THEN CURRENT book, he spends pages reciting that individual's history, poverty, wealth, bi- and tri- lingual capabiliies, marriage, and life in the Corps since boot. The second thing are those constant, repetitive, boring, childish "second thoughts" in the middle of a conversation. (Why did I say that? Oh. I know why I said that. Because I like this guy and that makes him dangerous.) Or, (I can't believe I want to kiss him? Oh. I know. This guy could be the one.) There are so many of them you forget who's talking and why. Other than that, typical Griffen Corps book. McCoy, his billionaire "hottie" wife, Flem, the promiscuous Pick, Ernie Zimmerman, Major Banning, Milla, Patricia. You know. The usual suspects. This one plods and you need a couple of tumblers of Famous Grouse to get you through the first 100 pages. But then it moves. A better book is James Brady's The Coldest War, but then you wouldn't have billionaire shipping tycoons hanging around with Presidents and knife wielding Marine Captains, and drinking Famous Grouse (what is that stuff and how do cases of it follow him around the world?). If you like Griffen you'll like Under Fire. Not his best but OK.
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