Pioneiros do Velho Oeste

There's a lot of great stuff to enjoy in this series, but as usual it's a typical case of Anglo-American-centric history, ignoring two important players.

Fur trader Anthony Sadowski was the first white man to explore the fledgling "western territories." His grandson Jacob Sadowski was by some accounts the first to guide Daniel Boone down the trails allegedly "blazed" by Boone.

The Sadowskis, like the Revolutionary War hero Thaddeus Kosciuszko and the earliest Polish settlers in the early 1600s, routinely get shafted by American historians (and the History Channel) who continue to toe the official Anglo-American party line - furthering an incomplete view of our national history to serve a political agenda instituted after the Revolution.

As far as History goes this was okay. That said History Channel had little time to work with all things considered but either way the information could have been presented better. And if anybody's wondering about the Theme song to The Men Who Built America: Frontiersmen it's Born Ready by Zayde Wolf. That said the choice of theme music shows toughness which shows how tough the Frontier of America was and how they literally had to build the nation and expand it. However at least the interviews and the scenes recreated had some detail and effort so that has to count for something. Again I digress but that's how the cookie crumbles.

A story about the real men that forged this great nation. Great acting, narration, and beautiful locations. Early American was brutal and these are the men that forged into the wilderness and paved way for young settlers. Only true red blooded Americans will appreciate it.

"90 minutes after the battle begins the Alamo falls..."

I'm not a historian or even a super history buff... BUT... I KNOW that the Battle of the Alamo took 13 days... NOT 90 minutes. Maybe the final siege, AFTER holding out for 12 days, took 90 minutes... But they didn't once mention the previous 12 days of battle that they fought off Santa Ana! The Alamo is one of the greatest standoffs of all time and bought Sam Houston the time he needed to rally enough forces to defeat Santa Ana and secure Texas for America.

I thought this was THE HISTORY Channel.

The rest is entertaining but I'm not sure how accurate now. It's produced well enough.

This series is very informative, well-balanced, and covers the critical time in the US history as we emerged from a colony until we were literally coast-to-coast. Of course many areas and many people are ignored in order to cover the scope of the enormous events and some people get a little more attention than perhaps they should. In addition, there are some notable errors (e.g., the battle of the Alamo didn't take a single day). So don't expect a history lesson. It's entertainment and along the way there is a lot to learn about the country's history, most of it true.