Sharpe's Rifles

I recently went down the DVD aisle at Sam's Club and saw a British Series called Sharpe, about a fictional English Soldier fighting in Napoleanic times. Don't know how I missed it...this is a type of Horatio Hornblower character who came up from the ranks by saving Wellington's life. I gave the first one, Sharpe's Rifles a try and found it to be excellent. Sean Bean plays a tough as nails Sargeant in His Majesty's Army in Spain.
This series also has a lot to say about not being "a proper officer" but coming up through the ranks and class snobbery. Not just from the other officers but from the enlisted men too. Some of whom he literally has to beat into submission. Big difference nowadays in the American Military, often times the officers that are not prior enlisted are looked down upon compared to the officers who come up through the ranks. In either case, you will be judged on your merits in today's military. I like to think so anyway.