UNSOLVED HISTORY: CUSTER’S LAST STAND (Season 1: Episode 5)

SUMMARY:         RUNNING TIME: Approx. 50:00 Min.

First broadcast on The Discovery Channel on November 6, 2002, this episode re-examines U.S. Army Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer’s battlefield on June 25, 1876, in Central Montana’s Little Bighorn region in the manner befitting a forensic crime scene.  Narrated by an unseen Katherine Kern, this program’s analysts consist of: historians Daniel A. Martinez, Paul A. Hutton, & Neil Mangum; archaeologists Richard Fox & Doug Scott; forensic anthropologist P. Willey; and firearms expert Dick Harmon. 

Including use of archived Hollywood black-and-white film footage and brief dramatic reenactments, Unsolved History conducts a fresh look scouring the extensive Custer battlefield.  Due to a recent fire, specialists with metal detectors would newly uncover a plethora of spent bullets, shrapnel, bone fragments, and assorted other historical evidence for scientific research. 

Hence, long-held popular myths of Custer’s battalion gallantly fighting to the death in the late afternoon of June 25, 1876, are ultimately dispelled by forensic investigation.  

REVIEW:

Both well-narrated and articulately presented, this flashy documentary is meant for viewers who prefer sensationalistic, CSI-style presentations.  Even so, nothing presented is either far-fetched or cheats the audience from a fair representation of historical fact.  For most amateur historical sleuths, Unsolved History throws in even a few surprises, too. 

Case in point: ballistic analysis verifies Custer’s vastly outnumbered battalion was further outgunned by their Native American opposition’s close-range, rapid-shot firepower.  Therefore, the Seventh Cavalry’s mostly inexperienced and malnourished troops’ single-shot weaponry was no match, given the chaotic circumstances.  Such evidence tragically disproves the Seventh Cavalry’s supposed reputation as America’s elite post-Civil War sharpshooters (no matter how much Custer himself pushed such patriotic hype).    

It also appears that Custer’s panic-stricken battalion defensively fell back into three tiers that were each subsequently annihilated once their initial skirmish line was overrun.  Hence, proof of one last tier fleeing Custer Hill’s non-existent ‘last stand’ to an adjacent ravine indicates they were the last troops killed.  Logically correlating their forensic discoveries with expert analysis, Unsolved History concludes Custer’s final battle was a relentless slaughter from the get-go.  Essentially, the only mysteries unanswered are ‘who killed who’ specifics that will never be known.

Note: A few days after Custer’s demise, the Seventh Cavalry’s Captain Frederick Benteen (one of Custer’s few surviving officers) was among the investigators examining the battlefield.  Unsolved History comes to the same conclusion as Benteen had reported: the engagement quickly ended in a gory and unmistakable rout.   

Speaking of which, one detail ignored is the probability of suicide, to whatever degree, by Custer’s troops.  Given there was sufficient airtime, not even broaching this theory was a choice rather than an oversight.  Hence, this episode does not explore every controversial angle of the massacre, including why Major Reno & Captain Benteen’s surviving Seventh Cavalry troops failed to rejoin Custer (let alone vice-versa).  The unsettling truth that Custer’s battalion initially sought to capture Native American women and children to use as hostages, however, is readily acknowledged.

In terms of kid-friendliness, the documentary’s G-rating is accurate up until the last two segments preceding Daniel Martinez’s mild conclusion.  Specifically, there is some ballistics discussion (utilizing a badly pierced skull), and, more so, grisly mutilation details of Custer’s troops that should really be left to mature viewers only. 

Having aged well, Unsolved History: Custer’s Last Stand, overall, could provide educational benefit to a collegiate-level U.S. History course.     

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                 7 Stars

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