War: A Commentary by Gwynne Dyer

The eight-part series guides viewers through two centuries of world military history -- from the Napoleonic Wars to the Falkland Island War and the Middle East conflict. Political ideals, military strategies, method of conquest, and the price mankind has paid for the spoils of war are discussed. An eighth episode, not part of the original series, traces the evolution of nuclear deterrence from the Truman administration to today's proposed Strategic Defense Initiative, or "Star Wars." The original series was produced in Canada, and the additional episode was produced in the United States.

The order of presentation of the episodes is as follows: "The Road to Total War," which traces how developments have led mankind to the brink of total destruction by nuclear war -- "Anybody's Son Will Do," which chronicles the making of soldiers from green recruits -- "The Profession of Arms," which profiles the professional soldier -- "The Deadly Game of Nations," explores the need of nations to keep armies and fight wars -- "Keeping the Old Game Alive," which documents NATO's conventional war games -- "Notes on Nuclear War," which follows the development of the arms race -- "Goodbye War," which looks at why efforts to achieve lasting peace have failed. The eighth episode, "The Knife Edge of Deterrence," which is described above, follows the original seven in the series.