World War Two: Season 04
Season 4 of World War Two follows the deadliest conflict in human history in real time, week by week, blow by blow, specifically covering the year 1942. The documentary series continues to trace the progression of the war week by week, providing a detailed historical account of the events, conflicts, and strategic developments that unfolded during this critical period.
Season 4 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- The series follows the deadliest conflict in human history in real time.
- The documentary tracks the war week by week and blow by blow.
- The overarching narrative chronicles the progression of World War Two from its earlier years.
- The series is created and presented with an ongoing real-time chronological focus.
Season overview
Season 4 of World War Two follows the deadliest conflict in human history in real time, week by week, blow by blow, specifically covering the year 1942. The documentary series continues to trace the progression of the war week by week, providing a detailed historical account of the events, conflicts, and strategic developments that unfolded during this critical period.
Episode Guide
Season 4 Progress Shield
Week 123 - The Formation of the United Nations! - WW2 - January 2, 1942
Jan 2, 2021 · 17 min
At the ongoing Arcadia Conference, 26 nations sign the Declaration of the United Nations. Otherwise it is very much a week of motion and changes in motion: in the USSR the Soviets
Week 124 - Washington DC Abandons The Troops in the Field - WW2 - January 9, 1942
Jan 9, 2021 · 19 min
The US government realizes that it cannot send help to relieve the US and Filipino forces in the Philippines, but it does not tell those forces. Meanwhile in the USSR, a huge Red A
Week 125 - German U-Boats to Strike New York - WW2 - January 16, 1942
Jan 16, 2021 · 17 min
Operation Pauchenslag, long-range German submarines operating just of the US Coast, kicks into action this week, as does the Japanese invasion of the Dutch East Indies. They also t
Week 126 - The Formalization of Extermination - The Wannsee Conference - WW2 - January 23, 1942
Jan 23, 2021 · 17 min
Nazi Germany's "Holocaust by Bullets" has already claimed over a million lives over the past 8 months; this week German authorities hold a conference to streamline and systematize
Week 127 - Fortress Singapore Stands Alone! - WW2 - January 30, 1942
Jan 30, 2021 · 16 min
The Japanese advance on Singapore has gotten close enough that the British have destroyed the causeway to Singapore Island. The Japanese are also making attacks in the Solomon Isla
Week 128 - Pearl Harbour Avenged! - WW2 - February 6, 1942
Feb 6, 2021 · 17 min
The Japanese advance in Burma and the Dutch East Indies, but they've reached the end of the Malayan Campaign- Singapore, which they have under siege. They now prepare for the final
Week 129- German Army Surrounded: You Did Nazi That Coming! - WW2 - February 13, 1942
Feb 13, 2021 · 18 min
The Soviet Red Army has managed to surround some 100,000 German soldiers in the Demyansk Pocket. The Allies are surrounded in Fortress Singapore and the Japanese spend the week bre
Week 130 - Britain's Worst Defeat - Singapore Falls - WW2 - February 20, 1942
Feb 20, 2021 · 17 min
The most humiliating defeat in British history according to Winston Churchill- 80,000 men lost as prisoners of war! Humiliated by an enemy far less numerous than themselves! There
Week 131 - Japan Destroys Allied Armada in Biggest Naval Battle in Decades - WW2 - February 27, 1942
Feb 27, 2021 · 17 min
The Japanese are advancing in the Dutch East Indies and Burma, brushing aside defenders, but their biggest victory this week is at sea, when they not only brush aside the ABDA Flee
The Japanese Raid Australia and the British Raid France - March 6, 1942
Mar 6, 2021
The Japanese advance in Burma continues, threatening Rangoon, and also make landings on Java and New Guinea. They even go so far as an air raid on Broome, Australia. The British ar
Week 133 - Tumbling Capitals - MacArthur on the Run - WW2 - March 13, 1942
Mar 13, 2021 · 16 min
Rangoon in Burma falls to the invaders without a shot, the Dutch East Indies surrender 100,000 men to them at Batavia, and the Japanese land on New Guinea and begin their advance o
Week 134 - Crap Tactics in the Pacific - Shall MacArthur Return? - WW2 - March 20, 1942
Mar 20, 2021 · 16 min
MacArthur makes one of the most iconic remarks of the whole war, but considering the fact that the Philippines seem unsalvageable, it's pretty unclear just how he'll do it, especia
Week 135 - New Blitzkrieg Against a Wall of 9 Million! - WW2 - March 27, 1942
Mar 27, 2021 · 16 min
The Allies make plans to bring the war to Germany by possibly attacking in North Africa. Holding Malta might be the key to such adventures, but it is increasingly harder to do. The
Week 136 - The Carpet Bombing of Germany begins - WW2 - April 3, 1942
Apr 3, 2021 · 18 min
Britain's campaign to firebomb the old towns of Germany where civilians reside begins in earnest this week. The British also destroy the port at St. Nazaire in commando action. In
Week 137 - America Surrenders - The Fall of Bataan - April 10, 1942
Apr 10, 2021 · 16 min
After holding out since the beginning of the year, the American and Filipino defenders at Bataan can do so no more, and they surrender to the Japanese- the Bataan Death March for t
Week 138 - America Strikes Back - Tokyo in Flames - WW2 - April 18 1942
Apr 17, 2021 · 17 min
The Doolittle Raid is just a little bombing raid over Tokyo that doesn't do that much physical damage. It does, however, have big repercussions- partly in terms of future offensive
Week 139 - Allied Intelligence cracks Japanese codes! - WW2 - April 25, 1942
Apr 24, 2021 · 16 min
After last week's Doolittle Raid on Tokyo, pretty much the entire Japanese fleet is sent out looking for American ships. They do not find them, but the enormous amount of radio tra
Week 140 - Japan - One Battle from Victory? - May 2, 1942
May 1, 2021 · 16 min
Now Burma and control of the Burma Road have fallen to the Japanese. Can nothing stop them? The Allies are thinking about maybe using the Solomon Islands as a base to build to try
Week 141 - Carrier vs. Carrier - The Battle of Coral Sea - WW2 - May 9, 1942
May 8, 2021 · 19 min
This week sees a major clash between the naval forces of the Japanese and the Allies. Both sides take big damage, though on the tactical level it is a victory for the Japanese. Ope
Week 142 - Joseph Stalin Jumps the Gun - May 16, 1942
May 15, 2021 · 16 min
The Soviets pre-empt a German offensive with one of their own in the south of the Eastern Front, but that's not the only fighting. The skies over Malta and the waters of the Gulf o
Week 143 - AF is short of fresh water - WW2 - May 23, 1942
May 22, 2021 · 16 min
Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov arrives in London to meet with Churchill, but at home in the USSR the Germans have launched an instantly successful offensive. In North Africa and M
Week 144 - Rommel's Desert Dash - The Whole Bloody Afrika Korps! - Gazala - WW2 - May 30, 1942
May 29, 2021 · 17 min
Erwin Rommel begins his surprise new offensive with "Rommel's Moonlight Ride", bringing all of his mighty mobile units to the fray in North Africa, while in the Pacific, dozens of
Week 145a - Midway, pt.1 - Clash of the Titans - June 5, 1942
Jun 5, 2021 · 20 min
The supposedly surprise Japanese operations against Midway Atoll and the Aleutian Islands kick-off, but they don't know that Allied intelligence has cracked their codes. As the Jap
Week 145b - Germany to Strike Strongest Fortress in the World - WW2 - June 6, 1942
Jun 6, 2021 · 17 min
Midway isn't the only fight right now. Germany is trying to crack the mighty fortress of Sevastopol and take the whole Crimea. In North Africa, Rommel is routing the Allies, but in
Week 145c - Midway pt.2 - A New War? - WW2 - June 7, 1942
Jun 7, 2021 · 18 min
We left off last time with several burning behemoths. Watch today to see the action that follows, not just on the high seas, but also in Alaska. We also turn to Washington DC and T
Week 146 - Sevastopol Must Fall! - WW2 - June 13, 1942
Jun 12, 2021 · 17 min
It's a week of starts and stops. The Battle of Sevastopol kicks into high gear, and the Battle of Gazala enters its third phase. And what is going on in the Pacific just one week a
Week 147 - Tobruk: A second siege? - WW2 - June 20, 1942
Jun 19, 2021 · 16 min
Two convoys head from opposite ends of the Mediterranean to supply Malta, hoping to run interference for each other, and the Battle of Sevastopol continues as the Axis slowly wear
Week 148 - Fall Blau Starts...or Does it? - WW2 - June 26, 1942
Jun 26, 2021 · 18 min
Fall Blau, the huge Axis summer offensive in the Soviet Union, is supposed to being this, but is postponed to next. The smaller Operation Fridericus II does begin though, and what
Week 149 - Fall Blau Begins, Stalin Caught off Guard Again - WW2 - July 3, 1942
Jul 3, 2021 · 19 min
It's that time of the year again- the time when the Axis Powers drive deep into the Soviet Union. Fall Blau is the name of this year's huge offensive, and it begins this week, maki
Week 150 - Fall Blau - A Victim of Its Own Success? - WW2 - July 10, 1942
Jul 10, 2021 · 20 min
Adolf Hitler is not happy, and yet phase one of Fall Blau has accomplished all of its goals and done so ahead of the timetable. However, the Soviet Army in 1942 is not the same as
Week 151 - Stalingrad Now a Primary Objective?! - Hitler's Chaotic Directives - WW2 - July 17, 1942
Jul 17, 2021 · 16 min
The second phase of Fall Blau begins with second guessing by the Axis Powers and constant changes in directive. The Soviet Union's response to the successes of the first phase of F
Week 152 - Wehrmacht Conquers 250 Miles of Nothing - WW2 - July 24, 1942
Jul 24, 2021 · 19 min
The Soviets keep withdrawing from the advancing Axis forces, and Hitler keeps issuing contrary orders to try and stop that, with the results that logistics are getting screwed up a
Week 152B - How Hitler Created the World's Worst Traffic Jam - WW2 - July 27, 1942
Jul 27, 2021 · 14 min
"I said DAMN, this traffic jam... How I hate to be late, hurts my motor to go so slow. Time I get home my supper be cold. Damn, this traffic jam." (James Taylor, the Eastern Front,
Week 153 - Not a Step Back! - Wehrmacht Closes in on Stalingrad - WW2 - July 31, 1942
Jul 31, 2021 · 18 min
Operation Edelweiss opens with a blast, and as the Wehrmacht closes in on Stalingrad, Stalin issues that famous order. There aren't just big actions in the East, the Japanese have
Week 154 - Guadalcanal - Allies Take the Initiative - August 7, 1942
Aug 7, 2021 · 17 min
The Axis Forces are on the move on the Eastern Front and in the Caucasus, but this week the Allies begin an offensive of their own: this week come Allied landings and attacks on Gu
Week 155 - No Soviet Oil for Hitler - WW2 - August 14, 1942
Aug 14, 2021 · 20 min
The Axis advance into the Caucasus is going great... except the oil towns they take have no oil, and wasn't that the whole purpose? Meanwhile in the Pacific, the US Navy is sufferi
Week 156 - Swastika Raised on Highest Point in Europe - WW2 - August 21, 1942
Aug 21, 2021 · 18 min
The Axis advance in the Caucasus takes Mt. Elbrus, and the one on Stalingrad continues, and there are several raids of note this week- a Japanese one on Guadalcanal is destroyed, a
Week 157 - Yamamoto: Midway Round Two? - World War Two - August 28, 1942
Aug 28, 2021 · 23 min
The Battle of the Eastern Solomons takes place this week- another carrier battle. As for the Germans, they're advancing on Stalingrad, slowing down in the Caucasus, and Erwin Romme
Week 158 - This War is Three Years Old - WW2 - September 4, 1942
Sep 4, 2021 · 18 min
As the war turns three there is is no slacking in the fighting. Erwin Rommel launches another Axis attack in North Africa, but it is foiled in only days, though the Axis are advanc
Week 159 - Hitler Finally Fed Up with his Army - WW2 - September 11, 1942
Sep 11, 2021 · 15 min
Adolf Hitler sacks Wilhelm List, Army Group Commander in the Caucasus. His replacement does not have military command experience. The fighting there is still successful this week,
Week 159B - Stalingrad, Hitler's Obsession - WW2 - September 13, 1942
Sep 18, 2021 · 13 min
Here's an extra weekly episode for you. The suburbs of Stalingrad have fallen and the fight for the city proper is about to begin, but before it does, three conferences take place
Week 160 - Stalingrad Falls? - WW2 - September 18, 1942
Sep 18, 2021 · 20 min
It's a big week, but by now they all are. The fighting in Stalingrad is intense, the fighting on Guadalcanal is intense, and the US loses a carrier in the Pacific. And the German
Week 161 - Stalingrad, Factory by Factory, Room by Room - WW2 - September 25, 1942
Sep 25, 2021 · 17 min
Franz Halder, German Army Chief of Staff since the war began, loses his job this week, but the offensive this summer has failed to gain any of its objectives and someone has to tak
Week 162 - This is Russia, The Soviet Thermopylae - WW2 - October 2, 1942
Oct 2, 2021 · 19 min
The fighting for Stalingrad continues, but the Soviets forces are split and the Volga is on fire. In the Caucasus, the Axis forces for the most part are being held in check- at one
Week 163 - Stalingrad Thunderdome: Paulus vs. Chuikov! - WW2 - October 9, 1942
Oct 9, 2021 · 18 min
Things are looking pretty grim for Vassily Chuikov's 62nd Army in Stalingrad this week, as the German 6th Army launches its biggest series of attacks so far. The Axis are unable t
Week 164 - Stalingrad, Stalingrad, No Retreat! - WW2 - October 16, 1942
Oct 16, 2021 · 20 min
The Americans win a naval victory off Guadalcanal and even manage to reinforce the Marines there with the first Army units to arrive, but as the week ends the Japanese launch a maj
Week 165 - Showdown at El Alamein - WW2 - October 23, 1942
Oct 23, 2021 · 18 min
Could this be the beginning of the big break in North Africa? The Allies have the men, the armor, and the fuel... they just have to deal with the Axis minefields to try and get sta
Week 166 - Nazi General Dies of Heart Attack - WW2 - October 30, 1942
Oct 30, 2021 · 20 min
The Allies may be on the verge of a breakthrough in North Africa, but they're losing at sea to the Japanese this week, and the Axis are also advancing in the Caucasus, though the s
Week 167 - The Allies Break Through! - WW2 - November 6, 1942
Nov 6, 2021 · 18 min
After all these months of fighting, the British 8th Army breaks through Erwin Rommel's Axis positions in North Africa, but the Allies have even bigger plans for that theater of war
Week 168 - Axis and Allies Both Invade France - WW2 - November 13, 1942
Nov 13, 2021 · 22 min
Operation Torch goes off this week, the Allied invasion of French Northwest Africa, but this prompts the Germans to invade European France. This is the Allies first combined major
Week 169 - The Red Army Kicks Ass - Operation Uranus! - WW2 - November 20th, 1942
Nov 20, 2021 · 19 min
After months of stubborn defense the time has finally come for the Soviet Counterstroke, but is it in time to save Stalingrad? And can the Allies reach Tunis and take all of North
Week 170 - Bigger Than Uranus? - Mars - WW2 - November 27, 1942
Nov 27, 2021 · 21 min
Last week’s counterattack was just the beginning, for the Soviets launch another giant offensive this week. And things look bad for the Axis powers in the south of the USSR. Meanw
Week 171 - Axis Armies Facing Starvation - WW2 - December 4, 1942
Dec 4, 2021 · 19 min
The Soviets have launched offensives on the entire eastern front and by now hundreds of thousands of men are surrounded at Stalingrad. The Japanese win a battle at sea, but are los
Week 172 - One Year Since Pearl Harbour - WW2 - December 11, 1942
Dec 11, 2021 · 20 min
The Japanese try and fail to supply their starving soldiers. The Allies fail to break through in Tunisia and New Guinea. The fighting in the USSR is bloody, but the Axis prepare fo
Week 173 - Guadalcanal Life Expectancy: 30 Days - WW2 - December 18, 1942
Dec 18, 2021 · 17 min
Just a few weeks ago massive offensives were launched in North Africa and the Soviet Union, against the Axis. These operations and offensives have now morphed into fully fledged ca
Week 174 - A Red Christmas - WW2 - December 25, 1942
Dec 25, 2021 · 19 min
The Soviet offensive Operation Mars is over; it has failed, but Operation Little Saturn has been such a success that the Axis are forced to cancel their own Operation, Winter Storm