Distorted by waves of heat rising from the scorched desert sand, five military vehicles in the distance roll in a single line before the four outer vehicles swerve toward the center, creating the illusion of one single hulking, united mass of machinery on the horizon.

One minute into David Simon and Ed Burns’ seven-part HBO miniseries “Generation Kill,” the audience already had a metaphor to mull.

But how does the tandem responsible “The Wire” follow with anything comparable to one of the best-reviewed TV dramas in history? Well, the simple answer is they don’t.

Don’t get me wrong: “Generation Kill” has the snappy dialogue, gritty tension and intriguing characters you’d expect from a Blown Deadline production. But unlike the pilot of “The Wire,” which left me wanting more, the first episode of “Generation Kill” left me feeling more obligated than motivated, mostly due to the production team behind it.

“Generation Kill’s” huge, predominantly white male cast, all wearing fatigues and sporting some kind of buzz cut, make it difficult for viewers to differentiate between many of the blond characters. At least with “The Wire,” which also had a massive cast, the show’s diversity and gender equity made the task more manageable, thus making the show more accessible.

Not to say that the pilot episode, “Get Some,” doesn’t have its standouts. Five immediately come to mind.

James Ransone—a.k.a. Ziggy for you “Wire” Tappers out there—is clearly the show’s comic relief as Cpl. Ray Person. In addition to his half-joking theory about war coming down to a lack of sex (that’s the far duller, santized version of his incredible monologue), his renditions of Minnie Ripperton’s “Loving You” and Avril Lavigne’s “Sk8r Boi” prompted some of the show’s best laugh-out-loud moments.

Lee Tergesen, playing the Rolling Stone magazine journalist the Marines tab as “Scribe,” is also memorable as a bumbling embedded reporter just trying to keep up and fit in. Within seconds of the troops accusing him as a “dope-smokin’, peace freak writer” out to make them out to be “baby killers and mama rapists,” he wins them over by telling them he used to write more lurid fare for Hustler magazine.

Then there’s Stark Sands, who plays Lt. Fick. In “Wire” speak, he appears to be sort of the Cedric Daniels of the show: Middle management who cares about those under his watch. After a freak accident that could get the troop in trouble (“This platoon is going down over an espresso maker,” he gripes), his decision to lie to his superiors that acts of heroism were involved speaks volumes about his willingness to stick up for his guys and the lengths he must go to for self-preservation—a David Simon staple.

If the random mispronunciations of simple words and the general jerky nature of Sgt. Mjr. John Sixta (played by Neal Jones) don’t make you laugh aloud, perhaps a repairman should fix the sound on your TV set or you should invest in MiracleEar. Especially since one of the Marines called him an “a****** who excels at his position.”

But no such adjustments should be made with the unmistakable rasp of Lt. Col. Ferrando (Chance Kelly), a character who’s lost most of his voice due to throat cancer. When Scribe asked if Ferrando smoked, the man who was soft-spoken in more ways than one replied, “No, just lucky, I guess.”

Beyond them, it’s tough to remember the names and character traits of the rest of the white guys. And the series’ minority characters haven’t had a lot of material with which to work after one episode, but hopefully that will change in the weeks to come.

After the break, some thoughts about the show’s key plot points.

• The lack of maps, batteries and—oh, yeah—basic shields and weaponry for the soldiers was alarming. Equally scary: the lack of communication between military factions.

• I found it interesting the way the soldiers engaged in hand-to-hand combat, basically glorified fist-fighting, to pass the time. Solitaire isn’t very popular, I guess.

• J-Lo, contrary to reports the troops received, is still alive in 2008, let alone in 2003.

• The moment when the troops started making fun of the school children’s letters was funny, honest and sad at the same time. Then there were the troop members’ subsequent jokes—at least I hope they were jokes—about being, um, “attracted” to a preteen letter-writer. One part amusing, 10 parts disturbing.

• The first laugh-out-loud moment of the show was when One Of The White Guys suggested to Another One Of The White Guys to shave his mustache into a tiny patch above his reminiscent of Hitler. Unbenownst to Sixta, who showed up to berate the latter for having too long a ‘stache, the first White Guy could be seen goose-stepping behind him while the harangue took place.

• Race and culture clashes are no better overseas than they are here, and could be even worse. Also, gay jokes are all the rage.

• All the troops prepping for their first invasion are wayyyy too trigger-happy. The prospect of a Marine wanting shooting a harmless stray dog, being instructed not to do so, then being ordered to do so felt particularly stark.

• When one of the soldiers warned that “unreleasing” the Iraqis who surrendered to American troops was in violation of laws set at the Geneva Convention, it was dismissed with regret. “Write this as you see it,” Scribe was told. “We’re not here to stop you.” The soldier’s response: “Iraqis’ first contact with Americans: We f*** them.”

• These Marines seem very cocky without having seen combat. Again, a self-preservation tactic crucial for battle, but grating nonetheless. It’ll be interesting to see if this attitude changes for some soldiers in future episodes.

Thoughts about the episode are welcomed in the comments section. What’d you think? Will you stay tuned for the remaining six episodes?

(Photo and logo courtesy of HBO.)