On June 4, 1944--just two days before the Allied invasion of Normandy--Lts. Richard Winters (Damian Lewis) and Lewis Nixon (Ron Livingston) reflect back on the events and training that led them to D-Day with the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment E (a.k.a. Easy Company).

D-Day. Due to German flak, the tense men of Easy Company are dropped indiscriminately throughout the Normandy countryside, forcing Lt. Winters (Damian Lewis) to team up with a private from another company until he can find his mates.

On D-Day plus two, the scattered men of Easy Company regroup with the help of Pvt. Albert Blithe (Marc Warren). Lt. Welsh (Rick Warden) then delivers their orders: they must take the town of Carentan.

Back in England, Easy Company's D-Day veterans heal their bodies and minds while getting acquainted with green replacement members. However, their respite ends quickly when they are sent into Holland as part of Operation Market-Garden.

In this episode directed by Tom Hanks, Lt. Winters (Damian Lewis) leads a contingent on a risky mission over a Dutch dike. Meanwhile, Easy is left in the hands of Lt. 'Moose' Heyliger (Stephen McCole), who undertakes a rescue mission in the besieged town of Arnhem.

In the dead of winter, the men of Easy Company fend off frostbite and hunger--in addition to the enemy--while holding the line in a forest outside of Bastogne. Meanwhile, exhausted medic Eugene Roe finds friendship with a Belgian nurse.