What Unit Did Dutch & Co Come From?

[Kimarhi]

I always wondered what unit Dutch and crew came from originally and what the story was. 

Because it is kind of implied that Dutch had gathered them through previous military contact with them, but only Mac and Blaine seemed to have previous experience working with each other Pre-Dutch, and only Dutch knew Dillon.

[Local Trouble]

Also, were they mercs or regular military?  The wiki says they were mercs.

[SiL]

Mercs. "Why don't you send in the regular army? What do you need us for?"

[SM]

I don't know where the Merc thing came from.  They're referred to as "Special Forces" in Predator 2 and "spec ops" in Predators.  I never got the impression they weren't some branch of military.

[Kimarhi]

Mercs would make probably the most sense.

I have Dutch as Army SF, maybe something like Project Delta or part of something like MACV-SOG which would get him contacts out of all the branches and the CIA.  Having success there as a commander, then getting out and doing odd jobs for the US government with his hand picked crew afterwards. 

But they could still be operatives in something like Delta or an Army SF CIF team. 

There are lots of Army references, and his rank and his familiarity of fieldcraft would make him most likely former Army or Marine.  Navy O-4 is not Major.  And even though the AF has the ranks, and even a whole SOF career field dedicated to rescuing people, I don't know that their training includes setting up deadfall traps and running claymores through trees. 

[Local Trouble]

It seems we have a diversity of opinions here.  Thunderdome?

[SM]

Dunno.  Dutch says they passed on a job in Libya because they weren't assassins.  Yet a minute later the general says "I'm afraid we all have our orders, Major".

So on the one hand, could Dutch pass on a job as a member of the military?  Particularly when 'we all have our orders'.  And what's with the ranks they consistently use throughout?  Is that normal for a merc team?

[SiL]

I don't know where the Merc thing came from.

I was just choosing out of the two.

[Local Trouble]

@The Cruentus @HuDaFuK

[[cancerblack]]

I say "retired" soldiers from various warzones who act as irregulars under Dutch, called in for special jobs but exclusively by the US of A, not freelancers.

[SM]

Surely the guys who wrote the first film who also wrote the second film would know?  Or did a script doctor do re-writes on Predator 2?

[PsyKore]

Mike Wincott is still the man though.

They should've kept him longer in the film, to the end even. Kill someone else off instead.

I found him a bit cringey in Resurrection myself.

As did I.  Even Dan Hedaya is tolerable in other movies, but AR brought the ham out of everyone.

There's definite cringe and ham in this film, but I never not enjoy Michael Wincott in every movie he's in. He was wasted in AR.

[HuDaFuK]

The fact Dutch can apparently pick and choose which missions he takes on basically means he can't be military. Soldiers do what they're told, not what they want.

The orders line from Phillips is seemingly about Dillon joining them. Presumably if Dutch and his men have already travelled all the way to Central America to do this job it's a bit late for him to back out because he's having some pencil-pusher forced upon him. Phillips has been ordered to assign Dillon to the team, and now that Dutch has agreed to the op he's taking Dillon whether he likes it or not.

Finally, them referring to each other by rank I just took to be a way of Dutch establishing hierarchy within his team. They're all clearly ex-military, so maybe they've just held onto their former ranks for convenience.

[Kimarhi]

Dunno.  Dutch says they passed on a job in Libya because they weren't assassins.  Yet a minute later the general says "I'm afraid we all have our orders, Major".

So on the one hand, could Dutch pass on a job as a member of the military?  Particularly when 'we all have our orders'.  And what's with the ranks they consistently use throughout?  Is that normal for a merc team?

Tier 1 units can refuse missions if missions are batshit insane and would most likely result in unnecessary casualties....  but they are about the only ones.

I think actually most units could try and change aspects of the mission without negative repurcussions, but trying to stop things in motion in the army is like trying to stop a rolling boulder and pushing it back up hill.  Too may moving parts.

[Local Trouble]

Tier 1 units can refuse missions if missions are batshit insane and would most likely result in unnecessary casualties....  but they are about the only ones.

So the truly elite units have some measure of "your mission, if you choose to accept it" autonomy within the US military?