If Masters of the Air had an official board game, this would be it

polygon.com:

Masters of the Air tells the story of the Eighth Air Force’s 100th Bomb Group, also known as the Bloody Hundredth, which used its fleet of B-17 heavy bombers to cut a swathe of destruction from the English Channel to Berlin during World War II. The nine-part Apple TV Plus miniseries, which airs its final episode Friday, is basically everything that baby Charlie — his nose pressed against the pages of obscure history books all throughout middle school — could’ve ever hoped for. But, now that it’s over, I think I’ve found a way to extend the experience just a little further thanks to B-17 Flying Fortress Leader, an excellent solitaire board game from Dan Verssen Games.

Scoff if you like, but solitaire board games are hot right now with a vocal minority making solo modes a highly desired bullet point on nearly every new crowdfunding campaign, regardless of platform. Dan Verssen Games has been in the solo business for years now, with games like Phantom Leader — Deluxe, which recreates some of the most interesting air-to-air and air-to-ground engagements of the Vietnam War. And what’s so interesting about each of its titles is how the company uses the same set of simple, easy-to-manufacture components — namely playing cards and small, square cardboard chits — to create incredibly different experiences.

A game of B-17 Flying Fortress Leader begins with its massive, 33-inch-wide game board that’s built to resemble the layout of the pre-flight briefings shown in Masters of the Air. That’s where you’ll place cards that represent the target for the day, any secondary targets that might be an option for your crews, and the current disposition of enemy airbases that you’ll need to be mindful of along the way. From there, it’s a pretty straightforward process to launch your bombers, take on enemy fighters, punch through the flak wall, and put your payload on the target — all with nothing more than a few cups filled with random counters and a single 10-sided die. The action is