BUD/S is the US Navy’s foundational training pipeline for SEAL candidates, an arduous, multi-phase course emphasizing extreme physical, maritime, and mental conditioning. The curriculum is deliberately testing, putting candidates through a battery of long ocean swims, timed runs, obstacle courses, and high-stress underwater competency tests. In Fearless, BUD/S is a key narrative obstacle for Adam Brown, characterizing him as learning resilience and commitment to his purpose. Blehm emphasizes Brown overcoming significant early deficits, particularly in swimming; after being rolled back to a subsequent class, Brown worked to cut 20 minutes off his two-mile swim time to successfully pass the course. The treatment of BUD/S in Fearless is characteristic of modern military literature, as a trope to support themes around heroism, elite personal skills and values, and initiation into an elite warrior class. As Blehm makes explicit, the training establishes the core ethos that defines the SEAL community, encapsulated in the mantra, “Pays to be a winner” (88).

Green Team is the intensive selection and qualification course for the Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU), designed to screen the most capable SEALs for tier-one operations. The multi-month curriculum combines numerous advanced skills, including Close Quarters Battle (CQB), high-risk marksmanship, Military Free-Fall (MFF) parachuting, and maritime interdiction (interception).