Sea Patrol (2007–2011)
7/10
Not As Good As It Could Be
25 June 2008
Warning: Spoilers
As a fan of Lisa McCune from her days as "Maggie Doyle" in the mostly excellent 'Blue Heelers' series, I was curious to see what she was like after her extended hiatus from television. There was also the premise, the Australian Navy at work, which shed some interest. So, I started watching.

I watched the premiere with a dead mind. I didn't want to pick at it and point out all the faults that I could see and, while it had a few problems, it was worth the watch. Thus I have continued to watch each episode since.

Season 2 has just drawn to a close earlier in the week and I can honestly say I am looking forward to the Season 3 sometime early 2009.

But.

The show has numerous bad moments, dominantly because of bad script writing. There are occasions where you will just blink, mouth agape and wonder at the intellect of the crew. I will not spoil anything in particular, but there is an episode in the second season where Hammersley was taken over by insurgents which left me far from satisfied. The Captain basically gave the insurgents the ship, made every wrong decision, and yet was commended for his work when the crew finally took back control. It was silly, it was poorly executed, it was the worst episode, and is a perfect example of the poor script writing.

Lisa McCune's acting, unfortunately, is a little cold. She rarely shows any emotion, despite her character not being cold or calculating in any way, shape or form. In addition, many of the characters are pretty poorly developed.

Yet, while these aspects are irritating, I continue to watch because the overall story and the episodes do provide me with both interest and satisfaction in the end. It is my sincere hope that the writers will either be fired or improve, as they are the main weakness to the show at present.

For those who are sick of the American dramas with gunfights and overly high-tech gadgets coming in every other minute, this is certainly something I would recommend. As long as you can persevere on some of the weaker episodes, you will find satisfaction at the end.

For an Australian drama, now that Blue Heelers has left the air, this is perhaps the best around.
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