"SeaQuest DSV" (1993)TV series 1993-1996

Creator:

Rockne S. O'Bannon

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3

Release Date:

12 September 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Family | Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Beneath the surface lies the future.

Plot:

By the mid-21st Century, humankind has colonized the oceans and formed the UEO--the United Earth Oceans--as a military organization to police it...

Plot Keywords:

U Boat | Dolphin | Sea | Futuristic | Submarine

Awards:

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Jonathan Brandis	...	Lucas Wolenczak (57 episodes, 1993-1996)
Don Franklin	...	Commander Jonathan Ford (57 episodes, 1993-1996)
Ted Raimi	...	Lt. j.g. Timothy O'Neill (57 episodes, 1993-1996)
Roy Scheider	...	Captain Nathan Bridger (47 episodes, 1993-1995)
Marco Sanchez	...	Sensor Chief Miguel Ortiz (43 episodes, 1993-1995)
Peter DeLuise	...	Dagwood / ... (35 episodes, 1994-1996)
Michael DeLuise	...	Tony Piccolo (34 episodes, 1994-1996)
Kathy Evison	...	Helmswoman Lonnie Henderson (34 episodes, 1994-1996)
Edward Kerr	...	Lt. James Brody (28 episodes, 1994-1996)
John D'Aquino	...	Lt. Benjamin Krieg / ... (24 episodes, 1993-1995)
Stacy Haiduk	...	Lt. Cmdr. Katherine Hitchcock (23 episodes, 1993-1994)
Royce D. Applegate	...	Chief Manilow Crocker (23 episodes, 1993-1994)
Stephanie Beacham	...	Dr. Kristin Westphalen (23 episodes, 1993-1994)

Also Known As:

SeaQuest 2032 (USA) (new title)

Runtime:

60 min (59 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Epcot Center, Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA

Company:

Amblin Entertainment

Trivia:

At first, the show was intended to be a realistic portrayal of the near future. When the show suffered low ratings, however, it was allowed to go in a more fantasy-oriented direction that included stories about aliens, lost civilizations, and even the Greek god Poseidon (incorrectly named Neptune on the show).

Goofs:

Lucas Wolenczak is a magna cum laude graduate of Stanford University. Stanford University doesn't award cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude distinctions. Even if they did, Lucas would most likely have been a summa cum laude since his GPA record was never broken.

Quotes:

O'Neill: He was also the god of earthquakes - he'd stick his trident in the ground and shake it.
Ford: Oh, that's very scientific. Let's hope he doesn't flush the toilet.

Movie Connections:

Edited into "South Park: Go God Go XII (#10.13)" (2006)

After The Seaview & The Stingray Came The SeaQuest

Here are my favourite episodes of seaQuest DSV/seaQuest 2032. However, I should point out that all episodes in all three seasons are watchable (which can't be said for ALL other 1990s sci-fic TV shows).

**** To Be Or Not To Be (90 minute pilot). Despite being known as a movie star, I wish to say that Roy Scheider did his best acting in this pilot episode. Roy very reluctantly takes command of the supersub and his exchanges with the crew and confusion over the workings of the sub make for great viewing. However, not a perfect ep, no seaQuest ep is perfect, the CGI underwater effects do not work for me as my lifetime exposure to Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea has given me views on how a submarine series should be produced.**** SeaWest (episode 10) The supersub goes to a rather false looking (and false sounding) Australia, underwater. But despite being phony (to an Aussie like me), this story of down and dirty miners is cool. Note: Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea never went Down Under! This was the first episode since the all-important pilot to really capture my interest a lot, SeaWest was a big sign that seaQuest was not a one episode wonder after all. We had something special here and VERY special compared to other 1990s sci-fi shows**** Greed For A Pirate's Dream, highlighted by great characterisation from the regulars and that nut scientist from episode two returns. The scripting here is very good and we have shades of a disaster movie as the island folk refuse to leave the island despite knowing that doom is around the corner.**** Whale Song, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea-ish episode as the military orders Bridger to take the sub into combat and destroy a sub. The early scene of the remains of a beached whale is of motion picture standard. The all-male crew of the trouble making submarine has a Voyage/Sea-look. **** Abalon (see my review of this episode on the episode list link).**** Higher Power, season final and things really do end, characterisation moments come thick and fast in this gem of an episode.

**** Daggers (year two opener), Genetically engineered people cause trouble in this high energy ep. The bright blue sky of Florida seems to play a role in this hour as we never seem to escape thrilling outdoor images of the Daggers dancing around in the yard or images of the regular cast looking smart in bright Florida locations, it makes me want to go to Florida! I like seaQuest year one but it was time for a change and year two provides different-but-still-just-as-good fun. Granted, some of the year two shore leave episodes left a bit to be desired but even Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea has some lesser episodes as well.**** Playtime, The sub travels through time, 225 years into the future.**** The Sincerest Form Of Flattery, Computers cause disaster and a war almost starts (when viewed in the mid-1990s, I thought a world war would never happen again, then came Sep 11).**** Meltdown, A 200 foot crocodile makes trouble for everyone...and the ending of this hour is very well scripted. Not a very popular episode with many but this stuck-in-Irwin Allen monsters-reviewer likes it. **** Lostland, The crew get taken over by the curse of an ancient warrior's helmet and Scheider's bad guy acting makes this the second most memorable ep after the pilot. A top episode that captures tiny shades of 1960s Irwin Allen.

**** Brave New World (year three opener), Now set in 2032, this ep contains the one of the few effect scenes in the whole series that really pleased me, the supersub gets transported to a corn field ... even Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea never went that far! Lucas was now older than before and this helped the series a bit, now he no longer seemed like a child being an adult...he was too young before.

Over the decades television has produced so many spaceship TV shows but submarine TV shows are so few in number (Voyage/Sea and Gerry Anderson's Stingray) which means that the few that have been produced have a special place in the history of TV. I am sure another such series will be made sooner or later but the Seaview, the Stingray and the seaQuest will be a hard act to follow. Will the next sub have a name beginning with "S" again??? Thanks to a DVD release, seaQuest is getting new viewers who can be thrilled by NINE minutes of "deleted" footage from the pilot! The footage should never of been removed, however, I admit that one deleted moment on the enemy submarine looks a bit too goofy and Voyage/Sea-ish (a crewman gets zapped to death), this bit just does not fit the pilot...but I like it.

An added comment here, I am not sure how well this series rated worldwide, but in Sydney Australia it was screened on the most popular viewing night of the week (Sunday) and the ratings for the whole series were very good. In fact, being popular (back then) was half the appeal of the show as nearly all other sci-fic TV shows (including Star Trek) were being aired at 11pm at night!

Fans of seaQuest may email me.