By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
Star Trek has defined science fiction for decades with countless studios that are trying their own turn on the trips of the Starship company. In 1993, Rockne S. O’Bannon, the man who would continue to create Stuffinglaunched his own interpretation of the emblematic franchise that started everything, with the twist which instead of deep space, it would take place deeply underwater. In his first season, DSV Seaquet adopted its unique framework with episodes based on real oceanographic sciences and environmental issues, but the heavy episodes of science were not good enough for the leaders of NBC, who wanted a younger and more action series, and the result is a spectacle that began to fill in promise but was destroyed in countries by a short -term greedy.
You will need a larger boat
The concept of DSV Seaquet is simple: in the future, humanity is forced to start to move into underwater colonies to survive in a world with quickly decline resources, suffering from the effects of climate change. Seaquet is an experimental submarine under the supervision of the UEO (United Earth Oceans Organization), responsible for scientific research and to defend the colonies against looters and rival nations. For a science fiction series, it is remarkably anchored, and although the first season includes an episode on a ghost ship and another involving a stranger Ship, the two are aberrant values of others, which deal with politics, ethics of environmentalism and surviving miles below the surface.
DSV Seaquet Even includes a little perfect cascade casting, with Roy Scheider, famous for playing Brody JawsPlay Captain Nathan Bridger, a former military officer out of a self-imposed exile after the death of his wife to take the bar. Bridger resigns rather than pursuing an anti-bar lease activist, and when a catastrophic industrial accident threatens all life on earth, he does not hesitate when he realizes what must be done. The problem is that Scheider has returned for season 2, and the transition from educational action focused on action science fiction was a waste of his acting talent, and Bridger seemed to be out of the way to fight giant crocodiles and masked scientific experiences.
The rest of the crew was even worse, with the teenage prodigy Lucas (Jonathan Brandis, a pillar of Tiger Beat in the early 90s), Commander Ford (Don Franklin) and Lieutenant O’Neill (Ted Raimi) the only three to last the three seasons, well them, and Darwin the Dolphin. In an effort to call on the series to a wider audience, NBC leaders wanted to obtain more “eye candies” in the series, which meant that Stephanie Beacham as Dr Kristin Westphalen and Royce Applegate as chef Crocker, came the Lieutenant de James Brody. The change in distribution occurs with each program, but when NBC was finished, only four characters were postponed from season 1 to season 2, and DSV Seaquet was completely unrecognizable.
From science and exploration to giant crocodiles
The evaluation episodes based on real science and exploration have been replaced by a giant crocodile escaping from his ice prison, an extraterrestrial hunter who finds his path on board the submarine, and even the Seaquet itself seems different. On the camera, the original was sacrificed by Captain Bridger to save the planet. Outside camera, DSV Seaquet Was moved to the shooting in Vancouver in Florida to Universal Studios, with a brand new set. Scheider finally bailed up, which replaced it Michael Ironside for season 3, where the show was renamed as Seonquest 2032As a captain with a hard nose Oliver Hudson, but producers can also reorganize bridge changes on the Titanic.
DSV Seaquet has never been a mastodon of the notes, but the slower, more thoughtful and focused episodes focused on the characters of season 1 provided a fantastic building for the future. O’Bannon’s greatest success, Stuffingtook the time to evolve towards the Wild SCI-Fi Rump that it would eventually become, but its first series was denied the opportunity to grow and develop in an organic way. The result is that the seasons 2 and 3 were the death of the fiery assessments for NBC, because each act of studio interference turned with the public turning in mass of the old -fashioned plots, which went so far in season 3 that Poseidon was involved.
If DSV Seaquet had been focused on environmental plots and exploration in the deep sea, it can have become one of the best science fiction shows of the 90s instead of a forgotten series. Thanks to the raw talent of Jonathan Brandes, Lucas was even a better teenage character than Wesley Crusher on The next generationAnd again, Roy Scheider was directly involved in a series of network genres as manager, for the first and last time. The ocean is vast and largely unexplored, filled with countless wonders, and it is an incredible setting for an science fiction series, but no matter how great the concept is, all spectacle will collapse if the leaders of studio Greedy chased the latest trend, and there is no say where O’Bannon would have taken the show if he was not sabotaged.
The first two seasons of DSV Seaquet are streaming On Peacock, and don’t worry, you’d better watch season 3.
