With every series final of ‘Sea Patrol’ you expect a big episode. Big explosions, big shocks and some changes that will have a ripple effect through to the next series. Episode 16, ‘In Too Deep’, certainly does not disappoint on any of these levels.
The episode opens with Mike saving the life of a baby and his father. As Mike is praised by his crew for being a hero, Maxine pushes him to make a decision about the CO’s position. He is not happy with the candidate CO list she has provided so creates his own list, putting a familiar name on top.
Hammersley heads for a boat sending a Pan Pan call (one step down from a May Day). The survey vessel has found something that opens up the mystery for this episode of ‘Sea Patrol’. The mystery leads them to a fishing trawler captained by Derek Cavanaugh (Martin Sacks).
Confusion in regards to the the list of potential COs causes Kate to request a transfer off Hammersley. Mike tries to speak to her about it but she refuses to take his call. Whilst Kate has a few drinks with the crew, Mike, alone, falls into the hands of the bad guys.
With Mike AWOL, Kate must take command of Hammersley in a desperate search to find him. As the crew zeros in on Mike’s possible location, an explosion rocks the RHIB. Body parts are subsequently found floating in the water.
The crew members must come to terms with the loss of their CO but they vow to put their feelings on hold until they apprehend the men responsible.
This emotion-packed episode does not tie up all the loose ends that some might have hoped for; but it does point to them being addressed in Series 5.
Ian Stenlake and Lisa McCune are simply brilliant in this episode. In Mike, Ian superbly portrays the courage and bravery of a man fighting a seemingly unwinnable battle for his life. But it is Lisa’s turn to truly shine. She has the opportunity to demonstrate her vast range of dramatic talent and her performance – particularly in the second half – is first-rate. What she manages to convey in scenes with virtually no dialogue is incredible. The last six minutes of Series 4 is very powerful stuff.
The other notable performance comes from Martin Sacks. I know many people are expecting some sort of ‘Blue Heelers’ reunion with him and Lisa but despite wonderful performances from both of these fine actors, this is definitely not Maggie and PJ Mark II.
Episode 16 is fantastic on all levels. Great action, (mostly) solid guests and believable, consistent performances from all the Hammersley crew.
When I sat down to watch Episode 16, I had decided to finish off my review with a wrap up of the series and rate my favourite episode. Episode 9, Dutch Courage, was the frontrunner for this honour. But after watching the season finale half a dozen times or so, this is the one that I have loved the most. Series 4 has been amazing on so many levels and is by far my favourite series yet. I’ll be pre-ordering the DVD soon.
I am really looking forward to Series 5 and hope these fan reviews will continue next season. I want to thank Hal and Di McElroy for having the faith in me (and also sea-patrol.com) to deliver these reviews. It’s been a bumpy ride, but I think the reviews have evolved into something special. We really are lucky to have producers who not only demonstrate loyalty to the fan site with exclusive news and information, but take the time to respond to all the fans who contact them. It is a very unique situation and demonstrates the dedication and love these producers have, not only for their own show, but for the people who watch it week after week.
As we already learned in Episode 15, Bomber leaves the Hammersley. All the best to Kirsty Lee Allan who is off to make it big in LA. I also want to use this opportunity to ask people to give Bird a fair go. It looks like she’ll be around for Series 5, and I believe she deserves more of a chance than many are willing to give her. We have not only survived, but thrived following the loss of three much-loved crew members; I’m sure we can survive the loss of another one.
