The Last Ship
America, F*** Yeah!
Essentially Battlestar Galactica at sea
Season One
Release Date: OUT NOW!
2014 | 15 | Blu- ray/ DVD Director: Hank Steinberg Cast: Eric Dane, Rhona Mitra, Adam Baldwin
Based on the novel by William Brinkley and produced by Michael Bay ( which tells you everything you need to know), The Last Ship’s 10- episode first season is the story of the USS Nathan James, a guided missile destroyer that happens to be out at sea when an airborne pandemic kills 80% of the world’s population. It’s left to square- jawed, all- American commander Tom Chandler and his crew, including sultry scientist Rachel Scott, to find a cure and save the damn planet.
Thought Team America: World Police parodied these kinds of stories out of existence a decade ago? Think again. The Last Ship is eight hours plus of unashamed militaristic jingoism, with the crew possessing one character trait across the board: heroism. In episode two they go to actual Guantanmo Bay and shoot actual Al- Qaeda terrorists in their actual faces, for America ( and medical supplies or something).
And yet… we kind of love it. If you squint it’s essentially Battlestar Galactica at sea, with entire episodes dedicated to catastrophic engine failures or their desperate need for water after months at sea. A rival Russian vessel pursues them across the ocean and can appear at a moment’s notice, like the Cylon fleet, and they occasionally drop anchor and go out on away missions, usually introducing some good old- fashioned American values to an indigenous population. It isn’t in the same league as BSG, of course, but with space- based shows an endangered species it’s a decent enough time- waster.
Extras: Four producer commentaries, 10 brief inside- the-episode featurettes, six “Origin Of The Virus” prequel shorts, a Comic- Con panel, two more featurettes, and some EPK stuff.