On this episode of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, another submarine almost identical to the Seaview, the Neptune, is attacked and engulfed by what looks like a giant jellyfish (in actuality, *they* are "coelenterate" are millions of creatures combined to form one central organism), its size and the ability for such creatures to unify caused by a "stimulation" due to a radioactive "forcefield" near the bottom of the ocean floor. Nelson was on the Neptune, studying its capabilities and for possible hiccups or malfunctions, when he dives to cut away radioactive rock for research, watching with another crew member as the sub is destroyed, swimming to the surface, using their frogmen suits and air tanks as means to make a raft. The first portion of the episode has Captain Crane in Naval headquarters awaiting word of Nelson's recovery with tough, hard-nosed, opinionated Admiral Jiggs Starke (Harold J Stone, intense, by-the-book military commander who wishes for Crane to operate his crew on the Seaview closer to naval guidelines, rules, and regulations). Jiggs will board a Navy-commissioned Seaview to locate the coelenterate and find out why the Neptune was destroyed, picking up Nelson, recuperating in the hospital, during the voyage. Nelson's emotions and mental prowess are under attack possibly by a "piece" of the coelenterate as he was swimming to the surface prior to being rescued so the Seaview in a precarious position when Crane checks the computer to determine the best course when the forcefield affects certain controls on the ship, including guidance systems, having to counteract the admiral's orders for full ballast which would jeopardize all on board. The scene where Crane is confined to his quarters after debating the best methods for setting the course, having to pull a gun on Nelson so that the Seaview wouldn't be victim to maneuvering problems is quite a dramatic height for the series. Crane's relations with Jiggs also produces plenty of tension (you can see Crane hold back from really letting Jiggs have an earful over all of the admiral's complaints about the way the captain runs his ship; Jiggs cannot hold back his repulsion for how "insubordinate" Crane is, later having to eat his words when the captain gets them out of a sticky situation). My favorite line was Nelson's when responding to Jiggs' complaints about Crane, saying that the only reason he doesn't like him is because the admiral doesn't scare the pants off the captain! Seeing Nelson in tears after Crane pulls the gun is certainly not a scene you forget...all because of pills designed to help were actually the cause of his mental breakdown!
4 Reviews
Excellent Drama, Despite a Few Flaws
reprtr24 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Voyage To the Bottom of the Sea's first season was the one that hewed the most closely to reality -- the monsters, when they appeared, were reasonably credible and there was a dour seriousness to the tone of the entire series, which lightened slightly when it went to color. "Mutiny," along with "Doomsday" and "Submarine Sunk Here," might have been the high-point for the run of the series. The plot is actually fairly complex -- while overseeing the shakedown cruise of the submarine Neptune, Admiral Nelson (Richard Basehart) leaves the ship on a dive to check out a possible deposit of a rare radioactive mineral. He and his diving partner, Fowler (Steve Harris), are shocked to see the sub they have just left attacked and destroyed by a gigantic "coelenterate" (that's the term they use, meaning essentially a jellyfish, but the gargantuan creature in question is really more of a physalia, or Portuguese man 'o war, which is a composite organism made up of numerous component organisms, than a jellyfish).
Making their way to the surface, Nelson and Fowler improvise a raft using their diving suits and equipment, but Fowler starts to succumb to the stings of the small "coelenterates" that follow the larger creature, eventually falling into the sea and drowning during a violent storm. Nelson is left to survive alone -- meanwhile, the US Navy, under the command of four-star Admiral Jiggs Starke (Harold J. Stone) is conducting a full-out search for survivors of the Neptune, while the Seaview's captain, Commander Lee Crane (David Hedison), awaits word along with the sub's crew.
Nelson is found and hospitalized at Pearl Harbor, and the Seaview is temporarily commissioned into the US Navy and sent to pick him up and deal with whatever destroyed the Neptune, with Admiral Starke aboard. A tough-talking, no-nonsense "old navy" disciplinarian, Starke reacts harshly to the Seaview's relatively loose, non-traditional level of order and discipline, and especially to Crane's comparatively informal manner of dealing with subordinates.
Nelson, mostly recovered from his ordeal at sea, joins the Seaview at Pearl Harbor and the submarine begins its hunt. Crane becomes concerned, however, over Nelson's unpredictable mood-swings from moment to moment, which seem to be affecting his ability to oversee the search -- Nelson also appears distracted some of the time, his mind seemingly wandering during critical discussions. Additionally, a new problem arises as the ship's doctor (Richard Bull) discloses that both the large coelenterate and the small ones moving in its wake are dangerously radioactive, and that the stings of the small ones can progressively destroy human brain cells, bringing about irrational behavior and delirium, followed by death.
Matters come to a head when the Seaview loses depth control and speed during the hunt and starts gradually descending toward its crush depth. Crane and Nelson have a confrontation over how to proceed, the admiral ignoring the recommendation of the ship's computer that the sub be taken into a full dive (in order to increase forward speed and regain both rudder and diving plane control), Nelson insisting on an "up" angle (which will, in fact, do no good without more speed, and may cause the diving planes to buckle and snap off). The admiral appears to lose all emotional control -- having previously defended Crane and his command style to Starke, he now spouts paranoid criticism of both Crane and the entire crew, screaming as Crane is relieved of command and escorted out of the control room about the Seaview being a "loose ship." The ship is out of immediate danger, but Crane's real concern is for the admiral, who, he fears, may be succumbing to delayed radiation damage to his nervous system from his first encounter with the creature -- a symptom that precedes death.
The writing of this episode is generally excellent, although author William Read Woodfield pushes a little too hard and too fast for drama, instead of letting it develop naturally, and causing a few leaps of logic that ought to have been better explained and dealt with. I won't spoil the denouement of the episode by revealing more, but the actual cause of Nelson's condition and its resolution is taken right from the movie BIGGER THAN LIFE, starring James Mason and Barbara Rush.
In terms of realism, within the limits of a sci-fi adventure show, the script keeps things together despite the uncertain nature of the monster the Seaview is facing -- I suppose a jellyfish is an easier explanation to put over than a Portuguese man 'o war, in terms of verbal shorthand, though they are very different creatures and the account of the monster's nature is certainly closer to the latter than the former. My one big argument about this episode and its script, though, is that in real-life, no matter how high-ranking the admiral in question is, no flag officer would ever question the manner in which a ship's commander handled matters on his own vessel, whether that admiral was using it as his flag-ship or was merely traveling aboard her.
Making their way to the surface, Nelson and Fowler improvise a raft using their diving suits and equipment, but Fowler starts to succumb to the stings of the small "coelenterates" that follow the larger creature, eventually falling into the sea and drowning during a violent storm. Nelson is left to survive alone -- meanwhile, the US Navy, under the command of four-star Admiral Jiggs Starke (Harold J. Stone) is conducting a full-out search for survivors of the Neptune, while the Seaview's captain, Commander Lee Crane (David Hedison), awaits word along with the sub's crew.
Nelson is found and hospitalized at Pearl Harbor, and the Seaview is temporarily commissioned into the US Navy and sent to pick him up and deal with whatever destroyed the Neptune, with Admiral Starke aboard. A tough-talking, no-nonsense "old navy" disciplinarian, Starke reacts harshly to the Seaview's relatively loose, non-traditional level of order and discipline, and especially to Crane's comparatively informal manner of dealing with subordinates.
Nelson, mostly recovered from his ordeal at sea, joins the Seaview at Pearl Harbor and the submarine begins its hunt. Crane becomes concerned, however, over Nelson's unpredictable mood-swings from moment to moment, which seem to be affecting his ability to oversee the search -- Nelson also appears distracted some of the time, his mind seemingly wandering during critical discussions. Additionally, a new problem arises as the ship's doctor (Richard Bull) discloses that both the large coelenterate and the small ones moving in its wake are dangerously radioactive, and that the stings of the small ones can progressively destroy human brain cells, bringing about irrational behavior and delirium, followed by death.
Matters come to a head when the Seaview loses depth control and speed during the hunt and starts gradually descending toward its crush depth. Crane and Nelson have a confrontation over how to proceed, the admiral ignoring the recommendation of the ship's computer that the sub be taken into a full dive (in order to increase forward speed and regain both rudder and diving plane control), Nelson insisting on an "up" angle (which will, in fact, do no good without more speed, and may cause the diving planes to buckle and snap off). The admiral appears to lose all emotional control -- having previously defended Crane and his command style to Starke, he now spouts paranoid criticism of both Crane and the entire crew, screaming as Crane is relieved of command and escorted out of the control room about the Seaview being a "loose ship." The ship is out of immediate danger, but Crane's real concern is for the admiral, who, he fears, may be succumbing to delayed radiation damage to his nervous system from his first encounter with the creature -- a symptom that precedes death.
The writing of this episode is generally excellent, although author William Read Woodfield pushes a little too hard and too fast for drama, instead of letting it develop naturally, and causing a few leaps of logic that ought to have been better explained and dealt with. I won't spoil the denouement of the episode by revealing more, but the actual cause of Nelson's condition and its resolution is taken right from the movie BIGGER THAN LIFE, starring James Mason and Barbara Rush.
In terms of realism, within the limits of a sci-fi adventure show, the script keeps things together despite the uncertain nature of the monster the Seaview is facing -- I suppose a jellyfish is an easier explanation to put over than a Portuguese man 'o war, in terms of verbal shorthand, though they are very different creatures and the account of the monster's nature is certainly closer to the latter than the former. My one big argument about this episode and its script, though, is that in real-life, no matter how high-ranking the admiral in question is, no flag officer would ever question the manner in which a ship's commander handled matters on his own vessel, whether that admiral was using it as his flag-ship or was merely traveling aboard her.
Eight Out Of Ten Drama
StuOz11 November 2016
Warning: Spoilers
A giant jellyfish and an out-of-character Admiral Nelson create problems.
This episode gets a couple of points taken away from it because of a slow start and some poor miniature effects during the whole thing, but once it is discovered that Nelson is alive and well...Mutiny is very good.
Irwin Allen was still just warming up his science fiction ideas at this stage. The jellyfish-with-submarine footage is filmed/scored just so differently to how such scenes would be done in the colour seasons.
The later seasons had this grand epic-feel which is sadly missing in Mutiny. But this hour is not about a grand look. It is about the wonderful acting of one of Hollywood's most under-rated actors: Richard Basehart...that is the appeal of this hour and why it gets eight out of ten.
Seasons three and four had several hours like this where Nelson is not himself, in fact in one episode (No Escape From Death) Nelson turned very cold for no reason in the script! It was as if the writers just liked him better that way.
This episode gets a couple of points taken away from it because of a slow start and some poor miniature effects during the whole thing, but once it is discovered that Nelson is alive and well...Mutiny is very good.
Irwin Allen was still just warming up his science fiction ideas at this stage. The jellyfish-with-submarine footage is filmed/scored just so differently to how such scenes would be done in the colour seasons.
The later seasons had this grand epic-feel which is sadly missing in Mutiny. But this hour is not about a grand look. It is about the wonderful acting of one of Hollywood's most under-rated actors: Richard Basehart...that is the appeal of this hour and why it gets eight out of ten.
Seasons three and four had several hours like this where Nelson is not himself, in fact in one episode (No Escape From Death) Nelson turned very cold for no reason in the script! It was as if the writers just liked him better that way.
It's a killer jellyfish!!!???
planktonrules3 October 2017
"Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" was a fantasy adventure series. A few episodes were believable...most were pure fantasy. So, while the story idea in "Mutiny" is insanely ridiculous for many reasons, you can't fault the show as it wasn't intended to be believable. Remember this when I give you a summary of the show!
Admiral Nelson is aboard the Neptune, a sister ship of the Seaview. However, the sub is soon attacked and destroyed by a 1000-foot long jellyfish and only the first officer and Nelson survive, as they were off scuba diving during the attack. Soon, the pair are stuck floating on the sea...hoping to survive long enough to be rescued. And, if they are rescued, will anyone believe a giant jellyfish destroyed the ship?? And, what's with Nelson...as he soon begins to act rather strangely.
The guest star in this one was Harold Stone as Admiral Starke. As usual, he plays a very angry and grouchy character. Apart from Simon Oakland, no one played angry folks more than Harold Stone! So, it wasn't much of a stretch for him to be Mr. Grumpus in this installment! As for Basehart, his grouchiness WAS unusual and makes this one worth seeing! However, relatively speaking, it's a tad disappointing...
Admiral Nelson is aboard the Neptune, a sister ship of the Seaview. However, the sub is soon attacked and destroyed by a 1000-foot long jellyfish and only the first officer and Nelson survive, as they were off scuba diving during the attack. Soon, the pair are stuck floating on the sea...hoping to survive long enough to be rescued. And, if they are rescued, will anyone believe a giant jellyfish destroyed the ship?? And, what's with Nelson...as he soon begins to act rather strangely.
The guest star in this one was Harold Stone as Admiral Starke. As usual, he plays a very angry and grouchy character. Apart from Simon Oakland, no one played angry folks more than Harold Stone! So, it wasn't much of a stretch for him to be Mr. Grumpus in this installment! As for Basehart, his grouchiness WAS unusual and makes this one worth seeing! However, relatively speaking, it's a tad disappointing...
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
