Tonight's episode was really good -- they're sent to respond to a helicopter crash on an island that was used as a nuclear test site. Complications ensue, and then keep ensuing. It's not Shakespeare, or The Wire, but Sea Patrol consistently delivers well-constructed plots with nice character moments that lean towards the underplayed. And according to the preview, next week's episode is called "Ghost Ship"! Complete with ominous voiceover promising certain doom. Yeah, I'm so there.

I've started watching the first season of Sea Patrol as well. It's good, though I'd say the series has gotten stronger since the early days. It's interesting to see Lisa McCune's XO back when she's just joined the crew, when she's struggling to be accepted, ambivalent about how the new posting fits in with her career ambitions, and clashing with the CO. And it seems liked they originally leaned heavier on weaving a season-long arc/mystery throughout the episodes, the first one having something to do with a private marine biology company and a "cursed" island.

Jason Mittell is asking for examples via Twitter of "'3rd person flashbacks' on TV (not character's memory or recaps) to something seen in earlier episodes." Michael Newman suggested soap operas, but my sense is that flashbacks in soaps typically signal a particular character's memory. One possible exception is the "detective gathers all the murder suspects together and reconstructs the night of the crime" where s/he narrates events shown in flashback that s/he didn't actually witness. I'm not sure, but I think Santa Barbara did that 20 years ago with their excellent denouement to the "Who killed Channing Jr.?" storyline. Other people have suggested 30 Rock, Arrested Development, and Damages as shows that use the 3rd person flashback device. It makes me wonder why it's not used more widely.