Oceans - Mysterious Depths - DVD

Content: Paul Rose and his team have made it their mission to get to the bottom of important questions and exciting mysteries surrounding our oceans. On an expedition around the globe, the team was accompanied by the BBC, who present the material recorded during various dives and work on board in the form of the 8-part documentary series Oceans - Mysterious Depths. The series features expedition leader Paul Rose, marine biologist, oceanographer and diving expert Tooni Mahto, Dr Lucy Blue, an expert in maritime archaeology and Philippe Cousteau Jr., grandson of the legendary Jaques Cousteau, will travel from the Caribbean to the Arctic to study the different habitats of our oceans.

In doing so, they hope to find out, for example, how the warming of the world's oceans is affecting ecosystems, whether research findings from one ocean can be applied to problems in another, or how animals adapt to changes in their habitat. In the process, they capture some great images with their underwater cameras that make it easy to understand why everyone involved is so passionate about what they do. One of the most impressive moments, however, is when Philippe Cousteau visits an old research station of his grandfather's, which now seems to be firmly fused with the underwater world, and which makes it clear what visions drove Jacques Cousteau, as well as Philippe's father, to become so committed to the oceans and their inhabitants.

Those expecting a comprehensive documentary about the oceans will be disappointed, however. The individual episodes deal with very specific investigations, which are then used to draw conclusions about the entire ecosystem. Sure, there are a lot of great underwater shots and the whole thing is never boring. But this series is not a nature documentary like Deep Blue or Our Oceans. However, as a natural science documentary with sometimes astounding conclusions, Journey Through the Oceans definitely works.

The eight episodes deal with the Sea of Cortes, the Southern Ocean, the Red Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean (2 episodes), the Mediterranean Sea and finally the Arctic. The expedition members brave wind and weather, the forces of nature and bureaucracy, and never lose their will to perhaps contribute a little bit to making our seas better again someday. And that enthusiasm for the oceans and awe for the complex ecosystems are simply infectious and make this series absolutely worth watching, despite minor flaws!

Picture + Sound: Aside from minor weaknesses in darker scenes, the clean picture pleases with good overall sharpness and powerful colors, which come through especially well in some of the underwater scenes. Stereo audio is dominated primarily by the commentary, with some music and minor ambient noise rounding out the neatly mixed soundscape. Good!

Extras: Unfortunately, the two DVDs have no bonus material to offer.

Conclusion: Oceans is an interesting journey over and through the oceans. However, the whole thing is less nature documentary than an interesting document about the work of the marine specialists around the expedition leader Paul Rose. Some exciting facts and wonderful pictures make this series nevertheless absolutely worth seeing. The DVD supports the positive impression by a good technical realization. Unfortunately, there is no bonus material. Nevertheless, there is a deserved bottom line: recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp