Television series

seaQuest DSV

Name: seaQuest DSV
Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction
Released: 1993
Cast: Roy Scheider, Don Franklin, Jonathan Brandis, Michael Ironside, Ted Raimi

A mid-21st-century military sci-fi adventure that trades outer space for the ocean depths. seaQuest DSV follows a submarine crew protecting underwater colonies with optimistic 90s energy, earnest action, and a cast led by Roy Scheider. It's pulpy, sincere, and genuinely fun if you're willing to meet it where it lives: not too serious, not trying to rewrite the rules.

TVMaze rating

3.8

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy a sturdy, optimistic adventure where a close-knit crew in a sleek submarine tackles a fresh undersea threat most weeks, with Roy Scheider's steady captain anchoring the whole thing.

Skip it if you need slow-burning character drama or gritty realism, since this is brisk, earnest and sometimes goofy, with effects and plotting that show their age.

What it asks of you: Each episode runs about an hour and is largely self-contained, so it asks for a steady weekly rhythm rather than sustained concentration across the whole run.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Expanse2015

Military sci-fi with an ensemble crew, political intrigue, and genuine stakes. Trades the ocean for space but keeps the same DNA: diverse characters, hard choices, and the frontier as both opportunity and threat.

But Slower paced and considerably grittier. Takes itself seriously in ways seaQuest refuses to, which some find essential and others find exhausting.

Irwin Allen's Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea1964

The direct ancestor—a submarine crew solving weekly crises with 60s ingenuity and charm. If you love seaQuest's earnest adventure spirit, this is where it came from, and it's wonderful.

But Genuinely campy by modern standards, and the pacing reflects its era. Some dialogue hasn't aged gracefully, though that's part of its appeal.

Irwin Allen's Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea poster

Aquaman2018

Underwater spectacle with genuine heart and an ensemble of misfits learning to work together. Captures that same tone of pulpy adventure played completely straight, with characters you actually root for.

But The script is serviceable at best, and if you find superhero film conventions exhausting, this won't surprise you. Also nearly three hours long.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from seaQuest DSV

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea1954

Both frame the submarine as a character and the ocean as a contested space between exploration and control. Both ask: who gets to own the frontier?

The 1954 Disney version captures something seaQuest clearly learned from: the ocean as frontier, the submarine as character, and the tension between military duty and wonder. James Mason as Captain Nemo is mesmerizing.

But A mid-century spectacle with the pacing to match. If you're expecting seaQuest's momentum, you'll find something deliberately, almost hypnotically slower. Some effects look dated.

Deep Blue Sea1999

Submarine base under siege from genetically engineered sharks. Pure 90s action pulp with real tension, practical effects that still hold up, and LL Cool J delivering comedic relief that actually works.

But Lean on character development and heavy on spectacle. If you need emotional depth alongside your creature-feature thrills, you'll find it here.

For All Mankind2019

Alternate-history sci-fi that nails the optimistic-future-exploration vibe. Expands its scope with each season and genuinely commits to imagining how humanity might reach outward—or downward.

But Focuses on the politics and personal cost of exploration. If you want pure adventure without the weight of consequence, this leans the other way.

Sealab 20212000

An adult-swim comedy that loves seaQuest enough to deconstruct it. Absurdist humor in an underwater base with genuine affection for the earnest sci-fi premise it's riffing on.

But Very much a product of Adult Swim's sensibility: chaotic, crude, and deeply weird. The humor is often obtuse, and it won't land if that style annoys you.

The Last of Us2023

Post-apocalyptic ensemble adventure with strong character work and genuine stakes. Different setting entirely, but that same commitment to making you care about people in impossible circumstances.

But Relentlessly bleak and focused on grief and loss. Nothing like seaQuest's tonal optimism, and the violence carries real weight rather than adventure-movie sheen.