Deadliest Catch

Did You Know?

• Mike Rowe was originally supposed to be the on-camera host, but had to choose between Deadliest Catch and Dirty Jobs.
• The show uses a mock-up radar screen to transition between boats, showing positions relative to St. Paul Island and Dutch Harbor.

Overview

The show tracks the lives of fishermen working on Bering Sea crab boats during two distinct seasons: the October king crab season and the January opilio crab season. It highlights the constant dangers faced by both the crew and the camera operators, who must dodge swinging crab pots, manage hundreds of pounds of crab on a treacherous deck, and lean over the rails to set or haul pots while gale-force winds and towering waves pound the vessel. Each episode centers on a particular story, situation, or theme aboard one or more boats, with side stories exploring the backgrounds and experiences of individual crew members, especially the greenhorns. The captains take center stage, showing their bonds with each other, their relationships with their crews, and their rivalry in the race for crab. Recurring themes include the friendly competition between captains, notably Sig Hansen of the F/V Northwestern and Johnathan and Andy Hillstrand of the F/V Time Bandit; the family connections across the fleet, such as the Hansen brothers (Sig, Norm, and Edgar) on the Northwestern, the Hillstrand brothers and Johnathan’s son Scotty on the Time Bandit, and brothers Keith and Monte Colburn on the Wizard; the immense pressure of life at sea; and the frequent turnover of greenhorns. Since Alaskan crab fishing ranks among the world’s most hazardous occupations, U.S. Coast Guard rescue helicopters from Integrated Support Command Kodiak and the St. Paul Island outpost often appear in the show, pulling crew members from danger. The Coast Guard rescue squad was heavily featured in episodes covering the losses of the F/V Big Valley in January 2005, the F/V Ocean Challenger in October 2006, and the F/V Katmai in October 2008. To be ready for such emergencies, Original Productions keeps a camera crew stationed with the Coast Guard throughout filming.

Subject matter

Commercial fishing has long held a reputation as one of America's most hazardous lines of work. In 2006, federal statistics placed it at the top of the list for job-related fatalities, recording 141.7 deaths for every 100,000 person-years worked. That rate was nearly three-quarters higher than the next most dangerous occupations, which included pilots, flight engineers, and loggers. Within this field, Alaskan king crab fishing stands out as especially lethal, largely because of the brutal conditions crews face on the Bering Sea during crab season. The show's pilot episode stated that, on average, roughly one fisherman dies each week during the main crab seasons, and nearly every crew member on most boats gets injured. The dangers come from frigid gales, rogue waves, ice buildup on the vessel, and the constant challenge of handling heavy machinery on a deck that never stops moving. As of 2005, the fatality rate for Alaskan king crab fishing exceeded 300 deaths per 100,000 person-years, with more than 80 percent of those deaths resulting from drowning or hypothermia. The first season of the series was filmed during the last year of the old derby-style fishery, where many boats raced to catch as much crab as possible within a short, strict window. Later seasons took place after a shift to an Individual Fishing Quota system, a change known as rationalization. Under this new system, established boat owners received quotas they could fill at a slower, theoretically safer pace. The change was also meant to boost crab prices by limiting supply, though an influx of foreign crab undercut some of those gains during the 2006 season. The rationalization forced many smaller crews out of business, as their quotas were too small to cover operating costs. By the first season under the new rules, the fleet had dropped from over 250 boats to roughly 89 larger vessels holding much higher quotas.

Production

Getting the show on the water takes a serious production effort. A two-person camera crew lives on each featured boat, shooting the bulk of the series with handheld Sony HVR-Z5U and HVR-Z7U HDV cameras—one operator works the main deck while the other stays in the wheelhouse. Four stationary cameras are bolted around the ship and run nonstop for extra coverage. To get shots from outside the vessel, the team uses a helicopter near the harbor and a cameraman on a chase boat; during the first season, that chase boat was the F/V Time Bandit. Underwater footage comes from several sources: a camera strapped to a crab pot for a crab’s-eye view in season two, a camera inside the main crab tank on the F/V Northwestern starting that same season, and a camera mounted on a submersible craft from season three onward. The season nine “Behind the Lens” special revealed two more techniques: divers swimming near the boats (and even on the bottom of Dutch Harbor during the king crab fleet’s departure) and a helicopter fitted with a belly-mounted turret camera, the same kind used for the film Skyfall. Audio is captured with wireless mics worn by the fishermen and shotgun mics attached to the cameras. Because space is tight on the boats, there’s no audio mixer onboard, so the sound team works in post-production to use only the real sounds recorded at sea. Despite careful waterproofing, the gear regularly gets wrecked by corrosion, ice, and accidents. Captain Sig Hansen of the F/V Northwestern acts as a technical advisor for the show’s producers.

Miniseries and extended episodes

After the Catch is a roundtable documentary series where the captains from Deadliest Catch talk about their lives off the boat. The show features these captains and their crew swapping tales about what they’ve seen and experienced while fishing the Bering Sea. This spin-off was created with Original Productions and Silent Crow Arts. The first season came out in 2007, filmed at the Lockspot Cafe in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, with Deadliest Catch narrator Mike Rowe as host. The second season aired in 2008 from Pratty’s Bar in Gloucester, Massachusetts, again hosted by Rowe. The third season, After the Catch III, aired in 2009 from RTs Longboard Bar and Grill in San Diego, hosted by Cash Cab’s Ben Bailey. The fourth season aired in 2010 from the Blue Nile bar in New Orleans, with Rowe back as host. This miniseries was one of Discovery Channel’s top-rated in 2007 and led to other follow-up documentaries like Everest: After the Climb. After the Catch VI was the final season of this post-fishing series. Partly in response to a playful challenge from Mike Rowe for the captains to host their own show, the format for Season 9 changed to run throughout the season. That change led to The Bait, a pregame roundtable series that previews select Deadliest Catch episodes starting with season 9. Filmed in Dutch Harbor, it is hosted by Sig Hansen, Johnathan and Andy Hillstrand, and Keith Colburn, with narration by Mike Rowe. The captains share off-season stories and hints about what viewers will see in that night’s episode. Regular segments include The Hot Seat, which focuses on one captain or deckhand, and questions from celebrity fans. The first episode, Opening Day: King Crab, aired on April 16, 2013. On Deck is an expanded episode that includes previously unaired footage, production notes, facts, and sometimes social media comments. It debuted on April 23, 2013, running alongside Season 9. Decked is a rebroadcast episode that features webcam CatchChat with one or more captains between segments.