This was the second last episode of
Season two. I got the impression that TPTB were running out of steam. At
any rate, this episode had that kind of feel to it. It was not a good
episode at all, just something to get by on.
Harm, Mac & Bud are sent as observers on a NATO exercise in the Black Sea.
Of course it turns into something more than a friendly naval exercise. Two
former enemy skippers, one Russian, the other American, decided to settle
old scores with one last skirmish. As if that wasn't enough, the Russian
skipper was determined that on this, his ship's last voyage, the ship
should go down in a blaze of glory, with all hands on board. Better a
watery grave than be cut into scrap metal, was his thinking.
I have to count this episode as one of my least favourite. I just never
got into the story. I don't know whether it was the way the episode was
directed, or the way the scenes were cut, or just the script itself. I did
not find it absorbing, even though it was JAG.
That said, there were lots of nice little bits of business, mainly
involving Harm and Bud. David James Elliott and Patrick Labyorteaux are so
good at comedy that it is pure joy to watch their scenes together. Their
timing is so perfect, and neither of them tries to overact. They make it
look so easy and effortless.
I love the music, especially the Russian-sounding stuff. It really touches
the emotions, and is a reminder of the immense wealth of the Russian
musical heritage.
