JAG (season 1)
| JAG (season 1) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Starring |
David James Elliott Tracey Needham Andrea Parker |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 22 |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Original release | September 23, 1995 – May 22, 1996 |
The first season of JAG premiered on NBC on September 23, 1995, and concluded on May 22, 1996. The season, starring David James Elliott and Tracey Needham, was produced by Belisarius Productions in association with NBC Productions.
Plot
"Dramatic, action adventure programming has all but disappeared from the airwaves. I don't do sitcoms; I don't do urban neurotic dramas. I created JAG because it's the kind of television I like to watch. Besides that, I served four years in the Marine Corps and remain fascinated by the military's code of ethics—God, duty, honor, country—and how, in these rapidly changing times, it still survives. That's what Harm and Mac, and JAG as a whole, represent."
Donald P. Bellisario on creating JAG[1]
Lieutenant Harmon Rabb, Jr. (David James Elliott), a former aviator, is employed by the Navy's Judge Advocate General Corps, the elite legal division of the United States Navy. In Washington, D.C., Harm is partnered with Lieutenant Meg Austin (Tracey Needham), a junior officer with drive and determination. Together, Harm and Meg work alongside Commander Alison Krennick (Andrea Thompson), Admiral A.J. Chegwidden (John M. Jackson), Ensign Bud Roberts (Patrick Labyorteaux), and Lieutenant Caitlin Pike (Andrea Parker), as they prosecute and defend the laws of the sea. This season, the team investigate the murder of a female fighter pilot ("A New Life"), the death of a civilian contractor ("Shadow"), a training mishap ("Desert Son"), serial killings at a cemetery ("Déjà Vu"), and a murder at a Peruvian embassy ("War Cries"). Also this season, Harm suffers personal losses when his best friend ("Pilot Error") and girlfriend ("Skeleton Crew") are both killed, Meg faces death when she is critically wounded by an assassin ("Hemlock"), and Harm is promoted to Lieutenant Commander ("Defensive Action").
Production
In Spring 1996, NBC announced that they were not commissioning JAG for a second season. Donald P. Bellisario states that he had already received offers from CBS and ABC to pick up the series.[2] Bellisario also credits the cancellation with allowing him to create "the show he'd always wanted to make", as NBC had "wanted action, and [he had] wanted a mix of legal [drama] and action".[3]
Cast and characters
Main cast
- David James Elliott as Lieutenant Commander Harmon Rabb, Jr.
- Tracey Needham as Lieutenant J.G. Meg Austin
Also starring
- Andrea Parker as Lieutenant Caitlin Pike
Recurring cast
- John M. Jackson as Rear Admiral A. J. Chegwidden
- Patrick Labyorteaux as Ensign Bud Roberts
- Andrea Thompson as Commander Allison Krennick
- W.K. Stratton as Commander Theodore Lindsey
- Terry O'Quinn as Captain Thomas Boone, "CAG"
- Paul Collins as Secretary Alexander Nelson
Guest cast
- Kevin Dunn as Rear Admiral Albert Brovo
- Catherine Bell as Lieutenant Diane Schonke
Episodes
| No. in series |
No. in season |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | 1-2 | "A New Life" | Donald P. Bellisario | Donald P. Bellisario | September 23, 1995 | 001/002 |
| When the body of a female F-14 fighter pilot is found floating in the Mediterranean, Judge Advocate General Albert Brovo partners young Lieutenant Harmon Rabb with Lieutenant Caitlin Pike. Together, they must find out whether her death was intentional or accidental. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Shadow" | Donald P. Bellisario | Donald P. Bellisario | September 30, 1995 | 003 |
| Following the reassignment of Caitlin Pike, Harm is partnered with Meg Austin, a Lieutenant JG with a phobia of enclosed spaces. Their first case together is the hijacking of an experimental torpedo by a civilian contractor. Together, they must try and trick the captor into deactivating the missile himself. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Desert Son" | Joe Napolitano | Teleplay: Donald P. Bellisario, Robert Crais and Evan Katz Story: Robert Crais | October 7, 1995 | 005 |
| Harm and Meg are called to investigate when the son of a former Commandant is accused of negligence that killed several marines during a training exercise. The case becomes more complex when the son confesses, but Harm doubts his guilt. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Déjà Vu" | Doug Lefler | Evan Katz | October 21, 1995 | 004 |
| After the body of a Naval Officer is found at Arlington National Cemetery following a reception at a French embassy, Harm and Meg are called to investigate. Meanwhile, a new acquaintance prompts Harm to reminisce of a female friend in Vietnam, who was murdered by her country's military. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Pilot Error" | Les Landau | Teleplay: Jack Orman, Robert Cochran & Donald P. Bellisario Story: Jack Orman | November 4, 1995 | 007 |
| When one of Harm's friends is killed testing a new type of auto-navigation system, he and Meg must determine whether it was pilot error or a mechanical failure. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "War Cries" | Duwayne Dunham | R. Scott Gemmill | November 11, 1995 | 008 |
| A Peruvian boy is killed inside the U.S. Embassy in Lima, and Harm and Meg must determine his intent before the country explodes in anger. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "Brig Break" | Jim Johnston | Teleplay: Reuben Leder and Robert Cochran Story: Robert Cochran | December 2, 1995 | 006 |
| Meg is taken hostage during a "brig break", but Harm suspects that the target is much larger than just one prisoner. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "Scimitar" | John McPherson | Robert Cochran | December 9, 1995 | 010 |
| A Marine Humvee crosses into Iraqi territory, and Harm and Meg are sent to defend the surviving crew member in an Iraqi court. Harm is also given a secondary task – help the Marine escape regardless of the trial's outcome. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "Boot" | Jim Johnston | Lucian K. Truscott IV | January 6, 1996 | 012 |
| Meg goes undercover as an enlisted boot camp recruit at Parris Island after a USMC recruit is found dead and suspicion falls on the drill instructors. This episode was supposed to be aired after "Defensive Action" (since Harm already got his promotion, and that case is referenced in the beginning). | ||||||
| 11 | 11 | "Sightings" | Tom Del Ruth | Evan Katz | January 13, 1996 | 009 |
| A little girl goes missing and Harm and Meg go looking for her around a closed naval airfield in Texas where several "UFO sightings" have been reported. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "The Brotherhood" | Michael Zinberg | R. Scott Gemmill & Donald P. Bellisario | February 3, 1996 | 013 |
| When a Marine is found unconscious on a beach, Harm and Meg get drawn into a "turf war" between the Marines and a prominent L.A. street gang. | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Defensive Action" | Ray Austin | Terry Curtis Fox | March 13, 1996 | 011 |
| Newly promoted LCdr. Rabb must defend the CAG, Capt. Boone (Terry O'Quinn,) when he is accused of shooting down a Serbian helicopter. | ||||||
| 14 | 14 | "Smoked" | Jim Johnston | Donald P. Bellisario | March 20, 1996 | 014 |
| A lightning-damaged Tomcat makes an emergency landing in Cuba, so Harm and Meg go there to try to "talk" it back before the Cubans have a chance to download the avionics and sell them to Iran. There is a new JAG, Rear Admiral A. J. Chegwidden, a former Navy SEAL. | ||||||
| 15 | 15 | "Hemlock" | Jim Johnston | Teleplay: Jack Orman & Donald P. Bellisario Story: Robert Cochran, Jack Orman and Donald P. Bellisario | March 27, 1996 | 015 |
| After having received a mysterious message on the fax machine, Meg is critically wounded by an assassin, posing as a Commander in the British Royal Navy. The assassin’s real target is Russian President Boris Yeltsin who is secretly coming to the United States to sign a treaty. Oliver North makes a guest appearance. | ||||||
| 16 | 16 | "High Ground" | Ray Austin | Robert L. McCullough & Greg Strangis | April 3, 1996 | 016 |
| A top Marine sniper refuses to be deployed to Bosnia and goes AWOL after being accused of trying to kill his CO. | ||||||
| 17 | 17 | "Black Ops" | Ray Austin | Teleplay: Greg Strangis & Robert L. McCullough Story: Peter Lance, Greg Strangis & Robert McCullough | April 10, 1996 | 017 |
| A pilot and son of a female U.S. Senator attached to a team of SEALs dies, apparently due to negligence on the part of the SEALs. The Senator initially wants to put the blame on the SEALs, but Admiral Chegwidden and Harm finds that the real cause of the pilot's death lies elsewhere. | ||||||
| 18 | 18 | "Survivors" | Greg Beeman | Teleplay: R. Scott Gemmill, Donald P. Bellisario and Jack Orman Story: R. Scott Gemmill | April 17, 1996 | 018 |
| A Marine Colonel believes his son is the reincarnation of his Vietnam War comrade, so he kidnaps the child amidst child custody court proceedings to fulfill an old promise. | ||||||
| 19 | 19 | "Recovery" | Joe Napolitano | Jack Orman | May 1, 1996 | 019 |
| An emergency procedures drill during a Space Shuttle "dry run" goes wrong when a cable breaks and an astronaut falls to his death. Harm and Meg have to determine if it was sabotage before the shuttle goes up. | ||||||
| 20 | 20 | "The Prisoner" | Michael Zinberg | Evan Katz | May 8, 1996 | 020 |
| While in Hong Kong (one year before the transfer of sovereignty from Britain), Harm is kidnapped by the Chinese and interrogated about anticipated American reaction should China try to take the Matsu Islands by force. While imprisoned, Harm believes the man in the cell next to him is his missing father. | ||||||
| 21 | 21 | "Ares" | Ray Austin | Eric Hall and Jack Orman | May 22, 1996 | 021 |
| When the computerized Aegis Combat System onboard a U.S. destroyer suddenly malfunctions, Harm, Kate and Meg have to figure out how to keep it from falling into North Korean hands. | ||||||
| 22 | 22 | "Skeleton Crew" | Donald P. Bellisario | Donald P. Bellisario | TBA | 022 |
| An old friend of Harm's turns up dead, and the prime suspect in her death also dies under mysterious circumstances, so Harm falls under suspicion of murder by the NCIS agent in charge. It includes the second appearance of Bud Roberts (played by Patrick Labyorteaux) as the Seahawk's Public Relations Officer.[4] | ||||||
References
- ↑ JAG - Production notes, season 5 at the Wayback Machine (archived December 10, 2000). From the Paramount website, through archive.org. Retrieved on 2013-10-09.
- ↑ http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2005/04/why_jag_came_to.html
- ↑ http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2005/04/why_jag_came_to.html
- ↑ NBC did not air this episode (due to cutting the series from their lineup, and the basic storyline and most of the original shooting (including Andrea Thompson's parts) were later recycled in "Death Watch" (episode 3.19). This episode was later aired by the USA network when the show went into syndication reruns.