An Australian procedural police show that featured Sydney's Water Police. It aired for 177 episodes from 1996 to 2001 in Australia on the Nine Network, but it was broadcasted in Asia, Europe and parts of the Middle East.
The show centers on the New South Wales Police's Water Police (Now known as Marine Area Command) with its officers sent on missions to tackle criminal and terrorist cases committed in Sydney's territorial waters and other nearby locations, while rendering assistance to their fellow officers once in a blue moon. The series was initialy depicted as a police procedural, before it concentrated on the personal lives of the officers in the finals.
The show was initially headlined by Colin Friels and Catherine McClements as Senior Detectives Frank Holloway and Rachel Goldstein. They both left during Season 4, replaced by Steve Bisley as Detective Sergeant Jack Christey, Aaron Pedersen as Detective Michael Reilly and Dee Smart as Senior Detective Alex St. Clare. The cast also included Jay Laga'aia as Senior Constable Tommy Tavita, Brett Partridge as Senior Constable Gavin 'Sykesy' Sykes, Scott Burgess as Senior Sergeant Dave McCall, Peter Bensley as Chief Inspector Jeff Hawker, Toni Scanlen as Senior Sergeant Helen Blakemore and Raelee Hill as Constable Tayler Johnson.
A DVD version has been released and it is also available on Hulu.
This show provides examples of:
- Abandoned Warehouse: The Water Police often go looking for runnaway kids in abandoned buildings along the waterfront.
- Career-Ending Injury: Terry Watson and Dave McCall both receive injuries that prevent them from ever diving again.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Terry Watson, Dave McCall and Tommy Tavita all vanish from the show without explanation. Dave McCall is later revealed to have died
- Da Chief: Chief Inspector Clarke Webb in the first season, before he was forced to resign when he withheld information about a murder victim he had been having an affair with. He was replaced on an acting basis as Patrol Commander by Senior Sergeant Jeff Hawker, who was promoted to Inspector the following season and remained in that position for the rest of the series.
- Cowboy Cop: Frank has his moments, especially during the investigation of his brother's murder.
- Dirty Cop: Detective Sergeant John "Knocker" Harrison, a childhood friend of the Holloways who was in the pocket of a minor criminal, Jim Pappas. When Kevin Holloway found out, Knocker and Pappas murdered him. Knocker later killed Pappas in a drugs raid, before tracking down and killing a group of women who had witnessed Kevin's death, the last one only being narrowly saved by Frank and Rachel.
- Expy: "Supreme Court of the Planet Earth" is one possibly for Greenpeace.
- Gondor Calls for Aid: The WP sometimes calls on the assistance of the Royal Australian Navy combat divers to help them search things underwater.
- Internal Affairs: Showed up a few times, represented by Inspector Tony Brady, mostly due to investigating Kevin Holloway's death and John Harrison's corruption.
- Killed Off for Real: Rachel Goldstein towards the end of Season 4.
- Put on a Bus: Several characters are put on the bus. Tommy (Jay Laga'aia), Dave (Scott Burgess) and Terry (Aaron Jeffery) disappear. Tayler Johnson (Raelee Hill), transfers to another division. Fiona Cassidy and Clarke Webb resign. Frank Holloway (Colin Friels) goes off to follow a forgotten dream, in real life the Colin Friels was fighting cancer.
- Sibling Rivalry: Jimmy Holloway hated his brother Frank for joining the force and for inspiring Kevin to as well, blaming Frank when Kevin was murdered.
- SWAT Team: The State Protection Group helps out in operations that would involve armed criminals/terrorists.
- Western Terrorists: The pilot episode has a deranged man who holds Sydney hostage 'cause of the death of his daughter by threatening to detonate hidden explosives. Pilot also mentions an extreme environmental group called "Supreme Court of the Planet Earth".
- Will They or Won't They?: Frank and Rachel. Frank tries to pursue her briefly in season 2, but it doesn't go very far. Later Rachel does get together with Jack.
