Nautica
| Nautica | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Space western, science fiction drama |
| Created by | Natanaele Medin |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | Temuair |
| No. of seasons | 13 |
| No. of episodes | 169 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Natanaele Medin |
| Producer(s) | Catarina Marcial Medin |
| Cinematography | Antón Neira |
| Editor(s) | Natanaele Medin Finley Silvas |
| Running time | 45-55 minutes, 1 hour special episodes, usually finales. |
| Release | |
| Original network | Apex Broadcasting Company |
| Original release | October 29, 2007 – October 31, 2020 |
Nautica is a space western science fiction drama television series created by director Natanaele Medin, who now serves as the executive producer of the series. The series is set in an undetermined year, though it is implied to be in the "far future". Humans have migrated away from Annwynn in colony ships and have since established themselves in a new solar system. The series follows the adventures of the crew of the Nautica, a Starfire-class freighter operating as a somewhat nefarious independent merchant transshipping vessel.
One of the most widely successful drama shows in television history, it first premiered on PMG's line up in October of 2008, and has run continuously since. The show averages over 14 million viewers per episode worldwide, with 5.7 of those viewers in Temuair. Video releases, along with merchandise and other paraphernalia, sales have exceeded over $30 billion URD during the shows 11 year life.
Despite its success, there has never been a feature-length film, though one was reportedly in pre-production by Iron Gate Studios before it was acquired by Apex Entertainment. It is widely believed that Apex Entertainment, having all but cornered the domestic film making industry, has actively opposed all attempts to produce a Nautica movie, likely due to its competition with Nautica's owners, Apex Broadcasting Company.
The show has an incredible cult following within Temuair, as well as in other nations, and has had some significant cultural impact as well, with several popular phrases from the show becoming common parlance in some circles.
Origin
Natanaele Medin first began working on Nautica when he was 19 years old, when he composed several short stories, many of which became future episodes of the series, for his college-level creative writing class. Encouraged by his girlfriend at the time, Catarina Marcial, a graphic design major, she and Natanaele began producing a short comic series featuring the core characters of the show. One of Marcial professors arranged for she and Natanaele to speak with a talent scout from Volante Media Group about adapting the series for television.
Plot
Season 2 is often unofficially refereed to as "Backstories", as nearly every episode delves into the history of one of the Nautica's crew members alongside exploring the seasons story line.
Seasons 3 and 4 center around the crew of the Nautica traveling with con-artist Krina Bitee, who was first introduced in SE1EP7 (Shametyme Melody) in search of a lost treasure.
Seasons 6 and 7 focus on the crews attempts to locate and rescue Caoilinn, who has been kidnapped by bounty hunter Tobian Prost on behalf of the Affiliation military and returned to an Affiliation research facility on Cryria, in the core worlds.
At the end of season 5 Barret Kurn departed the crew of Nautica after an altercation with Vasquez subsequent to his near betrayal of the crew to the Affiliation at the end of season 7. He is absent for two seasons before returning with his own ship and crew and becoming a minor antagonist for the crew of the Nautica starting in season 10.
Episodes
Cast and characters
- Cormac Vasquez
- Played by Lúcás Marino, Cormac is the captain and owner of the Nautica, a Starfire-class transshipping vessel. He is a rougeish character who exhibits morals and ethics, but is also decidedly criminal in his actions. He and the crew of the Nautica operate as an independent and semi-legitimize transshipping vessel, taking contracts from a variety of sources, some of which are nefarious in nature, such as smuggling weapons or other contraband to outlying worlds.
- Cormac grew up on Aspora, one of the first worlds settled by people when they arrived in the galaxy. Aspora was one of several worlds that resisted the Affiliation's attempts to unify the core world's under one banner. During the <name> War, the Affiliation's fleet blockaded Aspora, and Affiliation troops landed on the planet in an attempt to occupy it and bring it under the Affiliation's control. Cormac participated in the defense of the world as an infantryman. The Battle for Aspora wrought destruction across the surface of the planet, and though the resistance fought barely, the world fell to the forces of the Affiliation. Today, those who supported the Affiliation and their families, as well as other rich and prosperous peoples, reside within large metroplexes, with the poor living in slums and wastelands on the planets surface.
- According to an interview with creator Natanaele Medin, Cormac is principally interested in ensuring the survival and well-being of the ships crew. "For him, its all about getting by, doing anything they have to do to retain the freedom to move about the stars of their own accord." Though he is obviously opposed to the Affiliation and its activities, and resents them for the virtual destruction of his home world, he does not actively go out of his way to harm them. "For him, the war is over. Fighting the Affiliation openly isn't what he's about. He just wants to stay outside their reach and their regulation...and sure, hes not opposed to throwing a wrench into their works now and again."
- Moyra Wintac
- Played by Rachelle McElveen , Moyra is the second in command of Nautica, and best friend to Cormac, having grown up, and fought together, on Aspora. She has a deep loyalty to Cormac resulting from their shared history and service on Aspora, a feeling that causes her to be extremely protective of him. This protectiveness is misunderstood by Justýna Kacer, who believes they are feelings of romantic affection, causing tension between the two woman.
- Canter Daruss
- Played by Artur Barona, Daruss is a medical doctor from Teynov who fled from Affiliation authorities following his witnesses the son of a wealthy industrialist murder a prostitute and his refusal to recant his statement. He is the most serious member of the crew, and has a keen interest in both studying and treating Caoilinn's condition, with the twos relationship evolving into romance throughout the series.
- Tolman Madas
- Played by Lois Albarrán, Tolman is the pilot of Nautica. Though Toleman is a gifted pilot, he is somewhat cowardly, and one of the members of the crew who is unaccustomed to violence and criminality as a way of life, he often attempts to cover his nervousness with jokes, many of which are ill timed or improperly delivered. He and Kira are easily the most free spirited and easygoing of the entire crew.
- Caoilinn Bree
- Played by Kiera Clarke, Caoilinn is a member of the Nautica's crew, having been rescued by Cormac and Kurn on Flosie during the events of pilot episode. She exhibits uncanny dexterity and grace, and also seems to be extremely intuitive. By the same token, she is often mentally unstable and prone to bouts of mania.
- Her true identity is a complete mystery, even to her, Caoilinn was a somewhat unwilling participant in a Affiliation military program aimed at augmenting humans, including allowing them to utilize the latent portions of their brain, with the intent of utilizing these improved humans as specialized spies and operatives. She was able to escape from a secret Affiliation research facility on Cryria thaks to the assistance of a sympathetic doctor, Louell Cortcol. She was able to obtain passage to Flosie, where she ran afoul of bounty hunter Tobian Prost working with Affiliation Rangers to capture her.
- Justýna Kacer
- Played by Janele Toran, she is an Attendant, a term used to describe those whose job it is to provide a variety of services to clients. Though Attendants do participate in sexual acts with clients, they also act as hostesses and entertainers, and are commonly adept in the art of musical and theatrical performance, as well as skilled in social graces and etiquette. Attendants are generally considered to be members of the social elite, especially on the twelve core worlds of the Affiliation.
- Justýna conducts her business aboard her own vessel, but because it has no translight drive, she entered into an arrangement with Cormac to piggyback with the Nautica from system to system, riding coupled to one of the vessels two docking ports. She is vague regarding her history to the crew, the reason for which are revealed in SE02EP3 (Witty Episode Name Goes Here) in which some of Justýna's colorful past is revealed. Tough initially reluctant to admit that she was attracted to Cormac, and hesitant to act on those feelings due to his close relationship to Moyra, the two shared a deep romance beginning towards the midpoint of the series.
- Marik departed the show in 2012 to focus on her own televisions show, Dance! Dance!, also and expanding her career. Her character is arrested by the Affiliation on <a planet> during the search for Caoilinn, and is killed in a rescue attempt by Cormac and the Nautica's crew.
- Barret Kurn
- Played by actor Eilish Kasun, Kurn is a mercenary hired on by Cormac to act as muscle during some of the crews jobs. Kurn is often at odds with Cormac regarding decisions and is likely the least loyal member of the crew. He portrays himself as an extremely macho, and also uses the fact that most people consider him uneducated to his advantage, hinting that he is more educated than he indicates.
- Creator Natanaele Medin has commented several times that, while Kurn is violent, uncultured, and something of a brute, he is the "problem solver" on Nautica, and often the only on willing to do hat needs to be done to win. "The captain, he can do that sometimes, but you can always count on Kurn to be the bastard of the group." This often brings him into conflict with Cormac, who doesn't always believe the most expedient solution to a problem is the right one. Kurn often serves as the shows comic relief, often along with pilot Tolman Madras.
- At the end of season 7 Barret Kurn departed the crew of Nautica after an altercation with Vasquez subsequent to his near betrayal of the crew to the Affiliation. He returns in season 10 with his own ship and acts as a minor rival and antagonist for the crew of the Nautica.
- Kira Kuolor
- Played by actress Priscila Kinlaw is the ships mechanic and general engineer. She has almost constantly chipper and in high spirits. She is from Tefrosie, a backwater outlying planet, and thus is extremely naive regarding the galaxy at large. In SE6EP2, (Home Wasn't Where My Heart Was), it is revealed that she left home as a result of being tired of rural life on Tefrosie and out of a desire to explore the galaxy.
- Creator Natanaele Medin has stated that "If anyone forms the heart and soul of the Nustica, its Kira. She is easily the most genuine and good matured person on Nautica, and the only one who seems unabashed to share her emotions outwardly."
- Krina Bitee
- Played by actress Madisyn Winter, Krina, known by other aliases throughout the show, is a crafty con artists who uses her innocent looks and seemingly passive personality to lull victims into a false sense of security, persuading them to trust her before robbing them. She is a reoccurring antagonist, and sometimes nominal all, for the crew of the Nautica.
Appearance
| Character | Actor | Seasons | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | ||||
| Cormac Vasquez | Lúcás Marino | Main | ||||||||||||||
| Moyra Wintac | Rachelle McElveen | Main | ||||||||||||||
| Canter Daruss | Artur Barona | Main | ||||||||||||||
| Tolman Madas | Lois Albarrán | Main | ||||||||||||||
| Caoilinn Bree | Kiera Clarke | Main | Recurring | Main | ||||||||||||
| Justýna Kacer | Janele Toran | Main | ||||||||||||||
| Barret Kurn | Eilish Kasun | Main | Recurring | |||||||||||||
| Kira Kuolor | Priscila Kinlaw | Main | ||||||||||||||
| Tobian Prost | Rodney Calo | Recurring | ||||||||||||||
Reoccurring characters
- Nicolau Fidel as Doctor Desmond Vanis (Season 6-7)
- Dorian Bissett as Doctor Louell Cortcol (Season 1, 5-6)
- Adelaide Ivers as Major Liliana Ashe (Season 8)
Guest stars
- Irena Turley as Oona (Season 10)