The Jacques Cousteau Odyssey (Box Set) > Reviews > An Odyssey beneath the waves

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Satisfactory

Advantages:	fascinating
Disadvantages:	some methods are out dated now

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

As anyone who has any interest in the seas should know Jacques Cousteau is the forefather of modern explorations, as a French Naval Officer he was part of the team which invented the aqualung system which is the basis for that which scuba divers today still use. He was also passionate about the marine life which his invention allowed him to see and the unexplored realms which had become accessable to us. But of course one reason that we know his name so well is his TV shows in which he utilised the technology avalible to him to explore the ocean depths and show the landlocked public the wonders hidden there.

This DVD collection comprises the 12 episodes of his Odyssey series, the filming of which began in 1977 and ended in 1981. It is an odyssey in the true sense of the word since it encompasses the ancient civilizations and brings to our attention the need to protect the lost treasures beneath the surface.
The episodes are

The Nile Parts 1 and 2, in this Cousteau shows the Nile as the link to both Egypts past and as the route to the future.

Calypso's Search for Atlantis also in two parts. This is another exploration of the myths and legends related to the lost Atlantis and if there is possibly any truth in it.

Time Bomb and 50 Fathoms. This is a more modern feeling topic since it is the story of the salvage operation to remove barrels of poisonous wastes from a ship wreck.

Mediterranean Cradle or Coffin. Since early time the Med has been called the Cradle of Life but as it becomes increasingly polluted what can be done?

Calypso's search for The Britannic. For those that dont know The Britannic was a sister to Titanic, she was a Hospital Ship during WW1. There are many rumours surrounding her sinking, Cousteau attempts to answer some of the questions.

Diving for Roman Plunder. This is a more typical archaelogical dive project, with the Calypso team retrieving artifacts from a Roman ship.

Blind Prophets of Easter Island. The giant heads on Easter Island have been a mystery since they were found, as have many people Cousteau has been fascinated by them and explores their history.

Clipperton The Island Time Forgot. Clipperton Island which is now deserted has a history of human survial and depravity. This is another of Cousteaus exploring human history tales.

Lost Relics of the Sea. Cousteau is back in the Med, and exploring the Carribean and diving for treasures lost in sea battles and after nature took control.

Warm Blooded Sea: Mammals of the Deep. A natural history style program which features the evolution of seals, dolphins and whales.

Overall while I do generally enjoy this series of programmes I have found that watching several at once is somewhat dull, so not a series to sit down and watch all at once (although to do so you would need over 10 hours). My personal favourites are the Search for Britannic and Mammals of the Deep. Since the world has a fascination with the unsinkable Titanic her sister seems to have been very much forgotten yet she too was thought to be unsinkable. And of course who isnt fascinated by whales, dolphins and seals since they are our closest aqautic relatives.

It should be remembered that this is a set of programmes made over 30 years ago so the picture and sound quality is poor compared to modern tv, and some of the things which Cousteau and his team do would be frowned upon by modern nautical archaeologists. But his style of sharing scientific information is one which has since been much copied. In fact Cousteau at the time seems much younger in his actions than he physically looks (at the time he was in this 60's) joining him on some of the shows are his sons. It is also worth remembering that in 1977 as he started work on these shows he was jointly awarded the UN International Environment Prize (with Peter Scott).

The box set is Exempt from classification, and is a region free DVD, it is found on amazon costing £29.99. There are no special features on this set, but with the length of the collection and the breadth of topics covered there is no need for extra features. The money in my opinion was well worth it for an interesting and informative set of documentaries which have for the most part aged well.