JAG

infobox television
show_name = JAG


caption =
format = Adventure, Legal drama
runtime = 60 mins.
creator = Donald P. Bellisario
starring = David James Elliott
Catherine Bell
Patrick Labyorteaux
John M. Jackson
Scott Lawrence
Karri Turner
country = USA
company = Belisarius Productions
Paramount Television
NBC Productions
network = NBC (1995-1996)
CBS (1997-2005)
first_aired = September 23, 1995
last_aired = April 29, 2005
num_seasons = 10
num_episodes = 227
list_episodes = List of JAG episodes
related = NCIS
imdb_id = 0112022
tv_com_id = 242

"JAG" (the American Military acronym for Judge Advocate General) is an American adventure/legal drama television show that was produced by Belisarius Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television and, for the first season only, NBC Productions. Originally conceived as "Top Gun" meets "A Few Good Men", "JAG" was first aired on NBC on September 23, 1995, but was later cancelled on May 22, 1996 after finishing 77th in the ratings. With a network change, rival network CBS picked up the series for a midseason replacement, beginning on January 3, 1997. CBS's decision to give JAG another chance would prove very profitable, as they aired it for nine additional seasons until April 29, 2005, for a total of ten seasons. In total, 227 episodes were produced and the show was also seen in over 100 countries. Due to the show's popularity, the show entered syndication early in 1999 and it is still regularly repeated around the world, mostly on the USA Network.

The series depicts JAG officers, though heavily romanticized, applying the stipulations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and international law as well as providing conventional television melodrama. In its initial phase, the show relied much on Hollywood military-prop suppliers and existing stock footage from other well-known naval and military films, including "Top Gun", "The Hunt for Red October" and "Clear and Present Danger". The Department of Defense later recognized the series as positive for its public image and therefore granted official support, providing the producers access to military installations and equipment. It is so far the only television show to have been officially endorsed by both the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. From the beginning, the show regularly incorporated elements of real-life military actions into its storylines, e.g. the aftermath of the Bosnian War, the attack on the USS "Cole", the events of the September 11, 2001 attacks and the subsequent War on Terrorism. In the wake of the above attacks the show experienced a boost in ratings and became a fixture on Nielsen's top 10.

Cast

The final ensemble cast centers on Captain Harmon "Harm" Rabb, Jr., USN (David James Elliott), and Lieutenant Colonel Sarah "Mac" MacKenzie, USMC (Catherine Bell). Bell had guest-starred on the final episode of season one, entitled "Skeleton Crew" as a Naval Officer that Rabb was supposed to have met for dinner; she was murdered and Rabb was arrested for her murder. This plotline was left open until a later season, when Bell was a regular character, and the loose ends of a doppleganger were revealed. Rabb was promoted to Captain in the second-to-last episode of the series. Harm and Mac's obvious love for each other, which must not be allowed to interfere with their professional relationship, is a long-running thematic element.

Elliott played Harmon Rabb from the start of the series in 1995. Rabb's original partner in the pilot was Navy Lieutenant Caitlin Pike, played by Andrea Parker. She in turn left the series to star in "The Pretender" (she later returned as a guest star in three episodes), and was replaced by Tracey Needham as Lieutenant JG Meg Austin. Needham left the series in 1996 and was replaced by Catherine Bell from season 2 on (though Needham did return as a guest star in a season 3 episode).

Other members of the cast included Lieutenant Commander Bud Roberts, (played by Patrick Labyorteaux), first a PAO on the aircraft carrier USS Seahawk, then later a junior Judge Advocate at JAG. While on an assignment to the Seahawk, he met his future wife, Lieutenant Harriett Sims, played by Karri Turner, who would eventually come to be the administrative aide (from the Inspector General's Office (IG)), who held the office together. Bud's clumsiness, both physical and verbal, and geeky interests (he's a Trekkie, fascinated by the paranormal, and a computer nerd), together with his wife's maternal nature, were a frequent source of comic relief. His clumsiness was played down as the series went on. Bud lost the lower half of his right leg in Afghanistan in the last episode of season 7, while attempting the heroic rescue of an Afghan boy playing in a mine field. For his actions, he received the Purple Heart and later was able to return to partial active duty with a prosthetic leg.

The actress Nanci Chambers, wife of David James Elliott, played Lieutenant Loren Singer. She portrayed this character as a loathsome villainess to great acclaim. Singer was consumed by her continual want to further her career at the expense of those around her. She often clashed with the other characters. Especially praised was an episode in which Singer hurt fan-loved Harriet by using the death of her baby Sarah to discredit her testimony in court. In a later episode, however, Harriet got a measure of revenge by punching out Singer (7.23 "In Country"). Singer was murdered, with suspicion falling on Harm, who was eventually cleared (the two part story detailing the investigation into Singer's murder was used as the pilot for the spin off "NCIS").

Ships

Almost all episodes of the series feature scenes filmed aboard real United States Navy ships. The ship most widely used was the USS "Forrestal" (CV 59), commissioned by the U.S. Navy as a training carrier at the time. Most of the "Nimitz" class carriers also appear in one or several episodes. The USS "Saratoga" (CV 60), USS "Enterprise" (CVN 65) and USS "John F. Kennedy" (CV 67) were also used in the series.

USS "Enterprise" was used as the fictional USS "Seahawk" in many episodes. USS "Forrestal" was used in many episodes, most prominently one in which she portrayed the fictional USS "Reprisal". In this episode, all crew members wore caps with the "CV 35" pennant number. This number was totally out of sequence with the pennant numbers of active USN carriers at the time the series was filmed, but was intentional. In fact CV 35 would have been the real pennant number of an "Essex" class carrier actually called "Reprisal", which was cancelled during construction in 1945 when WW2 ended and broken up in 1949 after consideration had been given to completing her to a revised design roughly similar to that of USS "Oriskany" (CVA 34).

Only three carriers featured in the series were called by their real name : USS "Hornet" (CV12), USS "Coral Sea" (CV 43) and USS "Theodore Roosevelt" (CVN 71).

Real shots of the "Roosevelt" in harbor are used in one episode of Season One.

Season Three opener "Ghost ship" was filmed entirely aboard the "Hornet" while she was laid up at Alameda Naval Air Station before being preserved as a museum ship. Part of the storyline in "Ghost Ship" deals with the final fate of "Hornet". It implies (though not explicitely stating it) that she was eventually scrapped due to severe fire damage sustained during the course of the episode, contrary to her real-life fate as a National Landmark. The sub-plot in "Ghost Ship" indicating that the ship's double hull had to be cut open from the inside to repair torpedo damage during WW2 is apocryphal (though it does serve the main plot well).

"Hornet" never suffered any torpedo damage during her active service with the USN. The only carriers that did were USS "Lexington" (CV 2), USS "Yorktown" (CV 5), USS "Wasp" (CV 7) and USS "Saratoga" (CV 3). "Lexington", "Wasp" and "Yorktown" were sunk by the torpedo hits (plus bomb hits in the two first cases). "Saratoga" was the only one to survive torpedo hits, but her hull structure was totally different from the "Essex" clas carriers, including bulges and not a double hull. So the kind of procedure described in the episode never actually happened, though it would have been technicallly feasible on an "Essex" class carrier.

The "Coral Sea" is also featured on Season Three. But she had already been scrapped by the time the episode supposedly taking place aboard her was filmed. So part of the episode uses archive footage of the "Coral Sea" dating back from the early 90's just before her decommissionning, and other parts use shots of the "Forrestal".

The series also includes appearances by "Tarawa" class amphibious ships,"Ticonderoga" class cruisers, "Arleigh Burke" class destroyers and "Oliver Hazard Perry" class frigates. In one of the episodes, the Spanish frigate "Santa Maria" is used to depict a fictional USN "Perry" class ship (denoted by her NATO pennant number "F 81" painted under the bridge, instead of the US practice of having a "number only" ID painted on the bow).

For naval enthusiasts, it's funny to trace the inconstencies between the real ships and the ones supposed to be part of the series. Some include Tomcats landing on a "Tarawa" class ship, Mk 26 *and* Mk 13 missile launchers on the fictional "Daniel Boone" (actually DDG 51 "Arleigh Burke", which was never equipped with either of those systems, but with the Mk 41 VLS instead), or the firing of a bow-mounted 127mm gun from a "Perry" class frigate. Blame that on artistic license (or the shots made available by the USN....).

Series end

In 2005, David James Elliott announced he would leave the show to pursue other projects after not being offered a renewal from the producers. The show introduced new younger characters (including former "As the World Turns" star Chris Beetem). Producers also thought about relocating the setting of the show to the Naval Base in San Diego, and even set a season ten episode there. Nevertheless, CBS announced the cancellation of the show after ten seasons on April 4, 2005. The final episode, "Fair Winds and Following Seas", which aired April 29, 2005, saw Harm and Mac assigned different stations: Harm in London, Mac in San Diego, California. They finally confront their feelings and decide to get married. The episode ends with them tossing a JAG challenge coin to decide who will give up their career to be with the other. However (in keeping with "JAG" tradition), we never see the outcome, as the screen fades to black the face of the coin is showing, which says: "Judge Advocate General JAG 1995–2005".

"NCIS" spin-off

In 2003, the series spawned the spin-off "NCIS" in a two-part episode in which Rabb is accused of the murder of Lt. Singer. The two episodes, titled "Ice Queen" and "Meltdown," focused on the NCIS team, with the JAG regulars as supporting characters. Whereas the "JAG" episodes were primarily oriented on courtroom drama, "NCIS" is more focused on the field criminal investigations. "NCIS" also follows a different storytelling format than "JAG", emphasizing character humor more than its parent program.

To date, two characters from "JAG" have appeared on "NCIS": Patrick Labyorteaux reprised his role of Bud Roberts in the episode "Hung Out to Dry", while recurring guest star Alicia Coppola appeared in her "JAG" role of Lt. Cmdr. Faith Coleman in several episodes.

The two-part "JAG" episode in which the "NCIS" cast were introduced was later rebroadcast as a regular episode of "NCIS", although it was not included in the subsequent Season 1 DVD box set release.

Episodes

For a full list of "JAG" episodes, see list of JAG episodes.

DVD and VHS releases

"JAG" Seasons 1-6 have been released on DVD in the U.S. Season five is the first season available on DVD in 16:9 format.cite web | url = http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/JAG-Season-5/8274 | title = JAG - Harm & Mac Are Coming Back! | accessdate = 2007-10-16 | last = | first = | date = | publisher = TV Shows on DVD]

On September 1, 1998, the pilot episode of "JAG" was released on VHS in the U.S. by Paramount Home Entertainment. [cite web | url = http://www.amazon.com/JAG-Premiere-Episode-Donald-Bellisario/dp/630398083X | title = Jag - Premiere Episode | accessdate = 2006-12-16 | last = | first = | date = | publisher = Amazon.com]

ee also

* Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy
* Paul Levine

Notes & references

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External links

* [http://www.cbs.com/primetime/jag/ Official JAG web site] at [http://www.cbs.com/ CBS.com]
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