Dad's Army (TV Series) Sons of the Sea (1969) User Reviews

Deep waters.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 1 January 2021]

The Bank acquires a canoe, which Mainwaring thinks is a great opportunity for The Home Guard to acquire for water patrols.

This is definitely one of those episodes where the plot does escape reality somewhat, one of the more over the top offerings, but the fact that it's so absurd, allows it to be very funny.

That scene where the platoon realise that they've wandered out to see, such a funny moment, as was the man at the Train Station.

The cast as always are superb, each delivery is so sincere, you can truly see them working together as a unit.

Very funny, 8/10.

Good ending to series 3 but with one big problem

[phantom_tollbooth · 7/10 · 20 June 2023]

DAD'S ARMY - SERIES 3

SONS OF THE SEA - EPISODE 14

Sons of the Sea is a nice little adventure to end series 3 of Dad's Army, expanding the scope of the storytelling without having to expand the budget to match it. This approach has generally worked well for the series, with charming wartime action/adventure stories realised smartly within the confines of sitcom conventions. Sons of the Sea takes place mostly on board a boat that gets lost adrift on the English Channel. This leaves plenty of opportunity for some good character comedy as the platoon are trapped in close quarters and dire straits. There's a particularly interesting moment in which Mainwaring, rising to his leadership responsibilities as he so often does in the worst spots, responds to one of Walker's wisecracks by praising him for retaining his native cockney wit in the face of danger. It disarms Walker, leaving him speechless for one of the first times in the series, and in turn it inspires Frazer to put aside the petty bitterness that so often drives him. It's a nicely written and performed example of the importance of morale and how an effective leader can inspire comradeship among a mismatched group.

There's only one thing that prevents Sons of the Sea standing out as one of the really great Dad's Army episodes, and that's the terrible back projection in the boat scenes. Back projection rarely looks authentic, yet it has been used charmingly elsewhere in the series. But here an attempt has been made to recreate the up and down motion of a boat on the sea and the constant movement of the camera makes you feel seasick, which is thematically apt but distractingly unpleasant during scenes where some of the best dialogue is taking place. It's enough to make me think twice about rewatching what is otherwise a very fine end to a superb third series.