One of the most attractive things about the Flipper franchise was the Florida Keys location. Porter and his boys live, work and play in a tropical paradise with warm water and a host of attractions and water activities literally at their door step. But this episode reminds us that with the beauty comes the ever present peril of tropical storms - in this case a tsunami or tidal wave as they were referred to back in the 60's.
The boys observe fish, birds and wildlife running in a series of archive clips that illustrate what a great wildlife preserve the fictitious Coral Key Park is. The boys assume Flipper and the animals are right and Porter's assurances are insufficient and say enough to trigger a wave of boat and other waterborne equipment withdrawals or ties downs such is the close-knit nature of the community and the esteem with which Porter Ricks' opinion (whether known or inferred) is held. When blue skies continue, Porter is staring down the barrel of financial compensation claims from business owners who scrambled what they thought was needlessly.
The toppling of propped up lumber and a tremor in the ground was enough to have Porter scanning the horizon in the float plane and sure enough, Flipper and the boys were right. There's enough time to batten down the hatches and get to higher ground (the Post Office - the location of safety in the first Flipper movie that begins with a bad hurricane). In the end the neighbors listened to the initial warning and were protected thanks to Flipper.
Brief trivia - Luke Halpin had enlisted in the National Guard when he turned 19 just before the start of Season 3 and when the season began, you could tell the effects of this stint: his hair was short, he was not very tan and he'd lost weight. In this episode he's sporting sunburn likely as this was the first episode into the season involving shirtless scenes.
The boys observe fish, birds and wildlife running in a series of archive clips that illustrate what a great wildlife preserve the fictitious Coral Key Park is. The boys assume Flipper and the animals are right and Porter's assurances are insufficient and say enough to trigger a wave of boat and other waterborne equipment withdrawals or ties downs such is the close-knit nature of the community and the esteem with which Porter Ricks' opinion (whether known or inferred) is held. When blue skies continue, Porter is staring down the barrel of financial compensation claims from business owners who scrambled what they thought was needlessly.
The toppling of propped up lumber and a tremor in the ground was enough to have Porter scanning the horizon in the float plane and sure enough, Flipper and the boys were right. There's enough time to batten down the hatches and get to higher ground (the Post Office - the location of safety in the first Flipper movie that begins with a bad hurricane). In the end the neighbors listened to the initial warning and were protected thanks to Flipper.
Brief trivia - Luke Halpin had enlisted in the National Guard when he turned 19 just before the start of Season 3 and when the season began, you could tell the effects of this stint: his hair was short, he was not very tan and he'd lost weight. In this episode he's sporting sunburn likely as this was the first episode into the season involving shirtless scenes.
