COMMANDER FORD

SEAQUEST DSV (PLAYMATES)

“Name: Jonathan Devin Ford

Rank: Commander

Assignment: Executive Officer, seaQuest DSV 4600

UEO Military ID#: CT366-9917-JG2

Security Access: AIA

Date of Birth: June 10, 1989

Character Profile: Driven and highly disciplined. Cool under pressure. Fiercely loyal. A serious by-the-book sailor. Above average intelligence reinforced by tireless work. Excellent command instincts.

Personal History: Was a positive role model in tough East Chicago neighborhood. Enrolled in academy at age 18. Graduated top of cadet class. Received record scores in diverse subjects. Earned Distinguished Service Citation for relieving Capt. Marilyn Stark of command during Livingston Trench Incident, 2017. Youngest ship’s Executive Officer in the fleet, serving as second in command of seaQuest.

Mission Specialty: Responsible for seaQuest’s 88 member Navy crew operations and all undersea Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA) Missions.”

At the end of its first season SeaQuest DSV discarded about half of its main cast, which was certainly a disappointing direction for a lot of their stories.  But, perhaps more disappointing was the direction of one of the few characters to remain with the show for its whole run, Don Franklin’s Commander Jonathan Ford.  As the SeaQuest’s Executive Officer, he gets a lot of focus during the first year, as he is naturally grown into the kind of character that could replace Bridger as the commanding officer.  Then, in the second season, they just sort of introduce another guy with the same general role, without getting rid of Ford, meaning that Ford is increasingly side-lined, which was as much a bummer as it was to watch the others depart.  But, there’s no denying that he gets a lot of cool stuff to do in the first season, and he was also lucky enough to get action figure coverage too!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Commander Ford was released in the only series of Playmates’ SeaQuest DSV tie-in line from during the show’s first season.  He’s the last of the crew members included in the line-up, but certainly a very natural one, given his heavy focus, especially in the show’s earlier episodes.  As with Hitchcock, it’s a shame he doesn’t have a Krieg to trade jabs with, but at least he got made at all.  The figure stands 4 1/2 inches tall and he has 14 points of articulation.  His construction is very much the same as we’ve seen with all the others up to this point, and it continues to be a solid set-up.  Ford’s uniform is a bit more neat and tidy than the others, which suits his more straight and narrow personality on the show, with Playmates again using variations on details for the standard uniform to inject a little more character into the figures.  The head sculpt is decent; I don’t know that it’s quite as strong a likeness as some of the others in the line, but it’s not to say it looks *unlike* Franklin.  I’d still put it above most of the Trek likenesses.  Ford’s color work is much like the rest of the standard uniformed officers, with mostly basic work, but some quite nice smaller detail work on the insignias and markings.  Ford is packed with a Stun Gun, SeaPoc, Personal Audio Link, Away Team Launcher, display stand, and a small rubber manta ray.  His accessories are a lot less unique than the last few, but that isn’t all that out of place for Ford, and they did at least make sure he had a decent volume of parts.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got Ford at the same time as the Hitchcock figure I reviewed two weeks ago.  My parents had gotten me O’Neill and told me there were others, so I went out myself and decided to finish out my crew…to the extent that the line allowed me to, anyway.  There’s not a ton to say about Ford, I suppose, since he leans pretty heavily on what the rest of the line was already doing, but there’s no denying that he’s just as nice a figure as the rest of them, and it’s cool that he got to be an action figure.  It’s okay, Ford, in my mind Brody got left on the island and you’re still the cool one.