Sea Stories

"How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean."

— Arthur C. Clarke

A sea story is a work in which the ocean is the primary setting. Most sea stories focus on the crew of specific ship or set of ships, though some stories also depict stationary sea platforms or deserted islands. Fantasy stories may have underwater realms, such as an Underwater City or an Underwater Base.

Setting a story at sea adds an element of the exotic and adventurous to a story, as the crew sails to new port towns. The enclosed setting of life aboard a ship also allows an author to portray a social world in miniature, with characters cut off from the outside world and forced into conflict by the cramped and stressful conditions. Another type of conflict is the crew versus harsh, unforgiving nature, when they battle fierce storms or sea creatures.

They will invariably include one or more Tropes at Sea. Subgenres include Wooden Ships and Iron Men, Pirate Stories, Ocean Punk and Sub Story, however many sea stories do not qualify as any of these subgenres. For even more examples see The Other Wiki here and here.

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Works:

Also see:

• Mermaid Media
• Pirate Stories

Anime & Manga

• The Adventures of Christopher Columbus
• Blue Butterfly Fish
• Blue Submarine No. 6
• Children of the Sea
• Doraemon: Nobita and the Castle of the Undersea Devil
• Doraemon: Nobita's Great Adventure in the South Seas
• Doraemon: Nobita's Great Battle of the Mermaid King
• Doraemon: Nobita's Treasure Island
• Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet
• The Little Mermaid
• Marine Boy
• Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water
• One Piece
• Pokémon 2000
• Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea
• Porco Rosso (seaplanes)
• Sea Cat (1988)
• The Sea Prince and the Fire Child
• Sinner in the Seabed
• Submarine 707 R
• Tico of the Seven Seas
• Triton Of The Sea
• Umi Monogatari (even translates as Sea Story)
• Whispers in the Wind is a webcomic manga set in an area dominated by the sea and its inhabitants

Asian Animation

• Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf: Adventures in the Sea

Art

• The Birth of Venus, by Sandro Botticelli
• The Birth of Venus, by William-Adolphe Bouguereau
• The Birth of Venus, by Alexandre Cabanel
• Carta Marina
• Circe Invidiosa, by John William Waterhouse
• The Fighting Temeraire
• The Raft of the Medusa

Comic Books

• Aquaman
• Some Asterix stories:
  • The Great Crossing
  • All At Sea
• Barbe-Rouge
• Barracuda
• Corto Maltese
• Dark Ark
• El Cazador
• Sub-Mariner
• Some Tintin stories:
  • The Crab with the Golden Claws (first half, at least)
  • The Shooting Star
  • Red Rackham's Treasure
  • The Red Sea Sharks
• Typhon

Comic Strip

• Boner's Ark

Fan Works

• One Piece: Parallel Works
• Crew of the Axe

Films — Animation

• Atlantis: The Lost Empire
  • Atlantis: Milo's Return
• Barbie Fairytopia: Mermaidia
• Barbie in a Mermaid Tale
  • Barbie in a Mermaid Tale 2
• Barbie: The Pearl Princess
• Finding Nemo
  • Finding Nemo
  • Finding Dory
• Help! I'm a Fish
• Justice League: Throne of Atlantis
• The Little Mermaid:
  • The Little Mermaid (1989)
  • The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea
  • The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning
• The Legend of the Titanic
• Luca
• Moana
• Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken
• Samson and Sally
• The Sea Beast
• Shark Tale
• Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas
• Song of the Sea
• SpongeBob SquarePants:
  • The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie
  • The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
  • The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run
• Sweet Sea
• Titanic: The Legend Goes On
• Undersea Super Train: Marine Express
• Yellow Submarine

Films — Live-Action

• 2-Headed Shark Attack
• 5-Headed Shark Attack
• 47 Meters Down
• 300: Rise of an Empire
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• The Abyss
• Adrift (2006)
• Adrift (2018)
• Against All Flags
• All Is Lost
• Aquaman
  • Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
• Assault on a Queen
• Atomic Shark
• The Atomic Submarine
• Avatar: The Way of Water
• Battleship
• Baywatch (2017)
• The Beach
• The Bedford Incident
• Below
• The Big Blue
• The Black Pirate
• Black Sea
• The Black Swan (1942)
• The Boat That Rocked
• Das Boot
• The Bounty
• Captain Horatio Hornblower
• Captain Phillips
• Carry On Columbus
• Carry On Cruising
• Carry On Jack
• Cast Away
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
• The Caine Mutiny
• Captain Phillips
• The Crimson Pirate
• Crimson Tide
• Cutthroat Island
• Cyclone (1978)
• Death Ship
• The Deep
• Deep Blue Sea
  • Deep Blue Sea 2
  • Deep Blue Sea 3
• Deep Rising
• DeepStar Six
• Doctor at Sea
• Doctor in Trouble
• Down Periscope
• The Enemy Below
• The Fog
• Free Willy
  • Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home
• Ghost Ship
• Goliath Awaits
• Great White
• Gray Lady Down
• Greyhound
• H.M.S. Defiant
• The Hunt for Red October
• Hunter Killer
• Ice Station Zebra
• In the Heart of the Sea
• In Which We Serve
• The Island (1980)
• The Island at the Top of the World
• Horatio Hornblower
• James Bond:
  • Thunderball
  • The Spy Who Loved Me
  • For Your Eyes Only
• Jason and the Argonauts
• Jaws (the last third of it, anyway)
• Juggernaut (1974)
• K-19: The Widowmaker
• Kon-Tiki
• Kon-Tiki (2012)
• The Last Voyage
• The Last Voyage of the Demeter
• The Legend of Johnny Lingo
• Leviathan
• Lifeboat
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
• The Light at the Edge of the World
• The Lighthouse
• The Little Mermaid (2023)
• Long John Silver
• The Long Ships
• The Long Voyage Home
• The Lost Continent
• The Magic Christian
• Master and Commander
• Mayflower: The Pilgrims' Adventure
• The Meg
  • Meg 2: The Trench
• The Mercy
• The Mermaid
• Morituri
• Morning Departure
• Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
• Mutiny on the Bounty (1962)
• The Naval Commandos
• The Navigator
• A Night to Remember
• North Sea Hijack
• Ondine
• Open Water
• Open Water 3
• Operation Petticoat
• Pacific Rim
• The Perfect Storm
• The Pirate 1975
• Pirates
• Pirates of the Caribbean
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
• Plymouth Adventure
• Popeye
• Poseidon
• The Poseidon Adventure
• The Prince of the Pacific
• Raise the Titanic!
• Reap the Wild Wind
• The Reef
• Run Silent, Run Deep
• Sailor of the King
• Saving the Titanic
• The Secret Land
• The Shallows
• Ship of Fools
• The Silent World
• Sink the Bismarck!
• Siren (2010)
• Speed 2: Cruise Control
• Sphere
• Titanic (1943)
• Titanic (1953)
• Titanic (1997)
• Titanic 666 (2022)
• Triangle
• U571
• Under Ten Flags
• USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage
• The Vikings
• Virus
• Voyage of the Unicorn
• Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
• The Wackiest Ship In The Army
• Watch Your Stern
• Waterworld
• The Wolf's Call
• Yamato

Literature

• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
• Aubrey-Maturin series
• Bad Mermaids
• Billy Budd
• Bloodbones
• The Bounty Trilogy (Mutiny on the Bounty, Men Against the Sea, Pitcairn's Island)
• The Blue Lagoon
• The Brotherhood of the Black Flag
• The Caine Mutiny
• Captains Courageous
• The Captain's Wife
• "Casabianca"
• The Cruel Sea
• Demons of the Deep
• The Discovery of Slowness
• Dark Life series
• The Deep (2019)
• Devil's Gate
• Dirk Pitt Adventures
  • Raise the Titanic!
  • Pacific Vortex!
  • Deep Six (1984)
  • Trojan Odyssey
• Dolphin Island
• Dolphin Trilogy
• Dive (2003)
• The Figurehead
• Ghost In the Noonday Sun
• Horatio Hornblower series
• The Hunt for Red October
• Jaws
• Jim Button
• Kraken: Atrapados en el abismo
• Kydd
• The Last Ship
• Life of Pi
• Lilly and Fin: A Mermaid's Tale
• Liveship Traders series
• Lost Voices
• A Memoir by Lady Trent (only the third book, Voyage of the Basilisk)
• Mermaids
• The Mermaid's Mirror
• Mermaids of Eriana Kwai
• Mermaid's Song
• Mister Roberts
• Moby-Dick
• The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket
• The Nautical Ballad of Ben Bo Bohns
• The Odyssey
• The Old Man and the Sea
• Oliver and the Seawigs
• Oona
• Our Wives Under the Sea
• Over the Wine-Dark Sea
• Passage to November
• The Pathfinder, or The Inland Sea is set on Lake Ontario
• The Phantom Ship (1837)
• "The Phantom Ship (1927)"
• The Pilot A Tale Of The Sea, the first of several sea novels by James Fenimore Cooper, creator of the genre.
• Pirate Latitudes
• The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
• Sandokan
• The Scar
• Der Schwarm
• Seas of Blood
• The Sea Wolf
• Sea of the Patchwork Cats
• Serpent
• Silent Ship, Silent Sea
• Song of the Dolphin Boy
• Sphere
• Treasure Island
• Typhoon
• The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle
• The Unknown Sea (1898)
• The Vazula Chronicles
• Vicky the Viking
• The Voyage of Máel Dúin
• The Voyage of St. Brendan
• The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
• Weird Tales from Northern Seas by Jonas Lie. A collection of tales from Scandinavian Nautical Folklore.
• White Death
• Win, Lose or Die
• "The Wreck of the Hesperus"

Live-Action Television

• Baywatch
• Black Sails
• Das Boot (2018)
• Crossbones
• Horatio Hornblower
• H₂O: Just Add Water
  • Mako Mermaids: An H₂O Adventure
• JAG
• The Last Ship
• Longitude
• The Love Boat
• Ocean Girl
• The Onedin Line
• One Piece (2023)
• Sea Patrol
• SeaQuest DSV
• Shine a Light
• Son of the Beach
• Stingray (1964)
• Survivor (especially seasons set in Deserted Islands)
• Titanic (1996)
• Titanic (2012)
• Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea

Radio

• The Navy Lark

Tabletop Games

• 50 Fathoms
• Cerulean Seas
• Mermaids After The End

Video Games

• Abandon Ship
• ABZÛ
• Aquanox
• Aquaria
• The Aquatic Adventure Of The Last Human
• Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
• Assassin's Creed Rogue
• Back Stab
• Barotrauma
• BioShock
  • BioShock
  • BioShock 2
  • BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea
• Call of the Sea
• Clam Man
• Dave the Diver
• Death in the Water
• Debris
• Depth
• Diluvion
• Diver Boy
• Doblons.io
• Dolphin Blue
• DREDGE
• Dubloon
• Ecco the Dolphin
• Endless Ocean
• Final Fantasy X
• Flotsam
• A Girl Adrift
• Golden Force
• In Other Waters
• Iron Lung
• Jupiter & Mars
• Koral
• The Legend of Dragoon (the second half of Disc 2 and the forst chapter of Disc 3 are spent travelling by sea)
• The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
• The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
• Mega Man Legends
• Monstrum
• Naval Ops
• The Ocean Hunter
• Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas
• Odell Down Under
• Pirates: Legend of the Black Buccaneer
• Pirates of the Carribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
• Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat
• Raft
• Rainbow Billy: The Curse of the Leviathan
• Red Ocean
• Return Of The Obra Dinn
• Sea Dogs
• Sea of Thieves
• Shark! Shark!
• Sid Meier's Pirates!
• Silt
• Skull & Bones
• Solitude Underwater
• Soma
• Song of the Deep
• Sonic Rush Adventure
• Splatoon 2: Salmon Run
• Stranded Deep
• Suikoden IV
• Submerged
• Subnautica
• Sunless Sea
• Swim, Ikachan!
• Uncharted Waters
  • Uncharted Waters: New Horizons
  • Daikoukai Jidai IV: Porto Estado
• Uncharted Waters Online
• Undertow
• Wadanohara
• World of Warships
• X-COM: Terror from the Deep

Visual Novels

• Heileen

Web Comics

• BlackSmith
• Tiger, Tiger

Western Animation

• Big Blue
• Bubble Guppies
• Captain Pugwash
• The Deep
• Elias: The Little Rescue Boat
• Flipper and Lopaka
• H₂O: Mermaid Adventures
• Jabberjaw
• Jim Button
• Journey To The Heart Of The World
• The Little Mermaid (1992)
• The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack
• The New Adventures of Ocean Girl
• The Octonauts
  • Octonauts: Above & Beyond
• Pirata And Capitano
• The Prince of Atlantis
• Sandokan – The Tiger of Malaysia
• Sealab 2020
• Sealab 2021
• Sea Princesses
• The Snorks
• Splash and Bubbles
• SpongeBob SquarePants
  • Kamp Koral
  • The Patrick Star Show
• TUGS
  • Salty's Lighthouse
• Zak Storm

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