Cruise Ship Killers

My wife and I love this show because it's so terrible.

As others have said, it's questionable whether many of the stories are actually true, though a couple of them did turn up internet hits. But that's the least bad thing about it.

From the actors pretending to be real friends or relatives (with no indication that they're being portrayed by actors other than the terrible acting), to the fact that *everything* except the talking heads is shown in slow motion, to the experts talking in such generic terms that it's clear they're not even talking about the case of the week, to the voiceover scripts that sounds like they've been written by someone who's never spoken English before**... it's all just weird. (And that's disregarding the fact that half the cases don't even seem to involve a killer at all... they're just disappearances that may or may not have involved foul play.)

We can't take our eyes off it!

** Most recent example: today a passenger was found "drowned to death". In an earlier episode, there was a piece of crucial evidence that "cracked the case wide open". Which was it, did it crack the case or blow it wide open?!

If you are wondering, the names, dates and details of all these crimes have been altered completely in this show. I think this would have received a higher rating had this been made clear from the beginning. For instance, Episode 1 from Season 1. The first and last name of the couple were completely different. Their occupations were different. Their names were. Scott and Karen Rosten. He was a chiropractor. In reality, the federal judge (federal court, high seas murder) used special circumstances to send him to prison for life. He claims innocence to this day. The country he claimed was involved was Israel, not Ukraine. No ties to Israel were ever proved. There is a good 48 Hours that was made in 2006 from CBS if you can find it. Try to stream from their website for free or on YouTube TV. I noticed the rating for this show was higher in Canada and UK, that may be because those countries are not research freaks like we are in the US. There is an article out there from emmacruises dot come that will list what the real cases are compared to these episodes. I have this 5 stars because it at least puts 26 cruise ship crimes in one show which is interesting. Happy Sleuthing!

I agree with other reviewers that it's hard to find the true story of the crimes shown in this show. But I've found a few.

The episode listed as ASHLEY is really about Karen Waltz Roston, who was killed on the ship "Stardancer" in 1988 by her new husband, Scott Ralston, while they were on their honeymoon.

GEORGE was about George Smith IV, who disappeared from the cruise ship, "Brilliance of the Seas," in 2005 while on his honeymoon with his new wife, Jennifer, in mysterious circumstances. Blood was found on a canopy below their cabin, & Jennifer was found in a far away hallway, where she had apparently been sleeping all night. Case was never solved. Amazed they used his real 1st name.

AMY was about Amy Lynn Bradley who went on cruise with her parents & brother on the "Rhapsody of the Seas" in 1998 & vanished without a trace. Again correct name was used.

MERRIAN was about Merrian Carver, who disappeared off a Celebrity cruise ship in 2004.

MURIEL is about Muriel Collins Barnett. killed by her assistant with a wine bottle on the "Royal Viking Star" in 1989. Same name again.

SADIE is about Lynne Kauffman murdered on the SS Utrecht in 1959 allegedly by her lover, Willem van Rie. He confessed then retracted. Found not guilty at trial.

BETSY is about Jessie Harper Mozee, who was robbed, killed & dumped overboard on the "SS C & B" in 1940. Never solved but her maid was suspected of at least the robbery.

SHELLY is about Yang Wenjuan, a PhD teacher, who was murdered on the "MV Macau Success" by her husband, Wang Weilie, when he threw her overboard & was witnessed by a passenger on the deck below. Although contemplating divorce, they stayed together for the sake of their 9-yr-old child. Her body was found & revealed she had been battered.

Those are the only ones I can find. If anyone has more, please post on this board.

Very vague glossing over of real murders at sea with fake names, last names aren't even mentioned and neither are the ships. One episode "Shelley" tells the story of a woman named Shelley that was supposedly murdered by her ex-husband Will off the coast of Vancouver but with some detective work, it turns out the real case is about a Chinese woman named Yang Wenjuan and the location was off the Coast of Hong Kong on a gambling boat, not even a cruise ship.

Why the producers couldn't tell the true stories of these crimes is the real mystery.

This is not a documentary in a true sense, it's more like a story told like a rumor spreads after its been passed along by 20 people where all the real info got butchered.

This is a low-budge crime show where they find an old story and revive it using bad actors, slow motion and replaying scenes almost to the point you see it in your sleep. With a few exceptions, names, places and even the time period are changed to the point it's almost completely unrelated to the actual account. Maybe to avoid paying royalty or legal fees? Who really knows. Even much of the so-called friends and family interviewed are just actors (I've recognized some of these faces from other shows). As mentioned, the few exceptions (and the best episodes) are the ones that document the real people involved with their true names, times, locations, etc. (such as the Amy Lynn Bradley episode). A lot of these stories can be found on sites such as the Cruise Ship Deaths website.