Like Most Sequels, 'Exxon Valdez 2' a Relative Disappointment

Disaster fans have been waiting 18 years since the Exxon Valdez spill for a nautical mishap that could harm the environment with like or perhaps even greater severity...and when the MS Nordkapp cruise ship ran aground in Antarctica on Tuesday [Ed. note: Did you notice that that link is from the future? Yeah, I can see into the future], some no doubt entertained the thought that their dream had become a reality. But alas, it was not to be.

While scientists at Spain's Antarctic base have detected the presence of trace amounts of hydrocarbons on the coastline where the accident occurred--thus confirming that fuel did spill from the ship and that the ecological system has been damaged--non-scientist spokespeople for the Hurtigruten Group, the company who owns the MS Nordkapp, are essentially saying they haven't seen any spilled oil and therefore there isn't any. Both solid arguments, but no matter who turns out to be right, it's clear by this point that the Nordkapp accident pales in every element--scope, drama, and oil-covered seals--to that of the Exxon Valdez.

Much like the world learned from Blues Brothers 2000 in 1998 (?), this incident further proves that the more time that passes in anticipation of a sequel, the harder it is for that sequel to reproduce the magic of its predecessor.