Plot
Season 1 opens with the adult Dr. Keith "Bud" Ricks (Brian Wimmer) from the original 1964 Flipper series leading dolphin research at the Bal Harbour Research Institute in the Florida Keys. Dr. Pam Blondell (Colleen Flynn) a naval officer, relocated to the Florida Keys to join Dr. Ricks at the institute to perform dolphin research. Dr. Blondell is accompanied by her son Mike (Payton Haas), a rebellious teen. Mike is unhappy about the move until he meets Maya Graham (Jessica Alba), a free-spirited 14-year-old girl who has a special connection with Flipper and the ocean. On a few occasions, Mike and Maya would get into some trouble forcing a rescue from Flipper, Keith, and Pam.
At the beginning of season 2, Dr. Ricks, Dr. Blondell, and her son Mike are written out of the series by leaving Bal Harbour. Dr. Jennifer Daulton takes over as the institute's director. Maya becomes an intern at the institute, while two new interns, Dean Gregson (Scott Michaelson) and Holly Myers (Anja Coleby), are introduced. Next door to the institute, a new substation for Air Sea Rescue opens, introducing Deputies Tom Hampton (Whip Hubley) and Quinn Garnett (Wren T. Brown). The deputies are responsible for rescuing people in trouble at sea, and perform numerous rescues through the season and even catch unwanted activity causing harm to the public and environment. Hampton and Dr. Daulton have an on-and-off romance during the season. Edward "Cap" Daulton (Gus Mercurio), Dr. Daulton's estranged father, also moves to Bal Harbour to try to re-establish a relationship with his daughter. Cap is a charter-boat captain and owns his own boat, the Maria D, named after his late wife.
In season 3, Dr. Daulton and Maya are written out of the series by leaving Bal Harbour to perform research in the Red Sea and San Diego. Lt. Alex Parker (Tiffany Lamb), a lieutenant commander in the US Navy, becomes the institute's director, and marries Tom Hampton. Hampton and Parker, along with her two kids, Chris (Craig Marriott) and Jackie (Laura Donaldson), set up housekeeping, and the series begins to focus more on their family. Deputy Mark Delaney (Darrin Klimek) also replaces Garnett as Hampton's partner at the substation. At the marine institute, Holly remains an intern, but Dean leaves. Cap still appears throughout seasons three and four, but is noticeably absent from many episodes. Chris was unhappy about the move to the Florida Keys at first but slowly became accustomed to his new home and Jackie forms an unbreakable bond with Flipper.
In season 4, Tom's niece Courtney Gordon (Skye Patch), moves in with the Hampton/Parker family after being unhappy living with her mother in Washington, DC. Season 4 is essentially a continuation of season 3 with no major changes. Most episodes are self-contained, with very little in the way of serialized storylines between episodes.
The series ends on an initially tragic note as Flipper accidentally becomes beached on a sand dune and is unable to free himself. Upon learning what has happened, the entire cast rushes to the scene, but arrives too late; Flipper's heart stops as they are trying to save him. The final scene of the series shows Jackie mourning Flipper's loss, then he is shown to be alive and the show ends with them playing in the water and she says, "Everything's gonna be just fine".
