This season's Deadliest Catch crews have their fishing quota slashed by almost half bringing home a cold economic reality — how will they make enough money to support their families and literally keep their businesses afloat? With the change in quota, the captains are faced with choices in strategy and tactics — who will go for the more elusive blue crab? Which boat will risk changing pots and gear in order to reap higher profits? And later in the season fishing opilio or ""snow crab,"" the fleet faces some of the harshest conditions any of them have ever experienced in more than a quarter century of fishing.

Decks are shuffled this season on Deadliest Catch as Jake Harris joins the crew of the Northwestern quickly learning Sig's golden rule: ""there's the right way, there's the wrong way and then there's the Norwegian way."" Josh Harris is now a Time Bandit deckhand. Bonds of family and friendship are also tested. Seabrooke skipper Junior has begrudgingly hired back little brother Chris ""Whipper"" Welch but will he regret giving him a second chance? Will Elliot's new engineer, longtime buddy Aaron Steiner, be better served as a friend than a crew member? And will Keith's latest family friend hire greenhorn/misad­venture confirm him forever as the Murphy Brown of Deadliest Catch.