'Deadliest Catch' Captains Test Their Trust With New, Failed Alliances

The harsh competition on the Bering Sea only became more cutthroat during Tuesday's episode of Deadliest Catch.

Bad weather and bad luck both kept the crab pots coming up dry, causing a few of the captains to make and break their alliances in order to meet their season quota.

When Cornelia Marie captains Josh Harris and Casey McManus took a risk and tried to follow the crab migration in a new direction to capitalize on their early success, their new spot turns out to be worse than the other one, and they'd lost their trail.

"This is where you separate lucky from good," McManus commented.

It's then they decide to make a bold choice and call on captain Sean Dwyer of the Brenna A, who is havng similar problems even in his sweet spot from last season. The captains agree to form an alliance, with both vessels agreeing to inform the other if they find a crab pile.

But Dwyer doesn't trust his new partners will keep the info just between the three of them, and noted that he might be less forthcoming as a result.

Meanwhile, Saga captain Jake Anderson is still keeping in his secret alliance with captain Keith Colburn of the Wizard. The mentor mentee relationship started off well, but is starting to wear thin on Anderson, who is starting to resent Colburn simply sharing fishing tips as opposed to crab location information. Colburn, meanwhile, is having a great time sharing his knowledge with the young captain.

Anderson's luck continues to go south when Colburn's suggested fishing ground prove to have very few crab, compounded with a sleepless night dealing with a tangled buoy line.

The two finally get into it, and Colburn dissolves their partnership, which Anderson notes is fine by him.

The alliance between the Cornelia Marie and Brenna A is also not doing well, when Dwyer doesn't answer the call from his fellow captains asking for more guidance about crab locations. Having taken quota from captain Wild Bill earlier this season, Dwyer revealed he was reluctant to upset another fleet member, and while where is is has an abundance of crab, he's not willing to share it with Harris and McManus.

When the captains do reach Dwyer on the radio, it was clear he was hiding information, and the three end their short-lived partnership.

Wild Bill, meanwhile, is on a high after getting off to a struggling start, having brought back the electronic crab callers he tried last season that turned out not to work.

But they're working now, and the pots containing the callers end up bringing in 65 crabs on the first pull.

So will the best fisherman pull through this season? Or the best alliance. Only time will tell.

Deadliest Catch airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Discovery. And don't forget to watch Deadliest Catch: The Bait at 8 p.m. ET prior to the show.

Photo credit: Discovery