Modern Marvels: Season 5
Season 5 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Modern Marvels Season 4.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 5 Progress Shield
Polio Vaccine
Aug 17, 1997 · 44 min
When “poliomyelitis” swept the nation, thousands died or were disabled before American ingenuity, trial and error, and blatant acts of desperation led to one of the greatest scient
The Motion Picture
Aug 24, 1997 · 44 min
The complete story of the feuds, the mistakes, ingenuity, and successes that made movies possible–and kept Edison at the front of the inventor pack. Includes rare early films from
Satellites.
Sep 1, 1997 · 44 min
Strong enough to survive their fiery launch into orbit, sophisticated enough to provide life-saving images or relay tens of thousands of phone calls at the same time. By monitoring
Radio: Out Of Thin Air
Sep 7, 1997 · 44 min
To some it was a miracle. Others call it the triumph of illiteracy. Somewhere between adoration and scorn. Somewhere between the carrier pigeon and television. There was and is rad
The Electric Light
Sep 21, 1997 · 44 min
Probably Thomas Edison’s best-known invention is the electric light. But the familiar light bulb is only the most obvious element of Edison’s accomplishment. He also created from s
The Phonograph
Sep 22, 1997 · 44 min
Thomas Edison registered over 1,000 patents, but his favorite invention was one of his first. Rare photographs and early recordings show how the young inventor and his team outfoxe
Great Towers in the Sky
Sep 28, 1997 · 44 min
Viewer discretion is advised for those with vertigo! Featuring rare construction footage and interviews with steely-nerved iron workers who risked death to build them, we climb to
Household Wonders.
Oct 5, 1997 · 44 min
Reviews the revolution in home improvement and glimpses the kitchen of tomorrow. Included: the development of the stove, sewing machine, refrigerated air, washing machine, vacuum c
Radar
Oct 12, 1997 · 44 min
Examines the history of radar, focusing on its role in the Allies’ victory in WWII–from the Chain Home Network, rudimentary radar towers that ringed England’s eastern coast, to the
Forensic Science: The Crime Fighter's Weapon.
Oct 19, 1997 · 44 min
From Sherlock Holmes' examination of the physical evidence at a crime scene to today's DNA technology, we review the history of crime detection through the use of forensic science.
The Stock Exchange
Oct 26, 1997 · 44 min
Welcome to the center of the American economy, where nearly $90-million changes hands each minute. Journey back to the wooden wall, built to hold back Indians, where early traders
NORAD: The War Game Fortress
Oct 27, 1997 · 44 min
Journey inside the top-secret headquarters of NORAD–the North American Aerospace Defense Command–a binational military command composed of the United States and Canada. Established
Earthmovers: The Power to Move Mountains
Oct 28, 1997 · 44 min
Feel the earth move under your feet and dig into the fascinating history of earthmoving equipment–from invention of the simple spade to today’s powerful steam shovels. Meet the leg
International Airports
Nov 3, 1997 · 44 min
Everyday 3-million passengers board the 10,000 aircraft flying at any given moment. Go behind the scenes at international airports to see the inner workings that make commercial ai
Deep Sea Exploration: Challenging The Abyss
Nov 4, 1997 · 44 min
From hollow-reed snorkels to mini-submarines equipped with video cameras, curiosity compelled inventors to conceive of innovative devices to dive ever deeper into earth’s last fron
The Alaskan Oil Pipeline
Jan 1, 1998 · 44 min
In 1973, a desperate America, starved by an OPEC embargo, began construction on an 800-mile lifeline for its insatiable oil hunger. We’ll examine this technological triumph, built
American Steel: Built to Last.
Jan 18, 1998 · 44 min
For over a century, the US steel industry was a powerful symbol of the nation's industrial might. Steel helped explode the stock market into an overnight powerhouse, and transforme
Battlefield Engineering.
Feb 8, 1998 · 44 min
Meet some of the most important, yet least-recognized, warriors–the battlefield engineers who lay the groundwork for oncoming conflicts. We'll cover combat engineering from ancient
Statue of Liberty.
Feb 15, 1998 · 44 min
It started as an idea at a French dinner party and became the symbol of the free world. The story of France's gift to the US reveals a 20-year struggle to design and build the worl