In the depths of winter, the long line tuna-fishing season starts off the east coast of Australia. The three skippers of Hardliners - Tony "Chug" Lagana, Paul Lavalle and Tony Cross - all leave port in their boats primed to land big fish and make money. All will brave extreme conditions but while the dangers are great they know the rewards can be greater. They will defy killer storms, monster seas, near misses with cargo ships, sharks, flying hooks and exhaustion. The target is prized tuna - Yellowfin and Bluefin - most of which is exported to Japan. A good sized tuna can be worth up to $2,000. The big ones, much more. Can the skippers catch the big tuna in time to offload the fish for export to Japan?