The Catch-M-All quest has been a joyous year-long adventure that has included many different types of fish and anglers. It has also featured a nearly equal diversity of fishing methods. During our quest to catch and eat every kind of freshwater fish in New Hampshire, we have used fly rods, spin casting gear, tip-ups, spears and even a bow and arrow. But recently, we tried a new way to go fishing that might be our latest obsession. We went fishing with a television.

We unabashedly love TV because it has been with us our entire lives, turning our brains into the mushy goodness they are today. So it makes sense that we would want to bring this lifelong friend on a fishing trip.

In the last 10 years or so, video cameras and small portable televisions have made their way into the sport of ice fishing. We pretended not to want one because it would offend our purest fishing sensibilities, but they were really just too expensive. But, as with everything else, fishing TVs have gone digital and gotten cheaper. The glut of analog sets on the market brought them into our price range, and we found an eBay unit for a mere $35. A few clicks later and it was ours.

Our unit includes a small 5.5-inch, black-and-white television, with a spool on top wrapped in 50 feet of cable leading to a high resolution underwater video camera rimmed with LCD lighting. It was state of the art just three years ago, but now it is antiquated, which suits our wallets just fine.

We decided to try the camera in a shallow pond in Hampton Falls. After drilling a few holes in the ice, we lowered the camera into the water and watched the screen intently as it descended. We both gasped when a bluegill appeared on the screen, looking back at us from its watery realm. At that moment, we were hooked on the fishy drama unfolding just eight feet below our feet.

The fish exited stage left while Clay lowered a small ice fishing jig tipped with a waxworm down an adjacent hole. The lure hit its mark onscreen and did a tantalizing Rockette-like dance. From the wings, the bluegill watched. Clay jigged the lure up and down a few times to give the cue. Action! The small fish attacked the lure and Clay set the hook.

This is when things got weird. In that moment, the television show became reality. Up until that point, we could have been watching “The Bachelor” or “American Idol,” but, like Neo in “The Matrix,” we were jolted into reality from the electronic world. 

The experience was intoxicating. We took turns luring a fish into frame and then transporting it from television world to our world. We then pondered what it would be like to do this with actors on real TV (without the hooks). Imagine pulling Sofía Vergara from the set of “Modern Family” or Iron Man from TBS. We could flick annoying politicians in the head or pet dinos from “Jurassic Park.” 

As we discussed the possibilities, we felt we had seen this before, and then Clay said, “Wonkavision”!

In “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,” the confectionery genius invented Wonkavision, which allowed viewers to reach into their televisions and grab chocolate bars from advertisements. We now had Fishavision!

Just then a big action star appeared on our screen, Esox niger, the chain pickerel. Like Bruce Willis sauntering on set, the pickerel confidently swam up to the lure and sized it up. We cheered as if Jack Bauer himself had just made an appearance. The pickerel’s star power made the lesser B-list sunfish scatter.

The pickerel circled the baits like Seth Rogan around a craft services table. It hovered in front of the camera and stared at Dave’s glow-in-the-dark jig tipped with a waxworm. To entice it, Dave wiggled the lure and the pickerel engulfed it. The weight of the fish at the end of the line broke the TV-induced spell and Dave expertly fought the 17-inch fish onto the ice. An Emmy-winning performance if there ever was one!

Even though our television premier only had a viewership of two, we considered it a big hit. We would still be out on the ice if we had a sofa and some beer. We can’t wait to tune into Fishavision again. Until then, we can watch reruns of our underwater ice webisode on our blog at www.catch-m-all.com and, of course, fans can follow the rest of our adventures on our Facebook page.