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Andromeda (TV series)

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Gene Roddenberry’s Andromeda was a science fiction television series, created by Gene Roddenberry, but produced posthumously.  It starred Kevin Sorbo as High Guard Captain Dylan Hunt.  The series premiered on 2000-10-02 and ended on 2005-05-13.


The series was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.





Contents




Plot and production

At the start of the series, three galaxies are mostly part of the Systems Commonwealth, a purportedly utopian society run by an authoritarian government based on a star system called Tarn-Vedra.  However, one of the Commonwealth’s member species, the genetically engineered Nietzscheans, ostensibly becomes disillusioned with the peace with the Magog, and attempts to overthrow and conquer the Commonwealth.  This is in line with the philosophy of this "species", who could be described as elitist post-humans, ruthlessly ambitious in a pejorative parody of the "Übermensch" of Nietzsche.


Dylan Hunt, the captain of a key Commonwealth flagship, is caught by surprise in the first engagement of this uprising, which includes Nietzschean members of his own crew, and is forced to evacuate his crew, but his ship, the Andromeda Ascendant, gets caught on the edge of a black hole’s event horizon, freezing him in time.  Over 300 years later, a salvage crew (on the cargo ship Eureka Maru) rescues him.  The Systems Commonwealth has fallen, leading to a dark age known as the Long Night.  Hunt recruits the salvage crew to join him in an attempt to restore the Systems Commonwealth and “rekindle the light of civilization.”



[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.



Season 1

Season 1 of the series shows Hunt assembling the crew and adjusting to the new universe, while pursuing the creation of the Restored Systems Commonwealth; the second season shows the crew reacting to the sudden necessity of the Restored Systems Commonwealth after the discovery of the Magog Worldship, as they continue to make sure the dream comes true.  Season 3 shows the Restored Systems Commonwealth implemented and the crew preparing for the impending fight against the Spirit of the Abyss and the Magog, while season 4 shows the new Commonwealth corrupted by its enemies, thus making survival against said enemies more difficult.


Andromeda is one of two TV series (to date) based upon concepts Roddenberry had created as early as the 1960s and 1970s.  The name Dylan Hunt had also been given to the heroes of two TV movie pilots Roddenberry had produced in the mid-1970s.  Another series posthumously “created” by Roddenberry is [[Earth: Final Conflict]].



Second Season Controversy

Controversy erupted during the midst of the second season when series developer Robert Hewitt Wolfe announced he had been released from the show’s production, though his influence was felt through the completion of the second season; at that point, Bob Engels was brought on to executive produce the series.  The reason for the change was purportedly due to the desire to make the show more episodic and open to “casual viewers,” as Wolfe's version—although episodic—had many storylines and continuing story arcs.  After the show's final episode aired, Wolfe wrote a one-act play that he placed on his [website], entitled Coda that explained his version of the show (and without contradicting the already aired episodes).


In discussion on his website's forums and various interviews with online magazines and websites in the last two years, Robert Wolfe elaborated that he was released from the production staff when he refused to increase the coverage of Kevin Sorbo's character, Dylan Hunt, by making each of Andromeda's episodes Hunt-centred.  The events of the episode "Ouroboros", the final episode written by Wolfe, were the last major changes that Wolfe was willing to do to the series.


When Engels took over and the show began the more “episodic” format, reactions from the fans were mixed. The new producers tried to lighten the doom and gloom seriousness of the original story arc, while focusing more on the Dylan Hunt character played by Kevin Sorbo.  Some felt that the quality and fun of the series had declined, while others considered the new season to be seriously lacking in depth, and little more than “Hercules in Space” (see [[Hercules: The Legendary Journeys]]).  Consequently, the success of the episodic format was as questionable, and most fans feel that the dismissal of Wolfe and the switch to the episodic format was the moment the series jumped the shark. 


Continuity did indeed break down, as in a Season Five episode, Dylan incorrectly referred to his stranding at the Battle of Witchhead, when in fact he was betrayed at the Battle of Hephaistos.  The Battle of Witchhead took place one year later, and was influenced by the time-travelling crew of the Andromeda from 302 years in the future.



Seasons 4 and 5

Eventually the fourth and fifth seasons saw a return to the arc plotlines and the series reached resolution at the end of Season 5 in 2005.  Ultimately, the series never reached the widespread success of Star Trek or the cult following of Babylon 5.  The series was subsequently picked up by the Sci-Fi Channel in the U.S.


Unlike many sci-fi series, recurring characters are often separated, and don’t appear always together.  As a consequence, Kevin Sorbo (as Dylan Hunt) is the only actor to appear in every episode of the series.



Cast


Main characters



Recurring and guest characters



Weapons


Ship weapons

There are 8 major classifications of battleships (and several subcategories under those).  Each type of ship has a unique complement of weapons and defenses.  The ship's primary armaments are energy weapons based on antiproton technology.  Each ship also has a (varying) number of missiles and drone fighters.



Andromeda's Weapons


40 EMP launchers firing 1 kg offensive missiles at 0.9 c (20 megatons of KE) at a rate of 8 rounds per second each (320 rounds per second or 6.4 gigatons per second total) with an effective combat range of 1.5 light-minutes (27 million km) and a max range of 8 light-minutes (150 million km)


AP cannons—most powerful weapon (anti-proton stream traveling at .99 c) with a range of 4 light-seconds (1.2 million km)


It has over 100 fighters each carrying 6 offensive missiles and anti proton cannons.


In Andromeda, they've taken smart bombs to the next level.  Almost every weapon from bullets to drones has some form of intelligence.  Many ships, including the Andromeda Ascendant, have sentient Artificial Intelligence Entities calling the shots.



Strategic Weapons Systems


Nova bomb


The Nova bomb is a weapon with the power to destroy a solar system. It is fired into the core of a star where it reverses the gravity in an area larger than that of the star. The internal pressure of the star then creates a nova, destroying everything in the star's vicinity. On a smaller scale, it can destroy a planet.



Defenses





Defensive personal weapons

The show also has distinctive personal weaponry for hand-to-hand combat.


Instead of stun-guns, an enemy can be captured by a device called a "bander" (a Frisbee that when tossed "unwinds into a series of coils, then wraps around its target, immobilizing it.").


For protection, a person can wear a "bracer" on their arm that expands into a physical shield.


According to the official Andromeda web site: "In shield mode, a bracer's surface is optically reflective to reflect laser beams and is strong enough to deflect bullets and other kinetic projectile attacks.  In addition to their combat capacity, bracers incorporate a number of sophisticated electronic devices, including portable computers, communicators and sensors."


At numerous points in the early seasons there are references to ECM (Electronic Counter Measure) generators that are worn on clothing, these have the effect of causing weapons fired at "the crew" to veer away from the crew explaining why they get hit so little.



Offensive personal weapons

The most common type of personal handgun is a gauss gun, which accelerates a smart bullet at supersonic speeds using electromagnetic forces.



Force-lance

The force-lance, also called the F-Lance, looks like a harmless metallic tube approximately 1/3 meter in length which (according to the Andromeda site)

"can be extended into a quarterstaff almost two meters long. When used in a melee, the F-Lance can be charged with an electrical current, shocking anyone it hits into unconsciousness... it can also fire a plasma beam, in both the extended and retracted position, which can be used in ranged combat, or as a cutting tool or light source."



It can also be programmed to the user's DNA. A person will be tasered when trying to use another's DNA programmed lance.


The F-Lance can launch a number of self-guided tiny attack drones (called "effectors") that both target opponents and intercept incoming bullets and missiles.  It has a grappling hook function. Finally it can be used as a bomb as well.



Starships



Slipstream





For more details on this topic, see Slipstream (science fiction).

Slipstream is the primary mode of travel for ships in the Andromeda universe, and the only known method of travelling faster than the speed of light.  The Vedran discovery of the Slipstream was instrumental in the formation of their interstellar empire, which became the precursor of the Systems Commonwealth.



Systems Commonwealth




Planets




Life forms





Trivia



Episodes




DVD releases





DVD Name
 Region 1
 Region 2


Andromeda Season 1
 November 11th, 2003
 February 6th, 2006


Andromeda Season 2
 July 27th, 2004
 March 6th, 2006


Andromeda Season 3
 February 1st, 2005
 April 17th, 2006


Andromeda Season 4
 July 19th, 2005
 May 1st, 2006


Andromeda Season 5
 May 2nd, 2006
 August 7th, 2006




See also



External links





























 




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