emma_in_dream

1.9 A Rose from the Ashes

First aired 27 November 2000

Dylan and Andromeda are imprisoned on a penal colony where no one is allowed out; even the inmates' children are forced to remain. As the ship's avatar's power source runs low, Dylan looks to an intelligent woman to help them escape. Meanwhile, with the help of Trance, the crew tracks down Dylan and Rommie's location, but discover the colony's defenses would easily destroy the Eureka Maru. Dylan stages an uprising against the android warden of the prison and tries to shut down the defenses so that the Maru can rescue him, but is no match for the brutal warden. Rommie, knowing Dylan is in trouble, is able to use an improvised power source to recharge herself and destroys the warden, but runs out of power before she can do anything else. Dylan manages to shut down the defenses in time and the Maru safely rescues him and Rommie, but Dylan is left perplexed at how Trance randomly picked the right prison planet.

I don’t have much to say about this episode, so lets talk about the introductory quotes.


I am intrigued by the quotes that preface each episode. There is a temptation to dismiss them as pretentious, but they do add depth to the Andromeda universe by hinting at a whole body of alien literature. The quotes and the lengthy and rather allusive titles remind me of J Michael Stracsynski’s strong efforts in Babylon Five to define himself as an auteur rather than a hack. Overnight titles in SF seemed to change from the bland – ‘The Fall’ – to the literary – ‘Thus Spake Zarathustra’.

Season 1, Episode 6 Angel Dark, Demon Bright

Originally aired 6 November 2000

When a slipstream error throws the Andromeda back in time to the climactic battle of Nietzschean-Commonwealth war, Dylan and his crew must not only decide whether or not to interfere, but which side to interfere on. Ultimately, it is discovered that the Nietzscheans arrived at the Witchhead Nebula with 1,500 ships, three times more than was said to have been in the battle. The crew realize that their intervention is necessary to preserve history, and Dylan devises a strategy to decimate the massive fleet. When this plan succeeds, Tyr reveals that he knew the truth about the fleet size discrepancy all along--from a Nietzschean legend in which Andromeda's actions were attributed to "the Angel of Death"--but that no one at the time knew what really happened. With history back on track, Andromedareturns to her own time.

I had missed this episode the first time around and it is pretty powerful stuff.

I’m impressed at how they made it seem like there was a massive battle, without taxing their special effects too much. I like the way you get insight into the characters at the same time as major political events occur. Harper’s gung ho blood-thirstiness is fascinating, as he often seems to be toned down and made cuter in fanfic. Whereas in the show he’s all, here’s a weapon of mass destruction, let’s go for it.

Season 1, Episode 4 D Minus Zero

Originally aired 23 October 2000

Dylan and the crew of the Andromeda face off against an unknown enemy when they discover a ship's recorder, forcing Dylan to deal with the tensions between him and his new crew.



This is the first time I’ve seen this episode.

When Andromeda first aired I used to get it through a network of kind American fans who would tape them and post them to Australia. Australians with the right sort of video player could then show them to their friends, copy them and pass them on.

Sometimes the transition from NTSC to PAL video did not go smoothly. The first time I saw *Sports Night*, for instance, we had audio but no video. Nonetheless, the dialogue was so sparkling that it was worth listening to.

It was another time, back when you used to have to order zines from the US, using bank cheques, to receive fic sight unseen.

Truly we now live in a golden age of fandom, where it is possible to see and read a whole lot more.

Or, at least, a silver age.

I am still annoyed by shows that are only released in Region 1 format or that are stripped of extras before being sold in Region 4. And don’t get me started on the Australian Netflix which has approximately 10 per cent of the content of the American one. The way Amazon won’t ship DVDs to Australia.

But, still, relatively speaking, this is a good time for fans.

Season 1, Episode 2 – An Affirming Flame

Originally aired 9 October 2000

Dylan must protect the Andromeda from the mercenary crew as it is tugged away from the black hole's time-distorting gravity, while Beka and her friends on the Eureka Maru discover they may be fighting for the wrong person.


This episode pretty deftly brings all the main characters together on board the Andromeda. Hunt’s motivations for wanting them are clear – he’s just lost everything and is in massive denial. In order to try to rebuild the Commonwealth, he needs some crew and he must be clinging to the only people he’s met so far.

Trance sees it as an adventure – and, knowing her character arc as I rewatch, I assume she angled for the job with Beka in order to get to this point. Harper points out the luxuries on board the Andromeda and is also, as he says, ‘in love’ with the ship. Beka’s less sure of it, but willing to go along as long as she retains the Maru. Tyr’s motivations are, I think, deliberately not fully addressed in his dialogue with Hunt. It seems plausible that he would want to upgrade from working as a mercenary and the ship certainly offers opportunities he would not otherwise have.

Neatly plotted, all ready to go into the main plot arc in the next episode.

1, The art is up at work. I’ll take some photos. It seems like my sole achievement since July.


2, I have had some free time to read about ADHD, sensory processing issues, etc. Did you know that some studies link NF1 and ADHD? How very interesting. And how much I hope Ruby is not also diagnosed with ADHD. (Though I do not think it is likely).


3, I watched some of the extras on *Gosford Park* and part of the reason it is so astonishingly accurate is that they found a handful of British folks in their 80s who had been in service above and below stairs in the 1930s. They were literally able to instruct on how eggs were hand beaten to make custard rather than mayonnaise; how wine was filtered; the way measures were used to ensure the table was set evenly; the shade of a footman’s ties; how an under-house maid would address a housekeeper.


Also, of course, the way it was filmed and recorded ensured that all the actors were aware they could be being filmed at any time, so they are continuing their plots in character at all time. No wonder it is such a champion of a movie.

1, It turns out that as well as *American Ninja Warrior*, there are a whole host of other versions. In Japan, the UK, France! I am the last one to board this train!


2, I have much of next week off.


3, We will be going to the Royal Show on Saturday 1st October if anyone wants to join us at the Rabbit Pavilion. I am hoping we may get to watch the pig diving again, as it was pretty much the funniest thing I have ever seen in my life. (For random reasons, the pig diving board is right outside the Rabbit show.)

1, I am really looking forward to the circus next week. I am bringing my Mum and sister as well as the kids. I hope they like it too.


2, I have begun watching *American Ninja Warrior* and I am surprised at how much I like it. Much of what I like is the unrelentingly positive coverage the MCs give. They have ridiculous, shouty American voices but what they are actually saying is a barrage of positivity.


This, combined with the way the competitors cheer on the others, makes it much more enjoyable than traditional team sports. I am watching it with the kids, with much moralising about how they practice hard and constant exclamations about how strong the women are.


(To combine these two points, someone with a circus background would do well in *American Ninja Warrior* - so far the best I’ve seen have been rock climbers, Olympic gymnasts and people who make their living doing TV stunts.)


3, We had our Threatened Species party and made some money for bilbies, gorillas and cheetahs. I’m pretty sure they could all do with a helping hand. Thanks to those who attended.

1, I’ve just started the BBC’s *New Blood*. It’s excellent and a nice retreat from vile reality.


2, I am reading *Milly Molly Mandy* to the girls. They are enjoying the stories greatly, and are also scandalised by the fact that I had scribbled in the book as a child. I keep pointing out that you can tell by the inscription (which does not mention my youngest sister) that I was very young when I did it!


3, We went op-shopping on the weekend and got several jigsaws. I do enjoy working on them with them.

1, I saw the latest *Star Trek* on the weekend. I really really loved the way the characters were part of a non-military organisation dedicated to exploring, rather than a military. I liked the characterisation, the action and the themes. The only thing I did not like was the tendency to use shots that looped through space. Even though I saw it in 2D it made me feel seasick and gave me a splitting headache which has persisted to the next day. I think I am getting to the point where I can no longer watch movies on the big screen because the cinematography is too much for me. At least this will save money.


2, I’m up to Act II of *Harry Potter and the Cursed Child*. I am enjoying it more than I thought I would, given that my least favourite part of all the books is the prescriptive final chapter which outlines exactly what happens to all the characters, down to the middle names of their children, but does not address the *massively important* theme of the need to fundamentally restructure wizarding society to integrate the rights of all magical, sentient creatures. Still, more HP is more basis for fanfiction.


3, My children were exemplary on the weekend, allowing me to lie down after the movie. This fixed the troubles with my vision and made me feel cheerful enough to play super heroes with them. In this iteration, I was the villain (as I always am) but was thwarted by Hermes with her power of running so fast she makes whirlwinds and Nay-Nay whose secret power is the ability to control small ponies.

Some thoughts about costuming in 2000s television shows…


I think the costuming in *Dark Angel* was excellent. It was a near future dystopia and most of the characters wear jeans and hoodies most of the time. This pre-dates the popularisation of hoodies and in the show it is a way of acknowledging the desire of most characters to evade the ever-present Police drones. And, of course, they live in post-disaster Seattle so warm clothes make sense.


Likewise, I loved the costuming for *Jeremiah* which consisted of contemporary fashions subjected to 17 years of wear. The premise was that most people died in a specific year and everyone lived by scavenging, so it makes sense that a show set in the future featured the fashions of 2002.


Here are some shows where the costuming made no sense to me. *Veronica Mars* in which the broke Veronica dressed way above her station. I can only assume that Neptune had a great second hand shops scene as the rich 09ers discarded their vastly expensive clothing with every change of fashion. *Buffy* always puzzled me in that the different characters seemed to inhabit different climate zones. One person on screen would be wearing jeans and a thick jumper while talking to someone in shorts and a halter top.