Andromeda Episode 6: Angel Dark, Demon Bright

A freak accident sends Andromeda back in time to before the fall of the Commonwealth. Captain Hunt struggles with whether or not he should alter the past.

Episode Summary

The episode starts with Tyr and Beka giving Trance slipstream driving lessons. Slipstream is how ships travel faster than light in the Andromeda universe; it’s like a space highway in another dimension that can only be navigated by organic beings.

Trance’s lessons, of course, don’t go too well, and Andromeda doesn’t end up at the intended destination. Or the intended time. They emerge 300 years in the past at the site of a climactic battle between the Nietzschean rebels and the Commonwealth High Guard right before it happens.

Interfere with the Past

Another High Guard ship appears. It’s the Renewed Valor, commanded by Hunt’s friend Captain Yeshgar. We learn from Yeshgar that from her perspective, it’s been 13 months since Andromeda was last seen (when it got stuck in the black hole). Hunt plays along with Yeshgar so as to not contaminate the past.

Harper, on the other hand, fully intends to take advantage of the situation. He plans to create a super-huge weapon (an Antiproton Fusion Catalyst) to destroy the Nietzschean fleet; he’s had bad experience with both the Magog (as we learned back in episode 3) and the Nietzscheans, but he feels the Nietzscheans are far worse. As he tells Trance, “when push comes to shove, they’re human, and nobody beats us humans for downright nastiness.”

Meanwhile, Hunt finally breaks down and tells Yeshgar the truth, that he’s from 300 years in the future. He invites her to go back with him; the Renewed Valor will surely be destroyed by the Nietzscheans in the battle, and she’ll make a bigger difference in the future to help rebuild the Systems Commonwealth. She agrees and the two High Guard ships prepare to depart.

Predestination Paradox

The Nietzschean fleet arrives early and with 1,000 more ships than were recorded in history. They easily destroy the Renewed Valor, and Hunt orders a hasty retreat through a nebula. He realizes the situation is a predestination paradox – those extra ships need to be destroyed for the Commonwealth fleet to be on even ground.

After carefully considering the enormous Nietzschean body count he’ll be responsible for, Hunt authorizes Harper to use his weapon.

The weapon works, and Captain Hunt feels really, really bad about it. But it had to be done. The Commonwealth fleet arrives, and Andromeda quietly enters slipstream, returning to the future.

Thoughts

I’m surprised we’re still early in the series and already revisiting the past. I did like this one a lot, and the time travel element gave us a nice moral dilemma.

What I didn’t like was Hunt’s scene with Bem, and the “follow your heart” cliche, complete with pointing at said heart. Very groan-worthy.

I also thought Harper’s super destructive weapon came out of nowhere. What’s so great about Nova Bombs when Harper can make a stronger weapon out of nothing?

Tyr’s scene with Trance was nice. I think these two work well together and seem to have a nice dynamic building up, not unlike Wolverine and Jubilee in X-Men.

Fun Fact: This was originally envisioned as a Deep Space Nine episode, and involved the Defiant going back in time to the final battle of the Romulan War.