"Una Salus Victus"

by David E. Sluss

21 November 2001

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CYNICS CORNER RATING: 8.25 (B)

CONTRIVANCES OF THE WEEK: The biggest problem for Andromeda during this mission, irrespective of the Nietzschean ambush, was that she had to guide and protect a fleet of Wayist relief ships. But did you see how tiny they were compared to the Andromeda? Is there any reason that all of the medical supplies and all of the people on those ships couldn't have simply been loaded onto the Andromeda, a gigantic vessel that was built to hold thousands of people?

After "Exit Strategies," how can it be that Hunt still didn't know what Tyr had stashed on his ship? It apparently didn't take him long to find it in Closet 15 once he put his mind, such as it is, to it. But what took him so long?

And why were Nez Perce and his men standing around like spare pricks at a wedding as Hunt brought weapons fire down on the mountain rather than simply shooting Hunt dead in his tracks?!

SPLIT PERSONALITY OF THE WEEK: The great Hunt mystery has once again reared its head. Is Hunt brilliant, almost Nietzschean in his tactics, or a madman who gets lucky despite his reckless, self-destructive stunts? There's only one forum in which we can get to the bottom of this...

ANDROMEDA CLICHES OF THE WEEK: Break it on down!

• Caves.
• Super-Slo-Mo.
• Yet another use for the force lance. And as loud as the spike was when it hit the mountain, echoing all the way across to Hunt and Tyr's position, everyone in the woods would have heard.
• Ineffective automated defense system. I'll admit it looked and sounded better than Andromeda's sparky defense system from last season, but it was certainly no more useful.
• Mindless attack by the enemy, entering a corridor one after another and getting slaughtered in a turkey shoot (c.f. "Its Hour Come 'Round at Last," "Last Call at the Broken Hammer"). It's particularly galling in this case, given the supposed superior cunning of the Nietzscheans. But look at them, coming around the corner one by one and getting shot in super-slo-mo, no better really than the Magog or the Kalderans. Andromeda is, of course, an Action Hour and breaking body count records every other week, but I have to say it's getting dangerously close to self-parody as well.

LAUGH LINE OF THE WEEK: Hunt, as he and Tyr face down the defense system: "OK, backup plan," the plan apparently consisting of Hunt and Tyr putting on Cool Shades in tandem.

BUDGET-CUTTING OF THE WEEK: Rev and his expensive makeup missing in action yet again (for the fourth episode out of seven so far this season), but his voice remains. I suppose this series could be turned into Rev's Angels, with Rev only heard through the speakerphone ("This is Lady Ellsbett, Angels. She's convinced that someone is out to sabotage her wedding").

MISSED CONTINUITY OF THE WEEK: With the return of Nez Perce and the first "Nietzschean episode" since "The Honey Offering," it would have been nice to hear how the war between the Drago-Kazov and the Jaguar-Sabra is going (or went); at the time it seemed like it was going to be an important conflict, but Dominionism may have sunk in. I also found it a little strange that Nez Perce apparently didn't hold anything against Hunt before now, considering it was Hunt who manipulated the prides into the war in the first place.

MYSTERY OF THE WEEK: I got your progenitor right here! But seriously, this notion that the Nietzscheans expect Drago Museveni, he whose name must be pronounced differently ever time it is spoken, to return and unify the prides opens the floodgates of speculation. It also sounds a lot like that bunkum on Star Trek: The Next Generation in which the legendary Kahless was resurrected in order to unite the Klingon Empire (sixth season's "Rightful Heir").

On the other hand, the progenitor could be someone we know:

• Tyr Anasazi: Too obvious.
• Tyr Anasazi's child, apparently conceived in "Double Helix": Maybe...
• Dylan Hunt: A Nietzschean not born of Nietzschean? Nah, it's been done...
• Gaheris Rhade: Resurrected from the dead? "Cha-ching!" says Steve Bacic...

Especially given the (so far) superficial similarity to the Kahless Krapola, the Nietzschean belief in Museveni's return begs the question: With the advanced science we see even in the post-Fall Known Worlds, couldn't cloning be used to bring him back at any time (assuming such scams haven't been attempted in the past)? And if so, how could any resurrection of Museveni ever be viewed as legitimate, particularly now that his remains are in the hands of megalomaniac Hunt and schemer Tyr Anasazi?
  

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This review is copyright © 2001 David E. Sluss
Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda is a trademark of Tribune Entertainment