Andromeda
"The Ties That Blind"

Airdate: November 20, 2000

OK, last week we had the time travel story so this week it must be the black sheep of the family story and... Hey!! What a surprise! (Not.) There's one in every series, and this is it for Andromeda. I hope.

Seamus Harper. Hometown, Surf City U.S.A.

While Tyr is trying to teach Trance Gemini how to fight (I'm beginning to think he fancies her, you know) the others are watching Harper surf in the Pangalactic Championships. He's doing really well; 48th out of 10,000 and this apparently excuses him from going AWOL. Then a distress signal comes through.

On board the rescued Wayist vessel are a deeply revered Serenity of The Way and lo and behold; Beka's Brother, Rafael. (Who shall from here on out be referred to as `Black Sheep'). It seems that the pair were attacked while on the way to chair a peace conference between a bunch of terrorists and the local trade organisation. Who attacked them and why is the puzzle to be solved. Oh, yes, and just how far can Black Sheep be trusted?

Though the episode started off somewhat slowly, about halfway through I actually started to enjoy watching various men flex their muscles while:
a) Threatening others with physical violence
or
b) Attempting to avoid being fried by lasers.

And then of course, Dylan drew his weapon and... Mmmmm... I guess I'll never make a Wayist. sigh

Overall, this was a much more enjoyable romp than last weeks offering, and okay, so it was a little bit obvious in spots, but it actually had me wrong footed in a couple of places. I do so like a show that makes me think one thing and then does something a little different.

Black Sheep was actually the most likeable character on the show, possibly because he's the most obviously human of those we've seen so far, and I was a little disappointed that he didn't take up the offer to stay aboard. He would certainly have livened things up a little. (And one more semi-hottie surely can't hurt, right girls?)

The only other thing I've got to say is to ditzy-chick. The word you're looking for sweetheart is HOOYAH! The phrase YEE-HAH! went out in the early 80's when they canceled The Dukes of Hazard. Mind you, anything is better than Hi-Ho!

-- Muriel 'Mogs' Moore

Andromeda airs at 8pm GMT Mondays on Sky One in the UK and is syndicated in North America so check your local listings for show times.

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