Under the Night
From The New Systems Commonwealth Wiki
had a weakness, it was this:
Its officers were too competent,
too caring and too brave.
Yin Man-Wei
The Rise and Fall of the Systems Commonwealth
C.Y. 11942
Under the Night is the first episode of the first season of Andromeda.
Contents |
[edit] Production Information
| Under the Night | |
|---|---|
| |
| Production Number: | 103 |
| Aired: | October 2, 2000 |
| Written By: | Robert Hewitt Wolfe |
| Directed By: | Allan Kroeker |
| Created By: | Gene Roddenberry |
| Developed By: | Robert Hewitt Wolfe |
| Executive Producers: | Allan Eastman Majel Roddenberry Robert Hewitt Wolfe Josanne B. Lovick Jay Firestone Adam Haight |
| Producer | Sherry Gorval |
| Production Designer | Ken Rabehl |
[edit] Starring
[edit] Regular Cast
[edit] Guest Stars
[edit] Summary
Dylan Hunt, captain of the Systems Commonwealth starship Andromeda Ascendant, answers a distress call at the Hephaestus system - a rogue black hole has entered the system. The distress call turns out to be a trap, and the Andromeda is ambushed by over 10,000 Nietzschean ships.
Overwhelmed, and recognizing the urgency of informing the Commonwealth that the Nietzscheans are rebelling, Dylan orders his crew to abandon ship and get word to the Commonwealth, while he attempts a risky slingshot maneuver around the black hole. His pilot, a Than named Refractions of Dawn, stays on board with him.
Gaheris Rhade, Dylan's first officer, and a Nietzschean, begins to sabotage the Andromeda. He enters the Command Deck, shoots Dawn several times, and engages in a firefight with Dylan. He informs Dylan that the reason the Nietzscheans are rebelling is that the Commonwealth signed a treaty with the Magog, a savage race with which they had been at war. This peace treaty with the mortal enemies of the Commonwealth was a sign of weakness, and the Nietzscheans attacked, seeing a chance to not only gain dominance of the known universe, but to eliminate a stagnate government.
As Dylan and Rhade engage in hand-to-hand combat, the Andromeda comes close enough to the black holes event horizon that time begins to slow for them. Dylan grabs Dawn's forcelance, shoots Rhade and time... stops...
303 years later, on the salvage ship Eureka Maru, Gerentex, a Nightsider, has hired Captain Beka Valentine and her crew to find the legendary Andromeda Ascendant. Beka's crew consists of Seamus Harper, a human (with an uncomfortable-looking rash on his neck), Trance Gemini, a purple alien with a tail, and Rev Bem, a Magog. They discuss what they will do with their share of the money from selling the Andromeda. After locating the ship, which is still trapped near the black hole, they capture it with bucky cables, and, with a little creative engineering on Harper's part, pulled it out.
For Dylan, time goes back to normal, and he asks about the status of the ship. Andromeda Ascendant, Andromeda (the ship's AI avatar) informs Dylan that, by examining star patterns, she has determined that 300 years have passed.
Beka and her crew enter and search the ship, expecting it to be abandoned, while Dylan and Andromeda watch them on the monitors. Andromeda identifies the rash on Harper's neck as Triangulum Measles, a disease that was easily treated in the Commonwealth.
As Harper is searching the ship, Dylan confronts him. Harper tells Dylan that the Commonwealth lost the war with the Nietzscheans, and fell over 300 years ago. Dylan blames himself for this, because of his failure at Hephaestus.
Beka and her crew discuss what to do. Dylan, over the intercom, orders them to leave the ship or he will re-take it by force. Gerentex reveals his backup plan - he has hired a group of mercenaries led by Tyr Anasazi, a Nietzschean, in case force is necessary.
[edit] Notable Dialogue
- Dyan (to Rhade during their fight): "I've told you before, pessimism is not a survival trait."
- Trance: "Oh, he's the guy who retired. Didn't you say he bought a farm?"
- Harper: "Bought the farm, Trance."
- Harper (about Dylan): "I'm telling you, the guy is huge. He's like some kind of Greek god or something!" This is a nod to the fact that the actor who portrays Dylan Hunt, Kevin Sorbo, used to star as Hercules in the TV show, "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys".
[edit] DVD Release
Under the Night was released on DVD in a variety of formats. For more information see:
[edit] Episode Chronology
Under the Night is Episode 1 of 110.
| Preceded by: | Andromeda episodes | Followed by: | |
|---|---|---|---|
| "An Affirming Flame" | |||
[edit] See Also
[edit] External link
Under the Night at the Internet Movie Database
