"Actor: Lisa Ryder"

• Andromeda - Season 1 - Vol. 5 | DVD | (09/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Things never go well when the Andromeda Ascendant takes on passengers. When Dylan agrees to transport the bride of an arranged wedding, "The Honey Offering" is tastes bad from the outset. Kimberly Huie gives a memorable acid-tongued performance as the lady in question. The real clue that things were doomed ought to have been Tyr's reservations over the two rival Nietzschean prides genuinely wanting to heal their breach. "Star-Crossed" is the Series One episode that caused more gossip than any other. Stargate regular Michael Shanks guest stars, falls in love with Rommie on screen (and with Lexa Doig off screen), and then suddenly quits SG-1. There's certainly a spark between them in the show to support the gossip. The secondary cause for talk was its broadcast rescheduling in sympathy with the events of September 11 since it opens with a terrorist attack. As sci-fi show producers realise, they have an ongoing franchise on their hands, one of the contemporary issues to inevitably crop up is drug addiction. Here it's Beka who loses control of her addiction to a substance called Flash, and all she can see is that "It Makes a Lovely Light". Behind this surface narrative is a continued search for Dylan's long-lost home. The point ultimately becomes that he'd rather safeguard his crew than his memories. Criticised in some places for its extreme violence, the season finale "Its Hour Come 'Round at Last" will stay with you one way or another. Maybe for the sight of an alternate Rommie turning uncharacteristically nasty on every one and seriously kicking butt. Or maybe the mind-blowing Magog Worldship, made up of 20 planets and their sun. Or maybe just the seemingly impossible scenario each major character is faced with as the show ends. --Paul Tonks

• Andromeda - Season 1 - Vol. 2 | DVD | (24/06/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Based on an idea by Gene Roddenberry Andromeda wears its debt to Star Trek on its sleeve, recalling the best sci-fi of Roddenberry's heyday. Kevin (ex-Hercules) Sorbo, plays Captain Dylan Hunt, the sympathetically flawed idealist in command of the Andromeda Ascendant, a massive 1.4km long starship of the now-disbanded Systems Commonwealth. The fall of civilisation has meant that although she ought to be a relic she remains the zenith of technological advancement. Episodes on this DVD:Angel Dark, Demon Bright; The Ties That Blind; Banks of the Lethe; A Rose in the Ashes; All Great Neptune's Ocean. "Angel Dark, Demon Bright". Time travel is always a sci-fi series staple, but Andromeda needs it more than any of them. Any method (excuse!) to re-visit Dylan's own time is explored, and "Angel Dark, Demon Bright" is therefore an important episode for two reasons. We see just how badly the Commonwealth had it coming in an enormous space battle; and we also perceive how potentially dangerous Trance is. Pruning the branches of time as easily as her plants, she's clearly a conundrum waiting to explode. "The Ties That Blind". A dual reference to aspects of faith, on the one hand there's Rev's devout following of The Way, which unwittingly obscures certain truths from him; on the other hand there's the belief that blood is thicker than water which severely confuses the relationship Beka has with her long-lost con-artist brother Rafe (Cameron Daddo). There's a lot of art imitating life in this episode, with The Restorian's tactics clearly mirroring contemporary religious conflicts. "The Banks of the Lethe". Proving that all's fair in love and war this episode demonstrates the familial possibilities of syndicated TV. Firstly, Sorbo's real-life wife plays Dylan's fiancée Sara. Secondly, the story was originally touted to Star Trek: Voyager. It's another time travel quickie (told you they were important), in which a touching reunion for the Sorbos is made possible thanks to a botched experiment in Harper's lab. This instalment is also distinguished for featuring some of the most surreal humour in dealing with time travel since Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. "A Rose in the Ashes". Sometimes diplomacy just doesn't work. "A Rose in the Ashes" is sought on planet Arazia where Dylan is imploring their Government to join his Commonwealth. Deemed traitors for suggesting it, he and Rommie's "living doll" incarnation are sent to a harsh prison planet. This was the first show to utilise exterior locations, which makes for a welcome change. The same is also true about seeing Lexa Doig in a leather-studded bikini top and disco pants. "All Neptune's Great Oceans". Paraphrasing Macbeth, this is another spotlight show for Tyr. The endlessly surly muscle man is accused of assassinating a visiting President. The crew sleuth out clues and red herrings, making this a watered-down whodunnit in the now well-established sci-fi tradition.--Paul Tonks

• Andromeda - Season 1 - Vol. 3 | DVD | (05/08/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Based on an idea by Gene Roddenberry, Andromeda wears its debt to Star Trek on its sleeve, recalling the best SF of Roddenberry's heyday. Kevin (ex-Hercules) Sorbo, plays Captain Dylan Hunt, the sympathetically flawed idealist in command of the Andromeda Ascendant, a massive 1.4 KM long starship of the now-disbanded Systems Commonwealth. The fall of civilisation has meant that although she ought to be a relic she remains the zenith of technological advancement. Episodes on this DVD: "The Pearls That Were His Eyes", "The Mathematics of Tears", "Music of a Distant Drum" and "Harper 2.0". "The Pearls That Were His Eyes" was one of the first conceived episode ideas, but was delayed until the availability of a Star Trek regular. That eventually turned out to be John (Q) de Lancie, who gives a brilliant turn as Beka's long-lost Uncle Sid. She really ought to have learned by now that no one is out for completely altruistic goals. An indication of how rotten the galaxy has become is that it can now takes three years for junk mail to reach you. Finding another High Guard ship with a crew looking as it did 300 years ago seems like an awful big coincidence. In "The Mathematics of Tears" Dylan works to stay focused on the enigma at hand. Unfortunately, high-ranking officer Jill Pierce keeps distracting him with red herrings and all-manner of feminine wiles. Did they really stay young from the after-effects of an experimental weapon? Or is there a far more tragic secret to be revealed? When the show focuses purely on Tyr, we can always be sure of certain eventualities. There will be glistening displays of muscle, questioned loyalties and some sort of humbled reconciliation with Dylan. This time his erratic behaviour is influenced by the "Music of a Distant Drum" which takes him to the planet Midden and a family of fishmongers. The episode gets to look at the character from the inside out due to a complete memory loss. Never, never, never pick up a floating life pod. When will characters in SF learn this? The dire result of doing so this time is an impressive "Harper 2.0". Gordon Woolvett hasn't had many opportunities to shine thus far. But here we see him talking in multiple languages and contrasting his general surfer wise-cracking with sharp intellect and a mean streak. We also get a glimpse of what it is that's so feared about the Magog in battle. On the DVD: Andromeda, Season 1 Vol. 3 has the regular extras package, with trailers, deleted scenes and comments from star Kevin Sorbo. This box set also features interviews with Brent Stait (Rev) and make-up effects artist Harlow McFarlane. --Paul Tonks

• Andromeda - Season 3 - Vol. 3 | DVD | (07/06/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  More episodes of intergalactic adventure with the crew of the Andromeda. Episode titles: Delenda Est The Dark Backward The Risk-All Point The Right Horse.

• Andromeda - Season 2 - Vol. 2 | DVD | (14/04/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Further Season 2 adventures with Dylan (Kevin Sorbo) and the crew of the Andromeda Ascendant...

• Andromeda - Season 4 - Vol. 1 | DVD | (21/02/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Sci-Fi heavy-hitter Andromeda is back for a 4th season! This first volume contains the episodes: 1. Answers Given To Questions Never Asked 2. Pieces Of Eight 3. Waking The Tyrant's Device 4. Double Or Nothingness 5. Harper/Delete

• Andromeda - Season 4 - Vol. 2 | DVD | (28/03/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The fourth series of Gene Roddenberry's cult sci-fi show continues...

• Andromeda - Season 3 - Vol. 1 | DVD | (29/03/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Episode titles: If The Wheel Is Fixed The Shards of Rimni Mad To be Saved Cui Bono The Lone And Level Sands.

• Andromeda - Season 4 - Vol. 4 | DVD | (06/06/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A fourth volume of intergalactic adventures featuring the Andromeda crew. Episodes comprise: 15. Fear Burns Down To Ashes 16. Lost In A Space That Isn't There 17. Abriging The Devil's Divide 18. Trusting The Georgian Maze

• Andromeda - Season 3 - Vol. 5 | DVD | (16/08/2004) from £7.83   |  Saving you £12.16 (60.80%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The third season of Gene Roddenberry's cult sci-fi series concludes with an action-packed double DVD release filled with exclusive extras! Episode titles: The Illusion of Majesty Twilight of the Idols Day of Judgement Day of Wrath Shadows Cast By A Final Salute.

• Andromeda - Season 2 - Vol. 3 | DVD | (26/05/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Four more fantastic episodes of the award winning channel 4 sci-fi show on the third double DVD of the season. Packed with action and excitement Andromeda is fast becoming a huge sci-fi phenomenon.

• Andromeda - Season 2 - Vol. 5 | DVD | (18/08/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Andromeda heads for second season climax with this penultimate double DVD including four incredible episodes featuring time travel and space battles for every discerning sci-fi fan.

• Andromeda - Season 5 - Vol. 5 | DVD | (10/07/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The very final instalment in Gene Roddenbury's hit Sci-Fi Series Andromeda brought to you on DVD! How will it all end? Episodes Comprise: 18. Quantum Tractate Delirium 19. One More Day's Light 20. Chaos And The Stillness Of It 21. The Heart Of The Journey (Part 1) 22. The Heart Of The Journey (Part 2)

• Andromeda - Season 4 - Vol. 3 | DVD | (02/05/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Andromeda chronicles the adventures of Captain Dylan Hunt (Kevin Sorbo) and his crew on the starship Andromeda Ascendant as they search the galaxies in an effort to rebuild the Systems Commonwealth a community of worlds strewn across the universe working together for peace. A third volume of episodes from the fourth season of the hit sci-fi series.

• Andromeda - Season 4 - Vol. 5 | DVD | (11/07/2005) from £29.90   |  Saving you £-9.91 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The final volume of the fourth season of the sci-fi favourite! Episodes comprise: 19. A Symmetry Of Imperfection 20. Time Out Of Mind 21. The Dissonant Interval (Part 1) 22. The Dissonant Interval (Part 2)

• Andromeda - Season 3 - Vol. 4 | DVD | (12/07/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  More episodes of exciting intergalactic adventures with the Andromeda crew. Episode titles: What Happens To A Rev Deferred? Point Of The Spear Vault Of The Heavens Deep Midnight's Voice.

• Andromeda - Season 2 - Vol. 4 | DVD | (07/07/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Andromeda heads for second season climax with this penultimate double DVD including four incredible episodes featuring time travel and space battles for every discerning sci-fi fan.

• Andromeda - Season 5 - Vol. 4 | DVD | (29/05/2006) from £7.97   |  Saving you £12.02 (60.10%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The fourth instalment in the fifth and final series of Gene Roddenbury's hit Sci-Fi Series Andromeda brought to you on DVD! Episodes comprise: 1. Past Is Prolix 2. The Opposites Of Attraction 3. Saving Light From A Black Sun 4. Totalled Recall

• Andromeda - Season 2 - Vol. 1 | DVD | (03/03/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The second series of Andromeda unveils a change in approach. A new traditionally heroic title theme, accompanied by rousing voice-over is one noticeable difference. Another is Kevin Sorbo's even shorter haircut. But it's back to the gore and violence that marked the cliffhanging finale of the first year with "The Widening Gyre", where many perils are resolved while others are revealed. An all-too-short deadline is also imposed on Dylan's Commonwealth dream (confirming the show's additional two-series renewal), when it's confirmed how long it will be before the travelling Magog arrive. "Exit Strategies" is all about inner demons. Poor Harper is left with a very real internal problem that leads him to contemplate the unthinkable. Rommie is wrestling with an alternate physical self. Rev is battling his religious conscience against his very survival. With so much B-plot, you could almost overlook the main story that sees the Maru crash land on an ice world--if the dazzling FX would let you that is. Beka gets an overdue share of romantic attention in "A Heart for Falsehood Framed". A sacred gem is the nub of a diplomatic dispute. In typically unpredictable fashion, the plot contrives to see all interested parties caught up in a multi-layered game of switching fakes. Some new angles appear in "Pitiless as the Sun". In case anyone's forgotten, Trance is given opportunity to thicken the mystery surrounding exactly what she is. This occurs as we meet a brand-new adversary, the unsavoury Pyrians. Xenophobia, drug addiction and slavery are all scrutinised in this episode--enough plot for an X-File. This is funny since Cigarette-Smoking Man William B Davis guest stars. Hunting for a once-glorious leader who would benefit Dylan's cause, the Maru and crew make a "Last Call at the Broken Hammer", a run-down bar in the middle of a wasteland. There are lots of twists in a mystery of hidden identities and agendas amongst the bar's patrons. Watch out for Gordon Woolvett's real-life wife among them. Another welcome sight in this episode is a change of wardrobe for the regulars, who have been sweating it out in the same gear for far too long. --Paul Tonks

• Andromeda - Season 5 - Vol. 3 | DVD | (24/04/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The third instalment in the fifth and final series of Gene Roddenbury's hit Sci-Fi Series Andromeda brought to you on DVD!