This fourth volume of episodes Andromeda: Season 3 seems to indicate that this action-sci fi show is neither fish nor fowl. Shoehorned into the "action adventure" stories are a few half-hearted (or, to be more accurate, half-baked) attempts at developing the overall story arc, but these only serve to remind us that Andromeda has a history of promising more than it delivers.

Two of the five episodes here are clearly stand-alone, and quite weak. The plot of "The Right Horse," in which Beka endangers the ship by protecting a former lover, has a decidedly recycled feel; in any case, we know by now that this won't amount to any real character development for Beka. "Vault of the Heavens" picks up some of the worst old-style Star Trek cliches, as Dylan is beckoned to a distant moon by the voice of a mysterious alien woman/energy being, who of course turns out to be gorgeous. (Are there such things as ugly energy beings in Roddenberry's universes?)

In the remaining three episodes, it seems like the writers of Andromeda suddenly remembered that there used to be cool larger story arcs, and that they could be doing much more intriguing stories than "Dylan fights random bad guys of the week." For instance, remember that whole "Magog world-ship" thing? You know, the plot thread that caused some major pyrotechnics in the last season... and then apparently got shelved? So here we get an attempt to increase the stakes a bit. Trance gets mystical (which is getting old, since it's not moving forward at all) and reminds Dylan about the Magog threat and the coming war; the Nietzcheans start causing more trouble to the new Commonwealth; Tyr discovers that others know about his son, the "genetic reincarnation" of the Nietzchean founding father.

All to the good, except that the episodes that attempt to deal with these story threads are pretty bad. "What Happens to a Rev Deferred?" re-introduces Rev Bem... in a truly amazing episode. Not "amazingly good," but amazing in the sense of "amazingly dull and incoherent." Most of the episode is made up of repeated (and pointless) flashbacks to various experiences that the crew have had with Rev Bem, while the rest of the storyline involves Rev Bem following some sort of mystical star that speaks to him. The script sounds as if it was written at 2 AM while the writers were halfway stoned, and no, it really doesn't make any sense.

"Point of the Spear" attempts to get all serious, by having Dylan attempt to save the planet Samserra from attackers, in what we're told is a prelude to galactic war. Yeah, sure. This is different from the last fifty "save the planet from attackers" episodes how, exactly? OK, it tries to end on a bleak note, but it's clearly forced, and the whole situation is so generic that there's no real dramatic punch in the conclusion. "Deep Midnight's Voice" tosses the Andromeda into a first-contact situation (with all the standard-issue cliches on board, of course) while tracking down a very important device. The plot is typical Andromeda Swiss cheese.

The DVD

Andromeda: Season 3 Collection 4 is a two-DVD set, packaged in a double-wide plastic keepcase. It includes episodes 314-318.

Video

The five episodes here, all presented in their original widescreen 1.85:1 aspect ratio and anamorphically enhanced, look excellent. Colors are bright and vibrant, contrast is handled well, and the print is nicely clean.

Audio

The Dolby 2.0 soundtrack is satisfactory, offering a clean and clear listening experience, though of course with the action focus of the episodes, you'll find yourself wishing for more surround sound.

Extras

Several short featurettes on this set will be of interest to fans. Disc 1 contains a short (8-minute) but interesting interview with Lexa Doig, and another very brief (3-minute) interview with Allan Harmon, the director of "Point of the Spear." On Disc 2, there's an interesting pair of featurettes on the stunts and fights of Andromeda. "Behind the Scenes: Stunts and Fights" is a six-minute interview with stunt coordinator Ernest Jackson, and "Stunt Training Footage" is a five-minute series of clips from the training sessions, with a voiceover commentary by Jackson and Kevin Sorbo. Also on Disc 2 is a 4-minute gags and bloopers reel, featuring Gordon Michael Woolvett.

Spread across both discs are deleted scenes (totaling four minutes), design gallery images (three minutes), ADV previews, and TV trailers for the episodes included here.

Final thoughts

The third season of Andromeda has, for the most part, offered passable action science fiction, as long as you don't expect too much. Collection 4, however, falls below even that mark, with a combination of bland and dull episodes. I'm going to rate this as a "Skip it," advising casual fans to stay away; if you're a true Andromeda fan, you may want to rent it, but that's the most I'd suggest.