In the Sixties, Roddenberry settled for Westerns in Space. Andromeda, however, is all 12-word episode titles and name-dropping philosophers. We introduce the brains behind the brawn...

It's 'Cigars at the ready' times as Fireworks and Tribune Entertainment present their own version of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Actually their show is called Andromeda and diplomacy prevents any specification as to which the above descriptions refer but, encased in three very different forms, the males most likely to assist the Andromeda's Captain Dylan Hunt (Kevin Sorbo) in rebuilding a firmer future, definitely fit those definitions. Feel free to make your own decision as to which is which.

Take surfer dude Harper for instance. He could be described as 'good'! Well, he's very good at his job, which is to provide essential technical expertise (computer based or mechanical) on board Andromeda. This boy wonder can repair and restore any broken circuits, change the fuses in the plugs or build the odd Back-to-the-Future-type Time travelling machine as and when required. It's when you look at some of his other attributes that things could start to get a little ugly. He's bold, brash, sassy and full of nonsense and drives the rest of his companions batty. The really scary thing is that actor Gordon Michael Woolvett is damned close in real life to the character he plays in the show. "Sadly I am somewhat like Harper," he confirms. "Harper is an amalgam of all my endearing qualities." Right! And these would be? "Obviously modesty!" suggests Woolvett. Uh huh! Does the phrase 'I am a God!' ring any bells? Or perhaps 'I am a genius!'

"I find it very easy to play Harper," grins the actor, "and not because it's an easy role, but because it's an enjoyable role to play and anything that is that much fun is suddenly no longer work. Haprer is such a cool role for me because I've always been attracted to the kind of characters that have those despicable qualities that somehow draw you to them regardless of the fact that they are so obnoxious." With tongue firmly in cheek Woolvett nods, "I think Haprer has lots of obnoxious qualities and the audience will get to see a lot more of them as the series goes on."

Woolvett also thoroughly enjoys the fact that he gets to put his personal knowledge of computers and technobabble all to good use. "All the extra stuff like having to work with outrageous props and make them look as though they are actually real is all just play for me. I actually design websites and spend a lot of time round computers when I'm not working so I try to make sure that what I'm doing seems real and makes sense to me because, if it does, then it will be the more realistic for the audience. I also don't want to just stick a wrench into a big circuit board and say, 'Hey, I'm fixing this.' I want to be able to explain what I'm doing like, 'I'm bypassing something' or 'replacing the blue chip' or whatever. That helps to make it a little more believable."

So just what is a laid-back surf-crazy guy doing on Andromeda? "Besides ogling the female embodiment of the ship?" asks Woolvett. "I think the reason Harper is hanging out where he is is because everybody has some sort of redeeming qualities that appeal to him. Even characters like Tyr [Keith Hamilton Cobb], who scare the hell out of him have their nicer sides. In fact, there are scenes coming up where Tyr and I joke around together. It's not something you would expect given their personalities but that makes it all the funnier. Although when Tyr's had enough of silly jokes he'll just sort of push Harper or shove him and I don't think he realizes how much larger than Harper he really is." Grimacing at the memory Woolvett says, "There is one scene where Tyr picks Harper up and throws him down off camera. Usually in filmn and television they do what's called 'foley' work where the action takes place and the sound is added later. Usually they drop a sack or something to make it sound as though the person is hitting the ground. But Keith threw me so hard that they didn't have to do that. When you listen to that episode, it really is me hitting the ground." Ouch!

Statuesque actor Keith Hamilton Cobb wouldn't do such a thing on purpose, of course. No way! It's just that there isn't enough room for such a large person on such a small set. As big, butch Nietzschean Tyr Anasazi, Cobb could be forgiven for throwing his weight around. Honest! "Tyr is a Nietzschean from a race of extra-terrestrials named after the German philosopher," explains the actor. "Nietzsche's theories seem to centre on his ideas about Man's acquisition of power and why that happens. The way I see it is that it all boils down to Human will being the driving force behind this acquisition of power. In other words, if you have power you can work your will. In Andromeda, Nietzscheans are genetically engineered Human beings who have been bred to thrive in environments different from those on Earth. They have been bred to exist anywhere and the problem is that when you have a species that are superhuman they can start to think, 'Why should anybody else be here?' That's what has happened within the context of Andromeda. In our show, the Nietzscheans have very little sense of what we as Humans hold dear other than a strong belief in themselves as individuals and in the strength of their family line. It's all about survival of the fittest. In terms of virtues such as ethics, morals and the like, those are not in the Nietzschean lexicon. Ethics aren't going to help you survive to the next day."

Although he agrees that the species could be defined as being 'out for themselves', Cobb fiercely defends his character against any suggestion that the Nietzscheans are the latter day agents of the Devil. "They wouldn't think so! And in the episodes so far we've really only seen Dylan's perspective of what they are about because he is the one who was betrayed by his Nietzschean first officer, who threw him into this situation to begin with. It's Dylan's perspective that is to the fore. I think the operative term for us to remember is 'Human'. Tyr may be superhuman but the root is there which means that he does feel the whole panoply of human emotions. His race may have, through evolution, suppressed a lot of them, but I think they are there and I think a lot of them are going to come out in due course."

Laughing that Tyr hasn't thrown any temper tantrums thus far, the actor admits that having the ability to think 12 steps ahead and to kill without remorse makes him a very powerful character and a very dangerous one. "The challenge for the writers and for me is how we tone that danger down. How do we assimilate Tyr into the group on board the Andromeda in such a way to sustain the tension - because Tyr could turn round and kill everybody at any time - but to do it in such a way that is sympathetic to the intentions he shares with the crew? He does have some. You just have to figure out what they are."

As far as relationships are concerned, Tyr identifies with Captain Hunt in many ways, "but whereas the 'hero' has to do things the up and up way, Tyr does not," says Cobb. "Tyr can get where he needs to be by hook or by crook. He is the perfect anti-hero in that sense. What he does share with Dylan is the fact that they are both loners. Tyr's pride was destroyed and he has not been accepted into another pride because as far as Nietzscheans are concerned, he is a pariah. If his pride was destroyed they must have been inferior, therefore he must be genetically inferior too. So Tyr is a loner and an outcast. Dylan is similar. Dylan had a fiancée and a place in society and now he has nothing and no one on board the Andromeda can share in his particular grief."

Based on what the writers have suggested so far, Cobb believes his character and Dylan are, "fostering a growing mutual respect. They have had some very frank discussions and I think the more they talk the more they realize their similarities." Smiling, Cobb also suggests that, "Tyr hseems to be developing a softness for certain members of his crew where he is not as pragmatic and ruthless as he would be if he were still on his own." Ah, perhaps he's not so bad after all.

Now, whilst the multi-fanged, hairy-faced, Human-eating Magog could be described as the most ugly of Dylan's male cohorts (to Human eyes at least - a Mrs Magog might think differently), behind that vicious-looking exterior there lurks a heart of gold. Played by Canadian actor Brent Stait, Rev Bem (and who on Earth saddled the poor soul with that name?) couldn't display a gentler side if his life depended on it. It's quite ironic really because Stait is better known for playing bad guys. "I don't know why it is," he shrugs, "but until this role in Andromeda I seemed to be typecast in bad guy rules." Having played opposite the likes of Lance Henriksen (Gun Fighters Moon), Bill Pullman (The Virginian) and Russell Crowe (Mystery Alaska), Stait finally gave up beating the you know what out of Callum Keith Rennie (on Due South, you understand, but still a heinous crime) to play an altogether more appealing character.

"In Andromeda," begins Stait, "the basic premise is that Rev is a philosopher - a priest or a monk or whatever one wants to call him. I don't mean priest in a Catholic way. He's more a teacher in a Druid sense or in a Buddhist's. He's kind of like Socrates too, but the main thing is that Rev is definitely in his own path to find The Divine - the Holy Grail - and he looks for it, he hunts it and he fights for it. On board the Andromeda, Rev is the one who strives to make the others aware of that path too. If you look at any of the Dungeons and Dragons - type shows or in video games for example, the magician character is always a great influence on the rest of the tribe or group. That's just what Rev is. He doesn't advocate the teachings of any one religion, he just picks whatever leans towards the good side and through it he tries to point the way. His companions have to follow their own path."

Drawing on another teacher's influence Stait believes, "Rev is kind of like Obi-Wan Kenobi to Dylan Hunt's Luke Skywalker. Rev is there to offer an opinion or view, but it's Dylan's choice as to whether he takes it or not. Then look at Tyr's character," he suggests. "You just never know what he's going to do. He's trying to be selfish but it's getting very difficult for him now. He's not very good at it. THe more he integrates himself, the more difficult it is for him to be just out for himself. In fact everyone on board has their own integrities and values when trying to fit into the whole."

Using his divine powers, whether achieved by pure observation or something more celestial, Brent Stait can offer some insight as to what is going to happen to that 'whole' later on in the season. "I know lots!" he insists. "Stuff that even the other actors don't know. There's going to be some pretty shocking developments in the cliffhanger. Really interesting stuff because everyone's got secrets and together they make one great story."

Just when it seemed that a good and caring Magog was about to point the way to enlightenment he spoiled the whole thing by growling, "I could tell you what's going to happen, but then I'd have to eat you." Now that would be bad and ugly. We'll just have to keep watching to find out what he's hiding behind his hairy back.