The Aussie fans of Andromeda were both thrilled and priveledged to take part in a private chat with one of the fabulous writers of Andromeda Mr Ashley Edward Miller.
By Caillan
September 24, 2001 - 12:32 PM
from the Slipstream
Andromeda staff writer Ashley Edward Miller dropped some tantalising hints on what season two holds during an online chat Saturday.
Miller revealed that viewers would see new gadgets and effects in the forthcoming season. "We'll see a new force lance configuration in 'All Too Human' and we'll see some cool stuff from the Pyrians in 'Pitiless as The Sun'," the writer said during an exclusive chat with members of the Australian Andromeda Alliance. "They've got a pretty unique suite of capabilities that geeks like myself should find quite entertaining. The Pyrian design is great - all CGI."
The writer said that audiences should expect to see more Artificial Intelligences. "One of them will be a very dangerous adversary for Rommie but in a strange way, he's the hero of the story," he said. "That'll be in 'All Too Human', a story that I'm particularly proud of in a lot of ways."
On the subject of AI, Miller explained the reasoning behind Rommie's character development. "The assumption of SF television has always been that AIs should be on some quest for humanity," he said. "AIs, and Rommie in particular, should be on a quest for their own identity a uniqueness that defines them on their own terms. As an AI, Rommie doesn't view the world the same way that we do but she does feel. The interesting question is, what does that mean to something like her? Hopefully this season we'll start to find out in a meaningful way."
Those hoping to see new characters joining the Andromeda Ascendant next season will be disappointed. "At the moment, there are no plans to add any crew," he said. "But one never knows. We have a couple of good candidates that we may see a lot more of as time goes."
Miller talked about some of the philosophy behind the series's science. "I strongly advocate the position that Andromeda should be 'hard' SF to the extent possible," he said. "The truth is, we try to put things as simply as we can, and when we do go into more expository detail, it's because we're trying to get across some fairly hardcore broad strokes of some pretty cool physical phenomenon. I've heard a number of people refer to Harper's description of quantum entanglement as the best lay-description they'd ever heard. I'm quite proud of it."
Looking ahead to the future, the writer talked about the relationship between a pre-planned 'arc' and Andromeda's ongoing storyline. "I think the notion of the 'arc' is something of a modern myth," Miller said. "I don't care what show you're talking about, the truth of TV production is that you're just not in control of every element - you have to be flexible. But as Robert [Hewitt Wolfe] put it, writing the series is like surfing - we know where the beach is, we know where the shoals are the trick is getting ashore with our kneecaps and noggins intact. In short, we have a very clear idea of where this show is going but we have to be ready to make adjustments in response to problems and opportunities that may arise."
This chat was part of the 1st Annual Herculean Sci-Fi Fantasy Fest held in Sydney, Australia.
By Caillan
September 24, 2001 - 12:32 PM
from the Slipstream
Andromeda staff writer Ashley Edward Miller dropped some tantalising hints on what season two holds during an online chat Saturday.
Miller revealed that viewers would see new gadgets and effects in the forthcoming season. "We'll see a new force lance configuration in 'All Too Human' and we'll see some cool stuff from the Pyrians in 'Pitiless as The Sun'," the writer said during an exclusive chat with members of the Australian Andromeda Alliance. "They've got a pretty unique suite of capabilities that geeks like myself should find quite entertaining. The Pyrian design is great - all CGI."
The writer said that audiences should expect to see more Artificial Intelligences. "One of them will be a very dangerous adversary for Rommie but in a strange way, he's the hero of the story," he said. "That'll be in 'All Too Human', a story that I'm particularly proud of in a lot of ways."
On the subject of AI, Miller explained the reasoning behind Rommie's character development. "The assumption of SF television has always been that AIs should be on some quest for humanity," he said. "AIs, and Rommie in particular, should be on a quest for their own identity a uniqueness that defines them on their own terms. As an AI, Rommie doesn't view the world the same way that we do but she does feel. The interesting question is, what does that mean to something like her? Hopefully this season we'll start to find out in a meaningful way."
Those hoping to see new characters joining the Andromeda Ascendant next season will be disappointed. "At the moment, there are no plans to add any crew," he said. "But one never knows. We have a couple of good candidates that we may see a lot more of as time goes."
Miller talked about some of the philosophy behind the series's science. "I strongly advocate the position that Andromeda should be 'hard' SF to the extent possible," he said. "The truth is, we try to put things as simply as we can, and when we do go into more expository detail, it's because we're trying to get across some fairly hardcore broad strokes of some pretty cool physical phenomenon. I've heard a number of people refer to Harper's description of quantum entanglement as the best lay-description they'd ever heard. I'm quite proud of it."
Looking ahead to the future, the writer talked about the relationship between a pre-planned 'arc' and Andromeda's ongoing storyline. "I think the notion of the 'arc' is something of a modern myth," Miller said. "I don't care what show you're talking about, the truth of TV production is that you're just not in control of every element - you have to be flexible. But as Robert [Hewitt Wolfe] put it, writing the series is like surfing - we know where the beach is, we know where the shoals are the trick is getting ashore with our kneecaps and noggins intact. In short, we have a very clear idea of where this show is going but we have to be ready to make adjustments in response to problems and opportunities that may arise."
This chat was part of the 1st Annual Herculean Sci-Fi Fantasy Fest held in Sydney, Australia.
