Roddenberry’s Andromeda Fired Its Showrunner for Being Too Smart. Kevin Sorbo’s Dumbed-Down Version Ran 110 Episodes

Without Gene Roddenberry’s creative drive, Star Trek changed. That’s not to say that the series got worse or anything – it just wasn’t the same Trek from the early days, for better or worse. But what if there was one show that could have been created by Roddenberry, released almost a decade after his passing? Gene Roddenberry’s Andromeda was such a show. Or at least it tried to be.

Billed as Roddenberry’s lost masterpiece, Andromeda was put together from unproduced concept notes written by the Star Trek creator. Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, Gene’s widow, gave the show her blessing, working as an executive producer and bringing Robert Hewitt Wolfe (from Deep Space Nine) into the Andromeda fold.

On paper, everything looked amazing. Kevin Sorbo, fresh off the success of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, was set to star as Captain Dylan Hunt. Season 1 was a success, with Wolfe’s intricate space society front and center. However, things took a change for the worse in Season 2, when Andromeda slowly transitioned into The Dylan Hunt Show.

Why Andromeda Season 1 Was a Syndicated Hit and Why Robert Hewitt Wolfe Left

Despite its budget limitations, Andromeda’s Season 1 was a massive hit. The syndicated show managed to hold its own next to juggernauts like Xena: Warrior Princess and Stargate SG-1. It seemed like Tribune Entertainment, one of the production companies behind the show, had found its golden goose.

Fans enjoyed Sorbo, who had already established himself as a charismatic lead with Hercules. The show’s complexity was also praised – but the producers weren’t exactly enamored with Wolfe’s intricate, arc-based plan. Tensions arose, and Tribune faced an impossible choice: an expensive, ambitious show or a cheaper, easier-to-produce one?

Sorbo, Tribune and Fireworks Entertainment quickly developed their plans for a Wolfe-free Andromeda, and Wolfe left midway through Season 2. The back half of Season 2 felt like an entirely different series, and with Wolfe out of the picture, things were decidedly “simpler”.

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How Kevin Sorbo’s Dylan Hunt Took Over Andromeda After Wolfe Left

With Wolfe’s long-term arc discarded, Andromeda soon focused almost entirely on Sorbo’s character, Dylan Hunt. The ensemble sci-fi feel of Star Trek: The Next Generation was gone. Now, Andromeda felt more like a Star Wars show: action-heavy, with a larger-than-life hero at the center of everything.

Sorbo could certainly pull off being the center of attention. However, the real issue was that the show’s writing took a noticeable nosedive, and fans noticed that extremely quickly. The plot’s central goal (rebuilding the intergalactic government) was effectively achieved by the end of Season 2. Without a strong narrative foundation and with the creative voice that started the series out of the project, Andromeda was effectively sentenced to a quick cancelation by the end of Season 2, right? Turns out, Sorbo and Tribune were at least partly right.

Keeping things simple and cheap worked in Andromeda’s favor. The show produced 110 episodes and secured a cable network (Sci-Fi Channel) for its final season. Unlike many other shows of the early 2000s that ended on cliffhangers, such as Farscape, Andromeda’s focus on relentless, soapy action and charismatic characters earned it a proper finale.

Was the show as memorable as Star Trek or as complex as Roddenberry would have liked? Probably not. Andromeda couldn’t become Star Trek’s spiritual successor, but it proved that there was still room for space operas – at a time when even Star Wars was diving into the whole “political intrigue” trend. Simply put, Andromeda was cheap fun with a broad appeal, the kind that networks love but doesn’t necessarily enjoy a timeless legacy. And, for Sci-Fi, Tribune Entertainment, and Kevin Sorbo, that’s more than enough to call Andromeda an unlikely success story.

Is Andromeda Worth Watching? Rotten Tomatoes Score and Where to Stream

Audiences are split on the show (Rotten Tomatoes: roughly 60% average Popcornmeter, with no critics’ Tomatometer score logged for the series). If you want the version Wolfe built, stick to Season 1 and the first half of Season 2. If you only want the ending, jump to the Season 5 finale, “The Heart of the Journey.”

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Andromeda is streaming in the US on Peacock with a subscription, and episodes can also be bought on Fandango at Home. Some seasons have also appeared on free ad-supported services such as Pluto TV.