- "What an unpleasant individual."
- ―Dylan Hunt
 | |
| Gerentex | |
| Continuity: | Andromeda |
| Notability: | Antagonist |
| Type: | Pirate |
| Gender: | Male |
| Race: | Nightsider |
| Location: | Hephaistos System |
| Status: | Alive |
| First: | "Under the Night" |
| Final: | "Fear and Loathing in the Milky Way" |
| Actor: | John Tench |
Gerentex is a minor character featured in the science fiction television series Andromeda. Played by actor John Tench, he appeared in the pilot episode of the series, "Under the Night". The character then appeared in the second-half of the show's inaugural story, "An Affirming Flame" as well as the seventeenth episode of season one, "Fear and Loathing in the Milky Way".
Biography[]
Gerentex was an extraterrestrial and a member of the Nightsider race. A greedy and ambitious man, he sought to lay claim to a legendary lost ship of the High Guard known as the Andromeda Ascendant. He first assembled a team of mercenaries to help him out, which consisted of two humans, Brexos and Glasten, a cyborg warrior woman named Varastaya and a Nietzschean named Tyr Anasazi. He then hired a salvage ship pilot named Beka Valentine to aid him in finding the Andromeda. Beka's crew consisted of life support officer Trance Gemini, Earth engineer Seamus Harper and the Magog known as Rev Bem. Gerentex haggled over the costs for financing the expedition, but fully expected the reward of claiming the High Guard would greatly exceed anything he would have to pay out to his mercenaries or the salvage crew.
They found the Andromeda Ascendant perched on the gravity well of a black hole. Beka pulled the ship to a safe point and they boarded the vessel. Gerentex soon discovered that the ship had been trapped in a time dilation effect, which had kept it perfectly frozen in spacetime for more than three-hundred years. The ship's captain, Dylan Hunt was still alive and was not about to see his ship fall into the hands of a group of space pirates. Prepared for any eventuality, Gerentex sent his mercenaries aboard the ship to kill Dylan and gain control of the vessel. [1]
Beka and her crew began to question Gerentex's actions and regretted taking on the assignment to begin with. Trance Valentine voiced her displeasure and announced that she was quitting the operation. Gerentex repaid her sentiments by shooting her at point blank range with an energy weapon. Fortunately, Trance's enigmatic nature allowed her to recuperate from what should have been a fatal attack.
He abducted Seamus Harper and ordered him back onto the salvage ship, the Eureka Maru so that he could use his skills to hack into the Andromeda 's mainframe computer. Harper was surprised to discover that the ship was commanded by an artificial intelligence nicknamed Rommie and Rommie was not about to let anyone take control of her. As things grew more intense between Dylan Hunt and the mercenaries, Gerentex decided to cut his losses. He sealed off the Eureka Maru with Seamus still onboard and took off from the area. Gerentex believed that if he couldn't take possession of the Andromeda Ascendant, then no one should. Taking control of the ship himself, he nudged the Andromeda back towards the event horizon of the black hole, hoping that the gravitational singularity would destroy it.
Dylan Hunt forged a truce with Beka Valentine and the others and they were able to escape the black hole by using the ship's arsenal of nova bombs to turn it into a white hole. Afterward, they tracked down the fleeing Maru and boarded it. Gerentex tried to shoot Dylan with his weapon, but quickly discovered that Seamus Harper had removed the firing pin. Dylan punched Gerentex in the face, laying the Nightsider out with a single blow. Since there was no authoritative organization they could hand him over to, Dylan decided to put Gerentex into an escape pod and set him adrift. [2]
Notes & Trivia[]
- The character of Gerentex was created by Robert Hewitt Wolfe and Allan Kroeker based on concepts originally developed by Gene Roddenberry..
- Gerentex had acute hearing to compensate for his poor vision. This was a trait common to all Nightsiders.
- Popular nicknames for Gerentex include Rat-Face, Rat-Brains and Rat-Faced Weasel.
Appearances[]
See also[]
Media
The World of Andromeda
Andromeda miscellaneous
External Links[]
References[]
