Sandeman

Sandeman (first name unrevealed) is a figure who is often referred to but appears only briefly in the series in a faceless flashback that Max Guevara has later in Season 2. He was part of the same ancient cult as Ames White, but when he found that his son C.J. Sandeman wouldn't survive the traditional test, he rejected the cult's beliefs. He then founded and ran Manticore until the government came in and took over. Joshua and Isaac, Joshua's younger brother, were his first creations. He made the transgenics to be immune to the pathogen/virus the cultists were bred to be immune to.

In addition, Sandeman personally created X5-452, also known as Max Guevara, in whom he implanted a message in an ancient language used by the cult, which manifests itself as tattoo-like markings on her skin. Max was created to stop the ancient cult. This is hinted at in early season 2 episodes, as she is said to have no "junk DNA", meaning each base pair of her DNA is encoded with a specific purpose.

It is revealed that Ames White is C.J.'s brother and Sandeman is their father. Sandeman is their family name, with Ames having changed his name to "White" after rejecting his father. Dr. Sandeman's first name is never stated. A message in The Eyes Only Dossier implies that Sandeman's wife's name was Natasha.

Behind the Scenes[edit | edit source]

As stated in the writer commentary for the episode "Freak Nation", Sandeman's ultimate plan involved using Max to immunize the whole of humanity against the Conclave's virus. The cure derived from her DNA would have piggy-backed on the common cold, immunizing everyone who caught the cold. This would have happened in Season Three if the show had not been cancelled.

Note: this plan was confirmed in the third novel "Dark Angel: After the Dark".