Battlestar Galactica: Season 2 Blog
October 26, 2009
Season 2. Episode 18.
“Downloaded”
49,579 survivors. Downloaded? Cylon downloading? Yep, that’s what it is. This is first look into the lives of these frakkin’ ”toasters” and “skin jobs”. First, I have to say that I was really exciting to finally glimpse into the much unknown process of Cylon resurrection. Not only have the Cylons been out of focus for several episode, their society still remains a mystery, and I love mysteries. And now we begin to see…
Nine months ago, the Six-model in love with Gaius Baltar dies on Caprica from shielding him from a bomb blast. Now, her consciousness is downloaded into her new body, and she is reborn. Six sees Baltar beside her in the rebirth tank, and she is surprised. I am surprised. I thought that Baltar was the only one having projections of someone, but now it seems Six is having projections of Baltar. What’s going on? Similarly, Sharon “Boomer” Valerii is reborn from her death at the hands of Cally.
Sharon "Boomer" Valerii is reborn
Boomer and Six, now called Caprica-Six, are hailed as heroes of the Cylon attack among their kind. D’anna, a Number Three, welcomes them to Delphi. The Cylons are rebuilding Caprica for their own use.
Meanwhile aboard Galactica, Sharon Agathon goes into labor, and her baby arrives prematurely. Dr. Cottle puts Helo and Sharon’s daughter into an incubation tank. They name her Hera. Adama, Tigh, Roslin, and Baltar discuss the fate of a Human-Cylon baby. They agree that it is danger to the fleet and that the Cylons will be coming for her. Roslin orders Cottle to fake the death of Hera to Helo and Sharon. Distraught and angry, Sharon nearly chokes Cottle to death, but breaks down and cries. In reality, Roslin gives Hera to a woman named Maya to take care of, so that Roslin can keep a close eye on Hera. Maya doesn’t know that Hera is half-Cylon.
Cylons rebuild Delphi.
Back on Caprica, Anders and a team of rebels blow up the cafe where all the “skin jobs” are staying. Caprica-Six, Boomer, and D’anna are trapped underground with a passed-out Anders. D’anna tries to shoot Anders but Caprica-Six beats her to death with a cinder block. Boomer and Caprica agree that the Cylons must take a new path in God’s path and follow love instead of hate. Pretty weird stuff going’ on. They let Anders go and leave before D’anna can download and comes back.
Really eye-opening episode. Eye-opening in the way that I now know more about the nature of the Cylons. But the more I found out, the more questions popped. Like, why is Caprica-Six so religious, and why is there disagreement among the Cylons? Do they follow one plan? Do they even agree on what’s for dinner? Great questions are stirred in this episode. Aside from my questions, I want to note one particular scene that stuck out to me. The meeting with Adama, Roslin, Tigh, and Baltar is an ethical one. Taking away babies from their parents is wrong, especially if the military and government do it. But is it justified in this situation? Ha, more questions! This was troubling me even after watching this episode. I tried agree with Roslin about taking Hera away for the safety of the fleet, but I can’t shake off the feeling that this will somehow come back to bite her. Maybe Sharon and Helo, both of whom have put their trust into the Admiral and the President, will find out one day and take action against the leaders. It’s like a classic Greek tragedy, where the good intentions of great heroes lead to disaster. Oh, wait, this show has themes of Classic civilizations! Connection, maybe? I see great plot setups here, and I see greater conflicts with the characters ahead. Oh, and this episode was nominated in 2006 for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. Great frakkin’ episode! Four and a half out of five.
Location viewed: My room
Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)
Time viewed: 10:00-10:50 PM
