“Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I & Part II”     

“On behalf of the people of the Twelve Colonies, I surrender…”

PART I

          49,579 survivors. Admiral Adama green lights Starbuck’s mission to rescue Samuel Anders and his team of rebels on Caprica. The Presidential elections are nearing, and a debate between the two candidates, Roslin and Baltar, is about to take place. Starbuck’s mission is to take a bunch of Marines into several Raptors and make numerous jumps to Caprica. In the process, however, Racetrack jumps the wrong coordinates and gets lost from Starbuck’s party. Miraculously, Racetrack finds a new habitable planet.

          Meanwhile, Chief Tyrol is sleeping and dreaming on Galactica‘s hangar deck. Cally sees him twitching, and she wakes him. Tyrol wakes up in frenzy and beats Cally to a bloody mess. Tyrol is shocked at his unconscious act and quickly brings Cally to Cottle. Tyrol, deeply troubled, visits a priest by the name of Brother Cavil. They talk about his guilt of beating Cally. Cavil sees that Tyrol has been having suicidal dreams, and that this is based upon Tyrol questioning whether or not he himself is a Cylon. Cavil’s sarcastically assures that Tyrol is not a Cylon because he has not seen him at any of the meetings. Cavil jokingly says this, and assures Tyrol that Cally loves him.

          Now that a new planet has been found, Zarek suggests to Baltar that he use this as an edge to debate against Roslin, who says that the fleet should not inhabit the planet and should instead continue finding Earth. During the debate, Baltar takes Zarek’s advice and uses the argument against her. Baltar’s argument is that the new planet is hidden inside gas clouds, which interfere with detection devices, and that the Cylons will never find them. He also says that the fleet is tired of running and that they should begin their lives as soon as possible. The people agree with Baltar, and he wins the debate. Starbuck and her team arrive on Caprica, she finds Anders and his rebels. The Cylons find their location, and they begin to bomb the area…

PART II

          49,550 survivors. The rebels and Starbuck’s team fight their way off of Caprica and go back to Galactica. Admiral Adama is thrilled to see them all, but along with the rebels is Brother Cavil. Chief Tyrol instantly recognizes him and pins him down–declaring that he is a Cylon. Caprica-Cavil admits it and says that he comes bearing an important message. Caprica-Cavil is thrown into the brig, along with Galactica-Cavil. They both say that the Cylons are willing to go about their separate ways and stop chasing down humanity. Adama and Roslin don’t buy it.

          Election Day has arrived and Roslin is falling behind in the votes. Tory asks Roslin whether or not she should go with her plan. Roslin nods, and Tory phones Galactica. It turns out that Colonel Tigh and several more co-conspirators aboard Galactica are turning the tables by discarding the real votes from the remaining five ships, and in their place are forged votes. Lt. Gaeta notices a discrepancy on the papers on which the votes were written on. He confronts Tigh about a possible conspiracy. Tigh later admits to Adama that he participated in planning the fraudulent votes. Roslin admits to Adama, as well, and Adama informs Baltar that he is the new president. Baltar doesn’t believe it was a miscount and reluctantly agrees not to investigate further into it. Baltar meets up with Gina Inviere for the last time on Cloud 9. Later on, Cloud 9 is destroyed by a nuclear blast along with three other ships. Gina has activated the nuclear warhead Baltar gave her before. Baltar as the President-elect orders the fleet to colonize the planet now known as “New Caprica”.

One Year Later…

          In the cold, bleak atmosphere of New Caprica, people are walking around tents and markets and dilapidated fixtures. President Baltar’s administration is littered with whores, drugs, and booze. Gaeta, now the President’s aide, informs Baltar of the growing unrest the worker’s union, led by Tyrol. Meanwhile, aboard Galactica, Admiral Adama walks the empty corridors of his ship and orders Tigh to go down to New Caprica so he can enjoy some time off. Lee has gained weight, and Dualla is his XO aboard Pegasus. Dualla notices something on DRADIS: it is the Cylon fleet. Admiral Adama and Lee reluctantly jump away, since if they too are destroyed, then there would be no hope for rescuing the people on New Caprica. Copies of Aaron Doral, Sharon Valerii, and Number Six walk up to President Baltar. They agree not to kill the humans if they are willing to surrender. Baltar says one of the most heart-wrenching things ever: “On behalf of the people of the Twelve Colonies, I surrender.” An army of Cylon Centurions march through the market place of New Caprica…

My Review

          The greatest writers in sci-fi television convene to create this monument of a season finale. Ronald D. Moore, Mark Verheiden, and Anne Cofell Saunders! Breathe…okay, now let’s get to reviewing.

          In “Lay Your Burdens Down, Part I”, the fleet find a new planet. What a great way to end the season. I felt that the writers really did an excellent job leading Gaius Frakkin’ Baltar to the presidency. The brilliance of introducing New Caprica as an edge for Baltar is awesome. And I love how Baltar sees an opportunity in using the hopes of the people to his political advantage. Damn, I love the politics in all this. And I really admire the way James Callis portrays Baltar. He acts so natural and believable that you can actually generate an understanding of Baltar’s character. He is the man who unwillingly leads disaster to himself and his people. Greek tragedy.

          The production team deserves something, too. The nicely paced editing makes all the scenes believable, and there is no rough scene patching anywhere. Director of Photography Stephen McNutt shoots some of the most groundbreaking scenes I have ever encountered. Many shows now are emulating his style of shooting, e.g. Stargate: Universe. His shots are brilliantly shot in HD format with a gritty, grainy style that is excellently paired with the nature of Galactica’s story. Bear McCreary, the main composer, makes some of the most unconventionally awesome music ever! His extensive use of the duduk, key instruments, effect-laden guitars, orchestras, Tibetan singing bowls, female vocals, and driving percussions create the tone and atmosphere of this show. Most of the time his music is mysterious, but it is always optimistic in some way.

          Throughout the two-part season finale, the best scenes are the ones between Roslin and Baltar. Their heated political battle inevitably leads Roslin defeated and Baltar in office. The fraudulent votes and Roslin’s desperation to keep Baltar out of the presidency shows how she believes Baltar will lead the people to disaster. She is right, and I am happy. Good mixture.

          My favorite part by far is the one where most of the fleet goes down to live on New Caprica, and then the “One Year Later” title appears, and everything looks absolutely gloomy. And then the scene cuts to Admiral Adama walking the empty halls of Galactica—really powerful scene, emotionally. This scene was a bit haunting because it really shows how desperate the fleet wants to settle down. Military personnel are slacking, such as Apollo gaining weight. But the greatest scene, and I keep mentioning this, is when the Cylons show up and force President Baltar to utter those powerful words of surrender.

President Baltar surrenders.

And following this, is the most impressive season ending I have seen so far: Cylon Centurions march through the markets with civilians standing on the side, and Galactica and Pegasus light years away from the rest of humanity.

Centurions march through New Caprica

My rating for the season finale: five out of five!

It’s been a great season of awesome television, and I thank you (the blog viewer) for all your time. Battlestar Galactica is the best show on television! SO SAY WE ALL!

Location Viewed: My room                                         

Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

Time viewed: 9:00PM-9:50 PM

“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

“The Captain’s Hand”

          49,584 survivors. Politics comes back ’round again. Chief Tyrol finds a mysterious woman inside a cargo container. Her name is Rya Kibby, a Gemenese girl who is pregnant. She comes to Galactica to find Dr. Cottle, so that he can perform an abortion on her. Presidential elections are coming up, and President Roslin has a new aide by the name of Tory Foster. Tory assures Roslin that she is ahead in the polls with almost no opposition, aside from Zarek. Roslin is ahead in the polls mainly because of her popularity with the Gemenese, who are very religious people. Zarek suggests that Dr. Baltar run against Roslin since Baltar is more popular than Zarek.

          Meanwhile, Apollo, now promoted to Major and the XO of the Pegasus, arrives on Pegasus and meets up with CAG Starbuck and Commander Barry Garner. Reports of two missing Raptors are told to Garner but not to Starbuck. Garner scolds Starbuck for not knowing that her pilots were missing. It turns out that the pilots on Pegasus did not want to report to Galactica personnel. Starbuck is furious, and Apollo agrees with her that Garner does not have any experience as a Commander, since he was just an engineer before taking Command. Admiral Adama, Garner, and Apollo speak over communications about the situation of the missing Raptors. Apollo says that it’s a Cylon trap, and the Admiral agrees. Garner is frustrated, and then prepares Pegasus‘ FTL drives for the jump, disobeying the Admiral’s orders. When the Pegasus arrives to the position of the missing Raptors, three Cylon basestars arrive and attack the Pegasus. The FTL drives are damaged, and Garner says that he has to go down to the engineering levels to fix them. Command is handed over to Apollo, and Garner fixes the drives but dies in the oxygen-deprived FTL engine room. Pegasus escapes and jumps back to the fleet. Later on, Admiral Adama gives command of the Pegasus over to Apollo.

          Elsewhere, a Gemenese delegate requests for Kibby be returned to her parents. Kibby has declared asylum aboard Galactica, and does not want to go back after her abortion. Adama and Roslin speak about the banning of abortion, and Roslin says that she has been fighting for women’s rights to their bodies her whole life and will not stop now. Adama says that the number on Roslin’s “survivors” board does not go up very often and should consider the fate of the human race. Roslin reluctantly bans abortion, and this causes uproar with the general populace. During Roslin’s press briefing, Baltar addresses the reporters that Roslin’s decision to limit the freedoms of the people is intolerable, and that during his presidency no such thing will happen. Baltar announces his run for the presidency, much to the dismay of Roslin. A projected Six is standing behind him, smiling…

          Finally, a great episode! I love how this episode focused on leadership. Mainly, that of Apollo and Roslin. Also, the return of politics is always welcomed because the writers do it so well. I love how the writers brought in real-world debates like the abortion issue used it as a fulcrum to bring Baltar up into the story again. The abortion issue is extremely relevant because today that debate is still going and it’s true that most elections are heavily influenced by it and its influence is powerful enough to sway the polls. This issue is seamlessly weaved into the presidential elections. Also, I loved how write Jeff Vlaming used the endangered human race issue as a purpose for Roslin to ban abortion. And the same goes for how Baltar uses her decision to corner her politically, and gain support for himself. REALLY AWESOME STUFF! 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

“Sacrifice”

          49,590 survivors. Terrorism among the fleet! Several of Galactica‘s personnel are on Cloud 9 for shore leave. Billy Keikeya proposes to Dualla, but she rejects him. Later on in a lounge on Cloud 9, Dualla talks about her problems with Apollo, and Billy sees this. Ellen Tigh comes in and flirts with Apollo. Shortly after, three men and a woman named Sesha Abinell hold the place down with gunpower, and they lock the doors to the lounge. They take all the people inside as hostages, and demand that the military hand over Sharon Valerii for execution. Sesha lost her husband during the Cylon attack, and she now believes that Valerii is playing Adama and is planning the destruction of the fleet. Little does she know, several of the hostages she is holding are Galactica crew members, military types. Apollo and Ellen are hiding in the bathroom while all this was happening; Apollo was suspicious of the three men, so he dragged Ellen with him to the bathroom—Ellen, being the loose woman that she is, thought about something else. Apollo then goes into a wall fixture inside the bathroom and finds the control panel to the lounge’s oxygen system. He sabotages the system and the oxygen begins to thin out. One of the terrorists come into the bathroom to check for more survivors, and Apollo attacks him and takes his gun. Apollo threatens Sesha that he will kill the man, but then Sesha threatens to kill Dualla. Apollo gives in. Sesha soon finds out that Apollo is Adama’s son, and she uses this to her advantage. She tries to negotiate with Adama by using his son as bargaining. Tigh warns Adama of the inherent dangers of negotiating with terrorists.

          Meanwhile, Starbuck, who is also on Cloud 9 for shore leave, contacts CIC and gathers a Marine assault team to rescue the hostages. Apollo warns the Sesha of the damaged control panel, and that they could die of oxygen depletion if they do not allow a mechanic to come and fix it. Sesha agrees, and Starbuck disguises herself as a mechanic. When Starbuck comes in to the lounge, Ellen notices her, and Sesha immediately sees her reaction. The marines storm in and kill one of the terrorists, but two marines are shot dead. Starbuck accidentally shoots Apollo in the chest, and she is shocked. Starbuck and the remaining marines leave.

          Later on, Adama agrees to give up the dead body of Sharon Valerii to Sesha—the corpse turns out to be the Boomer-Valerii model, and not the Sharon in the brig. Sesha notices this, but then Billy grabs one of the terrorist’s guns and kills one of the terrorists, but he dies in the process from return fire. Dualla is distraught as Billy is dead and Apollo is critically wounded, and his life hangs in the balance. Everyone is rescued, but at the cost of many lives. President Roslin mourns over the death of Billy.

          This is episode was better than the last two episodes, but it still does not focus on anything important. Yeah, sure, it focuses on the importance of Sharon Valerii to the President and the Admiral, but I’m sure this episode was only a filler episode. Oh, and another thing, Billy’s death was cheap. Anne Cofell Saunders wrote this episode, by the way. And although she wrote one of my all-time favorite episodes, “Pegasus”, she really could’ve done more with Billy’s death. He played a pretty significant role in the miniseries and in the first season, so killing him off in this fashion felt really cheap to me. Overall, this episode was not exciting. It is worth noting a couple of good scenes, though, particularly, the scene with Roslin mourning over Billy. Mary McDonnell’s acting in this scene is top-notch, and her portrayal of Roslin in grief is such an amazing one. Great acting, weak plot, and a cheap death. Two 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

“Scar”

          49,593 survivors. This episode focuses primarily on Kara “Starbuck” Thrace. The fleet is mining ore in an asteroid field while being frequently attacked by a mysterious Cylon Raider known as “Scar”. The guerilla tactics used by Scar have killed already killed several rookie Viper pilots that were guarding the mining ships. Kat challenges Starbuck to be the new “Top Gun” by killing Scar. But Starbuck has other things on her mind. She is unable to convince the Admiral and the President to return to Caprica with the plan to rescue Samuel T. Anders and his group of rebels. This throws her into depression. She tries to convince herself that he is dead.

          Later on, Kat scolds Starbuck for being late for a mission briefing and for the death of BB and Jo-Jo. Kat claims that Starbuck’s bad judgment killed them. When Kat and Starbuck are on a mission to snuff out Scar, they see something in the asteroid fields. The excessive space junk makes DRADIS useless. It turns out to be Scar that is following Starbuck. Kat pursues, but she can’t get a clear shot. Eventually, Starbuck baits Scar to follow her. She tells Kat to take the chance and kill Scar. Kat kills Scar, and she later on gets the “Top Gun” mug, with Starbuck acknowledging.  The episode ends with Helo and Starbuck training in the gym with each other and talking about Anders. Helo assures Starbuck that she did the right thing to let Kat take the kill instead of sacrificing herself in the suicide run. She now has something to live for: Anders.

          Starbuck is a great character, and Katee Sackhoff does an excellent job portraying her, but this episode does sit well with me. My main problem is with the pacing of this episode. The focus on Starbuck’s problems with Scar and Kat thrown in is very messy. Scar is the Cylon Raider that she “fixed” in season one, but now has come back to haunt her. Kat is the Viper pilot who wants to be noticed, and she does it by scolding her CAG Starbuck. And Starbuck is the one being subject to all this, so why isn’t the episode interesting? Well for starters, I cannot stand Kat. Her character is very envious, and that just seems so out of place, given the situation of the kind of world they now live in. The problem with Starbuck being unable to rescue Anders is interesting as it causes drives her to change. But the episode is inconsistent. In one moment the focus seems to be strictly on Starbuck, but then in comes Kat and her annoying complaining. I do like the way how other characters, e.g., Adama, Apollo, Valerii, and Helo, are in some way tied to Starbuck’s problem. Despite the tedious and uneventful scenes that are littered all over this episode, the best scene is the one where Starbuck and Helo are training, which happens to be the last scene. This episode could’ve been more effective in examining Starbuck’s depression. I have to rate it a two out of five.

Location Viewed: My room                                         

Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

Time viewed: 9:00PM-9:50 PM

“Black Market”

           49,597 survivors. First off, I will say that I am a little bit disappointed in this episode, but more on that later. Writer Mark Verheiden explores the economic hardships of living on the run in this episode. President Roslin holds a meeting with Admiral Adama, Apollo, Commander Fisk, and Dr. Baltar about eliminating the black market–great subject matter, since it’s never been addressed yet. Adama asks Apollo to lead the investigation, and Commander Fisk agrees to help if ordered. Back on Pegasus, Fisk is confronted with a man in a suit–there is evident fear in Fisk’s eyes–and he is then garroted by one of the man’s thugs. Apollo is depressed and has been ever since the Blackbird incident. Apollo visits a woman on Cloud 9 named Shevon, who is a prostitute, and frequently sleeps with her. It is revealed that Apollo is using her because she reminds him of a girl he left on Caprica. Later on, Apollo finds out that Fisk was involved with the black market. While in Shevon’s room on Cloud 9, the man in the suit and his men break in and garrote Apollo, though not killing him, telling him to back off the investigation. The men take Shevon and her daughter, Paya.

          Fisk’s murder is handed over to Apollo with a bullet in his head. Zarek tells Apollo that this is an offer to end the investigation without probing into dangerous territory. Apollo refuses, and Zarek reveals that the man behind the black market is someone named Phelan. His main operation is in the Prometheus. Apollo later confronts Phelan and they both have a colloquy on why the fleet needs a black market. Supplies and medicine are scarce, and the fleet needs the black market as a way to relieve the burdens of a trade system with high demand and low production. Apollo then shoots and kills Phelan. He informs the rest of Phelan’s men that he will allow the black market to continue under close scrutiny, and the illegal practices will no longer be tolerated. Roslin is upset with Apollo’s decision, but Apollo justifies it by saying that a perfect system under these conditions can’t be achieved and that the black market is necessary.

          The idea and subject matter, in my opinion, are excellent. My main problem with this episode was that it was unfocused. The character focus was obviously on Apollo, but even that left me feeling unfulfilled. Apollo’s story was too garbled in the affairs of the black market problem, and that in turn, for editing’s sake, led to some sacrifices being made on the subject of the black market. I would’ve loved the episode more if the Apollo storyline was saved for another episode and the black market was addressed more in depth, i.e., focusing on the detrimental effects of its illegal practices as well as its positive effects in relieving the fleet’s pressure. Great potential, but not good enough. Two and a half stars out of five.

Location viewed: My room

Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

Time viewed: 10:00-10:50 PM

“Epiphanies”

          49,598 survivors. This episode focuses a lot on President Roslin’s past and the current political atmosphere among the fleet. Roslin is brought to Galactica for cancer treatments. During her treatments she begins to remember seeing, through her visions, Baltar on Caprica prior to the attack on the colonies with the Cylon model Six. As Roslin lies in bed, Billy Keikeya gives Vice President Baltar a tour of the Colonial One office. He hands Baltar a note from Roslin: only to be read if Roslin dies and Baltar assumes the presidency. Roslin tells Adama that Sharon Agathon’s (Caprica-Sharon Valerii) half-Cylon, half-Human baby mustn’t be born. She orders the abortion of Sharon and Helo’s child. Helo objects to Adama’s decision. Meanwhile, a peace movement—one that wants peace with the Cylons—is gaining strength, and acts of sabotage are taking place. Adama captures one of its leaders, Royan Jahee. Baltar soon discovers that the fetal blood within Sharon’s body is able to destroy the cancerous masses; thus the abortion is stopped, and Adama allows the baby to live for research purposes. Near death, Roslin is injected with the fetal blood mixture, and she soon recovers. Later on, Baltar meets up with Gina Inviere, who is now a key figure in the pro-Cylon peace movement. She seems well taken care of now, but there are still hints of mental problems because of her torture aboard Pegasus. Baltar reassures her. After Roslin comes to terms with Jahee and releases him, he returns to Cloud Nine to meet up with Gina. She voices her doubt about the movement gaining any political support, but Jahee gives her a gift from Baltar. He also tells Gina that Baltar supports her and is extremely confident in her. Baltar trusts Gina so much that when she opens the gift, it turns out to be the nuclear warhead that Baltar was using to make a Cylon-detector. An ominous smile across Gina’s face ends the episode.

          I thought this episode was a risky one for the producers since it dealt with abortion. It didn’t go into it that far, but it’s probably a taste of what’s to come. On the other hand, I thought the episode was great. It addressed the changing political atmosphere among fleet—breaking away from action-oriented episodes for awhile. One scene that struck me the most was when one of the pro-Cylon peace followers damaged a Tylium-ore ship by suicide bombing. To know that this show is able to focus in on the more complex issues of politics and consequences makes me proud to devote my time to analyze it. Great episode, great story, and excellent acting to make it all real enough. Four out of five.

Location Viewed: My room                                      

Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

Time viewed: 9:00PM-9:50 PM

“Resurrection Ship, Part II”

          49,604 survivors. If there’s a part one, then there’s a part two, right? Galactica and Pegasus carry their plan to team up and destroy the Cylon Resurrection ship. Apollo pilots the Blackbird close enough to the Resurrection ship and destroys the FTL drive, leaving it vulnerable. Apollo’s Blackbird hits a downed Raptor, and the ship is badly damaged—Apollo ejects out of his seat into space. He nearly dies when his suit runs out of oxygen, but a Raptor comes and picks him up. The Vipers from both battlestars destroy the Resurrection ship, and the mission is successful. Pegasus XO Jack Fisk is already in the Galactica CIC with his marines waiting for Cain’s order to execute Adama and his commanding officers. Meanwhile, Starbuck is in Pegasus‘ CIC waiting for Adama’s orders to assassinate Cain. When the mission is over, Cain and Adama congratulate each other over the comm. Both Cain and Adama speak to their conspirators, congratulating them as well, but neither commander goes through with the assassinations. Starbuck and Fisk are relieved. On Pegasus, Baltar goes to Gina to convince her that he loves her, but then she manages to kill one of the marines and grabs his gun. She gives the gun to Baltar, asking him to kill her—knowing that suicide is a sin in the eyes of god. Baltar refuses, and instead tells Gina that she must have justice.  Later on, Gina escapes with Baltar’s help, and she finds Cain in her quarters. Cain turns around and is shocked. Gina shoots her in the head; thus ending the legacy of Admiral Helena Cain. A funeral is held for Cain, and then her body in the coffin is sent out of the airlock. President Laura Roslin—now noticeably much weaker in appearance—promotes Commander Adama to the rank of Admiral, commanding the Pegasus and Galactica. Adama happily kisses Roslin, and they both smile.

          First of all, I love the fact that this episode was written by Ronald D. Moore and Michael Rymer. It’s so appropriate for Moore to write the end to Cain’s legacy. The episode was well written and excellently edited. The flash-forward technique—with the scene of Apollo drifting in space at the beginning, and then going back several hours to tell how he got there—is something new, and is well structured. The relief the viewer is supposed to feel after the destruction of the Resurrection ship is replaced by the tension set up since the last episode; the anticipation when Adama and Cain ask to speak to their conspirators was excellent. My heart was beating with excitement, not because the mission was a success, but only because I was waiting to see which commander would actually go through with their plots. Although neither commander goes through with it, the tension build up is more rewarding than the actual bang. Great way to end the Cain and Adama feud without civil war—although that would’ve been pretty cool, too. Four-and-a-half out of five.

Location Viewed: My room                                      

Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

Time viewed: 9:00PM-9:50 PM

“Resurrection Ship, Part I”

          49,604 survivors. Anne Cofell Saunders does it again! Continuing from last episode’s intense “to be continued…” ending, the Vipers from the Galactica and Pegasus play chicken with each other–both squadrons unwilling to fire the first shot. As Adama and Cain are both ready to destroy each other, Starbuck returns from her secret mission–piloting the blackbird with pictures of the unknown Cylon vessel Cain was trying to identify. Starbuck uploads the photos of the Cain’s unknown Cylon vessel to Pegasus‘ CIC, and Cain and Adama call off their Vipers. Roslin holds a meeting with Cain and Adama, and the two agree to call off their problems to go after the Cylon vessel. Roslin also informs Adama that Cain is dangerous to the fleet and suggests that he kill her–though Adama is surprised at Roslin for this remark.

          Adama later finds out that the Cain also had civilian ships under her fleet before meeting Galactica. She stripped the civilian ships of their parts for the Pegasus, and forced important personnel to join her ship. The most shocking fact was that Cain ordered the execution of the remaining civilians. Meanwhile, Gaius Baltar speaks with Gina in her holding cell about the unknown Cylon Vessel. He convinces her that he is there to help her. Gina reveals the ship to be a Cylon Resurrection ship where when Cylon-Humanoids die within its range, their memories are downloaded into a new body; thus a resurrected being. Gina also says that if the ship is destroyed, the Cylons will really die and never come back. Baltar briefs Cain and Adama on this. Starbuck, now promoted to CAG on the Pegasus, pitches an attack plan involving both battlestars to destroy the Resurrection ship. The plan is agreed upon. The ending scene is Adama asking Starbuck to assassinate Cain when he calls her on the Pegasus after the mission. Similarly, Cain secretly orders Col. Fisk and his Marines to go to Galactica‘s CIC, under the guise of security, to wait until the mission is done, and then execute Adama and his commanding officers when she calls him.

          How can it get any better? Since the introduction of the Pegasus, I’ve just been amazed by the flawless acting of Michelle Forbes who portrays Admiral Cain. In this episode, though, her best scene is when she orders Fisk to carry out her secret plan. Cain’s character makes Adama all the more likeable, and I think she will only cause more tension among the fleet with he hard-core military doctrine; thus more excellent episodes. Another stand out point in this episode was the scene between Baltar and Gina. I’m more confused now than ever before about the Cylons because it seems that Gina really wants to die, and I think that’s why she told Baltar about the resurrection ship. And of course, the best scene is the last scene, which is also very intense. I think this episode and the last one foreshadows Cain and Adama’s fate: they’re going to kill each other eventually. Maybe, but it’s likely since it seems that they can’t control the fleet together. My money’s on Cain to be the first one to die, but the intensity in these last two episodes are frakkin’ with my head. My heart’s been racing ever towards the end of every episode since the introduction of the Pegasus, and that is a good thing. Final verdict: Five out of five. Excellent writing, Saunders!

Location viewed: My room

Source: Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

Time viewed: 10:00-10:50 PM