My wife and I were discussing Battlestar, which we both very much love. We have just started to go through it again, and we like to comment on where characters ended up.
Mod Note: Adding spaces to keep spoilers out of mouse-over field
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Well, Felix Gaeta certainly ends up rather differently than he begins. My wife and I were discussing how he died and his final moments. If you forgot, here is how his final show moments went.
He had been caught for his crime of treason. He and Gaius Baltar talk in what looks like Gaeta’s cell. Gaeta says some stuff about hoping people remember who he is and what he was really trying to do.
Baltar just pauses and says, “I know who you are, Feflix. I know who you are.”
Then it shows Felix’s face and the scene morphs/transitions into Felix standing with Tom Zarek and they are both shot.
Now, I say the scene with Baltar really happened. Baltar visited Felix because they did know each other a bit and Gaeta wanted someone to talk to. My wife said she isn’t sure and maybe the scene is just in Gaeta’s head. I tend to think that the cut to Gaeta’s execution was mostly stylish and also works to show that he was thinking of that last conversation just before he dies.
So much of those last few episodes appears to have been written by someone doing bad acid while suffering from swine flu, it’s hard to tell. I think Gaeta imagined it, or it was a “Head Baltar” thing, but it coulda “really” happened.
There was considerable discussion on this question when the episode aired. I think that Gaeta really did talk to Baltar before he was executed. The quick cut to the execution scene is called “editing”–to make things more dramatic. (Sorry if that comes off sarcastic–I’m agreeing with you!)
One small correction: Gaeta & Zarek didn’t stand to be shot. They were tied to chairs.
I think it was real. At that point Baltar had become something of a religious figure amongst some members of the fleet. Gaeta had a moment to consult with his priest, so he chose Baltar since he didn’t really believe in the gods. I don’t remember for sure, but I think there was some mention of that in their conversation.
Nothing I remember in enough detail to point out. Just the feeling I had from watching it. I almost want to say there was a previous instance of Gaeta having a Head Baltar encounter…but I’m not sure.
Felix and Baltar were close for much of the series - watch “Six Degrees of Seperation” again to see how much Felix admired Baltar, and how much Baltar owes Felix. I don’t find it unreasonable that Adama would let Felix have some last time with a confessor before his execution. And head-Baltar always wore that fancy pinstripe suit - the Baltar in that scene was in his normal green fatigues. So yes, the conversation really happened.
I have to admit I am disappointed that neither of them yelled “Shoot straight you bastards! Don’t make a mess of it!” before they were shot.
Nope. There was a scene with Head Baltar with Baltar, with Gaeta present, but Gaeta had no idea he was there. I really don’t think it’s all that much of a stretch to think the real Baltar would have visited, and I think it’s a really big stretch to introduce Gaeta to Head Baltar with zero previous introduction. That would just make it more convoluted than ever and be entirely unnecessary.
I can’t think of a single good reason why it WOULDN’T be real.
Gaeta had long admired Baltar, which is why he was willing to perjure himself to get Baltar convicted - he felt betrayed. Facing his own death, it just makes sense he’d want to talk to someone, and Baltar, someone he’d once admired and who was in many ways a pariah of his own sort, would have been a logical choice.
There’s no indication or suggestion of any kind his conversation with Baltar is fantasy.
Another reason to support it being real is that hallucinations were pretty limited in the show. It was mainly just Cylon projection and people touched by some sort of divine/mystic force.
We can exclude the former category since Gaeta wasn’t a Cylon. And there’s nothing to really fit him into the latter category with Baltar and Six (based on the implication that their hallucinations of each other were angels or some other superbeings), President Rosalyn (with her mystic drug hallucinations and the opera house), and Starbuck (who clearly was “special” based on both her backstory and her resurrection). There was nothing divine or special about his actions; if anything, it was more the opposite. He was the poor everyman who does the right thing, repeatedly gets fucked over for it, and finally breaks.
Outside of those two categories, the only hallucinations I can recall were Lee on the verge of death (with the hallucination explained by decreased oxygen and such), and Admiral Adama (on the anniversary of his wife’s death; but that was more of a necessary story-telling device possibly coupled with some misdirection to give credence to Leoben’s “Adama is a cylon” claim by making it seem like Cylon projection). Neither of those really apply to Gaeta’s case, either.
Gotta disagree with that. Gaeta knowingly sold out the Resistance while he was frakking an 8, and Gaeta led the mutiny. Neither of those constitute doing the right thing.
You could argue against the “knowingly” bit - he damn well should have known, and he was continuing to support the resistance while he was frakking the 8, but he managed to deny everything that was right in front of him. And I’m guessing that leading the mutiny is what Erasmus meant by “finally breaks”.
I’m not familiar with the former. Was that during the webisodes that bridged the season gap? I skipped those because I didn’t notice them until after I’d watched the episodes where they escaped from New Caprica. I just didn’t want to go backwards.
And as for leading the mutiny, muldoonthief nailed it. As fucked as the mutiny was, I can kind of understand how Gaeta was pushed to the breaking point even more-so than those who followed him. It’s kind of tragic in a way – he was the most righteous of the mutineers, but he was also one of the few to actually get punished for it. Most of the others presumably got de facto amnesty given that they apparently weren’t executed, and there weren’t any prisons at the end of the show.
I hate webisodes. I hate the concept of webisodes. When I watch a TV show, I want to watch it on TV. I want it to be broadcast at a regular time schedule so I can plan for it and record or watch it and see it on TV. I don’t want to have to go to a website and download something or try to stream it where it locks every few seconds to continue loading.
Erasmus Darwin
They mention in the finale that many were being held and were released from custody to join the final assault on the Cylons if they chose. I suppose they were finally released after reaching Earth. But everyone had a chance to come to grips with things.
Gaeta got executed for leading the mutiny, not just participating. He created it, so he was responsible for everything that happened, even if Tom Zarek did a lot of things that Gaeta didn’t approve. Whereas it’s difficult to hold the soldiers who just didn’t approve of working with Cylons responsible for executing the Council. I could see a lot of them getting pissed as Zarek after they found out, and glad he got executed, even if the revolt failed, they were in the brig, and they Cylons were still around.
Of course Gaeta’s last scene with Baltar was real. It was intended to be real by Ron Moore. In his podcast he said he didn’t want Gaeta’s final moment to be literally strapped to his execution chair. So he asked for the final dialog between Gaita and Baltar. These two had a special relationship. At one point Gaeta admired Baltar so much that he joined his administration. Also, since we later discover Baltar’s true identity, this scene can be looked back with special significance and poignancy. I thought that the scene allowed the series to end Gaeta’s role with dignity despite his mutinous acts.
Additionally, I believe it was originally intended to connect to Gaius Baltar’s final moments in the show.
He and Caprica Six are standing on the field on Earth and he says, “There is some land ahead that looks good for agriculture.”
Caprica Six: “Agriculture?”
Gaius: “Yes…I know something about farming.” At this point Gaius tears up, thinking about everything that has happened and how he grew up on a farm. He starts crying as it overwhelms him.
Caprica Six says: “I know, Gaius. I know.”
Now, I believe Ronald Moore said that she originally was going to say, “I know who you are Gaius Baltar. I know who you are.”
However, Tricia Helfer was so overwhelmed with sadness and so overwhelmed with how well James Callis was acting, she only said, “I know…”
I swear I saw Moore talk about this and how it was in instance where the actors outdid the written material.
I added some text to the OP so people who mouse-over the thread won’t see the spoilers. I don’t like to add text to other people’s posts and I apologize for how bad the edit looks. In the future I’ll figure out another way to deal with that issue.