Great episode, made even better by the bar fight. Apollo: “Are you looking for this?” and proceeds to smack the guy in the head with a beer bottle.
OK, I just watched the last two episodes, and I won’t spoil them, but let me just say…HOLY CRAP WHAT AN ENDING!!! Woweewow wow wow!
And this isn’t really a spoiler, but…
Dozens of nekkid Boomers! WOO HOO!!
Two things I didn’t care for:
Apollo wasn’t…Apollo. He was abrasive, arrogant, and just spoiling for a fight at every turn. It didn’t seem like him. I’d’ve figured he’d be holding Starbuck back.
Someone (can’t remember who) tried to defuse the anger towards Zarek’s appointment to the council as “the law states that once they’ve served their term, they regain all rights as citizens.” No problems there, but: I can’t recall if Zarek had actually completed his term and was on his way to a parole hearing? Could someone refresh my memory on that one?
And even if he was on his way to a parole hearing, the guy’d taken over the prison ship, murdered guards and threatened the entire fleet. You’d think that would be good for a couple of months (at least!) added to his sentence. I don’t think he would’ve been able to gain enough points on the water gang to be able to be out in time to run for Vice-President.
Costuming is working on a three-eyed monster as we speak.
The FCC, obviously, did not make it into any escape ships. Rumor has it they were still reviewing the Janet Jackson tape.
They probably need them as much on BSG as we do here and now. (sorry, too easy to pass up, low-hanging fruit and all that) 
Having said that, I cannot see a reason why every able-bodied person hasn’t been deputized. They need a draft, they need every single person learning an applicable trade, such as repair work, nursing, doctors. Hell, they need cooks and launderers too. They don’t need shoddy TV journalism and press briefings, although I’d allow a few documentarians I might just have made that word up. They need people taking down every piece of non-essential material and learning to fabricate them into Vipers. They need more pilots throughout the fleet. They need so much, and we keep getting this politcal bullshit. I find that very, very offputting. You’re being chased by an enemy force, yet they find time for this.
I enjoy this show very much, but episodes like this do not convey to me just how desperate the situation truly is. Helo and Boomerbot Caprika 1 are running for their lives; so are Galatica and her fleet. Both sets are just as desperate. It’s one thing to find small ways to release the tension; it’s another to waste such limited resources in people and time on electing planetary representatives. Ensure you have planets first. Then worry about governing them.
Actually, spending time on political stuff seems pretty realistic to me. Surely at least some people (including some in high places) are clinging to the hope that the fleet will find Earth soon and everything can get back to normal, so why retrain? Besides, although the refugee population is pretty diverse, everyone seems to be used to functioning under a representative-style demoncracy. How accepting are they going to be, as a whole, of being ordered to do anything like take up a new skill? And who’s going to order them - the emergency civilian government already under challenge? Adama, fascist-style?
Yes, common sense would dictate that all have to pitch in to help by whatever means necessary, but it’s still less than 2 months since the destruction of their civilization as they knew it. Post-traumatic stress and resistance to change are likely major problems. And it also makes sense that having lost so much already, they aren’t willing to give up what trappings of civilization they have left, even if those aren’t the most appropriate for the situation.
On a different note, I wonder whether something new is going to develop regarding Apollo and Starbuck. Anyone else catch his behavior at the reception? First he’s absolutely speechless when the beautiful woman he was angling toward at the bar turns out to be her. Later he wanders across the dance floor alone, looking back at Starbuck dancing with Baltar. This could be interesting, watching him struggle with romantic feelings for his dead brother’s fiancée, especially if Starbuck won’t (or feels she can’t) return the sentiment.
I don’t believe so but I presume it’s at the pace of the slowest ship in the fleet.
I also wonder how much time they spend between jumps. We know that they can make jumps every 33 minutes and that basically the crew will break down before the FTL drives.
I have to agree with D_Odds. Basically the only form of government that really makes sense is martial law. The only economy that is practical is strict rationing. There are 40,000 people in a variety of civilain transports under the protection of a single warship. The only supplies they have are what is on board the ships and what they can salvage along the way. Ships and by extension a fleet of ships don’t run like a democracy. There is a strict chain of command. Adama has all the power in the fleet by virtue of having the ability to take the Galactica, its weapons, supplies and fighter wing where and when he pleases. It is only by virtue of his good nature that he must even entertain the thought of obeying the president.
Now an argument can be made that all the political and other BS is necessary because people need something to do. The alternative is 40,000 people sitting around in their cargo holds, shipping containers and coach seats becoming more and more anxious and depressed over the fact that at some point those ships are going to run ot of food, water, fuel or replacement parts long before they find an inhabitable planet.
Um…any chance a couple of Number Sixes…er…happen upon them and…well…uh…decide to continue their feud? Um…in Jello?
sunfish, I agree with you, regarding people’s resistance to retraining and not being amenable to an authoritarian style of government. However, the survivors are literally in a do or die situation, which the episode titled 33 should have hammered home. They need to adjust quickly. My view would be that anyone not directly helping the chance of survival of the fleet and of the race is hurting the chance of survival, and anyone hurting the chance of survival is the enemy. MaddyStrut, marketing manager, becomes MaddyStrut, technical writer. Using some of the same skills, and other skills important to the job, she documents training material for any and every subject under the sun.
Aside:
authoritarian: Characterized by or favoring absolute obedience to authority, as against individual freedom
fascist: An advocate or adherent of fascism, a system of government marked by centralization of authority under a dictator, stringent socioeconomic controls, suppression of the opposition through terror and censorship, and typically a policy of belligerent nationalism and racism. American Heritage Dictionary
Same ends, different routes. Adama doesn’t strike me as a fascist.
Hmmmmm…
What if Kobal IS Earth?
Damn, another really good episode!
I can’t get any of my friends IRL into this series, so it’s especially rewarding to be able to come into CS and see how many people on this MB are enjoying it.
I, too, cracked up when the female reporter popped out of the bathroom stall. What I find a little weak, though, is why so many people are getting behind Zarek. I don’t think the writers have given us enough of his backstory to explain why he generates so much sympathy-- it seems awfully forced. Everytime the credits roll and I see “Richard Hatch”, I can’t help but think of the OTHER guy with that name…! The political maneuverings in the plot were top-notch. I loved the “health reasons” line, especially given the real “health reasons” that President SWAF has.
And of course our all-purpose Viper Pilots are now expert security presonnel. Was that a cane Starbuck was using in the bar fight?
I haven’t seen or peeked at the season ending episodes, so I’m just guessing that: They find Kobol, and discover that’s where all the Cylons went after the first war. It’s now the Cylon homeworld. That’s where the Cylons found religion and their love/hate fascination with humanity.
I’d be interested to know how far into space the Colonists ever explored. Reading between the lines, I’d say that the twelve Colonies were the only habitable planets known. The rest of the galaxy consists of naked rocks, lumps of ice and balls of gas. Other than a few mining outposts there’s nowhere known worth going. Still, with fast easy FTL you’d think that the Colonial Stellar Cartography Society would have at least done surveys out to a year’s travel time.
That’s pretty much what Tom Zarek was saying.
I haven’t seen or peeked at the season ending episodes, so I’m just guessing that: They find Kobol, and discover that’s where all the Cylons went after the first war. It’s now the Cylon homeworld. That’s where the Cylons found religion and their love/hate fascination with humanity.
I’d be interested to know how far into space the Colonists ever explored. Reading between the lines, I’d say that the twelve Colonies were the only habitable planets known. The rest of the galaxy consists of naked rocks, lumps of ice and balls of gas. Other than a few mining outposts there’s nowhere known worth going. Still, with fast easy FTL you’d think that the Colonial Stellar Cartography Society would have at least done surveys out to a year’s travel time.
That’s pretty much what Tom Zarek was saying.
But Apollo said he trusted Zarek, and then Zarek took him hostage and let him get severely beaten, and God knows what else, at the hands of a bunch of angry, violent prisoners. I think Apollo had every right to be spoiling for a fight.
Also, as much as Adama & Roslin don’t like it, Apollo essentially pardoned, or paroled, or whatever you want to call it when he gave Zarek the prison ship in return for freeing the hostages. I don’t think you can give them the whole ship and still say “you’ve still got four years on your sentence.” Adama would be more than happy to do that, but Roslin can’t afford that politically.
Anyway, Apollo’s character was downplayed a bit mid-season because the actor’s wife gave birth and he took paternity leave. I think when he got back, they wanted to reestablish him as a strong character in his own right, and not just Starbuck’s wussy little kicking boy with daddy issues.
Are all these Twelve Colonies in the same star system, or in a small (by interstellar standards) neighborhood of star systems? Or are they spread out over a whole galactic sector? If the former, that leaves open the possibility that there are plenty of other habitable planets – the humans might even know of such, but they’ve been too busy with domestic concerns to do a lot of exploring. If the latter, it suggests habitable worlds are very rare in the galaxy – but it also strains credulity that the colonies would have a central government, or that the Cylons would be able to launch a coordinated surprise attack on all 12 colonies at once.
D_Odds, yes you’re right about Adama not being a fascist. Poor choice of words on my part.
Still, these are by and large a people in shock, and it is still early days (despite being near the end of the season 
). Even given a willing populace, it would take a fair amount of time to assess the skills of those capable of assisting (i.e., excluding the injured, children, and elderly) and re-assign them to new tasks, some of which might require them to transfer to new ships for the proper training (and which could be a source of resistance in itself). From a security standpoint, I also see the ship-swapping as a risk - how are people to help identify potential Cylons if the population is fluid, and new faces are a matter of course? The trainers also need to have the time to train new folks properly, which they may not yet have had in the rush to get away and the pressing need deal with the immediate/emergency infrastructural issues on individual ships.
IMHO, Zarek is appealing because he gets people fired up about wanting to DO something rather than feel helpless. That’s all fine and dandy, but what sort of background does he have (other than being a terrorist to some, freedom fighter of sorts to others) to actually put any plans into motion?
I find that Pres. Roslin lately is a rather different person from the nervous, somewhat tentative and idealistic person she appeared to be initially. This episode’s behind-the-scenes machinations show that underneath the pleasant exterior there is a woman who is ready to play hardball. I don’t know how much that stems from her illness, and how much from a better appreciation of the harsh reality of their situation and/or Adama’s approach to command. Whatever the reason, I find it intriguing, and I like it a lot. In contrast to Adama’s management style, though, which is out in the open, Roslin is behaving like a classic politician - letting the people have what they’re asking for while manipulating things in the background to get her way. I think the storyline developing around her, Baltar, Zarek and Ellen Tighe is going to be damn interesting.
John Mace, Starbuck was indeed using her cane in the bar fight.
Well it seems pretty clear from the audence point of view that the cylon detector program is meaningless, as Balther simply lies about results.
I don’t know if she took action personally, but she is clearly sleazy evil. She provided information leading to the death, as well as continuously whispering evil nothings into Tighs ear.
With Balther, producer Ron Moore pointed out that balther is not percieved as crazy by the crew, in this episodes pod broadcast commentary. We see things they don’t, and much of this happens in private, and he is good at “multi-tasking” to hid Six responses. His written response is “hey so , big deal I talk to myself” He appeared as articulate in this episode making it reasonable to vote for him since “he has the super genuis vote”, popular in media, and has worked closely with the president since the start. We, of course, know that Balther is always only out for himself, and can think of little else.
REMINDER: Label your spoilers.
“Hmm” is not a label. This one should be called “idle speculation.”
Thank you.
You know, this new, increasingly tedious & complicated spoiler policy is going to kill discussion of this show. Why not just start a thread “no spoilers” and a thread “spoilers?”
Or how about, just clearly articulating what should go in a spoiler, and then yelling at people who violate it? This, "put whatever you want in a spoiler, and then describe what you are spoiling, without actually spoiling it, and then coding [with color coding even!] a spoiler box and then actually discussing the show…
Meh.
Glad I can serve as an example of putting the worthless to good use!
I have to wonder if people wouldn’t find their way into productive activities without some state mandate. After the shock has worn off, the junk bond trader is going to realize he’s not contributing anything or getting special perks. Meanwhile, the mechanic he would have formerly sneered at is being sought after and likely getting a lot of recognition and privileges. Given that they have finite resources, they’re going to have to ration things. Those who prove themselves valuable will stand a better chance of getting those resources. Eventually, that junk bond trader is going to decide that he has to contribute. While he can’t really work in his old profession, he does have a knowlege of finance, economics, etc. that can be put to good use.
It seems the whole power/status structure of society has been shaken up and people are going to be jockeying for position like crazy. Hell, even a washed up bar fly like Ellen Tigh is doing her best to advance herself!
The whole point is that it’s supposed to be the opposite of tedious and complicated. Put whatever you want in the spoiler box, but tell us what’s in it, so we know whether it’s safe to highlight. Period, end of rule. I did this because I saw in other threads an extended debate about what’s appropriate and what isn’t: “What about the preview? It showed at the end of this episode, so it should be fair game. What about Internet previews that include stuff not in the TV preview? What about rumors of next week’s show? Rumors of next season?” etc. etc. People went back and forth, what about this, what about that. The spoiler rule at the beginning of the “Lost” threads is like a paragraph and a half. In my view, a simple rule — label your spoiler — eliminates all of that.
If people disagree, obviously we can reconsider. But again, the whole point of a simple rule — “label your spoiler” — is that it’s a simple rule. It’s entirely beyond me how that becomes “increasingly tedious and complicated.”
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