Guest Post : On BSG Old Vs New

Posted on by Roshan 2 Comments

This was a comment by Greg on an old post of mine, Battlestar Galactica : Old vs New – it is so epic in nature and I enjoyed reading it so much (infact I read it 3 times) that I just had to post it here.

To me Battlestar Galactica showed science fiction what not to do when you pick up a well established name. You donā€™t cover over what people loved. You donā€™t try to wipe out or re-imagine something that is dear to people. We got to see with this show what happens. A loyal fanbase gets defensive of a show that they had been entrenched with for 20 years (yarhens) and then you get the old vs. new happening. Yes, the new Battlestar tipped its hat many times to the original series. The series itself from what I gathered rebuilds the whole timeline of the original series told in one and a quarter seasons and expands the story to four seasons.

For one, I wished the Battlestar Pegasus has stayed around longer than two episodes. In the new series you get that. The new series also fills in a lot of ā€œwhat ifā€™sā€ that were asked with the original series. Iā€™ve heard a lot of this. My friends sifted out a lot of the good of the series for me out of the quagmire of seemingly aimless writing that happened around the third season.

But like I mentioned earlier, Battlestar Galactica showed what NOT to do. Donā€™t try to tell fans something they loved never happened. The first thing the fans will say is ā€œF*** you, I know it happened and you canā€™t deny it.ā€ (see also ā€œThe Star Wars Holiday Specialā€ and George Lucas.)

Thanks to Battlestar Galactica, when Doctor Who continued on, they might have been tempted to say the previous years and regenerations never happened, but instead, they fully embraced the past, (even including the American movie). And now Doctor Who, while always a popular show in Britian, is probably more popular throughout the world. Doctor Who is no longer for geeks (as I remembered in the 80?s), but also of many many hot girls and women throughout the world!! (I certainly donā€™t remember THAT happening in the 80?s, but it is certainly the case now.)

When the Star Trek movies came out, they wanted to go in new directions. They establish in the movie that Spock prime came from a alternate timeline. Bravo!! Now they have said that BOTH will be cannon. You have the Trek we used to know with the Trek we will come to know. Both are legit. Very well played. And now the new Trek is loved quite a lot by old and new fans.

And speaking of the ā€œā€¦ that we used to knowā€¦ā€ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJlbPXZEpRE

ā€¦Star Wars made a very similar mistake that Battlestar made, only on a much much smaller scale. You have George Lucas claiming that there was no Holiday Special, that Greedo shot first, and as the song above said, that the first three movies were inferior. This alone led to some ill feelings, and those are only minor changes.

In time the books and comics would establish that there was a re-imagined and classic Battlestar universe. This made me happy. Basically what Star Trek was able to say in its own cannon to fans that as Battlestar fans we had to figure out on our own. At conventions I have talked to Herb Jefferson Jr (Boomer) who didnā€™t seem overly impressed with the new series, but seemed to have a attitude that they will do what they want to do with it. Talking to Anne Lockhart (Sheba) (a real sweethart) said she just hadnā€™t seen the new show last I talked to her. We all know what Dirk Benedict thought of the new show (at least as of 2007 and 2011). And in truth I can agree with Dirk on what a lot of what he says.

However, on the times Iā€™ve come across Richard Hatch (at conventions), who was at first avidly against the new series, he has had some interesting things to say. Basically said he liked working with the new series. And the reasons given were very good ones. Basically said there seemed to be more thought and planning put into the new series, along with resources. And it is true, ABC gave Battlestar more and more limited support as the show fought to stay on the air. By the time ā€œGalactica 1980? rolled around, the budget was cut in half and the story was severly limited to limited acts of violence since it was during family prime time hours. The new show would have all the support and leeway and time needed to tell their story. Ultimately, I am glad that Richard Hatch found working with the new crew to be a enjoyable experience.

As for me, I have read articles like this, talked to friends, talked to cast members. I salute the new series but remain in the classic universe.

I would have actively watched the new series if it had been called something else. I would have loved the show too Iā€™m pretty sure. I might have said (as I said with Space Above and Beyond) ā€œthis show is a lot LIKE Battlestar Galacticaā€¦ kinda a rip off, but I like it!!ā€ But now I wonā€™t watch it simply because they went about presenting this new story, as I perceive, the wrong way.

Funny eh?

The Return Of Starbuck

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Recently I started watching the original Battlestar Galactica all over again and had also started downloading Galactica 1980 – the inexpensive and inferior spinoff to the 1978 series. Also as I have probably mentioned, I recently got a copy of the entire 4 seasons of the new BSG. But my favourite and sentimentally attached episode is from the 1980 10 series season. It’s called The Return Of Starbuck and it blows everything else off just because of the storyline.

In it, the mysterious Dr. Zee’s origins are explained; he is the one telling Cdr. Adama about a dream he had, which is actually a true story. Starbuck & Boomer are battling a bunch of Cylon raiders and although they destroy all but one (which is damaged and crashes on a planet), the mood is not celebratory. This is due to the fact that Sarbuck’s viper is also hit and he cannot make it back to the ship. The only option is for him to either drift off and die or try to land. Boomer goes back to Galatica, which is plagued by attacking cylon raiders. He pleads to Adama for help in saving Starbuck but understands when the patriarch states that they cannot go back, even if Adama wanted to so badly. Starbuck is lost to the rest of the fleet.

The warrior lands on an uninhabited planet and is alive but has barely enough rations to last a few days. He has accepted his fate and searches for a makeshift shelter. He then see something that startles him, something he never expected – the damaged cylon raider lies crashed on a plain. Cautions, Starbuck approaches the wreckage with his weapon raised but he needn’t worry – the three cylons are all damaged an out of power. Lonely and desperate for companionship, Starbuck sets off to repair one of the cylon, using parts from the other two and powering it with the raider’s generator. Once activated, the cylon tries to attack the colonial warrior, but the latter manages to convince his enemy that they both need each other and co-exist in this planet as they are the only inhabitants. ‘Cy’ as Starbuck christens the Cylon, is then taught about humans, their way of life and also a game of cards called pyramids.

However, soon it is obvious that Starbuck needs human companionship, female in particular. Cy gets “offended” when Starbuck changes the rules of pyramid in order to keep himself amused. He says that he will find Starbuck a female companion and leaves into the freezing cold night. Starbuck waits and hopes that Cy hasn’t hurt himself in the poor light but is astonished when the cylon brings back a pregnant female human who is unconscious. This woman, who Starbuck takes care of, delivers a baby boy in a few days. She then tells Starbuck that the cylons will be coming soon, attracted by the distress beacon that the damaged raider had automatically soon. With Cy’s help, Starbuck constructs a one seater shuttle, taking parts from his damaged cockpit and the raider. Soon three cylons arrive and while the woman is safely sent off in the shuttle with her baby, Starbuck faces off against the three centurions.

Cy arrives with his weapon repaired and shoots 2 of the cylons dead; but the third one damages Cy with a shot. Sarbuck kills the 3rd cylon and rushes to the aid of his friend. The dying cylon pledges his friendship to Starbuck, till now never acknowledging it and dies out. Starbuck cannot repair him and settles for life alone on the planet. The baby reached Galatica safely, but his mother has vanished. The baby turns out to be Dr. Zee and the mother is a higher being sent to ‘judge’ Starbuck and deems him to be worthy & good. The script for an unfilmed sequel to this episode, as the series was canceled, lets us know that Starbuck is eventually rescued from the planet by theĀ Seraphs, the inhabitants of theĀ Ship of Lights, of which Angela, the baby’s mother, was one. The entire affair had been set up by the Seraphs as a test of Starbuck’s worthiness to join them.

This episode has always remained strong in my mind and been the epitome of loneliness, atleast to me. As such it is one of the most nostalgic memories of my childhood – I was 5 when this episode originally aired and probably 7 or 8 when I first watched it – and is a perennial favourite of mine. You will agree if you have seen it.

Caprica : The Pilot

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Caprica – although I’ve read about and heard about this prequel to Battlestar Galatica (Sci-fi has fallen to the prey of prequels big time) for a while, it was only two nights ago that I thought of getting a download of the pilot and watching it. I was/am a huge fan of the original series and although I get the new BSG, I’m not a fan of the very Earth like appearances that they have. Like cars, clothes (suits, hats & ties), houses, politics & religion. It’s all so Earth-like! I know a whole bunch of people like that element but this is a world that is supposed to be thousands of light years away from us and that existed eons ago. Why would they have the same things that we do, albeit a lot more advanced? That is just so that non-Scifi geeks (unlike geeks like me) can get it through their un-imaginative brains!

Lol, all jokes aside, I do like the new BSG and now Caprica too – well going by the pilot, it is a little dull in places but my interest is high. The pilot starts 58 years before the destruction of the 12 colonies and William Adama is but a young kid of 11. We see the two central families of the series – the Adamas & the Graystones – brought together in grief over the deaths of loved ones in a religious terrorist attack. Daniel Graystone (Eric Stotlz) is a wealthy scientist who creates the first Cylon, the mechanical race destined to destroy the Twelve Colonies. Joseph Adama (Esai Morales) is a boarder-line corrupt lawyer tied to the Tauron mob.

The terrorists believe in one god, while the rest believe in many gods. Graystone lost his daughter, Zoe (Alessandra Torresani), a 16 year old genius who created a virtual reality world. Her feelings, memories & emotions are stored in an avatar in this world. Adama lost his daughter & wife in the same terrorist attack – Ben Stark (Avan Jogia), who along with Zoe & Lacy are tied to the one god religious thinking, detonates a bomb in the train in which he, Zoe & Adama’s wife & daughter are travelling in.

When Daniel discovers this virtual world & Zoe’s avatar through her best friend Lacy, he has but one aim – to bring forth his daughter into a new artificial body. The first attempt is to download her avatar into his metallic cylon (so happy to see the original design here) but it looks like a failure. Adama is initially intrigued at seeing his daughter’s avatar in the virtual world but is soon disgusted with what Daniel wants to do. He does not think that the artificial bodies will substitute for their lost daughters and wants no part of it.

Towards the end of the pilot, Graystone gets the contract for a government project to build & distribute his cylons, after a convincing demonstration of it’s military aspects. And then the cylon with Zoe’s downloaded avatar reactivates itself and is horrified to see that she is in a robotic body and panics. She contacts Lacy for help.

Positives: – strong cast, character depth and a strong plot (even if I hate the religious overtones that post 9/11 has affected television) and good special effects. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the story unfolds.

Negatives:- what is more than a nod to Islam (Yousef Adama indeed), too much Earth like appearances, with an unimaginatively disguised tennis court & game, Earth clothes, shops, buildings & general outlook. Come’ on Ronald Moore!

New BSG Movie Based On Original

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Ok, this is interesting and exciting but I must confess that it might become a bit confusing to the casual observer and only the sci-fi crazy (I include myself among them) will actually get it. Director Bryan Singer is going to take on directing and producing duties for a BSG movie.

“Glen Larson, who created original series back in 1978, will produce as well. The film is not expected to be a continuation of current popular television show that just completed it’s 4 year run on the Syfy network but will be a complete re-imagining of the sci-fi lore that was invented by Larson back in the ’70s.”

Now here’s the confusing part – BSG the original and BSG the reimagined is quite different. I prefer the original premise but the latter has been more successful & popular and it’s more recent as well. So that is what’s gonna be fresh in most people’s memories. So the new movie will be with Cylons that actually look like cylons and not people, no high handed ‘God works in mysterious ways plan’, no ghosts and goblins & hopefully Starbuck will be the womanizing, fun loving dude we all came to admire in the original.

Old BSG Opening Titles Theme

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Here’s the opening titles theme from the original Battlestar Galactica. I tried, I really tried to like the new BSG and see what all the fuss was about. People kept raving about it and saying that it’s way better than anything else currently on tv and it”s massively more technically advanced and that it’s darker & more mature that the old one.

Well it’s darker alright and the characters are more fleshed out. But you’ve got to remember that the original was made in 1978 and the special effects were limited. However, I’m comparing the original’s theme about an advanced race of humans who were separated from us on Earth, now looking for us to survive after their home worlds got destroyedĀ  by an alien race. The new one says nothing about aliens but it’s more like an American vs Arab terrorists in the sky (they look like us, speak like us, engineered to be like us).

Yes the storyline is fascinating in the new BSG and I would want to know how it all ends. But the copies of cylons is boring me. I want the nostalgic BSG, that was a huge part of my childhood. It’s optimism in the face of adversary and yes there’s a lot of humour in it. And I love the old opening theme way better than the ‘Gayathri Mantra’ opening in the new one (so they weren’t Americans but actually Hindus?). I guess I’ll never like the new one better than the original. But if you prefer the new one, that’s ok. Cause it’s good too! But……

Battlestar Galactica Final Season

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Battlestar Galactica season 4 will start airing today (not in India), resuming the cult series for the final time. The series is poised for a climatic conclusion, with Kara ‘Starbuck’ Thrace, returning from what was presumed to be death, showing up in her viper and stating to have been to Earth and that she will lead the fleet to her. What will progress, I can only guess.

download electric apricot I haven’t yet been able to watch this show on tv here. I have seen quite a few episodes online on Veoh but Zee English is not one of the channels that I get with my stupid cable operator, hence I don’t get to see BSG. And they have deleted the episodes on Veoh due to copyright issues (I think).

I have asked around for getting the series on dvd and a couple have assured me that they will get atleast the 1st two seasons for me within the month. Then I will be able to follow the entire series, although I do know what has been happening all along (thanks to the internet).

Battlestar Galactica : Razor

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Lucky me, I was able to download a copy of Battlestar Galactica : Razor the new tele movie from the makers of the new series. It serves as an apetizer for the 4th and finals season of BSG. The events of the movie are partially in flashback mode. Lee Adama as his XO; she was considered to be Cain’s legacy. First coming aboard Pegasus less than an hour before the Cylon attack on the colonies, Shaw helped Admiral Cain make a risky “blind jump” that saved the ship from destruction at Scorpion Fleet Shipyards and earned her Cain’s respect & trust. Kendra’s flashbacks tell us about how Cain’s inspiring speech on learning about the destruction of the colonies, rallied the crew. And of how Cain shot her executive officer, Jurgen Belzen (Steve Bacic), who she was very close to, for refusing an order to attack a Cylon staging area filled with raiders at the risk of losing people.

We also come to know about how the cylon Gina Invierre (Tricia Helfer) came to be discovered. Gina worked on the Pegasus and was having a lesbian relationship with Cain. It was also during the mission in which Belzen is shot, that Kendra sees Gina helping Cylon centurions board the Pegasus and sees another copy of Number 6. Cain is furious and imprisons Gina and has her beaten & raped as torture. Kendra also started a massacre of innocent civilians on smaller ships, as Cain orders her crew to take all useful parts from the ships.

Meanwhile, Starbuck & Kendra clash on a rescue mission when Shaw makes a defensive maneuver to protect Pegasus despite endangering Starbuck and her wingman. Both pilots land safely but an old Cylon raider (the ones in the old BSG series) crashes into Pegasus. Sharon Agathon informs the others about a Cylon myth that tells of a group of original centurions tasked to guard the first hybrid built by the Cylons as a result of their human experiments. Admiral Adama then recalls his rookie mission as a viper pilot, when he encountered the same hybrid, and concludes that the Cylons must still be pursuing the experiments with the captured science team as new test subjects.

They decide to go after the base star, arm a nuclear warhead and destroy it. Kendra & Starbuck are in the team that lands in a raptor into the base star. The get in but are discovered by the old cylons and a shoot-out ensues during which a couple of humans are lost and Kendra is injured by a shot. The warhead gets damaged which means that someone must stay behind to manually trigger the weapon. Shaw holds a gun to Starbuck’s head and makes her leave with the others. Alone on the ship, she is about to detonate the warhead when she comes face to face with the old Cylon hybrid, which looks like an old man in a tank.

The hybrid, seemingly wise, offers absolution to Kendra for her part in the massacre of innocent lives. He also tells her that Kara Thrace is “the herald of the apocalypse, the harbinger of death” and that “they must not follow her.” An astonished Kendra tries to relay this information to Lee Adama, but is stopped when the Cylons jam communications. Her final act is to detonate the nuclear warhead by hand, destroying the basestar.

Adama & Lee reflect on Cain and Kendra as Adama decides to recommend a posthumous commendation for Kendra despite Lee’s protest. He states that Kendra butchered many innocent civilians but Adams says that the commendation is necessary under the circumstances as Pegasus’ crew will need it to soldier on. Lee finally agrees.

The razor in the title refers to a razor knife that we see Kendra fiddling with. It used to be Cain’s and it was given to Kendra as a sign of respect.

Battlestar Galactica : Season 1

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I’ve finished watching the entire 1st season of Battlestar Galactica a few days back but somehow I put off blogging about it till today. All things said, I do like the series, I am a big fan of it now. However, if you ask me, which one I prefer — it will still be the original series! Actually, watching the new BSG made me appreciate the old one even more! There are some very interesting characters changed / added to the series which make it very compelling to watch. So, a cylon attack on the 12 colonies means that the remainder of the humans must make their way away from their home space. Led by ‘Commander Adama’, the humans set out in various spaceships surrounding the lone surviving Battlestar, the Galactica, in search of a lost mythical 13th colony, Earth, and a new home. My fav addition to BSG is the character Karl ‘Helo’ Agathon, played by actor Tahmoh Penikett. ‘Helo’ gave up his seat on a raptor so that ‘Dr.Baltar’ can escape to the Galactica. He survived on the radiation poison filled Caprica by injecting antidotes and later captured by Cylons. He was rescued by a copy of Sharon and falls in love with her.

watch field of dreams online The two of them make their way to Delphi, where Helo sees another replica of Sharon and realizes that she is a cylon. He runs away but she catches up with him and says that she loves him and that she is carrying their baby. Meanwhile on Battlestar Galactica, the new President Laura Roslin butt heads with Adama, while winning the loyalty & respect of his son Apollo. Apollo and Starbuck have a complicated relationship due to the death of Zack – Apollo’s brother and Starbucks’ former lover & trainer. Col.Tigh is an alcoholic (played brilliantly by veteran actor Michael Hogan, plagued by his promiscuous wife’s behaviour and her pushing him towards greater power. He also is very unpopular, especially with Starbuck & Apollo.

Commander Adama, played by James Edward Olmos, so very different that the almost grandfatherly original Adama (played by Lorne Greene, is a loyal & deeply respected man. He sometimes makes decisions that he does not like but has to take for the best of everyone. He gets shot by Sharon – which leads me to her! Sharon is actually a cylon, one of the several bearing the same likeness. At the end of season one, she shoots Adama in an assassination attempt that fails, when her cylon self is awakened while on a mission. Baltar becomes a part of the crew and even becomes popular & the vice-president to Roslin, all the while being coaxed & guided by a version of Number 6 in his mind.

Number 6, portrayed by Tricia Helfer, is a sex kitten, steaming my computer screen as I watch her sway past in various sexy outfits. The season ends on a gloomy note when Adama is killed and a raptor crashes on Kobol. Number 6 leads Baltar to a location and shows him the child that they are both about to have. Starbuck travels back to Caprica in search of the Arrow of Apollo, which is supposed to lead them to Earth. Roslin confronts Adama on the fact that although he claims to know the location of Earth, he actually liked and does not believe that Earth exists! He only said that to boost the morale of his people and for them to have something to hope for. Roslin hires Starbuck to find the arrow and she leaves for Caprica and finds Helo & Sharon alive on the planet. Sharon leaves them both on the planet on a cyclon ship.

So what is gonna happen next? I’ve already started viewing Season 2.

Battlestar Galactica Miniseries

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Ok I finally downloaded and saw the entire over three hours mini-series of Battlestar Galactica : the new re-imagined series. Deviating somewhat from the classic original 1978 movie, BSG features some new characters and changes the sex of a couple of the original ones. The special effects are fantastic and the entire thing is worth watching several times, so – ok, I admit it! This thing could be one of the best things on tv. However I do have my gripes with the series. First of all, I think the new cylons who look & act human are good but I can’t stand the fact that they have multiple cyclons that look similar (played by the same actor). That is so annoying and old. And cylons as babes – not sure that I like it.

I don’t think that I like James Edward Olmos as Commander Adama – he is no Lorne Green and pales in comparison. President Roslin, played by Mary McDonnell is welcome as is the character of Chief Galen Tyrol played by Aaron Douglas. I like the fact (upon reading on the net) that Tahmoh Penikett who plays Karl “Helo” Agathon is a returning character, since it is not sure as to what happens to him, after he sacrifices his spot in the spaceship so that Baltar can be rescued. The best character I liked was of Colonel Tigh played by Michael Hogan. In 1978, African-American actor Terry Carter played him as a by the book, respected & reliable second-in-command, while Hogan plays him flawed as an alcoholic and not well liked amongst the crew, especially by Starbuck.

And the whole show seems too Earth like – jogging, tv cameras, mikes, etc etc! And Kara Thrace can never in a billion years be a proper Starbuck – the loveable rogue who seduced women left, right & center, who was afraid of commitment and loved to gamble and played by the actor Dirk Benedict. Thrace is a chick and she can’t hold a candle to Dirk. Plus she comes off too, well, American in this show about characters who are supposed to know nothing about America! Her mannerisms and language is so American. I felt that the original series captured the aspect of human but not of Earth much better than their current counterparts. And Boomer is a girl! I am sure that they are gonna have a sexual liason between Starbuck & Apollo, who is nothing like the 1978 Apollo (he is resentful of his father about Zack’s death). Imagine Richard Hatch & Dirk Benedict kissing or having sex. Yuck!

Still, it is a good show and entertaining and I will be a regular watcher of the series when it comes on tv here or by just downloading episodes by Veoh.com.

There are those who believe that life here, began out there

Battlestar Galactica : Old vs New

Posted on by Roshan 38 Comments

I have been a huge fan of Battlestar Galactica ever since I can remember. This is my most happiest childhood memory – watching & discussing the series, which I consider to be the very best to have been shown on television. The show started in the late 1970s as a feature film (Battlestar Galactica : Saga Of A Lost World) and then a short lived series. In 1980 a spinoff of the show was again short lived but still enjoys a huge cult following across the globe. The show(s) is still held dearly by the many fans who pushed for the series to be revived by holding petitions online (me included).

Richard Hatch aka Apollo, one of the main characters of BSG was foremost among them. And it was heard! A new series was made, with the same mystical & mythical name – Battlestar Galactica. A few years ago, I had found some sites that featured the series and felt very nostalgic as I read through the episode stories and downloaded wallpapers, images & the majestic theme song (which I must say is the world’s best theme song ever). I hoped that the series would be revived and that I would be able to see it. Then three years or more ago, I found a dvd of the movie which I bought immediately and I have seen it over 10 times since. But I wanted more. Let me tell you of http://www.alluc.org a website which lets us either download or stream movies & television series for free. And I watched many BSG episodes in the last couple of days. But now to the matter at hand.

The re-imaging of Battlestar Galactica as they call it produced a new series, which is very popular, that is quite different from the original. And as grateful as I am for keeping the dream alive and well, I don’t like it much. I mean I will probably start watching it if they show it from the beginning. I tried watching an episode online but let me tell you that it put me off. There is just too many changes. Starbuck is a girl!!! Boomer is a girl!!! Ok she is a very sexy girl but still! And Cylons are former international models in evening gowns, sun tanning their bodies in beaches! And every picture has them pose in what is termed as sexy poses, with their bosoms all thrusted out! What the fuck! Adama is James Olmos who is a turd! How can you compare him with the late great actor Lorne Greene? Baltar, who was so ominously portrayed as a scheming & un-trustworthy villain by another late actor, John Colicos is now some overacted & second rate British loser. Will Apollo & Starbuck make out?

The scenario for the original series is Humans of the 12, much scientifically advanced, colonies seeking Earth for survival. But the new series shows them much like Earth Humans! I don’t like the changes! Ok, so had I not seen the original, I might have loved this show. And like I stated earlier, I probably will watch it if I can start from the first episode of the first season. But really! The one thing which I think is better is the Colonial Viper. Look below.