The Hub

"The Hub" An episode of the Re-imagined Series
Episode No.	Season 4, Episode 9
Writer(s)	Jane Espenson
Story by
Director	Paul Edwards
Assistant Director
Special guest(s)
Production No.	411
Nielsen Rating	1.3
US airdate	06 June 2008
CAN airdate	06 June 2008
UK airdate	10 June 2008
DVD release	6 January 2009
Population	39,673 survivors ( 1)
Additional Info
Episode Chronology
Previous		Next
Sine Qua Non	The Hub	Revelations
Related Information
Official Summary
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Pursuing the Resurrection Hub at the whim of the Hybrid, a team of Viper pilots and Cylon rebels become uneasy collaborators as they formulate a battle plan to unbox the Three known as D'Anna Biers, and destroy Cylon resurrection forever. Meanwhile, Roslin and Baltar try desperately to communicate with the panicking Hybrid and Karl Agathon discovers a disturbing characteristic within one of the Eights.

Summary

The episode takes place concurrently with "Sine Qua Non."

Teaser

• Starting off from the last events of "Guess What's Coming to Dinner?," Laura Roslin, Karl Agathon and Gaius Baltar are brought before the rebel Cylon Basestar's Hybrid. After a Number Eight reconnects the Hybrid, she unexpectedly jumps the ship.
• During the jump, Roslin finds herself in an empty corridor onboard Galactica. As she looks around, Elosha appears behind her. After they hug, the vision stops and Roslin finds herself back in the Hybrid's room. Roslin inquires after the Hybrid's abilities as an Eight tries to get information from the data-font, however the Hybrid jumps the ship again, and Roslin finds herself back with Elosha in Galactica's empty corridors. Roslin makes this observation, to which Elosha replies it makes the ship feel bigger; Roslin further points out the experience is strange, to which Elosha replies "many things are strange."
• The two end up in sickbay, where the only occupied (and lit) bed is occupied by Roslin herself, who is dying.

Act 1

• An Eight determines the Hybrid is panicking due to whatever damage Natalie sustained aboard Galactica. Gaius Baltar attempts to calm it, initially appearing to be successful, but the Hybrid jumps again. Roslin's vision continues, and she sees Kara Thrace, Dr. Cottle and the Adamas standing over her bed. Elosha speaks to the dying Roslin, chastising her for her lack of empathy.
• The Eight tells Karl Agathon the Hybrid is following the Resurrection Hub and discusses an attack strategy with him.
• When the Eight massages Agathon's back, he comments that his wife learned to do so only after meeting him, and the Eight reveals she accessed Athena's memories from her last download.
• Agathon speaks to Roslin in the Raptor. The president tells him that he is to bring the Number Three known as D'Anna Biers directly to her and not to the Cylons.
• On the Resurrection Hub, D'Anna Biers is awakened by Cavil and Boomer, who tell her about the Cylon Civil War which was caused by her actions. D'Anna makes a disparaging remark about Eights' fickleness.

Act 2

Roslin and Baltar attempting to talk to the Hybrid about the Opera House vision.

• In the Basestar hangar, Agathon and an Eight give a mission briefing to a group of pilots, consisting of Sixes, Eights and Colonial pilots. Several pilots, notably Paolo "Redwing" McKay and Eammon "Gonzo" Pike, express concerns about their safety and the reliability of the Cylon pilots. A Six rebukes the pilot, saying Cylon pilots are just as well trained as the humans, and the Eight reminds them that they learned to trust Athena, so they can also trust their rebel allies.
• Baltar and Roslin attempt to question the Hybrid with little success. They bicker and Baltar walks off, then the Hybrid declares a Three has been unboxed and jumps again.
• Continuing the vision, Elosha and Roslin walk through the hallways of Galactica. Roslin speculates Elosha and the visions are a manifestation of her subconscious. Roslin and Elosha see William Adama reading Searider Falcon to the dying Roslin.
• After the jump, Baltar talks to a Centurion about hierarchy and religion, asserting that Centurions are loved by God as well.
• Speaking to Roslin, Agathon is disappointed she wants to betray the alliance between humans and Cylons, and thinks they can trust the Eights. Roslin tells him he shouldn't let his experiences with his wife cloud his judgment and orders him to carry out her request. Suddenly an alarm goes off and Agathon realizes they have reached the hub.

Act 3

• On the Resurrection Hub, Boomer comments with alarm on the arrival of the rebel Basestar. Cavil tries to convince D'Anna to talk to the rebels and defuse the conflict, but she replies curtly and threatens to shout out the names of the Final Five. Boomer reports the rebel basestar has launched 25 Heavy Raiders.
• Outside the Hub, the rebels' Heavy Raiders release the Vipers they have been towing behind them. The Raiders attack defending Basestars, while the Vipers head towards the Hub.
• Cavil deduces the rebels are attempting to destroy the Hub, and comments that doing so would be mass murder, and would make death permanent for Cylons. On hearing this D'Anna crushes Cavil's neck and Boomer flees.
• Missiles destroy a node at the top of the Hub, taking out its FTL drive. Subsequently, Agathon and the Eight head towards the Hub in a Raptor. On the Hub, they encounter D'Anna and the dead Cavil. Seeing explosions around them, Agathon tells D'Anna to run, and grabs her arm.
• Eammon Pike panics as his Raptor is almost disabled and wants to jump back to the Fleet. Diana Seelix urges him not to, telling him the Fleet is too far way. When Pike is initiating the jump, the Raptor is hit by fire from a Raider, hitting Pike in the chest, though he manages to hit the jump button.
• On the Hub, Agathon hesitates upon seeing a number of inert Number Eight bodies. The Eight tells him they should leave, and drags the objecting D'Anna.
• Baltar continues to evangelize to the Centurion, but as the Basestar is hit by a missile salvo, the explosion destroys the Centurion and seriously injures Baltar.
• Two Marines carry Baltar to a bed while Roslin carries in a medkit. Roslin orders them out, bandaging Baltar and injecting him with morpha. In his drug-induced state, Baltar talks to Roslin about religion, telling her he once harbored terrible guilt. Pressed on as to what his guilt is for, he tells Roslin he unwittingly gave the Cylons the access codes prior to the fall of the Twelve Colonies. He compares the Colonies' fall to the flood Pythia spoke of, which wiped out most of humanity and rejuvenated them. Shocked by Baltar's confession, Roslin tries to kill Baltar by removing his bandages. As he loses blood he begs her to stop.

Act 4

• Agathon announces he has D'Anna Biers and orders a nuclear strike on the Hub. The Vipers fire nuclear missiles into the Hub, destroying it and at least one of the two escort Basestars.
• Baltar continues to beg for his life. During another FTL jump, Roslin has a vision, in which William Adama stands over a dying Roslin, as Elosha looks on and convinces Roslin to show Baltar mercy, saying humanity cannot be saved on a "case-by-case basis." Roslin checks to see if Baltar is still alive, then begins re-bandaging him and gives him an IV.
• Aboard the Basestar with D'Anna, Agathon argues with the Eight, saying his orders are to take D'Anna to the president. The Eight is upset and D'Anna comments cynically that such double-crossing is a very human trait.
• Agathon brings D'Anna to Roslin, who orders him out and tells him to not let anyone else in. D'Anna immediately inspects the injured Baltar and speculates he is likely to survive. When asked about the Final Five, D'Anna jokingly tells Laura Roslin she is one of them, but refuses to provide any information until she feels she is safe; the information being the only thing she has now that she is the only Three left in the Universe. She says she will tell Roslin who the Final Five are after she is taken back to the human Fleet.
• Sometime later Roslin sits alone listening to the Hybrid. As the Hybrid jumps she has a final encounter with Elosha, whom she sees in the same room this time.
• Waiting in space, William Adama sees the basestar jumping in. In the landing bay, he meets Laura Roslin. He tells her that he missed her and she admits her feelings too, saying that she loves him. The two embrace.

Notes

Story

• The survivor count at the beginning of this show may include the already-seen death of Lieutenant Eammon Pike, whose body is discovered in the Raptor that managed to jump to the Fleet. However this episode occurs at the same time as "Sine Qua Non" and therefore Pike's death arguably should not be counted yet, as his death is discovered only part way through "Sine Qua Non," making the decrease a continuity error. The survivor count drops by eight by the start of the next episode, "Revelations," suggesting it may be that decrease which truly indicates all the casualties of the Battle of the Resurrection Hub. Given that Pike's ECO should also be dead along with Pike, the survivor count arguably should have dropped by two by the beginning of this episode if deaths witnessed on screen were being counted already.
• The events of this episode, starting from the Hybrid's jump of the rebel basestar in "Guess What's Coming to Dinner?," and William Adama's mission to stay behind in a Raptor awaiting Laura Roslin's return spans two days. Ergo, the events of "Sine Qua Non" occur over the course of two days.
• This episode occurs concurrently with the episode before it (Sine Qua Non).
• Roslin and Adama have finally admitted their feelings for each other.
• Except for Roslin's visions and recap scenes from "Guess What's Coming to Dinner?," this is the first episode of the series in which no scenes take place on or near Galactica.
• Baltar attempts to reopen the rapport he had established with the Hybrid in "The Passage".
• Although Boomer's fate in the episode is left uncertain, her survival is confirmed in the episode's podcast.
• The podcast also mentions Roslin's visions were originally to be of Billy Keikeya, but due to scheduling conflicts it was changed to Elosha. This required almost no changes to the script.
• When Adama looks out his Raptor window when the baseship arrives, the stars match the night sky as seen from Earth. In particular, the constellations Orion, Taurus, Canis Minor, Gemini, and Monoceros can clearly be seen. If deliberate, this indicates that they must be very close to Earth's location.

Cylons

• Number Two/Leoben Conoy is notably absent from the episode (appearing only in the recap at the beginning), and only Sixes and Eights are among the Cylons fighting in the battle.
• There is only one Number Three - D'Anna Biers - now surviving, and any possibility of unboxing the others has been lost.
• With the destruction of the Resurrection Hub, the Cylons have permanently lost the ability to download into new bodies.
• As previously shown in "The Farm," Heavy Raiders are piloted by humanoid Cylons unlike the smaller autonomous Raiders.
• This episode contains the first mention of Natalie's name in dialogue.
• Cylon flight suits appear for the first time in this episode. However the Eight who flies with Agathon wears a Colonial flight suit.
• D'Anna's line: "And with a whimper, every Cylon in the universe begins to die" is likely a reference to the final stanza in the poem "The Hollow Men" by the twentieth-century modernist poet, T. S. Eliot.

Analysis

Characters

• Over the course of the series, the Eights have been notorious for shifting their alliances. Number Three's comment about the Eight model's tendency to be passionate allies until they see "something shiny" seems to be yet another example of the fickle nature of the Number Eight model. A somewhat more direct observation of this fact is shown in "Faith" when Sharon "Athena" Agathon denounces a group of Eights after hearing their desire to rebel against Natalie and the other Number Six models.
• Roslin's suspicions of Baltar, which she has had since "Epiphanies" (and had a vague inkling of in "Six of One") have finally been confirmed.
• Roslin enters a hallucinatory trance state as the Basestar jumps about wildly. Roslin has not previously experienced this sensation during the Fleet's jumps, although Kara Thrace underwent something similar in "He That Believeth in Me". Moreover, Cally Henderson exhibited symptoms of vertigo during Galactica's first jump in the Miniseries.
• In Roslin's vision of her impending death, she is attended by Bill and Lee Adama, Cottle, and Kara Thrace. Considering Roslin and Thrace's last interaction in "Six of One," and the fact that prior to that, they had not worked together since "Home, Part II," it is surprising that Thrace is included in this scene at all. After Bill Adama, she is probably closer to Tory Foster, who is absent from the scene, than to either Thrace or Lee Adama.
• Karl Agathon has clashed with Roslin before when extreme measures have been considered or taken against the Cylons, notably his sabotage of the biological attack in the episode "Torn". Here it is significant that Agathon carries out Roslin's orders to the letter despite voicing objections over the planned double cross. Notably Agathon's recent attempted mutiny against Kara Thrace ^{(TRS: "Faith")} had near-fatal repercussions which may have influenced his decision here to obey the chain of command. Ronald D. Moore admitted as much in the podcast for this episode.
• Agathon is known for his compulsions to take a stand on a moral principle, hence his unwillingness to use biological weapons to wipe out the Cylons previously. Here however, he seems to distinguish destroying the Cylons' ability to resurrect as a military operation rather than an act of outright genocide, although the Cavil model seems to think otherwise, referring to the attack on the Hub as "mass murder."

Cylons

• This episode confirms that downloaded Cylon memories can be shared, though only so far shown between Cylons of the same model. A Number Eight aboard the rebel basestar has downloaded Sharon "Athena" Agathon's memories, and notes these memories are now accessible to others in her models' line. Athena's memories apparently became available to the Cylons when she was killed and downloaded in "Rapture," as feared by Adama at the time. In earlier episodes, ("Flesh and Bone," "Home, Part II," "Scar"), Athena had access to memories of Sharon "Boomer" Valerii prior to the events of the Miniseries.
  • The means by which the Cylons obtained Boomer's memories remains an open question. Athena asserts that her memories cannot be downloaded against her will ^{(TRS: "Home, Part I")}, and this is confirmed when her presence on New Caprica fails to alert the Cylons to the Colonials escape plan ^{(TRS: "Precipice")}. Likewise, Boomer is able to keep her intentions secret from other Number Eights in "Six of One," as demonstrated by their surprise at her dissenting vote.
  • Consenting Cylons can instantly and silently determine consensus within their model, as demonstrated in "Precipice," "Rapture," and "Six of One". This must naturally involve some kind of transfer of data between models, similar to the memory sharing depicted in this episode in quality if not in scale.
  • This leaves open two possibilities: either Boomer was killed, resurrected and replaced prior to the Miniseries, or, as a sleeper agent, she was incapable of withholding her consent when other Cylons elected to access her memories.

The Battle

• The battle in this episode bears a striking resemblance to "Resurrection Ship, Parts I and II". In both episodes, a shaky alliance between Galactica and another force (Pegasus) takes on an ostensibly irreplaceable Cylon resurrection facility by first disabling its FTL capability and then engaging it directly with fighters. Furthermore, both sides plan to double-cross each other after the successful execution of the attack.
• The towing plan works when the Cylons detect the approaching Heavy Raiders but do not realize the strike force is twice the size until it is too late.
• Although the Vipers are tasked with taking out the Hub's FTL, a Raptor launches the finishing shot.
• Karl Agathon's Raptor is escorted by several Vipers flying very close as it boards the Hub, perhaps in part to mask the Raptor's DRADIS signature.
• The Hub is unarmed and appears devoid of any defensive measures, although it is possible the Eight accompanying Agathon disabled these. The absence of Marine escorts is notable
• The success of the operation indicates Karl Agathon has now grown into the role of CAG, despite not being a Viper pilot and only initially occupying the role temporarily. Agathon not only destroys a key target in a risky operation, but maintains the morale and focus of his pilots whilst negotiating the perils of a fragile alliance with the Cylon rebels.
• The rebel Basestar's absence is long enough that Galactica and the Fleet have to move on; Galactica had reconnoitered the battle site, and the rebel Basestar was assumed to be among the debris. This seems odd given the Cylons' superior FTL capability — Pike's Raptor would have required several jumps to make it to the Fleet (and only made it part of the way), while the Basestar would have required fewer. Dramatic story considerations no doubt were the priority in sequencing these events.
  • It is mentioned that the Basestar is healing slower than normal, and one of the characters comments it is "limping back" to the Fleet. This illustrates the extent of the damage sustained during the initial ambush by the Cavil-led Basestars and the attack against the Hub. It also takes a very long time for the Basestar to fully heal: at least four months. It is only ever seen fully healed in the few shots of it during Daybreak Part 2 although it is clearly healing throughout the season.

Questions

About the Hub

• What role does the Hub play in the proper functioning of other Resurrection Ships?
  • Why are these apparently vital functions centralized?
• Why do the Cylons have only one Resurrection Hub and the implied inability to build another? (Partial answer)
  • If the Cylons are capable of building a new Hub, how long would it take them?
• Why is the Hub so poorly defended by Cavil's faction?
• Why didn't the Vipers simply magnetically grapple themselves to the underside of the Heavy Raiders, instead of relying on tow cables?

About the Cylons

• How will Cavil's condescending attitude toward Sharon Valerii ("Pet Eight") affect her?
• How was Cavil aware that the rebel Cylons were working with humans before the attack on the Hub?
• Was the Cavil who interrogated Three able to resurrect and evacuate in the time between his death and the destruction of the Hub? (Possible Answer)
• Where are the Number Twos during all these events?
• Have other Eights have accessed Athena's memories as well?
• How do other living Cylons (presumably of the same model) access and absorb the memories of downloaded Cylons?
• Will Agathon inform his wife that other Eights have been accessing her memories? If so, will this affect their relationship?
• What will happen to the rebel Cylons and their baseship? (Answer)
• How will the rebel Cylons respond to Roslin's deception regarding Number Three?
• Will the Cylons—especially with Natalie dead—return to their earlier plan of taking hostages in order to gain access to Three? (Answer)
• How will Sharon Agathon and Caprica-Six react to learning of the Hub's destruction?

About the Humans

• Is Roslin's vision of Elosha related to other characters' internal manifestations, such as Baltar's virtual Six or simply a manifestation of Roslin's subconsciousness, as Roslin believes? Or is it the Hybrid speaking to her as Elosha between the jumps, or the spirit of the real Elosha?
• What will happen to Baltar now that his guilt regarding the attack on the Colonies has been revealed?
• Is Baltar's evangelizing of the Centurion genuine or an attempt to obtain a useful ally? Does the Centurion fully understand Baltar's intentions?
• Could Baltar's actions have any adverse effects on the thoughts of the other Centurions in some way?
• Will Lee Adama relinquish the presidency back to Laura Roslin? (Answer)

Noteworthy Dialogue

• D'Anna Biers has just been unboxed and resurrected and is in the tank. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii and Cavil are present. After being told that the Eights are on the opposite side of the Ones (Cavils) in the Cylon Civil War, Three inquires as to why Boomer is there:

Biers [looks at Boomer directly]: Boomer's an Eight. Shouldn't she be on the other side? [Boomer looks sternly at Three]

Cavil: Boomer is my "Pet Eight." She has seen the light of reason. An Eight can make a passionate ally.

Biers [contemptuously]: Only until she sees something shiny! [Boomer's expression is stern]

• Helo's Raptor flies away from the Hub

Karl Agathon: We have D'Anna on board and are clear of the Hub. Commence nuclear strike. Repeat: nuclear strike is a go.

The Vipers form up and launch nuclear missiles into the Hub, destroying it and a nearby basestar

• Laura Roslin and Karl Agathon are discussing the possibility that a Three has been unboxed. Agathon disagrees with her plan to keep Three from the Cylons and doesn't think that the Cylons would betray them like that.

Karl Agathon [shaking his head]: No, no, I don't think so. Not the Sharons, the Eights.

Laura Roslin [patiently but firmly]: Captain, you are not married to the entire production line. I cannot afford to be sentimental right now. I cannot afford you to be sentimental either. If you can't do this job, find me someone who can.

• Aboard Karl Agathon's Raptor after the destruction of the Resurrection Hub:

D'Anna Biers: And with a whimper, every Cylon in the universe begins to die.

Number Eight: Yes, that's right, and it's a good thing, D'Anna, because now there's no difference. We can all start trusting each other.

• In Roslin's vision, as Roslin and Elosha watch Adama stand over a dying Roslin:

Elosha: I'm not saying Baltar's done more good than harm in the universe; he hasn't. The thing is, the harder it is to recognize someone's right to draw a breath, the more crucial it is. If humanity is going to prove itself worthy of surviving, it can't do it on a case by case basis. A bad man feels his death just as keenly as a good man.

Laura Roslin: What do you want from me here?

[Adama appears at dying Roslin's bedside]

William Adama: Laura.

Elosha: Just love someone.

Laura Roslin: Love. Huh!

[Life monitor flatlines]

William Adama: You go. You go. You go to your rest now. [Sobs] I'm not gonna be selfish anymore. You go. Rest.

• Roslin and Adama tenderly greeting each other on the basestar's hangar deck:

Adama: Missed you.

Roslin: Me too.

Roslin [Embracing Adama]: I love you.

Adama [Breaking the embrace; looks into her eyes]: About time.

• Gaius Baltar reveals to Roslin his guilt over the original attacks on the Colonies:

"Pythia talks about a flood that wiped out most of humanity. Nobody blames the flood. The flood is a force of nature. Through the flood, mankind is rejuvenated—born again. I was not a flood, you see. I blamed myself... I blamed myself. But God had made the man who made that choice. God made us all perfect. And in that thought, all my guilt flies away—flies away like a bird."

• Number Three answering Laura Roslin's question:

D'Anna Biers: Suppose you've got some questions for me.

Roslin: Yes I do. I'd like to talk about the five Cylons in my fleet.

Biers: So you know about the Final Five?

Roslin: I know they're supposed to know the way to Earth.

Biers: But you don't know that you're one of them.

[Roslin freezes shocked]

Biers: [Bursting out laughing] Please your face! [Roslin looks relieved and smirks] Oh, it's ridiculous. No. Look, I'm not giving you any names. Not until I feel like I'm safe. 'Cause information is all I got, sweetie.

Guest Stars

• Lucy Lawless as Number Three / D'Anna Biers
• Callum Keith Rennie as Number Two / Leoben Conoy (credited only)
• Donnelly Rhodes as Doctor Cottle
• Lorena Gale as Elosha
• Dean Stockwell as Number One / Cavil
• Jennifer Halley as Ensign Diana "Hardball" Seelix
• Tiffany Lyndall-Knight as Hybrid
• Bodie Olmos as Lieutenant Brendan "Hotdog" Costanza
• Ryan McDonell as Lieutenant Eammon "Gonzo" Pike
• Lee Jefferies as Lieutenant Paolo "Redwing" McKay
• Leo Li Chiang as Tattooed pilot (uncredited)

External Links

• Composer Bear McCreary on the episode's score: [1]