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This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. If an article link referred you here, you might want to go back and fix it to point directly to the intended page. Also, if you wanted to search for the term "Samuel", click here.
Born October 20, 1977, Witwer was a big fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation as a child, and went on a tour of the set. The tour guide took him and his brother to meet Wil Wheaton (Wesley Crusher), who was studying in his trailer. Witwer said Wheaton "talked to us for 30 minutes, while the rest of the tour group just sat by and patiently waited. That experience put it in my head that I wanted to be an actor". [1]
Pursuing an acting career, prior to his stint on Galactica, he also appeared on ER, and on Dark Angel as Marrow, which would have been a recurring role had the series not been canceled.[1]
Witwer was willing to leave the show of his own accord because of other work possibilities in Los Angeles. Currently, he is producing, writing, and directing an independent film, and hopes that several other Battlestar Galactica cast members and fellow friends, like Nicki Clyne, might be able to make cameos.[1]
Witwer remained a fan of Star Trek and appeared on Enterprise in the episode "The Shipment" as a Xindi-Sloth because he asked his agent to find a role for him on Star Trek, and as an unpleasant result Witwer said that "I’m affectionately referred to, by my other friends that work on Star Trek, as Sam the Sloth, which totally sucks."[1]
Witwer's true passion is his band, the Crashtones, a one-man band with Witwer performing all of the instruments and vocals. To achieve the illusion of having multiple people as his band, Witwer dresses up in costume as various fictitious other members of the "band," who appear on the cover of "their" albums.[1]
Witwer was cast as Crashdown after watching the Miniseries and knowing he "really wanted to work on the first season."[Book 1] Executive producer David Eick described the character to him as "a cross between Han Solo and Bill Paxton’s character, Hudson, in Aliens — the “Game over, man” guy! And that’s sort of what I endeavored to bring to the role."[Book 2]
Reflecting on his time on the show, Witwer said, "There were a few times on season one when I caught myself thinking, ‘No one should be allowed to have this much fun and get paid for it!’... It’s an honor to be a part of such an amazing series."[Book 3]
Samuel Patrick Chu (born 1994) is the actor who portrayed Milo in "Dirty Hands," an episode of the Re-imagined Series. He has appeared in other science fiction movies and television shows, including Flash Gordon.
Sam C. Lewis is an American sound editor who worked as a sound effects editor and supervising foley editor on Battlestar Galactica during the series' final season.[external 1] His work on the series earned him multiple Emmy nominations, including a win for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series in 2009 for the episode "Daybreak, Part II".[external 2]
Lewis joined the sound department of Battlestar Galactica during the show's final season in 2008, working on 20 episodes through the series conclusion in 2009.[external 1] He served primarily as a sound effects editor and supervising foley editor, working alongside supervising sound editor Daniel Colman.[external 3]
Lewis's work on Battlestar Galactica earned him significant recognition from the Television Academy. He received four Emmy Award nominations for his contributions to the series' sound editing:[external 4]
Following his work on Battlestar Galactica, Lewis established himself as a highly sought-after sound professional in television and film. He has worked extensively in multiple sound disciplines, including sound editing, foley editing, ADR supervision, and supervising sound editing roles.[external 5]
Lewis worked on the comedy horror series What We Do in the Shadows from 2019 to 2024 as supervising foley editor and foley editor.[external 6] His work on the series earned him multiple Emmy nominations:
2022 - Nominee: Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation[external 7]
2020 - Nominee: Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation (as Foley Editor)[external 8]
2019 - Nominee: Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation (as Supervising Foley Editor)[external 9]
His work on Mrs. Davis (2023) earned him a nomination for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Limited or Anthology Series, Movie or Special at the 2023 Emmy Awards.[external 12]
Throughout his career, Lewis has accumulated substantial industry recognition. As of 2025, he has won one Primetime Emmy Award and received a total of four wins and 26 nominations across various sound editing categories.[external 13] His Emmy nominations span multiple categories, including sound editing for series, limited series, and half-hour comedy/drama programming.
In 2024, Lewis received an Emmy nomination for his work as foley mixer on Hacks, specifically for the episode "Just For Laughs."[external 14]
In addition to his Primetime Emmy, Lewis has also won two Motion Picture Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards in 2009 and 2010 for best sound editing in short form sound effects and foley in television.[external 15]
In 2017, Lewis co-founded Aura Sound & Color, a boutique-style, full-service post-production sound studio in Burbank, California, with his wife Melani Lewis.[external 16] The studio was conceived during a transitional period in Lewis's career when the space in Burbank became available. The decision to open the studio was made in August 2017, and by November it was fully operational.[external 17]
Located at 217 N Lake Street in Burbank, Aura Sound & Color provides comprehensive post-production services for broadcast, film, commercials, and podcasts, including sound editorial, sound mixing, foley, and ADR.[external 18] The studio's boutique size enables personalized client experiences, with direct access to post-production professionals throughout every project from creation to delivery.[external 19]
As studio founder, Lewis remains heavily involved with both the technical and creative aspects of every project at Aura.[external 20] The studio maintains state-of-the-art facilities supporting the latest broadcast and theatrical standards.[external 21]
A childhood photograph of Sam's parents.Sam Adama was born on Tauron to Isabelle and William Adama Sr. in the years leading up to the Tauron Civil War. Adama's father believed that from the moment he held his son in his arms, he knew Samuel was a man - a contrast to his younger brother's introverted nature (CAP: "The Dirteaters").
As civil war on Tauron broke out between the Heracleides-backed government and Ha'la'tha rebels, the Adama family struggled through difficult times, actively supporting the rebellion. One night, Samuel was awoken by the sound of a Herac soldier being beaten to death outside his bedroom window. Samuel sneaked outside to view the body, stealing money and a pistol from the soldier and hiding them under his mattress (CAP: "The Dirteaters").
When Herac forces came to investigate, they discovered the pistol in the Adama home and assumed either William or Isabelle had committed the murder. From their hiding place inside a closet, Samuel and Joseph were forced to watch as the Heracs beat and killed their mother and tortured their father. Unable to save their father, Joseph was forced to shoot William in the head before he and Samuel escaped into the night (CAP: "The Dirteaters").
Orphaned, Samuel and Joseph were sent to a refugee camp on Caprica. There Sam attempted to pick the pocket of the Guatrau who "knew right then he had the stones to become one of us." The Gautrau took the Adama boys under his wing and eventually brought them into the Ha'la'tha. Unlike his brother - who changed his name to "Adams" - Sam chose not to assimilate into Caprican culture and embraced his Tauron heritage. He bore a number of tattoos depicting his position within the Ha'la'tha as well as his patronage to the Lord of KobolMars.[1] Adama's first "mark of manhood," however, came from his younger brother, who applied the tattoo to his wrist when they were alone on the streets of Tauron (CAP: "Caprica (pilot)," "Reins of a Waterfall," "The Dirteaters").
Working in Caprica City as a Ha'la'tha enforcer and assassin for over fourteen years, Sam Adama balanced a career of violent crime with a softer personal and family life. Married to Larry, Adama also enjoyed a close relationship with his brother and his brother's children, Willie and Tamara, as well as his sister-in-law Shannon ((CAP: "Pilot"), "Gravedancing").
Sam with Joseph and Willie Adama at Tamara and Shannon's funeral service.
After the STO bombing of the MLMT train that killed Tamara and Shannon, Sam pledged to find the perpetrators, citing the Tauron notion of "blood for blood." The incident only seemed to reinforce Sam's resentment of Caprica (CAP: "Pilot").
Joseph later came to his brother for assistance, asking Sam to help him steal a piece of equipment known as a meta-cognitive processor from a fellow Tauron, Tomas Vergis of the Vergis Corporation. Sam was at first hesitant to steal from a friend of the Guatrau, but securing Joseph's promise to deliver a message to Caprican Minister of DefenseVal Chambers for the Ha'la'tha, Sam obliged. Though the theft resulted in the killing of two of Vergis' men, the MCP was ultimately delivered to Dr. Daniel Graystone, who used the chip in an attempt at resurrecting his own daughter Zoe Graystone as well as Joseph's (CAP: "Caprica (pilot)," "Know Thy Enemy").
Though he mourned the loss of his niece and sister-in-law in the traditional Tauron way, Sam believed that the family should move on from the tragedy. Joseph's grief, however, continued to pull at Sam. Upon hearing Amanda Graystone's proclamation that Zoe had participated in the bombing, Joseph asked Sam to beat her husband Daniel, and later to kill Amanda in order to bring "balance." Sam kidnapped Amanda, but only scared her before releasing her unharmed, correctly expecting that his brother would call him off (CAP: "Rebirth", "Reins of a Waterfall" and "Gravedancing").
As Joseph grew increasingly distant from Willie, Sam took his nephew under his wing and introduced him to the world of the Ha'la'tha. Sam allowed Willie to skip school and drink alcohol at Goldie's Off Track Betting, the Ha'la'tha's Little Tauron hangout, where the boy became an unofficial employee. The two were even arrested together, giving Sam a chance to tutor his nephew on how to handle the police. When Joseph angrily confronted Sam over his son's truancy, Sam urged him to stop mourning his wife and daughter and take an active role in Willie's life. To this end, Joseph held a traditional Tauron funeral at his home, with Sam assisting in the ceremony to ensure Tamara and Shannon passage to the afterlife (CAP: "Rebirth", "Reins of a Waterfall", "Gravedancing" and "There is Another Sky").
Still, Joseph continued to dwell on the loss, haunted by the notion of an avatar version of his daughter living on somewhere in V-world. As Joseph descended into holoband addiction, Sam attempted to rouse his brother, but had little success. Finally, Sam called on help from Joseph's assistant Evelyn and his mother-in-law Ruth, pulling Joseph back to the real world and restoring some normality to the Adama family (CAP: "End of Line," "False Labor").
In deleted scenes from "End of Line," Sam entered V-world with Evelyn as Emmanuelle and assisted in her faking the death of the Tamara avatar in order to draw Joseph back into the real world.
Following the Ha'la'tha acquisition of Daniel Graystone's corporation, Graystone Industries, Sam encouraged the Guatrau to involve his brother in the operation of the company, eventually securing Joseph a substantial promotion within the Ha'la'tha. At the same time, Samuel was elevated to the Ha'la'tha organizational rank of captain (CAP: "Unvanquished," "False Labor," "Blowback," "The Dirteaters").
As yet another rebellion struck Tauron, Sam became obsessed with the situation, frequently watching newscasts on the subject and sending a considerable portion of his income to aid the rebels. Despite the strain his preoccupation with the rebellion had on his marriage with Larry, Sam resolved to take a more active part in the rebellion, running guns to Tauron. However, he came into conflict with another Ha'la'tha member, Atreus, who claimed jurisdiction over the gun-running trade and denounced the Gautrau. After Atreus shot and killed his partner in the venture, Sam decided to take retribution. Gaining access to one of Graystone Industries' U-87 Cyber Combat Units, he sent the Cylon prototype to Atreus' hideout at the Skybar in Caprica City. There the U-87 opened fire on Atreus' men, killing everyone in the bar before turning its weapons on Atreus himself. Inspired by the efficiency with which the U-87 dispatched his rivals, Sam attempted to persuade the Guatrau to smuggle Cylons to Tauron, telling him that just one robot could turn the tide of the rebellion (CAP: "False Labor").
The Guatrau, however, rejected Sam's proposal, having secured a deal with the Soldiers of the One terror group for a shipment of U-87s. Incensed by the move and fearing not only the business repercussions but also the possibility of being executed for treason, Daniel came to Sam for help, proposing that they betray the Guatrau and smuggle U-87s to Tauron if Sam failed to carry out the Gautrau's order to assassinate him. In the process of preparing the first U-87 shipment, Sam's intentions were discovered by Joseph. Reminding his older brother of the pain his family endured in the first civil war, Sam gained Joseph's support for the plan (CAP: "Blowback" and "The Dirteaters").
With shipments of Cylons underway, Sam was approached by Daniel with another business proposition: accompany him into the New Cap City game as an experienced fighter to help him find and secure the avatars of Zoe and Tamara. Offended by the implication that he was "hired muscle" and by the suggestion that the avatars were anything more than sick imitations of the two girls, he rejected the offer. Sam angrily confronted Willie later that evening over a t-shirt depicting the now famous girls as the "Avenging Angels." After the incident, Evelyn demanded that Sam dispose of the Tamara avatar for the sake of Joseph's emotional health, and he agreed to take the job, for a considerable fee. Entering the game world, Sam joined Daniel and Amanda on horseback and began the search for the "deadwalkers" (CAP: "The Heavens Will Rise").
Sam soon proved his combat value by shooting three vicious creatures conjured by Zoe to attack the group. However, as the trip progressed, Amanda developed a vague recollection of an earlier encounter with Sam, and grew increasingly suspicious of him. Daniel confronted Sam about his true intentions. Sam admitted his desire to eliminate "that thing that looks like Tammy" but claimed to be indifferent about Zoe. After Daniel suggested that he might not help him kill Tamara, Sam threatened both Graystones, but before the conversation could go further, Amanda shot him twice, ejecting him permanently from the game (CAP: "Here Be Dragons").
Sam instantly emerged from the game, and realized what he had missed: his brother had left several frantic messages after nearly being murdered by one of the Guatrau's men as punishment for defying the Guatrau over the U-87s. Sam hurried to Goldie's to meet Joseph, gather fake identification and cash, and escape Caprica with their families. Before they could leave Goldie's, more of the Guatrau's men appeared. Sam tried to negotiate on behalf of Joseph and Willie, without success. At that moment, Willie ran into the club, making just enough of a distraction for Sam and Joseph to fight back and overwhelm the others. Sam beamed with pride in Willie, but quickly saw that a stray gunshot had struck his nephew's abdomen, and several seconds later, Willie expired (CAP: "Here Be Dragons").
Sam kept watch over Joseph's apartment and family into the following morning. To everyone's surprise, Fidelia Fazekas, daughter of the Guatrau, arrived unarmed to express her father's sorrow and to announce that because of the tragedy, the Adamas were now safe. In response, Sam pinned Fizekas' head to a table and taunted her at gunpoint. He released her at Joseph's bidding, allowing her and Joseph to negotiate a meeting with the Guatrau himself.
During the brief meeting in V-world, it quickly became apparent that the Guatrau would be unwilling to yield any further. Sam slipped behind the Guatrau in the real world and wrapped a plastic bag over his head, nearly suffocating him – with Fizekas' approval. Once the Guatrau emerged from V-world, Sam held his former leader down as Joseph force fed him a suicide capsule (CAP: "Apotheosis").
Sam's relationship with Larry appeared to continue at least until 53 BCH. In that year, Sam and his husband attended a Tauron religious ceremony at Joseph and Evelyn's home for their young son, William Adama(CAP: "Apotheosis").
The character of Sam Adama was not originally intended to be a major figure in the series. However, the producers were so impressed with Sasha Roiz's performance in the pilot that they decided to expand the role, much like they did with Tahmoh Penikett's character Karl "Helo" Agathon in the Miniseries.[2]
An opening scene showing a young Sam and Joseph Adama arriving on Caprica was filmed for the pilot but ultimately cut. The producers felt it slowed the pacing of the episode's beginning.[3]
In an e-mail, Espenson revealed that Sam's patron God is Mars and that a large element of his chest tattoo is a personal tribute to Mars. The letters Gamma, Delta, Phi, Psi, and Omega tattooed on the upper part of Sam's chest are indicators of the oath he swore to the Ha'la'tha. An Omega tattooed below Sam's right ear indicates his marital status. If Larry were to die, the bottom part of the Omega would be sealed up. [1]
In the podcast commentary for "Blowback," Tom Lieber highlights the scene where Sam learns of the Ha'la'tha's dealings with the STO as a pivotal moment. It showcases his outrage and deep loyalty to his Tauron heritage, creating a significant rift with his brother, Joseph.[4]
According to Tom Lieber, the writers used Sam Adama's tendency to lapse into the Tauron language (based on Homeric Greek) as a key character trait to signify when he "means business."[5]
1. Nuclear destruction of Original Earth, c. 2000 BCH (resurrected in orbit) 2. Suffocated by Number One, c. 35 BCH (resurrected with false memories) 3. Flies into the Sun with the fleet, 4 ACH
After suffering a near fatal-gunshot wound to the base of his skull during a mutiny on Galactica, he regains memories of his life as a Cylon on Earth. In the short time he has before undergoing essential surgery, he tries to tell fellow Cylons Galen Tyrol, Tory Foster and Saul Tigh their history as the Final Five, but after the surgery he is left comatose. The Rebel Cylons try to jumpstart his brain by installing a Hybrid tank on Galactica and linking him to a datastream, and though initially unresponsive he begins to act very much like a Hybrid and is able to interact with Galactica because of the Cylon repairs and upgrades throughout the ship. He dies when, as part of the Colonial plan to abandon their advanced technology and begin anew, he pilots Galactica and her fleet into the sun of the second Earth.
During his life on Earth, he also composed a song identical to the modern "All Along the Watchtower" by Bob Dylan. Dreilide Thrace and Hera Agathon independently echo this song, pointing towards their link (along with Dylan) to the same "ethereal source".[1]
Samuel was born a Thirteenth Tribe-Cylon on Earth over 2,000 years before the Fall. He worked at a scientific research facility, and also composed a song which he played for his lover and for his fellow researchers, Saul Tigh, Ellen Tigh, Galen Tyrol, and Tory Foster[2]. Warned of a coming holocaust by an image of a woman no one else could see, he worked with his four friends to recreate the resurrection technology used by their ancestors. When the nuclear attack on Earth came, the five of them were downloaded into new bodies on a ship in orbit.
Backtracking the path their ancestors used to find Earth, the five rediscovered the Temple of Hopes and found their way to the Twelve Colonies to warn the humans of the dangers of making robotic slaves, but arrived too late to prevent the First Cylon War because their vessel traveled at relativistic, subluminal speeds. They persuaded the Cylon Centurions enter into armistice with the humans in exchange for designing humanoid Cylon bodies and resurrection technology for their "children". They also embraced the monotheistic beliefs of the Centurions. Their first creation, Number One, turned against them, killing them by asphyxiation, boxing their consciousnesses, and later releasing them into the Twelve Colonies one by one with false memories. By having them live as humans and share their fate during the Cylon Attack, he hoped to teach them all a lesson and get them to see the truth in his views towards humanity once they died and resurrected.
The background fabricated for Anders by Number One included being born on Picon and attending Noyse Elementary School. It is unclear how many years before the Fall of the Twelve Colonies he was inserted into the Colonial population, but less than Saul or Ellen Tigh. He became a Pyramid player for the Caprica Buccaneers and was leading his team in high-altitude training in the mountains outside of Delphi when Caprica was attacked during the Cylon assault on the Colonies. The high-altitude shielded them from the blasts of the nuclear attacks and most of the radioactive fallout that followed. He and the Buccaneers become ad hoc resistance fighters from that point forward, raiding armories and collecting caches of weapons, anti-radiation medication, ammunition and supplies in the hopes of surviving and defending themselves against the Cylons. When the attack happened he said "all of this has happened before." The rest of the team (including the coach) and the survivors they found all turned to him for leadership after the attack as he seemed to have some idea of what to do. For a long time he remained unaware that he had two Cylons among his resistance force: a Simon and a Cavil who grew sympathetic to humanity through his interactions with Anders and his resistance force (TRS: "The Plan").
Anders was able to rally upwards of 100 people, mostly hikers and survivalists, to his resistance against the Cylons and from the former Delphi Union High School he was able to strike back at the Cylons for nine months. Unlike Karl "Helo" Agathon, the Caprica-based (and pregnant) Sharon Valerii and Kara Thrace, Anders seems to be focused more on surviving on Caprica than he is with leaving the planet.
Anders and his resistance members encounter Agathon and Thrace two months after the initial Cylon attack (TRS: "Resistance"). He and his men see them and Cavil (who Anders believes to be human), says that he possibly recognizes them as Cylons so Anders and his men ambush them before the situation is diffused. Anders's main focus for a time is keeping himself and his resistance movement alive long enough for Thrace to return to Caprica once again with reinforcements from Galactica and evacuate them. Before leaving, Thrace gives him her Fleet ID tags as a promise that she would come back for him. While waiting for rescue, Anders plans to locate and destroy as many Cylon hybrid-producing "farms" as possible (TRS: "The Farm").
Anders and the resistance movement conduct a series of acts of terrorism against the Cylons after they appropriate Delphi for their own. His aim was to scare the Cylons into believing there is no safe place for them and to kill them in the most gruesome way possible so they remember when they are reborn what it is like to die violently, like in an explosion (TRS: "Downloaded").
The most notable act of which was the destruction of a café which kill roughly 40 Cylons. After planting the bomb in a garage, Anders is trapped with the bomb after defending it from a Centurion. Hiding behind a car on the other side of the garage, Anders is mostly protected from the blast but buried under rubble. Later found by Boomer and Number Three. Anders is spared, as he would be a useful source of information. When Caprica-Six talks about genocide and God's love, Anders uses the opening to try and kill Number Three, but is stopped by Boomer. Three is more than willing to take revenge, but all are astonished when Caprica-Six kills Three. Heeding Six's orders to get out, Anders flees, still puzzled by what had transpired (TRS: "Downloaded").
Anders survives an assault by the Cylons at the resistance's headquarters - the same morning that the Caprica SAR team lands nearby. The Cylons assaulted the remnants of the Resistance as they head for the Raptors (TRS: "Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I"), forcing them to go to higher ground. After the Cylons stop attacking them, Thrace (leading the rescue team) fears the worst. Anders and Thrace promise to kill each other so that the Cylons would be unable to put them in one of their farms. Miraculously, the priest of the resistance movement appears in the forest, to tell the team that the Cylons have left the Colonies.
Thrace and Anders's relationship picks up where it left off, forcing a rift to occur between Thrace and Lee "Apollo" Adama.
A year later, now married to Thrace on New Caprica, Anders develops pneumonia, forcing Thrace to beg Lee Adama to release some antibiotics reserved for Pegasus' pilots. After the Cylons occupy New Caprica, Anders is visited by a copy of Leoben Conoy who inquires on Kara Thrace's whereabouts (TRS: "Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II"). Since the Cylons had forced Pegasus and the defense fleet away from New Caprica, the antibiotics are no longer available to help Anders.
Anders recovers from his sickness and becomes a leader of the New Caprica Resistance, along with Saul Tigh and Galen Tyrol. Thrace was taken from him sometime after the occupation, and he is unsure if she is still alive (TRS: "Occupation").
Four months into the occupation, contact is made with a Raptor and a rescue plan is put in motion. Anders meets Galactica's liaison officer Sharon "Athena" Agathon in Breeders Canyon, and the group is ambushed by Cylon Centurions (TRS: "Precipice"). After the Centurions are neutralized, a map is found on a dead 'skinjob' and Anders realizes that the map is the one given to Ellen Tigh to destroy in a heating fire. Tigh is then suspected of collaborating with the Cylons.
Later, Anders is charged by Laura Roslin with protecting Maya and the Cylon-human hybrid baby Hera(TRS: "Exodus, Part I").
Anders then tells Saul Tigh about his wife's betrayal. He tells Tigh that if he doesn't "take care" of the problem, someone else will. After Galactica jumps into orbit, Anders and a group of resistance fighters set off multiple bombs around New Caprica City. They then retrieve a cache of weapons hidden under the Pyramid court in order storm the detention center and free the humans imprisoned within. Inside the detention center, Anders and a team of Marines find an unconscious Kara Thrace in her apartment style prison cell. Anders begins to carry Thrace out of the center but is interrupted after Thrace regains consciousness and runs back to retrieve her daughter, Kacey Brynn. Anders finds Thrace and Kacey back at the apartment, and leads both out of the building (TRS: "Exodus, Part II").
Shortly following the Fleet's abandonment of New Caprica, Anders is brought into the Circle, a secret tribunal assembled by President Tom Zarek for the purpose of judging and executing those who had collaborated with the Cylons during the occupation. Along with Chief Tyrol, he is among the more scrupulous members and soon becomes uncomfortable with the Circle's actions and leaves the group. Thrace accepts the Circle's invitation to replace Anders, an act her husband sees as a personal betrayal. He hands back Thrace's ID tag, saying he doesn't want it anymore. Thrace and Anders are still husband and wife, but the combination of Thrace's joining the Circle and her feelings for Lee Adama heavily strains their marriage. He eventually moves off Galactica to the Salpica (Unfinished Business (Extended Version)), which limits their contact to occasional visits per shuttle or participation in critical missions ("The Eye of Jupiter," "Rapture").
The death of his wife (TRS: "Maelstrom") weighs heavily on Anders. Two weeks later he is found drunk on the hangar deck, standing atop of a Viper and playing with a cubit. When Lee Adama is tries to get Anders to come down, he slips, falls and breaks one of his legs. Later, Anders joins Adama at the memorial wall where Adama has put up Kara Thrace's picture (TRS: "The Son Also Rises"). Shortly after this, Anders decides to follow in his wife's footsteps by obtaining a commission and joining the Fleet as a pilot trainee(TRS: "Crossroads, Part I"), initially flying Raptors before transitioning to Vipers.
Not long after he begins a relationship with Tory Foster, he realizes that the pair of them are experiencing hearing something unusual. Later on, he discovers that Tyrol hears the strange sounds as well, but does not get the opportunity to discuss it with him. When Anders, along with Tyrol, Foster and Saul Tigh find themselves drawn to a room shortly after the Fleet arrives at the Ionian nebula, they instinctively realized that they are four of the Final Five Cylons. However, both he and Tigh agree that their lives up until that point were not in vain, and the four wordlessly agree to continue their allegiance to the Colonies (TRS: "Crossroads, Part II").
Anders's "red eye" moment.
He participates in the Battle of the Ionian Nebula, finding himself face to face with a Cylon Raider that he fails to destroy because his weapon safeties are enabled. The fortuitous act results in the Raider scanning Anders, whose eye flickers red. The Raider determines that he is a Cylon and as a result the Raiders abruptly abort their attack on the Fleet, forcing the whole Cylon fleet to retreat. After the battle, he recalls his experience with the Cylon Raider to the others, and wonders whether he just made a "nugget mistake" or if he was physically incapable of firing. Anders, along with the others, agree to kill themselves before they betray the humans (TRS: "He That Believeth in Me").
Anders joins Demetrius's crew on its mission to find Earth. Three weeks into the mission, he questions Thrace's command style, forcing her to open up more about her mission with her crew (TRS: "The Ties That Bind"). A week later they encounter a damaged Heavy Raider with a copy of Leoben Conoy aboard. Thrace allows him aboard against the crew's wishes, because she wants his help in finding Earth. When Anders sees how physically close the two are, he attacks him until Marines separate them. Later, Anders asks Conoy what he wants from Thrace. Conoy replies that he seeks to understand Thrace's unexplained destiny, which Anders doesn't consider good enough. Conoy says otherwise and that Anders might have his own destiny, beyond his relatively inconsequential life as a professional Pyramid player (TRS: "The Road Less Traveled").
During the mutiny aboard the Demetrius Anders sides with Thrace, going as far as to shoot Felix Gaeta in the knee to prevent him from jumping back to Galactica. After accompanying Thrace to a disabled Cylon basestar, Anders involves himself in an execution of a Number Six model who had moments before murdered Jean Barolay. The idea of Natalie assisting to pull the trigger on another of her models disturbs him. After seeing Agathon interact with a datastream and becoming curious of what would happen if he tried it, Anders tries to connect with the datastream, but is interrupted by Kara and never gets the chance to learn what would have happened if he had succeeded. Later into the mission, however, he consoles a dying Number Eight when Sharon "Athena" Agathon fails to. He then becomes visibly worried when Thrace, Natalie and Sharon deduce that the Final Five have come from and know the way back to Earth, and propose a resurrection of the Number Three model to reveal the Five's identities (TRS: "Faith"). Back on Galactica, Anders is distraught over the loss of Gaeta's leg, talking of how Gaeta sings all the time to cope with his pain, but can't bring himself to talk to Gaeta about it (TRS: "Guess What's Coming to Dinner?").
During a confrontation with their erstwhile Cylon allies — now lead by the unboxed D'Anna Biers — interim President Lee Adama forcefully persuades Colonel Tigh to give up the identities of the other Final Five aboard Galactica, the safety of the Fleet hanging on it. Anders is arrested along with Tyrol, and they join Tigh in the launch tube airlock, under threat of being spaced in the showdown. Just as Adama is about to follow through on his threat, Thrace averts the execution with news that the three Cylons have given them the way to Earth. Anders and his fellow Cylons unexpectedly receive a full amnesty from President Adama, and are part of the landing party that finds Earth in a post-apocalyptic state (TRS: "Revelations").
When Felix Gaeta and Tom Zarek enact a coup to overthrow the fleet's military and civilian leadership, Anders is abducted by his former wingman Diana Seelix and several co-conspirators and taken to the specially designed Cylon holding cell to be held as a hostage along with Caprica-Six and the Agathon family (TRS: "The Oath"). During a rescue attempt staged by Lee "Apollo" Adama and Kara Thrace, Anders suffers a bullet wound to the back of the neck[3] and has to be carried to sickbay by Thrace and Romo Lampkin(TRS: "Blood on the Scales").
The bullet entered his head, but in doing so it also unlocked previously inaccessible memories of his past. Although he suffers through a steadily worsening bout of Aphasia ("word salad"), he explains some of what he learns from his memories, elaborating on the history of the Final Five and their betrayal by their first creation, Number One, otherwise known as John Cavil. Before Anders can explain any more, he is taken to surgery to have the bullet removed so he does not suffer another seizure and die of a potential brain haemorrhage. He refuses treatment, fearing he may lose his restored memories, but Kara Thrace, still being his lawful wife, orders Dr. Cottle to remove the bullet anyway. The bullet is safely removed, but when Anders doesn't wake up as soon as expected an EEG is run on him it is discovered he has almost no brain activity (TRS: "No Exit"). He is visited by Ellen Tigh when she returns aboard Galactica, and when a referendum is tabled among the Final Five as to whether they should say with the fleet or strike out on their own, Saul Tigh votes "stay" on Anders' behalf, citing his ranting warning to the Five as he was being wheeled into the OR: "stay with the fleet" (TRS: "Deadlock"). When Thrace visits him some time later his eyes are seen to be open and there is a flurry of brainwave activity seen on the monitors around his bedside, though he does not show any signs of cognitive function just yet. An Eight by Anders' bedside surmises that his brain may simply be "rebooting," and using the downtime to repair itself. Dr. Cottle is dismissive of this idea. However, the Eight also suggest inserting Anders into the datastream to jump start his brain. (TRS: "Someone to Watch Over Me").
Later, acting on the Eight's idea, the Cylons immerse him in a Hybrid pool much like those on Cylon baseships and connect him to the datastream. While connected to the stream he begins mimicking the mannerisms of the baseship Hybrids, down to the incoherent (to casual observers) but prophetic ramblings. His wife Captain Kara Thrace visits him and request to be alone with him. Saying her goodbyes she attempts to kill him by gunshot to the head. Anders in reflex action catches and almost crushes Thrace's forearm and tells her as another Basestar Hybrid had that she is the Harbinger of Death. As he does so power fluctuations, that has been going on for sometime on Galactica grow much worse, including the surging power levels of the main engines. Anders releases Thrace and the power fluctuations subside but do not end. Thrace presumably called the Cylons and Col. Tigh to assess the situation. It is determined that Anders is directly interacting with and Galactica’s power grid, inadvertently (but not the firewalled computers) via the Cylon organic resin applied to her superstructure for repair purposes. It is theoretically possible for Anders to jump the ship on his own just like a Hybrid on a baseship. Anders has effectively become the Hybrid of Galactica. Col. Tigh orders that he be disconnected. Just before he is he says "All this has happened before, and will happen again..." Removed from the datastream, Anders reverts to his comatose state. Later Kara Thrace once again visits her husband, accepting that the "old you" is never coming back, but she believes there is a pattern in the drawing by Hera Agathon that Hera gave her that turned out to be musical notes for a song Thrace's father played for her as a child. She is determined to get answers from Hybrid Anders and reconnects him to talk to him. When he is plugged back in by Kara Thrace the power surges briefly return but then subside to nothing and Samuel Anders vocalizes the line of code "New command" (Islanded in a Stream of Stars).
When he is visited again by Thrace and Admiral Adama he subconsciously flashes back to his time on Caprica as captain of the Buccaneers. He remembers an instance when he was in his team's locker room just after a game being interviewed by a sports reporter. The woman questions him on whether or not he would feel his career would be complete if he retired without ever leading the Buccaneers to a championship. Anders candidly responds by telling the reporter that in actuality, he cares little for the fame and the glamor associated with the game and more for the subtler aspects of it often missed amid the glitz. He speaks of his passion for experiencing "the perfection of creation" through his plays and movements, relating the sport to more mathematical concepts like physics; a brief moment where Samuel Anders the inventor broke through the cover of Samuel Anders the sports star. In the present, he apparently is able to give the location of The Colony to Thrace and Admiral Adama when asked although it is not shown on screen (TRS: "Daybreak, Part I").
Anders is instrumental in the attack on The Colony, confusing its Hybrids at a crucial moment and disabling all the weapons. He is later present when Caprica-Six and Baltar return to the CIC with Hera and fulfil the Opera House Prophecy. After the successful return of Galactica to the new planet, Adama has him pilot the fleet and all their technology into the sun in order to have them start over. Before he dies, he briefly flashes back to his interview prior to the fall, and Kara says a tearful goodbye to him, returning to him her dog tags and telling him that she loves him. He whispers "I'll see you on the other side," paralleling Kara's final words to Lee "Apollo" Adama when she died. (Daybreak, Part II, Maelstrom). After all of the ships are abandoned, Anders pilots the ships into the sun, destroying Galactica and her Fleet. With the destruction of the Resurrection Hub, his death is permanent.
Despite his revelation to himself as a Cylon and his acceptance of it and the beating he endured during the mutiny, he seems to have remained loyal to the humans. After his discovery of his Cylon nature but before he recovered his first hand memories of his life before he was killed by Cavil and had his memories fabricated, he has displayed no hostility to them as a whole and in fact seems to be understanding of their point of view. This is characteristic of his sense of justice even when he was a Resistance fighter when he quickly accepted the Cylon Caprica Sharon, the future Athena, as genuinely fighting on the human's side. After the Exodus from New Caprica he did participate in the secret trials and executions of those thought to be collaborators but he soon lost his taste for revenge and decline to participate any longer. It is not known if he has ever uttered a statement that could be construed as anti-human. Indeed, just before beaten by mutinous crewmen that Diana Seelix had arranged to ambush him, he was apologetic for any misunderstanding of a romantic nature between them. (TRS: "The Oath") Now that he has recovered his first hand memories of his previous life on Earth and since then, it is not known what would be his attitude toward the humans if he recovers from his vegetative state, but given his and the other Final Five's efforts to halt the Cylon attack on the Colonies during the first Cylon War and describing the genocidal Cavil's morality as twisted (TRS: "No Exit") it seems to be favorable.
"Ander" is derived from a Greek term meaning "Man" (a well known example would be that "Anderson" means "Son of Andrew/Andreas/etc," the name being a descendant of Greek andreios ‘manly’, from aner ‘man’, ‘male’, genitive andros). Fitting, given that Anders is leading the last free humans alive on Caprica in a resistance against the Cylons: it's literally a fight of "Man" versus Machines. The revelation of Anders as a Cylon makes this ironic.
Philip K. Dick's 1968 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? also has a character named Anders. Like Sam, he was a machine who imitated humans almost perfectly. The PKD character was discovered and "retired" by human authorities, much like what almost happened to Sam in Revelations and The Oath.
The tattoo that Anders has on his right arm in Seasons 3 and 4 is his "wedding band". He got it after he married Kara Thrace, who also has a similar tattoo, but it is on her left arm. They match up to form one set of wings and the circles overlap when they're facing each other. Both of them have half of the constellation of Capricorn (a reference to Caprica obviously) and a small symbol of the planet as well.
There was a human character with the surname Anders, callsign Jolly, in the Miniseries, but the two characters cannot be related.
Anders is the first new Cylon character introduced after the seven introduced in the Miniseries, though not revealed as such until much later. (The Miniseries introduced Number Six, Aaron Doral, Saul Tigh, Galen Tyrol, Boomer, Ellen Tigh - mentioned and pictured - and Leoben Conoy)
↑In his "Sometimes a Great Notion" podcast commentary, Ronald D. Moore explained that in the Battlestar universe Anders (not Bob Dylan) wrote the song, but acknowledged that they failed to adequatly get that point across to the audience.
↑This injury was written into the show after Michael Trucco was involved in a near-fatal car accident during the halt in production observed during the 2007 writers strike. The accident left Trucco with a prominent scar stretching the entire length of the back of his neck.
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