The Living Legend (Book)

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The Living Legend A book of the Berkley Books line
Book No.	6
Author(s)	Nicholas Yermakov
Adaptation of	The Living Legend, Part I The Living Legend, Part II
No. of Pages	{{{pages}}}
Published	April 1982
ISBN	0425052494
Chronology
Previous		Next
Galactica Discovers Earth	The Living Legend	War of the Gods
Paperback Version
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Audiobook Version
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In the Battlestar Galactica novelization of "The Living Legend, Part I & II," the introductory segment is written from the point of view of Troy, now a Commander, who is thrust into this role after the death of Adama. Discovering Adama's extensive journals, he decides to investigate Commander Cain due to an observation that Adama offers in the pre-recorded message, and his desire to want to know more about Apollo.

Notes

• There are various consistent mis-spellings within the book on the proper names of the characters, including Serina ("Serena") and Cassiopeia ("Cassiopea").
• The book begins with an epilogue to Galactica 1980 as we learn that Adama is dead and Troy is now commander. He sits in Adama's old quarters and listens to a message from Adama bidding him a final farewell. We are not told if the Cylons have been defeated, but we definitely are given the impression that the Colonials have won or at least are winning. It is revealed that Apollo died while on a mission, but no more detail is given than that.
• The Pegasus is slightly older than Galactica, having been commissioned several yahrens earlier.
• The Pegasus has many noticable scars from battles, enough to have sent any battlestar back to the Colonies for refitting.
• The cabin on Galactica given to Cain had been vacated because there were no empty cabins left on the battlestar.
• Included is a scene that was shot but left out of the final cut: After Sheba tells Apollo, "Working with you won't be the problem," Apollo tells her about Cassiopea and all the good things she has done as a med-tech.
• Baltar had joined the Cylons AFTER they initially sued for peace because he realized what the Cylons were up to and did not want to be doomed with the rest of the Colonies. He volunteered to act as a go-between for the Cylon Empire to lull the Council into a false sense of security.
• Baltar hates Lucifer despite the fact that Lucifer had saved his life.
• Cain is nicknamed the Juggernaut.
• Colonel Tigh always dreamed of commanding a battlestar, but he was not happy commanding the Pegasus because Cain's crew clearly resented him.
• Starbuck smiled as he launched during the first attack by the Cylons. He lived for battle, and terror gave him a high.
• Baltar refused to take an extra four squadrons of Cylon raiders from Gamorray because he wanted to impress the Imperious Leader when destroying Galactica (since he wants to be allowed to rule on Gamorray). He felt that a completely overwhelming victory would be less valued, but it turned out to be a huge mistake with the Pegasus involved. If Baltar had taken the extra four squadrons (equivalent to a Cylon base star) with him, Galactica would not have been able to win even with the aid of the Pegasus.
• Starbuck and Apollo have previously taken out a command installation on Naytor, so they are confident they can take out the ground installation on Gammoray.
• Before he leaves for the Pegasus, Cain tells Cassiopea to spend time with Sheba. This helps explain why Cassiopea insists on joining the mission.
• Cassiopea met Cain in a tavern on Caprica shortly after his wife died. He was in a great deal of pain, and they were just friends for awhile. Eventually, they became lovers, and Sheba resented that Cain would turn to a socialator. Cain had trouble confiding in Sheba because she looked so much like her mother (a likely nod to the resemblance between Anne Lockhart and her actress/mother June Lockhart.
• Cassiopea had been attracted to Starbuck partly because he reminded her of Cain.
• Starbuck comes on to Sheba in the pilots' quarters, subtley proposing they make a side-bet that they have sex if the mission succeeds. Sheba smilingly refuses because she wouldn't want to blow the mission to avoid living up to the terms of the bet. This scene appears in the television episode, but it had been removed from the Sci-Fi channel reruns over the years, so many fans may have not seen it.
• The Delphians had been of no concern to the Cylons until they had developed space travel. Then they were seen as a threat.
• Imperious Leader has decided that Baltar will be executed either immediately after destroying the humans or when he is viewed to no longer be capable of defeating them.
• Almost every ship in the Colonial fleet had been drained of fuel in order to carry out the attack on Gammorray.
• Imperious Leader is injured in the battle of Gamoray. His own Cylon basestar manages to rescue him, but instead of going after Galactica, it retreats to get him to safety.
• When Starbuck had been captured by the Cylons, he had explained to Lucifer about luck and the complexities of being devious. This inspires Lucifer to not tell Baltar when Imperious Leader is finally rescued. Lucifer reasons that Baltar would then direct the Cylon fleet to attack Galactica directly rather save Gammorray, and Gammorray is too important to the Cylon Empire to allow it to be destroyed or even severely damaged.
• As Starbuck's viper shoots down the launching tube to meet the approaching Cylons, he yells "Sh-t!" When Apollo asks him what his exact words were, he lies and claims he said, "This is it."
• Tolen is injured during the battle by a power surge coming out of the monitor after one of the external scanner turrets takes a direct hit. He is thrown clear across the bridge. Despite his injury, he decides to stay aboard the Pegasus for the fight against the Cylon baseships.
• Athena is always on the bridge rather than in a viper because she is the most qualified person to do the job. She realizes Apollo is Adama's favorite, but it doesn't bother her. She would like to fly a viper, but she realizes that Adama needs her by his side because it is hard enough for him with Apollo constantly at risk.
• After the final scene from the episode occurs (the conversation with Sheba in the life station), Cassiopea kisses Starbuck and tells him she would be happy to meet with him later. Adama and Apollo hug each other, but pull apart when several crewmembers approach. They walk off, not noticing that they keep in step.

Analysis

• This may well have been the most anticipated of all the Berkley adapatations, and to Nicholas Yermakov's credit, it does not dissapoint. He succeeds in adding layers and depth to the episode without really changing any of the events, a wise move considering how beloved this episode is to fans. Any major changes to the story would probably have been a letdown. Because it is a straightforward retelling of the story, it is not as memorable as the first Berkley novel was, but there is still plenty here for Galactica fans to enjoy.
• The book delves deeper in the relationship between Cassiopeia and Cain, noting that she had met him when she was eighteen, and was able to get Cain to lower his psychological and emotional barriers. Further, Cassiopeia notes that Cain and Starbuck are very much alike, a point that is also made in the episode itself.
• The Imperious Leader forgives Lucifer for saving Baltar's life, seeing as Lucifer is able to prove that Baltar still was useful for the Cylon Empire in capturing and destroying the remaining humans. Further, the Cylons are aware of Baltar's hatred for Adama, which stems from the time both were cadets at the Academy, and use Baltar's vanity to aid their ends.

Cover views

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  Front cover.
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  Back cover.

External Links

• For those interested in more books about Cain and the Pegasus, there is The Pegasus Chronicles which consists of four full-length novels that are available free online. You can find them here.