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Viper (TRS)

2005-08-04T20:26:36Z

69.244.185.126: /* Overview */ - removed info about Galactia; This is about Vipers

==[[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Viper]]==

=== Overview ===

[[Image:Bsg-viper-1.jpg|thumb|Viper Mk II (credit: Gabriel C. Koerner)]]

The Viper is the Colonial Defence Force's primary space superiority fighter / attack craft. Capable of atmospheric flight, the Viper is a single-seat craft mounting two kinetic energy weapons ([[KEW]]s), as well as having hardpoints beneath the wings for mounting missiles, munitions pods and other ordnance ([[The Hand of God]]).

The Viper was originally introduced into Colonial service shortly before the outbreak of the [[Cylon War]]. However, it was the Mark II variant, designed specifically for use with the new Colonial [[Battlestar]]s that is best remembered.

The Mark II served with distinction throughout the Cylon War, proving a capable fighting vehicle that won renown across the 12 colonies and is regarded as one of the reasons the Colonials did not suffer defeat at the hands of the Cylons.

The Mark II remained in service after the end of the war, but was subsequently superceded by newer models. At the time of the renewed Cylon attack on the 12 Colonies, the Mark VII was the front-line variant of the Viper design, retaining the Mark II general layout but using fully networked systems providing superior battle management and fight information for the pilot.

Ironically, it was the incorporation of the new integrated systems that prevented the majority of Mark VIIs from being effective during the Cylon attack: as with the majority of Colonial Fleet, the Mark VII suffered fatal computer glitches on contact with Cylon forces. Thanks to Six's relationship with Baltar, the navigational software in standard use onboard the majority of Colonial Fleet vessels had backdoors that allowed the Cylons to infiltrate a vessel's network by wireless signals and disable its power systems. While the problem could be overcome by removing the navigational upgrade compromised by the Cylons, this information was not discovered in time to be of major benefit to the surprised and hard-pressed Colonial forces.

==== Atmospheric Operations ====
The Viper is designed for atmospheric as well as space-based operations. However, Vipers consume more fuel during atmospheric operations than in the vacuum of space: once in an atmosphere, the engines must run continuously to retain airflow over the wing lifting surfaces. Depending on the composition of the atmosphere itself, this can place severe strain on the Viper's engines ([[You Can't Go Home Again]]).

Due to their wing configuration, Vipers may also suffer from poor handling at low speeds within an atmosphere.

==== Life Support ====
Viper cockpits are pressurised and heated, but they are flown with the pilot wearing a flight suit that is capable of providing full life support should ejection be required ([[You Can't Go Home Again]]). The life support systems are built-in to the back of the pilot's seat itself, together with the flight harness. Following an ejection, the back of the seat separates automatically, effectively becoming a backpack for the pilot ([[Act of Contrition]]).

Should ejection take place within an atmosphere, the life support backpack / seat back also incorporates a parachute.

=== Technical Specifications ===

[[Image:Bsg-viper7-1.jpg|thumb|Viper MkVII (credit: Sci-Fi Channel)]]

==== Dimensions ====
Mark II
*Length: (approx) 7.6m
*Wingspan: (approx) 3.7m

Mark VII
*Length: (approx) 8.5m
*Wingspan: (approx) 4.3m

==== Propulsion ====
*Both: 3x sublight engines mounted aft; 2x reverse thrust motors; [[RCS]] points
*Mark VII: Angular exhaust nozzle design suggest possible thrust-vectoring.

==== Armaments ====
*Mark II: 2x forward-firing kinetic energy weapons ([[KEW]]) mounted in the wing roots
*Mark VII: 3x forward-firing kinetic energy weapons (KEW); 2 mounted towards the outboard sections of the wings; 1 mounted in the vertical stabiliser
*Both: Weapon hardpoints for mounting missiles / munitions pods, etc. under the wings

==== Instruments ====
*Mark II: [[Radio Magnetic Indicator]]
*Mark II: [[Torque Percent Gauge]]
*Mark II: [[Attitude Indicator]]
*Mark II: [[Altimeter]]

==== Crew ====
*Pilot

==== Notes ====

Since the Galactica only had 20 Viper Mark II's aboard, they needed as many fighters as possible, thus the remaining Mark VII's were refitted and stripped of their advanced computer systems. However, since this is not how the Mark VII was designed, it makes the craft increasingly difficult to handle and can only be flown by the most experienced pilots ([[Apollo]]).

=== Layout ===

The Viper is a long, sleek vehicle that can be spilt into two parts, fore and aft.

*Fore section: comprises the nose back to the cockpit. This contains the forward RCS systems for manoeuvring the craft; the forward landing gear; the main avionics and sensor packages, plus the single-seat cockpit itself
*Stern section: comprises the main engines, fuel tanks, wings and vertial stabiliser. The wings themselves contain the kinetic energy weapons ("guns") and their munitions storage and feeds. Harpoints beneath the wings allow missiles, munitions pods and other items to be rack-mounted ([[The Hand of God]]). The wings roots contain the main landing gear. This section of a Viper also contains a number of RCS manoeuvring packs.

The stern section of a Viper is distinctive because of the offset "intakes" mounted just behind the cockpit. The port / starboard "intake" nacelles incorporate small but powerful reverse thrust engines that can quickly counter a Viper's forward momentum in an emergency ([[The Hand of God]]).

==[[TOS Battlestar Galactica|Original Series Viper]]==
[[Image:bsg-viper-tos.jpg|thumb|Starhound Viper (credit: Universal / ABC)]]

The Colonial Starhound Viper was the primary space superiority fighter / attack craft deployed by the Colonials. Capable of atmospheric flight, it was a single-seat craft mounting two laser-torpedo guns as standard, as well as having hardpoints for mounting missiles.

The Viper was originally introduced into Colonial service during the 1,000 yahren war with the Cylons, and was a far superior craft to the [[Cylon Raider#Original Series Raider|Cylon Raider]].

Propulsion was said to be provided by a hybrid tylium / fusion reactor powering three ion engines with a "turbo-boost" facility for very rapid acceleration. For atmospheric flight, the engines are additionally supplied with atmospheric gases as combustibles to conserve on-board fuel supplies. The viper cockpit is fully pressurised, and in the event of catastrophic system damage, the entire module can detach and eject away from the damaged Viper.

==== Dimensions ====
*Length: (approx) 8.7m
*Wingspan: (approx) 3.8m

==== Propulsion ====
*3x ion engines mounted aft

==== Aramaments ====
*2 x forward-firing laser-torpedo guns
*4 x two-hundred kiloton Solonite missiles
*2 x thirty megaton Solonite bombs

====Crew====
* Pilot

===Layout===
[[Image:tos-viper-cut.jpg|thumb|Starhound Viper Cutaway (credit: Mike McAdams)]]
The Viper is a long, sleek vehicle that can be spilt into two parts, fore and aft.

* Fore section: comprises the nose back to the cockpit. This contains the targeting dish and sensor array, the forward landing gear; the main avionics and sensor packages, plus the cockpit module
* Stern section: comprises the main engines, reactor systems, turbo-boost injection systems, fuel tanks, wings and vertial stabiliser. The wings themselves contain the laser-torpedo guns and their power packs. Harpoints beneath the wings allow missiles, munitions pods and other items to be rack-mounted.

--[[User:Ernestborg9|Colonial Archivist]] 20:07, 1 Feb 2005 (EST)

==Video Game Variants==
Within the [[Video Game]], three variants of Viper are available: the Mark I, which is designed to be an earlier version of the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|original series]] Viper; the Mark II, which is largely based on the original series Viper, and the Mark III, which is described as "superior to the Mark II in every respect".

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial Craft]]
[[Category:Colonial Craft (TOS)]]
[[Category:Colonial Military]]
[[Category:Colonial Military (TOS)]]
[[Category:RDM]]
[[Category:TOS]]
[[Category:Video Game Ships]]

Felix Gaeta

2005-08-01T19:02:08Z

69.244.185.126:

[[Image:Bsg-gaeta-1.jpg|thumb|Lt. Gaeta (credit: Sci-Fi Channel)]]

Full Name: ? Gaeta

Rank: Lieutenant

Age: Mid-20s (?)

Marital Status: Single

Children: None

Current position: [[Tactical Officer]] [[Battlestar]] ''[[Galactica]]'', formerly part of the 75th Battlestar Group

(Played by: [[Alessandro Juliani]])

Lieutenant Gaeta is a young, capable officer in the Colonial military. For the three years prior to the Cylon attack on the [[Twelve Colonies | twelve colonies]], he has served as [[William Adama]]'s Tactical Officer aboard the ''Galactica''.

He is a stickler for detail and highly efficient. This, and his overall ability have led William Adama to rely heavily on him as a member of Galactica's command crew, despite his relative youth and junior rank.

As well as performing the role of Tactical Officer, Gaeta is also responsible for the management of the ship's [[FTL]] systems. This includes both calculating FTL jumps, and initiating the jump itself.

Following the Cylon attack, and as a result of his having studied biogenetics, Lt. Gaeta was selected by Adama to assist Dr. [[Gaius Baltar]] in the development of the much-needed [[Cylon detector]] ([[Water]]). During his time working with Baltar, Gaeta has developed a certain respect and liking for the doctor - despite the latter's apparent eccentricities. So much so, that when a woman called "[[Shelly Godfrey]]" arrived on-board the ''Galactica'', Gaeta worked hard to try and prove Baltar's innocence of the charges levelled against him ([[Six Degrees of Separation]]). Although he is ultimately successful, he fails to follow-up on the fact that the photographic evidence supplied by "Shelly Godfrey" looked as if the evidence itself had been faked in a way that ensured it was exposed as a forgery.

Gaeta showed his remarkable brilliance after ''Galactica'' mistakenly jumped to a different set of coordinates than the rest of the fleet to escape a Cylon attack in ''[[Scattered]]''. The [[FTL]] drive computers compensate for spatial changes, but due to the chaos after [[William Adama|Commander Adama]] was shot by [[Sharon Valerii]], Gaeta did not have time to synchronize the spatial positioning with the rest of the fleet, whose FTL computers had collectively different information. Worse, if they went back to their original position, the Cylons would destroy the ship before it could retrieve the correct fleet coordinates. Gaeta blamed himself (although [[Saul Tigh]] did not), but later realized that he could network four systems of the ship (something Commander Adama may never have approved) to reduce the coordinate calculation time from hours to minutes. Knowing the Cylons would try to hack the network, Gaeta set up four firewalls in the hacked network to slow their progress while the ship's guns and Vipers bought the needed time to calculate.

==Note==
*While Gaeta is described as the "Tactical Officer", his role is closer to that of the US Navy's CIC Watch Officer (CICWO), combining it with elements of the Tactical Watch Officer (TAO), a role also partially fulfilled by [[Tigh, Saul|Colonel Tigh]], both under the command of [[Adama, William|William Adama]].
*His counterpart in the original "Battlestar Galactica" is Sgt. [[Omega]]. If the similarities between them continue, then Gaeta is a [[Sagittaron]] native.
*There is widespread speculation among fans that Gaeta is another Cylon infiltrator.

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:RDM]]

Talk:God (RDM)/Archive 1

2005-08-01T18:47:14Z

69.244.185.126:

It always seemed to me that "God" is the Cylon central computer (or equivalent). My hypothesis is that the "re-imagined" Count Iblis will be the God.[[User:Kuralyov|Kuralyov]] 20:21, 21 May 2005 (EDT)

== from the author ==

Do you like this style of this God page that I wrote? I personally think the quotes are too numerous. I'll probably delete some quotes, but it's hard to know which might prove important. For example, Adama's speaking of God may be significant. I would love to have such quotes about other topics on other Wiki pages, as it's easier to do unbiased research this way.

Regarding your theory of the Cylon God being Iblis, although there probably is a head Cylon like that, their religion seems more abstract: "We are all God, all of us. I see the love that binds all living things together."

Should we include deleted scenes on Wiki pages? There is an important bit of dialog in KLG 1 about the legend of a jealous god who tried to elevate himself above the rest. Internal Six replies something like, "Blasphemy! There has only ever been one God."

I need help for the original series section of this God page. I haven't watched the original series since the late 70's! Feel free to do whatever you want with that section.

-[[User:MHall|MHall]]

I don't think we should include colonial expressions of "God", as I'm pretty sure they're just accidentals from the actors. - Chris

Fragged

2005-07-31T03:14:41Z

69.244.185.126: /* On Kobol */

== Overview ==

''Colonel Tigh must deal with the Quorum of Twelve and the press over Roslin's removal from the presidency, while Cylon Warriors are preparing to hinder any rescue attempt on Kobol by setting up anti-aircraft batteries.''

== Summary ==

===On the Galactica===

*Doctor [[Cottle]] arrives on the [[Galactica]] from the [[Rising Star]], and informs Colonel Tigh that Commander [[Adama]] is still bleeding internally, and that he will have to operate to stabilize his condition.
*It becomes apparent that the pressures of commanding the Galactica have gotten to Tigh, as he has become more and more dependent on alcohol. He becomes confused, questioning why [[Lee Adama]] is leading a crew to rescue the survivors from [[Kobol]], and causes him to act very rudely to members of the crew.
*After being informed about an arrival on the ship, Tigh goes to meet the [[Quorum of Twelve]], who demand that they be given access to the imprisoned [[Laura Roslin]]. Tigh contends that Adama removed Roslin from power, believing she was a threat to the stability of the fleet, and denies accusations by the Quorum members that he will try to initiate martial law upon the fleet.
*Meanwhile, Roslin is starting to experience delusions while being held in the Galactica's brig, which prompts [[Billy]] to use [[Venner|Corporal Venner]], a heavily religious follower of the [[Pythian]] prophecies, to obtain [[Kamala]] extract for Roslin.
*[[Ellen Tigh]] visits Roslin in the brig, and realizes Laura is going crazy. She states that Saul should allow the Quorum members access to the imprisoned President, as it will prove that she was a threat to the stability of the government.
*The Quorum members visit, and, having taken the Kamala, Roslin makes a statement to the members, stating that the military coup has failed, and that she is still retaining the position of President. She then goes on to tell the members that she is dying from terminal breast cancer, and the Quorum members realize that she is the dying leader who will lead the fleet to [[Earth]]. Realizing he has severly underestimated Roslin, Tigh herds the Quorum members out of the brig.
*Saul then appears before the press, and states that because of the attempted coup against the military, he is declaring martial law over the fleet, which throws the room into chaos.

===On Kobol===

*After holding a funeral for [[Socinus]] and [[Tarn]], the ground crew stranded on Kobol discover that the [[Cylons]] are cannibalizing the parts of the downed [[Raptor]] craft, and are using the parts to build an anti-aircraft battery.
*[[Crashdown]] deduces that the Cylon centurions won't look for them, but will instead use the battery to shoot down any aircraft that come looking for the survivors.
*Even though [[Tyrol]] and [[Baltar]] both object, Crashdown decides that they will have to take out the anti-aircraft battery if they want to get rescued, even though more than half the group aren't proficient in the use of firearms.
*In a hallucination, [[Six]] tells Baltar that one of the crew will turn against the others, and that it is Baltar's duty to accept his role as the father of the new race of human-Cylon hybrids.
*When the crew ready their assault on the battery, they discover that more Cylons have reinforced the security around the battery, which leads Tyrol to believe the makeshift [[DRADIS]] dish that the Cylons are suing to guide the missiles will be left unprotected. In spite of this, Crashdown tells them he is in charge and that they will proceed with the plan.
*During this time, Lee Adama and a compliment of medical personnel and marines have piloted 2 Raptors to the planet's surface.
*When [[Cally]] objects to being a diversion for the attack, Crashdown pulls a gun on her and threatens to shoot her unless she follows her orders. Tyrol pulls his gun on Crashdown, but when it looks like Crashdown will fire, he is shot in the back by Baltar.
*This action reveals their position to the Cylons, who start chasing after them through the forest. The team makes their way to the DRADIS dish, during which time [[Selix]] is shot in the leg, and Tyrol is shot in the arm, but he manages to use a grenade launcher to take out the dish. Although they are outmanned, Tyrol stands up and opens fire on the advancing Cylons, but the Raptors in the air use their missiles to destroy the Cylons.
*When the rescued crew is leaving Kobol, Six tells Baltar that he is fulfilling his role in the prophecy, and that she will act as his conscience.

== Questions ==
*What did [[Number Six]] mean when she said that people that die on [[Kobol]] simply die, and that "God" has abandoned Kobol?
*Will [[Tyrol]], [[Cally]], or [[Selix]] ever reveal the truth about Crashdown's fate? Or perhaps use the threat of doing so as leverage against Baltar, to force him to perform a favor later?
*Why was it necessary to cannibalize [[Raptor 305]] for parts? Galactica had four raptors in good condition during [[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II]], and none were seen to be deployed during the fracas in [[Scattered]].
*Further evidence that [[Ellen Tigh]] is a Cylon? While she visited [[Laura Roslin]] in the brig, [[Laura]] suffered from a ringing in her ears which stopped the moment [[Ellen]] closed the door upon leaving. [[Laura]]'s sudden reaction of "Oh my gods.. [[Ellen Tigh]]," also seemed to indicate that she realized what she was sensing. Will [[Laura]] inform anyone of this or, because it happened during her withdrawl from [[chamalla]], can she not remember? The guard seemed to notice the reaction and timing as well.

== Analysis ==

== Notes ==
*As of the opening credits, the fleet population is now 47,862, reflecting a casualty count of 12 during the Cylon boarding action in the previous episode. This seems barely sufficient to include the bodies seen on screen, let alone the number of casualties implied in [[Valley of Darkness]], but perhaps a number of the casualties haven't had time to expire yet. At the end of the episode, factoring in Crashdown's death, the total stands at 47,861.
*[[Crashdown]] dies in this episode, shot by Baltar because he was about to shoot Cally.
*"Frag" is American military slang for intentionally killing a superior officer of your own force in the field. Popularized during Vietnam, when discipline lagged and a few officers got grenades in their bunkers or caught "friendly fire" during a skirmish.
*[[Gemenon]] is the most religious of the [[Twelve Colonies]], and Gemenons interpret the [[Sacred Scrolls]] very literally. It appears that many Gemenons believe so strongly in the [[Pythia]]'s prophesy that they will almost automatically side with President Roslin.
*[[Roslin, Laura|President Roslin]] has revealed to the entire [[Quorum of Twelve]], as well as [[Tigh, Saul|Colonel Tigh]], that she is dying of breast cancer, and presumably it is now fully public knowledge.
*[[Cally]] only joined the Colonial Fleet as a way to pay her way through dental school.
*First episode without an appearance by [[Starbuck]].
*First episode without scenes on [[Caprica]].
*First episode without an appearance by Helo.
*First episode in which Tigh calls [[Galactica]] "my ship."
*The discussion between Tigh and Billy firmly establishes that Billy was ''not'' arrested.
*Raptors are capable of carrying missles.

== Noteworthy Dialogue ==

== Official Statements ==

== Statistics ==

=== Guest Stars ===
*[[Richard Hatch]] as [[Tom Zarek]]
*[[Kate Vernon]] as [[Tigh, Ellen|Ellen Tigh]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/name/nm1022429/ Samuel Witwer] as [[Crashdown]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0722413/ Donnelly Rhodes] as [[Doctor Cottle]]

=== Writing & Direction ===

*Written by Dawn Prestwich and Nicole Yorkin
*Story by
*Teleplay by
*Produced by Harvey Frand
*Directed by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan

=== Production Notes ===

*Series 2 (2005/2006)
*Production Number: 2.3
*Airdate Order: 3 (of 20)

=== First Run Air Dates & Releases ===

*UK Airdate: September 2005
*US Airdate: July 29 2005
*DVD Release: Date

{{Episode List}}

[[Category: Episode Guide (RDM)]]
[[Category: A to Z]]
[[Category:RDM]]

Miniseries, Night 1

2005-07-25T08:38:39Z

69.244.185.126: /* Laura Roslin's Cancer Storyline */

== Overview ==

: ''After 40 years of peace with the Humanity's bastard children, the [[Cylons]], Humanity finds itself victim of a genocidal attack and the survivors are forced to flee from their [[Twelve Colonies | twelve colonies]] in the Cyrannus system.''

== Backplot ==



* The [[Cylons]] were created by the [[Colonials]] as a labor and military force. 40 years prior, the Cylons turned on their Human creators and the [[Cylon War]] ensued. The Cylons were exiled from the [[12 Colonies]] and were never seen again in any known form.
* The [[Galactica|Battlestar Galactica]] is the last relic from the Cylon War and is being decomissioned. It was slated to be turned into a museum piece.
* The Colonies, who were once technophobic due to the Cylons, are recovering from their phobia and are integrating technology back into their normal lives and, as a result, military crafts.
* The Cylons are capable of infiltrating any networked computer system and disrupting electrical equipment.
* The Colonials descended from a mother world, known as [[Kobol]].
* There is a myth about a [[Earth|13th Colony of Kobol]], known as [[Earth]].

== Questions ==



* What happened to the Cylons over the course of their 40 year exile?
* What events transpired that made the [[Cylons]] hate their human masters? When did this occur?
* Where is the Cylon homeworld?
* Are there other life forms or powers that exist in the universe?
* Does Earth truly exist, despite Cmdr. [[Adama, William|Adama's]] disbelief?
* What happened to [[Helo]] on [[Caprica]]? ([[33|Answer]])
* We know of 7 of 12 Cylon models: [[Valerii, Sharon|Boomer]], [[Number 6]], [[Doral, Aaron|Aaron Doral]], [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005]], [[Cylon Raider]], [[Cylon Warrior]], and [[Conoy, Leoben|Leoben Conoy]]. What are the other 5?
* If the Cylons hate Humanity with the passion that they do, why did they mimic human form? Was it for strategic purposes or was there something greater?

== Analysis ==

{{expansion}}



=== Noted Improvements from the Original ===

* The basic story is still present: robotic [[Cylons]] surprisingly attack the 12 Colonies resulting in a holocaust, thus forcing a "rag-tag, fugitive fleet" to coalesce around the last surviving [[battlestar]], [[Galactica]], to seek a mythical [[13th Colony]] where refugees hope to find shelter from the [[Cylons]]. However, many of the fine details are changed, such as:
** The Cylons were created by Humanity, not by a reptilian race (also called Cylons) who hated Humanity.
** The ''Galactica'' is a 50 year old relic on the verge of decommission.
** The names of "Apollo", "Boomer", and "Starbuck" are changed to call signs. Characters have the standard First, Middle and Last Names.
** The futuristic (and often confusing) terminology used to denote distances, measuring, and time in the original series have been replaced with understandable terminology. "Year" was known as a "yahren" in the original.
** The ship designs, save for some revisions to the [[Viper|Mark II Viper]] and the [[Galactica]] and a few noteworthy background ships (such as the [[Freighter Gemenon]] and the [[Botanical Ship]], have been redone.
** The [[Quorum of Twelve]], is not mentioned in the mini-series, and has apparently been replaced by a setup similar to the United States [[WikiPedia:executive branch|executive branch]]. There is a president, vice president, and secretaries (the [[Quorum of Twelve|Quorum]] does not make an appearance until episode 1.11 [[Colonial Day]], in which it appears somewhat similar to the
** Instead of the out worldly, Egyptian-esque clothing and city designs (i.e. pyramids) seen in the original, the clothing and cities are more contemporary in design and function.
* The relationships and characters from the original have been changed slighly as well.
** [[Boomer (TOS)|Boomer]], who was played as a male character by [[Herb Jefferson Jr.]] in the original, is now the call-sign of a female Lieutenant [[Valerii, Sharon|Sharon Valerii]] ([[Park, Grace|Grace Park]]).
** [[Starbuck]], who was played as a male character by [[Dirk Benedict]] in the original, is now the call-sign of a female Lieutenant [[Thrace, Kara|Kara Thrace]] ([[Katee Sackhoff]])
** "Adama" is now a surname.
** The character of [[Adama (TOS)|Adama]], potrayed by [[Lorne Greene]] in the original, now is known as [[Adama, William|William "Husker" Adama]] ([[Edward James Olmos]]). He is a man about to retire, is estranged from his son [[Adama, Lee|Lee]], and is not as religious as the original portrayal of Adama.
** [[Apollo]], portrayed by [[Original Series]] continuation activist [[Richard Hatch]], is the call sign of [[Adama, Lee|Lee Adama]] ([[Jamie Bamber]]). He is a flawed character who hates his father, believing him to be ultimately responsible for the death of [[Adama, Zak|Zack Adama]], and is questioning his life's choices.
** [[Baltar (TOS)|Baltar]], who was willingly complicit in the destruction of the [[12 Colonies]] due to his thirst for power, is now a computer genius whose fullname is [[Baltar, Gaius|Gaius Baltar]]. Instead of being the imposing, methodical and mischevious Baltar (portrayed by the late [[John Colicos]]), Gaius ([[James Callis]]) is a cowardly, egotistical man whose ultimate falling for bombshell women is his fait accompli.  His betrayal of the human race was, mostly, due to his lust for [[Number 6]], whom he allowed unfettered access to the [[Colonial Defense Mainframe]].
** The character of Colonel [[Tigh (TOS)|Tigh]], portrayed by [[Terry Carter]], is now separated from his wife and seeing out the rest of his career from inside a bottle in the form of Colonel [[Tigh, Saul|Saul Tigh]] ([[Michael Hogan]]) who hasn't seen military action in a long while.
* The show has taken a more realistic turn. Realistic science, which was painfully absent in the original series, is applied in this series. From the movement of the space vessels to the tactics used in space, to even the noticeably diminished sounds in space (yes, it is muted, which is unrealistic -- but a necessary evil foisted upon the show by the higher-ups), the feeling of realism is in place. Realism is also affirmed by the documentary, hand-held camera style with the use of "snap zooms" and other guerilla documentarian niceties.
* Certain models of Cylons appear human, right down to the blood -- it would take complex tests just to screen for these Humanoid Cylons. Not only is this a budget-saver, but it also generates some very disturbing questions. For one, the Cylons have now managed to merge in with human society, making it easier to manipulate from within. This mirrors terrorist methods of infiltration and delivering destructive results to heavy population centers (a la suicide bombers). It also brings up interesting questions regarding cross-species mating: Can Humanoid Cylons mate with their Human creators?

=== Plot and Character Analyses ===

Since plot and character are so intertwined, both will be covered here.

==== Armistice Station ====

The Armistice Station gave us a chance to understand the conflict between the Cylons and Humanity. It also introduced us to the new Cylons and broke away from conventions set in Science Fiction. Instead of storming the station, the Cylons used [[Number 6]] and sexually assaulted the Armistice Officer. Question is, why was the Armistice Officer assaulted sexually instead of physically? The answer is three fold:

# This defied those who would make the claim that [[Battlestar Galactica]] is a "rip-off" of Star Wars; the same claim that was made against the original.
# This showed that the Cylons understood the devastating effect of sexual molestation. Since when did a Human expect for a Cylon to attack Humanity in this way?
# There is a drive within the Cylons to understand - and possibly experience the sensations of being truly alive.

The armistice station was destroyed by a [[Cylon Basestar]]. Though this was a dramatic blow, this does seem rather unnecessary from a logical point of view. The Cylons present were more than enough to subdue the Armistice Officer and be able to keep the station for future purposes.

==== Commander William Adama & Nostalgia ====

With the [[Galactica]]'s future being a museum piece with gift shops, Commander William Adama is ready to retire, albeit reluctantly. Adama heads to retirement with trepidation, unsure of what he would do with the remainder of his life. His crew will ultimately be disbanded and good-byes abound. There is a sense of a ship seeing its last days, despite some of the joy that some of the crew members have in continuing their military careers.

Adama is presented with his reconditioned Viper, which was rusting in a junkyard on [[Sagittaron]], as well as a picture of himself and his two sons when he was younger.

This is a touching moment, demonstrating the crew's affection for him as a person. It also establishes Adama's legitimacy as a war-hardened commander in the series quite nicely.

==== Starbuck & Tigh Card Fight ====

The "card fight" between a Lieutenant and Colonel sparked a bit of controversy in the fan community before it aired. In the original draft, [[Thrace, Kara|Starbuck]] got off free without being thrown in the brig. However, given the fan's astute observation of a disturbing lack of disciplinary action against Starbuck for striking a superior, the aftermath was changed.

The scene demonstrates Starbuck's mistrust of authority and the antagonistic relationship between [[Tigh, Saul|Tigh]] and herself. The touch of classic Starbuck elements, i.e. the gambling and [[fumarello]] smoking, is a nice homage to the original that fits in nicely. [[Katee Sackhoff]]'s portrayal tells viewers that this isn't the same Starbuck from the original, as she is clearly unbalanced.

Tigh himself comes off as a grouchy, inebriated old man who has seen his glory days, which hammers home the fact that the good ship Galactica is seeing its last days. When he puts Starbuck in the brig, she knows she's stepped over the line -- but so has he, given that he flipped over the table first.

It also nicely puts Starbuck in a confined place from a story standpoint, allowing other characters to be introduced.

==== Laura Roslin's Cancer Storyline ====

The cancer story line for the Secretary of Education [[Laura Roslin]] seems a bit over-the-top from a superficial standpoint, which distracts from the main story. Yet having the cancer story-line helps show that smaller tragedies don't cease simply because another one looms ahead. It also reveals Roslin's vulnerability and puts her character in a realistic ethical conundrum, where she is more concerned about her own well-being when billions of people have been victims of the Cylon genocide. It establishes a further plot line with President Roslin that develops over Season One.

==== The Infanticide Debate ====

One of the more emotional and argued points in the whole mini-series is not the sex changes of two main characters, and certainly not the major change in the Cylons, but the incident where [[Number 6]] kills an infant in the market place.

The question during the debate focused on the immorality of the act and was purported by those against the re-imagining as being an indicator that the source material wasn't being taken seriously.

The intent of the act was never questioned. It is simply assumed that Number 6 killed the baby out of cold blood.

The doubt of Number 6's intent, or possible lack thereof, still surrounds this scene. It was obvious that Number 6 was puzzled by the fraility of the baby and questioned as to how the neck could support the weight of the baby's head. Many items can be deduced from that scene, a few follow:

# It was a deliberate act. Cold and ruthless. Nothing more.
# Number 6 has feelings and is rational. Due to her knowledge of the impending attack and the expectation that the entire human race could be eradicated, could the act be merciful?
# Could it be an act of spite? In "[[33]]", her mental image asked [[Baltar, Gaius|Gaius Baltar]] if he wanted children. With begs the question: Can Humanoid Cylons propogate their race through Human childbirth?
# Could it be a simple lack of knowledge? If so, the infanticide was accidental, and Number 6 had no way of knowing.
# She did demonstrate curiosity as to how much the neck could support. Could the death have been an unethical experiment on her part?

The most disturbing aspect of the whole debate lies in the assumption that a single act of infanticide is unacceptable, whereas the genocide of the entire human race (including born and unborn infants) by Cylon hands seems to be more palatable.

==== The "Glowing Spine" Scene ====

One of the major inconsistencies in the mini-series was gleaned from this scene. The fact is established that Humano-Cylons were, for all intents and purposes, organic. Also established was, even with the most thorough of tests, it is almost impossible to screen Human from Cylon. What caused the spine to glow? It certainly wasn't a human reaction to sex. Since the Cylons went to the very painstaking process of creating an undetectable Humanoid Cylon model, it is conceivable that glowing spinal columns -- and more to the point the chemicals that would cause the aformentioned reaction -- would arouse undue suspicion and thwart Cylon plans.

One possible explanation for the glowing spine would be that the glowing spine is the act of "6" transfering some part of herself into Baltar, as evidenced later. However, this explanation is highly speculative. Furthermore, Boomer has a glowing spine when having sex with Helo.

Considering Baltar seems to be the only person qualified to work on distinguishing cylon from human, it may be that he is not smart enough to look in the right places (after all he has not found other cylon hallmarks, such as a transponder -- if it exists) or, being influenced by six, unwilling to look in the right places, knowledgeable of it (but unwilling to come forward with the information), or some combination of all three.

Note: Comments from members of the production crew have since suggested that the only reason the glowing spine was included was that it "looked cool" at the time, and in retrospect, may have been a mistake.

==== "Humanity's children are returning home... today." ====

It is interesting to note Baltar's ability to deceive himself even when the human race is being eradicated.

; Additional information can be added later on. Feel free to do so.

== Notes ==



* The miniseries was initially broadcast in two two-hour segments. During re-broadcast (such as with the UK's Sky One channel), the two halves were combined into a single 3-hour 56-minute "film"
* Initially, there were 12 [[battlestar|battlestars]], one representing each Colony. Battlestar ''[[Galactica]]'' represented [[Caprica]]. These were built with antiquated technolgies, as were their fighter craft, to avoid the [[Cylons]]'s tactical advantage of disrupting complex electrical and computer equipment.
* Networked computers were susceptible to Cylon infiltration, forcing the Colonials to react by reducing their dependance on technology.
* The fleet has been greatly expanded since then, with at least 36 and possibly as many as 120 battlestars, although it is by no means certain all the vessels in the fleet follow the ''Galactica'' design.
* As the Colonials became more confident of their security, integrated systems were re-introduced to their civilian and military craft.
* The Cylons believe in [[God]], whereas the Colonials believe in a pantheon of gods mirroring the [[Greek Gods|12 Olympian gods]] of Greek mythology.
* Cylons are also called "chrome toasters", mainly for their original appearance (a nod to the original series).
* All pilots have call signs.
* Commander [[Dash]] was the ''Galactica's'' first Commanding Officer.
* In the mini, [[Valerii, Sharon|Boomer]] is referred to as a "rook" by [[Thrace, Kara|Starbuck]], meaning a rookie. In [[Act of Contrition]], "[[nugget]]" is the chosen name for rookie pilots.

===Blooper Moments===
* At the start of the episode, dialogue is retained from a draft scipt which placed the [[Twelve Colonies]] actually on [[Kobol]], rather than spread among twelve worlds. The giveaway lines are spoken by [[Doral, Aaron|Aaron Doral]] (played by [[Bennett, Matthew|Matthew Bennett]]):

: "Now, as I was saying, form follows function, and nowhere is this axiom of design more readily apparent than on the world famous Battlestar Galactica...now originally there were twelve battlestars, each representing one of Kobol's twelve colonies...."

: Given the show is set among 12 different worlds, and Kobol is now regarded as the birthplace of humanity, abandoned at some point in the distant past, Doral's should have used the words "worlds' famous", and simply referred to the original battlestars representing each of the Twelve Colonies.
* At the time of her first FTL jump, ''Galactica'' retracts her flight pods. However, when the jump is made, the ship is shown with the pods still extended.

=== Nods ===

* The Firefly-class ship, Serenity, from the sci-fi series Firefly makes a brief appearance. It can be seen flying above [[Roslin, Laura|Laura Roslin]] when she is about to hear her prognosis of breast cancer on [[Caprica]].
* The fanfare just prior to [[Adama, William|Commander Adama's]] speech is taken from [[Stu Phillips]]'s theme for the [[TOS Battlestar Galactica|original Battlestar Galactica]].
* The pilot [[Jolly]] makes a brief (verbal) appearance, just prior to the Cylon's massacre of the squad led by [[Spencer, James|James Spencer]], Galactica's previous [[CAG]]. It is not the same actor that played [[Jolly (TOS)|Jolly]] in the original.
* The original [[Cylon Basestar]] can be briefly seen in the Galactica museum.
* President [[Roslin]] makes a point of calling [[Adama, Lee|Lee Adama]] "Captain [[Apollo]]", saying that it has a nice ring to it.
* During the attack, ''[[Colonial One|Colonial 798 Heavy]]'' assists Gemenon Liner Seventeen-oh-one (1701). This is a nod to [[Ronald D. Moore|RDM's]] work on Star Trek.

== Noteworthy Dialogue ==




==== Adama's Speech at the Galactica's Decommissioning Ceremony ====

"The Cylon War is long over, yet we must not forget the reasons why so many sacrificed so much in the cause of freedom. The cost of wearing the uniform can be high, but --

"Sometimes it's too high.

"You know, when we fought the Cylons, we did it to save ourselves from extinction. But we never answered the question, why? Why are we as a people worth saving? We still commit murder because of greed, spite, jealousy. And we still visit all of our sins upon our children. We refuse to accept the responsibility for anything that we've done.

"Like we did with the Cylons. We decided to play God, create life. When that life turned against us, we comforted ourselves in the knowledge that it really wasn't our fault, not really. You cannot play God then wash your hands of the things that you've created. Sooner or later, the day comes when you can't hide from the things that you've done anymore."

== Official Statements ==




=== Edward James Olmos' (EJO) Statements Regarding the Mini-Series ===

After the announcement of Edward James Olmos' involvement in the mini-series, portraying a role that was previously done by Canadian actor Lorne Greene, many fans contacted him. As is evidenced by the quotes before, Olmos demonstrates his honesty and reaction to the mail, most of which could be classified as fairly negative.

From his [http://hometown.aol.com/ejowebmistress/ official website]:

*"I must say one thing and will say this very clearly. If you are a person who really has a strict belief in the original, I would not advise that you watch this program...We really don't stand true to the kind of characters that were built around the original. It definitely does break the mold. Some of the characters' names are the same, but the intent and the way that we are building the reality is completely not the reality that was built in the original." -- 7/03

*"I'm going to be the first one to say it really clearly. Please tell your readers, do not watch this program...[P]eople get really, really angry. You've got to remember that this is a show that was only on . . . in the late '70s, and to this day has a very strong fan base. Tens of thousands of people who write to each other for 25 years over a program that is not on the air and is not even being rerun. "They didn't want this at all, and I didn't know any of this. . . . All of a sudden, my e-mails went through the roof. Suddenly I was accused of teaming up with Ron Moore and creating just a slap in the face of all these people, and I didn't want to slap anybody."

*"Trust me, don't watch it. If you are a real, real staunch 'Battlestar Galactica' person, don't watch it. . . . Just don't write to me, all right? I warned you. I was honest."

*"I've gotten some really strong, strong mail. . . . They're really bitter. They're very angry. And I know the Sci Fi Channel wants to say that everybody's going to enjoy it. They're not."

=== Comments from [[Eick, David|David Eick]] ===

"The goals of the mini series were nothing short of reinventing the science fiction genre. We wanted to present people in a catastrophic situation, in the wake of a tragedy, responding as human beings actually would through the prism of the science ficton genre."

=== Regarding Mini Series Ratings ===

"I think going into it, we all wondered. you know, what the audience numbers were going to be, especially given all the internet, sort of, controversy and the general, sort of, [something] about what we were doing and people objecting. And was it going to be a failure or was it not.

"The first night's numbers were good, but not great. We were waiting to see what the drop-off would be, because there was always a drop off on the second night. And the ratings actually went up." -- Ron D. Moore [http://scifi.com/battlestar/bts/video/mov/video_06_320.mov]

=== Regarding Roslin's Refusal to Leave Her Nascent Fleet ===

{{from_RDM_blog}}

:Someone recently asked:
:"In the mini series, when the [[Cylon Raider|Cylon fighters]] are approaching ''[[Colonial One]]'' (just before [[Adama, Lee|Lee]] saves the day with the EM pulse), [[Roslin, Laura|Roslin]] refuses to run and leave the other civilian ships to their doom... Yet she articulated no alternative plan. What was she hoping to do? It just seemed as though she planned to sit there and hope for the best, refusing to budge from the principle of not leaving defenseless people behind, even if that meant her own virtual suicide. It was an odd moment, she had been so decisive and clear headed up to then, and after that. (sic)

:What were her motivations, did she even have a plan? I still find this moment a little jarring and hard to explain away.I guess it does serve as a contrast to her later decision to leave [[Cami|Cammy]] (sic) etc behind. Thanks for your insights into this issue."

:[[Moore, Ronald D.|RDM]]: Can we talk? Let's be honest here. The show is not perfect. There are compromises made all the time; some for budgetary reasons, some are for political reasons, some are for no reason at all except that the writer could not, or would not, make the changes necessary to resolve a story point.

:Such is The Case of Laura Roslin and the Incoming Cylon.

:The above writer's observation is absolutely correct. Laura, by all rights and all sensible reasoning, should not obstinately stay when it's known for a fact that a Cylon missile is incoming, probably has a nuclear warhead and oh, by the way, she has no armament aboard her ship that would allow her even the remote chance of a possible last-minute, brilliant tactical move which might theoretically prevent the destruction of her ship and her presidency. Her refusal to leave, to Jump away from the impending, obvious threat can be interpreted as an irrational flaw in her character, a case of emotion trumping intellect, or it can be more correctly interpreted simply as a flaw in the script, an accepted error that the writer chooses to ignore in favor of other competing interests of character and plot which take priority in a given moment.

:In this case, I felt that the dramatic moment required that Laura make a committment to staying with her people, and to her nascent fleet, heedless of the consequence and resolute in her decision, even though it meant her certain doom. It was her instinctive response to the situation, her id's judgement, so to speak, that I was interested in, as well as the simpler plot device of having Lee swoop in and save them at the last moment just at the point you'd forgotten he was even there. Neither impulse is wrong, per se, but the error is in my choosing not to expand the moment and its aftermath in order to play out her realization of just how stupid a choice that was.

:If, at some point following the resolution of the crisis, Laura realized that she let her emotional reaction to the situation lead her into making a bad decision which was only saved by the providential intervention of Lee, then the scene would've accomplished everything I had hoped for in the moment as well as providing Laura with a character-building scene where the new president's first major decision nearly got them all killed. It would've been a way to both emphasize her fallibility and the fact that she can't afford to lead with her heart any longer. Her subsequent decision to leave the sublight ships behind, abandoning them to their destruction by the Cylons, would've also been informed by this experience and had a richer, even more textured component to it.

:In the end, it's not a fatal error in the script, and the moment passes by without comment for the most part, but it is something that nags at me whenever I see the sequence and which, frankly, bothered me at the time. So why didn't I fix it? A variety of answers present themselves, from time pressure to budgets, but the truth is, I knew that the emotional, dramatic moment would carry the audience through the scene and that people would be more invested in watching Lee take out the Cylon missile than in examining Laura's decision-making, so I opted to leave it alone rather than make the necessary page cuts and possible budget cuts needed to accommodate additional beats on this one point. It was probably the correct decision in the end, because the moment works and you move on as you're watching the show. However, being a television writer means not only having to make compromises and less than perfect decisions all the time, but as an additional penalty you get to always be reminded of the errors you've accepted when you watch the final product.

:Good catch by an attentive member of the audience.

:Damn you.

=== Additional Comments ===

* ''"Don't know if this has been addressed elsewhere already: Do [[Adama, Lee|Apollo]] and [[Helo]] already know each other at the start of the show? I recently reviewed the mini and noticed that in the [[Ready Room]] scene where Apollo is introduced and told he will fly [[Adama, William|Husker]]'s [[Viper]], when first introduced, Helo waves and Lee gives him one of those "oh, hey!" looks of familiarity, then when Lee isn't thrilled about flying his dad's Viper, Helo is the only one who *doesn't* look confused, he just smiles and turns back around."''

:I don't think they knew each other prior to the pilot. Lee probably had never set foot on the ''[[Galactica]]'' before then. I think the look was something improvised on the set. -- {{from_RDM_blog}}

:: '''Wikipedian's Note:''' It is likely Helo knew Apollo through [[Kara Thrace]].

* ''Regarding the ''[[Galactica]]'' being hit by a [[Cylon]] nuke:''

:''Galactica'' was designed to withstand a nuclear hit. Don’t forget that nuclear weapons in space have a different impact than they do in the atmosphere. There’s not really a shock wave in space, it’s more the immediate blast, heat and radiation effects. ''Galactica'' is shielded against radiation. However, I’ll tell you that we’re going to get into that as the series goes on. '''That nuclear hit will come back to haunt them later; there will be consequences to what happened to the ship structurally when it took that hit.''' We’re taking the approach conceptually on this show that we must live with things that have happened to us, and that there are consequences. [http://www.hollywoodnorthreport.com/pages/galactica/fashioningverisimilitude5.htm] (boldface emphasis is by [[User:Joe.Beaudoin|Joe Beaudoin]])

== Statistics ==



=== Guest Stars ===




*[[Callum Keith Rennie]] as [[Conoy, Leoben|Leoben Conoy]]
*[[Matthew Bennett]] as [[Doral, Aaron|Aaron Doral]]
*[[Paul Campbell]] as [[Keikeya, Billy|Billy]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Barclay+Hope Barclay Hope] as Transport Pilot
*[http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0301874/ Lorena Gale] as [[Elosha|Priestess Elosha]]
*[[McClure, Kandyse|Kandyse McClure]] as [[Dualla]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Connor+Widdows Connor Widdows] as [[Boxey]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+John+Mann John Mann] as [[Spencer, Jackson|CAG]]
*[[Juliani, Alessandro|Alessandro Juliani]] as Lieutenant [[Gaeta]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Nicki+Clyne Nicki Clyne] as Deckhand [[Cally]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Michael+Eklund Michael Eklund] as Deckhand [[Prosna]]
*[[Penikett, Tahmoh|Tahmoh Penikett]] as [[Agathon, Karl C.|Karl C. Agathon/Helo]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Haili+Page Haili Page] as [[Cami]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Alonso+Oyarzun Alonso Oyarzun] as Deckhand [[Socinus]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Ty+Olsson Ty Olsson] as Captain [[Kelly]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Ron+Blecker Ron Blecker] as Launch Officer
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Ryan+Robbins Ryan Robbins] as [[Armistice Officer]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Tim+Henry Tim Henry] as Doctor (on Caprica)
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Dwesi+Ameyaw Dwesi Ameyaw] as Liner Captain of [[Botanical Ship]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Brenda+McDonald Brenda McDonald] as Old Woman (who thought she forgot her glasses)
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Suleka+Mathew Suleka Mathew] as [[Brody, Kellan|Kellan Brody]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Erin+Karpluk Erin Karpluk] as Woman #1
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Jenn+Griffin Jenn Griffin] as Woman #2
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+BJ+Harrison BJ Harrison] as Woman #3
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Moneca+Delain Moneca Delain] as Blonde Woman
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Zahf+Pardo Zahf Pardo] as Man #1
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Robert+Lewis Robert Lewis] as Man #2
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Denzal+Sinclaire Denzal Sinclaire] as Man #3
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Nadine+Wright Nadine Wright] as [[Chantara]]
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Michael+Soltis Michael Soltis] as Chantara's Husband
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Fred+Keating Fred Keating] as Junior Reporter
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Lymari+Nadal Lymari Nadal] as [[Giana]]
*[[Gugushe, Biski|Biski Gugushe]] as Pilot #1
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Nahanni+Arntzen Nahanni Arntzen] as Pilot #2
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Nogel+Vonas Nogel Vonas] as Pilot #3
*[http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Ryan+Nelson Ryan Nelson] as Pilot #4




=== Writing & Direction ===

*Written by [[Moore, Ronald D.|Ronald D. Moore]] and [[Glen A. Larson|Christopher Eric James]]
*Based off a story by [[Larson, Glen A.|Glen A. Larson]]
*Directed by [[Rymer, Michael|Michael Rymer]]




=== First Run Air Dates & Releases ===

*UK Airdate: 17 February 2004
*US Airdate: 8 December 2003, 9 December 2003 (2-night engagement, Sci-Fi Channel)
*Canadian Airdate: 17 January 2004
*DVD Release: 28 December 2004

{{Episode List}}

[[Category: A to Z]]
[[Category: Episode Guide (RDM)]]
[[Category:RDM]]