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A Measure of Salvation

2006-11-11T18:07:17Z

Matt74441: /* Questions */

{{Episode Data
| title= A Measure of Salvation
| image= Season 3 - Promo - AMOS - Six and Three on Lush Area.jpg
| season= 3
| episode= 7
| guests= [[Lucy Lawless]] as [[Number Three]]
| writer= [[Michael Angeli]]
| story=
| director= [[Bill Eagles]]
| production= 307
| rating=
| US airdate= November 10, 2006
| UK airdate=
| dvd=
| population= 41,420
| prev= [[Torn]]
| next= [[Hero]]
}}

== Overview ==
:''[[Lee Adama|Apollo]] and [[Sharon Agathon|Athena]] are dispatched to interrogate the dying [[Cylons]] on board the infected baseship, and learns how [[Baltar]] is helping their adversaries; the virus inspires [[Lee]] to come up with a new strategy.''

== Summary ==
=== On [[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]] ===
*A boarding party comprising of Raptors and vipers investigate the derelict basestar. Among the boarding party are [[Lee Adama]] and [[Sharon Agathon|Athena]].
*Aboard the derelict, marines explore the corridors, finding the humano-cylon models dead. Athena attempts to access the derelict basestar's Hybrid, but was unsuccessful.
*Some [[Humano-Cylons|"skinjobs"]] around the control center begin to revive, and advise the boarding party of the situation regarding the probe and subsequent infection of the Cylons. One of the infected Cylons, a [[Number Eight]], addresses Athena as "traitor".
*The boarding party and prisoners are en route back to Galactica when the derelict explodes.
*The boarding party and prisoners are quarantined while Major Cottle finds out if the virus affects humans. The human members of the boarding party are cleared while Athena is ordered to stay put, as her blood work hasn't been done. [[Karl Agathon|Helo]] is infuriated, but wants to be notified as soon as her results are available.
*Major Cottle begins investigating the survivors, who advises that the [[Lymphocytic encephalitis|virus]] can be treated, but not cured for Cylons. [[Laura Roslin|President Roslin]], [[William Adama|Admiral Adama]], Apollo, and Helo discuss the idea of taunting the vaccine in exchange for information. A [[Simon]] is brought before them, and informs them that the entire baseship was abandoned, because resurrection would infect the others. He also mentions that Baltar provided the information towards Earth.
*Aboard ''[[Colonial One]]'', Apollo details a plan of possibly eliminating the entire Cylon race, by executing them in range of a [[Resurrection Ship]]. Helo scoffs at the idea, considering it genocide. President Roslin informed the two that she will consider both viewpoints.
*Aboard ''Galactica'', Athena finds she's immune due to carrying [[Hera]]. Helo discusses the proposed plan, and Athena understands. At the same time, Admiral Adama discusses the issue with Roslin on ''Colonial One'', saying the attack can't proceed without presidential order. Despite the ethical ramifications, the President authorizes the biological attack.
*Galactica jumps to a Cylon supply line, and launches Vipers and Raptors to draw a basestar and Resurrection Ship. In the midst of this, Helo initiates a plan to thwart the execution, unplugging what looks like a standard power connector from an environmental control box.
*The Cylons jump into the area, with Resurrection Ship in tow. Adama orders the execution of the prisoners.
*Apollo leads a team to execute the prisoners, but finds that all the prisoners have been killed prior to the Resurrection Ship arriving. Adama orders a recall, and Galactica jumps away without sustaining any major damage.
*Helo converses with Athena about what he did. He maintains that what he did was right, regardless of the consequences.
*Aboard ''Colonial One'', Adama reports that the prisoners were suffocated due to a failure in the environmental controls. Roslin is quick to point out one or two might be responsible, but Adama closes the issue. Subsequently, the virus was most likely an accidental exposure, similar to one reported 3000 years ago. Adama points out that they're on the right track to Earth, but Roslin points out so are the Cylons.

=== On a [[Basestar (RDM)|basestar]] ===

*Aboard the bastestar, Baltar is being interrogated by Three and Caprica-Six, knowing about the beacon. Three and Caprica-Six imply that Baltar is connected to the virus and to Galactica. Baltar attempts to reconcile, only to be confronted by Centurions.
*In his "projection", his mental Six tells him to relax. Meanwhile, his body is being subjected to torture; Caprica Six is visibly disturbed by the torture and backs away.
*Baltar's torture continues as Three continues to interrogate Baltar regarding his supposed involvement with the virus. In his mind, he attemps to avert the pain by making love to his mental Six. Despite extreme pain, Baltar endures.

== Questions ==

* Will [[Caprica-Six]] continue to stand by and permit Baltar's mistreatment at their hands?
* Where is Caprica-Six's own internal Baltar in all of this?
* Of the Cylons, which type told the basestar to self-destruct: [[Hybrid]] or [[Cylon agent]]? Considering her quite odd look after the destruction, might it have been Athena?
* What kind of new start are the Cylons planning for Earth? Just a new home planet, an attempt at human Cylon relations not tainted by the destruction of the Twelve Colonies, or something else?
* Why was the beacon left behind on the basestar?
* Why did an entire Cylon fleet (including a Ressurrection Ship) jump to the encounter with ''Galactica''? Why was the Ressurrection Ship not left behind somewhere else, as it was done in previous battles?
* Is D'anna in love with Baltar?
* Does D'anna think Baltar is the Cylon messiah?
* Why is Gaeta so surprised to hear that Baltar is alive, given the fact that he was actually there when D'anna offered Baltar to be evacuated from New Caprica?
**Gaeta may not have been in the same room as the others when she made the offer.
* Why does [[Simon]] so quickly claim science can not provide a solution to the infection?
* How can an encephalitis virus be [[downloaded]] in a data stream?
* Why is a presidential order required to use a biological weapon, yet there has been no previous indication one was required to use a nuclear weapon?
* Why wasn't the execution squad in place and waiting with the prisoners so the plan could have been implemented in a timely manner?
* Why were Raptors being used to fire flack at the Cylon Raiders? Were they trying to keep Galactica ready to jump, or has the damage from the Battle of New Caprica not been completely repaired yet?
* Since the plan was to execute the prisoners then jump away, why wasn't the jump drive already spooled up and ready?
* The environmental controls seem to have been circumvented by [[Karl Agathon]] pulling a single plug. In a combat ship aren't there cascading fail safe systems to protect against such catastrophic failures from simple system malfunctions?
**There may have been a compression of time, and viewers were shown the last of the controls being dealt with.
* In his discussion with [[Laura Roslin]] at the end of the episode, [[Admiral Adama]] is aware that sabotage was involved in the death of the Cylon prisoners, yet he states there will be no investigation. While this creates a number of potential implications, first and foremost with the knowledge of recent internal conflicts and the continued potential for other [[Cylon agent]]s, this both subverts his authority and creates serious concerns regarding ship and fleet safety. Why wouldn't he be seriously concerned and want to aggressively pursue this matter?
** Admiral Adama knows that most likely the sabotage was committed by "Helo" and/or "Athena". He values both of them and prefers that they not be prosecuted. He himself had some moral reservations about this operation and may be somewhat relieved it wasn't implemented. Regarding the possible presence of Cylon agents, all known physical Humano-Cylon types have been identified and presumably eliminated in the Fleet.

== Analysis ==

It should be noted that the Cylons would have quickly cured themselves of this "Plague", if Galactica had succeeded in infecting them. It was quickly noted in the episode that Sharon was immune herself because residual fetal cells from Hera created effective antibodies against the virus. Cylons lack the immunity to effectively counter the encephalitis inducing virus, and any attempt at normal vaccination would not work because the Cylon immune system would create antibodies against the vaccine (this occurance seems to beg the question on Cylon immmunity). Hera is immune to the virus because she is a hybrid Human-Cylon. That she is now in the custody of the Cylons, Baltar would have quickly utlized her immunity, as he previously did on Roslin, as capital to further his self-preservation amongst them. He could quickly devise a serum using Hera's immune cells to innoculate the population due to the similar biology of Hera and the Cylons; this would overcome the obstacle of traditional vaccination.

The wider implications of such an event could have been religiously meaningful to the Cylons. Cylons have time and again shown religious deference by sometimes overlooking rational explinations. By saving the Cylon race Hera could have been elevated to Messiah status, if her very creation has not already ordained her as one to the Cylons because their God proclaimed her creation.

There is a fundamental flaw in the plan [[Lee Adama|Apollo]] develops: Even if the virus successfully infects the [[Resurrection Ship]], the other [[Cylons]] would isolate that individual ship, thus preventing a widespread epidemic. The resulting impact on the Cylon fleet would be no greater than previous destruction of the resurrection ship in "[[Resurrection Ship, Part II]]".

== Notes ==
*According to an [http://www.nowplayingmag.com/content/view/4175/58/ interview] with executive producer [[David Eick]], episodes 5 and 6 are a two-part story in which ''Galactica'' discovers a dying Cylon Baseship, and deals with a plague that has befallen the Cylons.
*[[Survivor count|Fleet population]] is 41,420. Barring any births, there is an unaccounted loss of at least two since "[[Torn]]".
*The story behind the Lion Nebula beacon and the virus may have been inspired by the lunar lander [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surveyor_3 Surveyor 3]. Before launching in 1967, its camera was accidentally contaminated by a common bacterium. When the camera was recovered by Apollo 12 astronauts, the microbes returned to life, having survived two and a half years of vacuum, radiation, and temperature extremes.
*Helo's rank as XO, Captain, is confirmed in this episode.
*This is the first episode in which [[Saul Tigh]] has not appeared. Currently, the only characters to have appeared in every episode are [[Laura Roslin]] and [[William Adama]].

== Noteworthy Dialogue ==

== Official Statements ==

== Guest Stars ==

* [[Kandyse McClure]] as [[Anastasia Dualla]]
* [[Aaron Douglas]] as Chief Petty Officer [[Galen Tyrol]]
* [[Tahmoh Penikett]] as Captain [[Karl Agathon|Karl "Helo" Agathon]]
* [[Donnelly Rhodes]] as Doctor [[Cottle]]
* [[Matthew Bennett]] as [[Number Five]]
* [[Rick Worthy]] as [[Simon]]
* [[Callum Keith Rennie]] as [[Leoben Conoy]]
* [[Bodie Olmos]] as Lt. [[Brendan Constanza|Brendan "Hot Dog" Constanza]]
* [[Leah Cairns]] as Lt. [[Margaret Edmondson|Margaret "Racetrack" Edmondson]]
* [[imdb:0461101|Tiffany Lyndall-Knight]] as [[Hybrid]] (credited)
* [[imdb:nm0669826|Eileen Pedde]] as Sgt. [[Mathias]]

== References ==
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div>

{{Episode list (RDM season 3)}}

[[Category:Episodes written by Michael Angeli]]
[[Category:RDM]]

Exodus, Part II

2006-10-21T14:26:52Z

Matt74441: /* Questions */

{{Episode Data
| title= Exodus, Part II
| image=TighAdamaReunion.jpg
| season= 3
| episode= 4
| guests= [[Lucy Lawless]] as [[Number Three]]
| writer= [[Bradley Thompson]] <br/> [[David Weddle]]
| story=
| director= [[Félix Enríquez Alcalá]]
| production= 304
| rating=
| US airdate= 2006-10-20
| UK airdate=
| dvd=
| population=
| prev= [[Exodus, Part I]]
| next= [[Collaborators]]
}}

== Overview ==

:''Lee wrestles with his order to protect the civilian fleet as Adama launches his rescue mission. Meanwhile, on New Caprica, Colonel Tigh confronts Ellen's betrayal. <ref>[http://www.tvguide.com TVGuide.com]</ref>''

== Summary ==

*On ''Pegasus'' Lee Adama and his wife have a conversation. Lee thinks that his father won't return from New Caprica and that the entire mission will fail. He also worries about his future responsibilities as the leader of the rest of mankind, but his wife tells him to not give up hope.
*On New Caprica Samuel Anders confronts Colonel Tigh about Ellen Tigh's betrayal and tell him that she needs to die.
*Ellen tells her husband what she did to free him and explains her reasons for betraying the resistance. Tigh consoles her and she falls asleep, her drink having been poisoned by her husband. He puts down her corpse saying that he still loves her.
*On ''Colonial One'' Baltar tells the Cylons that they have failed in their experiment and asks them why they don't just leave. A Three voices the concern that one day the descendants of mankind might excact vengeance upon the Cylons, should they be left to their own devices.
*Suddenly, dozens of explosions can be felt and seen. The [[Battle of New Caprica]] has begun.
*[[Tory Foster]] commands a team of section leaders in the evacuation and orders [[Maya]] to head for her ship.
*[[Samuel Anders]] and a large group of resistance fighters retrieve weapons from beneath the [[Pyramid (RDM)|Pyramid]] court.
*In space above New Caprica, ''Galactica'' has deployed a squadran of Raptors and Vipers. The Raptors launch decoy drones to mimic the EM signature of Colonial battlestars. The Cylons pick them up and fall for the ruse. The Cylons move two baseships and Raiders away from the planet.
*When [[Leoben]] leaves the home he keeps [[Kara Thrace]] in, she assaults him and tries to escape, but he knocks her out.
*[[Tom Zarek]] tasks [[James Lyman]] to protect [[Laura Roslin]] as she makes her way to ''Colonial One''.
*The Cylons detect the decoy drones, but ''Galactica'' jumps deep into the planet's atmosphere and launches its remaining Vipers. Before falling to the ground, the ship jumps back into space.
*At the entrance to the shipyard, where the Cylons keep the grounded Colonial vessels, a team under Saul Tigh and [[Galen Tyrol]] are pinned down by Cylon Centurions. The Vipers begin to attack targets on the ground and clear the way.
*Another team under [[Samuel Anders]] liberates the prisoners from the Cylon [[Detention Center]]. He finds is unconscious wife, but when she comes to, she goes back to retrieve [[Kacey]].
*The battle is turning against ''Galactica''. Her FTL drives are down and there is heavy structural damage from the atmospheric entry. Four Cylon basestars are closing in and the battlestar is soon surrounded. At that moment ''Pegasus'' joins the battle; [[Lee Adama]] having disobeyed his father's orders. He opens with fire with the forward batteries and destroys one basestar in the opening salvo.
*The Cylons realize that they have lost and decide to evacuate the planet. [[D'anna Biers]] voltunteers to stay behind and set off a nuclear weapon. She offers [[Gaius Baltar]] to join them.
*The Colonial ships are leaving New Caprica by jumping from within the atmosphere. ''Pegasus'' is getting heavily beaten, having left all of her Vipers back with the rest of the civilian Fleet. Admiral Adama realizes that his son planned a one-way mission and orders to retrieve his own fighters.
*On ''Colonial One'' [[Felix Gaeta]] points a gun at Baltar and accuses him of having betrayed everyone. Gaeta says that while he had been an idealist who believed in New Caprica, Baltar only thought about himself. Baltar admits to be an egotist and asks Gaeta to shoot him. Gaeta relents and give Baltar a final chance to redeem himself: stop D'anna Biers from setting off the nuke.
*With ''Pegasus'' dying, Lee Adama orders everyone to abandon the ship in evacuation Raptors standing by. He sets the ship on auto-pilot and on a collision course with a basestar, destroying it. The port flightpod collides with another basestar.
*Kara Thrace retrieves Kacey, but Leoben has returned and confronts her. She appears to give in to his demands, saying "I love you" and kissing him. Then she stabs him picks up Kacey.
*[[D'anna Biers]] searches [[Dodona Selloi]]'s tent, but the oracle has left. Outside, Caprica-Six and Baltar hear a baby crying and track the sound to a group of corpses. One of them is [[Maya]] and the baby turns out to be [[Hera]]. Biers sees them and Baltar gives her the child. She leaves, apparently no longer intending to detonate the nuke.
*Laura Roslin and a group of resistance fighters enter the now abandoned Colonial One and are the last ship to leave the planet.
*On [[Galactica]] many people are reunited. Among them William and Lee Adama. Admiral Adama and Colonel Tigh, and Galen Tyrol and Kara Thrace. When Thrace shows him Kacey another woman walks by and recognizes the girl as her daughter, whom the Cylons had taken away. She thanks Thrace for rescuing her. After believing Kacey to be her own daughter, Thrace is shocked, but gives her away.
*Tory Foster tells Roslin that Maya and Hera didn't make it off the planet.
*Admiral Adama shaves off his mustache and returns to a fully staffed CIC.

== Questions ==
*With Baltar seemingly missing at the conclusion of the episode, will his Vice President, Tom Zarek, become President? Or will...somehow...Roslin become President?
*How many humans died on New Caprica during the occupation and escape? Will it be in the thousands?
**There were around 39,000 civilians trying to get off New Caprica, most of them under gun fire. How many civilians were left behind, either willingly or due to wounds?
*With ''Pegasus'' destroyed, will Tyrol's fighter construction continue?
**Since ''Galactica'' now has ''Pegasus''' [[Viper]] and [[Raptor]] compliment in addition to its own, will the starboard flight pod now be pressed back into service?
**What will become of Lee Adama? [[CAG]] of ''Galactica''?
***As Lee Adama outranks COL Tigh, XO of ''Galactica'' is equally a likely position. Likewise, as no such officer has been shown to date, the younger Adama might be officially assigned as the CO of the combined ''Galactica''/''Pegasus'' Marine contingent.
*Will Tigh become a disagreeable drunk, as he was before Ellen Tigh first boarded ''Galactica''?
*In order to build New Caprica City, the ships were at least partially stripped and supplies were offloaded. What remains on board them?

== Analysis ==

== Notes ==

* There is also a comic named ''[[Exodus!]]''

== Noteworthy Dialogue ==

== Official Statements ==

== Guest Stars ==
*[[Michael Hogan]] as [[Saul Tigh]]
*[[Aaron Douglas]] as [[Galen Tyrol]]
*[[Tahmoh Penikett]] as Lt. [[Karl Agathon|Karl "Helo" Agathon]]
*[[Nicki Clyne]] as [[Cally Henderson Tyrol|Cally Tyrol]]
*[[Alessandro Juliani]] as [[Felix Gaeta]]
*[[Kandyse McClure]] as [[Anastasia Dualla]]
*[[Michael Trucco]] as [[Samuel Anders]]
*[[Richard Hatch]] as [[Tom Zarek]]
*[[Rick Worthy]] as [[Simon]]
*[[Callum Keith Rennie]] as [[Leoben Conoy]]
*[[Kate Vernon]] as [[Ellen Tigh]]
*[[Matthew Bennett]] as [[Number Five]]
*[[Rekha Sharma]] as [[Tory Foster]]
*[[Luciana Carro]] as Lt. [[Louanne Katraine|Louanne "Kat" Katraine]]

== References ==
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div>

{{episode list (RDM season 3)}}

[[Category:Episodes written by Bradley Thompson]]
[[Category:Episodes written by David Weddle]]
[[Category:Episodes directed by Félix Enríquez Alcalá]]
[[Category:RDM]]

[[de:Exodus, Part II]]