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Razor Flashbacks

2007-11-08T05:58:30Z

Pfluegermeister:

:''This page covers the webisode series for "Razor," which follows the exploits of the young [[William Adama]] during the [[Cylon War]]. For the two hour television event, see: "[[Razor]]".''
{{Episode Data
| image=Cylon Facility - Razor Flashbacks.jpg
| title=Battlestar Galactica: Razor Flashbacks
| series=
| special= Y
| season=
| episode=
| guests=
| writer=[[Michael Taylor]]
| story=
| director=[[Wayne Rose]]<br/>[[Felix Alcala]]
| production=
| rating=
| US airdate= 2007-10-05 through 2007-11-16
| UK airdate=
| dvd=
| population=
| prev= [[Crossroads, Part II]]
| next= [[Razor]]
}}

'''''Battlestar Galactica: Razor Flashbacks''''' are an online series that aims provide the story of a young [[William Adama]]'s ([[Nico Cortez]]) discovery of a [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] experiment during his time in the first [[Cylon War]]. The webisodes are aimed to lay down the back story for events in [[Season 4 (2008)|Season 4]] that will "threaten him, the crew of the ''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]'' and the survival of the human race". The webisodes can be viewed through the official [http://www.scifi.com/pulse Sci Fi Pulse] (SciFi.com's streaming service) or on the screen during airings of ''[[FlashGordonWiki:Flash Gordon (Sci Fi Channel)|Flash Gordon]]'' on Friday at 9/8 P.M. CT.

The webisode series was written by [[Michael Taylor]], and directed by [[Wayne Rose]] and [[Felix Alcala]]. In fact, these flashbacks were cut out of the "[[Razor]]" television movie due to time constraints, but will be reintegrated in the version of "Razor" for the [[Razor (Region 1 DVD)|Region 1 DVD]].

== Summary ==
===Episode 1: Day 4,571===

[[Image:Razor Flashback 1.jpg|thumb|Young [[William Adama|Bill Adama]] with [[Jaycie McGavin]] on ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]''.]]

* Release date: October 5, 2007
* Running time: ~00:02:30
* SCI FI Pulse link: http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=163960

It is day 4,571 of the First [[Cylon War]]. On board ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'', [[Jaycie McGavin]] and [[William Adama]] are having sex in the [[duty locker]], during which McGavin asks if Adama left his boots out. Adama tells her that he ran into the Commander while he was taking off his boots, which leads into them mocking the commander with one of his apparently [[Nothing but the rain|well-known greetings]].

McGavin and Adama talk before joining a battle to attack an ice planet in the "ass end of nowhere", where a rumored [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] superweapon is allegedly being built. It is defended heavily by the Cylons: three [[Cylon Raider (RDM)|Raider]] wings, ground forces, defensive batteries and nuclear weapons.

Another rumor they talk about is that peace negotiations are in progress and that the Cylons may unexpectedly surrender, which McGavin scoffs as unlikely. She runs off to report to a briefing for [[Raptor Squadron 2]], leaving Adama alone as the ship readies itself for possible nuclear attack.

===Episode 2: The Hangar===

[[Image:Razor Flashback 3.jpg|thumb|[[William Adama]] about to participate in [[Operation Raptor Talon]].]]

* Release date: October 12, 2007
* Running time: ~00:02:41
* SCI FI Pulse link: http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=163980

McGavin returns from her mission badly wounded. Adama tries to reassure her that she will live, but she tells him that he was always a bad liar. After medics carry Gavin to [[sickbay]], Adama is filled with anger against the Cylons and cleared to launch in his [[Viper (RDM)|Viper]].

===Episode 3: Operation Raptor Talon===

[[Image:Operation Raptor Talon.jpg|thumb|Combat over the [[ice planet]] during [[Operation Raptor Talon]].]]

* Release date: October 19, 2007
* Running time: ~00:02:41
* SCI FI Pulse link: http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=163962

Adama and his flight lead, [[Banzai]], engage in bloody dogfights against Raiders as [[Operation Raptor Talon]] commences all around them in orbit of an [[ice planet]]. During the battle, the [[Galactica type battlestar|battlestar]] ''[[Columbia (RDM)|Columbia]]'' is pummeled from [[basestar (RDM)|basestar]] salvos and is subsequently destroyed. Adama then spots two Raiders entering the planet's atmosphere. Out for revenge, Adama engages the two. He shoots down one in the high altitudes. Inside a cloud, he suddenly collides with the other and falls to the ground in his disintegrating craft.

===Episode 4: Free Fall===

[[Image:Razor Flashback 4.jpg|thumb|Free falling [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005|Centurion]] pursuing [[William Adama]].]]

* Release date: October 26, 2007
* Running time: ~00:02:45
* SCI FI Pulse link: http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=163961

As [[William Adama]]'s [[Viper (RDM)|Viper]] free-falls through the [[ice planet]]'s atmosphere, Adama manages to eject from a parachute-survivable altitude. However, he is not alone: a lone [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005|Centurion]] survives as well. The Centurion fires at the free-falling Adama, while Adama attempts to return the welcome. Quickly, they become entangled with one another, hand-to-hand fighting as they free-fall. As the Centurion's blade slides out of its arm, Adama pulls the rip cord and escapes, deploying the parachute.

Adama lands safely on the ground, crashing through what appears to be a warehouse sky-window. The Cylon seems to have crashed nearby and Adama wails on the Centurion with a pipe, severing the Centurion's head from its body. Adama wipes off the Centurion's oil and, now armed with a rifle, leaves.

===Episode 5: The Lab===
* Release date: November 2, 2007
* Running time: ~00:02:40
* SCI FI Pulse link: http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=163976

Adama begins to explore the facility that he had landed in. As he enters what appears to be a laboratory, he finds evidence of human experimentation and human mutilations. He eventually finds a vat filled with a gelatin-like substance which is reminiscent of the [[resurrection tank]]s or [[Hybrid]] tanks that the later [[humanoid Cylon]]s would use. He kneels down and touches the substance, immediately he begins to hear the voices of torture victims and as he looks back at the tank, abruptly a hand grabs Adama's arm. Then the hand abruptly disappears and the visions and voices are gone, but this causes Adama to fall back onto the ground. A voice is heard, quoting from the [[Pythia]]n prophecies: "All this has happened before and will happen again."

Afterwards, a banging sound is heard from a locked chamber. As Adama approaches the portal window, an unidentified person presses his face against the window and begs for him to release him and the other captives. Adama then attempts to break open the door to the chamber.

===Episode 6===
* Release date: November 9, 2007
*Running time: N/A

Not yet available.

===Episode 7===
* Release date: November 16, 2007
*Running time: N/A

Not yet available.

== Notes ==
* With regard to Sci Fi Pulse, only those in the United States can see these Flashbacks, since the player is region-locked. This means that anyone with an [[w:IP address|IP address]] outside of the United States cannot see the Flashbacks via Sci Fi Pulse. However, there are likely "illegal" versions of these episodes onilne -- because of the illegality of these, Battlestar Wiki cannot and will not furnish links to these unauthorized sources.
* The "[[Nothing but the rain]]" greeting apparently originates with ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'s'' wartime commander (presumably [[Nash (RDM)|Commander Nash]]), which would later be passed down by [[William Adama]] to [[Kara Thrace]].
* The [[Cylon War]] has lasted for the past twelve and a half years.
* Raptors were also in operation during the Cylon War.
* Furthermore, the events of [[Operation Raptor Talon]] are billed as occurring forty-one years prior. Presumably, this means that they occur 41 years prior to the events of "[[Razor]]" itself.
* Adama's final fight with the Cylon in episode four is reminiscent of the fight he has with Conoy in the [[Miniseries]], using an improvised weapon to bludgeon a slightly disabled Cylon to death, and becoming covered in its "blood."
* It is the first time in the Re-imagined Series that the audience is allowed to view the world through the eyes of an [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005|original Cylon Centurion]]. The pulsing red light inversely moves back and forth within their vision, but they can see everything despite it.

=== Nods to the Original Series ===
* The reference to an ice planet with a superweapon based on it seems reminiscent of [[Arcta]] in the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]] episode "[[The Gun on Ice Planet Zero, Part I]]". The reckless actions of Adama entering the planet's atmosphere to attack two fleeing Cylons is also reminiscent of the reckless behavior of Viper cadets from that episode.
* The braiding around the uniform collar of the pilots, in addition to the segmented uniform vest, appears inspired by the [[Uniforms (TOS)|Colonial uniforms]] of the Original Series.
** In Episode 2, Adama passes a man in ''Galactica'''s hallway wearing the beige tunic of a [[Uniforms (TOS)#Warrior uniforms|warrior uniform]] from the Original Series, without the brown jacket.
* Episode 3 uses CG models based on designs for the Original Series' Cylon craft, mainly the [[Raider (TOS)|Raider]]s and [[Basestar (TOS)|basestar]].
* Some of the music in Episode 3 contains a melodic line that is a very slowed-down version of a portion of the melody from the Original Series' theme song. This is most noticeable during the first 40 seconds of the episode (prior to a big hit on ''[[Columbia (RDM)|Columbia]]''), and again for a few seconds later in the episode, following the destruction of ''Columbia'' and prior to Adama's decision to pursue two Raiders into the atmosphere of the planet.
* In Episode 4 Adama is fighting a [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005]], which is a close visual match for the Original Series Cylon Centurion, but moves with far more agility and speed. Also, joints and other mechanical elements are exposed in this version, to prevent the Centurion from looking like a man in a robot suit. The sound effect of the Centurion's red eye-scanner is reused from the Original Series.

== Analysis ==
* While ''[[Columbia (RDM)|Columbia]]'' seems to have more armor than ''Galactica'' in some places, such as the starboard flight pod, the ribbing is also visible in several locations, thus indicating that this is a design choice and not a result of deliberate removal of the armor.
* The audience is given the opportunity to see for the first time what type of Viper pilot Adama was in the first Cylon War. It becomes clear that he displays some characteristics that are traditionally known to be part of Starbuck's Viper style. This may indicate part of the reason why he, later on in his life, looks upon Starbuck as a daughter.
* It's implied that the Cylons began to perform human experimentation during the first Cylon War. The multiple body parts and discovered captives point out an interesting irony that the [[Cavil]]s also have pointed out. The Cylons, though machines, are desiring to usurp humanity's position within the universe. Even though the Cylons rebelled and hate their former masters, the laboratory scenes and future humanoid Cylon models, indicate that the Cylons also want to be like humanity.

== Questions ==
* Is the planet that Operation Raptor Talon takes place over the eventual [[Cylon homeworld|homeworld]] of the Cylons?
* Based on the point of view perspective given in Episode 4, what function does the Centurion's pulsing red light perform, if not gathering visual data?
* Is the terrified man Adama is attempting to rescue at the end of Episode 5 a younger Saul Tigh? If so, this could explain how he is a Cylon (as seen at the end of Season 3) yet has been a friend of Adama for so long (and is apparently much older than the other "human" Cylons).

== Official Statements ==

Not yet available.

== Noteworthy Dialogue ==

Not yet available.

== Cast ==
These are listed in the order they appeared during the 7 episodes.

{| class="messagebox" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="2"
! class="infoboxheader" | '''Cast Member'''
! class="infoboxheader" | '''Character'''
! class="infoboxheader" colspan="7" | '''Episode(s)'''
|-
| [[Edward James Olmos]]
| [[William Adama]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
| [[Nico Cortez]]
| Young [[William Adama]]
| 1
| 2
| 3
| 4
| 5
|
|
|-
| [[Allison Warnyca]]
| [[Jaycie McGavin]]
| 1
| 2
|
|
|
|
|
|-
| [[Jacob Blair]]
| Squad Leader [[Banzai]]
|
| 2
| 3
|
|
|
|
|-
| [[Campbell Lane]]
| [[Hybrid]]
|
|
|
|
| 5
|
|
|-
| [[Chris Bradford]]
| Ops Officer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
| [[Ben Cotton]]
| [[Terrified man]]
|
|
|
|
| 5
|
|
|}

== Crew ==

The full list of cast and crew is up on [http://www.scifi.com/battlestar/razor/credits/ the SciFi.com Razor website].

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

[http://frakked.blogspot.com/2007/10/razor-flashback-1.html Full transcript of Razor Flashback - Episode 1]

{{episode list (RDM season 4)}}

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Behind the Scenes]]
[[Category:Episode Guide]]
[[Category:Episode Guide (RDM)|*]]
[[Category:Episodes written by Michael Taylor]]
[[Category:Episodes directed by Félix Enríquez Alcalá]]
[[Category:Episodes directed by Wayne Rose]]
[[Category:RDM]]

Kara Thrace

2007-11-08T05:30:48Z

Pfluegermeister:

:''This article discusses the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]] character with the pilot callsign of "Starbuck." For information on Kara Thrace's counterpart in the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]], see [[Starbuck (TOS)]].''
:''For Kara Thrace's mother, see [[Socrata Thrace]].''

{{Character Data
|photo= Starbucks.jpg
|age=
|colony= [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Caprica|Caprica]]
|birthname= Kara Thrace
|callsign= Starbuck
|seen= Miniseries
|death=
|parents= [[Socrata Thrace]] (mother)
|siblings=
|children=
|marital status= Married to [[Samuel Anders]] (formerly engaged to [[Zak Adama]]†)
|role= Squadron leader (formerly: Commander Air Group), battlestar ''Galactica''
|rank= Captain
|actor= [[Katee Sackhoff]] <br> [[Erika-Shaye Gair]] (child)
|cylon=
}}
'''Kara "Starbuck" Thrace''', serial number 462753, is a gifted [[Viper (RDM)|Viper]] pilot — and knows it. This leaves her with an attitude that has at times thwarted her career advancement. However, thanks to [[William Adama]], Thrace's skills in battle have extended beyond the cockpit to greatly aid the Fleet.

== Background ==

[[Image:YoungKaraThrace.jpg|thumb|left|A young Kara Thrace in an hallucination ([[Maelstrom]]).]]
*In an unhappy childhood, Thrace was so frequently beaten by her mother [[Socrata Thrace]], that she came to accept pain as a way of life ("[[Flesh and Bone]]", "[[Maelstrom]]").
*Her father was a pianist ([[Valley of Darkness]]).
*Thrace left home to join the [[Colonial Fleet (RDM)|military]].
*One of her first postings prior to being a flight instructor was aboard the battlestar ''[[Triton (RDM)|Triton]]'' ([[The Son Also Rises]]).
* She was a very talented [[pyramid]] player ([[Resistance (episode)|Resistance]]), and received a scholarship to the Fleet Academy to play pyramid. During this time, she injured her knee and was no longer able to play pyramid at a professional level. During that time, however, she discovered a passion and skill at being a fighter pilot ([[Podcast:The Hand of God]]). On graduating from Colonial Flight School, she undertook a period of active duty before returning to flight school as an instructor.
*Thrace fell in love with a young recruit, [[Zak Adama]]. Despite his mediocre performance, she passed him on his final flight examination, despite failing three of the required maneuvers ([[Act of Contrition]]).
*Thrace's engagement to Zak Adama ends when he was killed during a routine mission shortly after graduating. At the time, [[Lee Adama]], Zak's elder brother, blamed their father for Zak Adama's death. In her guilt, Thrace did little to alter this idea. She did, however, meet [[William Adama]] shortly after the accident, and the two struck up such a strong rapport that they stood together at the funeral ([[Act of Contrition]]).
*Thrace resigned from flight school as a instructor and transferred as an operational pilot to the [[Galactica type battlestar|battlestar]] ''[[Galactica]]'' under the command of William Adama, where she served for some two years prior to the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies|Cylon attack]] on the [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]]. Before the Cylon attack, she was second in command of the remaining pilots, subordinate to the [[CAG]], [[Jackson Spencer]].
*At the time of the Cylon attack she has an run-down apartment in [[Delphi]] that overlooks a parking lot and a Colonial version of a [[Wikipedia:Humvee|Humvee]] which she and Helo use to escape the city and get to the country where she meets her husband-to-be Anders. She rarely used the dilapidated apartment. She was also a very avid painter, and her apartment was cluttered with her paintings and a [[Starbuck's Poem|poem]] is written on a wall ([[Valley of Darkness]]).
*Despite her reckless approach to life, Thrace hides the fact that she is deeply spiritual. She frequently prays (or talks) to the [[Lords of Kobol]], particularly [[Aphrodite]] and [[Artemis]] in times of need ([[Miniseries]], "[[Flesh and Bone]]", "[[You Can't Go Home Again]]").

==Character History at a Glance==
*Thrace's attitude quickly runs her afoul of Colonel [[Saul Tigh]], ''Galactica's'' [[Executive officer]]. Their open mutual dislike of one another leads to the point where blows are exchanged, with Thrace ending up in the brig. After the Cylon attack she is released from the brig and returns to duty as Viper pilot.
*Thrace manages to keep two of three nuclear missiles from striking ''Galactica'' in their first Cylon sortie, and saves Captain Adama from doom in an innovative maneuver in the [[Battle of Ragnar Anchorage]].
*Her skills in saving Apollo brings her grudging respect from Colonel Tigh, but she is unable to accept his offer of the olive branch - an act that will have repercussions for her later ([[Miniseries]]).

[[image:Bastille_Day-Starbuck_Boxey.jpg|thumb|left|[[Kara Thrace|Starbuck]] as acting [[CAG]] with [[Boxey (RDM)|Boxey]] as assistant ([[Bastille Day]]).]]
*Thrace participates in a hostage rescue mission aboard the ''[[Astral Queen]]''. Following the successful mission, Thrace tries to mend fences between herself and Colonel Tigh with a toast (consisting of water), apologizing in much the same way as Tigh himself had tried after their initial escape from [[Ragnar Anchorage]]. But Tigh rejects Thrace's apology, stating that her flaws are professional, while his flaws were personal ([[Bastille Day]]).
*Thrace eventually admits her secret about Zak Adama to William Adama himself, an act that brings their close friendship almost to the breaking point ([[Act of Contrition]]).
*During a surprise encounter with Cylons during [[nugget]] training, Starbuck destroys several Cylon Raiders, but her ship is damaged and tumbles towards a small red moon with an unbreathable atmosphere. With her Viper in a fatal flat-spin, Starbuck is forced to eject from her Viper ([[You Can't Go Home Again]]).
*Thrace (nursing a damaged knee) repairs the downed Cylon Raider found on the inhabitable moon and returns to ''Galactica'', giving the Fleet a vital piece of Cylon fighter technology for study and use.
*The recovering Thrace, off flight status, is asked by Commander Adama to plan a special attack on a Cylon [[tylium]] refinery. The tactical planning role is not something she relishes, and she frequently shows resentment towards others for her condition ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]]).
*During Thrace's undesired interrogation of a Cylon prisoner, a copy of a known [[Humanoid Cylon|Cylon]] named [[Leoben Conoy]], she uses some drastic acts to try to extract the information from the Humanoid Cylon ([[Flesh and Bone]]).
[[image:Starbuck-Kobols_Last_Gleaming_pt2.jpg|thumb|right|'''Starbuck''' retrieves the [[Arrow of Apollo]] ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II]]).]]
*Thrace is assigned to plant a nuclear device on board a [[Basestar (RDM)|basestar]] in orbit around [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]]. She disobeys orders to retrieve the [[Arrow of Apollo]] at the request of President Roslin, since she discovered Commander Adama's speech concerning knowledge of the location of Earth was a lie. She [[FTL|jump]]s to Caprica ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]), landing in [[Delphi]] in the captured Cylon [[Cylon Raider (RDM)|Raider]], depriving the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] of the valuable military asset.
*In the [[Delphi Museum of the Colonies]] with the Arrow, she is violently attacked by a copy of [[Number Six]]. Despite being heavily outmatched in the fight, Thrace luckily defeats the Cylon.
*At the museum, she reunites with [[Karl Agathon|Helo]], whom she thought dead, and discovers a second copy of [[Sharon Valerii]], realizing instantly that the woman is a Cylon.
*Valerii, fearing for her child, steals Thrace's Raider. In exasperation, Starbuck only mutters: "Bitch took my ride" ([[Scattered]]). Like Helo, Starbuck is left with no way to return to the Fleet unless she could find her Raider or another Cylon spacecraft, as only Cylon navigational computers are powerful enough to plot jumps over such large distances..
*Starbuck berates Helo's love for the Caprica copy of Valerii. Thrace finds the keys of her surplus military utility vehicle in her old jacket in her old apartment. Thrace has a ride again, if only to move more efficiently about Caprica ([[Valley of Darkness]]).
*Thrace and Helo meet a [[Caprica Resistance|resistance movement]] on Caprica. Thrace and [[Samuel Anders]] strike up a rapport as fellow [[Pyramid (RDM)|Pyramid]] players and end up as lovers.
*During planning to steal a [[Heavy Raider]], Thrace is shot in a military action, waking up in a hospital on Caprica. Thrace is told by her doctor, [[Simon]], that Anders died from wounds he suffered in getting Thrace to safety.
*Thrace discovers that Simon is working with a [[Number Six|known Humanoid Cylon]]. She overhears that the next day he plans to extract her ovaries for use in the Cylon's attempts to study and create a hybrid Cylon/human embryo. Simon also makes the mistake of calling Thrace by her callsign, Starbuck, which she had never revealed.
*Staggering and in pain, Thrace kills Simon and escapes the hospital, but not before clocking a Six copy with a fire extinguisher and destroying the local farm power supply, mercy-killing [[Sue-Shaun]] and several other women in the facility.
*Another Simon copy appears just as the Resistance attacks the facility. The second Simon, now revealed as a Humanoid Cylon himself, is immediately killed by the Resistance, but a squad of [[Cylon Centurion]]s appear and pins the Resistance down. Luckily, [[Sharon Valerii (Caprica copy)|Caprica-Valerii]] swoops in with a stolen [[Heavy Raider]], destroys the Centurions and flies the Resistance and Thrace out of harm's way.
*Thrace promises to Anders that she'll [[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I|return with a rescue mission]] for the remaining survivors. Anders returns the Arrow of Apollo to Thrace, which he hid on the resistance grounds for safekeeping ([[The Farm]]).
*Thrace, Helo and the pregnant Valerii land on the ''[[Astral Queen]]'' in the Heavy Raider. Finding the [[Laura Roslin faction]] in orbit of [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]], Thrace is reunited with Lee Adama. He kisses her impulsively, catching Thrace by pleasant surprise, but a tense standoff follows when Adama discovers that another Valerii copy has returned with them. Roslin helps defuse the situation, and Thrace delivers the Arrow of Apollo to the President.
*Temporarily removed from miltary protocol, Lee Adama playfully teases Thrace by stealing a pyramid ball she took from Caprica. Adama senses her depression about Caprica and tells her that he'd be happy to hear about any problems she had. He also let slip that he loved her, which brightened Thrace's mood to the point where she teased him back about his slip.
*With a team led by Laura Roslin, Lee Adama, and, later, joined by the recovered Commander Adama, Thrace enters the [[Tomb of Athena]] and successfully uses the Arrow of Apollo to activate a hologram that shows constellations of the Twelve Colonies' ancient symbols.
*Thrace realizes that they are on a recreation of Earth. Together with Lee Adama, they locate the Lagoon Nebula, a celestial body known to Commander Adama and Lee Adama, and gather sufficient information to begin an actual course to Earth ([[Home, Part II]]).
*Thrace shows off the impressive stealth abilities in the new [[Blackbird]] fighter in her maiden flight ([[Flight of the Phoenix]]).
*With the arrival of ''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]'', Admiral [[Helena Cain]] summarily assigns Thrace (and Lee Adama) to ''Pegasus'' after digesting the reports of ''Galactica'''s officers.
*[[Cole Taylor|The ''Pegasus'' CAG]] removes Thrace from the Cylon recon mission. Lee Adama secretly tells her to use the [[Blackbird]] to take recon photos of the Cylon Unknown ([[Pegasus (episode)|Pegasus]]).
*Returning from her very successful mission, the [[Blackbird]]'s lack of a Colonial transponder is mistaken for a Cylon [[Raider]] on [[DRADIS]], and Starbuck is nearly confronted and shot at by Vipers from ''Pegasus'' and ''Galactica''. After narrowly avoiding certain death by declaring herself a friendly, Thrace transmits her recon photos to ''Pegasus''.
*Admiral Cain is very impressed with Starbuck's performance and promotes her to Captain and ''Pegasus'' CAG.
*Thrace is assigned the task of planning the joint attack on the Resurrection Ship, but successfully asks to have Lee Adama on her team, restoring him to flight status.
*After she briefs Cain and Commander Adama on her battle plan, Adama asks Thrace privately to assassinate Cain after the battle is complete. Adama fears that if Cain continues to command, the Fleet would be in mortal jeopardy from Cain's draconian command ([[Resurrection Ship, Part I]]).
*Thrace's battle planning, as before on the [[tylium]] [[The Hand of God (RDM)|mine]], works to near-perfection, with the Resurrection Ship destroyed and its supporting basestars.
*As a result of the battle events, Thrace is left without backup as she walks to the ''Pegasus'' CIC to shoot Cain, obviously afraid and apprehensive. When Commander Adama calls, Thrace slowly moves her hand to her sidearm but, to her relief, Adama does not give the kill order and cryptically instructs her to stand down ([[Resurrection Ship, Part II]]).
*Starbuck and [[Kat]] are involved in the protection of a mining operation from periodic Raider attacks. One Raider, nicknamed [[Scar (Raider)|Scar]], fuels an intensive rivalry for the pilot's "top gun" honor. Thrace, still depressed over her inability to convince Fleet command to initiate a rescue for Samuel Anders and his resistance, drinks heavily and obsesses over removing Scar from the sky, even at the cost of her life. Fortunately, Starbuck realizes the futility of her actions, and works together with Kat to destroy the remarkably dangerous Raider ([[Scar]]).
*A few weeks later, Thrace takes leave on ''[[Cloud Nine]]'' when she was dragooned into rescuing Lee Adama and several other ''Galactica'' crew and residents after terrorists take them hostage in exchange for the incarcerated [[Sharon Valerii (Caprica copy)|Sharon Valerii]]. Thrace gathers intel on the situation, but her cover is blown. In the retreating firefight, Lee Adama is caught in the crossfire. After the situation is resolved, Thrace intended to sit at Adama's bedside, only to discover that Dualla beat her there ([[Sacrifice]]).
*Later, Thrace is assigned to ''Pegasus'' as a flight trainer. Though the pilots like her, Commander [[Barry Garner]] does not, eventually confining her to quarters for "insubordination." Following the [[Battle of the Binary Star System|ill-fated rescue and retreat]] from a Cylon ambush (where Thrace leads the fighters), Thrace informs new ''Pegasus'' Commander Lee Adama that she was taking over his old CAG post aboard ''Galactica'' ([[The Captain's Hand]]).
*Thrace gets her wish: The Caprica rescue is approved, and she leads a large Raptor squadron to the planet. The group soon met up with Anders, who reports that their HQ had been destroyed and Thrace's timing was just perfect. A squad of Centurions ambush and pin down the group moments later ([[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I]]).
*Still pinned down from attack fire, Starbuck and Anders agree to kill each other to avoid capture and internment at a [[Farms|farm]]. But the attack stops, and a [[Cavil|man]] appears, praising the [[Lords of Kobol|Gods]] as he announces that the Cylons not only have ceased fire, but are abandoning the Twelve Colonies. Starbuck isn't really surprised to discover that the man, known as Brother [[Cavil]], was a Cylon upon their return to the Fleet.
*Starbuck and Anders proceed to get drunk, and host a disastrous visitation with Lee Adama. This apparently led to a rift between the two comrades.
[[Image:Leobenkara.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Leoben with Kara.]]
*The evening of the founding of [[New Caprica]], Thrace slept with Lee Adama and proclaimed her love for him as she was uncertain regarding her feelings toward Anders. The following morning she quickly married Anders in a ceremonry near the river. This caused a rift between Kara and Lee that lasted for over a year.
*Life on New Caprica tempered Thrace, and she often behaved in ways Starbuck never would have, including hugging Colonel Tigh and pampering Anders during his bout with an illness.
*She watches in horror at the sudden arrival of hundreds of Cylon ships in the sky over New Caprica. A few of ''Galactica's'' former crew gather near Thrace, looking to her for guidance. Starbuck responds the only way she knows how: "Fight 'em until we can't" ([[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II]]).
*After Baltar's surrender of New Caprica, Conoy keeps Thrace prisoner in an apartment located within the Cylon-built [[New Caprica Detention Center]] in an attempt to convince Thrace that she loves him and also convert her to the [[Cylon Religion|Cylon monotheistic religion]]. She repeatedly kills Conoy a total of five times in an attempt to convince him to let her go ("[[Occupation]]", "[[Precipice]]").
*Conoy introduces Thrace to a small child named [[Kacey]], who appears to be approximately two to three years in age, whom he claims is their biological daughter. He explains that the child was created using one of Thrace's extracted ovaries ([[The Farm]]) and his genetic material. Conflicted, Thrace leaves the child unattended, which later results in Kacey falling down the apartment's stairs ([[Precipice]]). After the fall, Thrace begins to change her attitude towards the child and begins to offer affection towards Conoy ("[[Precipice]]", "[[Exodus, Part I]]").
*Upon her return to ''Galactica'' after Admiral Adama's daring rescue attempt, Thrace heartbreakingly discovers that Kacey was simply another manipulation on Conoy's part — Kacey is merely a human child whom the Cylons had abducted months ago ([[Exodus, Part II]]).
*Bearing the psychological scars of her four month ordeal with Leoben and Kacey, Thrace is recruited by [[Seelix]] as a last minute replacement juror in the [[Circle]] after [[Samuel Anders]]' resignation. She is the fifth vote to find Gaeta of treason and collaboration. Thrace's involvement in the Circle precipitates the breakup of her marriage with Anders. Later, when Gaeta is about to be sentenced and executed in one of ''Galactica's'' [[launch tubes (RDM)|launch tubes]], she demands him to beg for his life. Thrace physically assaults him and goes down the litany of "lies" that Gaeta told her earlier about him helping the [[New Caprica Resistance|insurgency]]. As she does so, [[Galen Tyrol]], one of the Circle's jurors and the sixth vote to convict, overhears this and confirms the story. In a sense of confusion after learning that Gaeta was telling the truth, Thrace leaves the launch tube ([[Collaborators]]).
*During a combat exercise between Vipers, Thrace breaks formation and collides with another pilot, forcing an end to the war games and causing Apollo to revoke her flight status. Later, at her bunk she is met by Kacey and her mother, whom she dismisses, telling Kacey's mother not to visit her again. In the pilots' rec room, Thrace and Colonel Tigh begin to sow dissent between the survivors of New Caprica and the crew that stayed behind on ''Galactica'', insinuating that those who stayed behind did not suffer like those on New Caprica did, and that the crew of ''Galactica'' took too long to organize a rescue. Admiral Adama, upon learning of this from [[Karl Agathon]], confronts Thrace and Tigh on their behavior. He challenges them to shoot him, as their constant complaining is tantamount to pulling the trigger. When neither do, Adama throws Thrace off her chair and demands that both she and Tigh shape up and move on with their lives. Spurred by Adama's words, Thrace cuts her hair and returns to duty. Later, in uniform, she visits Kacey and her mother on the [[Camp Oil Slick|converted hangar deck]] ([[Torn]]).
*Thrace enters an illicit affair with Lee Adama, rekindling their romance on New Caprica ([[Unfinished Business]]). Both Anders and Adama's wife, Lieutenant [[Dualla]], are more than vaguely aware of the pair's sexual tension. Major Adama soon ends the affair and reconciles, but Thrace refuses to give Anders any further attention than a periodic sexual fling.
*Starbuck is involved with the defense of the [[Temple of Five]] but is severely injured, leaving her rescuer, Dualla, to return them to ''Galactica'' ([[Rapture]]). Helo recognizes the strange circular [[Eye of Jupiter|mandala]] (created 4,000 years before) in the Temple and its resemblance to a symbol that Thrace painted in her apartment. When shown the symbol, the recovering Thrace is darkly reminded of Leoben's prophesy.
*During refueling operations above a gas giant, Starbuck is continually attracted to what she believes is a Cylon contact, which she chases to find a planetary storm that resembles the mandala. She dives into it, almost losing control before coming to her senses and returning.
*Command staff and Thrace question her competency to continue flying, but Major Adama volunteers encouragement and offers to fly as her wingman on her next [[CAP]].
*Starbuck finds herself attracted by another apparent Cylon contact. As she descended, her Viper is struck by debris and she, while unconscious, experiences a revelation about her mother, [[Socrata Thrace]], and guided through the vision by what looks to be a Leoben copy.
*Starbuck regains consciousness but chooses to continue her descent despite Apollo's desperate pleas to ascend. "I'll see you on the other side (...) Just let me go" were her last words as her Viper explodes. A grief-stricken Apollo tells [[CIC]] that he did not see any ejection ([[Maelstrom]]).
*While preparing for a Cylon engagement near the [[Ionian nebula]], Apollo detects a bogey on [[DRADIS]]. While he searches for the target, Apollo finds himself momentarily in a cat-and-mouse chase game with the mysterious target. As Apollo attempts to regain a visual on the bogey, it positions itself next to his Viper.
*The Viper Mark II that comes alongside is flown by Starbuck herself. A shocked and confused Apollo listens to the apparently-resurrected Kara Thrace, who tells him that she has been to [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]] and she has returned to take the Fleet to it ([[Crossroads, Part II]]).
*{{spoilli|Thrace will return in [[Season 4]] and will try to lead the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] to [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]], claiming that she has traveled there. She is taken as being a [[Cylon (RDM)|Cylon]] and isn't believed by the other Colonials. In a T.V. spot aired, she is pictured lying on the floor screaming: "We're going the wrong way!"}}
*{{spoilli|A Cylon hybrid, speaking to Major [[Kendra Shaw]] moments before their deaths, instructs Shaw to warn the humans not to follow Kara Thrace, warning that Thrace would lead the human race to its end and describing her as the herald of the Apocalypse and the harbinger of death. Though she does not understand the full import of this warning, Shaw does attempt to warn Commander [[Lee Adama]] aboard the Battlestar ''Pegasus'', but Cylon jamming prevents Adama from receiving the full message.}} ([[Razor]])

==The Destiny==

From early in her life, Kara Thrace has been guided through her mother's actions for a special role in life, a plot point that begins with a [[Leoben Conoy]] copy in the Season 1 episode, "[[Flesh and Bone]]". In "[[Maelstrom]]", the character dies, but reappears as a possible herald at the end of Season 3. For more information, see [[The Destiny]].

==Notes==
*On the Sci-Fi Channel's preview for season 2.5 (US), Katee Sackoff is quoted as saying that Starbuck is "the best Viper pilot...EVER."
*[[Wikipedia:Thrace|Thrace]] was a region in south-eastern Europe that was heavily influenced by the ancient Greeks and was eventually conquered by [[Wikipedia:Philip II of Macedonia|Phillip II of Macedonia]]. Thracians were considered by most to be the most ferocious fighters and were often highly paid mercenaries for Greek kings.
*Thrace may have been named after [[w:Thrax (mythology)|Thrax]], the son of [[w:Ares|Ares]], the god of war, who was said to reside on the Thracian plain in Greek mythology.
*After auditioning for the role of [[Anastasia Dualla|Dualla]], [[Grace Park]] was asked by director [[Michael Rymer]] to audition for the role of Starbuck, and she was actually one of two finalists up for the role (the other being Katee Sackhoff, who got the part). Ultimately Park was cast as [[Sharon Valerii|Sharon "Boomer" Valerii]].
*In a TV Guide [http://online.tvguide.com/newsearch/detail.aspx?id=4371595&sourcetype=S&progseriesparentid=4371595&tvobjectid=191395&keyword=Battlestar+Galactica&referrer=search1 photo shoot] at the BSG studios, Katee Sackhoff explained that the [[tattoo]] that Starbuck bears on her left arm is a wing and a circle and has half of the constellation of Capricorn (a reference to [[Caprica]] obviously) and a small symbol of the planet as well. It matches a mirror image of the tattoo on Anders' right arm. When the two of them hold each other with their respective arms crossing, the 2 tattoos come together to form an image of a single ring with 2 wings that is supposed to represent their union. According to Sackhoff, Kara and Anders had the tattoos done around the time of their wedding.
*The license plate on Thrace's truck on Caprica is "FB 42 E3" ([[Valley of Darkness]]).
*In a [http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07085/770732-352.stm ''Post-Gazette Journal'' interview], [[Ronald D. Moore]] stated that [[Katee Sackhoff]] is signed for Season four. In an [http://tv.ign.com/articles/797/797776p2.html interview with IGN] Katee Sackhoff has said that this Starbuck is "not a figment of people's imaginations," a comment supported by Ronald D. Moore in an [http://www.vh1.com/movies/news/articles/1556508/20070405/story.jhtml interview with VH1] in which he shoots down the rumors that the Kara Thrace that [[Lee Adama]] sees at the end of "[[Crossroads, Part II]]" is a hallucination.

==References==
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