{{Episode Data
| title= The Passage
| image=Season 3 - Promo - The Passage - Kat.jpg
| season= 3
| episode= 10
| guests= [[Lucy Lawless]] as [[Number Three]]
| writer= [[Jane Espenson]]
| story=
| director= [[Michael Nankin]]
| production= 310
| rating=
| US airdate= 2006-12-08
| UK airdate=
| dvd=
| population= 41,420
| prev= [[Unfinished Business]]
| next= [[The Eye of Jupiter]]
}}

== Overview ==
:''Starvation threatens the population after the food-processing systems become contaminated, but the Fleet is cut off from a food source by the intense radiation put out by a huge star cluster. ''Galactica'''s pilots must guide the civilian vessels on a dangerous journey directly through the radiation.''

== Summary ==
=== On ''[[Galactica]]'' ===
*[[Sharon Agathon|Athena]] flies a [[Raptor]] through a blinding, immensely bright gas cloud. The Raptor's outer skin is charring from the intense heat. Athena is managing to fight off the intense radiation buildup surrounding her, thanks to her [[Cylon agent|Cylon physiology]], but a radiation monitor badge she wears is changing color from white, spotting to an ominous black.
*Elsewhere in the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]], President [[Laura Roslin]] summarizes the contamination of the basic foodstuff material storage used to feed everyone, from soldier to civilian. The situation is dire; 7 to 10 days of rations remain. The Fleet is starving.
*A group of pilots, including [[Lee Adama]], [[Kara Thrace]], [[Hot Dog]] and [[Louanne Katraine]], are combining what little food they have and sharing it, down to the last crumb.
*Admiral [[William Adama]] and his command staff await Athena's return from her reconnaisance mission to what they believe is a [[Algae planet|planet with algae]]. The algae, according to Dr. [[Cottle]], isn't extremely palatable but is protein-rich and will allow them to restock their food stores and survive. Athena is three hours late from return.
*Athena does make it back to ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]''. While her radiation badge is black, her Cylon physiology protects her (although she is obviously uncomfortable). She reports success; the planet is teeming with algae.
*But the travel through the star cluster is extremely dangerous. Two [[FTL|jumps]] are required to reach the planet on the other side of the cluster, which cannot be circumnavigated. The navigation computers of any civilian ships inside the cluster would be inoperative due to insufficient shielding and the intense radiation leaves a ship only minutes to gather their bearings for the second jump out before they absorb a fatal dose of radiation. Any ship would also have to endure the intense heat as well.
*''Galactica'' alone cannot be used to ferry the people, and the civilian ships alone would not make the trip as they would get lost within the cluster cloud. There is too much algae for ''Galactica'' to bring the food to the people in time.
*The Adamas consider the use of the Raptors, whose navigation systems are radiation-hardened to protect against nuclear strikes, as pilot ships that will guide a group of civilian ships at a time by visual reckoning, relaying the proper jump coordinates once visual sighting is made to get the ships to the other side. Five jumps are needed, and skeleton crews are used on each civilian ship to limit the Fleet's possible losses, with the civilians temporarily transferred to ''Galactica'', which will survive the radiation effects thanks to the [[Galactica type battlestar|battlestar's]] dense hull plating ([[Miniseries]]).
*A group of civilians are bunked on ''Galactica'' from the civilian ships. One of them recognizes Kat, but calls out for her by another name: "Sasha." Kat reacts angrily to the man, [[Enzo]], and barely acknowledges his call before warning him to back off.
*The pilots are briefed on the plan, and each given radiation badges. When Major Adama encourages the use of [[stims]], Kat objects, warning that stims work by boosting the body's metabolism. In their starvation state, the stims would make them ill. Adama leaves the use of the drug to the pilot's discretion.
*Colonel [[Saul Tigh]] returns to the [[CIC]] and is greeted by a round of applause from the crew. He promptly reminds them that they have "jobs to do," resuming his post as [[XO]] of ''Galactica''. Admiral Adama keeps a quiet smile to himself as he notices Tigh's return, knowing his friend would not care to be particularly noticed.
*The first outbound flight into the cluster begins. The ''[[Adriatic]]'' is lost when its Raptor guide, flown by [[Hot Dog]], cannot locate her.
*Successive trips continue, but another ship, the ''[[Carina]]'', guided by Kat, is lost as well, which greatly angers and saddens her. She stays in the cloud a few minutes too long during her extended search, and her radiation badge becomes dark.
*In the [[hangar deck]], Thrace notices Enzo interacting with Kat and gets suspicious. She later questions Enzo and later, Kat.
*Kat begs Thrace not to tell Admiral Adama about her past life as a drug runner and the fact that she acquired her name, "Louanne Katraine," from a child that died two days before the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies|Cylon attack]], using it to clear ''Galactica'''s pilot screening when she was a [[nugget]]. Thrace accepts her offer, warning her to embrace who she really is.
*Feeling backed into a corner, Kat is physically stressed. Her hair is falling out, a sign of radiation poisoning. Fearful of what will happen to her if Admiral Adama finds out about her past, she chooses to continue her Raptor flights, swapping her radiation badge with [[Helo]]'s. She allows herself a sexual romp with Enzo before preparing for the last outbound flight.
*The last outbound trip is more destructive. Even ''Galactica'' cannot withstand the heat and begins to suffer heat-related decompression failures throughout its hull. Adama orders his son to wrap out visual sighting and perform the escape jump.
*Kat cannot find her last ship. Realizing she had already absorbed too much radiation, she elects to remain in the cloud to continue searching for her lost ship.
*''Galactica'' waits for several frightening minutes until both Kat's Raptor and the last civilian ship rejoin them.
*Kat is greeted by the command staff and many crewmembers to celebrate her accomplishment. The young pilot pumps her arms in the air and tries to remove her helmet before she collapses from radiation poisoning.
*In [[sickbay]], Kara Thrace talks to Kat, whose exposure to the cloud's radiation was too extreme. Thrace recants a part of her conversation with Kat and her origins, and tries unsuccessfully to leave Kat's bedside with a smile before leaving the dying pilot with a bottle of sleeping pills as a gesture of self-euthanization. Kat thanks her.
*Admiral Adama stands by Kat's bedside immediately after Thrace's departure. Kat attempts to confess her past, but Adama tells her that her past will not change the heroic thing she did for the Fleet. He gives her the status of [[CAG]] once more, a position she held from colonization of [[New Caprica]] to Major Adama's return to ''Galactica'', despite the fact that Kat will not survive to fly again.
*Adama stays at Kat's bedside, talking with her and how he would have loved to have had a third child, commenting that he, like his ex-wife, [[Caroline Adama|Caroline]], would have liked a daughter.
*Some time later, the pilots assemble in their [[Pilot ready rooms|ready room]] as Admiral Adama changes the pilot organization chart, placing Kat as the CAG.
*Kara Thrace enters ''Galactica'''s memorial hallway and tacks a photo of Kat on the board. She cries quietly as Lee Adama looks on from a distance.

=== On a [[Basestar (RDM)|basestar]] ===
*Baltar notices that [[Number Three]] keeps going off somewhere and wonders what she is doing. [[Caprica-Six]] tells him that the other [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylons]] are also concerned about Three's activities.
*Baltar confronts Three about her unexplained absences and surmises that she has been dying and resurrecting over and over again.
*Baltar and Three discuss the final five [[Cylon agent]]s, who are apparently the figures Three has been seeing between life and death. Baltar wonders aloud if he could be one of them, making him a hero to the Cylons instead of a traitor to the Colonials. Three tries to hold onto the memory of what they look like, but it always fades. Her drawings of them aren't very distinct.
*Baltar and Three visit the [[Hybrid]]'s chamber. Against Three's advice, Baltar reaches out to touch the Hybrid and she grabs his hand. More coherent than usual, the Hybrid says a number of cryptic clues and returns to her usual behavior.
*Baltar deduces from the clues that the Hybrid is referring to a planet where the Eye of Jupiter can be found, as well as something related to the final five. Baltar states that he is convinced that everything the Hybrid says has meaning.

== Questions ==
*Was the Fleet-wide failure of food-processing systems a result of sabotage? If so, were Cylons responsible, or someone else?
*Was assisted suicide an accepted practice in the Colonies, even if not by a practicing physician?
*Are there going to be radiation consequences for the pilots exposed to the conditions of the star cluster, especially those pilots who did in fact have a black indicator?
*How many pilots and crew were lost on the two civilian ships ''Adriatic'' and ''Carina''? Will their loss cause problems for the civilians that used to live on them?
*Were there any other ships lost besides ''Adriatic'' and ''Carina''?
*Other Cylons were seen to attend Three during her resurrection in "[[Hero]]". How has she been able to keep subsequent resurrections secret?
**Are the 'nurse' Cylons at the Resurrection ship aware of Three's attempts to discover who the final five are? If so, are they remaining silent in hope that Three would accomplish this task?
*During the brief martial law when Roslin was ousted as President, she and Apollo hid inside a meat refigeration locker. Was all the "real" food, such as meat, fresh fruits, and drinks all used up or left behind on New Caprica?
*If there was no food contamination, how long would the Fleet's food supply have lasted?
*Is there a centralized food distribution system in place for the Fleet?
*Why are the final five Cylons kept so secretive? Why do they exist in the place between death and resurrection?
*Who will supplant [[Kat]] as Squadron leader?

== Analysis ==
*The ranking shuffle resumes in this episode: Tigh returns to the CIC as XO, sending Helo back to the flight lines as a senior flight officer (his rank of Captain seems unaffected). At the end of the episode, Kat is posthumously given honorary CAG status, although Apollo is still ''de facto'' CAG.
*Baltar calls the Number Three "D'Anna", to which she responds. This may indicate acceptance of Baltar's custom of referring to and addressing some models by their "human" names—in this same scene, Baltar refers to "the relevant Simon" and in prior episodes refers to "one of the Dorals"' views on toilet paper. This custom is shared with the other humans, such as Ellen Tigh who mentions "one of the Brother Cavils", and Adama, who refers to both the [[Ragnar Anchorage]] copy and the stowaway copy in "[[Flesh and Bone]]" as "Leoben Conoy".
*Gaeta was one of the few in CIC not to applaud Tigh's return to duty. This may be due to lingering feelings of resentment over his treatment by Tigh and [[The Circle]].
*Since this model has memories of viewing the footage acquired by the Galactica copy of D'anna Biers on Caprica (seen in flashback in "[[Hero]]"), we can rule out the possibility that both are the same individual.
*Number Three does not know what the final five Cylon agent models look like, at least not consciously.
*No anti-radiation injections were seen to be used by the pilots. Unless they were administered offscreen this could either mean that the Fleet's supplies are used up, or that even the medication doesn't help against such intense levels of stellar radiation. Oddly, pilots were not issue with anti-radiation suits (worn by the deck crew) or put on a rotation to limit their individual exposure.
*While it has not been conclusively established that the five figures are in fact the "Final Five" Cylon agents, the first sketch of the alleged "Final Five" that Number Three shows Baltar depicts two male and three female figures. If this proves accurate then of the twelve Cylon models there are six males and six females.
*Baltar's grooming has declined steadily since the Fall of the Colonies. While no longer a messy drunk as he was on [[New Caprica]], he has grown a scraggly and untrimmed beard.
* One of D'Anna's sketches in particular appears to depict the profile of a mustached and bearded male with long hair—a possible reference to Baltar; later in the episode after Baltar communes with the hybrid, D'Anna says "Could there be a connection between their gods and ours?" where "their" refers to the polytheistic human pantheon and "ours," the Cylon single god, a possible slip on her part indicating that she believes Baltar to be a Cylon, or that D'Anna believes Baltar has accepted the Cylon religion, and so no longer counts him as following human beliefs.
*"Find the hand that lies in the shadow of the light, in the eye of the husband of the eye of the cow." is what the Hybrid tells Baltar. Baltar analyses "the eye of the cow" to be Hera (since she was referred to as "cow-eyed Hera"). The husband of Hera is Jupiter, which yields: "Find the hand that lies in the shadow of the light, in the Eye of Jupiter". The Eye of Jupiter is also written about in the ancient texts, which prompts Three to believe there may be a connection to the Colonial and Cylon gods. According to Baltar, the Eye of Jupiter is most likely some kind of artifact (like the [[Arrow of Apollo]]), located on a planet in the shadow of a bright star cluster. The "hand" is believed to be a reference to the number five, meaning the Eye of Jupiter will contain or point to information about the Final Five. Interestingly, the Fleet has gathered protein from a planet in a bright star cluster in this episode. This will probably mean that the Cylons will run into the Colonials when they find the right planet, much like in "[[A Measure of Salvation]]", but reversed as the Cylons found the [[Lion's Head Nebula]] before the Fleet did.
*The possible connection between the Colonial pantheon and the Cylon god which Three comments on was previously indicated in "[[Exodus, Part I]]", by the statements of Oracle [[Dodona Selloi]], with whom Three conferred.

== Notes ==
*This is one of the few times an Air Group organization chart is visible. Kat, as the honorary [[CAG]], is in the top slot, while directly below her are the squadron leaders, which are [[Lee Adama|Apollo]], [[Kara Thrace|Starbuck]], [[Two Times]], and a fourth whose name is never visible to the camera. Other names visible on the chart include [[Narcho]], [[Switch]], [[Chopper]], [[Raygun]], [[Helo]], [[Fuzzy]], [[Athena]], [[Racetrack]], and [[Sever]]. Pilots and [[ECO]]s may be listed below their squadron leaders in descending order of seniority, as both [[Karl Agathon|Helo]] and [[Brendan Constanza|Hot Dog]], for example, are listed directly beneath Starbuck, and the two of them are among the senior flight officers for ''Galactica''.
*A [[Straits of Madagon|perilous journey]] by the [[The Fleet (TOS)|"rag-tag" Fleet]] in the [[Original Series]], where pilots are also critical to the Fleet's safety, appears in its series premiere, "[[Saga of a Star World]]."
*"The Passage" was written by ''Galactica'' newcomer [[Jane Espenson]]. The episode arose when the show brought in Dr. [[Kevin Grazier]], a scientist from the [[w:Jet Propulsion Laboratory|Jet Propulsion Laboratory]], who talked about how one would navigate through space; how one would figure out how to get from one point in the to universe to, for example, Earth. Grazier's talk prompted the story at the heart of Espenson's episode.
*On the memorial wall Kat's picture is placed below the one of [[Reilly]]'s girlfriend she herself put there in "[[Scar]]".
*This episode marks the destruction of two civilian ships, the ''[[Adriatic]]'' and ''[[Carina]]''. This will likely result in more crowded conditions on the other ships in [[the Fleet]].
*This is the second episode in which dialog has been censored in the [[w:Sci Fi Channel (United States)|Sci Fi Channel]] broadcast. Starbuck sarcastically proclaims she gave Dr. [[Cottle]] "[[w:fellatio|head]]" in response to Kat saying she gave him her protein bar.
*Though the actual dialog between Baltar and D'Anna employs the name "Jupiter", the closed-captioning subtitles uses "Zeus" instead. This discrepancy and the question as to why the Roman name Jupiter would be used instead of its Greek counterpart may indicate that the original script employed the name Zeus before. However there is precedence for using gods from the Roman pantheon; namely Mars and Mercury.
*[[Brendan Constanza|Brendan "Hot Dog" Constanza]] is now the only survivor of the three nuggets originally introduced in "[[Act of Contrition]]".
*[[Hoshi]] appears in the CIC, sharing Dualla's duties. Other ''Pegasus'' crew members to have made the transfer to ''Galactica'' include [[Marcia Case|Marcia "Showboat" Case]], seen on the flight roster at the end of the episode, and [[Noel Allison|Noel "Narcho" Allison]] seen in "[[Torn]]".

== Noteworthy Dialogue ==

*''Adama and Tigh discuss the food shortage''
::'''Adama:''' I hear they're still eating paper. Is that true?
::'''Tigh:''' No. Paper shortage.

*''Starbuck gives a last minute pep talk to the pilots''
::'''Starbuck:''' Remember, we're all flying solo on this mission. So that means there'll be nobody there to bitch slap you if you start to get tired or start seeing little toasters on your wing.

*''Baltar and Three confront the Hybrid'':
::'''Hybrid''': [Suddenly grabs Baltar's hand] Intelligence! A mind that burns like a fire!
::'''Baltar''': Yes, I'm here.
::'''Hybrid''': Find the hand that lies in the shadow of the light, in the eye of the husband of the eye of the cow.
::'''Baltar''': [Removes his hand from the Hybrid's tank.]
::'''Three''': You all right? It just speaks nonsense, doesn't it?
::'''Baltar''': I don't think anything it says is nonsense.

== Official Statements ==
''In [[Ron Moore]]'s blog on [http://blog.scifi.com/battlestar/ July 27th, 2006]:''

:"We were pretty excited to have Jane too. I actually took Jane's first pitch way back in my early days at ''[[MemoryAlpha:Star Trek|Star Trek]]'' and I had the pleasure of buying what turned out to be her first sale. I hadn't seen her since, but I'd followed her career from afar and was very proud to see her do so well. Turns out that Jane was a huge fan of ''Galactica'' and really wanted to do a script for us, so we jumped on the chance. I think we're all hoping that we could get her on staff at some point in the future, but we'll have to wait and see how everything shakes out for Season Four -- and whether she's even available, she's very much in demand these days. Her episode this year is "The Passage" (originally Ep 9) and deals with a harrowing voyage of the rag-tag fleet and focuses on Kat."

''[[Jane Espenson]] discusses writing the episode''

: "My episode originally had a [[Laura Roslin|Laura]] story threaded through it that had to be cut in later drafts because there was just too much story in the episode as a whole, and I missed it, just because she was so much fun to write. And any character with a strong opinion on what's going on in the episode is always fun and easy to write.

: "The hardest stuff to write in this episode wasn't because of any hard-to-capture voices but because there was a big chunk of mission-planning exposition that had to be done as clearly and as quickly as possible. That is always the very hardest stuff to write, setting down the rules without sounding like a textbook. It was challenging, but so nice when I felt like I'd gotten it right."<ref>{{cite_web|url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/12/06/jane-espenson-answers-your-battlestar-questions/|title=TV Squad: Jane Espenson answers your Battlestar questions|date=6 December 2006|accessdate=11 December 2006|last=McDuffee|first=Keith|format=|language=English}}</ref>

''Epsenson talks about the scientific aspects of the episode:''

: "When I was given this episode, all the technical stuff about globular star clusters was given to me. And the writers were really patient in explaining technical stuff about the FTL drive and jump co-ordinates and the fact that you can't talk on the wireless over a jump-boundary -- I originally had Galactica in contact with Sharon-Athena while she out in the cluster doing her original recon, but that obviously didn't make sense. I received lots of help from the show's tech adviser, who is wonderful, and who explained all sorts of interesting things to me about how radiation differs from radioactivity and how gravitational forces are more likely to damage large ships than small ones.... The research that I really did on my own was about figuring out how the fleet had been making food prior to this crisis. The explanation was cut for length, but in one draft it was stated that the fleet "grew" meat from cloned cells and that it was this system that got so badly contaminated. As for the algae, I think that was already in place when I was given the story... it's just an obvious alternative protein source."<ref name="espenson-2">{{cite_web|url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/12/11/jane-espenson-on-post-the-passage-questions/|title=TV Squad: Jane Espenson on post-The Passage questions|date=11 November 2006|accessdate=11 November 2006|last=McDuffee|first=Keith|format=|language=English}}</ref>

''Espenson discusses the [[Hybrid]]'s dialogue:''

: "I wrote this for the Hybrid in that pre-grab moment: 'Seascape portrait of the woman-child cavern of the soul under pressure-heat ratio--' which is, I think, what we hear. But there is at least one BSG writer who can generate pages of beautiful, haunting and resonant Hybrid-speak at will. He writes lots of her stuff and more power to him!"<ref name="espenson-2"/>

''Espenson discusses scenes that were cut from the script due to time constraints:''

: "I think I got a more-than-fair edit! I was amazed! The draft that was shot was way too long -- we all knew it was too long. So lots of scenes had to be cut -- two Adama/Kat scenes that I can think of. A Lee/Dualla scene, a Lee/Starbuck scene, an Adama/Tigh scene, lots and lots of Sharon/Helo stuff... the fact that the episode holds together, that it makes sense and has emotional punch... wow. And that's not even counting lots of Cylon stuff, Laura stuff and [[Samuel Anders|Anders]] stuff that got cut before shooting! This show is so rich, the world is so full, and there are emotions along every axis between every pairing of characters, that it's incredibly easy to find things that you just HAVE to explore. This is part of what gives the series such a great voyeuristic quality... as a viewer you just KNOW that there are scenes that have played out between these people that you have never seen, and you get to infer what they must've been. I like that the edit of this episode hints at the things unseen. And I love that despite the time pressures, moments were allowed to play out... Kat watching her fellow pilots suffer, Kat in the mirror, the final hospital scene... I think it was a lovely edit."<ref name="espenson-2"/>

''Espenson discusses fan's expectation of humor from her stories and their pertience to "The Passage":''

: "I know people expect humor from me. I hope they understand why, given a story about Kat's redemptive and unglamorous death, I kept the funny knob turned down -- couldn't resist the giddy Tigh-Adama scene, however, and my personal favorite line the piece, Baltar's "You've got goo in your hair." Anyway, I hope the fans liked what they saw; I hope it felt real; I hope I get to write more Battlestar episodes, and get to play some more with these wonderful characters and their tragic, human, uplifting lives."<ref name="espenson-2"/>

== Guest Stars ==
*[[Michael Hogan]] as Colonel [[Saul Tigh]]
* [[Aaron Douglas]] as Chief [[Galen Tyrol]]
*[[Tahmoh Penikett]] as Captain [[Karl Agathon|Karl "Helo" Agathon]]
* [[Alessandro Juliani]] as Lt. [[Felix Gaeta]]
*[[Kandyse McClure]] as [[Anastasia Dualla]]
*[[Lucy Lawless]] as [[Number Three]]
*[[Luciana Carro]] as Captain [[Louanne Katraine|Louanne "Kat" Katraine]]
* [[Donnelly Rhodes]] as Doctor [[Cottle]]
* [[Bodie Olmos]] as Lt. [[Brendan Constanza|Brendan "Hotdog" Constanza]]

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

{{episode list (RDM season 3)}}

[[Category:A to Z|Passage, The]]
[[Category:Episode Guide|Passage, The]]
[[Category:Episode Guide (RDM)|Passage, The]]
[[Category:Episodes written by Jane Espenson]]
[[Category:Episodes directed by Michael Nankin]]
[[Category:RDM]]

The Passage

2006-12-10T01:20:58Z

Philodox-ohki: /* Analysis */

The Passage

2006-12-10T01:18:58Z

Philodox-ohki: /* Analysis */

2006-11-19T09:42:22Z

Philodox-ohki: /* Notes */

Medal of Distinction

2006-11-19T09:39:09Z

Philodox-ohki:

'''The Medal of Distinction''' is a decoration in the [[Colonial Fleet]].

Apparently a prestigious decoration, it is awarded for, among other heroic reasons, long years of valorous service in the Fleet. Admiral [[William Adama]] is awarded the Medal of Distinction some weeks after the [[Battle of New Caprica]], as much for public morale as for having earned it ([[Hero]]).

The medal is a stylized Colonial Fleet insignia on a red ribbon worn around the neck.

William Adama

2006-11-19T09:34:41Z

Philodox-ohki: /* Currently... */

:''For information on William Adama's [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Original Series]] counterpart, see [[Adama (TOS)]].''

{{Character Data
|photo=Season3 Promot William Adama.jpg
|age=
|colony= [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Caprica|Caprica]]
|birthname= William Adama
|callsign= Husker
|nickname= The Old Man
|seen= Miniseries
|death=
|parents= [[Joseph Adama]] (father)<br/>[[Evelyn Adama]] (mother)
|siblings=
|children= [[Lee Adama]] <br/> [[Zak Adama]] †
|marital status= Divorced ([[Caroline Adama]]), remarried to [[Anne Adama]]
|role=Commanding Officer, [[Battlestar (RDM)|Battlestar]] ''[[Galactica]]''; Supreme Commander of the [[Colonial Fleet]]
|rank=Rear Admiral
|cylon=
|actor=[[Edward James Olmos]]
}}

'''William Adama''', a veteran of the [[Cylon War]], is the commanding officer of the [[Galactica type battlestar|battlestar]] ''[[Galactica]]'', and the highest ranking officer left in the [[Colonial Fleet]].

== Background ==
*William Adama was born on Caprica, the son of [[Joseph Adama]]. His father was an attorney specializing in civil liberties ([[Litmus]]). His mother [[Evelyn Adama]] was an accountant ([[Hero]]).
*Adama served late in the [[Cylon War]] as a [[Viper (RDM)|Viper]] pilot. He allegedly gained the call sign of "Husker" on account of his baritone "gravelled" voice. He proved a gifted pilot, shooting down his first [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] on his very first combat mission, for which he received a commendation.
*He racked his 1,000th deck landing while serving aboard battlestar ''[[Atlantia]]'' ([[Act of Contrition]]), when he held the rank of Lieutenant.
*In the last week in the war, Adama served on ''[[Galactica]]'' when the battlestar was boarded by Cylon forces. He recalled to his friend and fellow war veteran [[Saul Tigh]] a dangerous Cylon tactic that tried to turn the battlestar's power against itself ([[Scattered]], deleted scene).
*Following the Cylon armistice, William Adama married [[Caroline Adama]] and had two sons, [[Lee Adama|Lee]] and [[Zak Adama|Zak]], before the pressures of Adama's career and the time he spent away from home in active service began to place a strain on their marriage, and the two eventually divorced.
*Furloughed by [[Colonial Fleet]] after the war's end, Adama found work as a deck hand on a merchant fleet civilian freighter, where he met [[Saul Tigh]], who became a long-time friend.
*Adama married a second time to [[Anne Adama]]. Anne's family had political influence with the defense subcommittee and pulled to get Adama reinstated to the [[Colonial Fleet]]. Adama himself arranged for Tigh's reinstatement a few years later.
[[Image:Youngadamafamily.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A young William Adama and his two sons.]]
*While elder son Lee Adama showed promise as a Viper pilot, younger Zak Adama did not. [[Kara Thrace]], Zak's flight instructor and lover, certified him for basic flight despite young Adama's poor flight skills. Later, Zak Adama was killed in an operational flight. Zak's death would cause a rift between he and his older son for nearly [[Act of Contrition|three years]] until Thrace admits her error to Bill Adama.
*Adama rose through the ranks of the peacetime fleet, making rank of Major on ''Atlantia'' and then Executive Officer of battlestar ''[[Columbia]]'', before becoming Commander of the Battlestar ''[[Valkyrie]]''. About a year prior to the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], he was ordered by Admiral [[Corman]] to escort a stealth scoutship over the [[Armistice Line]]. The mission was a failure, and in an attempt to cover up, he ordered the ship and its pilot shot down. Ever since, he had felt guilt, both over shooting down his own pilot and over the possibility that his actions resulted in the holocaust. According to Tigh, this mission brought his star into the descendent, and he was given command of ''Galactica'' as a graceful way of easing into retirement.
*Adama has the rare combination of qualities that make up a good leader: insight, the ability to naturally command respect, a common touch that enables him to relate to the enlisted personnel under his command as well as his officers, intuition, intelligence, a strong belief in his own abilities, and the ability to take the advice of others. These qualities are reflected in the fact that personnel of all ranks aboard ''Galactica'' hold him in high regard, and know that he is approachable ([[Miniseries]]).
*Adama mistrusts politicians, and sometimes places too strongly a value of loyalty to those he regards as family and friends. From his uneasiness to [[Laura Roslin]]'s unexpected assumption of the Presidency, to the tolerance and patience of his friend, [[Saul Tigh]], and his stubborness to save Kara Thrace ([[You Can't Go Home Again]]), Adama shows a dogged determination that few others care to confront.

== Character History at a Glance ==
*At the time of the [[Miniseries]], William Adama, former CO of the battlestar ''[[Valkyrie]]'', serves out his final weeks as commander of the battlestar ''[[Galactica]]''. After some 50 years of service, the historic warship is in the process of being decommissioned, and it was one of Adama's final duties to formally hand her over to the [[Colonial Ministry of Education]], which would operate the ship as a living museum and educational center commemorating the original Cylon War.
*As a retirement gift, several members of [[Galen Tyrol]]'s deck crew find and restore Adama's old [[Viper Mark II]].
*On news of a renewed Cylon attack, Adama's first thoughts are, "Dead. We're all dead" ([[Home, Part II]]). Despite this, as well as the presumed loss of his wife in Caprica City, he manages to shepherd [[The Fleet (RDM)|the last of humanity]] to safety.
[[image:Mini_Adama_Tigh_DRADIS.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Commander [[William Adama|Adama]] and Colonel [[Saul Tigh|Tigh]] plot a course to [[Ragnar Anchorage]] in the [[Miniseries]].]]
*When [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Picon|Picon]] Fleet Headquarters is destroyed and then Admiral [[Nagala]] is killed, he unhesitatingly takes control of the Colonial's response to the Cylon incursion and starts defining a response to the onslaught. Once President Roslin convinces Adama the futility of fighting against overwhelming odds, and with what may be the last 50,000 humans that remain anywhere, he makes the switch to the more tactical thinking that keeps the Colonial fleet at least one step ahead of their Cylon pursuers.
*From the outset, he is savvy enough to give every single survivor of the devastating attack on the Colonies a reason for hope for the future: the legend of Earth. This falsehood [[Tomb of Athena|comes back to haunt him]] as the weeks continue, as Roslin is aware of this lie to the crew and states this privately to Adama.
*Adama continues to face the problem of infiltration within the Fleet by [[Cylon agent]]s as well as [[Demand Peace|dissenting humans who protest or terrorize]] others in the Fleet. Adama continually redefines the boundaries of military and civil leadership. After some [[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II|serious missteps between he and President Roslin]], the two later become friends as well as influential leaders.
*[[Sharon Valerii]], a trusted [[Raptor]] pilot that served with Adama for two years, reveals herself unwittingly as a Cylon sleeper agent and shoots Adama at point blank range after a [[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II|critical mission near Kobol]]. Cottle [[Fragged|eventually repairs]] the damage to Adama's body, but Adama's psyche takes the larger hit while he repairs the [[Resistance|damage to the Fleet]] he and Col. Tigh have caused in arresting President Roslin, as well as the existence of a second copy of Valerii.
[[image:Home_pt1-Adama.jpg|thumb|Commander [[William Adama|Adama]] paints a model boat while talking to [[Anastasia Dualla|Dualla]] in "[[Home, Part I]]."]]
*While at first Adama takes a similar stance to Tigh in assuming a hard military posture, a conversation with [[Anastasia Dualla|Dualla]] helps him realize that, despite the problems, the Fleet is his family, and the family must stay together. After finding the [[Tomb of Athena]] with Roslin and reuniting a [[Laura Roslin faction|factioning of the Fleet]], Adama firmly buries the hatchet between he and Roslin publicly.
*In a desperate plan, Adama trusts the second Valerii to help ward off a massive Cylon fleet. Adama ([[Flight of the Phoenix]]). Despite his "gut" feelings about the Cylon, he finds common ground often with her, even [[Resurrection Ship, Part I|apologizing to her]] after a distasteful incident.
*Adama stoically accepts Admiral [[Helena Cain]]'s overall command. Wary of her behavior and her crew, Adama follows his own truism: stick to what you know, until you find something better.
*Matters with Cain's unusually totalitarian command style come to a head when Cain makes several highly questionable orders that lead him to face off with her battlestar and her command in a [[Pegasus (episode)|military challenge]]. While the issue is temporarily defused, Adama is told by, of all people, President Roslin that Cain is a threat to the safety of the Fleet's citizens and must be eliminated.
*Adama avoids killing Cain after realizing that he would become the monster that the Cylons believed they were, unaware that she has plotted his demise as well.
*With Cain's fate sealed not by Adama but [[Gina]], a frail President Roslin promotes Adama to Admiral. He gives her a simple, affectionate kiss, which she returns, signifying another change in their turbulent association.
*Adama's sense of justice with Roslin holds when he confronts her about a conspiracy involving her re-election. Roslin admits the conspiracy but she is certain disaster will strike if [[Gaius Baltar]] becomes president. He agrees, but convinces Roslin that the correct course of action is to acknowledge a miscount and cover the conspiracy.
*When ''[[Cloud Nine]]'' and two other ships blow up as a result of [[Gina]]'s last effort of sabotage, Adama is privately infuriated at new President Baltar's refusal to investigate, and begins to wonder if he hadn't made a mistake.

==Currently...==

*A year later, Adama commands a heavily under-staffed ''Galactica'' as the flagship of a defense fleet, consisting of all ships unable or unwilling to make planetfall on [[New Caprica]]. He now sports a thick mustache, and has apparently taken up smoking.
*Adama convinces [[Saul Tigh|Tigh]] to rejoin Ellen in [[New Caprica City]] after months of debate, with [[Helo]] acting as his new XO.
*Not long after Tigh leaves, a massive Cylon fleet bears down on New Caprica. After a brief discussion with Commander Lee Adama ([[The Captain's Hand|aboard ''Pegasus'']]), they order the Fleet to escape to pre-arranged Jump coordinates.
*The admiral issues the Jump order with a reminder: "We're leaving... but we'll be back."
*A couple of months after ''Galactica'', ''Pegasus'' and the rest of the New Caprica Defense Fleet jump away, Adama is trying to make a rescue plan on New Caprica but hurls a Raptor model across the room in frustration ([[Occupation]]).
[[Image:Adama being carried Exodus-Pt-II.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Adama being carried by the Crew of Galactica after the [[Battle of New Caprica]] (Lower Left)]]
*Admiral Adama mends fences with [[Sharon Agathon]] over the months in orbit of New Caprica. He commissions her as a Colonial officer shortly after making contact with the [[New Caprica Resistance]] ([[Precipice]]).
*After this, Adama orders his son Lee to take over as guardian of the Fleet; Lee's orders are to continue the search for Earth, as Adama is going back to retrieve those left behind — which Lee considers a suicide mission ([[Precipice]], [[Exodus, Part I]]). Despite heavy losses, and with the last-minute assistance of Lee and the ''Pegasus'', Adama is able to successfully pull off the rescue attempt ([[Exodus, Part II]]). He is lauded by his crew and the civilians for this.
*He has recently be awarded a Medal of Distinction for his 45 years of distinctive service in the Colonial Fleet. To him this is a penance for the harm that he caused in the past, and the possibility that he was the cause of the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]] ([[Hero]]).

==Additional Notes==
*[[Wikipedia:Adama|Adama]] (also known as Nazareth) is the name of a large city in Ethiopia. The name is also a variation on "[[Wikipedia:Adam and Eve|Adam]]," the first man to be created according to the Bible in the [[Wikipedia:Genesis|Book of Genesis]]. In Hebrew the word pronounced "Adama" means earth.
*Edward James Olmos has brown eyes, but he wears contacts when playing William Adama that make Adama's eyes blue. This is done so that Olmos and [[Jamie Bamber]], who is playing his son Apollo, will resemble each other more.
*Astute viewers may recall Edward James Olmos sharing the screen with realistic humanoid robots as Gaff in the classic science fiction film "Blade Runner". Olmos also shares with ''Star Trek'' star William Shatner the distinction of being one of only two actors to both command a television starship and portray a police officer in a popular 1980's cop show ("Miami Vice" for Olmos, "T.J. Hooker" for Shatner).

{{start box}}
{{succession box|before=Unknown, eventually [[Nash]]|title=''Commanding Officer of the Battlestar ''[[Galactica|Galactica]]''|after=Incumbent although temporarily [[Saul Tigh]]}}
{{end box}}

{{Characters}}

[[Category:A to Z|Adama, William]]
[[Category:Characters|Adama, William]]
[[Category:Characters (RDM)|Adama, William]]
[[Category:People from Caprica|Adama, William]]
[[Category:RDM|Adama, William]]

[[de:William Adama]]
[[es:William Adama]]
[[zh:威廉·阿达玛]]

{{featured article}}

William Adama

2006-11-19T09:33:56Z

2006-11-19T08:47:38Z

Philodox-ohki: /* Analysis */