Battlestar Wiki - User contributions [en]

By your command

2007-11-01T04:24:30Z

Stilanas:

"'''By your command'''" is arguably the most popular phrase of the ''Battlestar Galactica'' saga.

==Original Series usage==
* "''By your command''" spoken by an [[Centurion (TOS)|original series Centurion]]: {{audio|TOS By Your Command.mp3|listen}}<br/>

The phrase is frequently said by the robotic soldiers of the [[Cylons (TOS)|Cylon Empire]] in the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]] in a neutral metallic voice as the affirmative response to an order from another Cylon Centurion, the [[Imperious Leader]], or other authority (including [[Baltar]]). The phrase is iconic of the Cylons' nature as a robotic race, becoming something of a 'catchphrase' of the series.

==Re-imagined Series usage==
* "''By your command''" spoken by a [[humanoid Cylon]]: {{audio|Mini Series By Your Command.mp3|listen}}

In the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]], the phrase has been said twice by copies of [[Number Six]], once to a copy of [[Sharon Valerii]] in response to finding the escaped [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] of refugee survivors of the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies|genocidal Cylon attack]] on the Colonies ([[Miniseries]]), and again (barely audible) in the episode "[[Colonial Day]]".

Since these Cylons appear to run their fleet by consensus, the use of "By your command" may be less of a command acknowledgment. The use of the phrase may be more analogous to the Colonial affirmation "[[So say we all]]", particularly in light of these Cylons' practice of a [[Cylon Religion|monotheistic religion]], complete with commandments.

{{spoiltext|The catchphrase is also used in the tv movie Razor by old model Cylons attacking the Pegasus. These old model Cylons are remnants of what Sharon Agathon described as protecting an evolutionary dead end.}}

==Notes==
*A friend of [[Ronald D. Moore]], "[[w:Roswell (TV series)|Roswell]]" writer Breen Frazier, indicated to Moore that he was surprised that the popular phrase from the Original Series was missing from the early script of the [[Miniseries]]. Moore recalled that Breen asked how could the new show be called ''Battlestar Galactica'', without the use of the phrase, "By your command". Therefore it was added at the very end (Source: [[Battlestar Galactica: The Official Companion]]).

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Cylons]]
[[Category:Cylons (TOS)]]
[[Category:RDM]]
[[Category:TOS]]
[[Category:Figures of Speech]]

By your command

2007-11-01T04:23:45Z

Stilanas:

"'''By your command'''" is arguably the most popular phrase of the ''Battlestar Galactica'' saga.

==Original Series usage==
* "''By your command''" spoken by an [[Centurion (TOS)|original series Centurion]]: {{audio|TOS By Your Command.mp3|listen}}<br/>

The phrase is frequently said by the robotic soldiers of the [[Cylons (TOS)|Cylon Empire]] in the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]] in a neutral metallic voice as the affirmative response to an order from another Cylon Centurion, the [[Imperious Leader]], or other authority (including [[Baltar]]). The phrase is iconic of the Cylons' nature as a robotic race, becoming something of a 'catchphrase' of the series.

==Re-imagined Series usage==
* "''By your command''" spoken by a [[humanoid Cylon]]: {{audio|Mini Series By Your Command.mp3|listen}}

In the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]], the phrase has been said twice by copies of [[Number Six]], once to a copy of [[Sharon Valerii]] in response to finding the escaped [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] of refugee survivors of the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies|genocidal Cylon attack]] on the Colonies ([[Miniseries]]), and again (barely audible) in the episode "[[Colonial Day]]".

Since these Cylons appear to run their fleet by consensus, the use of "By your command" may be less of a command acknowledgment. The use of the phrase may be more analogous to the Colonial affirmation "[[So say we all]]", particularly in light of these Cylons' practice of a [[Cylon Religion|monotheistic religion]], complete with commandments.

The catchphrase is also used in the tv movie Razor by old model Cylons attacking the Pegasus. These old model Cylons are remnants of what Sharon Agathon described as protecting an evolutionary dead end.

==Notes==
*A friend of [[Ronald D. Moore]], "[[w:Roswell (TV series)|Roswell]]" writer Breen Frazier, indicated to Moore that he was surprised that the popular phrase from the Original Series was missing from the early script of the [[Miniseries]]. Moore recalled that Breen asked how could the new show be called ''Battlestar Galactica'', without the use of the phrase, "By your command". Therefore it was added at the very end (Source: [[Battlestar Galactica: The Official Companion]]).

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Cylons]]
[[Category:Cylons (TOS)]]
[[Category:RDM]]
[[Category:TOS]]
[[Category:Figures of Speech]]

The Destiny

2007-10-31T18:08:02Z

Stilanas:

:''For information on an Original Series [[BW:SEP|separate continuity novel]], see [[Destiny (book)]].''

The nature of '''[[Kara Thrace|Kara "Starbuck" Thrace's]] specific destiny''' began in the season 1 episode, "[[Flesh and Bone]]", continues through "[[Maelstrom]]", where the character dies, and continues with theological ramifications in the season 3 cliffhanger, "[[Crossroads, Part II]]". Indications from the series' events strongly suggest that Thrace has an unknown connection to one or more locales or entities: The [[Temple of Five]], the Cylon's [[final five]], the [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]] and the [[Religion in the Twelve Colonies (RDM)|The Lords of Kobol]].

Thrace is told of her part in a destiny by the second copy of the Cylon [[Leoben Conoy]] in the season 1 episode "[[Flesh and Bone]]" during his interrogation. The lines suggest that Thrace's destiny also involves the Leoben himself:

<div style="font-size:90%"><blockquote>"This is not your path, Starbuck. You have a different destiny."</blockquote>
<blockquote>"All this has happened before, and all of it will happen again."</blockquote>
<blockquote>"You kneel before idols and ask for guidance and you can't see that your destiny's already been written. Each of us plays a role, each time a different role. Maybe the last time I was the interrogator, and you were the prisoner. The players change, the story remains the same. And this time...this time, your role is to deliver my soul unto God. Do it for me. It's your destiny, and mine."</blockquote></div>

In this same dialogue, the Leoben talks of the abuse that Thrace suffered at the hands of her mother, [[Socrata Thrace]].

==The Eye of Jupiter==
[[Image:Valley of Darkness-Starbuck Helo.jpg|thumb|The [[Eye of Jupiter]] in Starbuck's apartment]]
Fewer elements are noted about the destiny in season 2. In the episode "[[Valley of Darkness]]", [[Helo]] and Thrace enter Thrace's old apartment, where, among other paintings, a noticeable "bullseye"-like painting is seen. Several episodes later, in "[[The Farm]]", the Cylon later to be known as [[Sharon Agathon]] tells Thrace after her rescue from the [[farm]]: "They know who you are, Kara. You’re special. Leoben told you that. You have a destiny." A [[Simon]] also reflects knowledge of Thrace's abuse as a child through a medical examination in the same episode.

[[Image:S3-eyeofjupiter.jpg|thumb|The 'mandala' in the [[Temple of Five]]]]
By late into season 3, the episodes "[[The Eye of Jupiter]]" and "[[Rapture]]" reveal the [[Eye of Jupiter]], a symbol left by the [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]] in the [[Temple of Five]]. As the home star of the [[algae planet]] goes nova, the star's discharge is very similar to one that was observed in the distant [[Ionian system]] at the time of the Thirteenth Tribe's journey, and greatly resembles the symbol of the Eye in the temple. Only Helo had seen what is now called the "[[w:mandala|mandala]]" by the Fleet leadership before, and shows Thrace the photo of one mandala from the Temple of Five, comparing it to Thrace's symbol. Thrace remembers the words of the Leoben from "Flesh and Bone."

By "[[Maelstrom]]", Thrace is seeing the mandala in many objects: the dripping of wax, and as the colors of a gas giant's planetary storm. Thrace becomes increasing distracted by and attracted to the symbol whenever it appears. When she is knocked unconscious during her last flight and "awakens" in her old apartment (where the mandala appears again), a [[Virtual Leoben|person in Leoben's likeness]] greets Thrace and allows her to relive the last moments with her mother. This section vaguely alludes to information that Socrata knew about her daughter's path in life and tried to prepare her for it as best she knew how. The [[Podcast:Maelstrom|podcast]] for the episode by [[Ron D. Moore]] supports this by stating:

<div style="font-size:90%"><blockquote><nowiki>[. . .]</nowiki>"(In) this episode, you could see that there was really something behind it. That Kara really does have a destiny. That Kara really was fated for a particular end. And that mom was trying to prepare her for that. And prepare her for those roles, on some level, even if she couldn't quite articulate why and what she was doing to her daughter, that her mother believed and had seen oracles and had felt that Kara was special, and that out of her desire to toughen her daughter and make her daughter strong enough to take on the challenges that she was gonna face one day, she had really stepped over the line and had abused the daughter and had created this really toxic relationship between mother and child."</blockquote></div>

Socrata Thrace's use of [[oracle]]s strongly support the connection between Thrace and the Lords of Kobol.

==The Aurora Connection==

When Thrace visits the oracle [[Yolanda Brenn]], the pilot finds a figurine of [[Aurora, Goddess of the Dawn|Aurora]], ostensibly a figure of worship in the Colonial faith, if not a Lord of Kobol itself. The oracle tells Thrace to keep the figure until Thrace realizes who should receive it. That person is [[William Adama|Admiral Adama]]. After Thrace's death, Adama places the Aurora figurine on his sailing ship model as a [[w:figurehead|figurehead]]. The figurehead on a ship given by Thrace may allude to a connection to the path to Earth through Thrace and her destiny, but little more can be determined by this aired information.

The most mysterious element towards the end of the episode involves the revelation by Thrace that the [[Virtual Leoben|Leoben in her vision]] is not in fact Leoben (nor does it claim to be). What or who the vision was that guided Thrace in the vision is unknown, but "Leoben's" presence with Thrace in her last moments before choosing to die reflects the "Flesh and Bone" line from an actual Leoben: "You have to deliver my soul unto God. Do it for me. It's your destiny, and mine." The "Leoben" claims to guide Thrace to what lies "between life and death". Thrace then reawakens in her cockpit, and finds herself rapidly losing altitude, endangering her Viper. After briefly saying goodbye to [[Lee Adama]], she intentionally lets her Viper drop below the critical altitude. Thrace sees a vision in a white light (viewers also see Thrace as a young girl) after which her Viper explodes.

In the [[Crossroads, Part II|Season 3 finale]], Kara Thrace's destiny as a possible [[w:avatar|avatar]] of Aurora appears to gain support when she reappears in a pristine Viper Mark II, flying alongside and speaking with Lee Adama. The fact that Apollo spots Thrace's Viper on his DRADIS suggests that it is a physical object, not a hallucination or [[Virtual beings|other vision]]. The method of Kara Thrace's resurrection is unclear. The [[Podcast:Crossroads, Part II|podcast]] for this episode confirms that Thrace ''did'' die, and has returned— something that, prior to this episode, only a [[humanoid Cylon]] could do. The resurrected Thrace is ''not'' a [[virtual beings|virtual being]].<ref name="ign-sackhoff">{{cite_web|url=http://tv.ign.com/articles/797/797776p1.html|title=Katee Sackhoff Talks Battlestar and Bionic Woman|date=19 June 2007|accessdate=21 June 2007|last=Goldman|first=Eric|format=|language=}}</ref>

==Harbinger of the Apocalypse==

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In the ending of the TV movie Razor, during the raid on the Cylon Basestar the cylon hybrid tells [[Kendra Shaw]] that all of this as happened before and will happened again and that Kara Thrace is the Harbinger of the Apocalypse and not to follow her to [[Earth]].

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

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial History]]
[[Category:Colonial History (RDM)]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylon Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylons]]
[[Category:Cylons (RDM)]]
[[Category:RDM]]

The Destiny

2007-10-31T18:06:04Z

Stilanas:

:''For information on an Original Series [[BW:SEP|separate continuity novel]], see [[Destiny (book)]].''

The nature of '''[[Kara Thrace|Kara "Starbuck" Thrace's]] specific destiny''' began in the season 1 episode, "[[Flesh and Bone]]", continues through "[[Maelstrom]]", where the character dies, and continues with theological ramifications in the season 3 cliffhanger, "[[Crossroads, Part II]]". Indications from the series' events strongly suggest that Thrace has an unknown connection to one or more locales or entities: The [[Temple of Five]], the Cylon's [[final five]], the [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]] and the [[Religion in the Twelve Colonies (RDM)|The Lords of Kobol]].

Thrace is told of her part in a destiny by the second copy of the Cylon [[Leoben Conoy]] in the season 1 episode "[[Flesh and Bone]]" during his interrogation. The lines suggest that Thrace's destiny also involves the Leoben himself:

<div style="font-size:90%"><blockquote>"This is not your path, Starbuck. You have a different destiny."</blockquote>
<blockquote>"All this has happened before, and all of it will happen again."</blockquote>
<blockquote>"You kneel before idols and ask for guidance and you can't see that your destiny's already been written. Each of us plays a role, each time a different role. Maybe the last time I was the interrogator, and you were the prisoner. The players change, the story remains the same. And this time...this time, your role is to deliver my soul unto God. Do it for me. It's your destiny, and mine."</blockquote></div>

In this same dialogue, the Leoben talks of the abuse that Thrace suffered at the hands of her mother, [[Socrata Thrace]].

==The Eye of Jupiter==
[[Image:Valley of Darkness-Starbuck Helo.jpg|thumb|The [[Eye of Jupiter]] in Starbuck's apartment]]
Fewer elements are noted about the destiny in season 2. In the episode "[[Valley of Darkness]]", [[Helo]] and Thrace enter Thrace's old apartment, where, among other paintings, a noticeable "bullseye"-like painting is seen. Several episodes later, in "[[The Farm]]", the Cylon later to be known as [[Sharon Agathon]] tells Thrace after her rescue from the [[farm]]: "They know who you are, Kara. You’re special. Leoben told you that. You have a destiny." A [[Simon]] also reflects knowledge of Thrace's abuse as a child through a medical examination in the same episode.

[[Image:S3-eyeofjupiter.jpg|thumb|The 'mandala' in the [[Temple of Five]]]]
By late into season 3, the episodes "[[The Eye of Jupiter]]" and "[[Rapture]]" reveal the [[Eye of Jupiter]], a symbol left by the [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]] in the [[Temple of Five]]. As the home star of the [[algae planet]] goes nova, the star's discharge is very similar to one that was observed in the distant [[Ionian system]] at the time of the Thirteenth Tribe's journey, and greatly resembles the symbol of the Eye in the temple. Only Helo had seen what is now called the "[[w:mandala|mandala]]" by the Fleet leadership before, and shows Thrace the photo of one mandala from the Temple of Five, comparing it to Thrace's symbol. Thrace remembers the words of the Leoben from "Flesh and Bone."

By "[[Maelstrom]]", Thrace is seeing the mandala in many objects: the dripping of wax, and as the colors of a gas giant's planetary storm. Thrace becomes increasing distracted by and attracted to the symbol whenever it appears. When she is knocked unconscious during her last flight and "awakens" in her old apartment (where the mandala appears again), a [[Virtual Leoben|person in Leoben's likeness]] greets Thrace and allows her to relive the last moments with her mother. This section vaguely alludes to information that Socrata knew about her daughter's path in life and tried to prepare her for it as best she knew how. The [[Podcast:Maelstrom|podcast]] for the episode by [[Ron D. Moore]] supports this by stating:

<div style="font-size:90%"><blockquote><nowiki>[. . .]</nowiki>"(In) this episode, you could see that there was really something behind it. That Kara really does have a destiny. That Kara really was fated for a particular end. And that mom was trying to prepare her for that. And prepare her for those roles, on some level, even if she couldn't quite articulate why and what she was doing to her daughter, that her mother believed and had seen oracles and had felt that Kara was special, and that out of her desire to toughen her daughter and make her daughter strong enough to take on the challenges that she was gonna face one day, she had really stepped over the line and had abused the daughter and had created this really toxic relationship between mother and child."</blockquote></div>

Socrata Thrace's use of [[oracle]]s strongly support the connection between Thrace and the Lords of Kobol.

==The Aurora Connection==

When Thrace visits the oracle [[Yolanda Brenn]], the pilot finds a figurine of [[Aurora, Goddess of the Dawn|Aurora]], ostensibly a figure of worship in the Colonial faith, if not a Lord of Kobol itself. The oracle tells Thrace to keep the figure until Thrace realizes who should receive it. That person is [[William Adama|Admiral Adama]]. After Thrace's death, Adama places the Aurora figurine on his sailing ship model as a [[w:figurehead|figurehead]]. The figurehead on a ship given by Thrace may allude to a connection to the path to Earth through Thrace and her destiny, but little more can be determined by this aired information.

The most mysterious element towards the end of the episode involves the revelation by Thrace that the [[Virtual Leoben|Leoben in her vision]] is not in fact Leoben (nor does it claim to be). What or who the vision was that guided Thrace in the vision is unknown, but "Leoben's" presence with Thrace in her last moments before choosing to die reflects the "Flesh and Bone" line from an actual Leoben: "You have to deliver my soul unto God. Do it for me. It's your destiny, and mine." The "Leoben" claims to guide Thrace to what lies "between life and death". Thrace then reawakens in her cockpit, and finds herself rapidly losing altitude, endangering her Viper. After briefly saying goodbye to [[Lee Adama]], she intentionally lets her Viper drop below the critical altitude. Thrace sees a vision in a white light (viewers also see Thrace as a young girl) after which her Viper explodes.

In the [[Crossroads, Part II|Season 3 finale]], Kara Thrace's destiny as a possible [[w:avatar|avatar]] of Aurora appears to gain support when she reappears in a pristine Viper Mark II, flying alongside and speaking with Lee Adama. The fact that Apollo spots Thrace's Viper on his DRADIS suggests that it is a physical object, not a hallucination or [[Virtual beings|other vision]]. The method of Kara Thrace's resurrection is unclear. The [[Podcast:Crossroads, Part II|podcast]] for this episode confirms that Thrace ''did'' die, and has returned— something that, prior to this episode, only a [[humanoid Cylon]] could do. The resurrected Thrace is ''not'' a [[virtual beings|virtual being]].<ref name="ign-sackhoff">{{cite_web|url=http://tv.ign.com/articles/797/797776p1.html|title=Katee Sackhoff Talks Battlestar and Bionic Woman|date=19 June 2007|accessdate=21 June 2007|last=Goldman|first=Eric|format=|language=}}</ref>

==Harbinger of the Apocalypse==

In the ending of the TV movie Razor, during the raid on the Cylon Basestar the cylon hybrid tells [[Kendra Shaw]] that all of this as happened before and will happened again and that Kara Thrace is the Harbinger of the Apocalypse and not to follow her to [[Earth]].

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

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial History]]
[[Category:Colonial History (RDM)]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylon Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylons]]
[[Category:Cylons (RDM)]]
[[Category:RDM]]