Serina

Serina
[show/hide spoilers] Spoilers hidden in infobox by default only.
Name
Age
Colony	Caprica
Birth place	{{{birthplace}}}
Birth Name	Serina
Birth Date	{{{birthdate}}}
Callsign
Nickname	{{{nickname}}}
Introduced	Saga of a Star World
Last Known Appearance	[[{{{lastseen}}}]]
Death	Mortally wounded by Cylon (TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II")
Parents
Siblings
Children	Boxey
Marital Status	married to Apollo
Family Tree	View
Role	Shuttle and Viper pilot, Battlestar Galactica
Rank
Serial Number	{{{serial}}}
Portrayed by	Jane Seymour
Serina is a Cylon
Serina is a Final Five Cylon
Serina is a Human/Cylon Hybrid
Serina is an Original Series Cylon
Related Media
Additional Information
Serina in the separate continuity
[[File:|300px|Serina]]

Serina is a survivor of the Cylon holocaust upon the Twelve Colonies.

Surviving the Holocaust

Originally a Colonial reporter based on Caprica, Serina was present at the main hub of celebration for the pseudo-peace treaty between the Cylons and the Colonials. With her son Boxey, she became one of the mere thousands who were saved by the rescue efforts of Commander Adama and his battlestar, Galactica. She and her son were sent to Rising Star, where she furthered her relationship with Apollo. She was thankful for Apollo's efforts into making her son, who refused to eat, recover from the death of his daggit, Muffit.

With Boxey and Muffit II, a robotic daggit, she accompanied Captain Apollo and Flight Sergeant Jolly to the planet Carillon where eventually they were found and sent to the front of the Ovion's operation. Once the operation was found to be a Cylon snare, Serina and her other fellow members of the Fleet made it back to their respective ships ^{(TOS: "Saga of a Star World")}.

Warrior Career

Leaving behind the debris of both Carillon and the old Imperious Leader, Serina began training as a shuttle pilot after Apollo announced his engagement. Although Apollo initially disagreed with that, he understood and accepted it after a heated "discussion".

As the Viper corps was all incapacitated and near death due to an unidentifiable sickness that was spread by Boomer and Jolly. She and all the shuttle pilots were suddenly being trained to fly Vipers, against the objections of Starbuck and Apollo (the two remaining active pilots). After their training, Serina and the other shuttle-turned-Viper pilots flew a novice escort of Salik's medical shuttle, and managed to ward off a Cylon fighter squadron ^{(TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I")}.

After the mission and upon entering the magnetic void previously detected by Apollo and Starbuck, Commander Adama presides over the marriage of Serina and Apollo. Unfortunately, the pilots were absent from the ceremony due to their sickness, and the Cylons had captured Starbuck. (Although Apollo was initially hesitant about going through with it because he felt so deeply for his friend Starbuck, but his mind had been changed when Serina consoled him.)

During this ceremony, a lone star was detected that would guide them forth from the magnetic sea phenomenon. They had come across the planet known as Kobol, the original place where Humanity once sprung from. Adama immediately set out to find any trace of the thirteenth colony, with Apollo and Serina at his side. Serina, along with Apollo, would have preferred to be alone on the planet, however destiny guided them toward the temple of the Ninth Lord of Kobol.

Serina bore witness to the discovery, eventually stumbling upon the tomb of the Ninth Lord, as well as the treacherous Lord Baltar. As Adama worked on deciphering the language in the hidden second chamber, the Cylons attacked and the trio fled, leaving Baltar to the falling temple. As Serina rejoined Starbuck and Dietra on the surface, two recluse Centurions mortally wounded her.

At a dinner party, Apollo proposes he and Serina be sealed ^{(TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I")}.

She was rushed back to Galactica's life-sciences center, where she parted ways with the living, leaving behind friends and family, who had to suffer once more by the Cylons ^{(TOS: "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II")}.

Family tree

Adama

Ila†

Serina†

Apollo

Athena

Zac†

Boxey (adopted)

Tie-in Material Information

• According to Encyclopedia Galactica (a non-canonical piece of merchandise published in 1979):

As a newscaster, Serina was broadcasting the progress of the Cylon peace talks when the Final Destruction began. After losing her husband during the raid on Caprica, she and her son Boxey were taken aboard the Battlestar Galactica as refugees. Captain Apollo and Serina had known each other previously but it was their mutual affection for Boxey that turned their acquaintance into love. Eventually, they were sealed and solemnized during a joyous ceremony and for a time were very happy. In the midst of a Cylon ambush on the planet Kobol, Serina was mortally wounded. She died in Apollo's arms aboard the Battlestar Galactica.

Notes

Character Conception and Portrayal

According to So Say We All: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Battlestar Galactica, the character of Serina, portrayed by Jane Seymour, was originally intended to only appear in the pilot episode and die of "galactic cancer." However, after the character tested well with audiences, the network wanted her to become a series regular. Seymour initially refused, but after her fee was repeatedly increased, she agreed to return for two more hours on the condition that her character would be given a memorable death.

This led to the character's storyline being expanded significantly in "Lost Planet of the Gods," where she trains as a Viper pilot, marries Captain Apollo, and is ultimately killed by a Cylon Centurion. Actor Richard Hatch expressed sadness over her departure, noting that he felt he and Seymour had "a chemistry together." The decision to kill the character was also a factor in Anne Lockhart being offered the role of Sheba.

During the filming of "Lost Planet of the Gods," a second unit was sent to Egypt to capture footage of the pyramids to represent the planet Kobol. For long shots, a body double was used for Serina. Due to local religious customs that prevented a woman from wearing a man's uniform, a young boy was hired to double for Jane Seymour. Creator Glen A. Larson humorously recalled having to edit around shots of the double, whom he felt didn't quite match Seymour's physique.

Re-imagined Series Perspective

Serina has no direct corresponding character in the Re-imagined Series, despite the fact that Apollo, the character who is her husband, and Boxey, who is her son in the Original Series, both appear. However, other women with similar roles are shown, and there are a number of female reporters (e.g. Playa Palacios).

Additional Details

• In previous versions of the pilot script Serina was named Lyra, and Boxey wasn't her son, but a child she adopted. This adoption angle is also specifically mentioned in the novel, The Tombs of Kobol. Further, Lyra was also a Quorum member.
• Although the character's name is commonly spelled "Serena" in online sources, as well as in some of the novelizations, she is credited as "Serina" in the episode "Lost Planet of the Gods."

Gallery

• Serina Gallery
• 
  Serina portrait
• 
  Serina portrait 2
• 
  Apollo and Serina
• 
  Apollo and Serina's Wedding
• 
  Serina on Caprica
• 
  Lost Planet of the Gods
• 
  The re-imagined Serina from the Maximum Press comic book series.

References

 

Subject: CharactersSubjects: Saga of a Star World