Crossroads, Part I

"Crossroads, Part I" An episode of the Re-imagined Series
Episode No.	Season 3, Episode 19
Writer(s)	Michael Taylor
Story by
Director	Michael Rymer
Assistant Director
Special guest(s)
Production No.	319
Nielsen Rating
US airdate	2007-03-18
CAN airdate	{{{CAN airdate}}}
UK airdate
DVD release
Population	? survivors
Additional Info
Episode Chronology
Previous		Next
The Son Also Rises	Crossroads, Part I	Crossroads, Part II
Related Information
Official Summary
R&D Skit – View
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Listing of props for this episode
Related Media
			@ BW Media
Promotional Materials
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Overview

Baltar's trial commences, with the prosecution presenting evidence of treason committed on New Caprica amid controversial testimonies from Colonel Tigh and President Roslin.

Summary

Teaser

• Laura Roslin, significantly different in dress and hairstyle, is walking through what appears to be the Opera House. She searches for and finds little Hera Agathon walking through the hallways, unable to reach her.
• Also following Hera is her mother Sharon Agathon, who does not appear pleased to see Roslin in pursuit. Both women run down the stairs towards Hera.
• As they turn the corner, a Number Six in white clothing catches Hera and starts a movement as if to turn. There is a dark figure in the indistinct shadows behind her.
• Roslin wakes up. This has been a dream, though it bears a strong resemblance to Roslin's Chamalla extract induced visions of the past.
• The Fleet is en route to the Ionian nebula, but it is still several days away.
• Colonel Saul Tigh is trying to tune into Talk Wireless or music in Joe's bar. Brendan Costanza, Diana Seelix and Samuel Anders are playing Pyramid. Anders notes Tigh's attempts to find the music.
• Tory Foster speaks with Cassidy, the prosecuting attorney in Gaius Baltar's trial. Foster's assertion that Roslin witnessed Baltar and a Six on Caprica doesn't convince Cassidy, who stresses the need for hard evidence and the fact that Baltar is only being tried for the charges that can be proved.
• Meanwhile, in the brig, Baltar is visited by a member of the press, who wants to give him a picture of her son, who she claims is sick—she also claims, much to Baltar's bemusement, that Baltar is capable of saving her son by Baltar's simply blessing him. He refuses until she forces it onto him before the marines remove her.
• The virtual Six appears to console the emotionally tortured Baltar, noting that 30 to 40 people have written him letters.

Act 1

• Margaret "Racetrack" Edmondson and Hamish "Skulls" McCall are conducting reconnaissance to see if any Cylons are following the Fleet's jumps. Her Raptor hides behind an asteroid as they play cards and wait.
• The trial begins. Cassidy asks the courtroom how loss is measured.
• She notes the number of people who settled on New Caprica, the number who escaped in the Second Exodus and the number lost: 5,197 left behind, killed or otherwise missing.
• The attorney claims that the trust put in Baltar was gravely misplaced, and that the ultimate price must be paid.
• Romo Lampkin, Baltar's attorney, immediately asks to change the plea to guilty as a ploy to use reverse psychology to claim that the power of mob rule is trying to sway opinion in the court.
• Lampkin claims that President Roslin is seeking vengeance on Baltar for her lost election, and claims that the New Capricans were victims of a hopeless battle. Baltar's decision to surrender to the Cylons had saved lives, he claims, versus what Lampkin claims Roslin would have done -- stand and fight.
• Back on Racetrack's Raptor, five baseships suddenly appear and attack. Racetrack's FTL drive barely comes online in time to allow them to escape an incoming missile.
• Back on Galactica, in CIC, Admiral Adama orders a scan for any tracking devices that may have been left on Fleet ships during the New Caprica siege. At the same time Tory Foster hands Roslin a cup and a thermos can. Roslin insists on asking the incarcerated Caprica-Six for information. When Tigh objects, Roslin snaps back, uncharacteristically.
• Lee Adama enters CIC near Roslin, who is collecting herself in the Weapons Control station. He notices Roslin's cup, which she left on the table, and smells it, detecting something unexpected.
• Caprica-Six is questioned. She suggests that the fuel ship is being tracked by a unique radiation signature emitted by the ship. The virtual Baltar appears and convinces her not to cooperate further. Caprica Six retaliates to Tigh's interrogation by recalling Ellen Tigh, inciting Tigh to strike her, and Six to strike back before Marines intervene and shackle the Cylon.

Act 2

• In court, Tigh is questioned, and asked if Baltar appeared to help the resistance in any way. Tigh is noticeably drunk. When questioned about Ellen, Tigh acknowledges her involvement but becomes more withdrawn.
• Lampkin cross-examines about the NCP initiation bombing and how the resistance attempted to target Baltar. Lampkin continues to question about Ellen Tigh's collaboration by asking Colonel Tigh if his wife was a collaborator, muddying the differences between Ellen Tigh and Baltar. Lampkin points out that Tigh appears drunk. Matters turn to the worst when Tigh begins to hear the music.
• Tigh is asked the nature of Ellen's death, and Tigh resolutely answers, claiming that Baltar's inaction made him kill his wife. He reflects a portion of his wife's last words to tell how he would do anything to have Baltar killed. Tigh begins to show increasingly signs of anger as the music in his head continues to increase in volume.
• In Joe's Bar, Anders turns a eye to strange noises from the bar's public wireless and shares a look with Foster.
• Under testimony, Roslin notes the execution of 200 people under Cylon tyranny.
• Lampkin attempts to get Lee Adama to give some insight about Roslin's testimony and Roslin herself, instead of being a passive observer who is simply satisfied in embittering his father.
• Lampkin attempts to play to Lee Adama's sense of justice by putting him between two difficult decisions. One being the betrayal of Roslin and his father, or putting his words about justice into action by sharing the personal information with Lampkin.

Act 3

• Admiral Adama drags the drunken Tigh to his quarters. The Fleet is nine jumps away from the nebula, and repairs are being made to the fuel ship to keep it from being tracked.
• Tigh says that he can't "smell her anymore" and apologizes for his actions in court. Adama replies that, as his oldest friend, he could never embarrass him.
• In the admiral's quarters, Major Adama suggests the idea of sending the fuel ship on a different course to throw off the Cylons temporarily, and the admiral coldly takes it under advisement.
• The two Adamas verbally spar. Admiral Adama angrily accuses his son of helping Lampkin by telling him about what Tigh did to Ellen.
• In response, Major Adama resigns from military duty, while his father accepts the resignation in anger.
• The mood is tense in court when, instead of Lampkin, Lee Adama asks to address the court.
• Lee Adama (in civilian dress) questions President Roslin, but asks if it was Baltar that saved her from cancer. When Admiral Adama objects, Lampkin asks for hostile witness latitude, which is given.
• Roslin tells how the cancer was cured. When asked what medications she was currently taking, she says "I don't remember." Asked specifically about chamalla use, and if she has had hallucinations recently, Roslin counters in the affirmative but notes how it provided the first clues to Earth as well as noting Lee Adama's own involvement.
• Before Lee Adama asks his next question, Roslin whispers to him: "Don't do this." He then asks if she was taking chamalla again.
• Admiral Adama tries to overrule the line of questioning but other tribunal judges overrule him, forcing Roslin to answer. She recalls her fondness for Lee Adama's early leadership, how calling him "Captain Apollo" way back then had a nice ring to it, but how sad she was at how his behavior has changed.
• Adama notes that chamalla can be sweetened to mask its bitter taste, recalling the cup of tea that Tory gave Roslin at Galactica's CIC, which gave him the clue to her use of the drug.
• Roslin confirms that she is taking chamalla again. She then challenges counselor Adama to finished what he had started with his last question. When he asks her why was taking the drug again, she tells the court that she is taking the drug again because her cancer has returned.

Act 4

• Anastasia Dualla packs her bags and leaves her husband in disgust over his questioning of Roslin and his usage of the justice system she believes should be dismantled and rebuilt to make it work again.
• On Colonial One, reporters pepper President Roslin about her cancer, how it will be treated, and if she planned on using Hera Agathon's blood again. The line of questioning infuriates Foster, but Roslin asks her to leave the press conference. When Karen Fallbrook asks how long the President has to live, an unflinching Roslin repeats the same question at the reporter, leaving Fallbrook speechless.
• After the press conference, Roslin angrily criticizes her aide, complaining that Foster is off her game. Foster claims that she hasn't been sleeping well.
• In his quarters, the drunken Tigh still hears the mysterious music and tries to track its source.
• Helo arrives in CIC as interim Executive officer and finds Lt. Gaeta, who briefs him. The tylium fuel ship decoy plan is nearing completion, but there are no further reports of Cylon forces. Three jumps from the nebula.
• Helo remembers a certain smell in the air when trouble was brewing, recalling the weather on Caprica. He believes "something over the horizon" is coming, something that doesn't bode well for the Fleet. "A storm is coming," he says.
• The music that Tigh, Anders, and Foster are hearing appears to be coming from the ship itself.

Bonus Scene

• Lee Adama asks Lampkin, "You know he's guilty, right?". Lampkin appeals to Adama's sense of justice, stating that everyone is guilty of something and there is a difference between guilt and criminality.

Questions

• Did Tigh continue drinking all the time, or did he stop for a while after he seemingly pulled himself together again?
• Why does Anders pursue being a pilot?
• Is there a budding romance developing between Anders and Seelix?
• What is the mysterious music and where is it coming from?
• Why are Tigh, Anders, and Foster apparently the only ones who can hear the ever-increasing music?
• Does Foster actually hear the music?
• Is the music's loudness and clarity increasing because the Fleet is approaching the Ionian nebula?
• Is Roslin back on using chamalla extract because of prescription from Cottle or is she attempting to receive visions of the future again?
• Did Athena or Caprica-Six receive the same vision that Roslin found herself in during the teaser of the episode?
• Who is the shadowy figure behind the Six in Roslin's vision?
• Would Athena and Helo be willing to donate some of Hera's blood to save Roslin from her cancer?
• Barring any effective treatment, how long does Roslin have to live?
• Would Hera's blood have any effect on the cancer now since the cancer has apparently resisted Hera's innate immunology?
• With Helo temporarily assigned as XO, who has replaced him as CAG? Or is he temporarily holding down both posts?
• Why does Roslin look so different in her dream?
• Will Baltar take the stand?
• Where is Zarek in the midst of the trial proceedings?
• How is Caprica's virtual Baltar aware of the details of Saul and Ellen Tigh's relationship and Ellen's death?
• Why has Adama waited so long to order a sweep of tracking devices throughout the Fleet?

Analysis

• Samuel Anders wears a uniform with rank insignia and hangs around with Seelix and Costanza. Together with being addressed as "you nuggets", this indicates that he joined the pilot training program.
• The Cylons have apparently been tracking the fleet since the destruction of the Temple of Five. Their strategy was to delay jumping into any system that the Fleet has been until after six plus hours to ensure that the Fleet would not realize that they were being tracked.
• Adama's military experience comes into play again when he orders that the decoy Raptor stay for a total of 12 hours. This is reminiscent of his previous strategies such as the decision to attack the Cylon tylium factory in "The Hand of God." When he changes the regular pattern and stays longer than the Cylons had expected, he finally caatches them in the act.
• Lee Adama immediately displays signs of fear once Roslin challenges him to "finished what you(he) started" after asking her if she is taking chamalla again. This indicates that either he suspected that Roslin's cancer has returned or he was beginning to feel that his actions are treacherous.
• This is not the first time that a belief in taking a principled but unpopular stand in fact leads Lee Adama into a morally dubious area. Ironically one such decision also involves Laura Roslin - Lee's decision to mutiny against his father when the then Commander Adama tries to remove Roslin from office during the events of "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II". He almost precipitates a gun battle aboard Colonial One when he mutinies against Colonel Tigh, who is commanding the strike team sent to arrest Roslin, who ultimately surrenders and does not back the younger Adama's move. This suggests a continuous personality trait of failing to judge the consequences of a headstrong pursuit of a percieved moral cause. Soon after, Lee exhibits a similar late realization of the dangerous moral territory he wandered into when he hesitates and ultimately finds himself unable to advocate a widespread mutiny against his father's leadership over the wireless (The Farm).
• Helo's comment to Gaeta about a "'storm is coming'" highlights Adama's comment to him at the end of "The Woman King", specifically to how Helo has been many times the voice in the wilderness. His ability to sense or remember certain details hails back to the final scene in "Rapture" when he remembers that Thrace had painted the picture of the mandala. It's also similar to his wife predicting that "Something dark is coming" in "Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I".
• Lampkin's opening statement is another prime example of his rhetorical skill. He uses reverse psychology to goad the mob to respond and eventually lead one man in the audience to state his desire to see Baltar die. This display of emotion played in Lampkin's favor as it would make the judges wary of giving into the mob mentality. Secondly, he cleverly paints Roslin as a fanatic by proposing that had Roslin been president when the Cylons invaded New Caprica, the entire human race would have been exterminated. However, as Zarek has stated to Roslin, if she had been President, the settlement and eventual invasion of New Caprica would have never taken place.
• It appears the closer the Fleet is to the nebula, Tigh, Anders, and Foster hear the music increasingly, even, at least in the case of Foster, to the point of exhaustion.
• Tory Foster appears to be losing it to some extent based on her declining grooming and snappish attitude toward the reporters. Roslin tells her she can be replaced by someone that can handle the pressure and at least run a comb through their hair once a week.
• There is a growing movement in the Fleet that believes Baltar has some sort of healing or divine abilities. His internal-Six doesn't allow him to brush off these devoted followers aside, indicating that his belief about himself that he is the "Chosen One" is coming true.
• Lee Adama's actions towards his father and Roslin have led to another impasse between himself and Dualla. Lee Adama has come to a point where he has been alienated from his father, from Roslin, and his wife, in an attempt to gain some sort of respect from Lampkin and to act in accordance with his noble conceptions of justice by following in his grandfather's footsteps.
• Lee Adama's words to the pilots in "A Day in the Life" come back to haunt Racetrack when the Cylons jump on top of her Raptor right after the end of a card game. The ship's systems apparently had been powered down as Racetrack can't even maneuver or evade the missile to give the FTL drive a few more moments to spin up.
• Baltar is only being tried for crimes that the prosecution believes can be proven. He is therefore not being tried for the genocide of humanity that occurred during the Miniseries. Although the show's audience knows his involvement, none of the primary characters in the series who give testimony have to date any hard evidence of his complicity, beyond Laura Roslin's hallucination whilst dying of cancer in "Epiphanies". This is acknowledged before, when she tries to challenge Baltar about the settlement of New Caprica. She tells him that she saw him together with Six, but knows that she has no concrete evidence (Lay Down Your Burdens).
• Cassidy's numbers for the surviving human population are contradictory. It seems that the number the writers arrived at for the surviving humans only refers to the civilian population of the Fleet, excluding the military personnel. The regular survivor count in "Collaborators" is higher. The second confusion stems from her saying "the sum total of survivors [...] who settled on New Caprica". This clearly means only the people down on the planet. However her number of 44,035 also includes the total population left in orbit, both military and civilian. This writing error makes her statement that 5,197 people were lost entirely inaccurate, but aside from that the numbers fit with what has been established before (see: Survivor Count):
  • 41,435 (Collaborators) - 38,838 = 2,597 (the military personnel in the Fleet)
  • 44,035 - 39,192 (the inhabitants of New Caprica City) = 4,835 (the total population in orbit)
  • 4,835 - 2,597 = 2,238 (Lee Adama refers to roughly 2,000 civilians who escaped New Caprica in "Precipice")
  • 49,550 (count in "Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II") - 39,192 - 4,835 (total population in orbit) = 5,523 (the death toll prior to the occupation, mostly incurred with the destruction of Cloud Nine)
  • 49,550 - 5,523 - 41,435 = 2,592 (the causalities of the Cylon occupation and the escape from New Caprica)

Notes

• The episode has one of the most sparse musical score yet. The only major pieces are during Roslin's dream at the beginning and the music Tigh keeps hearing. According to a blog entry by composer Bear McCreary, director Michael Rymer and the editors decided not to use any music during the court room part, in order to let the scenes speak for themselves.
• It's the first episode without an intro sequence, thus increasing the effective running time a little bit. Because of that, no updated Survivor Count is available.
• The bitterness of chamalla and that it can be sweetened to make it taste better, is first mentioned by the oracle Dodona Selloi in "Exodus, Part I".
• One of the shots of others listening to the trial on the wireless shows the refinery ship from "Dirty Hands".
• A storm is often used as a metaphor for a battle, conflict, or massive upheaval in science fiction. Helo's final line in this episode is almost an exact duplicate of the ending of the movie The Terminator, and a huge storm (a sandstorm) takes place during the climax of the novel Dune, and very similar to the warning issued by the prophetess in "The Stand".

Noteworthy Dialogue

Apollo - "I refuse to serve under someone that questions my integrity"

Admiral Adama - "And I refuse to have an officer serve under me that has none"

Official Statements

Notes from the podcast:

• The opening teaser is indeed set in the Kobol Opera House that has been seen numerous times. This particular scene in the teaser was a late addition as the director and producers wanted to create a foreboding atmosphere to the episode. This was influenced by the fact that the studio executives were not favorable to the idea of ending the season with Baltar's trial.

• RDM goes more into the original trial storyline that involved the Saggitarons and Baltar. In summary, during their time on New Caprica, the food supply had been contaminated and a famine had fallen on most of the colonists, except the Saggitarons, who had been very careful with their harvests and supplies. This alienation between the Saggitarons and the rest of the colonies came to a collision when Baltar was attempting to have the Saggitaron leadership share their food with the other colonists. Unfortunately, Baltar is forced to kill one of the leaders, and thus began the riots and slaughter directed towards the Saggitarons. This killing was to be eventually revealed that it was a necessity instead of an act of genocide.

• Another component of the original storyline was to have Lee Adama be Baltar's only attorney and Lee's morals come into play when he obtains a video recording of Baltar actually shooting the Saggitaron leader. The cliff hanger of the episode was suppose to leave the audience wondering what will Lee do now that he believes Baltar is guilty.

• Over time, RDM and the director agreed that this storyline involved too many plot elements that the audience had never witnessed about Baltar. Once the decision was made, RDM completely revised the whole trial and rewrote the episodes.

• RDM hints that Athena and Roslin did indeed see each other during the dream sequence. A deleted scene had Roslin in the the restroom attempting to cool her head down while Athena comes out from one of the stalls. They looked at each other briefly in a silent acknowledgment that they did see each other in the dream.

Guest Stars

• Michael Hogan as Saul Tigh
• Aaron Douglas as Galen Tyrol
• Alessandro Juliani as Felix Gaeta
• Tahmoh Penikett as Karl "Helo" Agathon
• Nicki Clyne as Cally Tyrol
• Rekha Sharma as Tory Foster
• Jen Halley as Diana Seelix
• Michael Trucco as Samuel Anders
• Bodie Olmos as Brendan "Hot Dog" Brendan Costanza
• Leah Cairns as Margaret "Racetrack" Edmondson
• Colin Lawrence as Hamish "Skulls" McCall
• Mark Sheppard as Romo Lampkin
• Ryan Robbins as Charlie Connor
• Keegan Connor Tracy as Young Woman
• Chelah Horsdal as Cassidy
• Susan Hogan as Franks
• William Samples as Judge Number Two
• Lily Duong-Walton as Hera Agathon