Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I

Overview

The Galactica discovers Kobol, and a chain of events are set in motion that threaten to change everything.

Summary

Life on a battlestar, for better or worse: Adama and his son spar in a gym, frustrations emerging as they box; Starbuck in bed with a lover she wishes was Lee – but is in fact Baltar; Valerii, SharonBoomer facing the fact she cannot deal with what she might be and putting a gun to her mouth, only to find she cannot pull the trigger; Laura Roslin learning she has perhaps six months to live, her cancer is so aggressive
Stricken by Starbuck’s apparent rejection of him in their coupling, Baltar in turn comes close to rejecting Six and find it impossible to concentrate on anything – including his duties as Vice President
When Boomer and Crashdown return with evidence they’ve stumbled upon Kobol, Roslin has a vision of a city teeming with life Elosha confirms to be the City of the Gods on Kobol, and Roslin accepts the scriptures as fact
Boomer, still confused, attempts to take her own life – “encouraged” by Baltar in defiance of Six
When Adama reviews the evidence, he orders an extensive surface survey of the planet, seeing it as a opportunity for them to settle. Warned his should get off the Galactica by Six, Baltar assigns himself to the survey
Roslin tries to convince Adama that Kobol will point the way to Earth, but they must use the captured Raider to return to Caprica and retrieve the Arrow of Apollo
Three Raptors depart the Galactica for Kobol, but on arrival they find themselves in the midst of a Cylon force of [Cylon Raider|Raiders]] – and a basestar
One Raptor is destroyed, and one - carrying Baltar – is forced down on Kobol
Before a rescue mission can be launched, the basestar must be taken out – and Starbuck hatches a plan to do just this using the captured Raider
Hearing this, Roslin meets with Starbuck and subverts her into going to Caprica, and not going to Kobol to destroy the basestar

On Caprica:

Helo is on the run – alone – when he encounters “his” |Valerii, and he shoots and wounds her. Unable to kill her outright, he takes her with him
When Valerii tries to explain things to him, Helo informs her that all she is to him is a way off the planet.

Review

Recap

You Can’t Go Home Again: The Cylon Raider being manhandled in the hanger bay shortly after Starbuck used it to return to the Galactica, as she states in a voice over, “Like my new toy? It’s my very own Cylon Raider.” Cutting to Starbuck being lifted away from the Raider on a stretcher as Lee Adama says, “When you take a souvenir, you don’t screw around!”
Flesh and Bone: Boomer walking around the Raider, stroking it with her hand and humming; Six congratulating Baltar on uncovering his first Cylon with his new detector, cutting to a shot of Boomer as she does so
Six Degrees of Separation: Helo confessing to Valerii that he couldn’t stand to see something happen to her, and her admission she feels the same, cutting to the two of them coupling in the thunderstorm
Colonial Day: Helo backing away from Valerii at Delphi as she calls out to him, with Boomer’s words to Tyrol aboard the Galactica forming a voice over, “I’m a Cylon,” (Flesh and Bone) before he starts to run
Mini-Series: A shot of the Cylon device in CIC with Tigh’s voice-over stating, “A new piece of equipment that just appeared in CIC…” cutting to the Geminon Traveller’s Captain showing Starbuck a similar device (Flesh and Bone); Baltar stating, “It’s a Cylon device” in reference to the device seen in the Mini-Series
Colonial Day: Roslin informing Billy she’ll continue to take the Kamala as it has other benefits, to which he replies, “The hallucinations.”
Flesh and Bone: Leoben Conoy to Starbuck: “You’re going to find Kobol…The birthplace of us all…” cutting to Roslin confronting Starbuck on her interrogation tactics as Starbuck states, “He says we’re going to find Kobol and that it’s going to lead us to Earth.”

Teaser

Adamas Junior and Senior are in a gym – boxing. Not a word is spoken as they circle one another, but a tension that goes beyond the need to concentrate on their sparring fills the room. The first few punches are mere tests, getting the measure of each other, and do little more than strike one another’s gloves. A half challenging / half mocking smile twists Lee Adama’s lips as he feints and then withdraws he right hand, lifting it to his cheek, leaving an opening. Adama moves in, Lee steps back, encouraging his father to in and swing wide, leaving himself opening to a swift and very hard jab to the ribs. He backs off, catching his breath and wincing. Lee continues circling, his guard up. “You all right?” he asks, the words close to a sneer rather than out of concern, an unspoken, “Old Man?” seeming to hang in the air behind them. Adama responds with a wry grin as his arms come up ready to resume the sparring…

...The camera cuts to two naked bodies on a bunk: Starbuck and Lee Adama appear to be making out together…

…Another cut, and on Caprica, Helo runs through daylight in a city, gun drawn and injured leg giving him a little trouble. He runs along the front of a building, gun held at the ready; and on the Galactica, Boomer leans against the bunks in her bunkroom, an automatic pistol in her hand. She sit down slowly, staring at the gun in her hand, stroking the slide as if preparing to cock it…

...In the gym, Adama and Lee continue sparring, again apparently getting the measure of each other with hits to one another’s gloves – then Lee lands a punch on his father’s chin, rocking him back. He comes forward again with a series of punches, easily blocked before Lee hits him again, this time on the cheek, but Adama rolls with the punch and lands two tight, hard jabs into Lee’s midriff, forcing a break. “You all right?” Adama enquiries mildly, as Lee recovers as he continues to circle, anger in his eyes. His fists come up, and his father gets ready to defend himself, his eyes also alight…

…On Caprica, Helo continues around the building – and Valerii steps out from behind a pillar, gun drawn. Helo freezes on seeing her, lining his own gun on her as she holsters hers. He orders her to remain where she is, keeping his gun lined on her. Close to tears, she obeys….and Boomer on the Galactica cocks her pistol and turns it slowly towards herself….while on Caprica Helo continues to stare at Valerii over his gun. “Just do it,” she tells him, and they stare at each other, both frightened and hurting…as Boomer brings the pistol to her mouth…

…And in another cabin Starbuck and her lover reach a climax, and she calls out for Lee Adama – and her partner lifts his head: Gaius Baltar; his lust gone, his expression reflecting his confusion at the name she called…while in the gym, Lee takes a hit to the head that leaves him slack-jawed and glass-eyed before he topples to the floor, where he shakes himself back into awareness and then climbs back to his feet….

…While Boomer opens her mouth, inserting the muzzle of the pistol into it…and Valerii takes a step towards Helo, causing him to shoot her, and she knocked backwards, rolling and tumbling down a flight of steps. Lowering his gun, Helo catches his breath…and Boomer pulls the gun from her mouth, breaking down in tears…

…And Starbuck looks at the cabin ceiling, a flash of puzzlement passing across her face as Baltar stares at her, then moves slowly to extricate himself from her, rolling to one side of the bunk as she sits up. The ship’s intercom sounds, and Boomer hears she is being called to the ready room for a pre-flight briefing, as Starbuck, now wrapped in a towel, picks up her clothes from the floor and departs Baltar’s cabin, as he remains on the cot, staring at the ceiling, closing his eyes as the cabin door closes.

In the gym, Adama and his son catch their breath, pent-up frustrations given release. “You don’t lose control,” Adama informs Lee. “Thanks,” Lee replies, taking it as a back-handed compliment. Adama shakes his head, “No. You gotta lose control - let your instincts take over.” Lee gathers his things, “I thought we were just sparring,” he replies. “That’s why you don’t win,” Adama tells him, before heading for the locker room.

In his cabin, Baltar rises from his bed, wrapping a sheet around him. Six is seated in an armchair, not looking at him, but instead staring at the wall, her rapid blinking the only indication of emotion. Crossing to the table in front of her, Baltar sits on it, but she still does not look at him. He pours himself a glass of Ambrosia, frightened of meeting her eyes, but as he picks it up, he looks at her and realises she is ignoring him, something that gives him pause before he moves the glass to his lips.

On Caprica, Valerii raises herself using her right arm and slowly turns onto her back as Helo covers her with his gun. Her left shoulder is a bloody mess. He takes aim….but finds he can’t kill her. He lowers his gun as she stares first at the sky in shock, then at her bloody shoulder, then up at him.

Acts

Following the opening titles, Laura Roslin is undergoing a full CAT scan on the Galactica as Doctor Cottle examines the results as they are displayed on-screen. Billy Keikeya also observes through the glass of a dividing wall.

Later, in Elosha’s cabin, Roslin reveals the results: she has less than six months to live; the cancer is aggressively attacking her lymphatic system. Elosha pauses before replying, “I want you to hear me on this. You made a true believer out of me – as strange as that sounds, considering. But I believe I know you’re the one to lead us to our salvation. You are going to guide us – to Earth.” Roslin considers this for a moment before replying, “Then we’d better find it soon.”

Elsewhere, a card game is taking place. As expected, Baltar is involved, as is Crashdown – but the remaining players are Gaeta, Dualla and Lee Adama. Baltar is supporting his game with copious amounts of Ambrosia, and is suitably drunk as a result. He pours himself a refill and then does the same for Gaeta, who refuses, citing he’ll be on duty later. Taking Gaeta’s glass, Baltar simply uses it to top-off his own drink as Lee Adama raises the ante in the pot. This gets Baltar’s attention, “You can’t compete with me,” he slurs – not entirely in reference to the card game – “I always win.”

From off to one side, Six tells Baltar that she’s never seen him like this, and that it is somehow disappointing, common. He turns his head to look slowly in her direction, then back at his cards. “So sorry to disappoint you,” he retorts, then glances at the other card players as he realises he’s spoken aloud, “To disappoint you all,” he corrects. He meets Lee’s raise and then calls – and wins the hand; stunning Lee. As he collects his winnings, dropping some on the floor, Starbuck enters, “Like there’s a card game and no-one called me?” Crashdown teases her about being back on her feet, and Baltar sits up slowly after picking up his winnings and glares at her. “So how ya doing, Gaius?” she enquires, before turning to chat with Lee.

“Mister Vice President to you, if you don’t mind, Lieutenant Thrace,” comes the arched reply, “Some level of decorum must be maintained after all, or is it a pirate ship you’re running?” Starbuck isn’t impressed, and the rest of the table is rather surprised at the outburst. Baltar ignores it all, growing increasingly smug, “Would you like to play?” he asks her, again not entirely with reference to the card game, “Maybe you’d like to sit next to Captain Adama.” The room grows increasingly tense at the comment, and Lee offers room to Starbuck if she wants to pull up a chair. She thanks him, but states she has things to do, her eyes never leaving Baltar, before she walks out. Watching her go, Lee looks back at Baltar, two and two coming together in his head as Baltar tries to hide his feelings behind his hand as he wipes his lower face.

Later, in Roslin’s office aboard Colonial One, Baltar is trying to make notes as she brings him up to speed on the general situation in the fleet – mentioning in passing that while bartering will continue, they now have the means to take the fleet’s economy back to a currency-based system.

As Baltar listens, so Six watches him, her face a picture of concern, “Do you love her?” She asks, cutting through Roslin’s commentary and distracting Baltar. Confused, he looks at Roslin, then his notes, “Did you…?” he mumbles, thoroughly lost. Roslin isn’t impressed and tries to get Baltar to understand how important it is for him to comprehend the emerging political structures. As she asks him if he grasps this, Six simultaneously demands that he answer her question.

“Yes of course I understand,” Baltar replies, addressing Roslin, before he snapping at Six, “My answer is no.” Catching himself, he looks back at Roslin, “No, I don’t think that I can handle this right now, the, the intricacies of the bureaucracy. I can’t get my head around, ah…With all due respect, Madam President you have spent your entire political career learning to understand….More to the point,” and her turns to address Six, “How you could think my head could be turned so quickly by, by, a new thing,” he looks back towards Roslin, eyes on her desk, “It, ah, it, it, ah, astounds me. How did you….how did you seriously think I was going to be able to cope with this kind of responsibility?”

“I don’t believe you,” Six states, as Roslin simultaneously replies, “Because you’re a genius, are you not?”

Both responses lead Baltar on another tirade in which he addresses them both, answering what he sees as unfair criticisms of him, constantly crossing his comments between Six and Roslin only serving to add to the general confusion. Finally, when Six informs him she loves him, this draws an immediate response of, “Oh, give me a break!” Given the situation, Roslin decides to take this last comment literally, and agrees that he needs a break from the meeting, and he heads for the bathroom, a confused Roslin and Billy left sitting in his wake.

In the bathroom, he washes his face, trying to calm down. Six appears beside him, her face expressionless. They look at each other via the mirror above the hand basin. “I’d like to be alone if you don’t mind,” Baltar states calmly. Six responds by “grabbing” the back his head and propelling his forehead into the mirror with considerable force. She “holds” him there as she asks through clenched teeth, “How can you love her Gaius?” He claims he doesn’t, and she tells him not to lie to her. “I know everything you know,” she adds, releasing his head. As he peels himself from the mirror, he realises the impact has cut his forehead. “Oh, that’s lovely,” he says, voice dripping in sarcasm as he fingers the cut, “Oh thank you. Did you, ah,” he asks, looking at her reflection in the mirror, his voice breaking, “Did you want something in particular this time?”

She stares at him for a moment, all anger gone. “I thought you should know,” she replies calmly, “That it’s not safe for you to remain on 'Galactica.” He demands to know what she is talking about, but she will not be drawn, stating only that whatever is going to happen is going to be a surprise. He continues to press her for more information, but when he turns to face her, she is gone, leaving him shouting in impotent anger.

In CIC the Galactica’s command crew receive word from Boomer that her Raptor is about to jump to a nearby sector in the search for supplies. After the call, Boomer gives Crashdown the OK to spin-up the Raptor’s jump drive and execute the jump Gaeta has calculated for them. He does so, and the Raptor emerges from the jump bearing down on the atmosphere of a planet, causing Boomer into some hasty flying before they end up in the atmosphere and burn up.

Boomer is less than impressed, calling Gaeta an idiot as the Raptor enters a safe orbit. Crashdown finds the whole thing highly amusing, “It was great, we’re fine, it’s cool!” They turn their attention to the planet below – one with rich brown continents, blues seas, blue skies and white cloud formations. “Are you seeing this?” Crashdown asks, moving to the front of the ship, his bravado replaced by awe. “Oceans, continents….Let me at this thing,” he moves back to his console and commences scans, confirming the atmosphere is an oxygen/nitrogen mix. “Enough for green leafy things,” he reports, “I’m starting to get excited here, Boomer. This could be it, this could be the big one; the little planet that solves all of our problems.” Still sitting forward, Boomer makes no response, lost in conflicting thoughts and emotions. “Boomer, do you think this could be Earth?” he asks.

She shakes her head slowly, “No, it’s not Earth. It’s more important than that.”

On CYLON-OCCUPIED CAPRICA, where Helo has now been for 50 days, it is once again night and it is again raining. Helo is sheltering as best he can from it, and trying to stay awake. As he begins to doze, the weight of his handgun pulls him back into wakefulness and he levels it at the figure of Valerii, her left arm in a sling, as she sits a few feet away, in the rain. “Doesn’t really work as well as before, huh?” she asks. Helo says nothing, the gun wavering between them as he continues to fight the fatigue. “You know I do get cold,” she adds, resentment in her tone.

When he still makes no reply, she tries another tack: “There are some things you should know, Helo.” He cuts her off with a curt, “Don’t call me that,” going on to state she is neither “Sharon” nor human, so she should stop acting like she knows him. When Valerii tries to explain that she is in fact Sharon Valerii, he ends the conversation by shooting a chunk of masonry out of the corner of the pillar a few feet from her head and telling her she is not Sharon, and all he want from her is a way off the planet.

On the Galactica Lee enters the hanger bay where Starbuck is loading ammunition into the Raider. Walking up to her as she crouches under the Raider, he asks in a tone that is anything but friendly, “Going hunting?” Starbuck replies that there is a test of the Raider’s jump drive scheduled for the following day, and she’s going to use it to see if “our boy” can fire Colonial munitions.

Lee challenges her on referring to the Raider as a “boy” when everyone else refers to it as a female (something Starbuck herself started). Capping the muzzles of the Raider’s guns to indicate they are armed, Starbuck is equally cutting in her reply, “That’s fascinating Lee, you should write a paper.”

“That’s not really my scene,” he responds. “I’m not as smart as, say, um - Doctor Baltar,” the comment earns him a look from Starbuck. “How is the Vice President by the way?” When she tells him she doesn’t know as she hasn’t seen him, Lee refuses to relent, “So I guess he’s a love ‘em and leave ‘em kind of guy.” She agrees. “Ships that pass in the night,” Lee adds. “Yep,” Starbuck replies, finishing with the guns and turning to fire a dangerous look at Lee as she walks past him.

He continues to ride her, asking her if she was bored and if bedding the Vice President just seemed like a great way to waste some time. Starbuck wants to know if he wants something from her, as she doesn’t owe him a thing – meaning he’s not going to get any apology out of her for her actions. “No, you don’t owe me anything,” he agrees before echoing her words from “33”, “Because I’m just a CAG and you’re just a pilot….a pilot who can’t keep her pants on.” This draws an initial response from Starbuck, as she momentarily stops what she is doing, then replies with a very flat, “Right.”

Lee goes on to remind her about the “old times”, and an incident with a major. Mid-way through, she turns any punches him on the jaw. Lee’s response is immediate: he hits her back, striking her nose and knocking her back into a work bench as deckhands and marines look on. They react to the respective blows, and then Starbuck turns and starts walking back to the Raider. Lee challenges her as to why she went to bed with Baltar. “Because I’m a screw-up, Lee. Why don’t you keep that in mind?”

On Colonial One Billy is in conference with Roslin and Elosha, confirming that Adama is sending another Raptor to survey the newly-found planet, which he states appears to have suffered some form of calamity but could still be inhabitable. Photographs taken during a previous Raptor flight show evidence of an old civilisation and Elosha asks the age of the ruins. Billy tells her that they won’t know for certain until the ground teams go in, but initial estimates put the ruins at around 2,000 years old.

Elosha looks at Roslin, “That’s around the time the thirteen tribes first left Kobol.” This causes Roslin to look at one of the photographs. “Ruins?” she asks, looking at an image of a large circular building sitting among trees, roads leading to it like the spokes of a wheel and lesser buildings surrounding it. “This is an inhabited city,” she looks at Billy and Elosha, “There’s a building,” and she passes the image back to them. “Buildings?” Billy asks, confused.

Taking the image back, Roslin freezes; all it shows are ruins surrounded by grass and what might have once been roads. “What did you see?” Elosha whispers as Roslin reacts to this, “Tell me, Laura.” Roslin describes the building she saw, remarking that it looked like a forum, “Like the forum on Caprica, actually.”

Elosha opens a book she has with her, and flicks through it to an illustration, and then hands the book to Roslin, “The forum and the opera house in the City of the Gods. On Kobol,” she explains. There, on the page is a drawing of the buildings Roslin “saw” in the photograph. “This planet,” she concludes, her whisper becoming even softer, “Is Kobol.” Roslin looks again at the illustration in the book and sees a flash of the ruin on a planetary surface.

“Kobol? Like….Kobol?” Billy asks, looking at Elosha. “The birthplace of mankind,” Elosha confirms, “Where the gods and man lived in paradise until the exodus of the thirteen tribes.” Roslin rises from hr deck and paces the office, Billy demanding to know what is going on. “It’s real,” she states, “The scriptures, the myths, the prophesies are all real.” For a moment Billy and Elosha look at her, before Elosha adds, “So say we all.”

Questions

Why did the people leave Kobol?
What happened to the gods who lived on Kobol “with man?”
Did the gods remain on Kobol after humanity left?
Given the similarities with the Greek Pantheon, did the gods decide to follow the 13th tribe to Earth, thus establishing the myths of the Olympian gods?
Do the Cylons consider Kobol as their spiritual home as well (“The birthplace of us all” – Leoben Conoy, Flesh and Bone)?

Analysis

Notes

It is 3 days since the events of Colonial Day
There are now 47,897 survivors in the fleet
The fleet is beginning to run short of supplies
Humans departed Kobol some 2,000 years prior to the setting of the series
Kobol is a place where the “gods and man lived together in paradise”
Some of the "gods" appear to be buried on Kobol (Athena's tomb)
Socinus has been released from the brig and returned to duty.

Noteworthy Dialogue

In the bunk room, as Baltar interrupts Boomer’s second attempt on her life.

Boomer (as she pretends to be cleaning her hand gun): What’s going on?
Baltar (cautiously): Well, I was going to ask you the same question….Actually, I was looking for Lieutenant Thrace but, ah…(sitting alongside her on the bunk)…sometimes it’s good to, ah, talk these things over.
Six (feigning pity): Deep down she knows she’s a Cylon, but her conscious mind just won’t accept it.
Boomer: Sometimes I have these dark thoughts…
Baltar: What kind of dark thoughts?
Six: Her model is weak (she allows herself a knowing smile), always has been. But in the end she’ll carry out her mission.
Boomer: I don’t know, but I’m afraid I’m going to hurt someone. I feel like I ought to be stopped.
Six (moving to the other side of Boomer): She can’t be stopped. She’s a Cylon. (Pity entering her voice again) You can’t help her, Gaius…(tone turning to a sneer) but you could probably sleep with her.

(Baltar reacts with a look of disgust at Six.)

Six: That’s what you want, right?
Baltar (to Boomer): I’m not sure why….sometimes…we must embrace that which opens up for us.
Boomer: Embrace?
Baltar: Life can be a curse as well as a blessing.

(Six reacts in confusion; this is not what she expected to hear from Baltar.)

Baltar (becoming more intense): You will believe me when I tell you: there are far worse things than death in this world…
Boomer: So you’re saying…?
Baltar: No. No, no, no. Ah…What I say…is meaningless. Listen to your heart. Embrace that which you know to be the right decision.

(They look at each other as Six regards Baltar with a look of complete incomprehension, then Baltar stands and kisses Boomer on the forehead before walking out of the bunkroom. Seconds later there is the sound of a single gunshot from inside.)

Official Statements

Statistics

Guest Stars

Stephen Spender as Pilot James Bell as ECO

Writing & Direction

Story by David Eick
Teleplay by Ronald D. Moore
Directed by Michael Rymer

Production Notes

Series: 1 (2004 / 2005)
Production Number: 1.12
Airdate Order: 12 (of 13)

First Run Air Dates & Releases

UK Airdate: 17 January 2005 (Sky One)
US Airdate: (Sci-Fi Channel)
DVD Release: N/A