- For the apparition of Conoy that Kara Thrace encounters in "Maelstrom", see: Virtual Leoben.
| Leoben Conoy (New Caprica copy) | ||
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Leoben Conoy | |
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| Birth place | {{{birthplace}}} | |
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| Birth Date | {{{birthdate}}} | |
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| Nickname | {{{nickname}}} | |
| Introduced | Miniseries, Night 2 | |
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| Family Tree | View | |
| Role | Cylon infilitrator, Prophet / misinformant | |
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| Portrayed by | Callum Keith Rennie | |
| Leoben Conoy (New Caprica copy) is a Cylon | ||
| Leoben Conoy (New Caprica copy) is a Final Five Cylon | ||
| Leoben Conoy (New Caprica copy) is a Human/Cylon Hybrid | ||
| Leoben Conoy (New Caprica copy) is an Original Series Cylon | ||
| Related Media | ||
| @ BW Media | ||
| Additional Information | ||
| [[Image:|200px|Leoben Conoy (New Caprica copy)]] | ||
Leoben Conoy is the human name for a humanoid Cylon named Number Two.
First encountered at Ragnar Anchorage, the humans (only knowing him by the human name) come to know him as Cylon who fancies himself as a prophet with predilections for enlightened monotheistic religious dogma, whereas he is more likely to sow the seeds of doubt or mis-information, weaving lies in the fabric of truth and faith.
This article discusses two copies of Leoben Conoy: the one encountered on Ragnar Anchorage, and the second that Kara Thrace interrogates and is later imprisoned by.
Ragnar Anchorage Copy
Conoy is first encountered at the Ragnar Anchorage, where he poses as an arms dealer. It is likely that he was assigned with the monitoring of this depot station as the war began, gaining intelligence on battlestars that visited there. Alternatively, he may have been tasked with stealing away or destroying the ammunition (or the station itself) to prevent its use by the Colonials.
Conoy is already sick from the radiation around Ragnar, suggesting he had been there for several hours before Galactica's arrival.
Conoy becomes trapped aboard the station with Commander Adama after a warhead is accidentally detonated. As they try to find another way out of the station, Leoben reveals his true nature to Adama through conversation, initially by claiming to be something of a philosopher. Identifying Conoy as a Cylon on the point of death, Adama challenges him and learns of the Cylon's ability to transfer their consciousness to another body when dying. Only Leoben can't -- the radiation of Ragnar is interfering with his ability.
A fight ensues, during which Leoben exhibits unnatural strength and speed. Adama manages to kill Conoy by forcing his head over an outventing steam pipe then bludgeoning him to death with a flashlight. He then brings Leoben's body back to Galactica for examination. Samples from this body, when burned, revealed synthetic materials -- which permitted Adama, Colonel Tigh and Dr. Gaius Baltar to deduce that Cylons could mimic humans in appearance (Miniseries).
The body is later stored in the ship's morgue (Flesh and Bone).
Later, three copies of Leoben are among the group of Cylons that rescue Aaron Doral, abandoned on Ragnar by the Colonials after Dr. Baltar fingers him as a humanoid Cylon, and debrief him.
Gemenon Traveller Copy
Conoy is again encountered when a copy is found apparently stowing away aboard the Gemenon Traveler. Knowing the model's ability to weave fact, fiction and outright lies into a confusing fabric of truth, half-truths and deceit, Adama wants the copy destroyed. However, he is overruled by President Roslin, who demands the model be interrogated.
Lieutenant Kara Thrace is assigned to interrogate Conoy aboard the Gemenon Traveler. Over the course of eight hours, Conoy demonstrates his ability to confuse and mix truth with lies: he claims to have planted a nuclear device somewhere in the fleet, but will not reveal where. He also mixes what appears to be religious mumbo-jumbo with penetrating insights into Colonial philosophy and Starbuck's own past (Flesh and Bone).
While she resorts to ever-more drastic measures to obtain details on the alleged bomb's location, Starbuck finds herself being drawn into Leoben's vision of life. So much so that when Roslin orders his execution, Starbuck very much empathises with him.
Prior to his death, Conoy reveals there is no bomb, and uses a reason suggested by Starbuck in the initial stages of his interrogation: that since he is so far from other Cylon centers of influence, he cannot transmit his "soul" back to home should his body die. However, the real purpose of his mission is revealed when President Roslin arrives aboard the Traveler and he manages to whisper to her that Adama is in fact a Cylon -- thus planting a potentially dangerous seed of doubt between her and Adama.
Convinced now of the danger in keeping Conoy alive, Roslin orders him ejected from the Traveler's airlock.
Interestingly, Roslin had a premonition of Conoy's surfacing in the fleet when she had a dream about him at the time he is captured. Later, in her cabin on Colonial One, she has a vision of him talking to her which prompts her decision to visit him in person - thus allowing him to complete his mission.
At the time of the dream and the vision, Roslin assumes that both are the result of her using Chamalla to treat her cancer. However, both may have been the result of some form of psychic ability on the part of Conoy or Roslin. One last such incident is the correct fortelling by Leoben that the Fleet would eventually find the legendary homeworld of Kobol, home of the Gods and birthplace of mankind, although he might have simply extrapolated that from the Fleet's course.
In a bonus scene for "Taking a Break From All Your Worries", Caprica-Six indicates that this Leoben did in fact download into a new body and tell the Cylons about his experiences.
On New Caprica
- Though never directly stated, it is heavily implied that this Conoy is the same Cylon previously interrogated and tortured by Thrace.
The Leoben model is the only one that does not appear to concern itself with the business of occupation and government of the planet, being conspicuous by his absence in meetings aboard the grounded Colonial One. The only copy shown on New Caprica is the one discussed below.
During the Cylon invasion of New Caprica a Conoy copy slips into Kara Thrace and Samuel Anders' tent and asks the ailing Anders where Thrace is (Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II).
This Conoy copy kidnaps Thrace and holds her in an apartment located within the Cylon complex built in New Caprica City, shortly after the Cylon occupation of New Caprica.
Ostensibly, the New Caprica copy of Conoy attempts to befriend her with food and politeness in a reverse-Pygmalion attempt to appease her, and perhaps to convert her to the Cylon monotheistic religion.
Conoy's attempts initially fail, and painfully. Thrace refuses his kindnesses and assaults and kills Conoy at least five times. Conoy returns each time, patiently resuming his attempts at appealing to Thrace (Occupation).
Conoy takes a dramatic tactical change and introduces Thrace to Kacey, a young child appearing to be two years old. He claims that Kacey is his and Thrace's biological daughter, created using his genetic material and one of Thrace's ovaries recovered from the ruins of the farm she was held in on Caprica. Whatever the truth of Kacey's origin, Conoy successfully uses the child to break down Thrace's resistance after the child suffers an accident that Thrace blames herself for. The Cylon surprisingly finds Thrace taking hold of his hand at Kacey's hospital bedside (Precipice).
During the Battle of New Caprica, he leaves to presumably help in the attack and is forced to knock out Thrace after she attempts to find out what is going on. Kara later returns to the apartment to find Kacey, and Conoy appears with Kacey. He uses Kara's frantic desire to take Kacey during the evacuation to force her to say she loves him, which she reluctantly complies. They kiss for several moments as Conoy is unaware of the knife Kara acquired earlier. She stabs him in the stomach and kills him one final time as he collapses on the floor.
Despite Kara's bond to Kacey, it turns out the girl was simply a human child kidnapped on New Caprica. Kara discovers this when Kacey's rightful mother claims her aboard Galactica (Exodus, Part II).
Notes
- Laura Roslin inadvertently referred to him as "Leoben ConROY" during "Flesh and Bone", which had to be edited when it was used as a sound bite in an intro segment in a subsequent episode.
- Conoy is the name of a township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
- Leoben is also the name of city in Austria, it is an hour north of the city of Graz and is home to the University of Leoben.