Battlestar Wiki:Official Communiques

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Members of Battlestar Wiki: This page is to coordinate all questions to any official members of the cast or crew of "Battlestar Galactica." Please sign your question after you are done. the "summary" of the question should be be first, if any, and then the questions, in short form, should be placed at the bottom. This is to not confuse people and to keep the quetions distictive.

Cast/Crew: These are questions we are seeking from you. If you have the time, please answer them as best you can. We will move these questions/answers to the correct page once they have been done. You can also check out Category:Seeking Official Information for larger items - particularly pictures.

All questions which have been previouslly answered can be found on the archive pages. Questions get moved here once items and questions seeming from the issue have stopped.

Archive 1:

Other concerns about interview text in "Final Cut", 3 Raptor pilot names, Tie-in Material, Helo Rank, Colonial One and One, Hadrian in "Valley of Darkness", Scar, Rebirth Room, Restraints on Galactica-Sharon in "Downloaded", "Radar" gaffe in "The Hand of God"?, Resurrection Ship, "Skin Jobs"

Archive 2:

Resources, Red Line, Human sacrifice, Centurion armor, Tom Zarek / Ellen Tigh involvement, "Caprica-Six", Cylon Homeworld, Squadron numbers, Galactica Chain of Command, Timeline, Guns nomenclature

Archive 3:

No HUD's in Vipers?, FTL and the cylons, Sleeper Agents, Galactica's Armor Skin, SkyOne Biography Canonicity

Ask a new question or begin a new discussion by clicking here.

Basestar losses in Res Ship II[edit]

In "Resurrection Ship, Part II", were both Basestars destroyed (which is what I think) or was one destroyed, and the other escaped? Some say that because we didn't see the second one explode on-screen, it might have escaped...though I thought it was implied that it was, and it was taking a pounding from not one but two battlestars focused on it. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 20:56, 11 July 2006 (CDT)

Cylons build tough ships and nobody's better at making repairs on machinery, so we have to follow standard Colonial Fleet procedure in this -- unless it's confirmed as destroyed (by gun cameras, witnesses, or wreckage) Galactica can only claim it as "Damaged." -- Ngarenn 19:27, 13 July 2006 (CDT)

The Colonials just can't win. When the Red Baron scored his first kill, the brass said it was unconfirmed and didn't count. He flew into a rage, and the next time he scored a kill, while behind enemy lines, he landed, went to the downed craft and carved off the identifying insignia, and flew back to base with them. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 21:08, 13 July 2006 (CDT)

Webisode series[edit]

In this article it's said that Battlestar Galactica: The Resistance, the webisode series bridging the gap between seasons 2 and 3, will have 10 episodes. In a recent interview, David Weddle mentioned that the Thompson & Weddle writing team were behind the webisode series. Not giving spoilers, just clarifying production details: How long will each of the 10 webisodes run? Will they be run on TV right before season 3 starts (I assume they would). Did the Thompson & Weddle writing team write each of the 10 webisodes? Do you have any idea who directed them? (were they made by one director, or did different ones do different webisdoes?)--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 20:48, 18 July 2006 (CDT)

It's true that David Weddle and I wrote the webisodes. Ron Moore and David Eick assigned them to us during the production of Exodus. The ten short segments combine to tell one story, which takes place during the Cylon Occupation that ended Season 2. The webisodes plant seeds that come to fruition in Season 3. They were all directed by Wayne Rose, the veteran director who's been doing 2nd Unit and 1stAD work for the series. The original title of the story was "Crossroads." The running lengths will vary with what's necessary to tell each segment of the story. The first cut I saw of all ten ran about 25 minutes. The run plan we were told was that they'd put up one a week as a countdown to the season premiere -- but SciFi may have other ideas on that by now. - Ngarenn 16:48, 20 July 2006 (CDT)

Are the webisodes live action or animated like the Doctor Who web series? --Mercifull ^{(Talk/Contribs)} 17:15, 20 July 2006 (CDT)

Thanks Mr. Thompson; at first from rumors we heard we thought each segment had it's own title and the first webisode out of 10 was titled "Crossroads". Mercifull, I've heard RDM in interviews talking about people actually filming it live, plus Leah Cairns said she wasn't one of the people appearing in it, implying that live-action people actually are. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 09:45, 21 July 2006 (CDT)

The webisodes are all live action, using our actors - Ngarenn 14:01, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

In determining on how we should list it here on BSG Wiki, should it be associated with Season 2 or Season 3? --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 14:10, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

I'm leaning towards Season 3. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 14:13, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

Scar Podcast Transcribed[edit]

While I personally HATE listening to recordings of myself, I thought I'd let you know that we've finished transcribing the Scar podcast in case you interested in checking that out. We did our best, though it is sometimes hard to sort out who's who or pick up everything that is said. Any corrections are welcome. --Steelviper 10:37, 21 July 2006 (CDT)

Let me get this straight: we lost both a "Starbuck naked in the bowels of the ship with a revolver" scene, and a "Starbuck strips off her flight suit, soaked in sweat, and takes a shower" scene from this episode? But it would have shown the mental state her character was in....--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 11:01, 21 July 2006 (CDT)

The armed Starbuck naked in Galactica's bowels was an image Ron gave us to communicate an emotional place he wanted her to reach. It was never a scene. The soaked in sweat scene was shot but time didn't allow it to appear in the show. The shower part of it was not shot. - Ngarenn 14:12, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

Odd, it was not included on the recent set of deleted scenes posted on Scifi.com; of course, I think they're saving most of the deleted scenes for the DVD set to encourage us to buy them...which I will. Yes, if you check our transcript for "Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I" when Terry Moore insists to Ron that "yes, there are 5-6 people that listen to these things the day that they're posted online"....we're about half of those people :) --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 14:53, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

Episode titles[edit]

Your mention of "Exodus" brings up another point: BattlestarWiki has a news policy where we don't trust any news that cannot be sourced back to a cast or crewmember...the result being we don't trust some news even from TVGuide or the respectable www.gateworld.net because we think they're just repeating unsourced information which might be wrong. As you can see on our list of Season 3 episodes, we've resorted to calling certain episodes "Episode 3.1" in order to err on the side of caution. As a result, we've currently listed:

Episode 3.1 -- written by Ronald D Moore, Dir by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan
Episode 3.2 -- written by Ronald D Moore, Dir by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan
Episode 3.3 -- two parts, written by David Weddle & Bradley Thompson, Dir by Felix Acala (Part 1) Part 2 is technically unassigned right now.
Episode 3.4 -- written by Mark Verheiden, Dir by Michael Rymer
Episode 3.5 -- written by Anne Cofell Saunders, Dir by Jean de Segoznac
Episode 3.6 -- written by Michael Angeli, Dir by Bill Eagles
Hero - name confirmed (and written by) David Eick, Dir by Michael Rymer
Unfinished Business -name confirmed by Grace Park - written by Michael Taylor, Dir by Bob Young
The Passage -name confirmed by Jane Espenson, Dir by Michael Nankin
Episode 3.10 - written by Mark Verheiden, Dir by Michael Rymer
Episode 3.11 - written by David Weddle & Bradley Thompson, Dir by Michael Rymer
Episode 3.12 - written by Michael Taylor, Dir by Edward James Olmos
Episode 3.13 - written by Michael Angeli, Dir by Michael Rymer
Episode 3.14 - written by Mark Verheiden
Episode 3.15 - written by Anne Cofell Saunders

Please keep in mind that these credits have not yet been confirmed by the WGA or the DGA. Episodes 3.12 is about to go into preproduction. Eps 3.13-3.15 are in various stages of the pipeline. The directors have been assigned but - this is TV - anything can change. Eps 3.1 & 3.2 were merged to form a two-hour premiere episode, and 3.3 broken was into two episodes, which I guess technically makes them 3.2 & 3.3 -- but numbering is something I'll leave to you. - Ngarenn 20:32, 27 July 2006 (CDT)

Like I said, many reputable websites have listed the names of the first 5 episodes (though they didn't confirm their source, so we didn't list them) as "Occupation", "Precipice", "Exodus", "Collaborators", and "Torn".

I can confirm that those are the titles on the scripts. None of them are final. - Ngarenn 20:32, 27 July 2006 (CDT)

Chances of a change? --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 20:35, 27 July 2006 (CDT)

Without asking for any information that is an actual spoiler (if something is a spoiler and cannot be revealed, please just say so) what are the names of the Season 3 episodes? (btw, do you know who wrote and directed some of these?) --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 14:48, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

It's wise to avoid nailing titles down because the titles can (and do) change up to the date they air. I'll get back to you on the rest of this. - Ngarenn 15:47, 26 July 2006 (CDT)

BTW, Ron Moore just cleared up that "Exodus is a two parter" thing in the blog:

"In another of our patented feats of editorial derring-do, we've taken what was to be episode 3, "Exodus" and crafted two episodes from it, thereby obviating the need to shoot one more show. As it currently stands, we will be opening Season Three with a two-hour premiere of what were originally two stand-alone episodes, "Occupation" and "Precipice" ("Occuprice," as it were) then resume airing normal one hours with "Exodus Part One." Confused? Good, that's the way we like it. Gotta keep the audience guessing." I'm still sorting through this...--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 22:01, 27 July 2006 (CDT)

How could "Exodus, Part II" not have a director assigned yet?

I'm reading this from the in-house script status report - "Unassigned" just means his deal hadn't been struck at the time the report was generated. Directing credit is turf of the DGA. I believe the contractual obligation is that Felix must shoot the additional material needed for the two eps, unless he chooses to do otherwise. We're hoping his schedule will permit it, because he did a great job on the initial shoot. But this still leaves the official credit for the ep blank at the moment. - Ngarenn 16:08, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Haven't the first half of the episodes already been filmed?

There are about eight minutes of material we still need to shoot to make both of them work. - Ngarenn 16:08, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Thank you for this...incredible boon of information. Excellent that you and David got to write Exodus. I can only imagine that it can be best described by the phrase "Stuff's gonna 'splode"; looks like lots of fighting. Remember, the enemy's gate is down...

Mr. Rymer's dailies are awesome. - Ngarenn 16:08, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Anyway, I want to make sure I got this correct:

Occupation - Episode 1 - written byRon Moore, directed by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan
Precipice - Episode 1.5 (aired the same night, same writer/director team)
Exodus, Part I - Episode 2 - written by Thompson & Weddle, director Felix Acala
Exodus, Part II - Episode 3 - written Thompson & Weddle, director Felix Acala
Collaborators - Episode 4 - written by Mark Verheiden, Dir by Michael Rymer
Torn - Episode 5 -written by Anne Cofell Saunders, Dir by Jean de Segoznac
A Measure of Salvation - Episode 6 - written by Michael Angeli, Dir by Bill Eagles? RDM keeps calling Hero episode 7, but more than 6 episodes were listed before it above.

That's because you're counting Occupation and Precipice as two eps. Which they used to be, but they will air as one massive season premiere. - Ngarenn 16:08, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Hero - Episode 7 (Ron and David keep referring to this as "Episode 7", so I think this one is in sync) written by David Eick, Dir by Michael Rymer
Unfinished Business - Episode 8 - written by Michael Taylor, Dir by Bob Young
The Passage - Episode 9 (confirmed at the moment) writer Jane Espenson, Dir by Michael Nankin
The Eye of Jupiter - Episode 10 - Christmas break cliffhanger two part episode. written by Mark Verheiden, Dir by Michael Rymer
Rapture - Episode 11 - written by David Weddle & Bradley Thompson, Dir by Michael Rymer (This is the second half of the cliffhanger)
Taking A Break from All Your Worries - Episode 3.12 - written by Michael Taylor, Dir by Edward James Olmos
Episode 3.13 - written by Michael Angeli, Dir by Michael Rymer
Episode 3.14 - written by Mark Verheiden, Dir by Hardy
Episode 3.15 - written by Anne Cofell Saunders, Dir Garcia
Episode 3.16 - written by David Weddle & Bradley Thompson, Dir Nankin
Episode 3.17 - written by David Eick & Michael Angeli, Dir Mimica-Gizzan
Episode 3.18 - written by Michael Taylor, Dir Michael Rymer
Episode 3.19 - Dir Michael Rymer

directors added for eps 14-19 - Ngarenn 13:28, 23 August 2006 (CDT)

Correct as noted, to the best of my knowledge today - Ngarenn 16:08, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

3.16 & 3.17 added - Ngarenn 21:08, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

Thank you for all the delightfully authoritative information. I don't mean to be a bother, but it's in my nature to nitpick. Is "Taking A Break from All Your Worries" intentionally cased like that, or should it be "Taking a Break from All Your Worries" like the normal convention (assuming that's a the article)? --CalculatinAvatar^(C-T) 00:47, 10 August 2006 (CDT)

Thanks. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 23:07, 27 July 2006 (CDT)

Thank you, sir. This entire concept of having "19" episodes, with the first being a super-episode which audaciously defies to be categorized as a mere "two part episode".....seems entirely fitting with RDM's essay on "Naturalistic science fiction", which set out that the show would break the old habits in all respects. Thanks. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 18:09, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

I want to add my thanks too. --FrankieG 18:23, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Bouns. Thanks for the tips and clarifiing some data. --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 18:38, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

de nada. Y'all are doing a good thing here. BTW, just found out that Felix is doing the additional shooting for Ep 3. - Ngarenn 20:35, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Just make sure you get the word.. that we want at least 10 seasons. That's about 50k pages. :D --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 23:16, 29 July 2006 (CDT)

Well okay, but personally I would wish the production team to "make the best stories possible", rather than just for a long time; I'd rather have one season of BSG, then not even get season two, than have a guarantee of 7 years and thus a repeat of Star Trek where they just kept it going until they bled it white. No, I'd rather see 5 trailblazing years of episodes which are practically small movies (like Hand of God).--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 00:30, 30 July 2006 (CDT)

Caprica[edit]

Are any of the current BSG writing staff considering or expressing interest in writing episodes for the prequel series Caprica?--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 14:50, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

The issue has not yet come up. - Ngarenn 20:34, 27 July 2006 (CDT)

Pegasus (Extended Version)[edit]

The upcoming DVD release of "Pegasus" in the Season 2.5 DVD will be the re-edited, 5-Act Extended Version of Pegasus. Should we consider all of the scenes in this extended edition as non-canonical as the deleted scenes from other episodes? Many Lord of the Rings fans consider the "Extended Edition" longer DVD versions to be the "definative" version, not the theatrical release, which got me thinking on this. Case in point, there's reportedly a scene where Admiral Cain explains the technical differences between a Mercury class battlestar and a Galactica type battlestar: is this information not going to be "valid"? Much of the Deleted Scenes information we've examined previously has existed in a bizarre state of limbo on BattlestarWiki (but it's a system that works) in which we say "this is from a deleted scene and probably not canonical, but as it is not contradicted by anything (yet) its the current version" (i.e. Ellen Tigh said she'd been married to Saul Tigh for 7 years in a deleted scene, so we don't consider that strictly canonical. ——Of course the problem is, as Ron has explained in the podcasts, most BSG episodes run long (into the 50 minute range often) and many scenes are simply deleted for time (i.e. the problems that ensued when Apollo/Dualla relationship buildup scenes were cut, usually just for time, from other episodes)--->However, the difference in the Extended Version of (soon to be Hugo Award winning) "Pegasus" is that Ron has openly stated that almost all of this removed material was taken out simply for time issues, not story issues. How should we approach this material? --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 15:03, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

There is rumor that Ron Moore is even doing a separate, new podcast for the Extended Version of Pegasus, co-hosted with David Eick. Is this just wild rumor?--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 16:23, 26 July 2006 (CDT)

"Cally Henderson"?![edit]

On the Scifi Messageboard: "At Comic-Con, I asked the writer Bradley Thompson what Cally's first name is and he said, "Cally is her first name. Her last name is Henderson." He said he didn't think her last name was ever used in the first two seasons, but he's pretty sure it comes up in Season 3." ——— Can you confirm this?--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 15:38, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

I'm not sure when we established Cally's surname as Henderson, but it's been in and out of several scripts. I know we originally had it in a line during the webisodes, but it vanished during a later draft. The art department has been using it to label her clothing, lockers, etc, since Ron christened her. She took Tyrol as her last name when she married the chief. - Ngarenn 15:43, 26 July 2006 (CDT)

Thanks! Yes, the BSGverse is very gender-neutral, and although Caroline Adama, etc. established that many women do take the surname of their husband, I wasn't entirely sure how far the gender-neutrality of everything extended (Indeed, Ron apparently has even toyed with the idea of saying that Admiral Cain's colony, Tauron, was matriarchal). But this is excellent news. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 16:33, 26 July 2006 (CDT)

I guess this would make her (as of season 3) "Cally Henderson Tyrol"? Actress Nicki Clyne always felt "Cally" was her first name too. How is this reconciled with how at some points in the series (I'd have to look hard to find them) people have called her "Specialist Cally", as if that were her last name (by including rank)....come to think of it, there is a possibility that no one ever actually called her "Specialist Cally" in dialogue. I will check. (Btw, while I'm on the subject, who is this "Mexichick": she's one of the regulars in Terry Moore's thread on the Scifi board, and seems to have contact with several cast or crew members).

I must say, Cally is one of the best characters on the show. She won Best Supporting Actress in our large-scale online fan awards supported by Ron himself, beating out Dualla, Racetrack, Kat, and Ellen Tigh (it was a landslide victory). Sorry to get so excited, but I'm a card-carrying member of the Nicki Clyne fansite. You see I've actually been watching Trek from Next Gen, through DS9, and then the Voyager and Enterprise years, and I really feal that "lets get ratings fast by inserting Seven of Nine! Put T'Pol in a blatant shower scene!" stuff was a big blow to scifi genre tv, as it took out a lot of seriousness and believability. I viewed Cally as the "Anti-Seven of Nine" and living embodiement of Ron's essay on Naturalistic science fiction: instead of one Lara Croft-esque supersoldier Hot Space Babe [TM] main character surrounded by redshirts, on BSG Cally is a *third tier character* and a *female* who gets incredible development and characterization (note: I AM a male aged 18 to 25, it's just that even WE got sick of 7 of 9 and T'Pol).

A few of use on the messageboards in early 2005 just said "hey, that girl from the Miniseries was cool, we hope we see her more"...then came "Bastille Day" and her popularity exploded. She's the girl next door. And it just became a treat to see she was in and episode, like "Six Degrees of Separation", or "Flight of the Phoenix", or Fragged and Resistance (her standout episodes). It's the same reason we like Kat and Racetrack: they're well rounded, secondary female characters; and like Tyrol and Helo, minor characters can *actually die* in a given episode, increasing the tension. (I.e. Starbuck wouldn't die in Scar, but Kat might have, so I was actually invested in her fate).

And Cally just gradually grew into this really popular character online, from the grassroots up. Some people think it's a joke, but it's because we seriously like the actress and character and think it's one of the elements of scifi genre tv that BSG has fixed.

Btw, have you decided what colony she is from yet? (That is, will it be mentioned in Season 3?)--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 15:55, 24 July 2006 (CDT)

Not yet. Hasn't been relevant so far in 3, but we've got seven more shows to break. - Ngarenn 15:43, 26 July 2006 (CDT)

Exodus! v. Exodus, Part I[edit]

Is there going to be any simularities between the Marvel comic and these episode's? --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 19:22, 2 August 2006 (CDT)

I would doubt it, Shane, because afaik the Exodus comic was an adaptation of Saga of a Star World. --Mercifull ^{(Talk/Contribs)} 06:43, 3 August 2006 (CDT)

Yeah. I realized it a little late, but hey, it could happen. :) --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 09:07, 3 August 2006 (CDT)

Cally vs Caprica-Sharon[edit]

I've been listenning through the writer's podcasts that Ron put up on Scifi.com, like the one for "Sacrifice" etc. -->Was a scene of Caprica-Sharon bumping into Cally in a Galactica hallway ever filmed and was then deleted? I'd assume that Cally would encounter Galactica-Sharon (one she shot) on New Caprica next season, so if that other scene was never filmed I guess this would be their first encounter. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 20:51, 2 August 2006 (CDT)

I the room talked about several versions of this scene in several places but I'm not sure if it was ever actually shot. - Ngarenn 21:24, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

Tyrol's Pegasus service[edit]

In "Resistance", Chief Tyrol listed off that he had served on Battlestars Atlantia, Columbia, and Pegasus, since he was 18. This was actually the first time Pegasus was mentioned in the series, and it led some to speculate that Tyrol knew some of the Pegasus crew from before: in an intervew, Aaron Douglas said that a fan asked him about this at a convention, and he said he had never realized that about the referrence, and as far as he knew his character's behind-the-scenes backstory contained nothing particular about his time on Pegasus, (i.e. he didn't really have a relationship with anyone on it, he just served on it along with a dozen other ships); however he said he didn't know what the writers intended. Was there supposed to be any higher significance behind this?--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 15:52, 5 August 2006 (CDT)

There's always higher significance. We just don't always get to it. - Ngarenn 21:11, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

Helmets[edit]

I've noticed that the helmets the piliots wear in Season 2 are different from the ones used through Season 1; were they changed because the actors thought the old ones were too bulky or something? I liked what Ron and David said on the Miniseries DVD commentary, that it's kind of weird but cool how the helmets scrunch the faces of the pilots so they look like they're in an entirely different world (i.e. Grace Park's face looks drastically different when she puts a helmet on, and Jamie and Katee too) so it doesn't just look like "a person on a soundstage" but seems more like they're actually in this other environment. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 16:31, 5 August 2006 (CDT)

Just thought I'd note the helmet discussion at the end of act two in the Captain's Hand podcast. In it, Ron indicated there were some lighting and sound problems with earlier models. --Steelviper 08:08, 7 August 2006 (CDT)

Word is that they fog up and the actors can't look up or back with them without cracking them. We're working on that. - Ngarenn 21:13, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

RE: Military Ships[edit]

Dear Brad,

I like to thank you for joining the discussions on BattlestarWiki. It's nice to see cast and crew and even producers talk to the fans, and act politely compared to many pompous skinjobs out in the frakking world. The question I pose to you, is that I'm aware of a statement Cylon Number 0, also known as "Ronald D. Moore" said in his Scifi Podcast that the Battlestars had support ships in the fleet in Battlestar Groups, analogous to modern day Aircraft Carriers. What I want to know is that the possibility of ALL military ships being destroyed is very how to say; unrealistic. That's not to say that this series has been unrealistic, the fact that many in the Colonial Military reverted to networking after a semi recent war with heuristic machines seems about right with human nature and their lazy ways. But to get back to the point, would it be likely that some military vessels (besides the obvious, Galactica and Pegasus) survived. Many have pointed out that the Todd Boyce fan produced ship model, the 'Defender' has been seen, but I'm not sure how to take this as an "official" military spacecraft. If so, can they maybe rejoin the fleet? --Volostheguardian 01:49, 7 August 2006 (CDT)

Not meaning to speak for Mr. Thompson, but A) Within the mythology of the show, Galactica is the "Last battlestar" and Pegasus is the "shockingly, another ship that survived" B) It's not unrealistic given that the Cylons through Caprica-Six had information on the tactical deployment of all ships within the Fleet, knew where every single one was, etc. Ships smaller than battlestars could not survive against the Cylon fleet on their lonesome. I am unaware of anyone pointing to any fan-produced ship models. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 13:19, 7 August 2006 (CDT)

I did some checking and found this page (Scroll down a bit): rather than "Undeniably canon", I see a similar ship to the design this guy made, propably the same basic CGI model, but that's hardly another surviving military ship. They just used the basic CGI model as another Rag Tag Fleet civilian ship. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 15:18, 7 August 2006 (CDT)

I'm not trying to start a text war, I was just meaning to ask a question to Mr. Thompson, which you seemed to answer on a matter of your personal opinion. I'm not one to doubt what you said, since your answer has some validity to it, but I won't take this as a solid answer unless Mr. Thompson says so. Also what's not to say that the design wasn't used as intended; many ships in the fleet have yet to be designated a definitive role. --Volostheguardian 21:25, 7 August 2006 (CDT)

Oh I'm not answering it I'm just putting my thoughts on the matter out. I must admit it was a pretty good question, given the uncanny resemblance of the CGI model and the ship in the screenshot.--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 21:58, 7 August 2006 (CDT)

Then again, I was thinking not about like other Battlestars, more like cruisers or the Colonial Analog of Coast Guard Cutters. That would be an interesting plot point or strategic matter in later episodes.--Volostheguardian 18:42, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

The more I look at that screengrab, the more I'm leaning in your direction Volos; perhaps some stray ship that joined the others in an event skipped over during the course of "one year later"?--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 19:32, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

Dear Volosthegardian - Galactica was essentially retired at the time of the initial attack and did not have the usual military escorts associated with a commissioned Battlestar. We only know of the ships in our fleet. If other ships have survived, military or otherwise, we haven't yet made contact with them. - Ngarenn 21:22, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

Well lads, that answers and raises up more questions; like a usual episode of Lost. So, is there room for other survivors? I mean, of course that would downplay the effect of Pegasus coming back. But that does some options open...maybe not. Regarding fleet escorts, would the characters in the series ever look back at their battlegroup and show what the battlegroup would be made up of? --Volostheguardian 21:59, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

I personally think that Galactica and Pegasus were the only surviving Battlestars, as the backbone of the Fleet, the battlestars would have been high priority targets. Any smaller surviving ships would have quickly been picked off one by one. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 22:07, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

The Galactica and the Pegasus are THE only Battlestars left, because three would be unstoppable, but I always hold out some other military ships left.. The smaller ships would definitely be crushed, but maybe something a bit larger, like a cruiser or maybe something with a curved forward section and two engines, I wonder what that would be like? --Volostheguardian 23:17, 9 August 2006 (CDT)

Additionally, we must remember that Pegasus was attacked in dock. The escorts would have probably been themselves docked or if on patrol destroyed by the Cylon attack. I think from the eponymous episode we're made to conclude that Cain's blind jump is what saved the Battlestar. Panther 18:39, 23 August 2006 (CDT)

Laurette Spang?[edit]

There has been news passing around that Laurette Spang, who played Cassiopeia on the Original Series, has been playing e-mail tag with David Eick about a possible role on the Re-imagined Series. Has this progressed beyond a theoretical thing and into an actual part being worked on? Or is this still just an idea David was batting around? --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 00:03, 10 August 2006 (CDT)

Episode Transcript Permission Contact[edit]

An interest has been expressed to host episode transcripts here, using inline links to link the episode content to the relevent articles here. Before undertaking such an effort, we would want to get (written) permission from the appropriate powers that be. Could you point us in the right direction as to who we could contact for such permission? If you are comfortable giving us direction (but not posting it here) feel free to email myself or any of the other admins (especially Peter Farago, our Copyright Specialist). We appreciate any help in this regard, and this is the type of project that will NOT proceed unless we get an official "green light". We worried enough about the issues with the podcast transcripts... --Steelviper 11:16, 11 August 2006 (CDT)

You see there are actually websites that already have transcripts (fan-made) and we refer to them alot (though they're less than perfect, of course, and we have to rewatch things on our own often, to make sure), and eventually we said "Why not just recopy them here, to move towards making this the one stop for all episode info?" but we thought we'd run into legal troubles....--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 12:12, 11 August 2006 (CDT)

This sounds like a pretty good idea, I mean this is a nonprofit organization, what possible money can we get from just hosting scripts of the episodes. If NBC asks to cease and desist, why not just do it until they tell us not too? --Volostheguardian 14:20, 12 August 2006 (CDT)

Why put the effort into something and then have to delete it? :) --Shane ^{(T - C - E)} 14:23, 12 August 2006 (CDT)

While I understand and appreciate the "better to ask forgiveness than permission" mentality (especially in its kinship to the "be bold" attitude), how can we expect others to respect our license (Creative Commons) if we ourselves are willing to violate the copyright of others? Especially the copyright of the people responsible for making the content that we document/describe/summarize (something akin to biting the hand that feeds you). I'd love to see the episode transcripts here (in full linkified glory), but I'd rather not jeopardize the integrity of the wiki and expose it to legal risk, especially only to host content that is already easily available to those interested. --Steelviper 18:25, 12 August 2006 (CDT)

You know what, I'll start my own BattlestarWiki, and it'll be called CertainlY cooLer then that Other battlestarwiki Nonsense, or C.Y.L.O.N. for short and I'll host scripts on there and disregard NBC. --Volostheguardian 01:33, 13 August 2006 (CDT)

Luciana Carro: Casting; pronunciation of her name; Kat in "Final Cut"[edit]

First of all, I want to thank you for having made such vital contributions to my favorite show and for interacting with the crazy webfandom. As a proud member of the Luciana Carro Fan Board I am particularly glad that you and Mr. Weddle created the wonderful character of Kat. Now, finally on to my questions. Did you participate in any way in the casting of Ms. Carro? How detailed was your description of the physical appearance of Kat? And would you please be kind enough to solve the mystery of how to pronounce the name of Luciana Carro? Is it like lu-CHE-nna kerro?

We call her Loo-Chee-Ahn-Nah. She was cast in Canada by the folks who do these things. - Ngarenn 15:56, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

Yeah Pedda Luciana is one of those Vancouver locals that they cast in BSG (as opposed to trucking out lots of American actors they hired local talent): You're in Germany Pedda so I don't know how much American tv you've seen but lots of BSG secondary cast members reappear in several other tv shows made in Vancouver, like Tahmoh Penikett (Helo), Aaron Douglas (Tyrol), Nicki Clyne (Cally), and Carro. She's been in stuff like "The L Word" and "Da Vinci's Inquest" (practically every secondary cast member on the show has appeared on "Da Vinci's Inquest" at some point). --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 16:50, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

Thanks for your additions. Well, I was aware of the fact that BSG is filmed in Vancouver and that the vast majority of cast and crew are Canadian. Actually, with the notable exception of the German version of Ugly Betty, I'm only watching North American TV shows. (And dubbed US and Canadian TV shows occupy half the prime time of many Germans networks.) So yeah, I've seen many supporting actors on "Dark Angel", for example. Since I like browsing the IMDb I've also noticed that certain Vancouver-based series, most notably "Da Vinci's Inquest", "Godiva's" and "L Word", seem to be a career stop for virtually every Canadian actor. Okay, what I was originally interested in is how the relationship between the writing staff and the casting department was like, if there was any. In fact, this leads me to a related question: Which parts of the production are located in Vancouver and which aren't? Is Mr. Eick supervising the daily work in Vancouver, while Mr. Moore and the writing staff sit in L.A.? -- Pedda 19:16, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

According to Ron's wife Terry on the messageboards, they live in California but maintain an appartment in Vancouver, as Ron and family make trips there for several weeks at a time when he needs to periodically oversee stuff there. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 19:47, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

Unfortunately, her name wasn't mentioned in the Scar podcast. --Pedda 13:39, 15 August 2006 (CDT)

Since I (hopefully) have your attention: In "Final Cut" Kat says: "Hey, is that on? Are you recording? Hi, mom! Miss you, mommy. Hey, this is for my buddies on freighter 212. Yeah! That's for you!" Can we infer from this that Louanne's mother is among the fugitives? Or was it more like a joke? Hopefully Ms. Katraine is indeed alive, because I would love to see a relationship between a mother and her grown-up child. Since Kat is greeting her buddies on freighter 212: Was she aboard this freighter (instead of Galactica) before being selected as a nugget or even before the Holocaust?--Pedda 04:52, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

You will learn much more about Kat in "The Passage." - Ngarenn 15:56, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

Thanks for your kind answers, Mr. Thompson. Needless to say I'm already counting down to December 1. -- Pedda 19:16, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

"Sacrifice" question[edit]

One of our contributors, User:Fordsierra4x4, has recently captured a screengrab of Sesha Abinell's laptop from "Sacrifice". On it there is an interesting note about "Cylon impregnation and reproduction" -- a fact that the civilians should not know about, as far as the viewer knows. Is this just a gaffe or is this an indicator of a major security leak on the Big G, or even a leak from Laura Roslin's office? -- Joe Beaudoin ^{So say we all - Donate} 19:20, 15 August 2006 (CDT)

Those crackpots probably had a bunch of other wild theories, creating something of a "shotgun effect" whereby they actually end up being right on a handful of them (despite being wrong about a lot of others). Though I'd have to admit they were hitting pretty accurately on their other "MO" items... --Steelviper 07:41, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

Maybe the Black Market had a hand in it. After all, information is just as valuable as a physical item... --Fordsierra4x4 08:13, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

I do not think there was a leak, nor that they had any black market help. Most of the things on that list were things Sesha and other civilians already knew about; sleep deprivation (33), assault on natural resources (Hand of God), human models and multiple copies (Litmus), etc. The only one on that list which wasn't publicly known was Cylon biological reproduction efforts, but she managed to grab a photo of the pregnant Caprica-Sharon on Galactica, so that's how she knew that. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 08:56, 16 August 2006 (CDT)

Webisodes in Crisis?![edit]

According to this report, the Writer's Guild of America ordered BSG to refuse to release the Battlestar Galactica webisode series you wrote to NBC Universal for distribution, on the grounds that you aren't actually paid for doing it.

Is this report true?

This gets into a murky area. When TPTB originally asked for webisodes, there was no pay involved. The whole staff politely refused to write any. At some point, TPTB came up with a compensation package that didn't specify per se dollars for webisodes, but gave us a little raise for "additional duties." There were no provisions for recompense for reuse of the original program content, or subsequent for-profit use. We were bummed about that formula but excited about the storytelling possibilities.

We checked out the payment formula with the WGA, who at that time did not have a specific policy regarding webisodes, and told us we could do as we liked. We took the deal. Subsequent research by the WGA has determined that webisode writing of the type we did is not sanctioned by guild contract (though I understand NBCUni holds otherwise).

So, technically, we aren't "paid for doing webisodes," but we were compensated for work above and beyond our current producing duties. I assume attorneys for both sides will be going over this for a while, trying to define it. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

Is this in fact the real reason that the Webisode series did not start airing 2 weeks ago, 10 weeks before the Season 3 premiere (one a week, every Friday) as originally planned?

My recollection is that we were told the webisodes were going to do exactly that, which is why we wrote the story you'll eventually see. But later in talking with people from the channel, we discovered that was not their intention -- at least at the time we spoke, which was at Comic-Con. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

What are your thoughts on the subject, as this directly affects you more so than like Toni or Carla, because you personally penned these things?

Please clarify this question. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

Is the entire writing team given a raise for "additional work", or just you personally?--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 11:19, 22 August 2006 (CDT)

David and I are an official WGA writing team and we were given the bump for this "additional work." To my knowledge, this did not affect any of the other writers on the show (The SHOW team), especially Carla Robinson and Toni Graphia, who left us for greener pastures. (I'm reliably informed that the SciFi site is out of date on this staffing change.) - Ngarenn 13:41, 23 August 2006 (CDT)

Gasp* The Scifi website out of date!? Never! (<-- sarcasm) --Steelviper 14:30, 23 August 2006 (CDT)

What are the current plans for the Webisode series (30 minutes of footage) should negotiations with NBC Uni completely break down?

NBCUni took possession of the material and cuts as they are as of 5pm today. They own them and they'll do with them as they see fit. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

Will the Webisodes be deemed completely non-canonical as a result? Are they destined to be a "lost (half) episode"?

I don't know who determines "Canon." The story will hold up and the consequences are played in the season opener - at least in the cuts that were delivered today. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

What should we do with those scabs at "Eureka", who currently are broadcasting webisodes on Scifi.com; should we loyal fans 'bust some heads? (Without your prior knowledge...)

I have no idea what deal was struck with Eureka - that may have all gone down before this. It's just become time for the Guilds - DGA, SAG, and WGA to define these things, because digital download is the future of this industry. It's time to work out a formula that works for everybody. Meanwhile, I'm seldom an advocate for busting heads. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

Seldom an advocate? "Never let your sense of morals get in the way of doing what is right". --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 11:21, 22 August 2006 (CDT)

Will they be destined for DVD? --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 14:32, 18 August 2006 (CDT)

Unknown at this time. - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

Follow-up question: was Lucy Lawless in the Webisodes series as Number Three? (As its during the Cylon occupation I think she might be there): the Lucy fans might want to know....--The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 14:34, 18 August 2006 (CDT)

The wonderfully talented Ms Lawless, unfortunately, is not physically depicted in the Webisodes, although her spirit can be felt in the ominous Cylon presence - Ngarenn 22:15, 21 August 2006 (CDT)

Squadron numbers[edit]

How many Vipers are in a "squadron" in the terminology used by the Colonial Fleet? I ask because in "Scar" Roslin said they were getting enough metal ore to build "two squadrons" of Vipers. Is a squadron 10? 12? 20? If a squadron is 20, this would be a dramatic increase.

While I'm on the subject, we've speculated that based on this dialogue, Mercury class battlestars have some sort of limited Viper production facilities but the exact nature of such facilities eludes us.--->Another problem has come up regarding information from Battlestar Galactica Magazine: it's information isn't always quite accurate and when I asked Ron (via Mrs.Ron) on the messageboards, he said they aren't directly affiliated with the magazine in any way, so I don't know how this fits--> in issue #3, they say:

"A Battlestar's air wing generally consists of six to eight squadrons (20 ships each)...20 Vipers also form a reserve unit to replace lost or damaged ships on an ad hoc basis. Each squadron is also supported by a single Raptor" (P.59)

Is this magazine information accurate? Are there 20 Vipers to a squadron? How many Vipers is Galactica capable of carrying (that is, during its prime when it was a new ship in the Cylon War, how many Vipers is it meant to support?): How many can a Mercury-class Battlestar like Pegasus hold? --->Based on these magazine numbers, there should only have been 6-8 at most Raptors on Galactica (during it's prime, so by the time of the Cylon attack probably less): In "Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I" we see 20 Raptors jump to Caprica; Pegasus probably had an equal number of Raptors on board, but where did so many Raptors come from? Can Pegasus construct Raptors just like Vipers? Or (my explanation), are there just many refugee Raptors which escaped to Ragnar, because they've got their own FTL drives? I mean Boomer escaped all the way from Caprica to Ragnar, and Crashdown was stated as being a refugee from another ship, so presumably a few other Raptors made it out (well, that's our assumption. I still think its entirely plausible and not a stretch that there were 20 though). --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 20:53, 14 June 2006 (CDT)

In the Miniseries, a total of ninteen Vipers are shown on screen (at approx. 47 minutes, 25 seconds in), supported by a single Raptor (Boomer and Helo). It's safe to assume that the 20th ship was merely off-screen. --Madbrood 15:20, 12 July 2006 (CDT)

You don't understand, the number on parade for the Miniseries decomissioning isn't clearly reflecting "a squadron", more specifically referring to just how many were built in "Scar" if "two squadrons" were built. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 22:46, 12 July 2006 (CDT)

True, but Adama does refer to them as "our squadron", that's the basis I was going on. --Madbrood 10:49, 16 July 2006 (CDT)

Cancellation Rumor[edit]

The rumor is circulating that S4 is in jeopardy along with "Caprica." Given that series are always under a "ratings gun" and concerned caused by the cancellation of SG-1, if there is any truth to the rumor, is there something as fans that we can do now? --FrankieG 07:36, 23 August 2006 (CDT)

There was also a rumor that the show would move to Tuesday nights, but that hasn't materialized. While the cancelation of SG-1 raises concerns about ratings and budget A) it's the top rated show on the channel B) It won a Peabody award and critics love it C) They've got a real chance to win at next year's Emmys, when the old shows which filled up this years (West Wing, Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Commander in Chief, etc.) will all be gone and not fill up the nominations. --The Merovingian ^{(C - E)} 09:34, 23 August 2006 (CDT)

The role of the Marines.[edit]

When will we see a bigger role played by the Marines and avoid embarrasments like Starbuck's matrix attempt in Sacrifice? Panther 18:53, 23 August 2006 (CDT)