"Buy" Your Command

I like Cylons, and, as you can see from the picture above, I'm not referring to the "skin jobs" or "toasters" from the recently concluded Battlestar Galactica series on Sci Fi Channel. I mean the "man in a bulky suit" Centurions from the original series (and, to a slightly lesser degree, the CGI "Guardian" variety from Battlestar Galactica Razor).

It's all in that sinister helmet: the roaming red eye, the Darth-Vader-like mouthpiece, and, of course, the soulless, monotonous electronic voice.

On the original show, there were two types of Centurions: silver and gold — that is, the workhorse foot soldiers/pilots and the "command" Centurions.

We saw the first golden Centurion in "Gun on Ice Planet Zero"; it's name was Vulpa, and, surprisingly, it spoke in a much-lower monotone than its silver minions. This effect deepened the sense of dread I already felt about the Cylons.

Anyway, thanks to the "return" of the classic Centurions in Razor (and there are sure to be more in the Caprica series), Diamond Select Toys has rendered them as action figures. I picked up the "Galactican goldenrod" version, called "Cylon Warrior Commander," at Toys R Us, where it's one of three store exclusives (the others are a "Battle Damaged Cylon Pilot" and "William 'Husker' Adama," both from Razor). As to the silver "Cylon Warrior" from Razor, it's a Toyrocket exclusive.

One look at the Centurion's helmet was all it took to take me back to those bygone days of lumbering, shiny Cylons. I waited a couple of days before buying "golden boy," just to be sure I wasn't craving the toy because it "existed." But I couldn't get it out of my head, and now it is mine ... and it shall do my bidding for the rest of my life by obediently intoning, "By Your Command, Lord Edzo."

"Someone to Watch Over Me": But What of Hera?

Please check out Smut Junkies for the great Jim Connelly's review of "Someone to Watch Over Me." Here's the response I left earlier today:

"People of the Fleet: This is Lord Edzo, Imperious Leader.

"And a hearty heigh-ho to you, Jim. I read your summation ... , thanks, but I haven't read anyone's comments yet, so I'd just like to respond to some of your points, and add a few of my own.

"I don't have an HDTV, so I couldn't read the name on the last tube of Tauran toothpaste until the commercial auctioneers gave us a spot-on view: 'Felgercarb.' Finally, with only a handful of episodes left, [executive producers] Ron [Moore] and David [Eick] have given homage to the other curse word from TOS [the original series], which was never used as such in their reimagined series. I must admit, however, that I'd hate to have seen what color the toothpaste was.

"Curiously enough, I believe the original spelling of that curse was 'feldergarb' — at least, that's how Richard Hatch spelled it in his original BSG novels. It's possible that Dirk Benedict fouled up the pronunciation in TOS, but who cares? I like 'felgercarb' better anyway.

"Also, regarding the need for phones in the high-security brig: There's a metal mesh and a plate of glass between Boomer and Tyrol.

"Complementing the 'felgercarb' homage [are] the sweet (suite?), yet subtle, musical chords attributed to 'Nomion' and played by Slick — actually, they're by TOS composer Stu Phillips, and only heard at the very beginning of the pilot movie, 'Saga of a Star World.'

"Also interesting is Nomion's pronunciation, 'no-MAYAN' (a direct quote from the CC). It reminded me of Patrick MacNee's introductory dialogue from TOS, which postulated that the forefathers of the Mayans (among others) may have been composed of 'tribes of humans' from 'far across the universe.'

"Are Ron and David trying to tell us something here? You see, I originally thought that, in their reimagined BSG, Earth gets nuked in the year 2012, when the Mayan calendar ends. Just an observation … I don't know where to take it from there.

"Jim, I'm glad you caught Tigh's veiled reference to having seen a wide-eyed Liam postmortem. I didn't catch on until my second viewing of the episode, and I'd wager that many viewers thought Tigh was referring to Anders, whose eyes were open at the beginning of the show.

"The last 13 to 15 minutes of the final act are instantly classic and jaw-dropping, just the way I like my sci-fi. I was unprepared when the show quickly ramped up to its amazing ending, with Starbuck and Slick shifting into an up-tempo rendition of the Final-Four Cylons' 'wake-up song,' Boomer kidnapping Hera and deeply denting the Galactica, and Roslin and Tyrol collapsing.

"Jim, you've postulated that Boomer did, in fact, escape with Hera. I thought that, given the damage to her Raptor, it exploded when she jumped. Add to this Roslin's collapse, which I attributed to Hera's death, given that Hera's 'lifeblood' was [a] part of Roslin and had temporarily reversed her cancer. Thus were these two characters connected, and, thus, I also wonder whether Roslin is now dead.

"The coming attractions said, 'Losing Hera Was Just the Beginning.' I took that to mean she's dead. Perhaps I'm wrong.

"Jim, you also wondered whether Slick was an 'angel,' seen only by Starbuck. Similarly, Kara wondered whether she was now an angel, after having seen herself burned to a crisp. Is it just me and my silly, impossible dreams, or could this be setting up a finale involving TOS's 'Ship of Lights,' for which many fans have been pining? Probably not, but when I think of angels in BSG, I think of the Ship of Lights.

"So what's the connection among Starbuck, Hera and Roslin, and why aren't Baltar and Caprica Six also involved? We've yet to learn 'the secret of the Opera House.' Can we assume that Dreilide Thrace once played live in that same Opera House, or at least a re-creation of same?

"Jim, I didn't catch the name 'Helice' ('Helike' in Greek, referring to a city that sank). I thought it said 'Deluxe.' Again, no HDTV."

"Deadlock": The Eye of the Storm

Check out Jim Connelly's review on Smut Junkies. Here are the comments I left on 24 February 2009:

"People of the Fleet: This is Lord Edzo, Imperious Leader.

"Jim, I agree that the episode didn't 'hang together' well. If you can believe it, I was often more confused than I was last week, with the mouthfuls of back story revealed in 'No Exit.'

"First problem: Can I just say this? I know that the Sixes and Eights are the only two 'offspring Cylons' who get top billing on the show, but for frak's sake, there's too many of them already. I'm tired of trying to figure out who's Caprica Six or just some other Six, and who's Athena, who's Boomer and who's a random Eight.

"Another example: Whose brilliant idea was it to outfit both Caprica Six and the other Six in black dresses? Are they purposely trying to confuse us, or just trying to ensure that we'll purchase the 4.5 DVDs so we can figure it out later?

"More confusion, as you pointed out: Caprica Six is sneaking through Dogsville, gets in a fight, and then, in the very next scene, is in Sickbay for another ultrasound. (Regarding Dogsville, I can only assume she was looking for some 'algae paste,' which we see her eating later in Tigh's quarters, just before her first pregnancy pain.)

"Also confusing: The Cylon Heavy Raider flying in the CAP. I thought the CGI sequence was cut together poorly, because at first, I thought that the Vipers were chasing the Heavy Raider, or, for some reason, that the pilots were seeing a Heavy Raider when they should have been seeing Boomer's Raptor. Maybe it's just me.

"Thanks for explaining why Adama was alternately watching the Cylon 'goop project' and drinking heavily. I didn't really 'get' the connection because I was too focused on thinking, 'What's this? Adama's staring up at the bulkheads again? Why do they keep showing this scene over and over again?'

"Are you sure about little Gaius being big Gaius' bastard? I didn't make that connection either. All I saw was Baltar hitting on the first beautiful woman he sees because he's already frakked the women in his 'coven.'

"And you know what? After witnessing an 'intelligent and sophisticated' Ellen Tigh last week in 'No Exit,' I was thoroughly disgusted by her 'reversion to character' around Saul. I understand why she would be upset that Saul made whoopee with/knocked up one of the First Five's 'children,' but I'm sick of their whole bickering dynamic already.

"About Caprica Six losing the baby: I realize that she had her first pregnancy pain in her quarters, but later, in Sickbay, things start to go downhill really fast after Ellen touches Caprica's midsection. Can Ellen kill with a touch? Go back and watch her various expressions around Caprica. I think she planned this.

"'The great ship Galactica, our home for these many years. We've endured the wilderness of space, and now we reach the end of our journey: We have, at last, found … [insert planet].'"

Take a Direct Route Through "No Exit"

Please check out the great Screen Junkies site for entertainment news, and, in particular, Jim Connelly's handy review of "No Exit," the talk-heavy Battlestar back story episode from two weeks ago. I left the following comments afterward:

"People of the Fleet, this is Lord Edzo, Imperious Leader. Kudos to Jim Connelly and felicitations to everyone who's posted … many of you have some terrific ideas about what's going on.

"Let's stop saying "Final Five." It no longer applies. If what Ellen says is true, then she, Saul, Galen, Tory and Sam are the "First" Five.

"And let's also forget the assertion that there are only 12 skin-job models. We now know that there were 13. I'm surprised that no one has come right out and said it.

"I agree that the First Five created clones and uploaded themselves into the clones. Has anyone ever considered what the word "Cylon" means? Could it stand for "cybernetic clone"?

"I also agree that Zak Adama could be "Daniel." It validates what Leoben told Laura Roslin in "Flesh and Bone": "Adama is a Cylon."

"Excellent thought about "Daniel" being Daniel Graystone from the forthcoming Caprica. Good tie-in; good lead-in. Regardless, I would hate for that to be true. It would cheat us right out of a satisfying conclusion to the series, and I don't think Ron Moore and David Eick would do that. I say Daniel must be someone we already know.

"That's why I agree with someone's suggestion that the original Male Hybrid from Battlestar Galactica Razor may have been created by the old Centurions in Daniel Graystone's image. I could live with that ending. Graystone appears to have been the father of advanced A.I. in the 12 Colonies, and the Male Hybrid believed himself to be a god because that's how his "children" (the Centurions) perceived him. The only problem? No one in the Colonial Fleet (except for Kendra Shaw, who's dead) ever saw the Male Hybrid. However, if the First Five can produce a [photograph], then Bill Adama could identify Graystone.

"I don't believe that Baltar and Daniel are the same. If Baltar is Daniel as well as Starbuck's father, then, incest aside, wouldn't Baltar have been extremely young when he knocked up Starbuck's mother? Or can the deus ex machina "time vortex" from "Maelstrom" simply straighten all this out?

"[Aside: How do we account for the "original Starbuck" and her crashed Viper on Earth? I still think this has something to do with that "time vortex" in "Maelstrom": If it's connected to Earth, then is it possible that "original Starbuck's" emergence somehow caused a catastrophic chain reaction in the atmosphere that fried the whole planet? Well, maybe not. Didn't Tyrol say that the attack on Earth had been expected? Maybe the Earth Centurions did revolt … but sheesh, you'd never know it from Tyrol's "flashback" to Earth and his visit to the outdoor marketplace. Everything seemed pretty calm considering that an attack was forthcoming.]

"Also, if Baltar is Daniel, then wouldn't Cavil immediately have had him executed on New Caprica? Why would he have "saved" one Daniel, scrambled his memories like the First Five, and "seeded" him into the 12 Colonies?

"Well, allow me to play devil's advocate in this one instance. Perhaps Cavil "set up" Daniel/Baltar to betray the human race to the Cylons via Number Six (in the Miniseries). This also might answer the question everyone seems to have forgotten: Who was Number Six's contact on Caprica … the person we never saw, but with whom she spoke after leaving Baltar at the defense building? Was it Cavil?

"Look … the primary question remains: "Who created the First Five?" And why, oh why, aren't we looking into Greek mythology for the answers? The people of Kobol and the 12 Colonies worshipped those gods, as did the early people of Earth.

"Check this out, for instance: In Greek mythology, Gaia, who was the personification of the earth, was revered as the "Mother Goddess" or "Great Goddess." She "brought forth" Uranus, with whom she lay and produced, among others, the Titans, of which there were 12 (or 13). Gaia also was believed to have been the original deity behind the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi, and her successors each were called "the Pythia."

"Am I ringing any bells so far?

"Might Ellen Tigh be perceived as Gaia, and could Gaius Baltar have been named for Gaia?

"[Gaia] lay with her son [Uranus] to produce the 12 first-generation Titans or "Elder Gods" (sometimes 13, because "Dione" is a double of "Theia"), who were later overthrown by a race of 12 younger gods called "Olympians." The Titan Cronus overthrew his father, Uranus, and was later deposed by his son Zeus.

"John Cavil may fit the role of Cronus, who devoured all his children (except for Zeus, who was saved by his mother Rhea) because he feared that they would overthrow him. Doesn't this cast the illusive "Daniel" in the role of Zeus? We know at least one Daniel must have been saved for the "big ending" of the series.

"Look, regardless of how you read and interpret Greek mythology, it is somehow entwined with the story of BSG, or is, at the very least, the basis of the BSG story line.

"Who are the First Five? Well, why can't they have been humanoid alien explorers who happened upon Kobol and set themselves up as gods, or "lords," and later went on to Earth to do the same thing all over again? "All this has happened before …"

"Peace out … and semper frakking fi."

Laura's Lullaby?

As you know, I'm usually way behind when it comes to "catching on" to things that most others see as obvious.

Anyway, during my Battlestar Galactica "power marathon" last evening, something about composer Bear McCreary's theme music finally hit me. The vocalizations had always been nonsensical to me, as if they were being sung in a different language, but ...

... are the first two lines "Laura Roslin, Laura Roslin"?

Is Battlestar Unboxing Boxey or Rebirthing Billy?

Yes, these are my crazy guesses ... and why the frak not? I've been wrong about everything else so far, but I don't care. Battlestar Galactica is so frakking cool that I'm happy just guessing what might happen next.

So ... he was boxed up after the Miniseries and at least one first-season appearance that I can recall (and deleted scenes don't count), but I think that executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick may be brandishing boxcutters and unwrapping "Boxey" (Connor Widdows) as the "lost" Cylon model Number 7, "Daniel." He's my first guess because the name "Boxey" has always struck me as a moniker rather than an actual, given name. (So it was with Galactica 1980, if you can even think those two words, which asserted that its "Troy" character was really the grown-up Boxey from the original series.)

Of course, on the "off" chance that Moore and Eick are trying to throw us off the real scent, my backup choice for Daniel is our martyred, beloved "Billy Keikeya" (Paul Campbell).

BTW, kids, I've given up on my pitiful pipe dream of reviewing each of the final episodes. Last night, I finally watched everything from "The Disquiet That Follows My Soul" through "No Exit." Now I don't have to avoid Sci Fi Channel because it might show a commercial for BSG's next episode ... and, in so doing, possibly spoil a bunch of stuff because I didn't watch the previous episodes. It's enough already! I'm free at last and back in the saddle! Let's ride!

Pythia's Labyrinth: Sometimes Some Great Notions

As we know from the first 3.5 seasons of Battlestar Galactica, the scrolls of Pythia detail the "exile and rebirth" of the human race 3,600 years before the Cylons annihilated the 12 Colonies of Kobol.

[Question: Exile from and rebirth where?]

[My Answers: Earth and Kobol, respectively.]

Also, as we learned in the Season 4.5 opener, "Sometimes a Great Notion," Earth was nuked about 2,000 years before the Colonial fleet and the Cylons arrived (in "Revelations").

[Question: Was Earth really nuked, or did it suffer some natural catastrophe (e.g., a "global killer" meteor strike)? More on that later.]

Until now, I'd never thought to look up the word "Pythia" because I assumed it was a fictitious name created for the series. Then, while taking notes for my forthcoming (and very, very late) review of "Sometimes a Great Notion," I ran a Wikipedia search for "Pythia," just to bone up on anything I'd forgotten. Lo and behold, to my very great surprise, I learned that "Pythia" is a real reference from Greek mythology. Here's the quotation from Wikipedia:

"The Pythia was the priestess presiding over the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi. It is often said [but not confirmed] that the Pythia delivered oracles in a frenzied state induced by vapors rising from a chasm in the rock, and that she spoke gibberish which priests reshaped into the enigmatic prophecies preserved in Greek literature."

Now, who in BSG does this description immediately call to mind?

The Cylon Hybrid, of course. And the "priests" who interpret her prophecies correspond to the Leobens, who believe that every word from the Hybrid has meaning.

In "Sometimes a Great Notion," we learned that the 13th Tribe was Cylon and that they settled Earth. But what if they weren't really Cylon? What if they were human? And what if the 13th Tribe actually was the original tribe of man?

Don't forget that the word "Cylon" originally referred to the machines created by the people of the 12 Colonies. ["The Cylons were created by Man. They were created to make life easier on the Twelve Colonies."] After the destruction of the colonies, the term was expanded to include the "skin jobs" ... but are they really Cylons — i.e., mechanical?

In the BSG universe, I always "assumed," based on the dialogue, that human life began on the planet Kobol, and then 12 Tribes left to settle the 12 Colonies, while the 13th Tribe left to settle Earth. But why would they split up?

Maybe I've had this backward, too. What if human life did begin on Earth, and then 12 Tribes left to settle Kobol (and, later, the 12 Colonies), while the 13th Tribe remained on Earth? This would certainly explain how the scrolls of Pythia ended up on Kobol and the 12 Colonies ... because they originated on Earth at the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi.

As I suggested in a previous post, the 12 Cylon models correspond to the 12 primary Greek "gods" of Olympus, right down to the division of genders. Let's say that these 12 "gods" and all the "secondary" gods were technologically advanced "humanoid" visitors from another planet (not a new concept) who'd been watching Earth for a long time. Eventually, they set up on Mount Olympus, intermingled/procreated with the primitive humans and were perceived as "gods." However, in their own religion, they believed in the one, true God.

Time passes, and the "gods," not wishing to be perceived as such, imparted their belief in the one, true God to the people of Earth. Judaism, Christianity and all other religions developed thereafter. Then the "gods" departed Earth, but left behind 12 clones, who "disappeared" among the people of Earth and were "programmed" to keep an "eye" on things.

More time passes. A schism develops among the clones, perhaps due to a flaw in the cloning process. Five clones want to reclaim their godlike status, while Seven clones do not. They go to war, destroying Earth in the process. The Five prevail and the Seven are defeated, but not wiped out. The clones round up the survivors and relocate everyone to Kobol.

Because the Five "won" the war, they and the Seven are revered as the "lords of Kobol," and the one, true God religions are forgotten by the people. The Seven, however, do not forget. They bide their time.

Many years later, something happens to Kobol, perhaps instigated by the Seven this time, but it isn't completely successful and doesn't incinerate Kobol the way Earth was. As a result, the Five and the Seven are, more or less, balanced in strength and number, and when they relocate the people again, they spread everyone out among 12 Colonies, perhaps hoping to avoid any future cataclysms.

["All this has happened before, and it will happen again.]

The Five, caught off-guard and nearly decimated at Kobol, recognize that their "godlike" influence is over and leave the 12 Colonies. However, they send five of their clones to infiltrate the colonies as "sleepers." Some of the Seven are programmed likewise ["Some are programmed to think they are Human."], except that they can be "reactivated" at any time by their brethren. In addition, the Five and the Seven are "reprogrammed" to forget each other. Perhaps this was a condition of their armistice after Kobol.

Meanwhile, the colonists develop "Cylon" technology to make life easier for them.

["And then the day came when the Cylons decided to kill their masters. After a long and bloody struggle, an armistice was declared. The Cylons left for another world to call their own."]

The Seven "lords of Kobol" followed the Cylons, gained control of them and advanced Cylon technology for the day when they decided to destroy the heathenish 12 Colonies — under the guise of "Cylons." Thus begins the TV series and the quest to find the mythical 13th Tribe on the planet Earth.

The Colonial fleet soon relocates Kobol, and then begins following various markers that ostensibly lead to Earth.

[From "A Measure of Salvation": During the journey from Earth to Kobol, someone leaves behind a beacon that's contaminated with a 3,000-year-old strain of Lymphocytic Encephalitis. It's likely that either the Five or the Seven planted it as a "marker of death," hoping it would be found by their "rival" if they ever tried to return to Earth. But why would either side care if the other returned to Earth?]

Starbuck is presumed dead when her battered Viper is destroyed inside a spatial vortex or "maelstrom," to which she is inexplicably drawn.

Later, as the Colonial fleet nears the Ionian Nebula, some strange "musical signal" of Earth origin gradually manifests itself in the minds of Saul Tigh, Sam Anders, Galen Tyrol and Tory Foster like an unscratchable itch. When the fleet reaches the nebula, the four are mysteriously drawn to the same compartment inside the Galactica, where they suddenly "realize" that they are four of the "Final Five" missing "Cylon" skin jobs.

Concurrently, Starbuck emerges from deep inside the nebula in a brand-new Viper, insisting that she's been to Earth and is going to lead the Colonial fleet there. Much later, it's discovered that the brand-new Viper was the source of the signal that "awakened" four of the Final Five skin jobs. When the Colonial fleet and the rebel Basestar reach a long-death Earth, Starbuck finds the source of the signal: a transponder unit that matches the one on her new Viper. Soon afterward, she tracks down pieces of a destroyed Viper that appear to bear the markings of her own Viper. Then she finds the cockpit and its burned, skeletal pilot, which is wearing her dog tags and wedding ring.

(A) Who or what is Starbuck?

(B) How did she die and return from the dead?

(C) What happened during the time she can't account for when interviewed by Roslin and Adama?

(D) Why didn't she notice (or her photographs indicate) that Earth was a dead planet ... or did she notice?

(E) What's the relationship between the "live" her and the "dead" her, who crashed on Earth?

(A) At the very least, we know that Starbuck is a woman with a "destiny." Both versions of the Cylon Hybrid have said so, but the "old man" version was precise in his prognostication to Kendra Shaw:

["Kara Thrace will lead the human race to its end. She is the harbinger of death, the herald of the apocalypse. They must not follow her."]

[Translation(?)]: (1) "harbinger," i.e., an advance scout who gives an indication of what is to come — i.e., death on Earth; (2) "herald," i.e., a "clarion call," which awakened the Final Five who had initiated the apocalypse on Earth; (3) "they" must not follow her, i.e., the Seven who "lost" the war on Earth, or possibly the Colonial fleet.]

The gobbledygook spouted by the female Hybrids has always been vague (or "Pythian") to the Leobens, who nevertheless try to make sense of it. However, when the "rebel" Hybrid meets Starbuck, her language is as abundantly clear regarding Starbuck's destiny as the "old man" was to Shaw. When Kara finally shares the Hybrid's prophecy with Leoben on Earth, he is dumbfounded and hurries away from her.

(B) In "Maelstrom," Starbuck dove into the vortex and her Viper exploded. Or did it? Considering what we've learned since then, that vortex was probably "temporal" in nature, crushing the "old" Starbuck and then spitting out a "new" one in the Ionian Nebula — possibly an example of "inverted" temporal physics, wherein "effect" precedes "cause."

Or ...

(C) & (D) The Starbuck who emerged from the Ionian Nebula is from another dimension, or a "parallel plane" of existence, in which Earth was not destroyed. Therefore, the pictures she took gave no indication of a terrestrial apocalypse. Also, since she isn't the "same" Starbuck who returns to the Galactica, she doesn't know why everyone believes she's been dead for two months, or why she's being grilled about her "new" Viper, what she saw, and why she can't remember anything. She also doesn't understand why Adama and Roslin won't allow her to take the fleet to Earth.

(E) There's no relationship between the "two Starbucks." In "Sometimes a Great Notion," the "new" Starbuck finds the wreck of the "original" Starbuck and wonders what the frak is going on.

Here's one final thing to ponder: Is it possible that the "Maelstrom" vortex into which Starbuck disappeared was directly connected to Earth, and that Starbuck's appearance over Earth caused some kind of catastrophic atmospheric cascade that destroyed the planet?

[Regardless of whether my "guesses" about BSG's back story is correct, the series, at its core, is about the perils of religious intolerance — unquestionably apropos to our 21st century Earth.]

"Caprica" Conundrum

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced that the pilot movie Caprica, a prequel to Battlestar Galactica (BSG), will debut 21 April 2009 on DVD. A TV series is expected to debut on Sci Fi Channel (SFC) in 2010.

But I don't think that'll happen now.

I'm taking this as bad news. The Caprica pilot, which is feature-length, was intended to debut on SFC this year, but now it's been "demoted" to a mere DVD release. My guess is that SFC is leery of its appeal and has opted to "wait and see" how well the DVD sells.

Caprica was never a "sure thing," as far as I know from the few things I've read. Despite the success of BSG, Caprica was not immediately greenlighted as a pilot. I'd say it was close to a year until it finally was, but IMHO, the results were less than engaging.

SFC's teaser trailer for Caprica was first posted online, and I remember being confused afterward. It seemed like a hodgepodge of clips that gave no clue as to what the pilot was about. Some time afterward, SFC released a long clip online, detailing star Eric Stolz's guided tour of some super-seedy nightclub, wherein the patrons participated in a plethora of depravity involving sex, drugs and general degeneracy. It was thoroughly unappealing.

But it shouldn't have been. You see, when the idea of a BSG prequel series was suggested, the immediate reply should have been, "Let's tell the story of how the Cylons rebelled against their human creators." For one thing, who wouldn't want to see the original Cylons from the 1970s back on TV?

As far as I can tell, neither of Caprica's trailers featured Cylons lumbering around anywhere. That would have been the obvious teaser. Get the die-hard fans excited! Instead, the story involves a rivalry between two Caprican families: the Adamas and the Greystones.

[This is like Paramount Pictures' ill-conceived sequel to the great Star Trek: First Contact, which featured the popular Borg. Personally, I loved Star Trek: Insurrection, but to trump the Borg, the obvious follow-up story should have involved Q, or tied into the Dominion War story that was happening on TV's Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. But no, Paramount decided to have the battle-ready Enterprise-E ferrying diplomats and searching for a "planet of youth." No, surely no one would have been interested in seeing the Federation's most-technologically advanced flagship in action.]

Maybe Caprica should have been pitched as an addition to ABC's soapy Sunday night lineup, right next to Desperate Housewives.

BSG's "Last Supper" Photo

Take a look at these photos, then read my interpretation below from 28 March 2008:

I haven't read any other interpretations of the BSG S4 cast a la Da Vinci's "The Last Supper" (TLS). Here are my observations, comparisons and differences. Draw your own conclusions as to how they apply (or don't) to the resolution of BSG.

1. In TLS, Jesus sits with His 12 Apostles, making that 13 [people] at the table. In BSG, there are only 12 people at the table, five of whom are women. (Look at those numbers again: 12 Apostles; 12 Colonies; the 13th Tribe.)

2. In TLS, Jesus, clothed partially in red, has six Apostles each to His left and right. In BSG, Caprica [Six], clothed completely in red, has six people to her left and five to her right. Someone is "missing" from Six's right (notice the open space between Tigh and Apollo). Could it be Tory? She's the only one of four newly revealed Cylons who isn't at the table.

3. In BSG, Apollo appears to be seated where Judas sits in TLS, and both men have an elbow on the table (bad manners). Each is a man apart from the others. Judas is about to betray Jesus. Apollo can be said to have betrayed the fleet by resigning from the military and defending Baltar.

4. Starbuck and Baltar also have their elbows on the table.

5. Apollo and Starbuck are the only ones facing away from Six. (Tyrol's head is slightly turned toward the right.)

6. In TLS, Jesus is seated. In BSG, Six is standing. Each left hand has the palm facing upward.

7. Baltar and John [or Mary Magdalene] are seated to the right of Six and Jesus, respectively. Baltar faces Six, while John [Mary] is turned away from Jesus. John, depicted effeminately, is known as the Apostle "whom Jesus loved." [Or it's really Mary Magdalene.] Baltar, with his long girlish hair, is the one Six loves.

8. In TLS, Philip is said to be "seeking clarification" from Jesus, but Jesus' attention is down toward the bread (earth). In BSG, Baltar appears to be talking to Six, even raising his arm to appeal to her, but her attention is directed upward (to space).

9. Roslin and Adama are at either end of the table, facing slightly inward, but not really paying attention to what the others are doing. They're on the fringes, lost in their own thoughts.

10. Six only appears to be visible to [Natalie] (at the far left), Baltar and Athena. (Helo isn't quite looking at [Six], but perhaps at [Natalie].)

11. In BSG, [Natalie] is pointing angrily at Six. In TLS, James the Lesser's hand is reaching over to touch Peter.

12. In TLS, Andrew has his hands up in a "stop" gesture. In BSG, Athena's hand is reaching up to touch Adama, perhaps hoping he can "stop" whatever's happening.

13. In TLS, Peter is said to appear "angry," and Judas is right next to him. In BSG, Tigh appears angry and is right next to Apollo, the object of his anger.

14. In TLS, Peter also is said to be holding a dagger that's directed away from Jesus. In BSG, Tyrol is holding what appears to be a knife that's pointed toward Six. Peter is not focused on the dagger, but rather on talking to John [or Mary Magdalene]. Tyrol is engrossed in his knife, not paying attention to anyone else.

15. In TLS, glasses and bread are on the table. Some interpretations indicate that on the far left, on the pillar above Bartholomew, is a chalice (the Holy Grail?). In BSG, there are four books and two glasses on the table … and immediately to Apollo's right is a chalice-like glass.

16. In TLS, John [or Mary Magdalene] is turned away from Jesus and his [or her] eyes are closed. In BSG, Starbuck is turned away from Six and has her eyes closed.

17. In TLS, Peter's mouth is very close to John's [or Mary Magdalene's] head. In BSG, Anders' mouth is kissing Starbuck's head.

Laura Roslin: Sub Rosa

On Saturday night, I saw The Da Vinci Code for the first time.

[Geez, Lord Edzo, that movie's been out for years! Where the heck have you been?]

I don't get out much, OK? Just work with me on this.

Anyway, before seeing the movie, I'd never heard the name "Roslin" used outside Battlestar Galactica. (Actually, it's "Rosslyn" Chapel in the film.) Within the context of the story, author Dan Brown conjectures that "Rosslyn" connotes to "Rose Line," which, in turn, refers to the alleged bloodline of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene.

I know this is fiction, but it still got me thinking, so I consulted Wikipedia for some background information. "Rose Line" could also be translated as "red line," so I immediately thought of the Cylon Centurions and their "red line" eyes.

Is there a connection between Laura Roslin and the Centurions and/or Cylons?

In addition, the "rose" was an ancient symbol of "secrecy." Laura Roslin is a mysterious woman, what with her "visions" (shared or not) and her apparent role in the fate of the human race, as foretold in Pythia. However, at this point, the most important secret involving Roslin is her shared vision of the Kobol Opera House and what it means.

Here's more conjecture: The female name "Laura" derives from the Latin word for "laurel." The Greek god Apollo wore a laurel wreath on his head, and in ancient Greece, these wreaths were given to athletic or poetic victors. Today, it generally refers to "victory."

Will Laura Roslin have something to do with a victory over the Cylons and/or Centurions during the final 10 episodes? Or perhaps with the Cylons? Or is it that her "victory" over the Opera House "secret" is the key to the survival of the human race?

Here's one final conjecture, although not related to Roslin. Could "Adama" connote to "Adam," and is Bill Adama poised to become the de facto "father" of a new civilization on Earth?

Fans of the original Battlestar Galactica series may recall that its original title was Adam's Ark.

The 13th

OK, here's a last-minute prediction. Again, this is my own idea, not something I read or heard elsewhere.

There were 12 Colonies of Kobol. There are 12 Cylon models. These are basic tenets of the Battlestar Galactica universe.

Or are they? The Colonials and the Cylons have been seeking the mythical "13th tribe" on the planet Earth. And who left that note for Adama at the conclusion of the Miniseries ... that there are only 12 Cylon models? Should we just take that "person" at his or her word?

Could there not be a 13th Cylon model? To go along with the 13th tribe?

And could Starbuck be that model?

"He That Believeth in Me"

Here's what I wrote on 12 April 2008, after the first episode of Battlestar Galactica's fourth season:

Starbuck
From Galactica's perspective, Kara was presumed dead for more than two months. She, however, claims she was only gone for slightly more than six hours, which is confirmed by the numbers recorded by her Viper. Curious, however, that no one (not even Kara) recognizes and/or mentions that her hair has grown in the interim.

While near Earth, Kara remembers seeing a ringed planet, a flashing triple star and a comet. The first is probably Saturn. The second is most likely Alpha Centauri, a binary star system with a third star, Proxima Centauri, gravitationally bound to it. Proxima is also classified as a "flare star," and it's the closest star to Earth's sun. The third is anybody's guess, but when most people think of a comet, it's Halley's, which reappears near Earth about every 76 years. In real life, Halley's last appeared in 1986 A.D. Its first interval was recorded as 1680 to 1758 A.D.

While showing off the photographs she took near Earth, Kara doesn't mention having seen any artificial satellites in Earth orbit, which means she may have appeared before Sputnik in 1957 A.D. Before 1986, Halley's last appearance near Earth was in 1910 A.D.

Kara's Viper is said to be in pristine condition, unlike the battered fighter she was flying before "dying" in "Maelstrom." Tyrol concludes it's not the same Viper, despite having the same tail number. In addition, the onboard computer contains no navigational data of where the Viper's been. Conclusion? The funnel in "Maelstrom" probably was a wormhole or some kind of "temporal vortex," meaning Kara may not be able to duplicate her first trip and arrive in the same space/time near Earth. Regarding the tabula rasa computer, it was probably deliberate and undertaken by an unknown party (perhaps even Kara herself, whether she remembers it or not). There's an intelligence at work here, one willing to allow the Viper to return with pictures, but no navigational data. Why one and not the other?

Compounding this question is Kara's assertion, "They're waiting for me," just before she was lost in "Maelstrom." Who's waiting for her to arrive, but unwilling to leave her with navigational data?

Kara attempts to clarify by telling Adama she has a feeling, an intuition, not navigational fixes to find Earth. However, with every jump Galactica takes away from the Ionian Nebula, Kara's clarity fades incrementally. She's even physically affected whenever the fleet jumps away.

Lee postulates that Kara may have been the clue Galactica was seeking in the Ionian Nebula, as the next step toward Earth.

"Ionia" was an ancient region in West Asia Minor, colonized by the Greeks in the 11th century B.C., indicating yet another connection between the Lords of Kobol and the Greek Olympian gods.

Roslin
A notable carryover from "Crossroads, Part II" is that Roslin was immediately "overcome" by something when the Galactica jumped into the Ionian Nebula. Earlier, as the Fleet jumped closer and closer to the nebula, Roslin's cancer returned. What's the connection? Is proximity to the nebula causing Roslin's renewed affliction? Why was she the only one physically affected inside the nebula?

Roslin says the nebula was another road sign on the way to Earth, and she wants to continue along the path laid out by the Eye of Jupiter, which means leaving the nebula. Did she decide on this because of what happened to her in the nebula? Is she deliberately refusing to acknowledge that Kara was the next clue to Earth because she believes that leaving the nebula may reverse the onset of the cancer?

Most importantly, what's the connection between Roslin's reaction inside the nebula and Kara's reaction each time the Fleet jumps away from the nebula?

Roslin seeks Six's counsel regarding the Final Five (FF) Cylons, arriving unannounced in Six's brig. Is this budding, kindred spiritedness another indication that Roslin is the 12th Cylon?

Baltar
An unused Dry Stowage compartment aboard the Galactica houses a whole family of "Baltar worshippers" (BWs), most of them women, who believe in the "one true God." Is there a correlation with the Cylon belief system? Were the BWs deliberately planted inside the Galactica and by whom, or are they simply a legitimate byproduct of Baltar's imprisonment and his writings?

The existence of the BWs appears to have pushed Baltar across a line that nobody, including he, knew existed. This directly follows his acquittal and subsequent "abandonment," when he was at his most vulnerable.

Baltar's prayer that God save the boy Derrick, in exchange for Baltar's own life, is real and unaffected, notably because he doesn't think anyone can hear him praying. He finally admits to "unfiltered" truths about himself, his actions and his selfishness, and submits that God should punish him for everything he's done wrong, but spare Derrick, who hasn't even had a life yet.

The truth of Baltar's "miraculous transformation" plays out in the head, where Kevin's father threatens Baltar's life. Baltar doesn't resist, but rather encourages the man to kill him, hoping beyond all reason that his death will atone for Kevin's murder on New Caprica and even save Derrick. Six suddenly appears to Baltar and asks whether he really means it, and he says yes. With that, the crisis in the head ends and, moments later, Baltar learns that Derrick is recovering and will live. It appears that God has answered Baltar's prayers.

Does this succession of miracles prove that Six is indeed an "angel of God" sent to protect Baltar? Who really saved Derrick? Did the BWs secretly take him back to sickbay for treatment while Baltar was in the head? Did a doctor make a "house call" to the Dry Stowage compartment? Was the incident with Kevin's father staged to prove Baltar's worthiness? For that matter, was Derrick's illness staged? Who's trying to make Baltar believe that the power of his prayer can save people?

Misc.
Is there some significance to the "Eye of Jupiter" being the only reference to a Roman god, while all other Lords of Kobol correspond to the names of Greek gods?

Did the Cylon fleet experience the same power outage as the Colonial Fleet did after jumping into the Ionian Nebula? It didn't appear so, and if true, why not?

Six was programmed never to think about the FF; nevertheless, she can tell when they're close.

Tigh and everyone still believe that Baltar's Cylon detector was a "crock" because it didn't identify Boomer. However, Baltar lied to Boomer, so the detector really does work, meaning Kara isn't the 12th Cylon.

However, a Raider's eye scans/recognizes Anders during the opening dogfight, and then the Cylons abruptly break off their attack. Kara has been in many dogfights with the Cylons, not the least of which was Scar, but she was never recognized as kindred, lending further proof that she isn't the 12th Cylon.

During the opening dogfight, blood is spattered on Kara's Viper after she makes a kill. This has never happened before. Is it significant?

Are the Cavils purposely lobotomizing Raiders to prevent the possible revelation of the FF?

Prediction: The Fifth and Final Cylon Is ...

As I've already explained in my posts under the "Introduction" label, these thoughts, ideas and predictions are my own. I've neither visited any Web sites pertaining to Battlestar Galactica nor read the ideas of any other fans/people regarding the "Final Five" Cylons. My only source has been the episodes themselves.

And ... although I'm placing my "final bet" regarding who the fifth and final Cylon is, I don't know for sure ... but I also know who else isn't sure.

Cylon Number Three: D'Anna Biers. In "Revelations," she claims that only four of the Final Five Cylons are in the Colonial Fleet. Why four and not five?

Because she never saw the fifth and final Cylon.

Go back and watch her final scene in the temple in "Rapture," and pay careful attention to how she's photographed in close proximity to the Final Five. She passes three of the robed figures and then stops at the fourth, peers closely at him or her and says something to the effect of, "You! Please forgive me. I had no idea." Then her vision ends and she dies in Baltar's arms.

D'Anna was never photographed as having seen the fifth and final Cylon. That's why she's only looking for four of the Final Five in "Revelations." She never saw the fifth. She doesn't know who it is.

Therefore, when she scoffs that Laura Roslin is one of the Final Five, she may not be wrong. That's why I contend that Laura Roslin is the fifth and final Cylon.

Why else? Well, first, let's look at the most obvious indicator: the music that draws Tigh, Tory, Anders and Tyrol together at the end of "Crossroads, Part 2." When does this happen? At the Ionian Nebula, just as a "reborn" Starbuck is making her way back to the fleet. As "Revelations" will establish later, Starbuck's Viper is the one and only source of the Colonial transponder signal that leads the way back to Earth.

So why wasn't Laura Roslin "summoned" with Tigh, Tory, Anders and Tyrol? Why didn't she hear the music?

Well, she definitely heard or felt something as soon as the Galactica jumped into the Ionian Nebula and experienced a power outage. Roslin was visibly and physically "irritated" or "affected" at the table in the CIC. She pressed her hands to her temples and bowed her head. Nobody else noticed this, and nobody else reacted similarly. And Roslin never mentions it, either.

Roslin is a defective Cylon, stricken by cancer. In "Crossroads, Part 2," she revealed that the cancer had unexpectedly returned. This is why she was never summoned with the other four of the Final Five.

How can a Cylon "skin job" be defective? Well, if Saul Tigh can lose his hair over the course of 30 years, then why can't Roslin be stricken with cancer?

More proof: Roslin's "visions" may be interpreted as a variation (caused by the cancer) of the Cylons' ability to "project." In particular, she has a shared "dream" with Cylons Caprica Six and Sharon Agathon. Also, in Season 1, she had a vision about Leoben ...

... and he later told her that "Adama is a Cylon."

Well, if Roslin marries Bill Adama during the final 10 episodes, then she will be an Adama. (I seriously doubt that the only other "female" Adama, Dualla, is the fifth Cylon. Nor do I think that Bill's ex-wife/widow, Carolanne, has been hiding in the fleet all this time, just waiting to be "clicked on." Neither she nor Dualla were attracted by the music.)

Why isn't Starbuck the fifth and final Cylon? Because that would be too obvious, and if I've learned anything about showrunners Ronald D. Moore and David Eick, they never fall back on the obvious. They've been surprising us for four seasons.

I also considered that Major Kendra Shaw from Battlestar Galactica: Razor might be the fifth and final Cylon, but only because that old Hybrid called her by name, said that he'd been waiting a long time for her, and said that he'd seen her life and the things she's had to do. He also warned her about Starbuck ... but only that she'd "lead the human race to its end," which we now know meant the devastated planet Earth.

About that: What happened to Earth? Was it nuclear war or a natural disaster (such as a "global killer" meteor strike)? Again, I think the nuclear war angle is too obvious. I'm going with a natural global disaster, simply because there's been so much news recently (e.g., the end of the Mayan calendar) about how 21 December 2012 is supposed to be a date of major importance, possibly a major turning point for life on Earth. If it is the "end of days," then Galactica has found Earth long after the disaster, and, together with the Cylons, must repopulate the species. Cylon cloning technology may be essential to that effort.

So that's it. My vote is locked in. I'll be right or wrong or somewhere in the middle ... but I will certainly savor the final 10 episodes of this extraordinary series.

Final Thoughts Before the 4th, Part 1

The second half of Battlestar Galactica's fourth and final season is set to debut on Friday, 16 January. Before the first half began, I posted a piece on scifi.com/battlestar in which I tried to make sense of the saga up to that point. Here it is, dated 4 April 2008:

I haven't read anyone else's thoughts or predictions. I don't have any "inside information" from the producers. I don't know anyone connected to the show. These are my ideas. If you don't like potential spoilers, then please don't read this.

The gist of BSG's opening text is true:

1) "The Cylons were created by Man." This refers to the Centurions.
2) "They rebelled." During the first war.
3) "They evolved." Or they were evolved … by the "skin jobs," who were not Cylon, but nevertheless adopted the name for themselves.
4) "There are many copies." Yes, 12 of the "new" humanoid Cylons.
5) "And they have a plan." The skin jobs do, as you'll read.

Who transcribed the exodus of the 13th Tribe from Kobol? How did the Sacred Scrolls find their way back to the 12 Colonies?

The 13th Tribe probably was composed mostly of the gods, or Lords of Kobol, who would later inspire the Greek and Roman cultures on Earth. In Greek mythology, there are 12 "major" Olympian gods, who directly translate back to the 12 Lords of Kobol. They are Zeus, Hera, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Poseidon, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hephaestus, Ares, Demeter and Dionysus = 7 males and 5 females. The Lords do not share a similar biochemistry with the humans of the 12 Colonies.

There are 12 Cylon models patterned after the 12 Olympian gods: Six, Sharon, D'Anna, Cavil, Leoben, Simon, Doral, Tyrol, Tory, Tigh and Anders = 7 males and 4 females. The 12th and final Cylon is female. The Cylons do not share a similar biochemistry with the people of the 12 Colonies.

[The Centurions did not evolve into skin jobs. After the first war, they left the 12 Colonies and eventually were met by the 12 emissaries of the Lords of Kobol: the skin jobs.]

Laura Roslin may be the 12th Cylon model. Within the fleet, she has no ties back to a family. That's because she was programmed with a history. She has a deep faith in the Lords of Kobol. Her model may have returned from Earth with the Sacred Scrolls. She has a destiny foretold in the Sacred Scrolls and fulfills it. However, for some reason, her model is malfunctioning from a cancer that can't be destroyed by Colonial medicine. Baby Hera's hybrid blood only appears to have done so. The waking "projection" she shares with Caprica Six and Sharon strongly indicates her true ancestry, despite the hallucinogenic effects of chamalla.

Starbuck may be the 12th Cylon model. Within the fleet, she has no ties back to a family. That's because she was programmed with a history. She has a deep faith in the Lords of Kobol. Her model may have returned from Earth with the Sacred Scrolls. She has a destiny foretold in the Sacred Scrolls and fulfills it. In "Maelstrom," she's sucked into and destroyed by the vortex, which is really some kind of "wormhole" back to Earth. Her history is downloaded into a new body and sent back to the Galactica. She may lead the humans to Earth to be reunited with the 13th Tribe.

[In Battlestar Galactica: Razor, the Centurions are creating a Male Hybrid using human parts. That's what young Bill Adama witnessed, not the creation of the 12 skin jobs.]

Why does the Male Hybrid predict that "Kara Thrace will lead the human race to its end. She is the herald of the apocalypse, the harbinger of death. They must not follow her"? Who are "they"? How long has the Male Hybrid known this? Does such knowledge further indicate that Starbuck is a Cylon?

Answer: This Hybrid is old and forgotten, tended by obsolete Centurions. How does he know about Kara Thrace? From the Leobens, who revere every word spoken by the new Female Hybrid. There's some fragment of a connection between the Male and the Female Hybrid. The Leobens believe that Kara has a destiny. One Leoben even told Kara the same prediction repeated by the Male Hybrid: "All of this has happened before, and it will happen again."

This is either: 1) nothing more than a hodgepodge of ideas pieced together by the doddering old Male Hybrid, who's "in" his deathbed; or 2) a true prediction by the Leobens, who are "drawn" to Kara Thrace, believing her to be kindred, and believing that her leading mankind to its destruction is OK as long as "they" — the Cylon skin jobs — don't follow her, but rather wait for her to "reunite" the 12 Cylon models.

Why did the skin jobs orchestrate the violent destruction of the 12 Colonies and most of the human race? This speaks to why the 12 Lords originally left Kobol: A schism — ideological, theological, etc. — developed between them and the humans. Perhaps the humans also were divided. When the Lords left Kobol, they may have engineered an "apocalyptic scenario" or "scare" that soon drove the humans away from Kobol to settle the 12 Colonies in peace. On Kobol, the Lords left behind clues as to their whereabouts for the people of the 12 Colonies to find and follow to Earth someday, after they'd "grown up."

[There are 12 signs of the Zodiac as seen from Earth. The 12 Colonies are similarly named. On Kobol, the 12 Lords left behind images of these constellations for the people of the 12 Colonies to find and follow to Earth.]

Unfortunately, when the Lords sent back 12 artificial emissaries to check on the Colonies' progress, they learned of the war and how the humans had become even more divided. In their "deified" minds, the Lords decided to teach humanity a lesson. They allied with the Centurions and assumed the identity of Cylons. They advanced Cylon technology and created their own cloning process using the Resurrection Ships. They were going to scare the hell out of the 12 Colonies.

Then something happened. The 12 skin jobs themselves became divided. The Seven wanted to unleash a real apocalypse on the Colonies, while the Five believed that plan to be too harsh. The Five programmed five clones to secretly infiltrate the Colonies and save at least some of humanity, but these clones would neither recognize the Seven nor each other (probably for security reasons). The Seven, livid because of the schism, reprogrammed their clones to forget the Five. The Seven carried out their deadly plan, not knowing the Five were among the humans.

[The "recognition de-programming," however, wasn't entirely successful. Cylon Number Three later learned that, between life and death, it was possible to catch glimpses of the Five.]

Another byproduct of the Cylon schism was a loss of faith in themselves as "gods." This filtered down throughout the Seven's clones. Their attack on humanity was also an attack on themselves and their imperfection. They began calling themselves the "children of humanity." And they came to believe in one God, based on Earth memories that had filtered down from the knowledge of the 12 Lords.

"All of this has happened before, and it will happen again." First spoken by the Male Hybrid in Battlestar Galactica: Razor, and later repeated by Leoben. It's the story of humanity.