Written by Michael Taylor
Directed by Michael Rymer
Written by Mark Verheiden
Directed by Michael Rymer
“It would be easier, wouldn’t it? Simpler…justice of the mob…it’s what they want. Especially her. She’s been wanting this for over a year, now. Ever since, he beat her in a free and fair election of the people. Now, she has a chance to exact her revenge, upon a man, who’s only REAL crime, is BOWING to the inevitable. Gaius Baltar saved the lives of the people on New Caprica. Where, Laura Roslin, would have seen us all dead, victims of a battle, we had NO HOPE IN WINNING! I don’t know about you, but I’m glad she was not the president, when the Cylons arrived and said surrender or DIE!! I owe my life, to Gaius Baltar and the decision he made that day…so does Laura Roslin.”
Breathtaking, stunning, amazing…are there enough adjectives and superlatives in the language to adequately praise two season-closing episodes that are satisfying beyond all expectations? Let’s explore a few more…
CREEPY: The most exquisitely creepy atmosphere Galactica has created to date — it’s stunning just how well it permates both episodes. The odd camera angles, the intense close ups…and the jacked up paranoia of the entire fleet, all masterfully concocted by director Michael Rymer. But this heart-pounding craziness is embodied in one man: Colonel Tigh. Drunk, confused, and obsessed with the music he keeps hearing…watching him stumbling around is a spectacle that is both fascinating and terrible. After a season of incredible showcase moments, Michael Hogan manages to top himself with the performance of his lifetime. He’ll no doubt once again be ignored by an Emmy Awards that should take special note of a man who can convey so much emotion with only one eye and muttered half-whispers.
CATHARTIC: Lee Adama’s testimony at Baltar’s trial is a cry of despair and outrage – the conscience of the entire fleet…of all humanity – and it comes pouring out of him like Niagara Falls. It’s a damning assessment of what humanity has become (“We’re not a civilization…we’re a gang!”), part condemnation, and part plea for compassion and mercy. It’s the entire ethos of the series to date, and the case is made by the man who has been the abused and battered Jiminy Cricket of the series – who has carried all the pain and heartache of suffering and survival, and doesn’t know how much more he can handle. It needed to be said…and it’s said with great style and courage. Bloody hell, Jamie Bamber is good at what he does…
“And me? Well…where do I begin? I shot down a civilian passenger ship, the Olympic Carrier. Over a thousand people onboard. Forgiven. I raised my weapon to a superior officer …committed an act of mutiny! Forgiven! And then, on the very day that Baltar surrendered to those Cylons, I as Commander of the Pegasus, jumped away! I left everybody on that planet alone, undefended, for months! I even tried to persuade the admiral, never to return! To abandon you all there, for good! If I had had my way, nobody would have made it off that planet. I’m the coward. I’m the traitor! I’m forgiven! I’ ld say, that we’re very forgiving of these things. We make our own laws, now …our own justice and we’ve been pretty creative at finding ways to let people off the hook for EVERYTHING, from theft to murder! And we’ve had to be, because …because we’re not a civilization, anymore! We are a GANG! And we’re on the run! And we have to fight to survive! We have to break rules, we have to bend laws, we HAVE to improvise! …But not this time, no …not this time. Not for Gaius Baltar. No. You have to die! You have to die, because, well…because we don’t like you very much. Because you’re arrogant, because you’re weak, because you’re a coward! And we the mob…we want to throw you out the air lock, because you didn’t stand up to the Cylons and get yourself killed in the process! That’s justice, now! You should have been killed back on New Caprica! But, since you had the temerity to live, we’re going to execute you NOW! That’s justice!”
TERRIFYING: The revelation of four of the final five Cylons is a scene of amazing power: shock, disappointment, regret…and the realization of everything the series has been trying to say about being human since Sharon was re-accepted into the fleet. It’s not biology or technology that makes you who you are…it’s your heart, your mind, and your soul. It’s summed up beautifully by Tigh, who is determined to be the man he has always been, Cylon or human…and it’s enough to make you weep. Damn you, Michael Hogan!
HOPEFUL: The not-guilty verdict in the trial – and the Admiral’s key role as the swing vote – spins the series into new directions. Some are hopeful…the re-establishment of the judicial system within the fleet, the victory of justice over mob rule…but some are more ambiguous. A Baltar cult? Possible vigilantism in the future? It’s imperfect, messy, and it’s certainly a can of worms…but it’s the can labeled civilization, and the worms are the messy threads that are necessary in order to build such a civilization. It’s two episodes of realistic hope, complete with the pitfalls and mistakes humans always make when they try to strive for a goal. The greater the risk, the greater the reward…
FRAKING OUTRAGEOUS: The final act is gorgeous beyond description. A rapid build-up of events that brings the season to an adrenaline-draining conclusion: the power outage, the arrival of the fleet at the Ionian Nebula…with the Cylons arriving right behind them…the revelation of four new Cylons…and the mysteries. Mysteries that aren’t solved, but are hinted at & teased…leaving plenty of juicy material for the next season. The shared dream between Sharon, Caprica Six and Roslin is intriguing enough…but then the writers & producers trump everything they have ever done by BRINGING STARBUCK BACK FROM THE DEAD, and saying that SHE’S BEEN TO EARTH & WILL SHOW THEM THE WAY!
Sweet Jesus!
It was a moment where fainting would be utterly acceptable…and I certainly shared Lee’s dumbfounded expression!
THAT TRIUMPHANT FINAL SHOT: A glorious pull out, worthy of Star Trek and Contact, streaking away from the conflagration in the Ionian Nebula…and finishing with a beautiful shot of their eventual destination…Earth…backed by a thumping, powerful, climactic realization of the music that has been haunting both episodes’ running time.
It’s within sight. Another chapter is finished, and the next one beckons. Battlestar Galactica ends its third (and greatest) season with the finest of season finales (and light years ahead of last season’s closing two-parter). Two episodes, written by two of Galactica’s best writers…but with Executive Producer Ron Moore’s fingerprints all over them. Bring on January 2008…waiting nine months until the next season of one of television’s greatest programs will be excruciating.
10
