Written by Jane Espenson
Directed by Edward James Olmos
“I didn’t know…so I buried my head in the sand, and I took it, and I settled. I settled for that shriek! Those dull, vacant eyes. Boiled cabbage stench of her. And why? Because this is my life! This is the life I picked! And that’s fine…but you know what…it’s not! I didn’t pick this life! This isn’t my frakkin’ life!”
This may seem like a shorter review than usual…mainly due to the fact that this episode is about as close as an episode of Galactica can come to standing still. Yet in spite of entering a holding pattern, the manuvers of the cast make this another solid outing.
Escape Velocity is an episode full of people losing themselves…in roles, in emotions, in moods, in the vagries of fate. We watch Lee step up to become a protector of civil rights…only to wade right back into the role of Baltar advocate. We watch Tory continue her slide into the dark side of seeking “perfection”…and feel repugnant by the slimy joy she seems to take from the experience. We watch Chief Tyrol succumb to anger & resentment, and begin to question what kind of man he has become…always assuming he still thinks of himself AS a man. We watch Roslin slowly succumb to the inevitable decline in her health…and Baltar assume the mantle of messiah…
…whether he wants the job or not!
Finally, and most spectacularly, we have the dance between Six and Colonel Tigh. It’s shocking, borderline erotic, and so very very RAW. That gaping eye hole will haunt you for hours after watching it!
Raw is the best description for this episode. Religious, political, and personal turmoil boil over, as characters dare to touch the burning fingers of destiny that seem to be reaching out to them…inexorably…unstoppably. There is very little plot momentum in Escape Velocity, but the chess moves that slowly reposition our tormented cast members are so exquisitely managed that you can’t take your eyes off of them. Another slow-burning masterpiece of character development and emotional distress. Dark magic at its finest, and definitely Jane Espenson’s best script since arriving on staff last season.
9
