The Return of Starbuck

One wonders if this episode's basic story was left over from plans for a second season of the last show. It's so good to see Dirk Benedict again, and he gets a great story here. Despite the fact that it is not exactly original (the basic story had been done before, notably in Enemy Mine, and would be again on other series, such as TNG's "The Enemy" and "I, Borg"), it's engaging and fun. Starbuck never gets out of character, but he gains added dimension. 

I mentioned "I, Borg" above, and thinking back on it there are a lot of similarities. A robotic killing machine is found injured, repaired, and reprogrammed to befriend humans. Ultimately he becomes a weapon against his own people. This is quite literal in Cy's case who shoots his fellow Cylons at the end.

I would like to know why we have Starbuck narration. Who is he narrating to? Is he keeping a log? We never see one. The story is being told by Dr. Z, who dreamed it. At one point Z narrates. So why is there not a consistent narrator for the whole show?

I was a bit disappointed with the appearance of Angela. It felt like an intrusion on the Starbuck/Cy story. Maybe it would have worked better as a two-parter. Where did she come from? Her name obviously refers to "angels". Is she one of the Holy Kryptonian people from the last show? It doesn't seem so since they had no bodies outside their ship. Who impregnated her? Z refers to Starbuck as his father, but this isn't really true. Angela calls Starbuck the "spiritual father". I wonder if the original story was to have it really be Starbuck's baby, but the censors nixed it. Maybe not, but that seems to make more sense to me.

When Angela stands on that little hill as Starbuck cradles his fallen enemy/friend and she says, "He is good, very good," it makes me think of "Arena", the Trek episode with the Gorn. It's just like when the Metron stands there and praises Kirk for showcasing mercy, then disappears.

I wonder why Starbuck can't just rebuild Cy again. Maybe he feels it wouldn't be the same.

"The Return of Starbuck" is easily the best episode of the series. We learn why Starbuck is absent; he's marooned on some planet! He may very well still be alive too. We get a bit more background on Dr. Z. Knowing he has an alien origin helps explain his intelligence, and the fact that he's Starbuck's "son" indicates why Adama may put so much faith in him. This show is just more interesting than super children getting into wacky trouble in Los Angeles. It's sad we don't get more resolution, but at least the series ends on a high note. 

Lessons of the week: You can make friends in the most unlikely of places, Starbuck is very good