Blood on the Scales

It's good that we're finally involving the Cylon base ship in these events, after my curiosity as to why they were not getting involved. What's Roslin's big problem? Why not just let them jump away, at least for awhile? Then Gaeta sort of gets what he wants and the revolution can end! There's another strike against the Adama/Roslin administration.

Roslin spends much of this episode shouting about how she is the President and ordering people around. Didn't she all but abdicate that position like two episodes ago? Where's that Roslin? She is so thoroughly annoying in this episode. Her every mannerism now is aggravating, and her inflections bother me. Her lips always seem pursed, so she looks like she has a mustache. I just hate her so much.

Baltar's having prophetic dreams all of a sudden? Should we be concerned about this? Is this actually going to play into the mythology, or is it just an excuse to have a fake execution?

Look at Tyrol going all Scotty in this episode, right down to saving the day by working in a tube (read: Jeffries tube). I was a bit underwhelmed that the FTL drive is just a big churning gear. And how does that thing make a leap faster than light? I could buy the "Star Trek" idea of exploding antimatter to create propulsion. But I'm supposed to believe some really big pistons and cogs can accelerate something like that? Sorry, at times like this it's better just not to know. 

In this episode, Zerek and Gaeta are executed for instigating mutiny. I find this just savage, and it demonstrates exactly Gaeta's point that Adama is a different guy. Adama would never have executed people earlier in the series. He faked it once to end a strike. But how does it make any sense to execute anyone when the fate of humanity is at stake? Yes, I understand he warned there would be no amnesty. And in a way, I can understand that there should be a price to pay. But remember the strike that essentially amounted to mutiny? He didn't execute Tyrol. I do think Gaeta went too far. He should have been allowed to express dissent without having to resort to a coup to make his point. But when you are trying to keep humanity from destroying itself, how does execution help anything? Though kudos for going through with the formality of a firing squad because that's what the law prescribes, even though they could have just airlocked them. It's not a very fitting end for Gaeta though. I miss the Gaeta from season one, and it's a shame his character was kicked around so much that he became a nuisance.

Having dealt a bit with Gaeta, let's talk about Zerek. I flat out don't believe that this is the same Tom Zerek we've seen since the start of the series, and that the writers intentionally messed with him just to get him shot. I don't care how much of a criminal or revolutionary or terrorist he supposedly was; the Tom Zerek from "Bastille Day" would not order the execution of an entire governing body just because they didn't do things his way. The whole reason they even have a quorum is because he pushed the issue. He has every right to be mad at Roslin, who essentially stole his job not once but twice. But the Zerek I know would not do that. Would he arrange a coup? Likely, if pushed far enough. But he seems flat out bloodthirsty here in a way I just don't think Zerek really is. He deserved better. He deserved vindication. And Richard Hatch deserved a place in the finale. Why is nobody acting in character in this show?

On an interesting side note, the immortal Lee Adama strikes again. I commented way back in "Sacrifice" how unfair it was that Billy died but Lee was just wounded. Lee is the character who just doesn't die. Note here that he alone survives of all the Quorum of Twelve. Why is it that he just happened to not be in the room at the time? Because the writers like him. It borders on ridiculous how often Lee should be dead but isn't.

I'm glad this story is over with, though it frustrates me that two more characters are dead and yet none of their points have actually been properly addressed. After two episodes, aren't we still essentially where we were before?

The Oath

Tensions come to a head as Gaeta instigates a full-scale mutiny. And you can understand it. And yet, watching the episode, something felt very wrong about the whole thing. Not just that the marines and guys who were taking care of things seemed all too eager to be excessively violent. The whole show was set up to clearly make Zerek a mustache-twirling villain, and have Gaeta go down in flames. I'm not sure that's fair to the character's arc. Why did nobody come for Tyrol after they locked up Anders and Athena? I don't like that they seem to be making Zerek so evil again. It's like they want to justify that Roslin was right way back in season one for not trusting a convict. But he just wants democracy. Yes, he can be a little extreme, but they're making him out to be the LBJ in this assassination conspiracy (I'm not saying LBJ actually was responsible for the Kennedy assassination; it's just a metaphor). What does this do for all the reconciliation on New Caprica? Or the fact that he let Roslin be President despite the fact he really legally held the office? All that goes out the window! Now he's just bent on killing Adama? 

Adama's actions are stupid. His judgment is clouded by his sleeping with the President, and an alliance is not going to work. It hasn't worked yet. Tyrol has made it plain the Cylons want on the Quorum. Is Adama really going to allow that? Gaeta is correct, this is not the Adama we first knew. Unfortunately, the show has started taking sides, and you can feel that all the energy is directed against Gaeta. 

The worst part of it is basically that the episode paints all the humans as inhuman, and the Cylons as great people. Athena just wants to protect her baby. Tigh has Adama's back. Anders doesn't know who he is anymore. Tyrol saves the day. Even the fact that Starbuck is just accepted as Starbuck and everyone is ignoring that she's some ghost of Starbuck, she's been called the Harbinger of Death, and that we don't know why she's there. It's HER fault they got to Earth! Why does she get no blame? We even see Adama buddying up to Tigh like nothing happened between them. What happened to the Adama that felt betrayed that his friend was a Cylon? He got over that in a week? The problem with all this "the Cylons are good" crap is that it cannot be the case after viewing the webisodes. The whole scenario plays out far more differently if you just think Gaeta's doing this out of his own feelings. In "Face of the Enemy" we learned that the Cylons are still bad, and will still kill the humans. They are dangerous, so Gaeta is justified. Not that there are no personal motivations, of course there are. But in a way he really is doing this for his uniform, unlike Adama. And I don't know why a mutiny on philosophical grounds (refusing to follow orders that the Quorum deemed illegal) should suddenly escalate into shootings and kidnappings and coups. I also worry about Adama saying there would be no amnesty now, which also seems out of character. Where's all the forgiveness preached by Lee in "Crossroads"?

I also have to ask about the logic of Kara saying "Semper frackin' fi". I still bristle when I hear Latin and Earth expressions on this show that feel out of place.

Essentially it seems to me that not one character is thinking clearly, so I don't know how to feel about all this. It also seems like so many other threads are being ignored in favor of this. Why are the Cylon base ships just sitting around? Don't they want some input in all this? Or are they playing Gaeta so that he will dismantle the fleet from the inside?

A Disquiet Follows My Soul

They've done away with the pre-cap entirely now it seems. Well, it makes sense since, if Ellen really is the fifth Cylon, they can't continue saying "One will be revealed". It also reflects a slight shift in the series; if Gaeta's actions are any indication, the show is returning its focus to humanity, and not wallowing in its fascination with the Cylons. I've long felt the precap only served to make the series about the Cylons.

Caprica's baby seems to be doing well. I was glad they addressed the fact that this is the first time Cylons have been able to breed. Did the Cylons on Earth reproduce? Is this a function of the old Cylons? If this indeed means that Cylons can reproduce and their race will not die out, there are implications for the series as a whole. The whole reason the Cylons didn't wipe out humanity outright is because they needed to learn to "love" and thus procreate, right? So doesn't this mean that humanity is no longer safe, and that an alliance is a very bad idea?

Ellen being the fifth Cylon creates a real problem that's been bothering me. Several episodes ago, Roslin and D'Anna clearly said that the "Final FIVE" were in the fleet. But Ellen is dead. So did she resurrect? Is she hiding somewhere in the fleet? Or is this just another example of a continuity error due to writing without a plan? Lee was a real moron about letting slip that "she is dead". 

I note that they've changed the main titles again and eliminated that stuff about Earth. 

Hey, Gaius got a haircut! I'm glad he's acknowledged that he's just been making all this stuff up. I could not believe that God was really filling his mouth with all the drivel he's been spilling. And Six telling him that whenever he speaks he's inspired smacks of the circular logic the Catholic church uses about the Pope speaking "ex cathedra".

Aha, so Nicholas is NOT Tyrol's son. On the one hand that's good because it eliminates the lingering magic baby question, but on the other hand it makes Callie a slut. Did we need to besmirch her so? When was this kid conceived? The doc says it was before their marriage. Does that mean it was before he proposed, and that he beat up a pregnant woman who then had her jaw wired shut? Or is it that they were engaged after that, then she slept with the other guy, thus making her a two-timing skank? Neither option seems good. I think it was just a quick fix on the writers' part realizing that there was collateral damage from Tyrol being a Cylon.

Zerek at one point says the "Adama-Roslin administration" (isn't that a fun way to refer to it?) strung the fleet along with a lie and that "Earth was a mirage". Um, no it wasn't! It was real! There was a planet! They walked on it! Nobody ever promised it would have been habitable at this point. You can't fault them for not knowing the condition of a planet 2000 years into the future. But they said they would find Earth and they did and it was real! Why are they getting blamed for all that? It's the Cylons' fault the planet is inhabitable! Blame Tigh!

On one hand, since the Cylons were apparently the "thirteenth colony", then having them in the quorum makes a certain sense on their side. But it really is tactically stupid. Why are they allied with the Cylons anyway? The Cylons can't keep from killing each other. What makes Adama think this is a good idea?

Favorite line: "Oh, if I'm their father, these people are in for more trouble than they know." For once, Baltar speaks undeniable truth.

The Face of the Enemy webisodes

These webisodes center around Gaeta. It's nice to involve a secondary character. And unlike previous webisodes, we actually gain information here. We learn what it was that Baltar knew about and whispered to Gaeta that caused him to attack.

The story itself isn't much. There's an 8 who no one trusts, and it turns out with good reason because she slowly kills them. Was she going to kill Gaeta? Who can say? What none of this really answers is whether the jump was in fact an accidental glitch or whether it was planned. I don't expect that it was planned, but with the 8 doing so much bad for the rest of the webisodes, one has to wonder. And guess what? It all goes back to New Caprica again! That stupid New Caprica that ruined everything rears its ugly head. We find that Gaeta had some sort of affair with an 8 who was rounding people up and killing them. Wait a sec, did Cavil know about this? And I thought that the Eights were siding with the Sixes back then. It seemed like the "death squads" thing was a new drastic measure at the start of the third season. But this story wants us to believe the Cylons had been killing people for some time. It seems a little out of place.

Ultimately, this story is just to set up that Cylons are still bad and no alliance is a good idea. I like that Gaeta sings again. But what's this about him being gay or bisexual or whatever? Or is kissing a dude on the mouth just innocuous? I don't think so. It's irrelevant, and I hate when stuff like that comes onscreen just for no reason. Maybe Gaeta turned to dudes after being turned off by canoodling with a Cylon.

Overall reaction: Meh. But better than the previous episode. Sort of.

Sometimes a Great Notion

Well, I've finally gotten the 4.5 discs, and sat down with the start them, hoping that the second half of the season will be better. To be blunt, it isn't. This episode is just as bad as the ones that preceded it. And what does the title even mean? To me it means the "great notion" (rebooting Galactica) sometimes goes horribly wrong. Because it has.

The precap has been changed again, and now reads that "four live in the fleet" rather than in secret, since the secret is out. Though doesn't that mean that 11 are known, and not "seven are known"? And the opening title music was missing! I wonder if they got rid of it entirely, or just scrapped it here because the episode was running long.

It turns out that yes, indeed this blown up Earth is in fact the Earth they've been looking for. Or at least that's what we are being told right now. And the thirteenth tribe were... your ready?... CYLONS. That's right. The story has completely ceased making sense. This whole time they've been searching for the missing thirteenth tribe, and it turns out to be Cylons! Are you kidding me? The "final four" or five or however many there are were colonists on Earth when it got blowed up. But this needlessly complicates things. The humans build Cylon robots. The Cylon robots kidnap and torture humans for tissue and make Cylon humanoids and hybrids. That makes sense. But now we are supposed to believe that humans made humanoid Cylons while on Kobol, and then when they were expelled from paradise BOTH the humans and the humanoid Cylons built robot Cylons that blew them all up?! That's the stupidest thing ever! That's even dumber than the superscouts playing baseball. Furthermore, this means that the "final five" predate the "12 cylon models" by an enormous length of time. So who programmed those 7 to know that there were a total of twelve? Doesn't this mean they are completely different? Doesn't this mean the "final five" have very little to do with the others, and so grouping them all together as 12 has been a big lie the whole time?

Moving on with this notion, I am certain that there were more than 5 different "models" of Cylon on Earth at its peak. So does that not mean there are vastly more than 12 Cylon models, and if so, where the frack are the rest of them? Why didn't they download again? Or are they off in magical holy Krypton land with "God"?

No big surprise about the transmission coming from the wreckage of Kara's Viper. Once the found the wreckage, I knew they'd find Kara. Though this now begs the question of how the wreckage from inside the swirling clouds ended up on Earth...

Anders says that it has been two thousand years since they lived on Earth. REALLY? Two thousand years? And the planet isn't habitable? I have a hard time believing that, since the Cylons at least were living on the nuked Caprica RIGHT AFTERWARD.

If Earth was populated by Cylons, does that mean Cylons wrote "All Along the Watchtower"? What an insult to Bob Dylan!

I dislike Lee's little speech about how now they are "free to go where we want to go" without the promise of Pythia and bread crumbs of Earth dragging them down. I hope he doesn't really believe that. That sort of thinking is part of a philosophy that sees all religion and faith as a fetter and that only when it is relinquished can you be free. But that's nonsense. And it certainly hasn't seemed to comfort anyone else in the fleet. 

And it sure didn't do anything for Dualla who shot herself in the head!! What sort of writing is that? There's no motiviation for it, she just does it. It's the sort of thing writers do when they don't know what to do; they kill off characters hoping that a moment of shock value will equal drama. Well, we've done the crazy deaths already on this show. I'm tired of it, and Dualla deserved better. And it didn't even make sense. Really, finding a devastated planet leads her to suicide within a day or two? 

I've been wondering just what makes Kara the harbinger of death. Maybe it's the Dualla thing. Maybe Kara's responsible for her death. But that still seems lame, and I feel like I've been teased with things that have never played out sensibly.

May I just ask if they actually surveyed the entire planet? Because they all just walk around the same cityscape, but a planet is a BIG place. I don't know why science fiction has such a hard time getting a handle on that. It seems planets are always written as one big homogenous biome, when we know that our own planet is nothing like that. So why would this Earth be? Maybe other parts are less damaged. Maybe it's still colonizable. I mean, if they can live on New Caprica, I bet they could maybe live here. Of course, New Caprica is just another example. Why didn't the humans just live on one side of the planet, and the Cylons on the other? DUH.

And then the big reveal at the end of the episode: the fifth and final Cylon is.... Ellen? No way. That just makes it all the more silly than it was before. And I'm not convinced she's "the fifth" when, as stated above, there must have been MANY different Cylons on Earth. And doesn't it seem just too darn convenient that Ellen and Saul were together, then died and were reborn and got together? And their marriage certainly didn't demonstrate a love beyond time, space and death, did it? This show gets dumber by the minute and it is a real chore to watch now.

Oh, and I've now begun rooting for Roslin to die as soon as possible.

Revelations

I actually watched this some time ago, but haven't gotten around to writing about it. I'm still waiting for the season 4.5 DVDs to come back to the library so I can take them out (I know I could hulu them, but I'd rather the DVD), so I guess I've got some time before I see how these things are resolved.

Throughout the episode, characters talk about the "Final Four" in the fleet. In fact, the story hinges on those four Cylons showing themselves and going over to D'Anna's ship. But wait, I thought we established there were FIVE Cylons in the fleet! Last episode, it was all about the Final Five; now suddenly it's just the four? Who is the fifth, and why does he or she not need to show himself?

At least Tigh finally came out and said he was a Cylon. I respect him for suggesting they airlock him. I can understand why Adama couldn't believe it; because it is stupid. I hate that Tigh is a Cylon. Adama's suggestion that they did something to him while he was jailed on New Caprica is a good one! And I thought that the Final Five knew the way to earth? That's not what happened! In fact, their coming forward had very little to do with Kara's Viper. Unless it was only D'Anna's ultimatum which triggered the music again. Oh, and Tory had nothing to do with the Viper thing, so how does that make sense? They didn't even find out about Earth from the Viper; they just knew something was weird about it (by the way, I figured out pretty early on it would be something to do with the computer systems). Does the fact that it was KARA who figured out what was up with the Viper mean that SHE is the Fifth Cylon? It would make some sense; her resurrection and all. But I really hope that's not the case. 

It seems Roslin is grooming Lee to replace her as President. I'm sorry, I guess she's just decided on her own that the Fleet is no longer a democracy and has become almost a monarchy. She can just choose a successor? I hate Roslin now. I eagerly await her death.

Speaking of death, what about Kara Thrace being the harbinger of death?? That whole thread has still gone nowhere. I do not believe that this "Earth" is their final destination. I don't know what it is, but there are a number of things wrong about it. It doesn't gel with the Eye of Jupiter stuff, nor has Kara fulfilled her role as harbinger of death. Where is the beacon coming from that Kara's Viper picked up? Furthermore, the old series did the Earth fakeout with the Terra storyline, so I'm kind of expecting that now. Why is this Earth all blown to pieces? And a planet is a BIG place; isn't any of it habitable? Why did they land at an old cityscape?

There just wasn't much for me in this episode. A number of things that have been dangling along this season were sort of wrapped up, but mainly because they strain credibility by being left for so long. So it's good to get the Final Four out in the open. But that whole storyline still makes absolutely no sense and I stand by my statement before that the show jumped the shark with that reveal. I've heard the second half is better. I hope so. I know fandom is split on how good the finale was. We'll see. I'm just eager to be done with the series. ...Of course, we'll always have Caprica. 

The Hub

Well, as the title implies, yes this is indeed the story of what happened with the resurrection hub. From the outset, doesn't it seem like the whole idea of a resurrection hub is just too easy? Like it's one big fat mcguffin to make the Cylons mortal. Remember way back in season 2 when "Resurrection Ship" told us if we just blow up the ship they won't be able to download. But then they just get other ships. So there's no way to prevent it without destroying all of their resurrection ships. Since that is a tall order, the writers invented a "resurrection hub" which controls all the ships. It's a terrible idea from a logical standpoint; if Cylon life is dependant on one central thing, that makes it an obvious target, no matter how much it jumps. It's an invention that, like the Borg Queen, betrays good sense for a quick and easy story focal point.

Did Baltar get a haircut? I don't remember his hair being that short in the previous episodes, but maybe I just stopped paying attention.

We finally get an answer about how the different Sharons knew so much about the others' backstories. I have wondered since season one why Athena Sharon remembers meeting Starbuck for the first time when that was Boomer's memory. We are told here that others of the same model can access memories of their sisters when they download. The Sharon (or should I call her 8?) with Helo tells him she accessed Athena's memories from when she last downloaded, and that's how she knows about her and has her memories. ...But I don't remember Athena dying and downloading, do you? All the 8s kind of mix up in my mind at this point. I remember Boomer downloading, but I thought Athena has been living uninterrupted since Caprica way back in season one. If this is the case, then the memories from her last download WOULDN'T include Helo, would they? I hate to have to be so picky. At least we got something of an explanation. Though of course this doesn't explain the knowledge that the Leobens and Sixes have.

Speaking of which, why is it that every model but Six is referred to by one alias? The Threes are all called "D'Anna". The Eights are "Sharons". But Six generally goes by Six, unless undercover, and she has used several different aliases. What's up with that?

I failed to bring this up earlier, but why WAS Boomer with Brother Cavil? What did she see in him? Why was she kissing him?? It was smart of Cavil to bring back D'Anna before the others had the chance to, though I suppose it backfired on him since he was killed. He constantly refers to the situation as a Cylon war. Maybe I'm being picky again, but isn't it a bit premature to call it a war? So far there's been an argument, some shooting, and one big attack. So that's a war? You started it, silly!

I don't like the fantasy sequences with Roslin and the old dead priestess. I don't really get the point of it all. She has to learn to love? Seriously? Is this a Cylon trick? Or is the series leading up to some lame Harry Potter resolution: the most powerful force in the universe is love? Why are the visions connected to the jumps? I thought jumps were instantaneous. Is Roslin gaining access to a world between worlds during the jumps? Is the priestess really there, or a hallucination? None of it really matters. I don't care! And in that vision, was Adama reading from Robinson Crusoe? It sure sounded like it, or was very similar. I hope it wasn't, because that's just one more element that doesn't make sense. We are to believe that they have Earth books, as well as Earth music?

I love the scenes with Baltar talking to the hybrid, and with Baltar and the Centurion. There's actually a continuity error with the Centurion. His little badge thing is on his right side, but there's one shot where it is on the left side.

I dislike that Baltar is wounded (yet again). Are we supposed to take the bleeding gash in his side as similar to Christ's? I'm inclined to say no, but thought I'd point it out. On the one hand, it's good to hear him express how he got rid of his guilt, but I don't think the explanation holds. Basically, he says he came to realize that he made a choice, but that God made the man who made the choice, and everyone is perfect, so he feels no guilt. That is the most ridiculous circular reasoning! I could buy it if it's just out of God loving him, and making him an instrument despite his flaws, but he literally says God rewarded him for destroying mankind! I've mentioned elsewhere how the perfection angle doesn't work. But Gaius is essentially saying that nobody should ever feel guilty about anything because ultimately it's all God's fault; he made you that way. It is funny to me that Roslin's actions sort of play off that. She says to herself, "Fine. Then I won't feel guilty for what I'm about to do," and rips off his bandage. Suddenly Baltar is all scared and begging for his life. But didn't God make Roslin perfect? Didn't he make her who made the choice not to help him? If Baltar were to die there, it would have been a cosmic irony. Of course, Roslin didn't let him die. She had to finally learn to forgive him.

That was a HORRIBLE joke the writers played on us! When D'Anna said Roslin was one of the Final Five, I was so mad. I'm glad it wasn't true, but how dare they do that to us. I wouldn't have put it past them. It wouldn't have made any sense, but then none of the Final Five stuff has really made sense. 

I just don't like Roslin anymore, so I'm tired of her story. I don't care about her and Adama. I don't care about her cancer. I just want her to go away. The episode was all right, but too Roslin heavy. And might I add: the whole point of going to the base ship was so the hybrid could tell Roslin about the opera house, and then forty minutes later, we still haven't learned anything about the opera house! So it was all one big dead end, and a waste of an episode!