I'm bringing this up separate from the Round-Up because there's been *so* much discussion about the rebooting of "Battlestar Galactica"...a series which, by the way, at the time it was on, was often contemptuously referred to as "Cattlecar Galactica" mostly due to the presence of Pa Cartwright. So it's been fascinating to me to watch this glow of nostalgia attached to a series that was seen by many contemporary SF fans as a quick TV endeavor to cash-in on "Star Wars" and nothing more than that.
That said, I've admired Richard Hatch's devoted endeavors to almost singlehandedly keep the series alive in the intervening thirty years, and I think his stirring the fandom pot is a large reason for it still being viable enough to be a new 4 hour film on the Sci Fi Channel. At a time when no one else in Hollywood gave a damn about it, his interest never wavered. Which is why I was royally pissed off when he was completely excluded from any involvement with the revival, because I consider Richard a friend and a good guy.
And that's why it's even more painful for me to admit that I kinda liked the show itself. Granted, the hormone level in the first half hour was way off the charts, and Kath and I couldn't help but note the complete absence of any significant black characters. While everyone was running around wringing their hands about Starbuck being transformed from a square jawed white man into a square jawed white womanl, I was more struck by the recasting of Boomer from a black man into an Asian woman. Where did *that* come from? Plus I think I would have been willing to accept that the TX knock-off Cylon was a bad ass without her showing her evilness by killing a baby in its stroller. I mean, c'mon. The Klingons showed they were badasses by torturing Starfleet officers. Doctor Doom shows he's a bad ass by whomping on the FF. Oooo, watch out for this bitch! She's so tough she can strangle an infant. Let's have her kick a puppy while we're at it (which, now that I think about it, wouldn't be such a bad thing, especially if it's that annoying robot puppy from the first series.)
But Edward James Olmos brings so much gravity to Adama, you'd think he was packing a white dwarf star in his pocket. The script is pretty sharp, the FX are nifty, and the rest of the actors have moments ranging from watchable to compelling (I swear, I thought the chief was going to put his fist through the X-O's face. "Forty seconds...I just needed forty seconds..." Wow.) As opposed to too many series, you really constantly got the sense that you were out in space, with all the dangers inherent in that most unforgiving of environments.
Damn, I miss John Colicos, though.
PAD
Posted by Peter David at December 9, 2003 02:19 PM | TrackBack | Other blogs commentingI liked the old technology angle.
I wish we could have seen more of the cool new Cylons instead of just a cylon who looks like a woman. I did like the ship-cylons though.
Many of the battles could have been shown intead of told.
Budgets.
I have to say that I'm still strongly against this show. They've changed so much, why not just give it another name, and say it was inspired by Battlestar? When the star of the show says "if you liked the original, you're not going to like this," that's a sign that something is horribly wrong.
The final blow, in my opinion, was the cylon chick. They're not even waiting for the Voyager ratings crash to happen, they're sending out the T&A guns right off the bat, which just screams of desperation.
If they had just called it something other than Battlestar, I probably would have liked it, just as I would have liked Phantom Menace if they weren't trying to tell me that it was part of the Star Wars saga.
The pace was pretty slow... but they had four hours to fill. I suspect if it becomes a TV series the result will be much more compelling. And it would have been nice to see a little humor prior to the attacks (perhaps in lieu of Boomer's sex scene, which was a bit much after Baltar's). I liked the new Baltar, though I have very fond memories of John Colicos. And the new Starbuck reminded me an awful lot of Dirk Benedict as the old Starbuck.
I watched it with my girlfriend and another couple. The other couple liked it well enough. My girlfriend got bored after 90 minutes and went to surf the net. Well, you can't please everyone. :-)
I loved the original show as a kid. But like PAD, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the new take. Katee Sackhoff added an element of danger to Starbuck, and Olmos and McDonnell really added gravity to the premise. There's been an insane amount of whining about the changes made by the fanboy set, but they didn't bother me in the end. And Moore's script parallels to 9/11 were subtle enough that they were striking instead of annoying.
One note: I don't think Number 6 killed that baby. I got the impression that she stole it and was carrying it in that metal case she had from that point forward.
Marc
PAD wrote:
"Plus I think I would have been willing to accept that the TX knock-off Cylon was a bad ass without her showing her evilness by killing a baby in its stroller. I mean, c'mon."
But the scene doesn't really show her evilness. It shows her ruthlessly mechanical detachment from normal human emotions. She kills the baby because she is testing it. It is like a small science experiment to her, as she was wondering just before how something as fragile as the baby's neck could support so much weight.
>The final blow, in my opinion,
>was the cylon chick. They're not
>even waiting for the Voyager
>ratings crash to happen, they're
>sending out the T&A guns right
>off the bat, which just screams
>of desperation.
It seemed pretty useful storywise though. I never understood Baltar's betrayal of humanity to a bunch of robots on the original series. Since Baltar's betrayal had to be depicted SOMEHOW, the version that we saw made a lot more sense to me.
The tone was sure different, but it was definitely the story of Galactica, and I can't see calling it anything else. (Favorite moment: at the commissioning ceremony, "Please stand for the Battlestar Galactica theme.") :-)
This "re-imagining" is something you have to take on its own merits. If you consider the original brilliant (which I don't see how you can) there's no way you can objectively watch this new series. That's what I believe Olmos meant.
But I feel they made it better in a lot of ways. (Definately better than ST:Enterprise). They show characters with emotions, technology that makes sense (maneuvering thrusters on the Vipers), and they put everyone in a no-win situation.
If you can watch it on its own merits, I think you'll enjoy it a lot more
"Moore's script", is that John Francis Moore?
Ron Moore
I have to say that I'm still strongly against this show. They've changed so much,
That's just it...what changes they've made simply aren't that major, despite fan wailings to the contrary. Compared to the total canvas of what can be written and what other shows are out there, these changes are just trivial.
Having watched some of the original episodes on Sci-Fi recently, I came to realize that the show does not hold up after 25 years. I'm not nearly impressed with them today as I was at nine years old. The show was schlockly, ham-fisted and ripped off too many movie of the week plots. Who could forget "Battlestar Inferno?"
The new effort at least attempts to explain the actions of Baltar and the Cylons instead of just telling the view they're evil and that's their motivation. It's not great, but it is significantly better than the original.
Oh, and Dr. Doom recently possessed Valeria Richards and tossed Franklin Richards into hell (literally). Is that bad-ass enough?
One note: I don't think Number 6 killed that baby. I got the impression that she stole it and was carrying it in that metal case she had from that point forward.
If you're listening carefully, you can hear the baby's neck snap when Number 6 reaches in to the crib.
As to why Baltar betrayed the Colonies in the original series, I recall that it was revealed that he had cut a deal with the Cylons with the understanding that the Cylons would conquer the Humans and set Baltar up as their ruler representing the Cylon overlords. He thought he was just commiting treason and mass murder instead of the genocide of his own people. Bottom line: he was just despicably evil to the Nth degree instead of pychotically evil.
So, is anyone just waiting for Number 6 to shout "I am not a number! I am a Cylon!"?
I was (pleasantly) surprised by this "reimagining" of Galactica. The casting of Adama was key and they did it for me with Edward James Olmos, who brought complete commitment and intensity to the role. The character of Starbuck, while changing genders, it still is recognizably Starbuck. Number 6 is still a little too "T3" for me at this stage, but I'm willing to see where they go with it. They do need to tone down the sex stuff, because it just seems like pandering to the LCD. Just bring on great acting and decent plots and you've got me for the duration. There is a bit of "Blade Runner" creations-destroying-their-creators subtext that I find intriguing. I haven't enjoyed a "space opera" TV show since "Babylon 5"--this might be it.
Well, I only saw the first half hour before I decided to go to bed. So I guess I only saw the bad stuff. And the disappointingly predictable stuff. ("She's gonna kill the baby, isn't she. They're gonna do it in the supply room, aren't they.")
One question for those of you who saw the rest: did the characters eventually become likable? Because I can't think of any I didn't want to see punched in the face by the time I stopped watching.
I'm a fan of the old, even though it's now quite campy, purely for the nostalgia.
Unlike the bungling of the remake of The Planet of the Apes, this I liked!
Although I agree that the Peyton Place scenerios were too early and too forced, it was fun to have in, they coulda just put it in later!
I Loved Olmos's quiet strength in Adama, Loved The morality play of Baltar spoilers to follow
(wow, that scene were the guy gives up his place for Baltar "the most brilliant mind of our time" was great. Though you know he won't, you almost hope that somehow he'll stop being a selfish coward and 'fess up.)By the way, why do i recognize the actors face who protrays him??
And lastly I LOVE the strong female characters! (You Go Stands-With-Fists!) I was leery of the changing of Starbuck and Boomer too, but hey it works well!
Oh and I also think they're doing a good job of tying in the old Galactica tech to the story. (Wish Enterprise coulda done that!)
All in all, yes indeedy, I like it!
I've enjoyed the first half, and I'm planning on seeing the second half in the second showing tonight. Gotta catch my 24 fix first. :)
Found it interesting that the Cylons are using a device capable of defeating themselves by accident, nukes. The mag-pulse from the explosion just doesn't seem like something that a machine would overlook. I do like that they have indicated that the Galactica used to have mag-pulse generators on-board and that Apollo recognized them in the hold of the shuttle.
I like the casting choices, and don't expect to get too much characterization in just 4 hours of a backdoor pilot.
I do think that the overall plot would have sat better with the old-guard BG fans if this was a "30-years later..." type of setup.
jeff
I was surprised that it was as good as it was. I think they were smart and gave a lot of the older fans a little nod here and there...such as the Cylons in the museum or gift shop. The original starfighters and also during the ceremony the Original Music being played while the ships rocket over head. Who knows...maybe they will bring in a cybernetic dog ( played of couse by an underpaid chimp in a badly fitted space suit) hahahah
By the way, why do i recognize the actors face who protrays him??
He was Bridget Jones' friend who used to be a one-hit wonder pop star.
(Thank you IMDB http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0130536/ )
Joe
Howdy,
I liked the original when it was on (even the "Galactica 1984" series, which should tell you how indiscriminating I was), and I liked this one even more. I'm not crazy about the new Apollo, who I don't think is as talented or good looking as Richard Hatch (you knew who Apollo was in the old BG -- this new guy fades into the woodwork within seconds). I'm also not crazy about the new female Starbuck, but only because she's a caricature instead of a character.
Changing Boomer to an Asian female was the greatest decision they could have made 'cuz I think she's the cutest member of the cast =8^). Boomer's a great name too. When I become a fighter pilot, I want to be called Boomer.
I was wondering if "Number 6" was a Prisoner reference, but if so, it's just a "yes we've watched the Prisoner too" reference rather than one with substance. Maybe I'm just dense, but I'm not seeing any connection between the robobabe and Patrick McGoohan. Unless, of course, she joins the Galactica after seeing the Error Of Her Ways, and "I am not a number, I am a free (wo)man" comes into play.
Did anybody else think Col. Tigh looked like Sen. John McCain?
-- Ed
>Well, I only saw the first half
>hour before I decided to go to
>bed. So I guess I only saw the
>bad stuff. And the
>disappointingly predictable
>stuff ....
>One question for those of you who
>saw the rest: did the characters
>eventually become likable?
I think so, yes. Apollo was thoroughly unlikeable the first hour or so, but I liked it when he immediately recognized that the new President knew what she was doing, and respected her authority. The drunken XO rose to the occasion with a tough call. Baltar passed up an opportunity to cheat his way to safety and seemed pretty remorseful for his screwups (not that that does anyone any good). I wasn't impressed by Boomer, but she redeemed herself somewhat in a strong scene where she was forced to choose who would live or die on a doomed planet.
But I agree, a lot of the first hour wasn't terribly riveting, and some of the early scenes seemed a little forced (like the opening on the space station).
AHHH yes! Bridget Jones! Thank you Joe, that was bugging me!
Sadly, this didn't do it for me. I wanted to like it, but it never quite reached me. I'll catch the second half. Hopefully, I'll enjoy that more. Have to catch the second showing though. Can't miss 24.
Bobby
Hi there,
Well, I for one thought the new BG was great. Sure it had flaws, but they weren't so huge that they took away from the rest of the story.
My take on the sexual content is that in the case of Baltar and Number 6 it made sense. Showing the two of them hitting the silk illuminated just how she got to him. He was a womanizer, she was a hottie, and that was all it took to get him to (unwittingly) betray humanity. However, the sex scene in the supply room was just unnecessary.
As to the argument of Number 6 killing the baby (and she did kill it) I got the feeling that in her mind it was an act of mercy. She gave the little guy a quick and relatively painless death rather than let him face the chaos her race was about to lay down on Caprica.
And one final note: how about the animosity between Apollo and Adama? That was a welcome change. If you watch the old reruns you see Richard Hatch practically genuflect every time Lorne Green walks in the room. In fact, if memory serves, everyone on the old show got along with each other. BORING! A little friction between principal characters makes for better drama. At least that's the way I see it.
TS
I didn't watch it, and don't really plan to. The original BG was a family western-in-space. I was 12 when it came out and our family watched it together each week.
However, the violence/hormone level we could see coming on the pre-release reviews made it clear that this WASN'T the Galactica I remember, and more importantly, not something I could watch with my 9-year-old.
Maybe it's good sci-fi/action/adventure, but it's not BG as far as I'm concerned.
PAD, now would be the time to pull out the "But I Digress" column on what fans want out of their comic books :)
I liked the first installment. I was a fan of the old series, but this re-imagining has caught my attention. I liked the new Starbuck, I didn't mind the animosity between Adama and Apollo, and it looked like they're playing up the civilian vs. military angle nicely. I also like the fact that unlike a lot of shows weren't afraid to dangers of being in space. Yeah, the back to back sex scenes made me roll my eyes, but it's not the pile of crap that people have been moaning about for months.
My own worthless opinions:
Plot: I came home late and caught the 2nd hour first, and the 1st hour on the repeat. That allowed me to watch the whole thing. Otherwise, i'd have turned it off within 30 minutes in disgust. Most of what we see in the 1st hour makes sense, but takes far, far too long to come to a point. When things start moving, everything flows very nicely and kept me attentive.
F/X: My only complaint was that the nuclear explosions were too "clean": everything was done from a distance, and looked fine up close. No radiation burns, no EMP, no devastation - a little of this would have gone a long way in a sense of doom. And it would have been over TWELVE planets, for pete's sake.
Acting: My biggest problem with the show, best to worst:
Adama: Perfect casting, perfect gravity. end of discussion.
The Secretary/President: Also well cast and well acted, but if she continues past the miniseries, they're going to have to take steps to make sure she's not shrewish. I want to make sure she has common sense and at least listens to Adama SOME times.
Tigh: While I miss Terry Carter's quiet dignity in the role, Michael Hogan's Tigh grew on me. They've replaced discipline and determination with surliness and frustration, but it still works - and we see and stronger bond between he and Adama.
Starbuck: Eh. Okay, she kicks butt. And she gambles. She has nothing on Dirk Benedict's Brett Maverick-like character, who played the gambling coward who could kick your butt in a heartbeat. Benedict started the role with much more character than we've seen so far from Starchick.
Apollo,, Boomer, Baltar, et. al: Fade into the woodwork as soon as they're off camera. Not a strong presence from the lot. If it weren't for Olmos, there would not be a single actor who could pull the movie through. Apollo and Boomer are bland (I miss Herb Jefferson, too). Baltar could work as the tortured scientist with another more charismatic actor but PAD's right: he's no Colicos. The crew chief did a good job. All in all, the casting needed a lot more work.
Cylons: i'm only marginally impressed by what i've seen so far. I'll give them a thumbs up the middle.
Galactica (the ship): I like.
Galactica (the movie): I like, despite the 1st hour and despite my love for the original.
Rob Thornton
Okay, I liked the original version. I'm not a huge fan, but I certainly enjoyed it.
Honestly, I didn't watch the new version. I find that with any property where nostalgia attaches for me (i.e. Star Wars, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Transformers, GI Joe, etc), nothing beats the original. Nothing.
All I have to add is this: I really admire Edward James Olmos. Back when SciFi was promoting this for the fall season, he was outspoken at telling the fans of the old-school property NOT to watch, because they might not like it. It takes courage to stand up and tell people not to watch one of your projects, and so, from that perspective, I don't feel a sense of betrayal...I feel pretty good because Olmos gave the fans of the old-school version the one thing we'd really need...respect.
:)
i was a huge fan of the '78 series but i decided to have an open mind about this new version.i will probably be one of a few who actually thinks this version is better.
we have all heard how this is a back door pilot for a new series. with sci-fi going with a spinoff of stargate,will they actually be willing to spend the money on a battlestar series?i hope so!!
Tsk, tsk, Peter... you only got the nickname of the old show half-right:
It's "Cattlecar Galaxative," which properly described the, um, consistency of its output.
The actor playing Adama is doing an amazing job. He really does add a lot of Gravitas to the role.
But I am turned off by the rest of the actors, all who seem to be driven more by hormones and testosterone than anything else.
The dialouge is actualy fairly banal - only Olmos manages to make the dialouge sound like it actually means something.
Well, as much of a fan of the original BSG as I am, I still looked forward to seeing this and went into it with an open mind. And I must say I enjoyed much of it. I probably would have enjoyed it just as much if they decided to create a new franchise entirely and not tick off original BSG fans, but I think if this becomes a series, the purists will eventually come around.
By far, the best things about this series for me is the space camera work. It looks so believable! The wide shots of the vipers show the enormity of space and contrast the size of the battlestar with the one man fighters. But I really miss the turbos!
Can't wait to see the conclusion tonight.
Elie
I've been impressed with what's been done so far (only a half hour into the 2nd part). Adama, perfect as the old warhorse that's being forced into retirement (like his ship), then having to take command again. Tigh, the total burn out. I get the feeling he's only there because Adama has carried him. Apollo, good as the son angry at his father, feeling he was forced into the military life, and blaming dad for the death of his brother. Let's just hope that they don't totally patch things up too quickly. Starbuck, nothing wrong there. I do hope she gets to do more than scream in the cockpit and punch out superior @ssholes. Boomer, as much as I liked the original, the character really didn't do much while there. Male Boomer was a pilot, but his main role was that of Starbuck's sidekick. The only thing that's made me groan so far is the orphan child she picked up on Caprica. Damn if the new Boxey doesn't look like the old Boxey! Let him stay with Boomer instead of Apollo, and keep the monkeys in dog suits far away! Baltar, not evil, but totally selfish and egotistical. I'm curious to see what the Cylons did to him, and how that's going to play out. And am I the only one that thinks that Baltar sounds (and acts like) the Evil Bashir from DS9?
The President, wow. Here's a strong woman that's totally out of her league trying to do the best she can in the worst situation imaginable. After the inevitable butting heads with Adama, I hope that they come to an arrangement on leading the fleet.
One of the things I like best is the actually showing of real characters working "below deck". It's no suprise that Boomer would have a relationship with her crew chief, since they work so close together.
Yeah, there was quite a bit of hormone action in the first hour, but I didn't find it too excessive. Cylon Chick and Ambasador...what better way to catch a man off guard than having all the blood rush from his head? Cylon Chick and Baltar...same thing. Boomer and Tyrol (that was Tyrol she was excercising with wasn't it?), very unprofessional, but it was in a time of peace aboard a ship that's about to be decommissioned. Don't ask...don't tell...don't leave a mess.
I could ramble more, but so far, I'm really enjoying the show. They took the good things of the old show, and dumped the "too campy" parts. Richard Hatch does deserve huge thanks for keeping the dream alive. It's a shame he's not involved in this production, but I agree that he alone was the motivation that brought the project back.
I have to say that even as a fan of the original, I really enjoyed this, mostly for Eddie Olmos' portrayal of Adama. I also liked the new president saying that "Captain Apollo has a nice ring to it." Very cute. I have two gripes regarding two character changes:
First and foremost, I don't mind that Starbuck is a woman - however, had I been in charge (which of course I wasn't), I would also have made her a lesbian. Maybe I watch too much HBO lately, but it seems that pay-cable networks are the only shows really depicting homosexuality as just another part of who someone is as opposed to a "lifestyle choice"...anyway, I won't get on that soapbox, I'll just say that if she's gonna smoke cigars, drink and gamble, then dammnit, Starbuck should still be a total womanizer :)
Second, is that of Col. Tigh. I like the broken marriage, ready-to-throw-away-the-career-for-booze sub-plot, and it worked really well in context, but...Tigh is black! He's just a cool black man, and I wish he'd stayed that way (Boomer I'm not so upset about, mostly 'cause Grace Park is hot). But those are really my only problems so far. It was well-scripted, well-structured, and the reasons for the relatively low-tech look of the Galactica was laid out in a non-annoying expository way (which takes some doing, just ask the West Wing writers this season).
Anyway, that's my two cents, and I'm hoping that we do get another series out of this, if only for the fantasic space stuff.
This was the second go-round for me; I watched the advance copies that Sci-Fi sent out some time ago, but sound/FX weren't finished yet, so I thought I'd better see how the final product turned out. Not surprisingly, most of my opinions stayed pretty much the same.
I should say that while I watched the original series when it first aired, I wasn't overwhelmed by it then. Like Buck Rogers, which debuted during that time, BG was a product of the post-Star Wars SF boom, but it was also part of the disco era of the late 70s/early 80s as well, which is reflected in some of the production design, costumes and music. Both shows are a product of their time, which is why I'm always surprised when a (relatively small, thankfully) group of fans continue to heap such praise on them.
Having said that, I totally agree with Peter that it was Richard Hatch who continued to be a motivating force for a BG revival, even when nobody wanted to know. He's never stopped trying, even going so far as to write a series of follow-up novels. Whether you liked them or not, at least he put his money where his mouth is. It's a damn shame that he didn't have something to do with the remake. I haven't heard if Hatch- or any of the other cast members for that matter- were offered cameos in the minni-series, but based on Sci-Fi's somewhat limited budgets, I suspect there wasn't an awful lot of money to spread around.
I don't know if I necessarily agree with all of Moore's decisions in the mini-series, but I've got to respect the courage of his convictions for better or worse. Let's face it, reviving BG was a no-win situation from a writing perspective. Keep too many elements from the old series and you alienate new viewers who have never seen the original. Throw it all out and you piss off the die-hard fans, as we've been seeing these last several months. I interviewed Moore for the current issue of Starlog, and the one thing I noticed immediately is a genuine respect for the original source material. And I don't envy some of his decisions. How do you recreate the Cylons? You can't go with men in tin suits again, because today's viewers are much more sophisticated. Conversely, there's no money in Sci-Fi's budget to go with CG characters other than a shot or two. So you go with a human-looking female robotic character, and T3 comes out right in the middle of filming! BTW, they mention in the second part of the mini-series that there are only a finite number of Cylon 'models,' an idea that reminded me an awful lot of that Peter Weller movie Screamers some years back.
Here's a bit of trivia that I happened to notice. In the original preview version Moore is credited as the only writer, based on characters by Glen Larsen. In the final aired version, there's another writer added to the credits, and it's now 'based on a teleplay by Glen Larsen.' Makes you wonder what sort of Writers Guild battles were going on behind the scenes in the last couple of weeks.
The nickname I recall for the original was "Battlestar: Ponderosa". Afraid that even after the first episode, my take was that it'd last as long as people liked watching the pretty effects, since the story wasn't going to keep people tuning in. And with the exception of the Patrick McNee episode, I was pretty much right. The new version is a substantial improvement (well, except for the Bond Girl Cylon idea) over the original in many ways, but if you'd called it Kobol: Final Conflict, I don't think it'd attract any more attention than any of the current run of Sci-Fi channel original B-movies.
Without doing any spoiling, I was NOT expecting the Cylon model we got to see at the end. I thought it left things extremely open-ended for a series. I still dislike most of the actors, but I can deal with that in the face of a pretty good story. Baltar's neurosis shouldn't be allowed to continue forever, though, as it will get old fast.
I know I was shocked too... must be a "sleeper".
Bravo to people behind this one!
I liked it. The writing was good and it wasn't as cheesy as the original.
The cylon at the end really made me go "DAMN!" I'm usually pretty good at seeing things like that coming, but it sure came from left field, although little hints were spread out thru the entire miniseries, looking back at it.
Thanks the lords of Kobol people are talking about this here. Or more accurately thank Mr. David. Anyways I watched the old series as a kid and liked it well enough. Saw the old episodes again recently on Sci Fi and realized how cheesey it was but still enjoyed them for what they were. And now the new series. I'm hooked. I thought it was awesome. And the ending... I knew it was going to be something, but I didn't think it would be what it ended up being. It's rare that I actually get surprised by a plot point on a show now a day. So can anyone tell me, this back door pilot people have mentioned, how likely is this going to be made into a regular show. Because that's something I'd really like to see. Thanks.
Hey -
I seem to recall that "Cattlecar Galactica" was the name of the MAD Magazine spoof of Battlestar back in the 70s.
I'm too tired to add anything more significant to this conversation.
- DB Bennett
I have to admit, i'm pleasantly surprised by the reimaging. When i heard Starbuck was going to be a woman, i was definitely upset.
I was born after the original aired, but i've become a dedicated fan of the reruns on scifi. Sure, it's cheesy, but damn if it isn't fun...
I was disappointed with Apollo though, the character just didn't have the magic that he had in the original. Having seen most of his acting, I don't think it was Jamie's acting though, i think it was the writing.
Ra!
I have to admit, i'm pleasantly surprised by the reimaging. When i heard Starbuck was going to be a woman, i was definitely upset.
I was born after the original aired, but i've become a dedicated fan of the reruns on scifi. Sure, it's cheesy, but damn if it isn't fun...
I was disappointed with Apollo though, the character just didn't have the magic that he had in the original. Having seen most of his acting, I don't think it was Jamie's acting though, i think it was the writing.
Ra!
By the way, why do i recognize the actors face who protrays him??
He was Bridget Jones' friend who used to be a one-hit wonder pop star. (Thank you IMDB http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0130536/ )
Also he looks and sounds a lot like Bashir from DS9.
I really enjoyed the reboot and I hope SciFi makes a series out of it. I think most of the comments on here are spot-on with regards to the casting, and I agree that the movie started slowly and hormonally (although the slowness was largely because of necessary exposition). But I liked the story for the most part, I liked the plausible faux-technology, and setting aside nostalgia for my favorite show in second grade, I have to conclude that this version is better than the original. Although I do tend to agree with Gregg Easterbrook in Tuesday Morning Quarterback that putting a sci-fi event on TV in the same time slot as Monday Night Football is a demographical no-no.
I can't wait for the Sci-Fi Channel's sequel miniseries -- "Galactica 2004" where they travel back to Earth again and engage in another little league baseball game.
Watching the Cylon sex scene, I have to find myself agreeing with a comment my brother made: "If I was going to design an android that was so close to human that it can actually have sex with a human, why would I install lights in the spine?"
Over on www.cylon.org a poster named "gastrof": wrote :"What you'll be seeing is NOT an old classic with a new interpretation. You'll be seeing Moore's ideas loosely based on an old classic. "
I think I have to agree with this. If I were to call this Mini a faithful updating of Battlestar Galactica then I would also have to make that same claim for "Lost In Space, Planet of the Apes, ETC. I'm not about to do that.
If you strip away, from the New Mini, the few things held over from the Original what you're left with is a SCI-FI show that mirrors many themes in the genre. Could this be "Space: Above & Beyond", or "The Terminator", "Blade Runner" or "Star Trek: Voyager" as easily as it could be BSG? Yes! SAAB & The Terminater are steeped deeply the lore of a Human vs. AI War. Six of Twelve could easily stand in for Seven of Nine. Remove the names of the main characters and then tell me how they are identifiable with their counter parts from the original. The wonderful charm brought to "Starbuck" by Dirk Bennedict is replaced with anger and hostility by Katie Sackhoff the only trait they seem to share is a love for fumerillos[cigars] and gambling. In Jamie Bamber's hands "Apollo" is transformed from an "occasionally frustrated Boy Scout" into a "whiny brat with an unrealistic view of how the world works" who is only likable when he is surrounded by Civilians. The only way he matches Richard Hatch's "Apollo" is they are both son's of the commander of the show's featured vessel. Is this easily duped "Baltar" reminiscent of a man who willingly betrayed his race in order to be placed in charge of the survivors? One is selfish in placing himself ahead of others, The other is selfish in his attempts to place himself above others. That is as close a comparison as I can make. Both "Adamas" are in charge of the featured vessel but their command styles are so different that, without the name, you would never mistake one as an update for the other.
So what makes this "Galactica"? It seems the use of names [but not the charactorization] from the original, Inserting Vipers, The name & general shape of the main vessel , and the name of their enemies is more than enough to fool some.
Side Note : the writing credit added to the Mini is an pseudonym for Glen Larson. He won the credit through arbitration but didn't want his real name added to this dreck. He is working toward producing a theactrical release of Battlestar [that hopefully won't stray as far from the concepts of the original].
"If I was going to design an android that was so close to human that it can actually have sex with a human, why would I install lights in the spine?"
Makes me all the more happy I haven't been exposed to it.
First thing that comes to mind is ...
A measurement system. The higher up the spine the lights go, the better a job you're doing of ... uh, making it 'happy'? And if the lights go on all the way up to her skull, the navel opens up and coins come out?
I have to say that I enjoyed the series as well. It was great, but it was good TV. If you want to see some great TV, I suggest you all check out Angels In America on HBO. It isn't Sci Fi, but it is really good drama.
It would be interesting to see how they will deal with BG now. Will they make it a new series or continue to do minis like this one? Or does everyone think that this was a one-shot deal?
Also, the shocker at the end was VERY COOL. It is a bit sad b/c I really liked the character, but it is still a real cool shocker.
--Michael
I actually liked the original show. Even the robot dog, who had a minute or so of screentime per episode, wasn't enough to turn me against it.
I know Star Wars paved the way for it, but it always annoyed me that it got branded with the Star Wars rip-off label when there were literally dozens of westerns on TV at one point. Every western I've ever seen has fifty points of similarity between it and the one that came before it, but no one brands Gunsmoke a rip-off of High Noon, or Bonanza a rip-off of Rawhide. But if Galactica and Star Wars share some similarities, and there aren't dozens of sci-fi shows on the air, then naturally Galactica is a rip-off of Star Wars.
The new show was Top Gun in space. The Cylons now seem to be humanoid sexbots while the mechanical versions stand in the background for two whole scenes (the very first scene in the mini and the very last). All they can do, apparently, is walk into a room, then stand aside so their sexy, blonde masters can stride dramatically into the room.
I was hoping that 21st Century effects might make the robot Cylons an imposing presence compared to their man-in-suit counterparts from the original show. But I guess the FX were more than the Sci-Fi Channel could afford. Twenty seconds of Cylons in a 4 hour mini series isn't a lot.
Ok, now having seen the conclusion, I have to say I'm ready for the series. I do have take issue with Number Six putting the chip in Baltar's head, it seems like they ripped off Farscape, and from now on, I'm referring to her as 'Harvey' :) But the revelation of who one of the sleepers is was very good, but I hope that if the series goes forward, then that person should face a very difficult decision - follow the Cylon directives to kill the humans, or to remain faithful to the crew that she/he respects for their courage in adversity. A Cylon on our side could be pretty cool too, after all.
When all is said and done, I'm enthusiastic about both the original and the new mini. I enjoy them both for what they are, and I found the mini to be far more respectful (not to mention just plain better) than most of the homage re-imaginings that have come out in the past decade.
I didn't get the impression that she actually planted a chip in Baltar's head; I believe she's simply a part of his subconcious talking to him, and he'll either go bonkers before long or go through some pycho-theraphy catharsis of the week.
It seemed pretty useful storywise though. I never understood Baltar's betrayal of humanity to a bunch of robots on the original series. Since Baltar's betrayal had to be depicted SOMEHOW, the version that we saw made a lot more sense to me.
It never made sense to me that they would be Baltar in charge in the old series. Sure, hammy old actor was far more entertaining than the previous commander, but it just didn't make sense that the Cylons would bow down to *any* human.
And am I the only one who remembers the comic book adaptation where Baltar got killed when he came to claim his reward? Now, that's a betrayal that made sense. Baltar got greedy and thought he could deal with the Cylons, and paid the price with his life.
As for the new version... way too much time wandering around sets (although I did enjoy the cold-hearted decisions the humans made in the face of extinction--they're not trying to save everyone, just trying to save as many as they can), not enough space battles, and the space battles lacked a certain something. First, they seemed a little grey, with nothing really standing out visually. Second, the sound effects were less than awe-inspiring. I did like the movement of the fighting ships, spinning around on an axis for some "realistic" zero-gravity space-fighting--too often, they just do air-battles-in-space (Star Wars), and it's great to see someone using the differences of space with some flair.
The Mini left me wanting more, so mission accomplished.
Couple of comments: I like that the characters had realy names like "Lee" and "Kara" (for Apollo & Starbuck, respectivly). I always thought it was odd that their call signs were also their names on the original series. Also I enjoyed the nods to other SF shows departed: I saw the ship from Firefly, the old agro ship from the '78 BG series, the domed forest ship from Silent Running, and the carrier ship from Space: Above and Beyond. Kewl!
Oh BTW, back in the day my buds and I alwsy called the show Spaltterstar Galaxative. Heh.
One question for those of you who saw the rest: did the characters eventually become likable? Because I can't think of any I didn't want to see punched in the face by the time I stopped watching.
You pretty much hit the nail on the head there, DubbleYoo. I'm not even a friggin' FAN of the original show, and I was still deeply offended. The characters were loathsome, the story was soulless, and the dialogue was crappier than a turd left unflushed in the toilet of an outhouse for several months. (I apologize for conjuring up that image, but godDAMN that was a horrible show.)
On a side note, let me just say that Mary McDonnell is the single most insufferable actress I have ever seen. Every time she was on-screen, I almost had to leave the room. Her presence actually caused me physcial pain.
Why Baltar? Simple. He was the show's equivalent to 'goodlife' in Saberhagen's BERSERKER series. This latter also featured mechanical 'life' out to eliminate all life. It would, however, temporarily tolerate and go along with what it deemed 'goodlife', ie beings who would help it in achieving that goal. Goodlife would also be eradicated, of course, but only once it had -literally - outlived its usefulness.
As for why Baltar would do it?
He's a coward, and they were going to kill him if he didn't help them. Simple enough.
Puhleaze....
This was the most borring show I've seen in recent memory.
"They had 4 hours to fill" someone above said...If they didn't have enough story to fill 4 hours..they shouldn't do a 4 hour show.
"Granted, the hormone level in the first half hour was way off the charts" To be honest, it reminded me of New Frontier...and not in a good way.
"The script is pretty sharp,"
"The War is over. We need to leave and we need to have babies" Yeah..that's dynamic.
"the FX are nifty" ......FX? oh..like the 2 seconds of screen time for the Cylons..and the space battles show from such a distance you only see some lights going across the screen.
I particularly liked the (spoiler)super twist ending...because if you're gonna have a sleeper agent be a main character..make sure it's one who's so incosequential that they haven't been on the screen for the past half hour.
I can honestly say I didn't like this series on its own merrits...it had nothing to do with it not being the orinal.
Meh...
I really liked the new BG. I found it suspenseful and exciting, and I liked the new take on the characters mixed in with familiar stuff from the old series. ("Life here began out there" is the first line of the sacred scrolls -- cool.) The new Adama is great, and I liked the interaction between him and the new president (who in this version is not portrayed as a complete idiot). The new Starbuck and the new Apollo need some depth -- I think he is a "superior asshole" -- but that was made up for by Tigh and the Chief. This Baltar made a lot more sense than the old one, and this Boxey looks like the old one but doesn't have that annoying treacle personality. The plot twists at the end were cool, too. I hope this becomes a series.
OK...overall, I enjoyed it.
In response to several posts:
I haven't heard if Hatch- or any of the other cast members for that matter- were offered cameos in the minni-series, but based on Sci-Fi's somewhat limited budgets, I suspect there wasn't an awful lot of money to spread around.
According to www.richardhatch.com or www.battlestargalactica.com (I can't recall which, and I've been to both in the past couple of days), Hatch was offered a cameo as Laura Roslin's doctor who informs her of her cancer.
The cylon at the end really made me go "DAMN!" I'm usually pretty good at seeing things like that coming, but it sure came from left field, although little hints were spread out thru the entire miniseries, looking back at it.
I saw someone coming in such a reveal, but thought that it would be (spoiler text) Boxey. What better way to infiltrate than to toss a kid at the humans? I certainly wan't expecting it to be Boomer.
And am I the only one who remembers the comic book adaptation where Baltar got killed when he came to claim his reward?
This was also in the theatrical release of the original pilot, as well as the stand-alone DVD of the pilot. Don't have the new full-series DVD set yet, but I'd imagine it has the version that spares Baltar.
Haven't watched it yet, I taped it as I had to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra last night. (Priorities! If you haven't seen these guys, DO SO) I'm planning on watching it with an open mind, but having watched the Sci-Fi channel "Puff-piece" special on it the other night, there was one bit about the female pilots that, geek that I am, rankled me.
They explained that they decided to make Starbuck and Boomer females because (Paraphrasing) "Hey, we have female fighter pilots today, why not show them in this setting?" Only reason this bothers me is that they seem to forget that there WERE female pilots in the original show. They were ordinary women who had to step in as replacements since so many of the regular pilots were killed in the attack on the colonies. Personally, I see nothing wrong with that angle, and it seems to me that that's a more "Empowering" scenario for females as opposed to turning them into bitter, cigar-chomping testosterone jockies with breasts.
Maybe it's just me being old-fashioned but I think it's more inspiring to see women rise to the occasion like they did in the original show, rather than showing one acting more macho than any male pilot. They could have easily had "Strong, female pilot" characters without replacing classic characters with them, but I guess that just wouldn't have aroused enough fan controversy, and by extension, interest in the show.
Don't get me wrong, I'll still watch the show and probably enjoy it, I just think the whole male/female pilot switcheroo was more a ratings ploy/pandering to the "Girl Power" segment of fandom rather than anything based on story needs.
If a tree fell on the Pope, and there was no one in the woods who heard it, or gave a sh*t, wouldn't many Catholics be bearish on the news?
Re: Battlestar Galactica. I enjoyed it. Definitely a different show than the first series so I can understand why purists howled. Personally, I view both versions like the song, Proud Mary: both versions (the original by Clearance Clearwater; the remake by Tina Turner). Both are enjoyable for different reasons.
Peter, if BG becomes a series, will you be writing any novels set in it?
In space, no one can keep a camera steady.
I guess it didn't bother anyone else, but my husband and I kept groaning at the camerawork. A shaky camera and wild zooming got used for what seemed like 90% of the live-action and CG shots. I have nothing against a shaky camera in and of itself, but for me it's like salt -- use too much and I'm going to gag on the results.
That said, we watched the first and second episodes. The sets, costumes, FX and CG look fabulous, but I haven't started caring about any of the characters yet. I'll keep watching for the FX, though.
Maybe it's just me being old-fashioned but I think it's more inspiring to see women rise to the occasion like they did in the original show, rather than showing one acting more macho than any male pilot.
Different times. The original came during a time when women were still integrating themselves into various fields. Women rising to the challenge and becoming fighter pilots fit in with the spirit of the age.
Today, it seems only a matter of time before our military integrates the combat troops, and any futuristic show that doesn't show an integrated military from the get-go is going to feel passe even before they get off the ground. Today, we're taking our cue from G.I. Jane and Aliens and Starship Troopers where the women are just as tough as the guys.
I was honestly stunned to discover the origional show still HAD any fans. I wasn't that old when it came out -- maybe 11, 12 -- I should have been right in the wheelhouse, and I HATED it, thought it was retarded. Even at that young age, I could still recognize a ripoff.
Thanks to Jen Hachigian for noticing some of the shakier camera work- I thought I had the hiccups. Granted, the production was going for that moving, hand-held look, which is fine, but I think they went a bit too far. The one shot that comes to mind was in the second night when Apollo is talking to the president and a couple of other people, and the director decided to shoot it in a 360...and kept circling..and circling. I don't mind the occasional 360 if it's used for a specific reason- look at David Nutter's use of the shot in the opening of the Tarzan pilot earlier this season to establish the character's disorientation in the midst of Manhattan- but to use it for no apparent reason is just annoying.
BTW, I just saw the ratings, and apparently BT got the biggest audience for any cable mini-series this year. Granted, I can't think of an awful lot of other cable mini-series in 2003, but let's not rain on Sci-Fi's parade. There's little enough SF on TV good, bad or otherwise these days.
I bought into all the hype leading up to this show, and I must say it did not disappoint! I watched the first part Monday night, then watched all four hours Tuesday. This is just plain good Sci-Fi. There are many good characters (I was a little shocked by Starbuck being turned into a woman at first, but it grew on me), and the acting was top-notch. So were the effects AND the music! With the bar they set on special effects I know it will be a hard one to turn into a series (at least budget-wise), but I certainly hope they do. I think this could easily rival ST:TNG as a series.
Many props to Sci-Fi for getting this one done right! I enjoyed it, and will be watching it again!
Use, don't duplicate.
I mostly missed the original BSG, I was in my early teens and after reading harlan elisons "glass teat" I stopped watching television for a few years, what I did see mostly supported my view then that there was nothing on TV worth the time it took to watch it.
I would like to say that in that era of a only a few TV show suppliers the lowest common denominater was king.
Most old TV sucked badly (imo), most current TV also sucks but the amount of choice allows shows like the sopranos to exist.
The more fractured the market becomes the less individual projects have to appeal to *everybody* instead of *somebody*.
I think this dynamic allows shows like buffy to happen.
With the potential cost of production going down ( cheap digital equipment and effects) now more than ever we have the chance to see real creative entertainment.
If someone wants to redo an old show like BSG I think they should treat it as a chance to legally plagarize whatever they want but in the service of creating something better.
A good example of this from comics is bendis and spiderman.
I got into comics late in life (bought some to encourage my nephew to read,caught the bug) so I don't really know much. I will say I was never very entertained by any spiderman comics before bendis.
You know, having been a "so-what" follower of the original series who really admired the "movie" trailer that Richard Hatch put together, I'd still like to see Hatch's vision of a full reunion-style film using the original cast. There's room for two "Galactica"s for 21st century viewers. We're smart enough to distinguish one from the other.
Yes - viewers are smart enough to distinguish, but try convincing studio heads of that.
Orson Scott Card has written several essays on his experience trying to get Ender's Game made into a movie. The main thread through them is that studio heads, the ones who hand out the money, think the viewers are all idiots.
Spoiler
Did anyone see Bubblegum Crisis? In it Boomers are 'bots... So the big reveal at the end was always in the back of my mind.
Again -- sorry for the double post
"...studio heads, the ones who hand out the money, think the viewers are all idiots."
And they're wrong how, exactly? When one compares the ratings of such superbly written and performed shows as B5 and MURDER ONE (first season, before the studion tampered with it) to those of painfully insipid 'pseudo comedies' as SEINFELD and FRIENDS, maybe the studio heads have got a point.
IN that they think ALL viewers are idiots.
B5 had enough viewers to last 5 seasons - it actually had better ratings than many "mainstream" shows - but studio execs don't trust SF, convinced that ONLY pimply faced teenagers watch it.
Concerning BubbleGum Crisis and Battlestar Galactica [spoiler]:
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought it curious that Boomer was a boomer. It helps me believe I'm not that far gone a geek. (And I can't help wondering if the identity of the Big Reveal (TM) was inspired by BGC.
I didn't watch the mini-series (I had thought about it), but the numbers are in on Cinescape and apparently the show did very well - the third highest rated original event in Sci-Fi's short history.
Rather interesting to read that they say the 2nd part actually had more viewers than the 1st party too.
I waited until after seeing part 2 to post my comments.
I think the main problem with comparing the two versions of anything is that one remembers the original either so fondly or so despised that they can't wait to either trash or love the remake.
Case in point: remember all the flack around the debut of Star Trek: The Next Generation versus classic Trek?
The 2003 version is great on its own merits without having an original version to contrast it to.
The 2003 Baltar has more motivation than "plain greed", and it had to be him who left the annonymous note to Adama about the 12 Cylon models.
There might be a new angle to the Starbuck/Apollo 'friendship' in the future, and the fact that Adama just used "Earth" as a motivational tool was a neat twist.
But the thing that concerns me more than anything else is that Boomer might be one of the 12 models. While I would hate to see an established character fall into cliches in an ongoing series, the old plotline of the mechanical finds its human/emotional/soul side seems to be what the producers long term plans are.
Whatever happens, I'd be willing to watch an ongoing BG series.
I only saw part 2 but I thought it was pretty good. If they come out with another mini-series I'd watch it. I thought the FX were really well done, though to be honest I still prefer the original Galatica, Cylons, and Base Stars, (they didn't muck around with the vipers to much.)
It's funny how I can forgive and enjoy the re-tooling of shows like BG and Lost in Space (it was a good movie, watch it again) while at the same time I'm so paranoid they're going to royaly screw up Doctor Who when he returns to the air waves. Go figure.
The absence of Baltar as a truly evil character is what will hurt the show in the long run, if it indeed goes into the long run. Originally, Baltar betrayed the other 11 colonies to save his own, which is revealed when he is brought before the Imperious Leader, and he is furious, yelling "My Colony was to be spared!" The Imperious Leader pretty much tells him the only good human is a dead human, and the two centurions with him proceed to lop his head off, although that is implied more than shown. Once the series was optioned, a sequence was added where a new Imperious Leader was a bit more lenient, claiming to want to coexist with the humans, and that Baltar would be their emissary. This little plot did not last past the next episode. But through it all, Baltar was the evil HUMAN element to it all. Without him, it's just a bunch of robots chasing the humans. Although if that one Cylon at the very end could be used right...
By the way, I really liked the Liberal President versus the Conservative Commander angle. If they could keep that up in the series, that could play out as worthwhile. And wasn't it amazing how much Tigh looked like Dick Cheney?
I've seen both nights twice now (once "live" the other on TIVO to transfer to my hard drive to back up on DVD since VHS is so passe ), and to me it would have held up better without the battlestar galactica name attached to it.
The Cylons were a major letdown. The whole "they look like us" concept didn't appeal to me and I correctly guessed the ending *spoiler warning* when the most "human" of all the characters of the show was revealed to be a cylon model.
The used to have the coolest ship in sci-fi. Now the ships were reduced to trade federation ripoffs. Ugg.
The rest of the show felt like an episode of "Space Above & Beyond," mixed with "Starship Troopers" and another 5 or 10 recent sci-fi series/movies.
While overall I liked the movie, I just had a nagging feeling that it would have been better without the name and with original vechicles and characters.
Was the original a cheesy series that didn't age well? Yah, but so was Star Trek and think of the outrage if they "reimagined" the original and Spock was now a betazoid and Kirk was a Captain Picard ripoff ...
k9
Was the original a cheesy series that didn't age well? Yah, but so was Star Trek and think of the outrage if they "reimagined" the original and Spock was now a betazoid and Kirk was a Captain Picard ripoff ...
For god's sake, don't say that aloud, or they just might do it.
First off, lemme just say, I went into this bound and determined to give this it's shot. I used to be so space happy that even Spaceship looked good to me, but the thing I remembered most about the old BG, other than wanting to be Starbuck, was the friendships in the crew. Apollo, Starbuck, Boomer, others, a real cameraderie. Granted, they don't have that in this movie, but also, for the most part, they're all just meeting. I'm glad that I saw the Moore interview where he said they were trying to give it a documentary feel, because as a videographer all the camera shifts and focus fades would have driven me up the wall. Ron Moore knows action. He knows character creation. He knows how to come up with nasty things to happen to people. The only two problems I had with it? First, all those mushroom clouds really made me queasy. Guess they were supposed to, though. Second, Number 6 was really the only Cylon presence. Would've LOVED to see some behind the scenes planning with them, but hey, whattaya gonna do?
You know, I was describing the events of the new Battlestar to my retailer, and the subject of the Cylon Chick's glow in the dark Spine came up. As I started talking about it, I commented that typically these sort of things make great features on action figures. It was at that point we both envisioned the Baltar/Cylon Chick playset, and just how you would make the Cylon's Light Up Spine (tm) feature work. Man, I need to be in the toy biz...
I gotta say... I was REALLY disappointed.
The more human Cylons is an element that makes no sense at all.
Why would the Cylons, large robots with body armor (see the ones that walk in in the end scene), construct smaller versions of themselves that appear human, their despised creators? And why so few?
I liked the tech. Maneuvering thrusters on the Vipers and Raptor, the Cylon ships (I always wondered why a robot would need a ship. Why not just make the ship itself a robot? The way the Cylon raiders moved in combat was something), and the new take of the Galactica. But the casting left me pretty cold.
Adama was too gung-ho, and then his opinion turns on a dime, and he finds his compassion. Tigh was again, too by-the-book, "bigger picture" military ("If you don't, more than 100 men will die. Do IT!"). Apollo seemed to be walking through the poorly written, predictable script, and Starbuck...
Oy. The reason they say they did that was that they "...wanted to explore the whole 'I got your back' camaraderie with a man and a woman, instead of just a couple of men." Huh?
I guess the writers never watched "Space: Above and Beyond". They must have missed the female Viper pilots from the classic “Battlestar” series. They must have never heard of the “Wing Commander” series, in which your wingman in SEVERAL missions is a woman.
And the actress' attitude. In a pre-show interview, she actually said "I play Starbuck. Get over it." I guess we should just "get over" having a character that everyone knew, in a recreation of a series many people liked (sure, it was schlocky. But in the 70's, what wasn't? Anyone remember the Starfleet uniforms from the first movie?) suddenly change genders, and be a stereotypical "tough girl" (I mean, lighting a fat cigar after acting like an insubordinate bitch to her commanding officer? Who the Hell still writes crap like that?). I guess having a remake of “Charlie’s Angels” with three hunks playing the secret agents would be acceptable?
In short, I didn't much care for the mini-series.
I think the writing sucked like a black hole. Most of the actors walked through the roles, and didn't bring too much, except overly done dramatics to any of their characters. There were too many references to previous encounters with the Cylons ("the last time anyone saw the Cylons, they resembled walking toasters" "The Cylon ships look like a flying wing" "But those pictures are at least 40 years old"). The Mark 2 Vipers were conveniently JUST like the old series, and the Mark 7's not that much more advanced in ANY respect.
I guess I think there should have been less reference to the old series (working the old theme in at the decommissioning ceremony? C'MON!), if this was intended to take the place of the old series, which it seems it was designed to do. The only thing that surprised me was Boomer as a Cylon. I would have predicted Helo or Boxy showing up at the end as the "other model" of Cylon (I almost died at Boxy. Thank god he didn‘t have that damn fuzzy pest with him.).
About the only things I liked were the take on the tech, and the camera work (quick zooms in space battles, and other such touches that almost gave it a "documentary" feel). The tech was all “real world”, instead of energy shields and lasers. It seemed like an actual progression, as opposed to the fanciful technological leaps, a la “Star Trek”. "Firefly" did the same thing. Rifles and missiles, and other projectiles, not ray guns and lasers. Don’t get me wrong. I like the lasers and stuff. But It was nice to see that there are writers out there who use a more “old fashioned” approach. It seems a little more “real” than lasers and energy shields.
But if the overall writing/scripting is not improved vastly, and some of the predictability taken out, any follow-up series will rightly die a swift death.
As a recreation of “Battlestar Galactica”, I didn’t much care for it. As a different series that just happens to be named “Battlestar Galactica”, I guess I could watch it, if the writing is improved.
Most of what I am going to say here is outright speculation, but on the chance I'm correct, I am going to put it in spoiler text:I have a sneaking suspision that Boomer is not the only Cylon on the Galactica. In fact, I don't by the "implant chip" in Baltar's head for a second. I find it more likely that he is a Cylon who was somehow damaged and believes he is human, which is why No. 6 has such an interest in him. I also am fairly certain that the president's gopher is also a Cylon, though my reasoning is pretty much just a hunch. As for Adama using earth as a motivational tool, I disagree. Something about the way he delivered his talk with the president made me think that he actually does know where earth is and doesn't give her that information for the same reason that the military types in ID4 didn't reveal to the president the location of Area 51 until abosolutly necessary.
And why does Boxy have the same twisted hairstyle as the Boxy from the original?
I was going mad because i thought i had missed the whole show, but the Sci-Fi channel didn't show it on the UK Sci-Fi channel. We have to wait until the new year and even then they won't guarantee that they will show it - I loved the original and as they are many contrasting views here, i will watch it with an open mind and try to forget everyones comments (and plot discussions!!) Hey! Ever heard of spoiler text!!!!!
Here's my thoughts about Baltar and Number 6:
SPOILER
I think that the whole "chip in the head" thing is exactly correct.
Number 6 downloaded her personality and memories, just like she said she could, but d/l into the chip, rather than another Cylon (the EMP from the nukes on Caprica would have interfered with her ability to transfer over long distances).
Baltar is suffering from a split personality, and Number 6's personality is going to completely destroy Baltar's, allowing Number 6 to take control of his body, but still have access to his memories, mannerisms, etc.
Basically turn her into a perfect Cylon agent. One that can hide in plain site, and doesn't need to worry about dangerous radiation, or other weaknesses the Cylons now have.
Or, she will cause Baltar to go completely around the bend, and he will actively betray humanity, rather than passively, as he has already admitted.
Sorry about the previous spoilers. I forgot the HTML coding.
About the baby killing: I kind of thought that she did it to keep this little human from living through the destruction she was to bring. Six seems to have a slight bit of emotion in her twisted head, as if the Cylons duplicated humans too much.