"If there is a God, he's laughing his head off."
SO SAY WE ALL: Leoben brings Starbuck an offer she can't refuse, and her crew can't accept.
REVIEW: It's been more than two months, and the Demetrius has been going around in circles. STARBUCK has been going around in circles. They're close to running out of fuel, and it looks like Kara is game to miss the rendezvous with Galactica for a re-up. Cuz what if Adama doesn't re-up the mission? The crew is very close to mutiny already and encountering Leoben in a damaged heavy raider isn't exactly lifting spirits. His offer is an interesting one, however. In exchange for the Hybrid's information about Earth, will they help the goodie Cylons beat the baddie Cylons in their civil war? (Leoben also gets a chance to interact with a more compliant Kara, which is certainly a bonus for him, though his many beatings at the hand of the crew mitigate that somewhat.) It seems the Resurrection Ships are off the table (just for the goodies?), which would mean a big leveler between humanity and the Cylons going forward. And since the Demetrius can't possibly have an effect alone, he's asking Kara to convince Adama, which is not an obvious thing. Then somebody dies in an explosion inspecting the raider. And THEN Kara tells her crew to jump to Leoben's coordinate. Well, even Helo, who's been on her side all this time, has to lead a mutiny against her. Trust has been eroded to impossible levels, and one after an another, her officers refuse her orders.
Galactica's sequences continue Tyrol's descent into depression, and Baltar's ascent as a religious figure, with a lot of the cast taking a break (notably, this is the only episode of the series where Adama does not appear). Baltar has indeed become a televangelist, his sermons and empty shows (unless you think a hug and a handshake can wipe away all the evils of the world) broadcast across the fleet. He's convinced Tory, certainly, who totally buys into the Cylon faith though she may not identify it as such. Baltar forgave her sins, so Cally's death does not weigh on her. So when a lurking Tyrol is called out by Baltar during a broadcast, the two streams cross. Baltar, the great collaborator, offers his hand to Tyrol, the resistance fighter, and says that's what Cally would have wanted. Tyrol takes his throat instead. A powerful scene that demonstrates that no matter what he said in the previous episode, he did love Cally. Sporting a brutal new look with a shaved head, the former deck chief is on the verge of suicide, one fueled by rage as much as pain. These are powerful, harrowing scenes.
But I'm not entirely sure what to make of the two characters' reconciliation by episode's end, even if I love the acting of it. Baltar, obsessed with getting Tyrol to love him (a narcissist trait), shows up at his cabin and apologizes. He over-stepped. He made a show out of the man's pain. The usual Baltar stuff where he beats himself up but learns all the wrong lessons, you know. A confession without remorse. And Tyrol says nothing. Just looks a him, from his bunk. And you have no idea what's going through his mind. Ways to kill Baltar? The question of whether he's sincere or not? Worthy of forgiveness? And in the end, still without saying a word, he gives him his hand. Forgiven? For this slight or more? Or is it just a way to get rid of him without breaking his face? No way to know, but it's a chilling moment where you might believe Tyrol has successfully "switched off" his emotions and embraced his inner Cylon. Whoever decided Tyrol should play this whole moment in silence was a genius.
ALL THIS HAS HAPPENED BEFORE AND IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN: Leoben gets beat up again. Twice. That's almost his whole shtick.
HUMAN DEATH TOLL: Headcount at 39,676, which implies a birth in the fleet. It goes right back down when Sgt. Mathias is killed outside the Cylon heavy raider.
VERSIONS: Deleted scenes include Head-Six (in a BLUE dress) coaching Baltar before a sermon and announcing she's leaving him now (and fading from view), and he shows he really does believe what he's saying; tensions between Sharon and Helo over Starbuck's decisions; and Helo trying to convince Starbuck not to go through with it.
REWATCHABILITY: Medium - Some powerful scenes aboard the Galactica, but the Demetrius stuff is mostly set-up.
REVIEW: It's been more than two months, and the Demetrius has been going around in circles. STARBUCK has been going around in circles. They're close to running out of fuel, and it looks like Kara is game to miss the rendezvous with Galactica for a re-up. Cuz what if Adama doesn't re-up the mission? The crew is very close to mutiny already and encountering Leoben in a damaged heavy raider isn't exactly lifting spirits. His offer is an interesting one, however. In exchange for the Hybrid's information about Earth, will they help the goodie Cylons beat the baddie Cylons in their civil war? (Leoben also gets a chance to interact with a more compliant Kara, which is certainly a bonus for him, though his many beatings at the hand of the crew mitigate that somewhat.) It seems the Resurrection Ships are off the table (just for the goodies?), which would mean a big leveler between humanity and the Cylons going forward. And since the Demetrius can't possibly have an effect alone, he's asking Kara to convince Adama, which is not an obvious thing. Then somebody dies in an explosion inspecting the raider. And THEN Kara tells her crew to jump to Leoben's coordinate. Well, even Helo, who's been on her side all this time, has to lead a mutiny against her. Trust has been eroded to impossible levels, and one after an another, her officers refuse her orders.
Galactica's sequences continue Tyrol's descent into depression, and Baltar's ascent as a religious figure, with a lot of the cast taking a break (notably, this is the only episode of the series where Adama does not appear). Baltar has indeed become a televangelist, his sermons and empty shows (unless you think a hug and a handshake can wipe away all the evils of the world) broadcast across the fleet. He's convinced Tory, certainly, who totally buys into the Cylon faith though she may not identify it as such. Baltar forgave her sins, so Cally's death does not weigh on her. So when a lurking Tyrol is called out by Baltar during a broadcast, the two streams cross. Baltar, the great collaborator, offers his hand to Tyrol, the resistance fighter, and says that's what Cally would have wanted. Tyrol takes his throat instead. A powerful scene that demonstrates that no matter what he said in the previous episode, he did love Cally. Sporting a brutal new look with a shaved head, the former deck chief is on the verge of suicide, one fueled by rage as much as pain. These are powerful, harrowing scenes.
But I'm not entirely sure what to make of the two characters' reconciliation by episode's end, even if I love the acting of it. Baltar, obsessed with getting Tyrol to love him (a narcissist trait), shows up at his cabin and apologizes. He over-stepped. He made a show out of the man's pain. The usual Baltar stuff where he beats himself up but learns all the wrong lessons, you know. A confession without remorse. And Tyrol says nothing. Just looks a him, from his bunk. And you have no idea what's going through his mind. Ways to kill Baltar? The question of whether he's sincere or not? Worthy of forgiveness? And in the end, still without saying a word, he gives him his hand. Forgiven? For this slight or more? Or is it just a way to get rid of him without breaking his face? No way to know, but it's a chilling moment where you might believe Tyrol has successfully "switched off" his emotions and embraced his inner Cylon. Whoever decided Tyrol should play this whole moment in silence was a genius.
ALL THIS HAS HAPPENED BEFORE AND IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN: Leoben gets beat up again. Twice. That's almost his whole shtick.
HUMAN DEATH TOLL: Headcount at 39,676, which implies a birth in the fleet. It goes right back down when Sgt. Mathias is killed outside the Cylon heavy raider.
VERSIONS: Deleted scenes include Head-Six (in a BLUE dress) coaching Baltar before a sermon and announcing she's leaving him now (and fading from view), and he shows he really does believe what he's saying; tensions between Sharon and Helo over Starbuck's decisions; and Helo trying to convince Starbuck not to go through with it.
REWATCHABILITY: Medium - Some powerful scenes aboard the Galactica, but the Demetrius stuff is mostly set-up.
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