Amherst Lane

Battestar Gallatica- A breath of fresh air.

I was not excited about this show at all. Remakes usually don’t live up to the originals. With Battlestar Gallatica, I was wrong.

BSG is not a new show. It’s now rocking its third season on TV. I sadly do not watch as much TV as I should and have just now started watching this show. I’ve seen every episode from season 1 and 3. I kind of skipped over the second season. I will definitely go back and watch it as soon as Rene is done with his DVDs. itunes offered a forty five minute primer that led up to season three, so I wasn’t completely lost.

The story is based on the war between Humans and the Cylons ( a robotic race created by humans.) The humans are comprised of twelve colonies living deep in space. The Cylons, robots created with self awareness, turn on their masters in what is known as the Cylon war. It has been forty years since the first Cylon war. Unbeknownst to the humans, the Cylons have created new models that look just like humans. After forty years of peace, the Cylons execute a sneak attack, obliterating all but fifty thousand humans. On the brink of extinction, the remaining survivors band together in a convoy in order to escape the Cylon invasion. Led by Admiral Adama (Edward James Olmos) the fleet heads for a mythical planet called Earth.

That is about as close as this show gets to the original series. The modern version is dark and gritty. The show tackles issues from alcoholism to infidelity. Yes, the show has lots of sex. Apparently being in space makes people horny. Even the Cylons.

I cannot say too many good things about this series. I’ll try and keep it short.

One of my favorite aspects about the character development is the ambiguous nature of morality. There are no hard lines between Good and Evil. Everything is grey. Since the Human fleet is running for their lives, they are constantly being forced to make life or death decisions, which usually end with the viewer second guessing the Humans as the good guys.

Alternatively, the Cylons are represented a hyper-religious zealots who are on a search for meaning and God. Several of the human-like Cylons become conflicted and even end up siding with the humans.

So, for anyone who wants a good sci-fi series, that is full of pathos and complicated plot lines, this is the show for you. Battlestar Gallatica is a perfect example of “getting it right.”- Tony