I, like many of my fellow geeks, have been amping up for the return and finish of Battlestar Galactica this Friday. Then my fiancee's boss has to commit the third-worst case of party-pooping in history and have Liz work Friday night. When the mall closes right when Galactica comes on the air, that's definitely NOT enough time to get home.
If you're reading this and are unfamiliar with Battlestar Galactica (the 2003 series) (yes, it makes a huge difference) I'll give you a rundown of any given episode. There is a Cylon opening bit. In series one it gave a brief history of the Cylons (they were created by man, rebelled, evolved, look and feel human, some think they are human, and they have a PLAN). In series two, they dropped the look/feel human and some think they are, because by this point everyone knew was a Cylon. In series three, the intro only changed the pictures used. Series 4.0 gave a shot of every known Cylon with captions about that (twelve cylon models, etc).
The next part is a "previously on" segment, which is fairly common in serialised television, and I don't have to explain it (thank gods). Then they have a cold open, or a segment of the show that airs before the main titles. This is frequently either a) action-packed and some of the best television ever, or b) heavy on character development and some of the best television ever. Then the opening titles play. Series four's premiere, "He That Believeth in Me," was a perfect example of this format. Hell, that cold open even managed to give us character development AND be action-packed.
What follows the first ad break is some of the best storytelling, acting, writing, etc, that has ever been filmed. Since the show debuted in 2004 (after a 2003 miniseries pilot), it has been nominated for a Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form) every year, winning in 2005 for the first series episode "33". In fairness, the only reason BSG did not win in 2006-8 for Pegasus, Downloaded, and Razor respectively is that those episodes were up against Doctor Who episodes penned by Steven Moffat, the best television writer in the known universe.
BSG has been critically praised and is probably one of the best things Sci-Fi has ever had going for them. Indeed, in late 2007 when their original remake of Flash Gordon was failing ... for good reason ... several Galactica mini-sodes aired during Flash Gordon episodes to draw viewers in as well as promote the upcoming feature-length episode, Razor. Like many things Galactica, the sodes (as they were known in fandom, coined by Galactica Watercooler podcast) brought up more questions than they ever answered. Luckily, that's just how Galactica fans like it. Among questions being asked about this final series include: Who or what is Starbuck, What's up with the final four Cylons, who is the final fifth, are the main group of Cylons going to come back and destroy Galactica and the humans, can the Cylons be trusted, and the ever-present question of Earth.
To quote Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly: "If you speculate and it turns out you were right, you will have retroactively spoiled me. Which means I will have to retroactively kill you."
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Now playing: Bear McCreary - Prelude To War
via FoxyTunes
If you're reading this and are unfamiliar with Battlestar Galactica (the 2003 series) (yes, it makes a huge difference) I'll give you a rundown of any given episode. There is a Cylon opening bit. In series one it gave a brief history of the Cylons (they were created by man, rebelled, evolved, look and feel human, some think they are human, and they have a PLAN). In series two, they dropped the look/feel human and some think they are, because by this point everyone knew
The next part is a "previously on" segment, which is fairly common in serialised television, and I don't have to explain it (thank gods). Then they have a cold open, or a segment of the show that airs before the main titles. This is frequently either a) action-packed and some of the best television ever, or b) heavy on character development and some of the best television ever. Then the opening titles play. Series four's premiere, "He That Believeth in Me," was a perfect example of this format. Hell, that cold open even managed to give us character development AND be action-packed.
What follows the first ad break is some of the best storytelling, acting, writing, etc, that has ever been filmed. Since the show debuted in 2004 (after a 2003 miniseries pilot), it has been nominated for a Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form) every year, winning in 2005 for the first series episode "33". In fairness, the only reason BSG did not win in 2006-8 for Pegasus, Downloaded, and Razor respectively is that those episodes were up against Doctor Who episodes penned by Steven Moffat, the best television writer in the known universe.
BSG has been critically praised and is probably one of the best things Sci-Fi has ever had going for them. Indeed, in late 2007 when their original remake of Flash Gordon was failing ... for good reason ... several Galactica mini-sodes aired during Flash Gordon episodes to draw viewers in as well as promote the upcoming feature-length episode, Razor. Like many things Galactica, the sodes (as they were known in fandom, coined by Galactica Watercooler podcast) brought up more questions than they ever answered. Luckily, that's just how Galactica fans like it. Among questions being asked about this final series include: Who or what is Starbuck, What's up with the final four Cylons, who is the final fifth, are the main group of Cylons going to come back and destroy Galactica and the humans, can the Cylons be trusted, and the ever-present question of Earth.
To quote Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly: "If you speculate and it turns out you were right, you will have retroactively spoiled me. Which means I will have to retroactively kill you."
----------------
Now playing: Bear McCreary - Prelude To War
via FoxyTunes
