Battlestar Galactica—Daybreak Part 1

A note from your friendly neighborhood FanBoyWonder: As we noted upon our return, FanBoyWonder is on limited duty as we are still busy at work and in coping with Mrs. Lovey Wonder’s long recuperation and our efforts to bring her home.

We DO intend to expand the scope of the blog again beyond BSG reviews…including taking aim at the clusterfrak that is today’s DC Comics but for the moment we’re talking before we fly. Stay tuned, we’re working our way back to full speed.

Meanwhile, on with the pain.

Here’s the Upshot from Sci-Fi Channel: Upshot: As Galactica is stripped for parts, a call for volunteers is made for a final mission.

This is it…the beginning of the end. FanBoyWonder is having trouble believing this is the next to last Battlestar Galactica…EVER. Not so much because we are in denial as to the show’s impending expiration as that there are just so many darned plot threads hanging out there that we’re afraid we’re going to be left hanging by our unresolved curiosity when clock runs down.

This was a strange episode it truth be told. Others we have read didn’t like the pre-holocaust flashbacks to life on Caprica but we liked the symmetry—ending with the prologue.

Plus it was interesting contrast to see our characters now, worn down after four years of post-holocaust existence and then to see them as the people they were when life was “normal.”

In Caprica City, there is a brief scene of Bill Adama discussing job plans with someone else in an office—Adama is wearing a suit….the first time we can ever recall seeing Adama NOT wearing any kind of uniform.

We then see a newly acquainted Caprica Six and Gaius Baltar in his limousine before he gets a disturbing call about his father. He can’t seem to recall her name and hence the running joke of the series.

Given how hated he is now, it’s easy to forget that of all of the crew Baltar was the big cheese, a celebrity scientist with political connections while the two more important people of the fleet—Bill Adama and Laura Roslin—were little known and less important cogs in the machine.

Speaking of Laura, we find that she was no stranger to tragedy and loss even before the Cylon attacks as her family is wiped out by a drunk driver.

We also get to see Kara Thrace and Lee Adama meet for the first time over dinner at Zak Adama’s apartment. Amazing what a couple of haircuts can do to take years of both characters.

Meanwhile, in the not so delightful present day, the viewer is jolted back from to reality at the sight of a cancer ravaged Roslin is in sickbay while Doc Cottle watches over her.

Elsewhere, a reluctant Lee Adama gives the orders for Galactica to be stripped for its parts, while Admiral Adama packs up his belongings in preparation for their transport to his new quarters aboard the Cylon baseship.

In an attempt to take advantage of the ship's low morale, Paula tries to convince Gaius that the Galactica's current fall could lead to their group's political uprising. Yet when Gaius asks Lee about gaining political leverage, Lee points out that Baltar has never, not once ever committed a truly selfless act, prompting Baltar to withdraw.

In the brig we seek a bitter Galen Tyrol visited by Helo in the brig. Tyrol is there presumably for his knowingly helping Boomer to escape and unknowingly helping Boomer to kidnap Hera.

All things considered, Helo is being pretty cool to the guy who helped kidnap his kid. For his part, Tyrol is down on himself and all Number Eight Cylons and Cylons in general.

Adama is moved to change his mind rescuing Hera after seeing her picture on the now abandoned memorial wall. Adama and Starbuck share a touching scene when she confirms what Baltar said publicly last episode and he says he doesn’t care. Kara is his daughter as far as he’s concerned.

Having found out Cavil’s location from Sam the Hybrid, the Admiral and Kara make a call for volunteers to assist with the search mission for Hera. They mark a divisional line in the flight deck with red tape and instruct those who are willing to join this last fight to cross over it. Lee Adama is the first and others soon follow suit, including a withered Laura Roslin who has come down from sickbay to show her support.

Adama also is taking volunteers from those crew members who were part of the mutiny hence we get to see Racetrack…ah the lovely, smoking hot Racetrack …oh yeah and Skulls too…back in a raptor doing recon.

It’s doesn’t take much to get Tyrol to volunteer and he drag Tory along with him… “like you have anything better to do” he tells her. Tory's reveal as one of the Final Five Cylons has been a disappointment to us.

Her character was a bit of a blank slate to begin with but after the reveal, we not only knew less about her than before, but what we do know, we don’t like. She is always the wet blanket of the party….trying to be the most Cylon of the Cylons.

Oh yeah, the little fraker murdered Cally when Cally found out they were Cylons. We will be very disappointed if Tory is not held to account for this.

The episode ends abruptly into “To Be Continued” leading us to believe that this is meant to see in its three-hour entirety.

Frak! We miss the show already.