Lay Down Your Burdens - Part II by Luke Hung

We start this episode with 49,550 survivors. The series opened with 49,998 and started this season with 47,875. So over the past nine months Roslin is down 448 people, pro rate that for a year and you get 597. Yes, you can say that’s not a fair representation because Roslin gets the Pegasus, but she lost the Olympic Carrier on episode one and she didn’t get credit for the survivors from Caprica, which happened on her watch but before the population counter could be updated. So all in all I think its pretty fair estimation of her performance. Note this is the first time I mentioned the number of survivors this season, but its important for this episode and not for a good reason. 

We open where we left off last week and the Caprica militia and the Raptor crews are battling the Cylon centurions. The Cylons are lobbing in mortar fire and the mixed human troop falls back to a little rise and a wall. For machines, these Cylons are crappy shots, I only see one casualty on the human side. On the Galactica, Cally gets her walking papers from Doc Cottle in sickbay. Her jaw is wired shut and her face is all kinds of swollen purple. Purple is not your color, sister. Chief Tyrol comes by to apologize he looks more emotionally devastated than the woman he beat, and Cally forgives him before he can complete his apology, no questions asked. You don’t need him girl; this is how abusive relationships start. 

Back on Caprica, the Cylons have backed off. Sharon hypothesizes that they are waiting to receive non-lethal weapons to take prisoners. Of note, Starbuck gives Sharon a pistol. I guess she trusts her, even if no one else (aside from Helo) does. Starbuck isn’t having any of this prisoner garbage and makes a suicide pact with Anders and they wait to see what happens. 18 hours later, the Cylons still haven’t attacked and Starbuck sends out a patrol. They determine that the Cylons have fled the battlefield inexplicably. Tyrol’s priest, Cavil makes an appearance and calls it a miracle.

Simultaneously on the Colonial One, Roslin receives reports that her lead is slipping despite the fact the Baltar is an ass-clown. It’s all about the planet, and Roslin won’t flip flop to win the election. This is how I can tell this show is fictional; any other politician would make the promise and then break it after they are elected. Tory seems to have a plan B for winning the election, but is keeping the details of it to herself. Apparently, having a crisis of faith, Roslin has asked for religious counseling from none other than Cavil. Huh, he can’t be in two places at once, unless… Dun dun, dunmmm, He’s a Cylon.

Later, Roslin has a clandestine meeting with Baltar. She wants them to agree not to use the planet politically. She knows Baltar knows it a crappy idea and hopes he can rise above his petty aspirations and not promise settlement. Baltar isn’t having it. He might think that colonization is stupid, but he knows that this is the issue that promises victory for him and he won’t let it slide. Roslin pulls out her only remaining bullet and basically calls him a Cylon collaborator. Baltar ducks and weaves this point and leaves the meeting, but now he knows the gig is up. Roslin has no proof, but since when has that ever mattered in the court of public opinion.

The rescue team returns to the Galactica (but they left from the Pegasus) and Tigh, as usual, gets the best one liner of the episode “There’ll be no living with her now” meaning Starbuck and her ego. Starbuck and Adama hug. He is far more intimate with her than he is with his own son. He looks at Anders and Starbuck almost forgets his name, it’s like when your ex-girlfriend meets your new girlfriend and you freeze because you are still secretly in love with the ex. Not that I think Starbuck is in love with Adama, but he’s a proxy for Lee. Breaking up this awkward moment, Cavil wanders out of a Raptor. He is immediately identified as a Cylon by Tyrol and imprisoned. Boomer gets indicted by association. Adama refers to her as ‘that.’ Boomer’s stock rises and falls more than a dot-com. Starbuck turns to Anders and the other refugees “Welcome to the Galactica.” Yeah and this is a good day.

Helo meets Sharon in the brig and he is pissed that she didn’t say anything. She got no answers just bitterness. She is twisted over her child’s ‘death’ and she is all screw the universe. She walks away from him, lies on her bunk and stares at the ceiling. Helo does some yelling, but their meeting is over. Anders and Starbuck are playing a little grab ass in the pilots’ quarters and Apollo comes by to say hi. He wants to see the competition and act like a grown up, but Kara is too drunk to play nice. Even sober she doesn’t have the interpersonal skills to make this even vaguely palatable. She insults Dualla and laughs like a banshee. Anders, who doesn’t know anything about anybody, knows enough to think this isn’t cool and tries to shut her up. No chance of that working big guy, Kara responds by making out with Anders in front of Lee and ignoring him until he leaves. Kara is cute and often cool, but no one is that cute that I would put up with this bullshit. She is a bad drunk and often not a nice person.

Galactica Cavil is being escorted to the brig by several marines. He makes a big speech about how he’s not a Cylon until he sees the other Cavil, well there goes his cover “oh well. Ok then” he says and in the cell he goes. The Caprica Cavil states that the war heroes (Six and Sharon) have shown the Cylons the error of their ways. He further says they are sorry and will go their own way “no harm done.” No harm done? Are you out of your cybernetic mind? A minimum of 60 billion dead, twelve planets and generations of culture gone in a blink of an eye, only 50,000 rag tag survivors, and you say no harm done. Yeah right, the President says the only rational thing of the entire scene and sends them both to the airlock.

Some indeterminate time passes and the election is on. The numbers aren’t going in Roslin’s favor and there are only a few ships left. Roslin gives her aide, Tory, the nod and she makes a call to… Tigh. Tigh? I guess he hates Baltar more than Roslin. Tigh nods to Dee and Dee intercepts some of the voter boxes. Shockingly, Roslin suddenly wins. Zarek smells a rat, and tells Baltar as much, but Baltar is resigned. “Roslin is not dishonest.” Well actually you’re wrong. She is an end justifies the means sort of person and Baltar is an end she is unwilling to accept. Baltar is a weird one; he thinks he is the only one capable of deception and manipulation. What an ego on him.

However due to some odd ballots, Gaeta (who some believe is a Cylon) figures out the voter fraud. I personally don’t think he’s a Cylon, by and large every Cylon has been revealed to the audience within the episode that they were introduced, or soon there after. I guess he could be a huge sleeper, but that would be very atypical for how they have been shown so far. Anyways Gaeta tells Tigh, but Tigh seems unmotivated so Gaeta goes above his head and tells Adama. Adama confronts Roslin and she confesses. She also tells Adama of her recovered memories of Baltar and Six. Adama doesn’t indicate whether or not he believes her, but he refuses to let her fix the election.

Adama informs Baltar of the voter fraud and Gaius gets indignant. He starts ranting about finding the source of the conspiracy. Adama tells him to take his victory and leave and Baltar decides to do just that. Baltar immediately orders the colonization of New Caprica and all Adama can say is “Gods help us.” Just prior to his swearing in ceremony Baltar visits Gina-Six. She says some cryptic comments about not going to Caprica and Baltar is confused. He is fed up with her and probably the Holo-Six in his brain and gets up to leave. Gina asks him to stay and strips. She has scars on her back. In a combination of pity for Baltar, feeling a debt for her rescue, and a need to cleanse herself of her rapes at the hands of the Pegasus crew she offers herself to him. A man of character would have refused, but Baltar has no such integrity. His sexual ardor practically wolfs down her offering. At least she didn’t cry as it was happening, actually she looked like it was enjoyable for her – so Baltar’s only a half dirt bag on this one.

During his swearing in ceremony Gina-Six commits nuclear suicide. In a spectacular explosion, she wipes out Cloud Nine and a half dozen other ships. All I wanted to do is jump out of my seat and chant “holy shit” over and over again. How’s that for a first day as president? I told you not to give her that nuke. Objectively, lets look at the effects of Baltar having sex. First he destroys the colonies, then he gets Kara to mutiny, and finally blows five or six ships up. Given what happens later in the episode. He should never be allowed to have real intercourse again. Plus how bad is he in bed? Three said of Caprica-Six having sex with him “Profoundly disturbing,” Kara called out Lee’s name, and Gina-Six committed suicide not an hour later. Dude, I would be done. Time to cut that damn thing off; it’s a weapon of mass destruction/disappointment. Now here is the really sad point, this is not the worst day of his presidency.

This is where the episode goes all ka-ca (a nod to Quantum Leap) we have already used 67 minutes of a 92 minute episode and as far as I’m concerned almost a third of the plot left to go. When we come back from the next series of commercial we have about 14 minutes left.

Adama tries to get Baltar to focus on internal security, probably with a secondary objective of getting him to change his mind on settlement of New Caprica. But Baltar is locked in on settlement. He dismisses Adama with “I don’t have to listen, I’m the President. The settlement begins and it begins now.” Well it worked for Roslin. Baltar cries a little (for Gina-Six) and drops his head on his desk. He lifts it after being awakened by his aide Gaeta. Hey a little promotion for Gaeta good for you.

Subtitles tell me that a year has passed. I’ll give you a second to let that sink in. I’m sitting here trying to come up with a snide comment, I’m so shocked I got nothing.

Gaeta’s got a little gray and he’s needs the President’s decision about the union problem. Baltar dismisses him without a real answer. In the background you see a very attractive brunette getting dressed. Baltar what did I just say about you and sex with real people? And, did they only save the hot women when they ran from the Cylons? Opps my mistake, as the scene continues there is a hot blond too, that means doubly bad news a coming. Also it appears that Baltar has picked up a substance abuse problem.

The Galactica and Pegasus along with several, but not all of the other ships are in orbit around New Caprica. A defense patrol the subtitles call it, but as you cut inside the ships it more like ghost ships sailing lost along the high sea. Adama, now with a mustache, tells Tigh its time to join the rest of the Fleet on the planet. Tigh is reluctant, but eventually acquiesces. We cut to New Caprica City population 39,192 and all I can say is I hope there is another city somewhere else, but I doubt it. There is probably is another 1,000 or so on the Galactica and Pegasus (the are running with skeleton crews) and a couple of hundred on the other ships. So in one year of Baltar’s presidency the fleet is down 9,000 people, now that’s what I call leadership.

Kara and Anders seems to have gotten married over the intervening year and Kara's got long hair. Now I’m a long hair fan, but even I think she looks much better at the shoulder length. Anders is playing pyramid (formally triad) and predictably as he stops to listen to Kara yelling at him he gets tackled – nice hit. He’s sick with pneumonia and according to Doc Cottle there is no medicine in the colony. Kara bumps into Tigh and he informs her that he knows the Pegasus has a store of emergency medicine left.

The Pegasus is still under the command of Lee Adama and there is some bad blood between the two. I guess it could be from the make out in the pilot quarters or the Dee comment, but either seems a little minor for the apparent hostility of between the two. Tyrol and Cally seem to be married are the leaders of the union Gaeta was complaining about earlier. Cally also is pregnant. In other news, Laura Roslin is teaching a bunch of kids with Maya, the adopted mother of Hera. This Maya actress is also ridiculously pretty. If not for the holocaust and the 60 billion dead, I would be so there. 

Cut to a large Apollo, who is being assisted by the still hot Dualla, on the Pegasus bridge. He gets a call from Starbuck and he is a little distant. She needs a favor and he’s going to make her work for it. I think he was going to give her the meds, but you will never know because the Cylons start jumping into the sector. You can chant Holy Shit or I told you so. A quick switch to the Galactica and we see that Lee is on the horn with Pa Pa Adama. Lee is advising a retreat. Neither the Galactica or the Pegasus has gotten to condition one (combat stations) yet and the Cylons are almost on top of them. Big daddy Adama is reluctant, but sees the impossible tactical position they are in. He orders an immediate jump with the phrase “but we’ll be back.”

On the planet, Gaeta rushes into Baltar’s office and tells him that the Cylons have arrived. The Cylons do a massive fly over just in case the people on the planet haven’t figured it out yet and an ominous person starts looking for Kara Thrace. Meanwhile, several human-Cylons arrive at Baltar’s office, one appears to be Caprica-Six, but they all look the same to me. They state if the humans offer no resistance they won’t be harmed. Like they have a choice. Baltar asks how they found them, and they respond that they were a light year away and they picked up a nuclear explosion. How’s that for a bucket load of karma? A dead rape victim kicks her attackers in the ass a year later. Baltar does what he does best and surrenders.

In the closing credits Tyrol wanders over to Kara and says, “what do we do now, Captain?” Oh, back to captain now that the shit hit the fan, whatever happened to the Norma Ray garbage. Kara responds, “same thing we always do. Fight-em till we can’t.” Cylon Centurions parade through downtown New Caprica and we get a Six voice over, “Humanity has surrendered. The war is finally over. We must now fulfill our true destiny. So we will love them, and take care of them, show them the glory of peace. And like God, our infinite mercy will be matched only by our power and complete control.” Umm, okay.

Overall the episode was a B+

Acting: B+, So much happened to the characters as the episode moved that everyone had to demonstrate tremendous range. Douglas and Clyne were both good in their initial scene but weakened at the climax of the episode. Gaius actually became weaselier; I didn’t think that was possible. Starbuck was more insensitive, and of all things Adama was the moral compass of the show. We have come full circle haven’t we? What the hell happened to the make up jobs for Bamber and Sackhoff, his gaining weight and those pathetic extensions for her? Katie you are cute don’t let them screw with your looks too much.

Plot: A, All that comes to mind is “what just fracking happened?” Ninety-two minutes and I’m beyond confused and words. Congratulations, I always complain that I’m never surprised by an episode (that makes sense, that is) well I’m surprised. At first I was shocked and dismayed by this episode. I hated it; I kept hoping it was a dream sequence, which I’ve been informed that it isn’t.

However, the more I thought about it, I figured out most of the reason I hated it was because it way off from anything related to the original BSG. At this point I guess there is no other choice but to leave everything behind. This show has already done 13 more episodes than the original anyways and wasn’t that close to the original to being with. The other reason was about the year passing, but to be realistic sometime long periods of time pass without something exciting happening.

So given that, what I’m reduced to now is, how the hell are they going to get out of this? I guess that is the purpose of a cliffhanger, but damn. There were some things that didn’t make a lot of sense to me; the brief Cylon peace and their return, what happened to Sharon over that year, but all and all, wow.

Action/Episode Energy: B-, The problem with this episode, too much happened in it. To fit it all in (even into an oversized episode) they had to cut like crazy and that set off the tempo. Moore seems to want to carry three plots in one episode. The first is completely self-contained, the second develops over several episodes, and the third runs through a large chunk of the season. However, with plots like this, a completely self-enclosed episode is almost impossible, hence the multiple two (and what should be three) part episodes. Frankly they should just give up and make it one long arc with a couple of breaks in it.

P.S. It’s the day after the episode and they already changed the Sci-Fi channel website so it says, President Gaius Baltar. Fracking A.