Here we are at the first part of the season finale of Battlestar. Just as this season started with two parts, this season ends with two parts. Maybe it’s because all of this has happened before, and all of this will happen again. Here we go with “Kobol’s Last Gleaming-Part 1.”
1. Opening scene
The first seven minutes of this episode treats us to four alternating scenes, a highly effective way to ramp up the speed and suspense of the episode. We have an Adama v. Adama boxing match. We see two people having sex; it’s definitely Starbuck, but who is the guy? Then we move to Helo and Sharon on Caprica, and now he knows she’s a Cylon. Finally, to Boomer on Galactica; a Boomer that knows, deep down inside, that she’s a Cylon. The frantic pace makes me excited for this episode and while the rest isn’t as fast paced, it’s because sometimes you have to build a story and a world. It can’t be all flash. Oh, and Starbuck is having sex with Baltar. This seems to fit with her impulsive and self-destructive nature, but she does call out Lee’s name, which makes for an awkward conclusion to the encounter. All of that in seven minutes. Nice work, writers.
2. Faith
We’ve seen the development of a mythology within the series, and this episode serves to push this mythos even further. As we saw previously, Roslin now believes she is the dying leader meant to lead the humans to Earth, and after she sees buildings on Kobol, there is no doubt in her mind that she is the one. (I can’t help but to mention Neo after writing “the one.”) Roslin and Commander Adama have disagreed in the past, and have fought to implement their own ideas, but at this point, the President is willing to coerce Starbuck and directly undermine Adama’s plans. And she does that by appealing to Starbuck’s faith. Roslin is smart and knows Starbuck is intensely loyal to the Commander, so she has to appeal to something stronger than her loyalty.
3. Losing control
In the opening scene, during the Adama v. Adama boxing match, the elder Adama wins, despite his age. The Commander is a dispenser of wisdom, a mentor, to both Lee and Kara, and here he tells his son that sometimes he needs to lose control; he needs to let his instincts take over, and Lee’s inability to do this is the reason why he doesn’t win. Ouch. You know who loses control over and over again and lets their instincts take over? Starbuck. The one time Lee does lose control, Starbuck-style, is when he successfully destroys the Cylon mining operation. Here, we see Starbuck directly defying her Commander, a man she obviously fiercely loves and respects, to follow her instincts back to Caprica, as Roslin suggested. While Starbuck obviously regrets losing control, see sex with Baltar, losing control also pays off for her big time, and we’re led to believe this time it will pay off again.
4. Cyclical nature of time
“All of this has happened before, and all of this will happen again,” a phrase uttered by various characters in this first season of Battlestar, Cylons and humans alike. Here, Roslin uses it to appeal to Starbuck’s religious beliefs in order to convince her to return to Caprica on a mission of faith. Various religions believe in this idea of the cyclical nature of time, whether it is reincarnation, reanimation, pressing a reset button, or some related idea. In theory, Cylons never die, and are constantly reincarnated in a new body once their consciousness is transferred – perhaps the most obvious form of reincarnation. How far will faith take us in this show? How strong is each person’s faith? How closely matched is the faith of the humans and the faith of the Cylons, the children of humanity?
5. A look to part two
I have to say, there is only one major plot point I remember from the season finale. But, I’m not even sure this is the cliffhanger for THIS season’s finale. It’s been a long 14 years since I’ve watched this first season. If it’s what I remember, it’s something I always mention to other (obviously amazing) people I encounter that have watched the series. Overall, the season moves more slowly than I remember, but I’m glad that it does. It takes time to build worlds, characters, conflict, and story. This is something Battlestar does so well. I’m curious to see where Starbuck’s mission takes her, and what happens to the Raptor that crashes on Kobol – something I definitely didn’t mention in this review. If you watch, you’ll see. Also, when will we find out more of the Cylon’s plan? We know they have one.
