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BattleStar Galactica


LostInSpace
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quote:


Originally posted by Race Bannon IV:

I really never understood what the motivation for selling out your own race would be.


He didn't know what the Cylon chic was up to, remember?

quote:


but with all the negative internet pre-screening buzz, fat chance of that happening.


Dunno about this though, it may just get picked up - even if for only one season. Remember how long SG1 has been on Sci-Fi, despite some blatant repetition. Then again, who knows what sort of politics is going on behind the scene.

Good thing is, once Battlecruiser - Edge To Edge goes on the air, all bets are off.

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This miniseries is ÔÇ£looselyÔÇØ based on the original Battlestar Galactica. Some of it is good, some of it isnÔÇÖt as good as the original, and some of it isnÔÇÖt very good in its own right.

First off, the political intrigue has been distilled into a single sentence, uttered by a fembot, accusing Baltar of unwittingly providing classified computer codes. Quite interesting when you realize how the original series was so much more pro-military  especially considering the anti-military climate of the time.

That being said, the whole concept of Cylons using the computer network against the Twelve Colonies is interesting. As is the plot twist where Adama doesnÔÇÖt trust the network and, consequently, has the only battlestar capable of surviving the Cylon attack (where is Commander Kane?). I think, though, they couldÔÇÖve cut the sex scenes (which were probably ÔÇ£sanitizedÔÇØ for the U.S. viewer, anyway) and better spent their time mixing the computer idea with politics from the original series.

The space battles occasionally looked  oddly familiar. I grew up on 50s Japanese science fiction films like The Mysterions and the scenes with Boomer outrunning the Cylon attack looked sooooooo much like what I remember seeing in those big, dark theaters, sooooo many years ago. I dont know how they did it. Maybe it was the hand-held camera look that gave me the impression the ships were models attached to string. Ironic that state-of-the-art computer-generated graphics have come full circle.

Then there was the chain of command. If military protocol were based on our own, then the Secretary of Education (school teacher) wouldve been under the command of the ships captain for as long as she was aboard. Nobody supercedes the authority of a captain when aboard his ship  not a general, not an admiral, not a Secretary.

The new fighter-pilot uniforms look like leftovers from Babylon 5. The original jackets were far more impressive.

But I like this Adama better. In the original, Adama acquiesced to the political machine, never questioning his orders to stand down, never complaining when he had to pick up the pieces after the Cylon attack on the colonies. This Adama pretty much ignores stupid orders. ItÔÇÖs no wonder he admires StarbuckÔÇÖs attitude.

Tonight, I fully expect to see hotshot warriors at work. So far, none of Galacticas fighter pilots have fared better than the Cylons. Starbuck got nicked in her first engagement  tonight, she better be able to do more than chew cigars and punch old men in the face. And Apollo better get it together. All of it.

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Guest Hellbinder[CE]

quote:

Then there was the chain of command. If military protocol were based on our own, then the Secretary of Education (school teacher) wouldve been under the command of the ships captain for as long as she was aboard. Nobody supercedes the authority of a captain when aboard his ship  not a general, not an admiral, not a Secretary.


True in that case *IF* the Pilot of the Transport wanted to be in charge and *Only* in a limited fassion and only of that specific Ship. Do you really think that the Pilot of Air Force One is going to tell the Secretary of State, or one of the other senior Government officials what to do in a Time of Crisis? If communication is lost? Other than if the Ship itself is in danger?

I am ex Navy btw so I know what I am talking about.

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Guest Hellbinder[CE]

BTW,,, There are some really positive responses on the SCifi Message boards not all negative. looks 60/40 on the + side to me.

This is a shoe in for a series. IMO it is the best thing going for a good long running Sci-Fi series i have seen in a while.

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I rather liked it. And I really hate UC now, because it's not out so I can get on it and blow stuff up. I had to go play HW2 instead... bah...

The space scenes were nice, but the handheld thing is getting a little annoying. I want to be able to see what's going on. If I want shakey camera footage of combat, I'll go watch CNN or History Channel's "The Color Of War". No one seems to have pointed out it takes place supposedly 40 years after original show. Which can explain away some of the obvious discrepencies. As far as acting goes, what were you expecting? I thought there was some pretty decent acting, even from Starbuck. And I see a lot of on-screen chemistry between the characters.

Can't wait for Ep. 2 tonight.

I know it's the whole "chicken-egg" thing...

I want Space Above And Beyond back.... <.< >.>

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quote:

Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr:

The love scenes were unneeded, gratuitous and laughable. When you have no less than three of those within the first 38 mins, you know something's clearly wrong. 8/10

I say it was done to entice and ensnare the Teen crowd to at least turn it on. I am in 100% agreement on you about the characters. I just wish they would come out with something original. We've seen remake after remake in the movies and on T.V. for years now from an organization that has lost any inspiration and talent to come up with original stuff. Oooooo did I say that nasty word "original" .Take for example the american version of that british comedy Coupling what a disaster. Now the original series was perfect you could not have asked for a better chemistry between the characters and the actors are perfect. BTW the character who plays Steve in the British version also made an appearance in Pirates of the Carribean. All I can say in ending is that I just wish original things would come out in the same calibre as 2001:a space oddesey, A clockwork Orange, Blade Runner etc. But alas I think not. Knowing our luck some brain will decide to remake the Wizard of Oz this time staring Britney Spears or The Wiz with Beyonce. .

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quote:

Originally posted by Hellbinder:

Do you really think that the Pilot of Air Force One is going to tell the Secretary of State, or one of the other senior Government officials what to do in a Time of Crisis?

I figured somebody would bring that up. And, if it's a senior official, you're probably right. But no aircraft commander I ever flew with would allow a school teacher to overhaul his cargo bay. But then, there's not much you can do with the back end of a C-141 anyway.

Old Air Force salutes Old Navy ...

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I liked the show a lot. So what if Starbuck is a female. Too many complainers here about it. In fact she reminds me of Maniac from the wing commnader games who was a hotshot pilot with an attitude Edward James Olmos never ceases to amaze me and he is IMO the greatest hispanic actor ever and his portrayal of Commander Adama was awesome. The space combat scenes were great and the CGI people got it right by not adding sound in space and those zoom in and out shots were awesome. It was like wing commander in space not star trek where every damn term was confusing and unrealistic. This was a space navy. I agree with SC about the cheesy love scenes. I mean c'mon, Baltar the ladies man? Yeah right, should have stuck to his character in the old series instead. Damn shame Apollo died though, I guess it was inevitable and the XO's performance was laughable at best. The review at IGN.com pretty much covered the flaws but overall it was a great show.

8/10

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That *very* end is just stupid...

How can one of the origional characters be a Cylon????

I totally loved the whole thing except for that last part. I guess they will do something later on in the *series* where she finds out what she is and becomes a 7of9 type Borgianish Cylon member of teh Crew constantly struggling with her true identity.

Other than that I think its the best SCifi Space show I have ever seen. Hope it gets picked up by SCifi or USA networks and runs for 5 seasons

(I hope that at the end when they find eath that they have the 13th colony be some major high tech advanced civilization. Like more advanced than the colonies. Then they mount an assult and WASTE the Cylons with a cool Battlestar the Size of the moon mua mua muahahahahahahaha *drool*

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quote:


Originally posted by Outlaw:

Saw the last one. Not surprising that the ending leaves it open for a weekly series. Its gonna be great!


oh man, I sure hope so. I got my Tivo all prepped and ready to go.

I really enjoyed PT2

As for the space combat scenes, I dunno - maybe I'm old school - but I like how they were done. Not too flashy or gratuitous and not over the top. To me, they were done just right.

Man, EJO is just freaking awesome - definitely fits the part.

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I thoroughly enjoyed PT2. Thought provoking tense and intelligent. I think Starbuck's character aquitted herself better in this episode and the scenes between Adama and the president just drip with potential for a very complex relationship. The Cylons are much more menacing and don't look easier to kill than imperial stormtroopers. I will be very disappointed when Sci Fi doesnt pick up this show.

9/10

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Finally saw part 1 last night. I had it taped. I liked it. I give it 70% and I agree a little bit with everyone. Some of the acting was painful to watch. The sex scene was almost gratuitous. I feel it showed his infatuation with the cylon and why he let her into so many areas of the defense network. But then again they could have done that another way so it was almost gratuitous. I don't mind Starbuck being a woman but her acting was painful. I like the oriental girl as Boomer. If turned into a series I think the actors could grow into the roles.

But Derek, you ought to ping them hard. The Galctica looks just like a Canlon. I wish they would have kept a bit more of the old styling like they did with the vipers.

That said; HELP!!! The person who records for me is a bit retentive when it comes to timing. Either the show ran over a touch or his VCR was off. My tape cut off right after Apollo used the pulse generator. I saw Adama screaming for Lee and the radar go dead then a split second of static and It's Christmas Charlie Brown came on. I wanted to cry. What did I miss from the first episode?

Then last night I was talking to them on the phone and they were flipping thru the channel guide and discovered it was running from 6 to 8. I might get the last hour and a half.

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Guest Hellbinder[CE]

No worries dude. The whole thing is playing again on Sunday night (in its entirety) starting at 7PM. 7-11PM.

On a side note... I dont think any of the acting was bad at all. Thats one of the areas I thought the show really excelled at. Starbuck did a great Job in my book.

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  • 3 months later...

Just my 2-cents...

Well just for the heck of it the other day, I went out and bought the entire original BSG on DVD...to have as a groundbreaking show and to see for myself what the original was like. Now I'll admit up front, I HAD seen the original pilot (Saga of a Star World) BEFORE I saw the new SCI-FI version of the series so I did have some exposure to the old before the new.

Having said that though, I liked the original pilot for what it was...yes it had a lot of cheesy stuff (those three eyed/mouth singers being the cheesiest of the cheese), but I can easily see how this show took people by storm in the late 70's. And I apologize in saying this, but this is just my opionion; Richard Hatch CANNOT act, he just tries to hard and I winced everytime I heard him deliver a line.

When the end-credits started rolling on the sci-fi version though, I felt very satisfied with MOST the changes and updates they had made, such as openly addressing the FTL issue, losing the coloinial second/minute/hour/day/year jargon, getting rid of the monkey in the suit, and focusing more on the reaction and actions of people placed in terrible events rather than on special-effects.

Now that I've watched almost all of the original series, I feel that the original had more going for it than I had thought. The sweeping score in the orginal is some of the best theme music I've ever heard for a show and I miss it in the new BSG (especially in the opening of the sci-fi version). I also loved the Adama that Lorne Greene portrayed...he was older and didn't have the problems that EJO's Adama did (made him somewhat harder to relate to), but he was excellent in a Moses/Grandfather sort of way.

But come on, what were the original BSG writers thinking when they penned "The Lost Warrior" and "The Magnificent Warriors"??? Western's In Space (and bad ones at that)????

However, as bad as some of the original epiodes were; some were absolutely fantastic and the series was definately getting better as it went on. My favorite original episode so far though has been "Living Legend"; the one where they discover the Pegasus. Fantastic story, well-written and well-acted (Lloyed Bridges was excellent as Cain).

After having seen both the orignial in its entirety and the new, I can see why people resent the new version. For all of its flaws, the original stands strong and had it made a run longer than one year, I think we would have seen a good show develop into an excellent show. Who knows, it might have even spawned into some spinoffs (Possibly one where the Galactica encounters Voyager and feeds janeway to a group of rabid daggits).

I guess what I'm trying to say is this: I like the new sci-fi version and I like it far better than the original (so far, just going on the pilot). But it IS missing some part of that unique spark that makes BSG....well, BSG. I don't know, maybe they should throw a little bit more chrome in the new and a few more daggits....

my 2 Cents>

[ 04-02-2004, 12:24 AM: Message edited by: Firehawk ]

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The biggets difference between the two is heightened expectations. We were starved for Science fiction on tv and Star Wras had wheted are appetites. Even Star Wars came out of nowhere. I went to see it hoping to see something good but expecting something like Battle Beyond the Stars.

Now the genre is so strong the expectations so great nothing could live up to the hype(or at least very little). You do bring up good points about the original and there were some very good episodes. However ultimatley it is hard to get rid of the bad taste of the crappy episodes and that abysmal Galactica 1980 out of my mouth and mind.

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  • 8 months later...

I found it on special for $21.99 at Suncoast Video. If you buy a movie there (in the store -- not off of their website) within the first week or so after its release, it is often a couple of bucks cheaper than most places. They mark it up later. Target does the same -- I usually check out both and see who has the biggest discount.

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quote:

Originally posted by ShoHashi:

Definately looking forward to this. Every Friday is gonna be good with StarGate SG-1, StarGate Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica!

Couldn't have said it better myself. Although I liked the mini-series I'm only watching the BG series because of the Stargate shows

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