Saturday Night Galactica!

Saga of a Star World part 1

I need to make some logos.

When trying to describe my problems with Hollywood, today’s sci-fi, and nostalgia-based remakes/re-imaginings/reboots, it’s that the “new” version has little to no bearing on the original, missing what actually made that old show important to us. Look at Miami Vice. Today’s sci-fi is also made up of dark, hopeless worlds where the heroes fight to maintain the status quo at best and survive at worst. My biggest example of non-nostalgia would be Battlestar Galactica.

I’m not saying that the new show isn’t a good show–mostly because I never watched it. However, from all the previews and reviews I’ve seen and read, from fans and non-fans alike, it doesn’t sound like the same show at all. It’s like Super Mario Brothers or Godzilla. The movie or American versions bear little if any resemblance to the source. It’s like they took the bare-bones description, found a script they could tweak to vaguely match what’s there, and then slap the character names wherever they felt would work.

The new version of Galactica is nothing like the original on the surface. The series isn’t about people on the run from robots. Starbuck isn’t just some thrill-seeking pilot. Yes, I’m signaling out Starbuck. Like many, Starbuck was my favorite character on the series. Now, I don’t expect any new actor to play the role exactly like Dirk Benedict did, and I want to see a new show with a new take. However, making the character a woman (not to mention Boomer) just doesn’t seem right to me. If they wanted female characters on the show, the old one had plenty to spare, and there’s nothing wrong with creating new characters.

And so, powered by Hulu, I plan to review a new episode each week of Battlestar Galactica. Yes, this does include the fan-cringing Galactica 1980. For the same reason, yes, it will include the new series. So long as Hulu doesn’t take these shows down before I get to them, I want to go through all three versions, review them, and tell you what I think works and doesn’t. Through this, fans of the new show who haven’t been exposed to the old show may get a better understanding of why we “oldskool” fans care so much. Or pehaps not, but that’s on your heads, isn’t it?

So let’s begin our journey with the rattag fleet on their quest for a shining planet…called Earth. Saga of a Star World is the pilot for the series, originally airing on ABC as a TV Movie. (There was also an edit made for the theaters–no, Clone Wars wasn’t the first to do that, and neither was She-Ra.) Later it was broken up into three episodes, which is how Hulu “airs” the show. Less work for me, since the new series shows probably will be as they aired on Sci-Fi. Here is the episode, courtesy of Hulu.

Ok, so apparently WordPress isn’t as compatable with Hulu as it is YouTube. So here’s the link instead. Next time, I’ll put it in the title. Or I’ll do it now, too.

Zac blewd up reel guud!

Ok, first off I do have to note the special effects. George Lucas is going crazy re-editing his Star Wars movies, but most of the effects here (done by Lucas’s “Industrial Light and Magic”, the same people created for Star Wars) still hold up. The mattes don’t, of course, and sometimes you can tell the ships aren’t really in a star field, but they’re still not bad for the 70’s and excellent for 70’s television. However, when Zac is killed the explosion in the cockpit just looks like it really isn’t there and a bit large for the situation.

Apollo tests the prototype for the interactive guide to Galactica. "Who is this 'Lee' guy?"

The most dated thing in the show, however, are the computer graphics. When Apollo and Zac are using the ship’s targeting computer and “Warbook”, all use (if I’m using the right term) vector graphics. All lines and triangles for both sides. It was “cutting edge” for the 70’s, who hadn’t even seen Tron yet, but it just seems silly for an advanced race to have weaker graphics power than we do today.

And funny. Take that, space guys. Get a real graphics card! 😀

And what’s with the control stick writing?

One of these things is not like the other

I rewatched that sequence enough times to say that it’s the same hand. Now the pic on the left is Apollo’s hand, not “Lee”, their parent’s actually give names like Apollo, Starbuck, and Boomer–they’re not call signs SHOW SOME GUTS, SCIENCE FICTION WRITERS, we’re talking about aliens, here and if that doesn’t work, look at the weird names celebs give their kids! Ok, that was a rant in itself. Anyway, Apollo’s hand is on the left and Zac’s is on the right. Every other control stick we see looks like Zac’s, although Apollo’s is the one they end up going with. At least it’s the one I remember.

Side note: what does “IM” stand for? Is that what they use to summon their way-cool high-tech armor? No, probably not. Only the bad guys get the shiny stuff.

Just a night out with the boys.

And let’s discuss the Cylons. From what I hear, they were originally going to be lizard people, but because the suits at ABC figured that killing living creatures would be too much for the kiddies (remember when this used to be a family show? No, not “kiddie show”. That would be Power Rangers or Starcom), they requested that robots be the villains instead. However, in the comics and novels they’re explained as a lizard race who rebuilt themselves, much like the Cybermen of Doctor Who or the Borg of Star Trek. That’s an interesting take, and I like it.

(Interesting, though, that the aforementioned Power Rangers tend to blow up creatures every episode and today’s ABC has no trouble with it on Saturday Mornings, nor Fox before them. Just saying.)

You don’t get a good look at the armor in this episode except during one scene with the Imperious Leader, who also doubles as the opening narrator, as they’re both played by Patrick Macnee, more known at the time for the role of John Steed in The Avengers. No, not the Marvel characters. The opening narration sets up the concept nicely and he has one of the most amazing voices for narration. He could do some great voice over work if he wanted. However, his health would make it difficult to return to the front of the camera. But with that voice, he still has a career.

Was this Rick Springfield’s first acting gig? Too bad he blows up like his music career. And crashes like his acting career (not counting General Hospital). Sorry, I shouldn’t have. However, there is some great casting here. And all the actors and actresses sell the destruction of their home worlds rather well. Lorne Green’s grieving is very real, and even Terry Carter’s Colonel Tigh isn’t afraid to cry. And as you’ll see, he can be pretty badass with the eye patch. (Take that, Nick Fury!) We don’t get as good a look at Boomer (who is really supporting cast in this series, so one point new series) or any of the other regulars outside of Starbuck, Apollo, or the bridge crew, but this is a three-parter originally airing as a movie. We see Starbuck and Athena’s relationship in the aftermath of the destruction of the colonies, but since we don’t even know they know each other until she goes running off to see him di..survive what could have been a disaster, which I’m sure she knew he would, wink wink, we really don’t even know they were friends, much less having the potential for more, so it’s difficult to feel sorry for Starbuck.

We do meet his future paramour briefly, Cassiopeia. She’s a hook…whoa, think of the children! She’s a “solicitor”, and apparently some of the refugees want to stuff her out of the airlock. That seems a bit drastic because you don’t like how she makes her living. I mean, I have issues with it myself, but Jerry Falwell wouldn’t stuff her out the airlock, and he’s supposed to be this mean ol’ prude, if you ask the right people. However, and I understand the situation and all, but I wanted to stuff that woman whining about the water out the airlock. Ok, not really, but the thought did cross my mind.

Lewis Ayers falls apart as the President believably, since it was his listening to the fool Baltar that led to all this. Baltar suckers everyone rather well, but I have to wonder why he’s willing to let humanity get wiped out but himself survive. If he were part of a doomsday cult I could understand, but isn’t he going to get lonely? The classic Six isn’t as much a looker as the new one. John Colicos sells what he has well, as unless you know Baltar’s evil you’ll be surprised whe it’s revealed at the end.

Adama’s announcement that they’re all going to find the mythical lost 13th colony called Earth (why does that name sound so familiar?), it seems sort of stuffed in, as if they knew they had to wrap it up in the first hour (or wherever that scene was placed in the full episode). We don’t even know that he has interest in this lost colony, and feels like we’re missing a research scene somewhere.

Recommendation: You have to throw a curve ball to a pilot, and one that’s been split into three part. However, it does it’s job: draw you in, set you up, and make you come back for more. Which is what we will do next week.