SMC presents Liefeld’s Galactica: Journey’s End #3 of 4

Time travel seldom ends well in science fiction. There are so many questions about how the future can be changed or not changed, what’s set in stone and what isn’t. If you recall my Video Review of Godzilla Vs. King Ghidorah I brought up just how poorly time travel was used as a story element. There have been far worse stories, however.

We’re about to read one. Yes, Elias first threw our heroes into the future to learn a lesson that they should have already remembered from their voyage while being enslaved and nearly killed while still suffering from the brutal beating they received at the hands of the Cylons. Now we’re going the other way. The lesson to learn here? Elias is a jerk, a term I only use because I don’t usually use vulgarities in these articles. Believe me, vulgarities are all I really have for this comic.

The blandness never stops, does it?

Battlestar Galactica: Journey’s End #3

Maximum Press (October, 1996)

So Galactica arrives in the past, and discovers that it’s just before the Cylon attack on the Colonies. Why did Elias do this? We don’t know (although we can guess, and it’s a one-word answer starting with “a”) because he disappears.

Back on the Galactica…the original one, I’ll try and keep this as unconfusing as I can unless it’s funny, which is admittedly unlikely with me as the writer…they caught a scan of their future counterpart but write it off as an echo of their own ship. Heh? Then Athena comes into…oh, for crying out loud, Liefeld’s Galactica! Anyone here remember my review of the very first comic? Where I said that when they did the classic versions of the characters the character models were relatively good? Here’s how Athena was drawn by her father’s deathbed.

And here’s how she’s drawn in THIS comic.

Is she hitting on her dad? She was still dating Starbuck at the time and this looks like a pose meant for him, not to go on the bridge to tell her father, Commander of the Colonial Fleet and the flagship Battlestar that he’s running late! This comic has THREE pencilers and THREE inkers. Who do we blame for this? That’s ignoring the fact that Athena looks terrible and page one has her in a typical Liefeld pose, complete with anatomy errors.

Back on Galactica 2: The Sequel, Apollo decides that time paradoxes are fun and that they will attempt to warn their past counterparts that the Cylons are planning a trap for them. His brilliant strategy? Get onto Atlantia, walk into the the Quorum meeting, tell everyone he’s from the future and that they Cylons are planning a trap, and convince them by having their pet Cylon walk in. Is it any surprise that Baltar, having already led them into this trap, is able to use this opportunity to have Apollo, Tigh, and “Spot” arrested?

Meanwhile, Apollo the Younger and Zac the Human Target (I wonder if anyone saw what I did there?) is out investigating the moon but catching a blip on their radar alter course. They find Galactica 2: The Other Side and New Athena convinces her very younger brothers to board.

Back on Atlantia, Adama believes that Apollo 2 The Quickening is in fact his son and orders the trio of time trashers set free. They return to Galactica 1: The Phantom Menace where the Tighs risk the space time continuum by hanging out together. The President calls wondering what Adama is up to when the Cylons launch their attack, with Battlestars going boom everywhere and Apollo wondering if history will still repeat itself.

Already things are looking badly…not for the character, I mean the story. This is already a bad idea, but it gets worse tomorrow as we finally say good-bye to Liefeld’s vision of Galactica, although I personally still have two one-shots and another mini set during the show. Oh, can I show you this, too? It’s a message Liefeld had for his fans after officially leaving Image Comics.

You know, if they put half this effort into their covers, they may not be so bland. I’d hate to see his press releases. Otherwise, I really wasn’t paying attention at the time to really comment. However, it’s a mess…kind of like these comic, really. See you tomorrow.

Related articles

• SMC Presents Liefeld’s Galactica: Journey’s End #1 of 4
• SMC Presents Liefeld’s Galactica: Journey’s End #2 of 4