{"id":486,"date":"2011-08-01T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-08-01T20:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=486"},"modified":"2011-07-31T12:20:28","modified_gmt":"2011-07-31T19:20:28","slug":"mark-watches-battlestar-galactica-s01e02-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2011\/08\/mark-watches-battlestar-galactica-s01e02-water\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Battlestar Galactica’: S01E02 – Water"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the second episode of the first season of Battlestar Galactica<\/em>, Boomer begins to experience memory and time loss and becomes concerned that she is responsible for the loss of 60% of the Galactica\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s<\/em> water supply. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Battlestar Galactica<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I think one of the things I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll probably come to enjoy about BSG, if this episode is any indication, is the writers\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 ability to tell uniquely personal stories amidst the chaos and tension. I honestly believed it would be a good while before we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d deal with Boomer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Cylon nature, but the show does this much earlier, and does it incredibly well. Without spelling out everything to us, we learn so much more about Cylon agents and how they function.<\/p>\n

The cold open to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Water\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is arresting: Shannon \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Boomer\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Valerii seemingly \u00e2\u20ac\u0153wakes up\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in\u00c2\u00a0 an equipment room, in her flight suit and soaked from head to toe with water. Not knowing how she got there, she opens a duffel bag near her to discover a towel, which to me suggested so much about how Boomer is programmed. When she discovers a G-4 explosive in the bag…oh god, BOOMER WHY<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the thing: I would have been kind of annoyed if the show had introduced us to this rad character, Boomer, and then six episodes down the road, she just turns \u00e2\u20ac\u0153evil\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and then she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dead. Instead, Ronald D. Moore gives us what is essentially an entire episode from the point of view of a sleeper Cylon agent, complete with the moral and identity crisis that comes along with it. Even in that first scene, Grace Park\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reaction is remarkably genuine, and without saying much of anything at all, we can begin to understand that these Cylon agents are so utterly human that, until they are activated, their identity is distinctly<\/em> human. Before that, all I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d known for sure is that their biology functioned like a human\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s.<\/p>\n

So where does that leave Boomer? How long has she been a Cylon? What sort of experiences are real, and does she have a planted memory, too? I imagine a lot of these thoughts were running through her head as she headed to the small arms locker, only to discover that five other G-4 explosives were missing. Seriously, what a set-up for an episode!<\/p>\n

It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s natural for Boomer to seek out Tyrol, too, but even that<\/em> has a new context for me, and my mind started wandering. What I wanted to know most (and what \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Water\u00e2\u20ac\u009d doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t give me, which is perfectly fine) was how<\/em> Boomer came into all of this. Clearly, some time had to have passed for her to develop the relationship that she has with Tyrol, enough so that when Boomer asks to speak to Captain Tyrol, fright in her voice, Cally would turn to give them a look of acknowledgment, knowing that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re probably just looking for privacy to be consenting adults<\/em>. Those things take time to create! Which then leads me to thinking\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.christ, how long<\/em> ago did the Cylons actually develop this technology? It had to be years, right? So this must have been some sort of long, patient con of sorts\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.OH GOD I CAN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T STOP THINKING ABOUT THIS.<\/p>\n

And I actually like<\/em> that this show is already making me ask questions and desire answers like this just by the second episode. It reminds me of my fascination with LOST<\/em> and how the serialized, mythological nature of that show caused me to do the same thing. Battlestar Galactica<\/em> itself is highly, highly serialized, especially since, so far, very little time passes in between episodes.<\/p>\n

Ok, enough speculation and theorizing for now. It didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take me long to figure out where this episode was headed. As Tyrol and Boomer had their frantic discussion about the bizarre nature of what had happened to Boomer, Roslin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s visit to the Galactica<\/em> made me connect the dots: The episode is called \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Water,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s coming to learn more about the water reclamation process on board the ship that will help keep the fleet alive. Oh Christ, the explosives are in the water tanks. How else would Boomer have woken up soaking wet?<\/p>\n

Simultaneous to this realization, the subplot of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Water\u00e2\u20ac\u009d specifically deals with the interactions between Roslin and Commander Adama, but not in a way that brings about some grand sort of conflict. I actually enjoy that, for the time being, these characters are largely getting along. Of course, I imagine that isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t going to last, but Roslin and Adama understand<\/em> one another, and Roslin, in this episode, is quick to admit her limitations as president. She was Secretary of Education, and a lot of what she witnesses on the Galactica<\/em> is entirely foreign to her. Why does the whole crew dress up for her appearance? Why is she appearing just to watch the transfer of water? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all protocol, she assumes, acted out by Adama because he enjoys the display. (A bit of an aside: You know how there are words you hate the sound of? Like how most people hate the word \u00e2\u20ac\u0153moist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d? I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t bear the sound of the word \u00e2\u20ac\u0153protocol,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d which is unfortunate for me as a fan of Star Wars<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

Look, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t care if this will make me the worst Battlestar Galactica<\/em> fan ever, but the Roslin\/Adama\/Lee story line is ENDLESSLY ADORABLE. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re like awkward teens! Who talk about books! And feelings! And Roslin basically asks for help from Adama\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s son so she can impress him<\/em>. Oh god I love it<\/em>. She even shares a tender moment with him regarding the destruction of the Olympic Carrier<\/em>, telling Lee it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ok to question his choices in private. Also, no one\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mentioned it in the comments yet, but is this a ship-heavy fandom? Because–not gonna lie–I could see people shipping Roslin\/Adama or Roslin\/Lee after this episode. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mostly a credit to Mary McDonnell because christ I love her so much already. <\/em>Why aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t we friends?<\/p>\n

I get the sense, though, that much of season one will be devoted to this idea that there is a Cylon agent aboard the Galactica<\/em> and that Baltar will be forced to develop his test for the crew. The meeting held between Lee, Tigh, Adama, Baltar, and Roslin is another tense scene for the episode, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s made all the worse by the appearance of Six to Baltar. Every time Six shows up alongside Baltar, I just get nervous. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m beginning to understand that others can actually see<\/em> his reactions to visions of Six, and I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s only a matter of time before this becomes a disaster for Baltar.<\/p>\n

But all of this is an uncomfortable reality, honestly. How do you discretely test a crew of hundreds (thousands? I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how big the Galactica<\/em> crew is) without revealing to everyone that Cylons look like humans? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear from Tyrol\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s comment early in the episode that way more than five folks know the truth about Cylons, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not quite public knowledge yet. For Baltar, though, this goes counter to his need to be left alone. His intellect has become his curse, in this sense, because he can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t escape others. Ironically, his attempt to explain why his test is logistically difficult ends up getting him a team<\/em>, led by Gaeta, that will follow him around to help create a Cylon test. WOOPS.<\/p>\n

It seems that Baltar simply doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to get involved. At any moment, someone could discover that he knows a little too<\/em> much about Cylon technology, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll have to face what he did to bring about the destruction of the human race. I actually don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll successfully avoid this, honestly, but I think the writers will extend this conflict out for a while. For now, though, Baltar has to deal with Six and<\/em> all of the folks assigned to help him. About Six, though\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.will she act out in rage when she confronts Baltar about his flirting with Starbuck? (BY THE WAY, HOLY HELL WHAT A SCENE<\/em>) I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m inclined to believe that Six actually did<\/em> love Baltar, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m certain she won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be pleased. Then again…she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not real? I think? Oh god, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really know i am confused.\u00c2\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Speaking about bizarre romantic relationships, isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t Boomer technically interested in two men and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not cheating at all? THAT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S PRETTY AWESOME. Boomer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s relationship with Tyrol is tested throughout \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Water,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and Tyrol lets his heart get in the way of his duty. Throughout the entire episode, I kept wanting to shout at him: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153JUST TELL SOMEONE. CHRIST, DUDE.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I totally get that he wants to protect Boomer, but you are digging one steep grave at this point.<\/p>\n

And yet simultaneously, Boomer is on Caprica with Helo, and the flirtation nearly ends in a kiss. I assume Helo knows about Tyrol, so\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.holy awkward. Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my guess, though: I think Helo already has it in his head that this whole situation is not right. He keeps pressing Boomer to explain why she came back and why she doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have a plan, and I think he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll soon confront her about her not being the real<\/em> Boomer. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll depressing when that happens, though, because…well, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no real<\/em> Boomer anyway, is there?<\/p>\n

I actually don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how to answer that question. (Yet.) During the water recon mission, though, we see something I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think was even possible: Boomer resisted<\/em> her Cylon programming. She was completely aware of the fact that her screen read positive for water, yet she couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t bring herself to say it. Even worse, the Cylon \u00e2\u20ac\u0153side\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of her tries to detonate the last missing G-4 explosive, which is strapped to her seat.<\/p>\n

So is the Cylon part of Boomer like a personality? Where did they Cylons even get the blueprint\/idea to make a Cylon like<\/em> Boomer? Is it possible that she is actually the first Boomer, but just got infused with Cylon technology? What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s more important to me, though, is the fact that by having this small victory against her nature, Boomer exerts her own agency of choice: she doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t always have to be bound by whatever it is that is trying to get her to sabotage the Galactica<\/em>.<\/p>\n

It doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean that this is ending anytime soon, and the final moment shows that Boomer seems to be under Cylon control, determined to reach some undetermined destination. So the question remains, then: Can Boomer completely resist Cylon programming, or is she doomed to forever antagonize the crew she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s come to love and respect?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"