{"id":550,"date":"2011-08-26T13:00:40","date_gmt":"2011-08-26T20:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=550"},"modified":"2011-08-22T21:08:33","modified_gmt":"2011-08-23T04:08:33","slug":"mark-watches-battlestar-galactica-s02e07-home-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2011\/08\/mark-watches-battlestar-galactica-s02e07-home-part-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Battlestar Galactica’: S02E07 – Home, Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the seventh episode of the second season of Battlestar Galactica<\/em>, HOLY SHIT WHAT DID I JUST WATCH<\/strong>. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Battlestar Galactica<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Up until “Home, Part II,” Battlestar Galactica<\/em> has been an intensely realistic show combining survival action with political theories, from martial law to the separation of church and state. And not to belittle any of that, as it’s all been fascinating and entertaining, but in just a single episode, SHIT HAS GOTTEN SO WEIRD<\/em>. Oh my god, the end of “Home, Part II” just changed WHAT THE ENTIRE SHOW IS ABOUT. Oh my god.<\/p>\n

After the horrifying end to the first part of this story, the writers show us how the loss of Elosha has truly hurt Laura Roslin. Elosha was more than just a friend to Roslin, more than a spiritual guide. She believed<\/em> in her, and she gave her the strength to make the decision to come to Kobol in the first place. It’s incredibly hard to watch, but Mary McDonnell portrays this heartbreak believably. It doesn’t need to be stated, as the show does this so often, but what we see here from many of the characters is remarkably realistic, and I rarely question why<\/em> any of these people behave in the way that they do.<\/p>\n

In that sense (and given what I’d wrote about earlier this week regarding characters not asking questions), I was ECSTATIC that Baltar finally started outright asking Six who she was. And if any character would process the information in the most scientific manner imaginable, it would be Baltar. So….is<\/em> he merely imagining this all? When she appeared to him in more casual clothing, I became instantly confused, and, more than ever, I wanted to know the mechanics of how Six could appear in the way she could. It’s weird that while I do question her existence, I’ve sort of just accepted that she’s always going to be here. And while I must admit that I didn’t like the negative implications of being “crazy,” I did<\/em> wonder if this all was<\/em> a result of Baltar’s guilt. She can affect him physically, and the scene in the MRI with Dr. Cottle proves that. He can’t just ignore her because her touch is incredibly real to him, yet no one else can see her.<\/p>\n

And by the end of the episode, we see how entwined Baltar’s story is with what happens on Kobol. Without Elosha to read the scriptures and interpret them, Roslin is largely left on her own. We even see how Adama realizes how difficult this is going to be as he plans out a recon mission to meet up with her, bringing Tyrol and Billy along with him. I don’t know that Adama is an atheist in the way that we would use it in our society, but he, Billy, and Gaeta all seem rather flabbergasted by the theological details of this mission. But Adama is determined to make peace with Roslin, and I like that asserts that it’s irrelevant whether Roslin’s beliefs are delusions or fact: she<\/em> believes that she has visions, and that’s all he needs to know.<\/p>\n

Yet as good as I felt about Adama heading to Kobol to meet up with his son, Starbuck, and Roslin, the sub-plot involving Boomer, Zarek, and Meier was making me feel awful. Certainly, the appearance of Boomer has made everything awkward, and Zarek and Meier (mostly Meier) want to exploit the fact that her life is at risk just by her being there. And christ, I must admit that despite agreeing that Boomer is her own person, I still have conflicting emotions about her future. I think it’s because, like everyone else, I am ignorant about how these humanoid Cylons work. I do like the idea that Boomer was able to separate herself from the other Cylons through love, and that by giving herself over to a uniquely human emotion, she could find her own agency and identity that was not<\/em>programming. But Galactica!Boomer (OMG FANDOM TERMINOLOGY I AM BEING MADE AWARE OF IT<\/em>) was her own person, too, for years<\/em> before she was activated. It’s not even that I mistrust Boomer’s words. I believe she is telling the truth. But what if the Cylons are letting her continue to do all of this until she’s fully in the fleet before activating her?<\/p>\n

It’s why I despise Meier for what he does, and I’m glad that Zarek showed more and more reluctance to agree to this plot, though I don’t want to make it sound like he redeems himself by the end of this. Dude is shady<\/em> and certainly more concerned with his own political future. Still, he does<\/em> become increasingly uncomfortable with this plan, but Meier seemed to want to pull it off regardless. THAT WORKED OUT WELL, DIDN’T IT? But I was most concerned about Boomer because<\/em> she seemed to believe wholly that she would not survive for very long. It certainly did not help that when Adama finally found Roslin’s camp (!!!!!!! BEST REUNION EVER !!!!), he greeted Boomer with a hug to her throat! I was intrigued by the idea that Adama was the one to put forth the idea to Tyrol that the Cylons weren’t<\/em> just machines, yet his instant reaction was to treat this second copy of Boomer as nothing more than a killing machine. Still, even though Caprica!Boomer is a different person, I can’t say I’m shocked that this was his first reaction. AH THIS IS ALL SO COMPLICATED TO NAVIGATE. Yet I love it! None of the answers to these questions are at all easy to figure out, and I appreciate that the show isn’t making it a black-and-white matter.<\/p>\n

BUT SERIOUSLY, was anyone else immensely creeped out<\/em> when Boomer responded to the question Adama asked over her copy’s very much dead<\/em> body? I get that there’s some sort of general knowledge base that the Cylons have access to, and that they can also share experiences and memories, BUT HOW THE FUCK IS THIS POSSIBLE<\/em>. That body was dead! IS THERE A MICROPHONE IN A HUMANOID CYLON BODY. Oh god, I truly understand nothing<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Yet as fucked up and confusing as this all is, the much-needed reunion between Adama and his son, Starbuck, and Roslin is one of three genuinely smile-inducing scenes in “Home, Part II.” There is that awkward reluctance when Lee sees his father, but knowing how stoic Adama is, I couldn’t help but tear up just a bit when he started to cry. I don’t think Adama is necessarily averse to showing emotion, as he’s clearly a passionate person, but it’s still rare to see something this far on one spectrum. He brushes the hair out of Starbuck’s eyes, and you can tell by the way that he looks at her that he views her like she is his own daughter. All of the tears<\/em> were building up in my eyes at this point. But nothing made me happier than the look of pure joy<\/em> on Roslin’s face as she saw Billy, and I hope that this makes Billy realize just how much Roslin cares about him.<\/p>\n

It might be due to the circumstances, especially since Adama is just glad to be alive and walking around, but the conversation he has with Roslin about their recent disagreement\/fight was wonderful to watch. Again, I enjoy how often this show has characters speak so plainly and directly, with both willing to admit their mistakes, and for Adama to take the courage to admit that Roslin technically saved all<\/em> of their lives, and that he is grateful for it. It’s a sign of faith in her, I think, that doesn’t ignore their disagreements, but still lets her know that he respects<\/em> her. That’s what I like about their relationship, even if it sometimes teeters on the inane. Ultimately, the two greatly respect one another, and it’s refreshing to see that portrayed as it is.<\/p>\n

But Adama’s presence isn’t all joy and flowers and puppy dog hugs. As I said before, I don’t think that Tom Zarek had an actual change of heart and suddenly finds it immoral to murder Lee Adama. The dude just isn’t concerned with such things. But he is<\/em> practical about his plans to benefit himself, and killing Lee with the Commander around is about the worst idea imaginable. Unfortunately, Meier is an UTTER BIGOT and a MASSIVE FOOL and decides he is going to go ahead with it anyway<\/em>. And who does he recruit for his short-sighted plan? BOOMER. As if she wasn’t already volatile enough, Meier convinces Boomer that this is her only chance to assert her right to survive. I didn’t initially think she would ever<\/em> go through with it, but then she reveals to Helo that she has to do something to keep herself alive, to prove that she is not just a machine, and that he has to trust her on it.<\/p>\n

Well, it’s pretty much spelled out, isn’t it? That’s what I thought. I believed that she would send a message that treating her like nothing more than a machine would not be tolerated, and what better way to do that than to shoot the man who blamed her for his near-death? WHY DOES THIS SHOW MAKE MY STOMACH AND HEART HURT SO BADLY?<\/em> I just want these people to be happy<\/em>, and after the touching reunion scene, it’s right back to DOOM AND GLOOM AND DEATH. Oh god WHY.<\/p>\n

Except I bought it all, hook, line, and sinker. When Boomer raised her gun, I thought we’d see her death. Again<\/em>. (Which, by the way, is something I find amazing about this show. Boomer died, and the very next episode, there she was, and it wasn’t a ghost and it didn’t cancel out her death. BRAVO<\/em>.) BUT SHE TRICKED ME. Best trick ever, AMIRITE. It’s brilliant, and now I see why she told Helo that he would need to trust her. The appearance<\/em> was that she would betray Adama again, but she was actually saving his life and gunning down that asshole, Meier. It’s a gesture of good faith, and a smart one at that. WILL WE SEE MORE OF THESE? Please, please, please<\/em> let that be so. I JUST WANT EVERYONE TO GET ALONG, OKAY?<\/p>\n

All right, let’s do it. Let’s talk about it. The Tomb of Athena. WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST WATCH?<\/strong> As soon as Starbuck placed the Arrow of Apollo on Sagittaron and it suddenly flashed to that bizarre grassy hill, I was so shocked that I dropped an open bottle of water on the floor and had to pause the episode so I could clean it up. I SWEAR I AM AN ADULT<\/em>. So, freaking out ALL OVER THE PLACE<\/em>, I rewound to the beginning of the scene and still could not believe what I saw. Stone pillars with the symbols of the tribes of the Twelve Colonies. Starbuck says it out loud: They are on a representation of Earth. (Or actual Earth???) They are seeing what they would<\/em> see if they were there, which allows Lee to point out that one can see the Lagoon Nebula from earth.<\/p>\n

THEY NOW KNOW THE DIRECTION IN WHICH TO TRAVEL TO FIND EARTH. THIS IS IN SEASON TWO<\/em><\/strong>. I thought this moment wouldn’t happen for MANY, MANY episodes, but here we are. Which means\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.shit, my idea of the scope of the show just exploded.<\/p>\n

I was a bit confused as to what<\/em> had happened mostly because all of a sudden, the episode flashed to the Galactica<\/em>. It took me until later in the day to realize that they didn’t get physically transported to Earth<\/em>. It was more like a vision, but one HELL of a weird vision. So yeah, that confused me SO MUCH initially, and I started questioning whether it all happened at all, and whether the standing ovation given to Roslin was real, too. (Thankfully, it was very real.)<\/p>\n

And after all of this, after the show’s mythology is changed in a fantastic way, after all of the emotional interactions and drama, “Home, Part II” saved one last surprise for me. Knowing that he holds no Cylon chip in his brain, nor is he simply imagining her, Baltar quite plainly asks Six who she is.<\/p>\n

She’s an angel of God, sent to protect Baltar “until the end of the human race.”<\/p>\n

WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!?!?!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the seventh episode of the second season of Battlestar Galactica, HOLY SHIT WHAT DID I JUST WATCH. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Battlestar Galactica.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[109],"tags":[112,120,119,9,110,113,117],"class_list":["post-550","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-battlestar-galactica","tag-edward-james-olmos","tag-jamie-bamber","tag-katee-sackhoff","tag-mark-watches","tag-mark-watches-battlestar-galactica","tag-mary-mcdonnell","tag-tricia-helfer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/550","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=550"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/550\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=550"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=550"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=550"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}