Battlestar Data : Growing Up With Galactica

Growing Up With Galactica
By Lawrence White

Y'know, I still can remember the excitement I felt back in the late seventies when I first saw the commercials for the new TV show "Battlestar Galactica." I vaguely recall all of it, but the images of oval ships spinning in unison and shining silver robots with gleaming red eyes was forever burned into the brain of this impressionable seven year-old. Waiting until the weekend to watch it was agony beyond belief. Knowing that it was going to air well past my bedtime also presented a problem. I knew that somehow, someway I had to convince Mom and Dad that destiny dictated my need to witness this sci-fi spectacle! Even at that tender age I managed to master the art of persuasion and convinced the folks to let me stay up. Waiting all day for it to begin was complete agony. I swear time actually slowed down!

Finally, it began. I remember the red starfield opening. I remember the commanding yet soothing voice talking about "Life here began out there..." Everything seemed to flash before me like lightning. Space ships! Robots! Heroes with long hair and guns who smoked cigars! Life and death situations! MY GOD, TV HAD NEVER BEEN THIS COOL, EVER! Of course, the finer points of the plot were a little over my head but that wasn't important to this kid. I saw what I needed to see! For the next year I was a Colonial Warrior at school and at home and I was determined to save mankind from the Cylons and find Earth! Unfortunately, Battlestar Galactica left too soon and life was dull again. Galactica 1980 soon appeared and quickly crushed my spirit. It had the name and a familiar face or two but the magic was gone. Nothing on television quite compared to the original. Sure there were reruns of Star Trek but it just wasn't the same. Kirk and Spock talked too much about things I never understood and cool monsters and robots were few and far between. There was Star Wars at the movies but waiting for the newest one was torture. To relieve my sadness I turned to comic books to sate the thirst I had for adventure and soon became quite the little artist, if I do say so myself. I never liked drawing cute little animals. I wantd heroes! Heroes with laser guns! All surrounded by non-stop action and grand stories! All inspired by the ones I loved the most.

I I remember the red starfield opening. I remember the commanding yet soothing voice talking about "Life here began out there..."

One day I came home from sixth grade to my excitement to find reruns of Battlestar Galactica on my TV and once again fell in love with the show I thought I would never see again. This is when I realized THIS was my favorite show of all-time and always would be. This time I understood everything about the story and cherished it all the more. I began to write my own comic books on 8½" x11" typing paper. Stories of Apollo and Starbuck that were drawn with Crayola Markers. All the while my TV showing the same footage of Vipers being launched and destroying Cylon Raiders over and over again. I didn't care about the redundancy. That wasn't the point. The story of the Galactica and crew was what mattered to me the most. Unfortunately, as soon as it came back, it was gone again! I never realized that there was so few episodes until I came home to find Eight Is Enough on instead of my beloved Galactica. AARRRRRGHHHH!!!!!!!!!! Many years passed since those days and while my love for that show never faltered it slowly became a thing of the past.

Finally, Maximum Press brought back Battlestar Galactica. While not a huge fan of the company's work, the nostalgia for more stories about that rag-tag fugitive fleet overrode any feelings I had for the comic book creators at the time. Once again my mind turned with new visions of what Galactica had to offer the world of today. I figured if the world wanted more of Battlestar Galactica after all this time, I somehow had to be a part of it. Even Captain Apollo himself (Richard Hatch) was willing to return as a writer for the series, for crying out loud! I decided to find all the videos I could find on Galactica to refresh my memory. However, I hesitated before I put the pilot episode into my VCR. I was afraid that now that I was older it wouldn't be near the show I remembered as a child. After all, it only lasted one season! My taste in stories was now more sophisticated. I expected more from the stories I watched and read.

Fortunately, my anxieties melted away instantly. My roommate and a few friends were at my house when I popped it in and the responses ranged from "Hey, I remember this show!" to "They need to bring this back!" My love for the show returned immediately and has remained to this day. Since then, I have had the honor of meeting Richard Hatch in person in '98. I'll never forget that day. I was having a really miserable day at the San Diego Comic Con. I was having my artwork shot down by every editor and his pet poodle when my girlfriend suggested I go get some autographs. Mr. Hatch and I immediately got talking BSG when he told me of his plans to revive Galactica for a new generation. His excitement was infectious and I quickly picked up his new novel to get caught up on things. After reading his "Armageddon" novel, I was rejuvenated about my artwork again and began drawing all things Galactica!

I figured if the world wanted more of Battlestar Galactica after all this time, I somehow had to be a part of it.

I met Mr. Hatch again this summer and saw his new Battlestar Galactica "trailer." This is his way of bringing back the show that all of us that fell in love with over twenty years ago (Twenty yahrens ago!). Considering that nobody was paid to put this together and only did it for the love of the show speaks volumes for those involved. Not bad for a show that only lasted one season. In the meantime, Glen Larson has announced plans of his own to bring back Battlestar Galactica, but again without much of the original cast. While I respect him for creating the series in the first place, I can't help but to feel there is another Galactica 1980 waiting in the wings. Especially considering his collaborator is obviously interested in money rather than the magic that once made this a very special story. Yet, despite the new twist and turns Battlestar Galactica has endured, I refuse to let it go.

I refuse to let it become a sad parody of it's former self. Why? All I know is that Battlestar Galactica has touched me in a way few things in my life have. Upon meeting Mr. Hatch again this summer, he went out of his way to make sure people saw my artwork and opened many doors that I considered to be forever closed. For this, I am forever grateful. Besides being a hero of mine on television growing up, he is also a very caring man in real life. I see now that it isn't about money but about someone who wants to give back something to us fans. He doesn't have to, but despite the odds, he wants to! Y'know, watching Battlestar Galactica all those years ago growing up was indeed a satisfying and magical experience. But the true beauty of it all is watching the same magic being woven all over again by a group of people who just simply love the show. Just like I do.