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Colonial Archives / Data Bank |
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Mini-Review: Battlestar Galactica and Galactica 1980 By John Dorsey
Rating System: Battlestar GalacticaSeries Review - Rating: 3 stars. A monumental television series that had great characters, great acting, and fantastic costuming, sets, and special effects. Unfortunately, its momentum was quickly stifled due to poor writing and repetitious stock footage. Despite several fantastic stories, there were too many average episodes to pull the series above a 3-star rating. Never had the chance to live up to its incredible potential. 1. Saga Of A Star World - Rating: 4 stars. The most elaborate TV movie ever made. Its special effects are arguably better than Star Wars. Easily one of the four best episodes of the entire series. Great characters, acting, and special effects are undercut only by some gaping plot holes and unnecessary borrowings from Star Wars (such as the casino and the "big explosion" ending). 2. Lost Planet Of The Gods - Parts 1 and 2 - Rating: 3-1/2 stars. An atrociously sexist first hour is salvaged by an outstanding second hour, but this episodes makes it clear that women are second-class citizens of the rag tag fleet. The death of Serina is one of the most memorable moments of the entire series, but the loss of Jane Seymour probably hurt the show in the long run. 3. The Lost Warrior - Rating: 1 star. Battlestar Galactica falls apart with this ridiculous sci-fi remake of Shane. The introduction of an "Old West" society undercuts the entire Von Daniken (God Is An Astronaut) element of the series. Only a superb performance by Richard Hatch makes this even remotely watchable. 4. The Long Patrol - Rating: 3 stars. Starbuck takes us on an enjoyable romp in one of the better-written episodes of the series. The Starbuck/Cassiopea/Athena romantic triangle is a hoot, and it really makes you wish that Maren Jensen had been given a chance to do more with the Athena character. The Enforcer who throws Starbuck a name tag is the father of Noah Hathaway (Boxey). 5. The Gun On Ice Planet Zero - Parts 1 and 2 - Rating: 3 stars. Unimaginative but spectacularly shot, this sci-fi rehash of The Guns Of Navarone and The Dirty Dozen stays entertaining despite the usual gaping plot holes. The special effects are better than usual, and John Colicos's excellent performance proves that Glen Larson was right to keep Baltar's head attached to his shoulders. 6. The Magnificent Warriors - Rating: 1 star. The "Old West" is revisited again in this poorly conceived remake of The Magnificent Seven and The Seven Samurai. A boring plot is only made worse by Battlestar Galactica's worst character, the annoying Siress Bellaby. Some comedic moments from Lorne Greene and Dirk Benedict are all that are worth seeing. 7. The Young Lords - Rating: 2 stars. A colonial warrior (Starbuck) is stranded on a planet. We've only already seen this tired plot 3 times in the previous 4 episodes, but being able to see so many Cylons inside a medieval castle along with the Baltar/Lucifer/Spectre banter actually makes this one entertaining. Ridiculous and silly, but still kinda fun just the same. 8. The Living Legend - Parts 1 and 2 - Rating: 5 stars. This is one of the peaks of the series. Commander Cain and Sheba are introduced and are tremendous characters. Anne Lockhart begins to reverse the poor portrayal of women on the show, and she has great chemistry with Apollo. The conflict between Adama and Cain creates a struggle within the ranks of the military, making for a fascinating story. The meddling of the censors (who insisted that the Pegasus not be destroyed) works out for the best for a change. All in all, this is one of Battlestar Galactica's best. 9. Fire In Space - Rating: 2 stars. Great acting and special effects are all that salvage this unimaginative rip-off of The Towering Inferno. Filled with scientific inaccuracies, this story would have ranked a half-star higher if its original ending had not been changed by the censors (the original ending is posted in the Missing Scenes section of my website - Shameless Plug #1). Athena finally gets more screen time, but she is given nothing to do except act helpless. Terry Carter delivers his best performance ever as Colonel Tigh. Carter is superb here, but unfortunately there is not much he can do with what turns out to be a pretty bland script. 10. War Of The Gods - Parts 1 and 2 - Rating: 5 stars. Superb and outstanding, this episodes introduces us to a great new villain in the demonic Count Iblis. The concept of angels being advanced beings is in line with the Von Daniken (God Is An Astronaut) theme. The Apollo/Sheba relationship ascends to a new level with the first signs of a potential romance. The special effects are a marvel, and the Cylons are finally relegated to the background. This story creates the series' biggest mysteries: Why is Iblis's voice the same as that of the Cylon Imperious Leader? What is the origin of the crashed ship? And what did Apollo see inside? If you're looking for answers, check out my web site's episode guide (Shameless Plug #2). 11. The Man With Nine Lives - Rating: 3-1/2 stars. One of the best episodes in terms of characterization. Fred Astaire is great as Chameleon the con man. The Borellian Nomen are cool new adversaries. Starbuck's birthday is the only time a date is mentioned on the series. 12. Murder On The Rising Star - Rating: 1 star. Matlock goes to outer space in this very boring episode, and not even a strong performance by Dirk Benedict can save it. The only thing remotely interesting is Chella's story of escaping the colonies' destruction. A murder mystery? Considering the incredibly broad premise of the series, to waste an entire episode on a murder plot is unforgivable. Predictable, by the numbers storytelling. 13. Greetings From Earth - Rating: 3 stars - An intriguing first hour loses steam in the second. The Eastern Alliance Enforcers are the new resident villains, but they turn out to be almost as one-dimensional as the Cylons. The Lunar One/East/West/Paradeen explanations are a little perplexing. The little kids plus the annoying Hector and Vector make for a scary premonition of Galactica 1980. Still, a fairly good episode compared to most of what Battlestar Galactica offered. The scenes of the city were shot in Montreal, Canada. 14. Baltar's Escape - Rating: 3 stars. A solid episode, but nothing more. Starbuck provides some funny moments and the ending has some imagination. Still has a gaping plot hole: If the fleet had been under martial law, then why couldn't Adama simply overrule the Council's decision in "Greetings From Earth?" 15. Experiment In Terra - Rating: 3-1/2 stars. The Ship of Lights returns in this very good episode that resolves the Eastern Alliance/Terra story arc. Adama's decision to pull the Galactica out of the fleet when the two warriors are missing is odd since he never did that before when similar incidents occurred. The roles of Starbuck and Apollo were switched after the script was written, resulting in Apollo talking in a way that sounds suspiciously like Starbuck. 16. Take The Celestra - Rating: 1 star. The worst episode of Battlestar Galactica. An interesting idea is wasted in a dull, boring story with more plot holes than any other Battlestar Galactica episode. Starbuck and Apollo look stale, and only the Starbuck/Cassiopea/Aurora subplot provides anything of interest. The viper joystick on a pole inside the Celestra's bridge is the silliest thing ever. 17. The Hand Of God - Rating: 5 stars. The best episode of Battlestar Galactica, and the favorite of several Battlestar Galactica cast members. The Cylons become interesting again, and the Apollo/Sheba romantic subplot finally comes to a head. The interiors of the Cylon basestar make for some of the more memorable moments of the series. Sadly, as great as this episode is, it fails as a series finale because the quest for Earth is not resolved, but out of all the episodes that aired, this is the best one to end it. Galactica 1980For a full in-depth review of the series, check out the Galactica 1980 episode guide on my website. Series Review - Rating: DUD. This was voted the worst sci-fi series of all time by American critics. Poor writing, bland characters, distracting educational dialogue, and a constantly changing premise make Galactica 1980 an insult to the memory of the original series. Commander Adama appears to be going senile, and it may simply be Lorne Greene's inability to hide his horror from deciding to continue with this best forgotten spin-off. Even a fantastic final episode was not enough to salvage a series that most fans have written off as Starbuck's nightmare. 1. Galactica Discovers Earth - Rating: 2 stars. Watchable, but horribly disappointing, this pilot shows that Galactica 1980 is not science fiction, but an action adventure series in a pseudo-sci-fi setting. The time travel elements are done adequately but feel out of place. A shock to Galactica fans, but the worse was yet to come. 2. The Super Scouts - Parts 1 and 2 - Rating: DUD. The time travel cliffhanger is dropped completely as we start off with Troy and Dillon teaching school lessons to a little kiddie group called the Super Scouts who have now become the stars of the show. Then they all go down to Earth, discover they have super powers, and it just gets worse. Pure garbage. (The Gemini freighter is destroyed in a Cylon battle - an ironic coincidence with Richard Hatch's Battlestar Galactica: The Second Coming trailer). 3. Spaceball - Rating: DUD. This episode centers around the Super Scouts playing a game of baseball in what may well be the worst hour of science fiction ever made. The worst, most hated episode of Galactica 1980. 4. The Night The Cylons Landed - Parts 1 and 2 - Rating: 1 star. Two Cylons land on Earth. It should be good, but it's not, as the Cylons look more pathetic than ever. If the people of Earth were to learn of this "horrible planetary threat", they would roll over laughing. Troy and Dillon dancing on a stage alongside cartoon characters like Yogi Bear provide this episode's most horrifyingly memorable moment. 5. The Space Croppers - Rating: DUD. An inferior remake of The Magnificent Warriors (Who would have thought that possible?), this episode is only slightly less atrocious than "Spaceball." Troy and Dillon jumping into the air throwing seeds while the Super Scouts sing their song is the single worst moment of the entire series. 6. The Return Of Starbuck - Rating: 5 stars. The best and most popular episode of Galactica 1980. Dirk Benedict delivers his best performance ever as the swashbuckling Starbuck, and the character evolves to a new level and is given a sense of closure. This is a Galactica 1980 episode in name only; it's Battlestar Galactica through and through (in fact, the story was derived from a script written for a potential second season of Battlestar Galactica), and Lorne Greene and Herbert Jefferson, Jr. are finally given a chance to utilize their talents. At least Glen Larson was able to end the series with a fond farewell. A true classic to be treasured for all time by Battlestar Galactica fans. A sequel called "The Wheel Of Fire" was written, but never produced. Another script, "The Day They Kidnapped Cleopatra," was in the middle of being filmed when the series was canceled. (If you'd like to learn how to get a copy of this episode or to read synopses of "The Wheel Of Fire" and "The Day They Kidnapped Cleopatra," check out my web site - Final Shameless Plug!).
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