I went into Battlestar Galactica expecting something cheesy. I expected sub-par special effects, wooden acting and bad dialogue. Sort of like Star Trek: Voyager i suppose. If pressed to say why i ended up watching it i probably would have just said that it was to say that i had. After all- what could a show with a name like Battlestar Galactica offer?
Battlestar Galactica deeply touched and affected me in a meaningful and inspiring way.
If the amount of tears you shed during a show determines your favourite then Battlestar is the best show I have ever witnessed. I have cried more times than i can count in this series, from times of deep sorrow to times of utter elation. I believe that no other television show has ever held such an emotional grip on me. There is something so intensely beautiful within this series and it's mythology. You see I made several mistakes at the beginning of this series, chief among them was I thought the characters might be two dimensional (I was wrong) and that the Cylons were out and out bad guys. The latter was so horribly wrong that I just slapped myself in the face.
At first I was ready to vilify the show, I thought it was going to demonize religion in some way, hey i may not put much stock in it myself but I'll be damned that I watch someone be asses about the subject. But I was quick to the trigger, I was foolish and stupid, I didn't understand what this show was doing or where it was going. My sincerest apologies, really. I had never seen a show like you before BSG, I was looking for flaws because you were too great, it was making me uneasy. That i was forming an opinion on this aspect so early tells me that I had rather different expectations of the series - namely that i didn't expect this religious or spiritual theme at all. This really played with my expectations (and i loved it). Of course i dropped that 'are the Cylon's meant to be christianity? that seems rather insulting' thought pretty quickly. The shows intent became a far loftier one and yeah I feel like kicking myself for actually having that thought.
Battlestar Galactica created an entire mythology for humanity. One that took inspiration from so many pieces of literature, scripture, myths and religious ideologies that it would take a much smarter person than I to map it out for you.
It's not like this shown will gives you the meaning of life or anything, but it has enough emotional resonance and smarts to be able to tell a story that seriously asks what it means to be human.
But do you know what impresses me more than complex mythologies that actually give us answers? (Whether you accept them or not is down to personal preference). Characters I can completely fall for. Laura Roslin, William and Lee Adama, Kara "Starbuck" Thrace, Gaius Baltar, Athena - anybody. Not a single one of these characters were without layers or richly told stories that weren't handled with deft care and love.
It's a military show, it's a space opera, it's a drama (with some very funny moments strewn in) and it's rich with political, war and religious allegories. Battlestar Galactica might just be one of my favourite shows ever. It also holds the ability to make me break down in tears in the space of a few seconds.
This is one of the most perfectly orchestrated (and i mean that both literally and figuratively, Bear McCreary's music is bloody fantastic) television series' in history. I also now realise why Sci Fi's (i'm not spelling it that stupid way) movies and many of their shows are terrible: they sunk all their money and talent into Battlestar Galactica and they're still getting over it. It's a work of pure joy, warmth, sadness, intelligence, spirituality and profound humanity.
And don't even get me started on the frakking special effects.
