Should I Watch Battlestar Gallatica?

Battlestar in nothing like Firefly in tone, just to let you know. Far more bleak and serious.

Well, I don't know if the ending is worth it. Might be a bit dissatisfied with that, but of course, you won't be investing quite as much time to get to the end. Could play better for you on an accelerated timeline.

I think it's still worth checking out though, lot of great storylines throughout. Just lower your expecatations a bit as you roll into the fourth season, and then gradually lessen them as you make it toward the finale.

Hell yes, you should watch Battlestar. Start with the mini-series or you will be lost. The first 2 and a half seasons are the best. The first half of season 4 doesn't quite work but it redeems itself in the second half. And the finale is fantastic. Interested to know if the extended version adds anything.

I don't know why your mate said it starts out rough. The first episode of season 1 - '33' - is one of the best of the entire series.


And Eddie Olmos is great in this show.

Short answer: yes.

Long answer: yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees.

Moving from 13 to 20-plus episode seasons was the big mistake of this show. Season 1 is tight, gripping and focused, as is the first half of season 2. But after that the momentum is lost in filler episodes and only regained for short periods (as with the phenomenally good New Caprica arc that kicks off season 3) and the show developed an unfortunate tendency to spin its wheels and disappear up the arse of its own pointlessly convoluted mythology.

But for its flaws they on several occasions managed to create some of the greatest television I've ever seen, and it's pretty essential if you're into intelligent sci-fi or serial dramas in general. Thanks to the relatively small number of episodes it's quite easy to blaze through the whole show over a few weeks, which is probably the ideal way to experience it (if only because you don't have to put up with the whiny fanbase bitching about every little thing after every episode).

What did you think of the finale, Paul C. I loved it.

Galactica is one of the finest series in the history of television and (yes) has one of the (Yes!) best endings in all of T.V. If you care about seeing stuff like that, you should watch it.

I liked the finale, and I was a lot more positive about season 4 than most of the fans seemed to be (aside from the fantastic first few episodes and the season finale, Season 3 was the nadir for me).

There were things that bothered me though. Not to get too spoilery, but given that the show used to be so much about showing the political workings of this small society in quite a convincing and subtle way, it felt wrong how they kind of threw all that out at the very end and suddenly expected us to accept a certain controversial decision that they unanimously agree on at the very end, without showing us any of the process that led to that decision. I mean, I get that it would've been hard to fit that in without expanding the finale to another episode, but it would've helped it feel more like a natural ending rather than a 'writers ending', if you get me.

I can buy that ending because the alternative involved humanity putting themselves at the mercy of the cylons. The Cylons supposedly "accepted Adama's command", but it's their ship, and along with the centurions could wipe out the humans pretty easily. Given that most of the fleet was likely still distrustful of the Cylons, I could see them taking Earth as the best option.

I think he's talking about Lee Adama's tech epiphany. I agree - more debate about that would have been better.

No no no, that's the stuff you're supposed to gloss over in the series' last half hour. What, you want them to call yet another council meeting with people we don't care about coming to a vote just to tie up that (relatively minor) loose end? C'mon, it should be about our main characters at that point. The address it more than they did would be a digression that the show couldn't afford in it's closing minutes.

I'm not so sure. From the very start the show was about people with different ideas and points of view arguing over the right thing to do. And then possibly the single biggest, most definitive decision they make is casually made offscreen? At its best the show was very good at creating the impression that the big decisions were being made by the characters based on their own personal morals and ideologies etc, but a few times in the finale it felt to me like the characters were acting to fit the writers' tidy plans for the ending, rather than because it was internally consistent behaviour.

I just think a finale should have different priorities than the rest of the series. I absolutely loved Galactica's political intrigue, but it's something to let go of at that stage in the game. A finale for a show like Galactica should focus on the personal more than the political. Wrapping that up concerns the fates of people we don't meet or care about, after all.

People, what the hell are you doing arguing about the ending? There's a thread for that. The guy asked if he should start watching it. Let's not spoil stuff for him.

To answer the question, yes you should watch it. BSG's highs were among the best hours of television ever made. There is a sequence later in the series that literally had me jump off my seat and celebrate. Seriously, this show has two-parters that put most big budget sci-fi films made to shame. Both in execution and the larger questions they ask. Just don't go in wanting fun or the slightest bit of audience pandering. And try to put some distance between the episodes. I suspect the tone of the series might get overwhelming otherwise.

That's why I blacked part of it out, meter maid. You can't figure anything out from the uncensored parts.

Yeah, no spoilers, but a fair warning about the ending is due.
I bought all the boxes as soon as they came out, the first seasons being so brilliant.

And now I regret it, since because of that ending I know I will never watch it again.

That's a bit extreme. Fun fact: most of the show is not the ending. Even if you disliked how it wrapped up, it doesn't change the brilliance of the show's highest points. There's something to be said for the journey over the destination... let's not burn the book because of it's last page.

People who slam the ending must not have been watching the same show that I did for four years. Y'know, the one where God, fate, religion, genocide and so on are front and centre of almost every episode. It's a GREAT ending, one of the ballsiest but most fitting conclusions of any TV show.

Really? Because the show I was watching the first couple of episodes was smart, brutal and realistic. The last season was downright idiotic, and the last episode hinges on some incredibly bad conveniences and characters not telling other characters important information for the sake of the plot.

I do think it's worth watching though. Just watch out for that Lawyer. Holy shit.

More reasons: Space battles that Lucas would have killed to have in the Prequel trilogy. BTW – The Firefly effects guys also did Battletstar.

An excellent, stirring score. Mccreary should be working more on good shows and movies, rather than crap like REST STOP and EUREKA. AVATAR, anyone?

And again, Eddie Olmos. Nobody does a rousing speech like him. The one in DAYBREAK floors me.

Stelios – did you jump off the sofa during an ‘atmospheric’ moment in the beginning of season 3? I sure as hell did.

Yup.

I just got done watching the entire series on DVD, actually, which is what I assume what you're thinking of doing. It's definitely worth a watch, and the finale is great, even though I can see (and to some extent agree with, especially the lack of a satisfying conclusion for a certain major character) some of the criticisms out there.

Whoever said that season 3 is the show's nadir... I guess I really disagree with that. While Season 3 doesn't quite have nailbiters like the midpoint of the second season, it is probably the best the show gets in terms of discussing its themes.

But, if you watch it and make up your own mind, you definitely won't regret it. It certainly is one hell of a ride.

McCreary is among the best composers working today -- in ANY medium. I wasn't the biggest fan of The Plan, but his phenomenal track "Apocalypse" justifies the whole thing. Amazing music.

pretty much agree with everything said. yes, watch this show.

to those who own the complete series, did anyone purchase that horrible complete series DVD set? its one of the most frustrating DVD box sets ive ever seen.

I've got the Blu-Ray, which I think has identical packaging. Amazing picture quality but yeah, that box is ridiculous. I don't know what they were thinking.

Best science fiction TV series of all time.

Seasons 3 and 4 are not without their problems, but I was really happy with the ending.

I'm not into sci-fi at all, and I loved, loved, loved "Battlestar Galactica". I rank it up there with "The Wire" and "Arrested Development" as one of the best shows of the last decade.

Right now, Universal is letting you exchange the old Blu-Ray packaging for the snazzier new one, but this expires on May 31st.

But yeah...fuck the haters of the ending. It culminates every single theme the series explored since the mini-series (including the hand of the "divine" in the show's plot), and made perfect sense in the context of everything that had come before.

I admit I enjoyed those highest points myself, but I really can't re-watch a movie or a serie when I know the ending is going to disappoint me (or tragically disappoint me, as in this case).
It makes me feel as if I've wasted all the time spent to get there.

I know I'm not the only one who's had this kind of rejection for the show as a whole after the ending.
Thought the original poster might want to know about the issue, since, after all, the DVDs (or whatever) don't come free.

Blvd, You should watch...Glen A. Larson's Battlestar Galactica, if you want a great space opera. Ron Moore's Battlestar is the...Worst science fiction series ever made, along with Sci-Fi's Flash Gordon and Star Trek Voyager.

The first season is great, but it goes down hill from there.

I'd say it depends on your other options. There are at least a dozen shows I'd recommend to people over BSG. Personally, I enjoyed BSG creator Ron Moore's previous show (Star Trek: DS9) more, where he tread over many of the exact same issues (religion, prophets and prophecies, war with a superior faux-human enemy, enemy sleeper agents posing as friends, etc).

BSG is often comically bleak (do NOT have a drinking game about when a character gets blind drunk or attempts suicide - you will die). I found the despair and loneliness that hung over every single character to be oppressive to the point where I partially lost interest in whether the characters lived or died. The episodes are highly uneven - some are quite well written and acted, while others are... not. The final season and ending is in contention for the worst I have ever seen, with characters shifting personality solely to serve the plot, twists that make no logical sense, an epically awful deus ex machina, and a 'message' that played like an SNL parody of "The More You Know".

Enough people disagree with me that you may still enjoy it, but I'd only recommend it to hardcore scifi fans or people looking to join in the pointless arguments over whether BSG was, "the best show ever!" or a decent show that went off the rails. There are better shows out there to spend your time with.

Farsight, you put in words something I felt too but couldn't properly describe so far: it's true, it got comically bleak at times.
And again, a different ending could've put it all under a different light, but sadly, it got even worse.

Awesome Avatar, BTW

Skip it. Lots of bright spots, but more filler than anything after the 1st season and after awhile you get the feeling the writers don't know where they're going. Ending is terrible.

Season 1 and most of Season 2 and the beginning of Season 3 is some of the best television ever. After that, I found it spotty. I'm a victim of the Watchtower.

The miniseries (don't forget that!), and seasons 1, 2, and season 3 up until the escape from New Caprica, are about as good as television gets. I recommend turning off the series after they leave New Caprica and just letting your imagination fill in how the story ends.

This is a show whose set up is that 99.9 percent of humanity has just been fucking wasted by their own sentient creations. Of course it's bleak. It might not make for the most comforting television, but it sure as hell plays for the heart, and for that, I don't think it can be maligned. I get that maybe it's easy to forget the catalyst for the situation if you're watching the show weekly (and with those god awful 9 months between new episodes), but the story of Battlestar plays out over the course of a year or two (at least until the end of season two)... and then they go through it again! The grimness is not only an important aesthetic to the show, it's the reason for the show. And while there are moments of levity, I don't really think it's a fair complaint to say that there weren't enough.

This is also wrong, BLVD. Battlestar Galactica is one of the best shows ever made. Sure, there are moments where it's uneven, an episode here or there that doesn't quite hit home, but overall it's one of the most compelling and satisfying television series ever produced.

It just kind of boggles my mind that it was on the goddamn sci-fi channel of all places, who are known for complete shit.

No, YOU'RE wrong!


BSG has the noblest of intentions. Like many television series, it started as one thing and ended as something wholly different. I liked what it was when it started, but disliked what it was at the end.

But I also liked the finale, just for the bugnuts insanity of it.

I very much recommend the whole series. I marathoned through last fall after buying the series on Blu-ray and was just amazed by most of it.

And I loved the ending, so there.

You should love the show proper, then. Frankly it blows the miniseries out of the water.

Though I concur with the people claiming that the 4th season was largely moronic. But it's like the original Star Wars trilogy. Return of the Jedi is pretty lame, but obviously you can't just stop watching after Empire. For all its faults, you've got to watch that last bit to get the complete package.

For the most part, the criticisms of the fourth season are valid, and they would probably have seemed more glaring when the episodes aired. Powering through them on DVD like I did, the missteps didn't seem so awful. Nothing on the level of Ewoks, say. The main problem with the fourth season is that it's the show racing to wrap up its plot, and the characters can't really breathe for the most part, and some others just get the shaft. Even then, I didn't think the show was bad at that point, just below par compared to what came before.

Mini-series is boring but you have to get through it to enjoy the rest of the series. The first 4 episode of Season 3 are the high point of the series and quite possibly some of the best television I've ever seen. Since you are a fan of Sci-fi there is absolutely no reason for you to not watch this show. Ignore the negativity and watch the series esp ignore comments like that idiot a few posts ago who compared BSG to Flash Gordon

For me it is hard to spend time with characters who are so mopey all the time. I understand the show has a dark premise but the show found ways to have fun in the earlier seasons. In season 4 and 4.5 it's like the characters are depressed and emo all the freakin time. It was taking itself way too seriously, I remember thinking several times "Just chill the fuck down". It's hard for me to root for a group of characters each one of whom is perpetually depressed and angsty. I realize that it may not be a valid criticism of the series, just something that will keep me from rewatching the series.

I disagree, I can't think of many shows, especially many science fiction shows which are better than BSG, I can think of maybe a couple but that's about it. It's definitely in the upper echlons of sci-fi television and a must watch for any fans of scifi.

J.Swanson, For me the only good...Battlestar Galactica series is...Glen A. Larson's original. The only good thing about Ron D. Moore's terrible, re-imagining, is that it is now over. Moore removed alot of things about the classic original that made the show fun. I prefer the Space Opera that is the original to the newer version that is...worse than The Sci-Fi Channel's Flash Gordon. Give me the original Galactica, with the laser pistols, space clothes, the cool ship to ship combat, and Stu Philips stunning score.

POINTLESS.

Cool. No need to let a few negative opinions prevent you from making up your own mind if it's something up your alley. The dumbest thing about Devin's really dumb LOST rants are the people responding by saying, "I was gonna check it out, but now that I know it turns out badly, I won't." Dumbdumbdumbdumb.

Hopefully you'll enjoy it!

Mezz gets it.

My own feeling is that the basic premise of the show was so bleak that there was a powerful tension between that premise and the demands of the studio.

Also, every time you have a successful show you run the risk of the fans and cast hijacking the show. I really feel that by Seasons 3-4 there were character beats and plots that only existed as Fan service, or because the actor wanted to show off their chops (see Adm Adama's numerous "NNNOOOO!" moments in Season 4 especially).

But while I'd put The Wire over BSG, the later is well worth your time, especially on Blu Ray.

A thousand times agreed. Merely some of the months of long training I went through in the marines felt pretty grim to us, and, while we found time to screw around, I can't imagine how much more ominous every day would have felt knowing we'd never go home again.

Also, blu ray is the devil.

Best Buy has the entire series on Blu Ray for 229. I bought the first season, including mini series on DVD for 20 bucks. I never jumped on the BSG wagon, but I heard it was fantastic, so I wanted to wait till the entire thing was out. If I get sucked into Season One, Blu-ray is on my list next.

BSG is bleak? No. Why should it be?

Hey, billions upon billions of our race died in the blink of an eye. Now the few thousands of us left are stuck living in tin cans, overcrowded, low on supply, with a broken government system perpetually on the brink of collapse. What are we going to do?

Let's turn that frown upside down and go on space adventures. With space casinos, space hookers and robot puppies.