...Do you plan to read the comics? 

cool, will give it a rent and check it out. Eventually, once my unwatched pile is a bit more manageable. Still have 4 seasons of The Wire to get to. 

Still bitter. 

nitin: Here is an interesting article comparing BSG to The Wire (very minor spoilers):
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/mar/19/battlestar-galactica-review

HERE BE SPOILERS!!!
Bal, this pretty much sums up my opinion about the whole abandon-technology issue:
http://galacticasitrep.blogspot.com/2009/03/renunciation-of-technology.html

I have to say that I really liked the finale, but I was expecting it to be like this. I wasn't expecting a rational explanation for everything at all, and I was very sure that Starbuck would just vanish and her nature would not be elaborated on. I think they answered all interesting questions while still leaving some room for debate. But to me, they gave a very definitive answer to the question of whether there is a higher power at work and what the nature of Starbuck and the head people was. The were sent by a higher power to influence the events so that the cycle of destruction is broken. That was the plan all along, and by merging the cylon and human races, they were both lead to their respective ends (Kara Thrace == harbinger of death).

Anyways, there's a lot of debate going on, and from what I can see there are a lot of people who would have preferred a more rational explanation for everything, but I'm not one of them. To me, this was a pretty much perfect finale to a very good show! I'm just sad there won't be more of BSG, just "The Plan" and Caprica. 

It's simply the setting in which the story takes place. There are no space monsters, there's no techno babble etc. like you may know from star trek. It's about the characters first, which is what all the great shows have in common.

In fact, every person I have showed the pilot to became hooked instantly, even those who usually loathe sci fi.
I bet those persons didn't loathe what in germany is called a "soap". What you're describing is exactly what I hate about most shows i see :( I hate when they don't have an interesting story to tell and instead focus on the characters :) 

Are you comparing BSG with a soap? And since when is a soap about the characters? I think you misunderstood me here. Besides, BSG has a very interesting story to tell with very relevant themes, I think. But you can't please everyone, I guess.

Oh, and btw - I don't like soaps at all. In fact, I don't even have a TV set. 

More SPOILERS.


Yeah, for the abandoning technology thing, I agree, as I said, it didn't really surprise me so much. As is described in the article, I myself can't imagine making that choice, as I still have high hopes for what technology can bring (= I want to fly around space and shoot laser guns).

I was also expecting Kara to be an angel or whatever, it was pretty obvious considering the piano episode (which I really enjoyed). I just have difficulty linking her to the fake Gaius and Caprica, do they represent the same entity? Seems strange considering how differently they operate.
And about the cycle of destruction, how is it broken? Cylon and human, by the end you couldn't really tell the difference anyways, but once evolved nothing's to stop them from starting over (make low-tech cylons etc).

I hate soaps and don't have a TV either, yay! 

Nope :). 

cool, will give it a rent and check it out. Eventually, once my unwatched pile is a bit more manageable. Still have 4 seasons of The Wire to get to.

Means you have seen the great season three Stinger Bell/Stanfield story arc :) 

I am not sure what exactly Kara was, but I think she was a tool used by "god" or whatever entity controlled those events. Just like the shared opera house vision or the head people. What's to stop a divine power to use a corporeal entity for its plans?

I think the cycle might be broken because cylon and human are now genetically mixed. I think that is what head six meant in the end when she said that she thinks that this time it's different. The system has repeated itself many times, and this time it's different because only the hybrid and its descendents (we) remain. But yeah, it's not clear, it's up to us, which is what the final "advances in robotics" images meant.

And I really enjoyed the Starbuck / father / Watchtower episode. The inclusion of this song in the show, transcending the barrier between the on screen characters and the viewers was a stroke of genius IMO. It kind of foreshadowed the events and made everything so much more interesting. From the minute I identified it as All Along the Watchtower in Crossroads pt. II, I was even more hooked on the show. 

there's some interesting stuff they do on the show with the CG.

it's something i first started noticing on firefly (and then serenity) where the CG camera is treated as if it was a real camera. in BSG, they took it even farther to where the CG sequences feel a lot like film documentaries which really boosts up the quality. the live action parts are for the most part filmed in that way too, so everything ties together really well.
i think there's a lot of good about this method, it's better than super choreographed railroad CG cameras, anyway. 

no only seen season 1 so far. 

I agree, and btw, it's the same fx company that worked on both shows. They invented the style for firefly and used it again for BSG, because the makers wanted the documentary style. Oh, and they put the serenity into the BSG mini series (in the scene on Caprica before the fall where Roslin finds out she has cancer, she is in a room with a huge window through which you can see ships flying by - one of them is serenity).

I also liked how they lowered the sound volume in the space scenes, but I wish they had had the guts to turn it off. But I guess it wouldn't have worked as well without sound. 

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that BSG is the best sci-fi series I have ever seen!

Its just the perfect blend of sci-fi realism, action, and political process I have ever seen. I don't know how they did it as politics usually sends me to sleep after the first 5 minutes, but here it was engrosing and I actually gave a damn about it.

It also puts forth some very interesting ideas about the nature of human existence, what constitutes being "alive" and explores religious faith in a very compelling way.

If you have not watched it, for gods sake sort it out! ;) 

Have you seen Firefly? For the love of God don't let the emo community around it ruin it for you, just try it. I loved it. 

i think muffling sounds or some similar processing is the best way to handle sound in space. completely silent scenes can work though, as was proved by firefly, but the final space battle in serenity would have been pretty weak without sound. (i know they got away with it by having the fight in the upper atmosphere of that planet, but that was a cop out) 

I actually have the firefly season 1 dvd and enjoyed it very much. I did not know it was the same fx company that did BSG, but thinking about it, it makes sense now :)

I need to see the final half of season 4 of BSG, so I skipped most of the posts here about it in fear of spoilers! 

I completely agree, BSG is the most compelling and most interesting sci-fi-show I have ever seen. All in all I find it even better than firefly, which I enjoyed very much as well. I would even go so far as to say that BSG to me is the best TV show I have ever seen. But this is mostly because it just caters to my interests the most and because it really moved me emotionally a lot, which many other good shows did not.

I don't know what it is about BSG, but it just gets to me every time I watch it. 

I watched 01x01 of BSG last night 'cos of you guys...


You're all bastards, I needed my free time over the next week :( 

seriously 

BinarySolidGeometry 

I think I'll BSG some day, always thought it was nerdy Star Trek popcorn stuff. 

Bitter & Sad Geeks 

I always thought B5 was equally well rated for the sci-fi / politics / depth side. Not that I watched a lot of it myself. 

Thanks for the clarification.......