Coming close to wrapping up a rewatch of the 2004 Battlestar Galactica. The show holds up surprisingly well. I honestly forgot how fucking bleak it can be. It feels like a show that could have been made a year ago in that regard. Some of the post 9/11 political stuff feels really on the nose in hindsight, but I still appreciate what the show was doing there, and it does touch on some issues in unique ways, like the justifications of torture and suicide bombings and also the impact of brutal sexual assault.
Edward James Olmos just straight crushes on this show. He's so good that it wouldn't even matter if all the other actors were trash. They're not, but goddamn does he just deliver an absolute master class. Even when you know he's in the wrong, it's hard not to root for him, and it's easy to see why his crew is so devoted to him. A lessor actor would have made that loyalty feel unrealistic, but with Olmos it's entirely believable.
But the show works so well because it has so many other great characters too. Mary McDonnell is great as an education secretary turned president who slowly finds her footing and gains the respect of Olmos' Commander Adama. Jamie Bamber is excellent as Adama's son, a character who starts out seeming like a pretty boy douche but whose dedication to doing the right thing even if it means crossing his dad slowly wins you over. Tricia Helfer is absolutely fantastic in the role of Number Six, and I'm honestly surprised her career didn't take off after this performance. Chief Tyrol, Officer Dualla, Doc Cottle, Saul Tigh, Boomer, Helo, Gaius Baltar, Starbuck, Richard Hatch, who played Apollo in the original 70's BSG, giving a fantastic turn as domestic terrorist Tom Zarek...the list goes on and on.
There are some really great two-episode stories as well. The mutiny on Galactica in season four. The Pegasus arc in season two. Finding Kobol in season one. The election and time jump at the end of season two. The resistance movement on New Caprica along with the incredible moment when Galactica drops into the atmosphere to open season three. Baltar's trial to close season three. Not a lot of shows do better two-parters than Battlestar Galactica.
I think this show would be a lot better if they retroactively removed the bit in the opening credits about the Cylons having a plan, though, because it's hilariously obvious by season two that they don't have one (outside of maybe "kill all humans").
On the whole, if you haven't seen this show and you like sci-fi, it's probably the second best sci-fi show set in space ever made, behind The Expanse, which is the easy choice for number one now that it wrapped up in satisfying fashion.
Both SyFy shows, too! Well, at least for three seasons of The Expanse. Who'da thunk it?
