06.16.08
Episode 4.10: “Revelations”
Written by Bradley Thompson and David Weddle
Directed by Michael Rymer
This episode takes everything since the third season finale and brings it to a fever pitch, tossing out several assumptions about the direction of the story in the process. In other words, it is exactly what the doctor ordered for a season that has been uneven at best. The more serialized structure of the season has not always worked to the series’ favor, but the fruits of such labor are indeed sweet.
I’m not sure if the season arc always included an early discovery of Earth, though it’s certainly possible. There was a great deal of concern just before the writers’ strike that the series would not return for the second half of the final season, and that this episode would be the end of the show. That makes me wonder if the arc was designed to bring the series to the doorstep of Earth, just in case the series came to an abrupt end (though some indications are that the final episode would have been the conclusion to the cliffhanger). After all, even if so many other mysteries remained unsolved, at least the journey could have ended just before that final scene, right?
Perhaps not. Because as celebratory as those first moments in Earth orbit were, the promise of 12 more episodes (thanks to a slight expansion to allow the finale to have necessary scope, ala “Lost”) tells us that there’s plenty of story left. And the final scene itself is a grim reminder of the “grass is always greener” principle. It fits the Galactica mythos rather well, for the ragtag fleet to find Earth, only to discover a nuclear wasteland instead of a homecoming.
Of course, it’s not that simple. That nuclear wasteland was giving off a Colonial beacon signal, and that nuclear wasteland apparently saved Starbuck, gave her a shiny new Viper, and knew how to send the signal by interconnecting it to the Cylon activation signal for the Final Five. The weather nuclear remains of New York City (or possibly the Temple of Aurora?) are a great cliffhanger, but also seem a ruse. Had the alliance found Earth without help, the state of the planet might have been a crushing blow, but there’s too much evidence that there’s much more to it.
The process of getting to that moment of revelation was some of the best material of the season. The tension hit a fever pitch, and the writers managed to convey the sense of chaos throughout the standoff. Ironically, despite setting himself apart from Roslin on several occasions, Lee seemed to resort to her brand of tactics when dealing with D’Anna’s gambit. It wasn’t necessarily wrong, but it was a calculated attempt to demonstrate his strength. At the same time, I’m not convinced that Roslin would have avoided the agreement with the Cylon Rebels that came after Kara’s moment of realization. And something tells me that alliance will be necessary, because the rest of the Cylons are still out there.
As everything seemed to smack heavily and messily into the fan over the course of the episode, the authentic character moments made it all work. Roslin seems committed to the path of truth, wherever it might lead, even when it means giving Baltar the chance to speak on their collective behalf. Adama’s reaction to Tigh’s confession was very well done. A number of character reactions to the unveiling of the four new Cylons were postponed by the jump to Earth, but they will most certainly be coming.
There are some serious issues to be resolved in the second half of the season. First and foremost, there is the revelation of the final Cylon, which should be interesting, to say the least. D’Anna specifically said that the final Cylon was not with the fleet at the top of the episode, and at that point, a number of very important characters (notably Adama, Roslin, and Baltar) were all on the basestar. It plays into the notion (at this point, very well supported) that Baltar is the final Cylon. But I still think it would be too obvious to take that direction. Wouldn’t it be a huge moment to discover that Leoben was right all the way back in the first season, and Adama really has been a Cylon? It would play into the theory that both Humans and Cylons were meant to come to this mutual moment of transition.
The arrival on Earth will eventually tie into Kara’s visions and her resurrection, just as this mysterious signal from the ruins of Earth is connected to everything that has happened since the beginning of the series. I’m left with the notion that the signal is not, in fact, a Colonial signal per se, just as the activation of the Final Five was not typical. The signal may tailor itself to certain individuals in a certain way, with the signal intensifying at the various markers along the path. For some, it may be visions. To others, it may be music. To Kara’s special viper, it may be a Colonial beacon. And it could be something automatic, something meant to draw the rest of Humanity and its children to the memory of Earth. (In fact, it’s possible that the idea is for both Humans and Cylons to see the ruins of Earth and choose a different path, ala “Babylon 5”.)
There’s also two other small matters. Roslin wasn’t supposed to live long enough to get the fleet to Earth, and there’s no other leader who died along the way who would fit the profile. So is it possible that the Earth that was found is not, in fact, Earth? From the visible land masses, it’s hard to say for sure. But after tossing that prophecy out so many times, the writers will need to close that loop. There’s also the continuing threat from the rest of the Cylon fleet. It’s hard to imagine that those models would just choose to live and let live.
The bottom line is that there’s plenty of story still left to be told; the only question is when the Sci-Fi Channel will allow it to air. Current estimates give the beginning of the final 12 episodes around the first quarter of 2009, which probably means March 2009, given how the network parses words. In effect, it’s the same wait that “Lost” fans are currently enduring, and far less annoying than the long hiatus of shows like “24”. We can blame the writers’ strike, but this is all about the network and their need to string out their one non-reality critical hit as long as possible.
In the meantime, there will be “Caprica” and perhaps another “Battlestar Galactica” TV-movie, similar to “Razor” last November. It will be a long wait, but at this point, I’m happy just to know that the series will come to a definitive and creator-driven end. Much like “Lost”, the establishment of an endgame scenario long before the writing of the finale is just what the doctor ordered.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 4/4
Final Rating: 10/10
ForgetfulBob said,
June 17, 2008 at 12:01 am
Not only the greatest episode ever of “Battlestar: Galactica”, but the single best hourly achievement in the history of television, bar none. There are no words to describe the level of playing field this episode was on. The writing, directing, acting, and lest I forget the MUSIC. I could watch this episode 100000000 times just for the music, which was simply stunning.
This “finale” blew the fourth season finale of Lost out of the water. Lost is a great show, and one of my favorites, but the emotions conveyed in this emotion are just on a different level. The final 10 minutes, in which the slower episodes this season gave way to stunning and incredibly emotional scenes (Baltar praying with his followers; Tyrol with his son; Tigh drinking; Adama and Roslin’s love for one another) solidified forever the greatness of this show. It’s going to be a long wait.
Adam said,
June 17, 2008 at 4:12 am
right. thats just a fanboy speaking. this season was hopelessly random, with a bunch of really slow filler-ish episodes, even though the end date of the show was known.
the ending wasnt really surprising, and quite, honestly, it was not as great as you discribe it… it wasnt nearly as good.
but it was good… however comparing it to lost is really silly. Lost was cleverly built up to the finale, and it didnt fear giving us really cool plot/character conclusions BEFORE the finale ,whereas BSG did nothing but throw off the audience with some filler so they could save everything for the rather rushed mid season finale.
i wasnt let down, because the standards of BSG have lowered dramatically since S3.
encyclops said,
June 17, 2008 at 6:34 am
I don’t think it was even remotely the greatest episode of BSG ever, nor do I think it was an especially terrific dramatic achievement, but this show does operate at a different standard, and most of my complaints are minor. I want to say that I think your musings here about the signal manifesting as different things to different people is genius, a key insight that I think will prove to be spot on. I really appreciate your reviews and look forward to the next one, even if it comes in 2009.
Glenn said,
June 17, 2008 at 8:53 am
“Roslin wasn’t supposed to live long enough to get the fleet to Earth” ..
“So is it possible that the Earth that was found is not, in fact, Earth? ”
Assuming Roslin is the dying leader (which I do) she isn’t meant to live long enough to enter the promised land. The prophesy doesn’t say it’s Earth; that’s an assumption that we and many of the people in the fleet have made. This will no doubt be addressed in the early episodes of 4.5.
Administrator said,
June 17, 2008 at 12:24 pm
I wouldn’t go so far as ForgetfulBob, because as good as this episode was in my eyes, it’s certainly not the best hour of television ever created. But it does illustrate the reason why it received the much-desired 10/10…it had all the elements that make an episode a personal favorite, despite its flaws.
On the other hand, I completely disagree with Adam’s contention that the season has been filler. Much of the “filler” was necessary setup for the plot and character aspects of this episode. I definitely grant that the path was not as smooth as the one “Lost” provided this season (which is why “Lost” once again ranked at the top of the list), but the path was there. My main issue is that the writers often tried to force the progression of the story a bit too often.
BTW, if we were to take these 10 episodes and consider them a full season, and take an average CM rating across the board, it comes out to 7.7…which is well above average, but well below “Lost” and just behind such shows as “Supernatural” and “Terminator”. Looking at it in relative terms, I don’t disagree with the results. IMHO, it just didn’t have the consistency.
Then again, since it’s NOT a full season, it’s a bit premature to make the comparison, and it’s quite possible that the second half of the season will more than make up for the minor quibbles I’ve had with the storytelling along the way.
Cathy W said,
June 17, 2008 at 3:34 pm
On my first viewing, I’d agree with your review entirely - my gosh, this was some awesome, outstanding, jaw-dropping television.
I watched again with my husband ( he missed the last 20 minutes the first time), and the one thing I’d really criticize was the celebration montage when they arrived at Earth: with that much of the episode left to go, and everyone deliriously happy, it was painfully obvious that Something Bad Is About To Happen. Hubby even pegged it: “They’re going for the ‘You Dirty Apes’ ending, aren’t they?”
So…on my own personal scale, a point or two got knocked off for Blatant, Crass Manipulation.
Administrator said,
June 17, 2008 at 5:12 pm
I see what you’re saying, but given how much is left of the series, I considered that a given, from our perspective. It’s not really manipulation if it’s that obvious. From the characters’ perspective, though, how else would they react?
Montereyan said,
June 17, 2008 at 10:18 pm
I’ve seen the episode three times now and it has remained as great as I thought it was the first time out. One of the main objections seems to be the rushed nature of the last 10 minutes, which I can understand, but it makes sense - once they had a clear path to Earth all else falls away in the excitement. Any other reaction than the one we saw in the celebration montage wouldn’t have made sense given their years-long desire for Earth. Tell me, how else should the characters have reacted?
The cruel dashing of their hopes was the show’s best moment in its four years so far. Earth was everything - and now they find it an uninhabitable ruin. They are left with only themselves, which is how it should be - it’s a show about characters and relationships, not about physical destinations.
I’ve disagreed pretty strongly with entil2001 about this season - I think it’s the strongest half of a season since 2.0. The only episode that didn’t work was Sine Qua Non, but the others did a great job of advancing plot while developing characters. So I would definitely disagree with the ratings given this season so far. It ought to average in the low 8s.
Someone above mentioned Lost and I think the comparison is instructive. I really did not like Season 4 of Lost. It felt like a diversion from the core stories and characters, in which hardly anything new was learned, where characters were misused (Juliet, Michael, and Sawyer in particular) and where the season finale threw some interesting punches that all missed their mark.
This midseason finale, however, was genius. But then I’m a sucker for existential crises. My guess is those who disliked the episode aren’t.
ForgetfulBob said,
June 18, 2008 at 12:04 am
Lost has become nothing but a tease, with the icing on the cake coming with the ridiculous “move the island” nonsense. There is only so much one can take. It’s worth watching for the characters, but the mythology has moved definitively into the “nonsensical” and “completely bizarre” categories. There are so many questions which will never be answered. A VERY overrated season.
Administrator said,
June 18, 2008 at 12:16 am
ForgetfulBob:
I can only say that I respectfully and stridently disagree.
ForgetfulBob said,
June 19, 2008 at 1:19 am
The main problem with Lost this season was the flashforwards, which, as I predicted at the end of season three, completely killed the suspense, part of the reason the finale wasn’t as riveting as it could have been. The few flashbacks were terrible (Juliet’s and Locke’s were the worst two episodes of the season, respectively). The show continues to move further and further away from its Season One “magic” in which character dominated story. Characters continue to be killed off simply because the producers get bored with them and can’t think of anything but to ax them (examples abound: Mr. Eko, Shannon, Libby, Ana-Lucia, and now Michael). Desperate twists like “moving the island” are resorted to, leading to laughable scenes like the one in which Ben turned that wheel. It was laugh-out-loud terrible.
The good things I can say about it: the acting is still top-notch, the music is great (although not as good as “Galactica”), and well…that’s about it. Questions are hardly ever answered and as I said in the earlier post, there is only so much one can take. The show has completely spiraled out of control.
Administrator said,
June 19, 2008 at 1:36 am
Forgetful Bob:
I completely disagree regarding the flashforwards, as it simply changed the nature of the suspense and tension. Similarly, I disagree regarding Locke’s flashback, or the notion that character is no longer the focus is ludicrous. I also reject the notion that characters are killed off without purpose (I’ve gone into great detail as to why this is not so for the past couple of seasons), and while the scene with Ben did not work as intended, the notion of “moving the island” is no more desperate than the rest of the time travel aspects already in play for quite some time.
As I have said before, “Lost” is about the journey, not the destination…though I am quite confident that there will be a destination.
I have also said, many times, that I see much in common between “Lost” and “Galactica”, and that it is only the setting that is truly different between the two. At the core, both are a struggle of survival and redemption, and there is little need to belittle one in praise of the other.
That said, let us return discussion to “Galactica”, shall we?
ForgetfulBob said,
June 20, 2008 at 12:04 am
The show has always been about the island. By inserting flashforwards, 90% of everything on the island becomes predictable and hence, loses its suspense. It makes one want to fast forward to the moment they all get off the island, not sit glued to your television set every step of the way like previous seasons made me do. The show is still easily one of the best on television, but it is no where near its so-called “Glory Days” of Season 1 and as I said before, has been surpassed by “Galactica”.
Speaking of which, I’ve narrowed down my list of suspected toasters to three (in no particular order):
1. Gaius Baltar
2. Ellen Tigh
3. Someone on Earth