“Revelations”

Being the mid-season finale that forces us to wait almost eight months for a conclusion, you know that “Revelations” was going to be a big episode. The question was, could it deliver? The answer is a definite yes. While far from perfect, it restores something that has been missing since the reveal of the four Cylons within the fleet. The excitement. We care about what happens next, which is what a good cliffhanger finale should do.

Amazingly, and in shockingly subtle fashion for BSG, we open this momentous episode with a small but necessary character moment. Apollo and Starbuck are together in Adama’s office and they have a small discussion about the old man. Apollo reminisces on what it meant to be called to that desk in his study when he was a boy.

Starbuck then imparts the message given to her by Leoben…that children are born to replace their parents and that in order for a child to reach their maximum potential, the parent must die.

Now Adama isn’t going to die, but at least figuratively he does for this episode that really in as major a subplot as there could be, we see the rise of Apollo that had started at the end of Season 3 but kind of stifled early on in Season 4.

D’Anna has effectively taken control of the rebel Cylons, who defer to her due to her knowledge of the Final Five. In a little contradiction to last episode, where she told Roslin that she wanted to go back to the human fleet, she turns around and decides instead to take Roslin, Adama, and the crew hostage until Four of the FInal Five are returned from the fleet. Roslin is quick to point out that she only said four and says if only four are in the fleet, where is the fifth?

That leads me to believe that it’s something tricky — as in the Fifth is already on the Basestar (Helo, Adama, Roslin) although that does go against what the creators have said about the Last Supper picture:

Notably that the Final Cylon was NOT in the picture. So if that’s the case, and assuming they aren’t lying or misinforming or whatever, that would mean the Cylon is either someone we haven’t met yet, or is a dead character being brought back to life.

But I digress and on to the rest of the review:

D’Anna and Adama plan to return to the fleet to make their demand. Roslin pleads with Adama to destroy the basestar. As the fleet Cylons watch to see if D’Anna will point them out, Adama shares a reunion with his son. D’Anna informs the fleet that the Cylons will find a way to join the fleet. President Apollo says they will not be stopped.

Tory tells everyone that Roslin needs her medication and will go over to the Basestar in a flimsy excuse to leave the fleet.

The Adamas, Tigh, and Starbuck discuss plans on how to proceed. Apollo agrees with Roslin. They plan a rescue mission, but if everything goes south, they destroy the basestar.

As the mission is planned, Tory returns home.

Baltar and Roslin share a moment together as Baltar thanks Roslin for not murdering her, but Roslin informs Baltar of her plan which freaks him out slightly. But in turn Tory comes in and reveals herself to a shocked Roslin who reacts in a strange way. Strong but not what I would have expected. Roslin attempts to tell Tory to help them by talking to D’Anna but Tory declares that she doesn’t take orders from Roslin anymore. Tory also leaves a cryptic statement to Roslin telling her that she might want to ponder what else she has been wrong about.

D’Anna executes an unnamed hostage and then informs Apollo of her action, claiming they aren’t moving fast enough. Apollo realizes there is no other option. He orders the rescue mission to go ahead and if it goes south, they blow up the basestar.

The four begin hearing the signal drawing them to a place — this time it’s Starbuck’s Viper. The three realize there is something going on with it but can’t figure out what. They decide to go to Starbuck to see if she can’t figure it out.

Tigh then makes a momentous decision, and accompanied by the percussive “Watchtower” marches to Adama’s office telling him to scrub the mission. He then admits that he is a Cylon and he wants to be used as a hostage against D’anna’s threat.

It is a great sequence, unlike their confrontation of two episodes ago. This has momentum and truth as Adama is hit harder than he’s ever been hit before. He goes into denial, trying to convince Tigh…and more importantly himself that this is a Cylon trick, that they implanted something in his brain. He asks about the aging, and Tigh simply says that he is a different breed of Cylon.

He struggles with it and won’t accept the truth, but Tigh won’t let him run away from it.

Adama has him taken to an airlock…and breaks down completely and so humanly. Apollo is left to pick up the broken pieces of his father in a genuine show of grief by Olmos. It’s a very powerful and true moment.

The rise of Apollo begins as he goes to the airlock and punches Tigh in the face. He will use Tigh as leverage and he demands to know who the others are. D’Anna calls and presses, letting Apollo turn the tables, telling her to release her prisoners or Tigh is airlocked. He cuts the transmission and tells Tigh that if he wants to help the fleet than he will tell them who the others are.

Starbuck has joined Chief and Anders going over the ship, not knowing why. Anders asks her to trust him. And that’s when the marines come in to arrest them for being Cylons. Starbuck is horrified as Anders confirms the truth. Instead of a typical blowup, she begins to work on the Viper in shocked silence.

D’Anna reacts badly and thus begins a standoff, when Apollo raises the bar by revealing he has Chief and Anders as well. Roslin asks to be taken to D’Anna, but Baltar says she won’t listen to her but she might listen to him. Roslin agrees and sends Baltar.

Tory tells D’Anna that if she presses Adama he’ll back down. Baltar arrives in the command center and tells her the opposite that Apollo is too like his father. If she pushes, he’ll airlock them.

D’Anna targets the nukes at the Colonial Fleet ready to exterminate the human race. Apollo clears the tube of everyone but Tigh who orders Apollo to do it.

Starbuck realizes what is in the Viper and she makes a mad dash for the airlock, stopping Apollo just in time amidst some Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Thuggee-type chanting, that surprisingly worked quite well.

She declares that the Cylons have given them Earth.

Now the next few moments are a bit contrived as in the standoff, suddenly there is an agreement for D’Anna to come aboard Galactica to show everyone Earth. Apollo grants the Final Four amnesty and allows them to go with the Cylons or stay with Galactica.

Apollo offers a truce as they arrive on Earth together. It’s a momentous occurrence, but is it believable? Not so much. It’s simply too hurried and too quickly accepted. And amnesty? It’s a quick decision again, but it will be how it is treated later that will decide how believable it is. If it’s a crutch and it’s forgotton and they are easily accepted it will be a failure. So I’ll give it a mulligan until I see how it plays out.

But on we go. After Roslin and Apollo build the old man back up, we get a nice moment between Roslin and Apollo acknowledging Apollo’s excellent leadership during the shortest presidency in history.

We jump to Earth and Adama gives a triumphant speech saying the journey is over.

The following sequence, accompanied by a great choral score is a scene of jubilation and trepidation. Apollo jumping on the command center table, deck hands kissing, workers cheering, Starbuck telling Kat’s picture that ‘we did it’, and then juxtaposed is the Chief sitting on his bed with his son, just content, Anders standing next to Starbuck, and Tigh sitting at his desk with a bottle.

Then we reach Earth and we find it’s a radioactive wasteland that at least initially appears to be uninhabited and in ruins…with one shot in particular to appear to be the Brooklyn Bridge, broken, tattered, and destroyed.

Cliffhanger.

Where is the 13th Tribe?

See you in 2009.

Overall a fun, exciting episode that could have been a top notch type of episode, but just falls short with some contrivances and some sloppy storytelling, but they don’t completely ruin what is a triumphant end to the first part of the fourth season.

B+

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