1.01
“33″
Ok, so we have the first epsiode after a successful pilot. It is the job of this episode to transform the mini-series into a viable weekly series. “33″ does this in spades. As Jamie Barber (Lee Adama) has been quoted, this episode is “the perfect episode of Battlestar Galactica”.
“33″ really touches on all the best portions of BSG. The premise is a simple one. Every 33 minutes, no matter what the fleet does, the Cylons find them. This has been happening for five days and the crew is beyond exhausted. The 33 minutes in between jumps are spent basically getting ready for the next jump.
I have to point out the phenomenal job the actors did in conveying the realistic symptoms of an overworked crew, struggling to stay one step ahead of the Cylons.
The other side of the story of course involves the ever developing saga of Gaius and his Personal Six. We see more into the religion of the Cylons and how it conflicts with Gaius’ need for a rational world.
The administrative side is still attempting to group a scared mass of people together, many of whom are trying to find out if any of their loved ones have survived. People are still dying from wounds, injuries, etc. and we slip under 50,000 total survivors of the human race.
As Gaius and Personal Six are conversing more, drawing Gaius into his fantasy world, it is discovered that there is a Dr. Amarack who claims to have knowledge of how the Cylons defeated the defense systems. Gaius begins to panic and realizes he has someone else he’ll have to eliminate at some point.
We see that Helo will still be a part of the weekly series as we see what he has been up to since we saw him give up his seat for Baltar. Killing Frakking Cylons while trying to stay alive in the wilderness and the driving rain.
As always one of the more interesting relationships is between Apollo and Starbuck. They tangle over authority and how to be in command of the Viper Pilots. With a small argument broken into by peals of laughter at the ridiculousness of the situation, we get one small slice of humanity which is when BSG is at it’s best.
As they make the next jump, a mistake is made and a civilian carrier, the Olympic Carrier is left behind. The exhaustion is starting to wreak havoc. However for Gaius it is a stroke of good fortune as Dr. Amarack was on the carrier left behind. Personal Six makes a case for God looking out for Gaius, but Gaius dismisses that notion quickly, which angers Personal Six. The religious debate is great to see as on the surface the actual debate is well crafted. Beneath the surface you can’t help but wonder if the creators were making a statement by having the Cylon act as an almost zealot.
As the 33 minutes go, the crew is shocked when the Cylons DON’T show up. Suspicious and flabbergasted, Adama gives his crew some time to rest but brainstorms with Roslin about what was different. They notate the loss of the Olympic Carrier, but they have no answers.
When the Olympic Carrier does show up everyone cheers, excited that the lives have been saved, but Commander Adama thinks differently and brings everyone back to full attention, restarting the clock at 33 minutes.
Gaius is obviously upset about the arrival of the Olympic Carrier, which Personal Six blames on Gaius’ blasphemous mockery. After a barrage of question the Olympic Carrier says that their FTL (faster-than-light) drive failed and it took 3 hours to fix. When questioned about the Cylons, the Carrier notes that the Cylons saw them but ignored them.
The decision is made quickly by am impassioned Baltar as well as by Adama and Roslin that they shouldn’t let the Carrier near the rest of the fleet. When ordered not to approach the fleet, the Carrier ignores the command.
The Cylons show up, right on time and just after alarms signal off in Galactica informing the crew that the Carrier is carrying nukes. Adama tells Roslin they have to destroy the Carrier, no matter if there are 1,300 people on board.
Roslin hesitates and we are drawn back into a religious debate with Personal Six who says it is not her choice, but Gods and God is waiting for Baltar to repent. Baltar quickly repents. Suddenly, Roslin agrees to destroy the Olympic Carrier. The ambiguity of the scene works well. Was it God’s will? Did Baltar’s repentance truly carry weight? There are no answers…nor should there be in the first episode.
Apollo and Starbuck question their orders to destroy a civilian vessel, but Apollo remains resolute. A fly-by reveals no faces in the passenger windows and it steels Apollo’s guts.
They destroy the Olympic Carrier and the marker board depicting the amount of human survivors has to be changed.
Back on Caprica Helo is confronted with a Number Six model when a Boomer model shoots Six in the head, and “saves” a confused Helo. Helo begins to question why she’s here but she just tells him to move it.
Back in the fleet Apollo wrestles with his conscience but realizes he did the right thing. President Roslin is also greatly upset when Billy (her aide) finally brings her some good news. A baby boy was born today, so the count could go back up by one.
It is a shining example of hope in the face of despair that symbolized what BSG was about. A great episode and a great beginning.
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