Battlestar Galactica 2.17: "The Captain's Hand"
Written by Jeff Vlaming
Directed by Sergio Mimeca-Gezzan
In which the current commander of Pegasus defies orders, forcing Apollo to deal with the fallout, while Roslin runs into a delicate political issue when abortion rights are challenged…
Ron Moore wasn’t able to produce a podcast for this episode, which is unfortunate. I’ve found it educational to hear the perspective of the creative minds behind an episode after having seen it and evaluated it for myself. In this case, I enjoyed the episode for many reasons, despite a few things that gave me pause, and it would have been nice to hear what the writers were trying to achieve.
This episode served to remind me that time has been moving in leaps and bounds since the end of “Resurrection Ship: Part II”. This accelerated timeline helps to move some things along while retaining a certain degree of continuity. The writers wanted to bring the election issue to a head at the end of the season, and that needed to be about eight months after “Bastille Day”. That required a quick pace. Also, time had to pass for the Cylon fleet to regroup, send out scouts to find the human fleet, and then bring forces into position.
All of that makes sense to me, especially since it explains why so many internal issues have come to plague the Colonials of late. Decisions are catching up to people, and it’s creating a rift. There’s a growing distrust of the military and Roslin. There’s been a subsequent rise in power for Zarek. The past few episodes may have been flawed at times, but taken in context within the story arc, they set the pieces in place on the board.
One big issue has been the Pegasus, and that is at the center of this episode’s nightmare. Adama was placed in overall command of the military within the fleet by Roslin, which doesn’t necessarily demand the respect of Pegasus personnel. Garner is a mixture of a green command officer thrust into the spotlight too early and all the negativity regarding Galactica and Adama rampant among the Pegasus crew.
It’s far too early to tell if Lee is ready for command, but he demonstrated a sense of politics when he refused to speak ill of Garner, despite his enormous shortcomings. Garner’s end was somewhat cliché, but it was engaging to watch. The timeline ought to give the fleet enough time to repair Pegasus to a sufficient degree, but the real issue will be Lee’s command and how it plays to the underlying distrust of Adama within the fleet.
I found the abortion question in this episode to be perfectly sensible, and Roslyn was all but trapped by the issue. It gave Baltar the perfect opening, especially given the fact that Zarek had the perfect issue to champion (individual rights) as the power behind Baltar’s candidacy. Recalling that Baltar is in league with Gina, who may also be in league with Zarek, the finale could end with an effective coup. After all, the Cylons would benefit greatly from having Baltar in power, thus facilitating whatever their true objective might be.
That said, I was a little put off by how quickly Lee was promoted to command. For that matter, Starbuck was also placed in a command role too quickly, given her recent troubles. That’s a sign of the fleet’s desperation, sure, but it’s also a bit quick for my taste. And while I was impressed by the fact that the Gemenon religiosity demonstrated some disturbing aspects, I was annoyed that Roslin’s apparent prophet status didn’t come up. Still, those were minor issues for an otherwise strong episode.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
Directed by Sergio Mimeca-Gezzan
In which the current commander of Pegasus defies orders, forcing Apollo to deal with the fallout, while Roslin runs into a delicate political issue when abortion rights are challenged…
Ron Moore wasn’t able to produce a podcast for this episode, which is unfortunate. I’ve found it educational to hear the perspective of the creative minds behind an episode after having seen it and evaluated it for myself. In this case, I enjoyed the episode for many reasons, despite a few things that gave me pause, and it would have been nice to hear what the writers were trying to achieve.
This episode served to remind me that time has been moving in leaps and bounds since the end of “Resurrection Ship: Part II”. This accelerated timeline helps to move some things along while retaining a certain degree of continuity. The writers wanted to bring the election issue to a head at the end of the season, and that needed to be about eight months after “Bastille Day”. That required a quick pace. Also, time had to pass for the Cylon fleet to regroup, send out scouts to find the human fleet, and then bring forces into position.
All of that makes sense to me, especially since it explains why so many internal issues have come to plague the Colonials of late. Decisions are catching up to people, and it’s creating a rift. There’s a growing distrust of the military and Roslin. There’s been a subsequent rise in power for Zarek. The past few episodes may have been flawed at times, but taken in context within the story arc, they set the pieces in place on the board.
One big issue has been the Pegasus, and that is at the center of this episode’s nightmare. Adama was placed in overall command of the military within the fleet by Roslin, which doesn’t necessarily demand the respect of Pegasus personnel. Garner is a mixture of a green command officer thrust into the spotlight too early and all the negativity regarding Galactica and Adama rampant among the Pegasus crew.
It’s far too early to tell if Lee is ready for command, but he demonstrated a sense of politics when he refused to speak ill of Garner, despite his enormous shortcomings. Garner’s end was somewhat cliché, but it was engaging to watch. The timeline ought to give the fleet enough time to repair Pegasus to a sufficient degree, but the real issue will be Lee’s command and how it plays to the underlying distrust of Adama within the fleet.
I found the abortion question in this episode to be perfectly sensible, and Roslyn was all but trapped by the issue. It gave Baltar the perfect opening, especially given the fact that Zarek had the perfect issue to champion (individual rights) as the power behind Baltar’s candidacy. Recalling that Baltar is in league with Gina, who may also be in league with Zarek, the finale could end with an effective coup. After all, the Cylons would benefit greatly from having Baltar in power, thus facilitating whatever their true objective might be.
That said, I was a little put off by how quickly Lee was promoted to command. For that matter, Starbuck was also placed in a command role too quickly, given her recent troubles. That’s a sign of the fleet’s desperation, sure, but it’s also a bit quick for my taste. And while I was impressed by the fact that the Gemenon religiosity demonstrated some disturbing aspects, I was annoyed that Roslin’s apparent prophet status didn’t come up. Still, those were minor issues for an otherwise strong episode.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
posted by John Keegan | 12:26
2 Comments:
I found with Lee, it did make sense after I thought about it. Because off the other officers available is Tigh, who seems unfit for a sole command (and admitted as much himself). Then you have to go to the Captains under Lee: Stinger, best Pegasus choice; Kelly, who was apparently third-in-command of Galatica, or Starbuck. I can see why Adama went with his son.
They're also clearly trying to push the timeline forward so that they can have Sharon deliver her baby. If only the could have found a way to edit together elements from "Epiphanies" through "The Captain's Hand" into a somehow continuous mesh of overlapping storylines that bridges the gap in time. Still, I thought this was a fantastic episode. (with the qualifier that Roslyn is a much less interesting character minus her religious role.)
Post a Comment
<< Home