Mixed emotions...

I just got done watching the entire four-season spread of the SciFi Channel's Battlestar Galactica today, or at least the last two seasons (the first two I own on DVD). I think it was a great show, with a superb cast and fantastic writing... but I'm still not sure how I feel about the whole "re-imagined" series.

The original Glen Larson production (circa 1978) was a program I grew up with... obsessed over, is more like it. Along with Lucas' Star Wars saga (at least the first three movies), Galactica was damn near iconic in my early exposure to science fiction. I watched the orginal Star Trek, of course, but even I knew that was dated and kind of "campy" by the time I was 8 to 10 years old. Galactica was new, each week, and was geared for my generation. I loved the cast and story-line of Galactica... I wanted to own the models and toys, and if that wasn't on Santa's list, then my brother and I improvised and made our own models of the ships. I wanted Vipers and Cylon Raiders WAY more than I wanted X-wings or TIE fighters.

Now, looking back at it today, I realise the mistakes that were inherent in the story line... and (of course) the effects were less-then-spectacular even for 1978... but it was captivating, none the less. There is no comparison to the gritty, "reality-show" setting that is SciFi's BSG and the original production, and America's taste in TV has evolved to a point where the subjects of the episodes and the actions of the characters would have been considered "pornographic" in 1978.

I'm just a bit sorry they had to follow the course of "re-imagined" rather than "remake of" the original story. Many of the most familiar characters were omitted entirely (Boxey, Caseopia, the daggits, etc) and those that remained were so utterly re-imagined as to be entirely without association with the originals. Boomer and Starbuck became women (with different roles, too), Adama became a stoic, ice-man of a commanding officer, and Col. Tigh became a raging alcoholic who routinely abuses his rank and authority. Maybe the ONLY character that didn't dramatically change was Apollo, Adama's son. The characters that changed the MOST though, were Gaius Baltar and his army of Cylons. In the original, he was an evil, dark-hearted leader of legions of the robotic Cylon centurions... but in the SciFi version, he becomes a cowardly, self-serving manipulator with the almost single-minded focus on preserving his own hide from harm or discomfort. I was rather sorry to see the dark and evil villian changed into the weak and pathetic anti-hero of the modern episodes... but I see the functionality of the character, too.

I guess the more I write this, the more I think that the re-imagined was "better" than watching a complete "remake"... a remake would add nothing substantially new to the story outside of "eye candy" special effects. This modern version kept me on the edge of my seat through damn near every episode. The Cylons being living, breathing "machines" was a nice touch. It kept the feel that the enemy was a mechanical menace that gave nor warranted any sort of compassion... but as you came to watch the show, the sentient nature of the machines became more and more appearant, and the moral questions that arise when fighting beings of equal intelligence (and presumably equal natural dignity) added a lot to the show.

Like the latest Star Trek that Ryan and Jambo raved about so, this opens a whole new chapter in the Galactica canon (with two spin-offs already out... Caprica and Razor) and I really should stop being such a purist on this topic.