So, I finally started watching Battlestar Galactica (1 Viewer)

[Ronald Epstein]

When Battlestar Galactica was first televised in 2003 I wanted

no part of it. Though I had watched some of the original series

in the 70s I was not a big fan. My initial thoughts were that a

remake was doomed to failure.


Over the years that followed I heard nothing but raves about

the show from friends and what had been posted on the Internet.

Not after long it became obvious to me that I had missed out on

one of the greatest television series ever made.


My plan was to eventually watch the series but I had to wait

until a proper release. That came about two months ago in

the form of the newly repackaged Blu-ray set which I promptly

purchased.


Yesterday I began watching the first season. Got through the

two miniseries and first 4 episodes.


Fantastic stuff. I am hooked already and I am certain that

I haven't even skimmed the surface of this addiction.


The one thing I am VERY disappointed in is the quality of

this Blu-ray release. It is plagued with grain and excessive

noise. The grain I can understand and live with. The noise,

however, is just unacceptable. There are scenes with vertical

lines and excessive noise. I can't believe something like this

even gets broadcast.

In any event, my goal is to complete Season One this week

or perhaps even today. I want to complete the series by the

July 4th weekend.

 

[Regulus]

I don't blame you for waiting for a Release. I watched the Pilot Episode and they had Commercial Breaks (Which lasted about five minutes) EVERY @#*&! SIX MINUTES!!!

 

[Will_B]

I seem to recall the miniseries was shot on film, so should have grain. The series was shot on video and they added artificial grain on purpose. Different parts of the show are processed to look different. The launch deck for instance is usually processed to look more high contrast and noisy.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

It's not the grain that bothers me. I can handle grain.

I know it is part of film. The problem is all the additional

noise such as vertical line bands in low-lit scenes.


My guess is that this is the same problem that I
noticed while watching this season of 24. In low-lit

scenes the high definition cameras have problems

with low light and there is an abundant amount of

noise introduced. Of course, this is my guess as

to what the problem may be.


In any event, things greatly clear up in Season

Two which is where I am now. To be exact,
Season Two, episode 4. I made great strides

in the last 24 hours.


So far the show is great. Really enjoying it.

 

[Sam Favate]

You're going to have a great time, Ron. It's the most mature science fiction show that's ever been on TV. I think of it as the Sopranos of sci-fi. Like the Babylon 5 thread where you kept checking in and telling us your thoughts, I hope you do the same here.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Sam, have heard nothing but great things about

this show and so far it is living up to expectation.


Just finished the episode where Starbuck is
with the Resistance and ends up in a hospital

with Dr. Simon. Don't want to spoil anything here.


Probably will slow the pace to 1-2 episodes per

day with the occasional 8-show marathon on my

day off.


I am a little confused by the character Boomer/Sharon

and the fact that she is having this love relationship with

two characters -- Chief and Apollo.


Now, I know there are copies, but don't Chief and

Apollo know each other and if so, why would they

be involved with the same woman?

 

[Paul_Scott]

I remember you asking about this show a year or so back and getting a flood of positive comments back, which made it odd to never see you follow up with your impressions. Mystery now solved.


Yeah, it's an intense show- and compulsively watchable like much of LOST was. I was ultimately disappointed in the resolution of both shows, but in retrospect BSG seems a lot tighter and doesn't ladle on nearly as much irrelevant/go nowhere/never resolved complications the way LOST did. There are definitely a few points that still bug me, but I wouldn't deter anyone from experiencing the show in whole.

Many people didn't have a problem with the end, so there's a good chance you won't either Ron.


I'm going to throw this out and hope you don't mind. I don't consider it to be a spoiler as much as a warning to adjust your expectations- Every show opens with "And they have a plan"- as if some diabolically mindblowing intricate master plan will be revealed at some point near the end. It won't. There isn't much of a plan beyond "Humans bad. Kill them all".


That said, don't fret. There's still plenty of intrigue and incident, great space opera and world class drama ahead.



As far as the Boomer character (spoiler for people who haven't seen up to where you are yet)


you are actually seeing two separate and distinct characters. They are both the Sharon model, but have their own unique characteristics and personality differences.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Paul,


Really appreciate your reply and thanks for lowering my

expectations as I really thought some master plan would

be revealed.


Your spoiler about Boomer is already understood.


What I don't understand....




Do the two guys that fell in love with her, Chief and Apollo,

know each other? It seems strange that you have two guys

falling in love with what they perceive to be one woman and

if the two pilots knew each other they wouldn't be shagging

the same girl.

That is what is confusing.



That is what is confusing.

 

[Brian Sallot]

It is Helo not Apollo although they look very similar that Sharon is with and Boomer is with the Chief but yes it can get confusing but it works itself out. I started watching the series after getting the HDDVD 1st season for cheap and was hooked. In March I purchased the complete series and enjoyed every last moment of it. All I can say is enjoy the ride.

 

[Brian Sallot]

It is Helo not Apollo although they look very similar that Sharon is with and Boomer is with the Chief but yes it can get confusing but it works itself out. I started watching the series after getting the HDDVD 1st season for cheap and was hooked. In March I purchased the complete series and enjoyed every last moment of it. All I can say is enjoy the ride.

 

[Brian Sallot]

It is Helo not Apollo although they look very similar that Sharon is with and Boomer is with the Chief but yes it can get confusing but it works itself out. I started watching the series after getting the HDDVD 1st season for cheap and was hooked. In March I purchased the complete series and enjoyed every last moment of it. All I can say is enjoy the ride.

 

[Brian Sallot]

Sorry multi submit

 

[Brian Sallot]

sorry multi submit

 

[Paul_Scott]

Originally Posted by Ronald Epstein


Your spoiler about Boomer is already understood.


What I don't understand....




Do the two guys that fell in love with her, Chief and Apollo,

know each other? It seems strange that you have two guys

falling in love with what they perceive to be one woman and

if the two pilots knew each other they wouldn't be shagging

the same girl.

That is what is confusing.



That is what is confusing.

I can't remember the exact timeline of events so I don't want to get too specific in case you haven't gotten that far yet.

In general


I can't remember if the Chief and Boomer relationship was widely known or speculated on by the rest of the crew. There is the rank/fraternization issue so I kind of remember them keeping it quiet, although it was probably obvious to their closer co-workers. It possible/probable that Helo knew that Boomer and Chief had hooked up occasionally, but I can easily give him slack for hooking up with her himself on Caprica given the dire circumstances. Them seeming to be the only two humans left alive there, and running for their lives, there's bound to be some bonding in a situation that extreme, and by the time they make it back to Galactica, it seemed logical he'd be hooked on her.


Looking forward to hearing your thoughts once you finish it all.

 

[Sam Favate]

Yes, Chief Tyrol and Helo know each other.


The show is similar to Lost in its serialized nature (I think both shows owe a debt to Babylon 5 and Deep Space Nine in that regard). I found BSG to be very satisfying overall. Many episodes are so intense that without thinking about it, I found myself creeping forward until I was literally on the edge of my seat. More than once after watching a particularly intense episode, I said "Wow, this fucking show is going to give me a heart attack."

 

[WillG]

I've been interested in watching this. What do I need to watch first? Do I just start with Season One? Or, is there a separate Mini-Series release that I would need to see first?

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Will,


I had the same exact question as you when I opened

up my boxed set.


Fortunately, on the Season One Blu-ray the Miniseries

Parts I & II are located on the first disc so it forces you

to watch it in the correct order.

 

[WillG]

Cool, Thanks.


I was looking on Amazon at the different releases, Is there another mini-series release in there somewhere?

 

[Will_B]

Ron, Helo was reluctant to have a relationship with Sharon because he knew she was involved with the Chief. But over the course of many days in their situation, nature took its course.


Spread out over several weeks, you get more of Helo's reluctance. But watching it all at once, it seems like he doesn't give it a second thought.


He does verbally mention it to Sharon once, I think on a rainy night, saying he doesn't want to get between her and her relationship with the Chief... But she doesn't mind.

 

[Will_B]

Originally Posted by WillG

Cool, Thanks.


I was looking on Amazon at the different releases, Is there another mini-series release in there somewhere?

There are several freestanding releases: The miniseries that launched the series. The Razor episode (basically a "hey, we've got these empty sets standing around while the cast and crew are on vacation, why don't we use 'em for sumthin?" situation). The Plan (the post-series attempt to wrap up some loose ends).


They're all included in the BluRay box, except for The Plan I think.


Oh, and there were webisodes that got left off...