Battlestar Galactica (2003-present remake) Season 2.

[Yi Fong Yu]

if you have been following the series from its inception, it's been a fun and wild ride. i've seen every single ep of the original '78 version as well as the mostly horrendous '80 (except for return of starbuck). this one blows it out of the waters with the symbolisms behind everything. not only is it action-packed, character-driven, it has a lot of morality play involved. it's one of the best written first-run SF shows on right now. it's so exciting. i can see them going on and on for ages because of the breath of where they can go with the story. anyone else watching this?

[Keith Loh]

I had the interesting experience of going go karting with people who work on both Battlestar Galactica and Stargate (effects people) a few hours ago.

I thought last season was just great. This season is taking a while getting going. They have to resolve a lot of things from the end of last season which literally concluded with a bang.

[Barry Gribble]

I read an article about they guy who created this, and his inception of the show... seemed very interesting... I have to Netxflix it.

[Boyd Ostroff]

I also saw all the old episodes when they first came out, plus the theatrical version (which was just spliced together from the TV series). It was notable for the level of effects which were unheard of for a TV show back then, I think John Dykstra supervised them.

I've also really enjoyed the new series... this is not your father's Battlestar Galactica! If anything, it is maybe a little too gritty and frankly depressing. There's a lot of blood and violence and their stuggle seems hopeless. But it's well done and I look forward to each new episode. Definitely does raise the bar for a sci-fi TV series.

[Dylan Couper]

I've worked with some of the actors on it on different projects, and sad to say, I've never been able to catch a single episode on TV. I hear it is good. :)

[Krystian Ramlogan]

I'm not that big of a fan of the new series for a couple reasons. I remember seeing every episode of the original and the re-dux and the movie; btw the return of starbuck was a really cool idea since he never really returned and they mixed religion with Sci-Fi (a concept that's not even close to being realized in this new series; the new prophecy/fanaticism thing is a different thing altogether).

I remember looking forward to the Mini-Series with barely contained anticipation and then when I saw it, I was very disappointed. But then the 1st season came and I was cool with it, though I had the following problems with it.

Most disappointing to me was the fact that the air of hope that Lorne Greene always had, has been replaced by the resolute hard line/I'm the BOSS, I know what's best, Career Military Soldier, portrayal by Edward James Olmos. Don't misunderstand, I think Ed does a great job, but the original series was always about keeping the HOPE alive, and this incarnation does not have that. A difference in direction, which does not work for me. I can see Ed's Adama leading a fight and winning, but not inspiring a new civilization while Lorne Greene radiated both.

Another thing I'm not too happy about are the characterisations (the acting is good though). So Starbuck is now an undisciplined, maverick, female? I can live with the change to female, just barely, but to have a military operation allow this Starbucks behavior? Especially with Eds hard line military portrayal? It does not make reaslitic sense; she would have been court-martialled a long time ago (even if Adama says he owes her, how can he maintain control/respect or is military favoritism being outed here?), but it is just a tv show, why expect too much realism?

So, they allow rebellious behavior, angst, etc. to provide conflict; a more creative approach could have been found I am sure, since they really nailed it with the conflict between Adama and his son - best thing about the show. But, I am willing to allow the show time for every character to "settle" in to their long term personas, I can see the producers wanted a lot of shock value to grab attention, than risk not finding an audience.

The 2nd season is dragging a bit, they've introduced some new things, and I think it's going to pick up and maybe end stronger than the last season, but I think it's lost some of the big picture feel as they narrow in on smaller aspects of each story. Is that a bad thing? Only if the show keeps dragging and they get bogged down in to many sub-plots, since it's about time we get to a mini-resolution and this Battlestar is not 100% clear on the purpose of it's inhabitants - the original was fleeing away from Earth to lure the Cylons away. What's the deal with this incarnation?

The overall production on the show is pretty good and I'm very happy its maintained it's production value; I hope it stays on air for a long time. But, I can't be a fan since it seems the show is no longer about hope, it's about survival. Again though, I'm willing to see if they get around to getting that part right.

[Boyd Ostroff]

Personally I think you just need to forget the original series. The new one is completely different. At first this bothered me, but I got over it. However it's kind of fun that they have the original "Apollo" playing a revolutionary leader.

[Krystian Ramlogan]

If I forgot about the original, along with everyone else, well then what would be the point of calling this a re-make? Just slap a new name on an old concept, something that's happening a lot these days, and market your product as a new series, a la Star Trek: the New Generation.

You can't deny that this has been touted as a "re-make" so I don't see the validity of forgetting about the original that is the benchmark so to speak.

The problems I have with the new series don't really come from my appreciation of the old series and I am willing to see if this remake finds its own niche.

[Yi Fong Yu]

hmmm... i saw the original just a few months ago. i'm sure all of you remember the SAME EXACT visual fx footages that were used OVER&OVER&OVER, again and again and again ad nausem even through season2 (1980s).

season 1, 1978 was ok, but season2, 1980s BSG was terrible. i still can't believe i sat through all of it. the only redeeming part was return of starbuck and even then i dunno why lorne returned to it, money? who knows. season1 was good but the original Battlestar Galactica was (for me), loose. it's sole purpose was to be a popcorn entertainment/trying to cash in on the star wars SF craze, but did it even try to lift itself beyond that level? i don't think so. as much as it is trying to fuse religion w/SF. it was just a side mention and never really focused on it. all in all, no one will say battlestar galactica of '78, 80s is going to be in the annals of the classics.

having seen every single ep of the new bsg, i gotta say, we've entered into a new renaissance of SF. you can't really attach any strings to the old series because ron moore has taken the nomenclature of the old series, ships names, characters names and have elevated them into a classic that will be remebered for years to come. the reason is that there is absolutely 0 relationship between the old and the new save in name, ideas and a few homages here and there.

what ron moore has done is taken an idea meant for popcorn entertainment and elevated it into a uniquely satisfying human drama. i loved the dynamics of the show. man vs himself. man vs man. man vs machine. man vs nature. man vs God, etc. these are ideas that star trek in the 60s used to inspire an entire generation. now bsg in the 21st century is inspiring an entire new generation to be something more than they can be. if you keep an open mind, the show will continually surprise and engage the viewer into thinking about the various facets of the human experience and they deal with machines, each other, God and nature and so on.

and no, i don't work with for show.

[Boyd Ostroff]

Originally Posted by Yi Fong Yu

it's sole purpose was to be a popcorn entertainment/trying to cash in on the star wars SF craze

Well as the original series wore on it really was a lot like a kid's show with all the stuff about "boxy" and his robot dog. The new one defintiely isn't for little kids!

Originally Posted by Yi Fong Yu

even then i dunno why lorne returned to it

Yeah, especially considering his high standards for projects like "Earthquake" and "SST: Death Flight." ;-)

[Keith Loh]

Originally Posted by Yi Fong Yu

having seen every single ep of the new bsg, i gotta say, we've entered into a new renaissance of SF.

.. new renaissance of SF on TV that is.

[Krystian Ramlogan]

The funny thing is, I agree with the sentiments you guys have expressed, but I do think I've seen the dark side of sci-fi so many times before it's becoming old hat: the Matrix was a prime example though it devolved with its sequels, hence my saying I can't really be a fan. I, Robot wasn't a bad movie though the book was much better.

How many times can we see originality in man vs machine, or AI's becoming aware and rebelling. I'm just thinking aloud here, but I am sure there are areas open for further exploration within the genre of sci-fi. You know the existential can a machine have a soul, the son trying to surpass the father, etc., which are all elements of the best man vs machine stories.

That does not mean I do not appreciate the show however and I do watch it; I am willing to wait it out and see where it goes. I also think we have a lot of good sci-fi stuff happening now - see my comment in the 4400 thread!!

[Yi Fong Yu]

lol, i thought i, robot was terrible as a film =). only will smith made it watchable.

a lot of stories we deal with are dark (from Bible through Odyssey through Star Wars through rap music, etc.) because humans are dark. but it doesn't mean we stay in the dark all the time. i think the inverse can be bad. star trek the next generation was NOT a dark show (except after season3) and it suffered because of it. there is a lack of conflict. i think humans love going from dark to light. it's the journey itself not the starting point that we love watching/experiencing =). at heart, BSG is a very hopeful show and wants to get to the light at the end of the tunnel (earth). the journey is what all of us love watching.

originality isn't in the 7 architypical stories (google it), it's in the people who retell it. in BSG's case it's ron moore who is bringing his unique vision to the table. in the matrix, it's the warchowski brothers. i loved matrix revolution better than matrix&reloaded. there are many who call the sequels "trash" are still trapped in the matrix. google matrix, why are there still so many people debating it philosophically. it's the most philosophical trilogy ever, ever made. watch disc8 on ultimate matrix collection to get a primer. it's much deeper than most people call it to be.

[Keith Loh]

Stories are about conflict. The only difference between 'dark' and 'light' is in the solutions and outcome.

[Krystian Ramlogan]

Yeah, the Matrix had a lot going for it, although I also think the Wacowski Bros. "borrowed" quite a bit from the comic book "the invisibles."

To re-phrase what I was saying about the Matrix (original); it delt with these issues so well I find a lot of shows coming after, including the new BSG, a little weak in their realization because it seems as if I've seen these conflicts before and better handled. To go away from BSG a bit to draw a parallel, anyone remember, "Tour of Duty"?

That show rocked man! Forgot to add it to my list on fav TV shows. But, the interplay of the characters was better done and there were more guys to deal with on a regular basis than BSG, which in my opinion, has not developed the back-story well enough or provided enough information to illustrate why the characters behave as they do.

Conflict is a part of life, so we can't realistically have a story without some degree of it, I'm just saying BSG could do with some more balance and adding countless sub-plots without really dealing with the big story slows the momentum down.

I definitely believe it is the journey and not the destination both for life and entertainment!!

Dark and light huh, maybe they're both one and the same, we just chose to see as much of each as we want!