al_bundy

this is hollywood and that means we get a stupid ending that pays homage to the khmer rouge instead

Flave

Okeley-dokeley. I guess I should have paid more attention to Moore's fashion statements. Maybe he should consider a new career?

Draven

...or you could have noticed that they were wearing the same clothes from 5 minutes earlier (when they were in the field talking to Six and Gaius). You're acting like it's their fault you didn't know they were supposed to be the same characters.

golden_rod

Or just pay better attention to a television program and the story being told.

Thos19

If Kara was an angel/restless spirit, what does that make her viper she arrived in?

Thos.

chess

Transportation...and means to pick up the beacon (her beacon) from Earth 1.

Thos19

And an angel/spirit needs transportation because.... ?

The point I'm throwing out, and it is simply my opinion, the Kara Thrace storyline from the quote by the hybrid in Razor to her return in the mysterious brand new viper and her ultimate fate, should have been written better. The hybrid quote only fits with some shoe-horning and the viper's existence/non existence remains an enigma. It's as if her story got so convoluted that the writers didn't know how to tie all the threads together, ultimately. Rather than doing so, they just had her disappear? Meh.

Thos.

chess

Fair enough. I think the idea is that the "powers that be" don't work in blatantly spiritual ways. They wouldn't have her just appear...they'd have her appear in a plausible way but with enough mystery to warrant somebody trying to solve it. It's really no different than All Along the Watchtower...on the surface just a song, but it has a connection to "the plan" once it's investigated a bit.

Why the powers that be don't just send a text message saying "put these numbers in the jump drive"...

Heat

It was just a tool. She couldn't pop back onto the baseship without people wondering how she got there, unless she had a ship. Plus the ship made for a useful beacon for the Final 5 to use.

Traxan

Ok, I feel stupid but have to ask this. Why is it such a big deal over Baltar saying "I know farming" and breaking up in tears?

DaveCole

He rejected his farming past going so far as to change his accent. It is one of the reasons he despised his father, because he reminded him of his farming past. When he admits that he knows farming he is finally accepting who he is.

Traxan

Ah ok.

But you know, the little bastard still got away with it. His secret, from the miniseries, never got out. He spent the whole early part of the show more worried he'd be caught then showing actual contrition for what he did, and I don't think he ever did express regret.

BTW, anyone notice as Kara was preparing to jump she muttered "We gotta get out of this place?" I didn't think Moore was that big of a 60s fan, but between that reference and "All Along the Watchtower," I guess he is.

chess

I think she said "There must be some kind of way out of here", which is the first line from All Along the Watchtower.

nny

I read through most of the thread and one thing I didn't notice discussed was how stupid the whole "break the cycle" thing was. I know that the end was trying to give us a message about how humanity needs to try to not kill itself again. But Lee's whole idea for breaking this cycle seemed so backwards. By not using technology and just letting your race die off or assimilate into the new humans, you're basically ensuring that the cycle will continue.

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. It seems like the only way to break the cycle is to strive to go forward, not just erase everything that has come before.

As horrible as Lee's idea was, it was even more hilarious that every single person would just go along with it. The various survivors have always disagreed about what to do and yet they're all perfectly fine with basically just allowing the extinction of their race.

grrr

"Break the cycle" was a plot device intended to inject some pathos into the series' end. It didn't make sense for the reasons you mentioned (going from what I learned in sixth-grade civics and biology, either they'd go extinct or eventually build cities and advanced technology again), but I'm willing to cut the show some slack when it generates moments of genuine emotion, such as when Baltar breaks down, the Chief wanders off to live out the rest of his life in solitude, or when the Kara/Lee relationship meets the only end it could've had. The pain of those goodbyes wouldn't've come had Moore et al just plunked down the Galactica staff in the beginnings of a new metropolis.

But I never held the show to the same standards as I would the Sopranos or SFU or Big Love, so I'm probably prone to ignoring the more ridiculous aspects of the story so long as I get strong dialogue and believable characterizations.

golden_rod

Well, Roslin knew that Baltar gave the Cylons access to the defense mainframe. She almost killed him over it. What still pisses me off is the terrible speech that Lee gives at Baltar's trial that acquitted him, even though Baltar *gave a frakking nuclear bomb* to the Cylons that killed nearly 10,000 in the fleet. It irritates me greatly.

CreamyGoodness

The more I think about it, the more I'm coming around to that conclusion.

Oh well, I guess not every show can end as masterfully as Six Feet Under.

I hope the writers of Lost are taking note, because if they wrap up that show as poorly as BSG, I'm gonna be most displeased.

dino88

There was nothing to suggest that everyone did go along with Adama's decision. All we know is that he made an executive decision and (while everyone was on the ground) sent the ships into the sun.

Traxan

Yep you're correct. My memory sucks.

So help me with something else. I watched the miniseries again and noticed that the last line is "By your command," a signature line from the series. Was it ever uttered again over the course of the series?

milo bloom

I think only during Razor when they showed the old style Centurions.

moonraker

Just saw this last night, so I'm really late to the party. But add me to the list of those who thought this finale was all-around excellent. And I think it serves as a very fitting conclusion to the series. Well done!

I've also read though all the posts in this thread, digesting the various theories and opinions put forth.

Starbuck: No answer was provided regarding the circumstances of her return, and ultimately I agree with others who think this was probably for the best as any given explanation would fail to satisfy everyone. I myself prefer to see scientific explanations, not spiritual or supernatural explanations. Here I just have to accept that she (or something that looked like her and had her memories) was returned by a "higher power" to assist in fulfilling the desired "plan" of that "higher power". Not the most satisfying explanation for me personally, but I will say that the execution of it in the finale was well done; i.e., her sudden disappearance from the wheat field followed by Lee's remark that she would not be forgotten. It worked for me on a sentimental level, if not an intellectual one.

Head Six and Head Baltar: I use the term "Head" here because previous posters have been using this term to refer to these two characters that can only be seen by the real Caprica Six and the real Baltar. Again, I prefer scientific explanations and therefore don't care at all for the term "angels". One poster used the term "Agents of God" where "God" here refers to the "higher power" in the series which presumably has some sort of plan for humanity. It makes sense that they are agents of this higher power, since from the very beginning they were speaking about "God's plan". Again, I just have to accept this. Personally, I really liked the notion early on that there had been a microchip surgically implanted into Baltar's brain -- this would have satisfied my inherent desire for a scientific explanation. However this notion was dismissed early in the series and therefore I had a sinking suspicion it would be an unsatisfactory answer for me. But again, I will say that I liked the execution of their appearance in the finale. Their final discussion, dealing with probability of outcomes, etc, was well done and necessary for closure. See next point for clarification.

The ending: I disagree with those who feel the finale should have ended with Adama sitting next to Rosalyn's grave. I feel this would have been too pedestrian an ending for a show that raised so many questions about humanity's purpose, etc. Seeing Head Six and Head Baltar in present day Earth (our Earth) of course makes us (the viewers) wonder if our own civilization is headed down the same path, doomed to repeat this endless cycle. But Head Six's remark about probability of outcomes provides us with the notion that it doesn't have to repeat -- it could be different this time -- and that probabilty of outcome is inherently built into "God's" plan anyway. This is a more fitting conclusion for a show of this caliber, and it was the right way to end it. IMO. Also, this ending serves to place the events of the series in their proper time perspective: 150,000 years ago (relative to us, the viewers). This revelation would have been lost had the finale ended at Rosalyn's grave.

Earth: I agree with those who believe that the first "Earth" they found (the one that had been nuked) was NOT our Earth (the one which we viewers live on). It was a different planet, referred to as Earth by those inhabitants. No time travel theories, sorry they just aren't supported by what was presented in the finale. Instead, the musical notes given to Starbuck by Herra led the way to a different planet this time -- which happens to be the planet we (the viewers) live on and call Earth.

My favorite part: My personal favorite moment of the finale was near the very end, when they are scouting out the local primitives. Adama tells Baltar that he has a one track mind, to which Baltar gives a serious reponse, only to have Adama comment "And you also have no sense of humor". Baltar, realizing his misinterpretation, replies "Oh, right. Sorry." LOL! This was a fun little moment, the type of which was pretty much (sadly) absent the last few seasons of the show.

Timber

Just a quick observation. Why does this thread always show one extra page that I can't get to?

cleaver

Obama is sad

mikehunt

does it to me too

and the colonial culture would have been dead within 2 generations, that's assuming the ones that landed lived long enough to have kids in the first place

pinata242

Bug in the new board relating to deleted posts.