I am – Hercules!!
Not only the best series of 2005, “Battlestar Galactica” had already verified by the end of its first full 13-episode season (on sale today in DVD form)
that it is one of the best TV series ever in the history of history.
Its greatness lies in the fact that it is not so much a cross between “24” and “Star Trek” as it is a cross between “24” and “The Prisoner.” Or possibly “24” and “Twin Peaks.”
It shows us, yes, glimpses of what our lives might be like in the wake of apocalypse. Which is plenty interesting.
But there are also all these weird and fascinating questions lurking around its story; questions for which one hopes Ron Moore and his team have good answers. Why do the good guys embrace the “false” gods of Greek mythology while the bad guys are monotheists with Judeo-Christian commandments? Why are the Cylons so keen to breed with their enemies? If the fleshy, dying Cylons can transmit their consciousnesses to new bodies, why don’t their modems show up on x-rays? Why are the fleeing colonists so similar to Earthers in so many ways? Are the colonists our ancestors, our descendants, or something else entirely? How could a space-faring race not know the location of the planet it comes from? What is going on in Gaius Baltar’s brain?
Beyond the big, dizzying controversies, this 21st century version of “Galactica” is teeming with classic, indelible, “Twilight Zone”-caliber moments. The fifth episode, “You Can’t Go Home Again,” with Starbuck trapped on a hostile planet with a dwindling oxygen supply, has at least four of these: The hiding Helo realizing the toast (in the toaster!) is about to pop; Kara sucking oxygen out of a bloody Cylon trachea to survive; the shock on President Roslin’s face when an emotional Bill Adama throws “frak” into the middle of a phone conversation; and the emotion on Lee’s face when his father tells him what would be risked if Apollo was at stake.
“You Can’t Go Home Again” was genius. “33,” featuring the deadly marathon space-chase, was brilliant. “Water,” in which Boomer first suspects she might be a Cylon, was brilliant. “Litmus,” in which Adama shuts down Tyrol’s trial, was brilliant. “Six Degrees of Separation,” in which Baltar’s vengeful hallucination inexplicably becomes flesh (and gets Baltar jailed as a traitor), was brilliant. “Flesh and Bone,” the interrogation episode featuring the return of the mini’s Leobon, was brilliant. “Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down,” featuring the return of the executive officer’s out-of-control, ass-grabbing wife, was hilariously brilliant. “Colonial Day,” featuring Baltar’s strange ascent to vice president, was brilliant. “Kobol’s Last Gleaming,” the two-hour season finale, was just insanely exciting and shocking and insanely shocking. (Among many, many other things, there were all these beautiful naked girl-Cylons!)
On July 26, Best Buy began offering its four-disc version of “Battlestar Galactica’s” first season for $48.95 - but the Best Buy version doesn’t contain the miniseries, and it doesn’t contain any of the many Ron Moore commentaries.
The new $41.99 "Battlestar Galactica" season-one set on sale today contains everything the Best Buy edition does – all 13 first-season episodes, the deleted scenes, even the European main titles – PLUS a bunch of documentaries, sketches, art, the complete miniseries, Ron Moore’s commentaries on the mini, and Ron Moore’s commentaries on nine regular episodes.
Given the inscrutable nature of the episodes themselves, Moore’s frank commentaries are the reason to pony up the bucks. Moore tells whether he’s leaning toward or against the chip-in-Baltar’s-brain theory. He tells us whether Roslin is a Cylon or not. He has things to say about Sharon and Helo that I found astonishing. He tells us how they had to reshoot the Adama-Leobon fight because certain parties found it far, far too violent (sadly, that footage is not among the deleted scenes). We learn there was originally a more disturbing visual-effects plan for the human passenger ship Apollo destroys in “33” (ditto). Moore describes Centurion test footage that gave the robots an eerily human “cocktail swagger” (ditto again). He demonstrates that some of the series’ best and most enduring ideas emerged very late in the creative process, or as a by-product of budgetary considerations. He describes backstories for Adama, Tigh and Starbuck that put all three characters in surprising new lights. And Moore explains why there was absolutely nothing unrealistic about Starbuck fixing the hole in the Cylon craft with her flight-suit.
TV on DVD:
Last Week
The Brady Bunch 3.x
Cheers 6.x
Da Ali G Show 2.x
The Dick Cavett Show: Ray Charles
Empire Falls: The Complete Miniseries
Everybody Loves Raymond 4.x
Frasier 6.x
Kids Say The Darndest Things
Las Vegas 2.x
Midsomer Murders Set 6
One Tree Hill 2.x
Peep Show 1.x
Rambo Vol. 3
Rambo Vol. 4
Rocky & Bullwinkle: Best Of Vol. 1
SCTV Vol. 4
Sigmund and the Sea Monsters 1.x
Smallville 4.x
Taxi 3.x
Tony Orlando & Dawn: Ultimate Collection
September 20
Andromeda 5.x Vol. 1
The Batman 1.x Vol. 2
Battlestar Galactica 1.x
Crime Story 2.x
Desperate Housewives 1.x
From the Earth to the Moon: Widescreen
Heathcliff and the Catillac Cats
Justice League Unlimited: Joining Forces
The Man Show Boy
My Dad The Rock Star Vol. 1
Ned & Stacey 1.x
Penn & Teller's Magic and Mystery Tour
The Pretender 2.x
Ren & Stimpy 5.x
Rides 2.x
SpongeBob SquarePants: Absorbing Favorites
Taboo 2.x
Teen Titans 2.x Vol. 1
September 27
The Amazing Race 1.x
Are You Being Served Christmas
Beverly Hillbillies: Ultimate Collection Vol. 1
Cheyenne: TV Favorites
Chico and the Man: TV Favorites
Creature Comforts 1.x
Dr. 90210 1.x
The Dukes of Hazzard: TV Favorites
Family Guy Presents
Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story
F-Troop: TV Favorites
Gilmore Girls 4.x
Hogan's Heroes 2.x
Kingdom Hospital Vol. 2
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 2.x
Maverick: TV Favorites
Quads! Vol. 2
Rugrats: Snow White
Sigmund and the Sea Monsters 1.x
SpongeBob SquarePants 3.x
Star Trek: Enterprise 3.x
Tales of the Unexpected Set 3
The Vicar of Dibley: 10th Anniversary Specials
Wyatt Earp Collection
X-Files: Colonization
October 4
Alfred Hitchcock Presents 1.x
America's Funniest Holiday Home Videos
The Bob Newhart Show 2.x
Cartoon Network: Christmas Rocks
Christmas with SCTV
Count Duckula
Drawn Together 1.x: Uncensored
Into The West
Kenny Vs. Spenny 1.x
Kolchak: The Night Stalker
Oblongs: The Complete Series
Postcards From Buster
Spike The Vampire: Love Is Evil
Stargate SG1 8.x
Tom Green: Inside and Outside
A Twist in the Tale
Wild Palms: The Complete Series
October 11
Arrested Development 2.x
The Captain & Tenille: Ultimate Collection
The Duchess of Duke Street 1.x
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids Vol. 2
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air 2.x
Jeffersons 4.x
Mutant X 3.x
Only Fools and Horses 6.x
Soap 4.x
South Park 6.x
Veronica Mars 1.x
October 18
The Adventures of Superman 1.x
Atomic Betty Vol. 1
Atomic Betty Vol. 2
The Batman Vs. Dracula
Braceface: Turning 13
CSI: New York
Dark Shadows: Complete 1996 Series
Garfield: Cat Tales Gift Set
Ghost Hunters 1.x
He-Man 1.x Vol. 1
The Hilarious House of Frightenstein
The Legend of Zelda: The Complete Series
Nick Picks Vol. 2
Pet Alien: Aliens Unleashed
Pet Alien: Atomic Tommy
Saved by the Bell: The New Class 5.x
The Twilight Zone 4.x
Unscripted
October 25
Alias 4.x
American Gothic: The Complete Series
The Beverly Hillbillies/Petticoat Junction Christmas Collection
Bewitched 2.x
Danger Mouse 3.x/4.x
Degrassi Junior High: The Complete Series
The Doris Day Show 2.x
Hamish MacBeth 1.x
Hart To Hart 1.x
Little House on the Prairie 9.x <--- NEW!!
In Living Color 4.x
Invasion Earth: The Complete Series
Kids in the Hall 3.x
Looney Tunes: Golden Collection Vol. 3
The L Word 2.x
Mad TV: Best of 8/9/10.x
The Munsters 2.x
The Planet's Funniest Animals
Point Pleasant 1.x
Puppets Who Kill 2.x
Tales From The Crypt 2.x
3rd Rock From the Sun 2.x
Tom & Jerry Vol. 2
Tripping the Rift 1.x
Upstairs Downstairs 24-Disc Collector's Edition
November 1
The Adventures of Pete & Pete 2.x
American Chopper 3.x
The Brady Bunch 4.x
Dick Cavett: John & Yoko
Disney Channel Holiday
Fame 1.x
Hearts Afire 2.x <--- NEW!!
Monster Garage 3.x
Outer Limits (1999) 1.x
Sex and the City: Collector's Edition
Star Trek: Enterprise 4.x
Star Trek Enterprise: The 27-Disc Complete Series
Tales of Tomorrow Vol. 2
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