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GALACTICA Prequel CAPRICA Finally Hits Syfy Friday Night!!
SPOILER ALERT !!
I am – Hercules!!
The 90-minute “Caprica” pilot, long available on DVD and Hulu, at last arrives on Syfy tonight. It’s highly compelling, free of space battles but loaded with imaginative visual effects. While I judge it to be not as strong as 2003’s “Galactica” miniseries, it’s easy enough to imagine a great series emerging from it. Find my April 21 review of the DVD here.
And though she wasn’t involved with the pilot/movie, Jane Espenson – of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer,” “Firefly,” and “Galactica” fame – ran the writers’ room for the stronger “Caprica” series that arrives on SciFi next week. As those who follow my twittering know, critics were just before Christmas sent both tonight’s supersized pilot and the two regular episodes that follow. I could not ask for a better present.
Variety says:
… through its first four hours (including a two-hour premiere), "Caprica" exhibits more than enough promise to justify the mission …
Entertainment Weekly gives it an “A-minus” and says:
… Less action-packed than BSG, but still awash in the familiar themes of life, loss, identity, and big frakkin' robots with guns. …
USA Today says:
… Clarity was never a Battlestar strong point, but the writers now seem to have adopted incomprehensibility as a virtue. It isn't. Again, if you loved all things Battlestar beyond measure, Caprica may satisfy. For all others, this is a planet best left unvisited. …
The New York Times says:
… All this high-minded stage setting could produce an intriguing drama of ideas or a talky futuristic soap opera. The goal, presumably, is to achieve both — it’s the “Battlestar Galactica” combo — but it’s going to be harder to do now that the humans have left the spaceship. Back on the surface, without the ironclad premise and heightened atmosphere of “Galactica,” “Caprica” is, almost by default, a more ordinary show.
The Los Angeles Times says:
In the midst of all its programming woes, [Syfy overlord] NBC has managed to achieve something close to the impossible -- a prequel series that should not only please all comers but may expand the demographic of science fiction fans everywhere. …
The Chicago Tribune says:
… The two-hour pilot is quite compelling. Morales and Stoltz are well-matched in their subtle approaches to their characters, and the pilot asks the kinds of questions you'd expect from the creators of "Battlestar": When should we let go of what we've lost and how do we use technology to avoid painful truths? … If the show is guilty of anything in the first few episodes, it's of trying to do too much, which is preferable to a lack of ambition. …
The Washington Post says:
… not only differs from "Avatar" but improves on it. … There's enough going on in "Caprica" to keep a sci-fi fan, or anyone who likes to settle into a good story, satisfied and even beguiled -- and though it's shot too dark those watching on an upscale, big-screen TV will be treated to a visual spectacular. … Syfy is owned, as you probably know, by NBC Universal, so there's one added pleasure to be gleaned from "Caprica" -- the rare sight of NBC doing something right.
The San Francisco Chronicle says:
… superb new series … Like "BSG," what makes "Caprica" so instantly compelling is that it succeeds with a strong story in a unique setting and isn't afraid to tackle big issues - religion and race being two of the largest. …
The Newark Star Ledger says:
… grapples with many of the contemporary dilemmas that "Galactica" handled -- religious strife, terrorism, overreliance on technology -- but, in placing them in a world that looks like the one outside our window, it can be blunter about it. The holo-band nightclub where Zoe and her friends meet in secret -- an online Sodom and Gomorrah, filled with (virtual) sex, drugs and even human sacrifice -- is like every parent's worst nightmare about what his kids are up to on Facebook, Twitter and the rest of the web. And by casting all of the prominent Tauran characters immigrants with Latin actors (and the Capricans with whites), it emphasizes the race and class distinctions in a way that "Galactica" couldn't with its use of Cylons as stand-ins for Muslim extremists. …
The Boston Globe says:
… While the technology is inventive, fear, frustration, and anguish still drive the plot. We’re back in “Battlestar’’ territory, and that feels good.
9 p.m. Friday. Syfy.
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Had it downloaded for months. I'll get around to it sooner or later.
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YESSS
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But I think you'd almost want to assume it's a parallel universe to BSG or something. The timeline/history in Galactica was so contradictory and nonsensical, it will never gel with this series.
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some extra scenes to flesh things out a little better, and allow this to serve as a more proper pilot to the series, and less of a standalone feature. I'm going to tivo it, then watch it next week before the first new ep is aired.
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Even though it sits on my IPOD right now I am gonna DVR it tonite and watch it tomorrow. I love BSG even with the horrible finale so I am sure I will dig this.
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prequels are the laziest story telling
And in the end god did it anyway -
Or will this be pre-empted as well?
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No thanks.
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I was boed out of my mind watching the Caprica pilot when it came out. I just pray the series adds something more interesting. I guess after the intense ride of BSG, Caprica was more like the ferris wheel. But I will try again to watch it and be more open minded.
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Seemingly unlike a lot of people. But I can't bring myself to give even the smallest solitary shit about this, for some reason. I've never watched the pilot, and I don't think I ever will. It's all just one rewrite/retcon too far for me, cauase you just know this shit is going to fuck with established BSG history yet again.
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You can live what crappy lives you BSG fans have instead of wasting three to four years on this crap.
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it was the chance to watch a society get radically changed by a emerging technology. Same thing that got me interested in Dollhouse, actually.
We are approaching a day when technology will radically alter our world, in more profound ways than the internet did, so I find such topics inherently fascinating. -
So I know that Caprica isn't worth my time. If her episodes are the strongest ones this show is doomed.
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You fans of season 4 are going to get what you want. More "The Cylon Show!"As for humans? Somebody should come along and wipe 'em out.
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same thing with me. Still haven't seen Caprica yet, I'm sure we'll be getting it this side of the pond soon. Anything that examines our relationship with technology I find fascinating, and until Dollhouse started eating its own mythology I thought it was excellent. High hopes for Caprica based on the previews and talent involved.
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I have no interest in watching this pilot again. BSG took forever to do anything, or give us some less than vague answers, BSG didn't, even in the last episode it failed miserably. Caprica is just more of the same.
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and intriguing enough to get me to watch the first few shows but I'm not giving it a free pass because of how BSG ended. They're going to have to work hard to get me past that baggage.
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If you disliked the former, then this is probably not for you.
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It's easy to imagine a great series from the pilot? Honestly, I liked the Galactica 1980 pilot a lot better. Oh and the Star Wars Holiday Special too.
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We've yet to hear his true feelings on how it ended. But his silence is defeaning.
Like Herc, I'm incredibly disappointed by how BSG ended. It wouldn't have been so bad if it hadn't started off so great. Oh well.
Oh. Caprica. This "SyFy"'s lame attempt to "broaden" its audience by creating what's basically a chick soap opera using old BSG themes. Will suck.
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...including the Sci Fi Channel until Jeff Zucker is fired from NBC.
And I am a huge BSG fan who bought the Caprica & BSG: The Plan DVDs on day one. -
SyFy: Imagine Greater (It's Easy)
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I saw this on DVD months ago and it was actually way better than I thought it would be. That's coming from a huge BSG fan, though. It's definitely more of a drama with sci-fi overtones, which is why some younger viewers may not like it as much. Those of you who watched BSG for the actual stories and acting however should thoroughly enjoy it.
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is going on tonight ? Ouch. As for this, I was very interested in watching it, but as Margot_Tenenbaum said above, I'm basically not watching a damn thing on NBC until the assholes running that network are fired. I don't even care about Conan, I just refuse to reward incompetance. Also, taking that stand is a good way to finally get me to stop watching the atrocious Heroes.
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I thought this was going to be something I hadnt seen yet.
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I want to start to get into the BSG universe. Can i start watching Caprica without having seen any episodes of BSG? Is that recommended?
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"Towing the line" means to pull a piece of rope. "Toeing the line" means to follow dictates or customs, largely without question - as in keeping one's toes on a painted line, something soldiers and prisoners often are made to do. Learn the difference.
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I am killer robot with soul of girl who worships the one god!!! Ah, Imperious Leader, not so silly now, are we...
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...and maybe it has to do with the fact that Sci-Fi is part of the NBC family-- If you're a fan of BSG, you've seen the pilot already. It's been available for 7 months. Who's going to watch it? Why wouldn't they just air the first episode? Doesn't make sense to me.
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i HATED the way they dragged out the last half-seasons of BSG. it drove me nuts. as soon as BSG was over my resentment for SyFy basically created a disinterest in Caprica. and now i see they've waited too long to roll out Caprica b/c the BSG buzz is long over. DON'T ALIENATE YOUR VIEWERS SYFY. cause this is how you lost me
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are "incomprehensible"? Maybe BSG, in its long run, lost you at a point or two, but Caprica? If you can't figure out Caprica, maybe you should stick to episodes of American Idol.
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You can, but it won't be as good. Watch BSG first.
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Was pretty damn boring.
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is all kinds of hot. Just sayin'.
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Thanks. Eye no, and wood have corrected it if this message board had an edit function (see what eye did their?)
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that the idea of fucking a girl that's robot is a turn on. Think that whole spike boffing a buffybot story line started it for me.
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Isn't SyFy marketing the child/woman/robot/whatever as sexy and fuckable? I guess it works in your case. ;)
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Herc has said many times he didn't like the BSG ending. Can't remember exactly, but I think the main sticking point was the 'they abandon their technology' plot. Maybe he'll pop in and explain...
I liked it. I'll admit it wasn't as good as I'd have hoped, same thing with the last 10 episodes (although thats mainly due to that Gods-awful Deadlocked episode) but in the end it was a satisfying ending. Do I really care 'what' Starbuck is? Not really. The final image of Adama sitting on the hill is great. As finales go, BSG pretty good. I mean nowadays, how many shows even get proper finales? -
I thought the finale was better than most shows' finales. It may or may not have been objectively good, but it was worlds better than every other episode in that god awful final season (and most of the previous one as well).
I do need a new show, but it sounds like a distillation of all that was bad with BSG, and none of the good. So fuck it. Call me when Farscape is back on. -
Jan 22, 2010 5:54:39 PM CST
Jane Espenson – of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer,” “Firefly,”
by kai_mah'gra
....fame, was also responsible for the most craptastic episodes of BSG's final couple of seasons. Not that there's any direct correlation or connection. It just needs saying and bears repeating.
That is all. As you were. -
Because that would just fucking own.
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I couldn't finish BSG: The RetCon
Calvil getting his swirly on doesn't interest me
I guess they think that's all kind of clever
Plus Stockwell is the same old character gesturing with whatever smoke he has in his paw in whatever show he's in
One of the most overrated actors in the biz -
Cavil and Ellen Tigh ruined season 4. Two characters who should have been left on the sidelines inexplicably elevated to starring roles at the expense of far better characters played by far better actors.
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on top of all the ridiculous inconsistent crap on the plot, if the guy wanted to be with his daughter again, why put her in the body of a military robot? why not just use that VR system where he could see her and interact with her just fine?
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and the only thing I can't figure out is why is everything "prime minister" and "ministry of" when BSG had presidents, departments, and secretaries.
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Damn, guess US is catching up with other countries. Kinda surprised how provokative this is with kids not even of legal age in some states...
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Being absolutely bored out of my mind today, giving this a chance and so far not disappointed, surprisley as I really don't like prequel stuff...
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is the real "provokative" aspect.
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I think they are going to be played up like the IRA, terrorists representing an opressed minority.
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Its "See You At the Pole" all over.
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The reason they mention the Prime Minister is during Caprica's time the Twelve Colonies have not been united yet and have their own separate governments. It is not until the Cylon wars, presumably to be set up or seen on Caprica that a President of the Colonies is created.
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Well done pilot.
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...since good SF consists of speculation on the ethical and moral implications of a complex set of issues including spirituality, philosophy, and politics, and how they relate to technology. Good SF explores and questions our relationship to technology and the ethical implications of our actions.
But I'm sure the posters who think good SF is lasers and explosions already stopped reading. It's too late for me to help them anyway. -
...turns out to be an angel in this one?
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...a few weeks ago, and although I am not a fan of prequels, mainly because 1. We all know where they are leading, and 2. None have ever been very good (notice I did not say "successful" because many have been that, but "good"? none have. In short, I liked it. I thought Zoe was sympathetic and strong and Morales and Stoltz did great with their parts. The real star, however, it the methodical plotting. Every single thing makes sense. It will be interesting to see how Zoe becomes the template for the entirety of Cylon thought.
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Neither "good SF" or any form of good writing utilize a Deux Ex Machina, which is pretty much what the last season was...God did it.
My theory is that some key writers left BSG to ready CAPRICA, leaving the show to Moore's tender mercies... -
Watch the miniseries (though feel free to fast forward through the first half), Season 1 and then the first seven episodes of Season 2. After that, get a sheet of paper and write your own ending. Odds are good it'll be better than what actually happened. A blank sheet of paper is better than Season 4.
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...but the idea that "God did it" ran throughout the entire series. It wasn't just there in Season 4. The idea was planted during the confrontation between Leoben and Adama in the miniseries, and continued from there. It may have been a literal Deux Ex Machina, but it wasn't something they just pulled out of a hat at the last minute. It was always there. Why do so many people have a problem with religion in Science Fiction?
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I agree...warp drive, hyperdrive, aliens, the world is united, but somehow a superior being helping out is somehow "crazy". It fit perfectly in my opinion, the exodus, the journey, was very bible like...I think some people would have been happier had Kara turned into a light being ala Stargate...but that would have been lazier than what they did to be honest.
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Religion is science fiction, and yes BSG was chock full of religious hints and issues..in the end the show was about an alien who we call GOD and is there just 1 supreme alien or many.
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For them to use any other ending than what they did would have been a cheat and a cop-out. At the end of the day, the entire series was about the origins of religion on this planet. They're continuing with the same theme in Caprica. We know that monotheism, and the "One True God" turn out to be the truth. It's how that belief comes to dominate Cylon thought that's going to be interesting. What interests me is that there seems to be no concept of "absolute" right and wrong, or "absolute" good and evil in human thought. Only this "One True God" knows the difference, and it's viewed as a threat.
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Decent special effects... but the show is extremely slowwwwwwww. I'm sure BSG fans will treasure this new series... but that's about it.
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Robert Bianco, USA TODAY
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While I have seen a lot of people throw this term around (and it's "deus," not "deux...) because they think it is tailor made to describe BSG s.4, it is really a misuse of the term. While the literal translation of the term is "god from the machine," it doesn't really fit BSG despite the whole religious basis of its resolution.
First, an ending which uses "deus ex machina" usually involves a sudden introduction of a plot point that has never been mentioned before - this is what makes it feel so contrived. Now, while many people didn't LIKE the ending of BSG, this is certainly not the case. The role - indeed the entire QUESTION -
at the heart of the series is the issue of God and creation. So there is nothing contrived about any of these aspects of the ending - they were all introduced earlier in the series and GRADUALLY evolved over 4 seasons. Of course things are going to change - the nature of storytelling is organic. If you want true Deus ex Machina storytelling, watch virtually any of the Star Trek original series episodes or Star Trek: TNG - it is far more likely you will find DexM in Science Fiction when you are dealing with episode-to-episode series rather than complex arcs.
DexM also relies on a SOLUTION to the fundamental problem/crisis at the heart of the plot. BSG has no such solution - while the ending resolves interconnected storylines, they do not all end satisfactorily, nor are they all happy. And, in fact, some questions ARENT answered, which I think is what drives a lot of consternation in the fan base, many of whom WANTED definitive answers to every aspect of the storyline - and if they couldn't be explained away, then it was a "cop-out." Frankly, SF dealing with spiritual/religious issues is most compelling when it admits that technology, while intertwined with such concerns, cannot always bridge the gap and provide the answers we want. BSG stays true to SF roots in this way.
Sorry if this seems like a lecture or diatribe, but I teach both film and literature, and trust me - "deus ex machina," as you are using it, is the wrong term. -
After retching my way through the DVD (my appetite for partial-nudity teen angst being limited) I was particularly amused to see a full page ad for the premiere in the New Yorker. Exactly WHO do they think that ad is going to reach among potential viewers?
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"Let's fly all our hospitals into the sun!" and "Guess what? Everyone's a Cylon!" just sucks.Stupid, lazy, and short sighted. Hope Caprica's better.
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Watched it on dvd a few months back. I enjoyed it. I question how long it's going to last, though. Also, btw, The Plan SUCKED. All it did was highlight the weaknesses of BSG, which was one of the greatest sci-fi shows ever made for 3 seasons before it lost it's way. I enjoyed the first half of the finale, but the "let's throw all our hospitals and technologies into the sun and not build cities!" was TOTALLY FUCKING RETARDED. NO WAY would they have done that.I think a better way to wrap up BSG would to either have only a handful (say, like just the skeleton crew of the Galactica) of them survive by crash landing, thereby forcing them to go luddite native. OR, using all of their technology to build, say, the mythic city of Atlantis, or something like that (a city which, legend tells, was lost in some kind of cataclysm).
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Should they have done it? No. But once they put them on Earth, 150, 000 years in the past, they didn't have a choice. Humanity would have evolved at warp speed if they had kept it, and we know that didn't happen.
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