I just got back from a screening of the mid-season finale at the Cinerama Dome here in Hollywood. Katee, Tricia, Mary and Ron were there. I can't say anything about the episode because I will be blown out an airlock if I do.

If there is one thing I've learned over the last two episodes it's that Cylons are, to quote my man Rob Zombie; "more human than human." Their programming is filled with blind faith, pettiness, jealousy, backstabbing, and racism. All these wonderfully human traits amongst a species that is supposed to be superior to humans in every way. Maybe we'll find out in the Caprica prequel series that this was done on purpose. Ha ha Cylons, just wait! You may destroy humanity but pretty soon you're going to be your own worst enemies. You're going to be just like us! Maybe the fifth will be an obese chain-smoking fanny pack-wearing slob that knows the way to the Churros stand at Disney World. Bummer.

All Adama has to do is blow up the resurrection hub, grab the five and go to earth and let the Cylons kill each other. Ah, but as we all know, BSG never takes the easy route.
Compared to what's coming they're all just running around on a puppy farm. Dark days loom for these people we've come to know as friends.
Spoilers I have boys and girls, but I'm bound by a higher authority (NBC Universal) to keep my frakkin' mouth shut.
I did speak with Aaron "Chief" Douglas about the future of our Galactians on set up in Vancouver. Here's the skinny from Tyrol:

Hello my friends, radio silence has been broken. I've been in a 20x20 room for a week that looks and smells like what I imagine the Demetrius must writing the heaviest of metal. I've finally come up for air and you can expect a full two episode report this weekend. I'm stoked I get to watch two in a row!!!

Fight'em 'til you can't,
Scott

It's taken me all week to get my head around The Road Less Traveled. I've watched and re-watched. I've discussed it with my inner circle of BSG nerds and no matter how I look at it; I'm bummed on this episode.

Maybe because the previous episodes have been so strong it made this episode feel that much weaker.

Look, I understand storytelling. I understand exposition, setting up the arcs for the big payoffs etc etc. This episode just felt like it was treading water.

Baltar has once again set himself up in direct conflict with Roslin. Great. But I've seen that coming for three episodes and this episode really didn't move the story along. Same with Starbuck. Who didn't see a mutiny coming as soon as they were on the Demetrius? Why play it out so long?

And where the hell is Adama? Enough of him being Roslin's nursemaid. Seriously, who wants to see him reading every week? In the grand scope of the BSG mythology Adama has been there for all the major events in some way and to have him on the backburner right now in this crucial time is out of character.

There are a finite number of episodes left of BSG and I was actually bored and pissed off by this episode because I felt like it wasted valuable time. These characters deserve more.
And just to end on a positive (because even an off episode of BSG is better than anything else on TV) the Leoben — Anders dialogue was great and opens an intriguing door. Human — Cylon alliance? Holy crap.

Next week's previews look killer.
Cheers,
Scott

And I don't mean hope in the context of religion or faith or any of Baltar's story arc. I mean hope in the context of Tigh made out with Six. TIGH MADE OUT WITH SIX. Michael Hogan must be stoked. Granted, he got the shit kicked out of him first (and he smartly didn't use his Cylon strength to fight back). On the list of things I never thought I would see on BSG, that would have to be right at the top. Right next to Tigh being a Cylon and Tigh changing a baby. Is that Cylon or human programming that made him change the baby? Either way, classic. And then right after his paternal moment he's right back at Tory with "What is that, more of Baltar's crap?" The man is a rusty iron crowbar, slowly crumbling, holding on to the thing's he knows even though he knows it's futile. Tigh says "feel what ya gotta feel" to Chief even though he's searching for a way to "flip the switch" and bury the guilt of murdering his wife. Not gonna happen Patchy. Your new-fangled programming won't let you. You need absolution and you're going to find it (and a whole lot more) in the arms of Six, she of the magic (or is it just Cylon?) nookie. If that doesn't make you forget your troubles (remember that nookie helped Baltar help her to destroy humanity) I don't know what will. So Tigh gets to snog with Six and Chief hits the bottle.

Poor Chief. He loses his lady and then loses his shit with the old man. His description of Cally, "a shriek with dull-vacant eyes, the boiled cabbage stench of her" was oddly accurate. Is Chief's Cylon programming disavowing his relationship with a human knowing that it could have been with Boomer or is it just a case of the grass being greener? I asked my main-man Aaron Douglas and he was his usual forthcoming self (although I can't print everything he told me, no spoilers here).

We're just dirty murdering slut robots.

Well at least that's what Tory is. Or should I say it's what she's becoming. Now that she's one of the final five Cylon's she's become so much more interesting. Seriously, before she was outed did any of you care? I don't think I even knew her name. She did have Billy's big shoes to fill he writes with complete seriousness. Now she's like a quieter Juliette Lewis in Natural Born Killers all screwing and killing. Her activation has taken her to the Dark Side young Luke and I'm afraid there's no coming back.

And what side is it? This isn't a side of Cylon behavior that we've really ever seen. Maybe Cavil would cold-bloodedly blow someone out the airlock just because he can or for a goof, but at this point the rest of the Cylon's have a higher purpose. Is Tory the evilest of Cylons? And what's gonna happen with the other three? Why is Tory manifesting differently while the other three seem like themselves so far? Is Chief going to find out that Cally knew he was a Cylon or will he just think it was an anti-depressant fueled attack/suicide? I'm hoping Tory just evil's up and tells him the truth. "I blew your lame-ass wife out the airlock because she knew our secret (and in general was pretty boring) and I would've frakked your cry-baby bitch kid too except he's half Cylon 'cause that's how I roll." I emailed Aaron Douglas (yeah, the Chief and I are buds) and asked him all these questions. Here's what he said:

After watching Six of One I feel like a Centurion is standing on my chest. It was an intensely heavy and deeply moving episode. Lines are being drawn, sides are being taken and there will be blood. And judging by this episode a lot of it is going to be of the Cylon type.

These skin-jobs just can't get along. The schism that has erupted between the models according to Cavil, is going to destroy them. They're toying with their survival and the good brother is not having it. He refuses to believe that the final five could be among the humans and who could blame him? Why would these apparently older, wiser, more experienced (and to answer your question Sharon; not nearly as attractive), super-Cylons want to hang around with a rag-tag bunch of human survivors? It would be beneath them and in Cavil's Number One brain, it isn't logical Captain. Wait 'til he finds out that everyone's favorite one-eyed drunk is his superior. And wait 'til Tigh gets to have his revenge on Cavil for boning his wife.

I am going to be in the middle of the jungle in Costa Rica tomorrow so unless the howler monkeys have Directv, no BSG 4.2 for me until Monday. Frakkin' hell. At least I won't see anything on the internet to spoil it for me. I'll be posting all about the episode on Tuesday.

Fight' em 'til you can't,
Scott

Unless you live abroad or you're an idiot you've seen the premier of season four. And what a premier it was. Starting right from the end of season 3 where Starbuck came back from the dead (she wasn't looking to eat Anders so at least we know she's not a zombie) the episode didn't answer any questions. What it did do was start the clock on what is going to be an incredible endgame. Every characters plot line (except Tom Zarek!!) has been set on his or her path and over the next 19 episodes, we'll get the answers we've been so patiently waiting for.

Of all the stories being weaved I think Starbuck's is the most compelling. She's already been accused of being the one to lead humanity to it's end and now she's been dead/gone for 2 months and she miraculously returns in a freshly detailed Viper. Cylon? I don't think so, too obvious unless that's what they want us to think. I think Starbuck did see Earth and is telling the truth about her experience. Wormholes people. It's a Hollywood fact that time and space mean nothing in the face of a wormhole. I believe her, and not because she could kick my ass, because I think she's the key to the whole thing. Screw the Gods, or Six's one God, Starbuck is Jesus and she will put a bullet between your eyes if you disagree. If I'm wrong, hire Apollo to sue me.

The 4 newbie Cylons are as you would expect, confused and trying extra hard to be human. Michael Hogan really stands out by making Tigh even more intense with only one eye to emote with. Seriously, his one-eyed stare makes my balls nervous. When he puts his gun on the table was that to consummate a suicide pact between the 4 of them (before they would harm someone else) or was it just him getting rid of his gun so if he wakes up and wants to shoot the old man (nice trick with the assassination before the credits) he won't have the iron to do it.

Anders eye-dentification with the Raider was killer!!! Can't wait til he finally gets to let loose.

Chief is business as usual so far. Cylon Shmylon, he's got shit to do. I texted with Aaron Douglas after the show and asked him about the gun scene with Tigh and he told me that he had the same questions as I did and no one would explain the scene to him. Aaron was kind enough to share this with me and I will share with you...

I just watched the premier online. Thanks Sci-Fi for showing it early as I can't watch tonight. I will be watching it again in all it's HD glory when I get home from Chicago. I won't ruin anything for anyone. I took notes as I watched and I'll have lots to say later tonight after you've all seen it. Suffice to say IT KICKED MAJOR FRAKKIN' ASS.