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Lawless Agendas on Battlestar Galactica's "Final Cut"

Scifi.About.com

9 September 2005

 

From Julia Houston,Your Guide to Sci-Fi / Fantasy.

Agendas.

When discussing “Final Cut,” Friday’s episode of Battlestar Galactica, Lucy Lawless talked about how the remodeled series has caught the spirit of the times, including our frustration and our paranoia.

And if there’s one thing to be paranoid about these days, it’s agendas. I can’t watch news on Hurricane Katrina for more than about ten minutes before the station goes to some talking head with an agenda. “It’s Bush’s fault.” “It’s FEMA’s fault.” “It’s blah blah blah’s fault. Vote for me and buy my book.”

Not too long ago, Stargate SG-1 did an episode where a reporter does an expose on the secret military program, a reporter who is instantly suspected of having the usual press agenda: find the scandal. The episode does a great job turning that expectation on its head.

But BSG finds its story by giving in to that expectation and hen multiplying the effects. Everyone here has an agenda as Lawless’ character, Fleet News Service report D’Anna Biers, and her cameraman try to get the inside scoop on life aboard the Galactica.

Biers’ first intention is to blow everyone away with a story on the marines who fired at unarmed civilians while Tigh was in command of the fleet. (Remember that bit of loveliness?) But then Roslin wants to use her to unite the fleet instead by giving the military officers and crew aboard the fleet’s only battlestar a “human face.” Adama wants to use her for similar reasons, but there’s something (as always) going on behind those bespectacled eyes.

Apollo, of course, shares his crew’s pain, and Starbuck is…well, Starbuck. But Baltar and Chip Woman are scheming as well. And what’s going on with that quiet guy in the corner?

Anyway, it’s a great episode, and Lawless is both excellent and nearly unrecognizable. Be sure to check it out.

Battlestar Galactica is on SCI FI Channel Fridays, 10 PM ET.

Source - About.com

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