You Can't Go Home Again

It's taken me a long time to figure out this episode, not so much the what but the why. For a long time I thought that it was a one-two punch, in other words, pull Starbuck down and then pull her back up. I think the timing on this is primarily responsible - Starbuck is lost immediately after Adama finds out that she is indirectly responsible for his son's death. In that respect it feels rather contrived.

After giving it some thought I concluded that prior to this episode (IMHO) Adama's relationship with Starbuck was mediated by their connection to Zak. In this episode I think Adama realizes how much he cares about Starbuck for herself. In other words his affection (and even love) for her is independent of the fact that she came into his life because of Zak. In this respect, I think that Roslin is somewhat (but not completely) wrong when she tells Adama and Lee that they can't let go of Starbuck because they haven't gotten over Zak's death.

In fact, Adama's sense of urgency leads him to contravene his own rules. For example, in "Water" Adama tells Roslin (who is asking Gaeta to speculate on the cause of the water tank explosions) that he doesn't like his officers to guess. In this episode Adama tells Gaeta, who has no data on where Starbuck could be, that it's time to start guessing. In fact, in the next scene Gaeta says "I would guess" with just the slightest emphasis on the word "guess."

In the meantime.... on the moon where she is landed, Starbuck is busy having a conversation with the Lords of Kobol. Its flippant tone struck me as completely at odds with the dire nature of her situation and somewhat contrived, but, after thinking about, it is in character with Starbuck's generally insolent behavior towards her superiors. Maybe the awkwardness of the monologue stems from the fact that this is the kind of conversation I would have in my head. Of course in that case we would have no idea what Starbuck is thinking. (Duh)

Starbuck's discovery of the Cylon ship provides the first "inside"glimpse of Cylon technology. Despite the sleek design and impression the ship gives of being an automaton, the inside is completely organic, once again blurring the distinction between "machine" and "man" that is typical of encounters with the Cylons. (In a later episode Boomer says to treat it like a pet.)

Finally, this episode is another instance of how alliances change based on circumstances. Tigh and Roslin, who have been polite adversaries until this point, become allies in their concern over the risks presented by continuing the search for Starbuck. Roslin's behavior towards Lee and Adama is very very tough, while still hitting the right button to bring them back in line. Even though the death of a child is an enormous tragedy, she doesn't provide a drop of sympathy. Instead, she provides a concise summation of the psychological forces driving their behavior, appeals to their "sense of honor," (a trait they both pride themselves on), and tells them to "clear [their] heads." In two minutes she accomplishes exactly what she set out to do. In this respect Roslin is a complete politician since she so quickly grasps the two men's personalities and uses this understanding to her advantage.

My favorite scenes:

When Adama climbs the ladder to the cockpit and gives Lee his helmet. I think this scene made an impression on me because Adama is almost never on the hangar deck, let alone climbing ladders. Although Adama maintains his usual tight-lipped mien, the fact that he does these things which are not typical of Adama, sends up a signal about his agitated state of mind. (Of course, it is always possible to read too much into these types of things. If the director read this he might say "What? I never thought of that! We just did it that way because we couldn't think of anything better.")

Baltar's conversations with Roslin. If you look very very closely, while Baltar is talking to Roslin, he is looking at Six. Roslin briefly glances in the same direction, but Six, of course, is completely invisible to Roslin. It's just an interesting little moment, that's all. Again, I have no idea if Mary McDonnell does this intentionally, but she is such a good actress it wouldn't surprise me at all. It certainly amps up Baltar's oddness factor.

I will be devoting a lot more time next post to Athena/Helo's developing relationship back on Caprica, but I just want to briefly mention the scene in the kitchen when Helo is making breakfast. First off, it reminds me a LOT of the scene in Jurassic Park when the kids were in the kitchen hiding from the velociraptors (mind you, I haven't seen Jurassic Park since it came out, so I may be completely wrong on this one). Second, it is a very nice visual pun with the toaster popping up, and alerting the "Toasters" that someone is there.  Very cute.