After Friday’s amazing episode of Battlestar Galactica, there seems to be a consensus among the fans: Gaeta needs to be thrown out the frakking airlock. The one-legged traitor helped mastermind a revolution that removed Adama and Tigh from power, leading to a “to be continued” showdown.
For the second consecutive episode, the concept of a “reckoning” was mentioned. Characters are debating and worrying about their ultimate fates, though the outlook doesn’t look optimistic for anyone, least of all Gaeta.
Before being taken away, Admiral Adama gave Gaeta one last chance to end this revolution, and when Gaeta refused, Adama promised that a day of reckoning will come, and Gaeta will not be absolved for this transgression.
If it sounds like I’m using overly religious language, it’s because that’s what best suits Battlestar Galactica. The concepts of faith and God have always existed in the world of BSG, but now that the show is almost over, it’s looking at the endgame, judgment day.
And so Adama has judged Gaeta as a traitorous rat without any hope for redemption. But playing Devil’s advocate, is Gaeta really wrong? We’ve all grown attached to the wisdom and greatness of Admiral William Adama, but looking at the situation objectively, I’m not sure what Gaeta did was so bad.
The Cylons destroyed nearly all of humanity and now want amnesty. While I can understand giving it to Tigh, Tyrol, Anders, Tory and Athena, who were allegedly unaware of their true Cylon nature at the time of the attack, anyone involved in the actual decision to target the humans is clearly wrong.
Number Six, D’Anna, Boomer and Leoben were all part of an attempted human genocide. Surely there can be no forgiveness for that. Yet Adama seems perfectly happy to turn a blind eye to his XO having a baby with a woman who helped commit genocide.
Furthermore, the fleet is starting to look more like an empire than a democracy. The leader of the military is sleeping with the president, and his son is also a prominent political figure. Adama can do whatever he wants and there’s absolutely no oversight or checks and balances. In the past, Gaeta tried voicing his concerns about Adama’s one-sided leadership and was instantly shut down as insubordinate.
In the world of Battlestar Galactica, no one is allowed to speak truth to power and the Adama-Roslin partnership ensures that any dissenting voice will not be heard.
If a leader is demanding that military technology be installed among the civilian population for their own protection without allowing them to have any input, civil unrest should be expected. And if you disagree with that, ask yourself how you felt when you heard President George W. Bush was using the Patriot Act to tap your phones.
-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of the Sci Fi Channel)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
