After all this time, a switch went off, just like that. For more than a year now,
Battlestar Galactica fans have been pondering the identity of the final Cylon. I've had plenty of theories. At first I was leaning towards Zak Adama, Lee's dead brother. Then, as season 4 wore on, I set my sights on Tom Zarek. After the truly spectacular mid-season finale, I started to think about it even more, obsessing over the identity of the final Cylon. Then I read a comment made by Ronald D. Moore, and just like that, the switch went off.
Boomer is the final Cylon. Not Athena, the mother of Hera, but Boomer, the Sharon who shot Adama, got Jack Ruby-ed by Cally and tried to end the Cylon aggression against humanity. Crazy as it sounds, it all makes perfect sense.
If you're wondering what triggered this revelation, it was Moore's statement at the
Battlestar Galactica mid-season finale screening on Wednesday that the final five Cylons don't have model numbers. It seems innocuous enough, but it was the final piece I needed to understand.
One of my biggest questions about
Battlestar Galactica has always been the numbering of the Cylons. The seven original models all have numbers. Cavil, Leoben, D'Anna, Simon and Doral are 1-5, respectively. Number Six is, of course, 6. Then there's Sharon Valeri, aka Sharon Agathon, aka Boomer, aka Athena. She's number 8.
Either Ronald D. Moore doesn't know what comes after six, or this has been a huge clue slapping us in the face for years. I had just assumed that, for some reason, one of the final five was the missing 7. Then came this revelation that the final five don't have model numbers, which either means there is no 7 or Moore is playing mind games with his fans.
This prompted my mind to go into overdrive: why would the Cylons, or God, or whoever created the skinjobs, skip over 7? Or did they? What if the Cylon creators were experimenting with a new breed of Cylon and came up with a new model after 6? Perhaps it looked like Sharon, but the Cylon creators discovered the difference and quickly created a new, more traditional Sharon that followed the same schematics as 1-6. Hence, in the original creation, the 7 slot would be left open.
Perhaps I'm reading too much into this number game, but until I hear a better explanation for why Sharon is Number 8, I'm standing by it. In addition, the other clues we've received fit. D'Anna said there were only four of the final five on the fleet in “Revelations,” and at that time, Boomer was aboard the basestar. There was also the very first sighting of the final five, when D'Anna said. “You. Forgive me, I had no idea.” It's never been clear who she was talking about. Maybe Tigh for ripping out his eye. Or maybe she was asking forgiveness of Boomer, whom she opposed in the season 2 episode “Downloaded” because Boomer and Caprica Six wanted to try to co-exist with humans.
Finally, the most powerful piece of evidence came early in season 4 when Boomer sided with Cavil on the issue of lobotomizing the Raiders, going against the entire line of 8s. It was said to be the first time that a Cylon ever broken rank with what the other models of that number were doing. It seemed incredibly unusual that these machines would be capable of doing this, but not if you consider my theory that Boomer is not an 8, but rather the final Cylon. That would explain perfectly how and why she was able to go against her model.
In some ways, I feel like the pieces fit so nicely that Boomer has to be the final Cylon. Much like a diagnosis by Gregory House, it explains everything. Of course, whenever he says that, it's usually not the right diagnosis.
-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of Sci Fi Channel)
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