Battlestar Galactica

"Hub," Last week's amazing episode of Battlestar Galactica, brought us copious amounts of good things: Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell) taking charge while dealing with her inner turmoil, Baltar (James Callis) being generally hilarious even while confessing his deep dark secrets, the return of D'Anna (Lucy Lawless), some amazing space battles as the Cylon resurrection hub was destroyed and, of course, the heartwarming reunion between Roslin and Admiral Adama (Edward James Olmos).

The fantastic episode was written by one of TV's most prolific and talented scribes, Jane Espenson, who also wrote for such classic cult TV series as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly. As fans prepare for the Battlestar Galactica mid-season finale this Friday, Jane Espenson made the internet interview rounds to talk about “Hub” and hint broadly at what may be coming up next on the series.

One question that was raised several times was what happened to the Cylons last seen on the destroyed hub, namely the series' original Eight, Boomer (Grace Park), and Brother Cavil (Dean Stockwell).

“[Boomer] certainly would've had time to [escape],” she told TV Guide. “Heck, there was even time for Cavil to download, I suppose. Huh. How 'bout that.”

Not all important Cylon characters were so lucky. Espenson laid to rest the fate of Cylon leader Natalie, saying that she was too far away from the hub to download before it was destroyed.

One comment “Hub” received was that parts seemed far more comedic than what we usually see on Battlestar Galactica. Espenson is famous among die hard TV fans for her comedic episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, so it's no surprise that she would inject that sense of dark humor into a show even as dramatic as BSG.

“BSG is not as intrinsically comedic as Buffy and Firefly were,” Espenson told io9, “but it does accommodate dark comedy, irony and the humor of everyday life really well. I'm always looking for places to put those moments, not because I want it to be a comedy, but just because scenes feel realer to me when characters get to show off more aspects of themselves, including their senses of humor.”

As for adding more humor to the series, Espenson told ComicMix, “In the next episode I wrote, Mary delivers some amazing and amusing facial expressions, and look for some verbal funny from the boys.”

Like all genre show writers, Espenson was typically cryptic when asked about what is coming up on the series, though she did drop some clues.

“Planting revolt-seeds?” Espenson responded when asked by a ComicMix reader about Baltar's intentions by preaching to a Centurion. “Hm. Wouldn't that be just like [Baltar]? Of course, that particular Centurion blew up.”

On more pressing concerns, Espenson hinted again at the return of Boomer and Cavil with these final words to ComicMix: “I wonder if that Cavil had time to download? I wonder if Boomer got away? I wonder if Seelix survived? I wonder what D'Anna's going to reveal? I can't wait for next week. Can you?”

We definitely can't. The mid-season finale of Battlestar Galactica airs this Friday at 10pm on the Sci Fi Channel.


- , BuddyTV Staff Writer
Sources: TV Guide, io9, ComicMix
(Photo courtesy of the Sci Fi Channel)