Grace Park as Sharon Agathon

Sharon “Athena” Agathon is played by Grace Park on the Sci-Fi Channel’s Battlestar Galactica. Sharon is one of the many incarnations of the humanoid Cylon, Number Eight. Prior to the appearance of the copy “Athena,” Number Eight was more prominently known as Sharon “Boomer” Valerii. Boomer was unaware of her true origins, and she was programmed to believe that she had been raised by human parents named Katherine and Abraham Valerii. She also engaged in a romantic relationship with Chief Galen Tyrol, and through the dictates of her programming, unknowingly sabotaged many of the operations in Galactica. As time went by, Boomer began to suspect her own well-being, and eventually, Galen, who also started to become suspicious of Boomer’s behavior, ended their relationship. Ultimately, Boomer was overtaken by her programming, causing her to shoot Commander William Adama, which consequently sent her and Galen into the brig. She was later killed by Specialist Cally, who had been in love with Galen at the time.

When Boomer was reborn, she did not want to take part in the Cylons’ cause to rid of humanity, despite the community’s perception of her as a hero. She and fellow Cylon Caprica-Six tried desperately to persuade the community that what they were doing to the human race was wrong, but when the humans and Cylons failed to co-exist in New Caprica, Boomer had a change of heart, and almost killed the hybrid baby of another Number eight copy, Athena. When she threatened to break baby Hera’s neck, Caprica-Six appeared and subsequently broke Boomer’s neck, killing her in the process.

The other Number Eight copy, Sharon “Athena,” first came into view when Lieutenant Karl “Helo” Agathon was left on Caprica following the Cylon’s attack. Athena pretended to be Boomer, and she managed to make him fall in love with her. Their relationship was actually part of the Cylons’ experiment to produce human/cylon children. However, due to a strange side effect, Athena developed romantic feelings towards Karl, and when he discovered about her true identity, she professed her love for him and told him she was pregnant with their child.

When she, Karl and Kara “Starbuck” Thrace reunited with President Laura Roslin, the other humans did not readily accept the pregnant Athena into the community. One, because she was one of the Cylons, and two, because her other incarnation (“Boomer”) tried to kill their commander. Perceived as an enemy, Athena was imprisoned, but gradually proved her loyalty by defending the fleet from a series of Cylon attacks. She eventually gave birth to her baby, Hera, but was separated from her daughter when Dr. Cottle, fearing that Hera would be a threat to the fleet, faked the infant’s death and placed Hera under the care of a human mother.



(Photo courtesy of Sci Fi)