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jazzfishRonald D. Moore (dev.), Battlestar Galactica, entire.
Executive summary: So. That happened.
A couple of weeks ago I noted elseweb that Based on how Season 4 has been so far, "on Sudafed" is going to be the ideal way to appreciate the BSG finale. I was totally right.
What I liked, overall: the vast array of well-developed flawed-yet-sympathetic characters. The smaller (1-3 episode) plot arcs.
What I disliked: Gaius Baltar and the fact that this turned out to be The Baltar Show. The Final Five. Any and all instances of "God/s did it." The larger plot arc, especially from late season 3 on.
Spoilers below.
The first two seasons made for interesting character-driven military SF with a deeply problematic (to me) thread of mysticism. The end of the second season felt tacked on, or compressed, or something: finding a planet and landing on it really should have been spread over two or three episodes.
The beginning of season 3 made me want to quit watching. I can respect their desire to parallel the occupation of Iraq to go along with their parallel of the War on Terror but that was not the show I signed on to watch. Thankfully they got back into space after four or five episodes and things were back to normal.
The Final Five felt like they were made up out of whole cloth between seasons 2 and 3, when the writers decided they wanted an interesting mystery rather than a continued exploration of the show's original themes (trauma & loss, military vs civilian, War on Terror). Bah.
I didn't hate the finale as much as a lot of people seemed to, mostly because by that point I was watching almost entirely to see what stupid thing the writers would do next. My personal "how bloody stupid was THAT?!" moment came when Racetrack & Skulls's Raptor got hit with debris in exactly the right way to launch a nuke at the Cylon station, at exactly the right time. Lazy, lazy writing. Plus I liked Racetrack.
I also detested the replacement of Starbuck-the-character with Starbuck-the-plot-device. She was much more interesting in seasons 1-3, even when she was being held prisoner by Leoben the sketchy Cylon.
As a side note: show, your finale seemed to have it in for women especially.
I'd watch it again, I think. Individual episodes were good; individual characters were good. It's mostly the overall plot that made me want to throw things.
In conclusion, "The Plan" was the most elaborate two-hour retcon I have ever seen. I'm impressed by it for that alone.
Executive summary: So. That happened.
A couple of weeks ago I noted elseweb that Based on how Season 4 has been so far, "on Sudafed" is going to be the ideal way to appreciate the BSG finale. I was totally right.
What I liked, overall: the vast array of well-developed flawed-yet-sympathetic characters. The smaller (1-3 episode) plot arcs.
What I disliked: Gaius Baltar and the fact that this turned out to be The Baltar Show. The Final Five. Any and all instances of "God/s did it." The larger plot arc, especially from late season 3 on.
Spoilers below.
The first two seasons made for interesting character-driven military SF with a deeply problematic (to me) thread of mysticism. The end of the second season felt tacked on, or compressed, or something: finding a planet and landing on it really should have been spread over two or three episodes.
The beginning of season 3 made me want to quit watching. I can respect their desire to parallel the occupation of Iraq to go along with their parallel of the War on Terror but that was not the show I signed on to watch. Thankfully they got back into space after four or five episodes and things were back to normal.
The Final Five felt like they were made up out of whole cloth between seasons 2 and 3, when the writers decided they wanted an interesting mystery rather than a continued exploration of the show's original themes (trauma & loss, military vs civilian, War on Terror). Bah.
I didn't hate the finale as much as a lot of people seemed to, mostly because by that point I was watching almost entirely to see what stupid thing the writers would do next. My personal "how bloody stupid was THAT?!" moment came when Racetrack & Skulls's Raptor got hit with debris in exactly the right way to launch a nuke at the Cylon station, at exactly the right time. Lazy, lazy writing. Plus I liked Racetrack.
I also detested the replacement of Starbuck-the-character with Starbuck-the-plot-device. She was much more interesting in seasons 1-3, even when she was being held prisoner by Leoben the sketchy Cylon.
As a side note: show, your finale seemed to have it in for women especially.
- Roslin: death by cancer, in a fitting end to her arc.
- Tory: death by poetic justice, in a fitting end to her season 4 arc.
- Boomer: death by not picking a side until the end.
- Racetrack: death by being written as a plot device to blow up the Cylons.
- Starbuck: ascended into heaven.
- Caprica Six: lived, but hooked up with Baltar, which is its own punishment.
I'd watch it again, I think. Individual episodes were good; individual characters were good. It's mostly the overall plot that made me want to throw things.
In conclusion, "The Plan" was the most elaborate two-hour retcon I have ever seen. I'm impressed by it for that alone.