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Nov 17 | Originally hired as co-executive producer to help with the second half of the show's first season, Kevin Murphy has now taken the reins of Caprica, the Battlestar Galactica prequel on Syfy, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He now serves as an executive producer along with Ronald D. Moore, David Eick and Jane Espenson and oversees the day-to-day functions of the show.
Nov 12 | Star Trek star Zachary Quinto is loosely attached to star in the romantic dramedy Whirligig, reports Risky Business.Quinto would play the lead role in the independent Canadian film, which is aiming to shoot early next year. The movie centers on a man who, in a misguided attempt to woo an older woman, befriends the woman's adopted son.Chaz Thorne is directing the pic, based on a screenplay by Michael Amo, creator of the Canadian supernatural series "The Listener."
Nov 11 | The CNS Foundation, is hosting an on-line charity auction at www.charitybuzz.com. One of the items they are auctioning is a signed movie poster of the new Star Trek movie which has all the cast members and writers. The president of our organization is Carol Abrams, JJ's mother, and she arranged for the donation from Bad Robot Production Company. J.J. Abrams is also a major donor to their organization. The funds raised will go to help find a cure to neurological disorders in children. The auction link is here.
Nov 10 | Candice Bergen, Charles Lisanby, Don Pardo, Gene Roddenberry, Tom and Dick Smothers and Bob Stewart have been selected as the next inductees into the Television Academy's Hall of Fame. They will be honored at a Jan. 20 ceremony at the Beverly Hills Hotel. "This year's inductees have challenged and shaped popular culture, changed television for the better and entertained us royally while doing so," TV Academy Chairman-CEO John Shaffner said. More info at the Hollywood Reporter
Nov 08 | Unreality-SF.net has interviewed Star Trerk author James Swallow about some of his upcoming projects. He talks about Titan: Synthesis and Seven Deadly Sins: The Slow Knife, as well as some forthcoming Doctor Who and Stargate stories.
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By GustavoLeao / 10:50, 19 December 2008 / General Genre/SciFi
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - SEASON 4.0 (2008)
Released by Universal Home Entertainment
Reviewed for TrekWeb.com by Bill Williams
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - SEASON 4.0
4 discs, MSRP $49.98
ISBN #025195017053
Date of release: January 6, 2009
Introduction:
Sometimes there's no way of wondering just how far a series can go before it either runs out of gas or jumps the shark before it goes downhill altogether. BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, as revised and produced by Ronald D. Moore, neither event happens. Rather, the series just kept increasing and increasing with such intensity that just when you think the cast and crew have taken things to the limit, they've not even gotten started. Stoking the fire while it's still hot, Universal Home Video has just released the new four-disc DVD release of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - SEASON 4.0 in time for the series' final ten episodes in January. This new set picks up and furthers the many complex storylines that continue to enthrall fans and leave them asking more questions than can be answered.
Before the third season got underway in 2008, fans were treated to the spinoff TV movie "Razor", which was set toward the end of the series' second season. Focusing on the single-minded mission of an officer from the Battlestar Pegasus, Kendra Shaw (Stephanie Jacobsen) seeks revenge against the Cylons for a brutal mission gone wrong. Fans were excited about "Razor", as it delivered on its promise of spotlighting what happened to the Pegasus, under the command of Admiral Helena Cain (Michelle Forbes), during the events of the first two seasons.
Picking up from the end of the exciting third-season finale, "He That Believeth in Me" continues to explore the repercussions brought about by the shocking revelation of four more human-looking Cylons in the Colonial fleet: Chief Galen Tyrol (Aaron Douglas), the least likely person to even think could be a Cylon; Colonel Saul Tigh (Michael Hogan), the loyal yet conflicted right-hand man to Admiral William Adama (Edward James Olmos); Tory Foster (Rekha Sharma), chief PR officer to President Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell); and Samuel Anders (Michael Trucco), husband to Kara "Starbuck" Thrace (Katee Sackhoff) and former resistance leader. As they further discover the reasons behind their revelation, Kara has seemingly returned from the dead with a shocking discovery: she has apparently found Earth and intends to lead the Colonial fleet. But can she even be trusted? Meanwhile, Gaius Baltar (James Callis) has swerved a major bullet after a military tribunal found him not guilty of war crimes against the Colonial worlds and now finds himself hiding out among a mysterious religious cult that somehow considers him to be their true prophet. If that's not dysfunctional, I don't know what is.
In "Six of One", Kara finds herself at odds with both Adama and President Roslin in trying to convince both of them that she is really alive again and that she wants to lead the fleet to Earth. Meanwhile, civil unrest occurs on the Cylon fleet, with certain models turning against one another after a recent attack went awry and believing said models to be faulty. This is followed up with "The Ties That Bind", which sees Lee Adama (Jamie Bamber), in his new government position as a councilman on the Quorum of Twelve, opposing President Roslin on her political views, joining with the Quorum on Kara's top-secret mission to find Earth, and siding with Vice-President Tom Zarek (Richard Hatch) in curbing Roslin's executive powers. The Cylon incursion continues, with Cavil (Dean Stockwell) siding with Number Six (Tricia Helfer) in reawakening D'Anna Biers (Lucy Lawless) and then turning on her in a brutal betrayal. Meanwhile, Cally (Nicki Clyne) learns of her husband Tyrol's terrifying secret, adding further tension to their marriage. Then, in "Escape Velocity", Tyrol wrestles with putting on a public face after Cally's death while struggling with the fact that he is a Cylon. And Baltar nearly escapes assault at the hands of religious rioters, only to face the possibility that he may be martyred for his beliefs.
"The Road Less Traveled" finds Kara leading a rag-tag crew, including Karl "Helo" Agathon (Tahmoh Penikett) and his wife Sharon, aka "Athena" (Grace Park), on their mission to find Earth. Kara's having strange visions of a tunnel which she has painted for numerous years, and everyone is questioning whether Kara is in full control of her senses, leading to a near mutiny. Back on Galactica, Tyrol finds himself facing his conflicted emotions and turns to Baltar's cult for possible answers, only to reject Baltar by not giving the cult legitimacy in the form of a crew member. In "Faith", Roslin takes a turn for the worse as the cancer that has plagued her continues to aggressively eat away at her body and mind. She finds herself listening to and rejecting Baltar's babble, only to turn to another cancer patient who finds peace in Baltar's words before eventually losing her own battle. Kara's own faith takes a strange and unusual turn as she finds herself allying with the Cylons against the rebellious models that threaten to end their own stalemate. But Kara soon finds herself given a prophetic word that she is, in fact, the harbinger of certain death. Then, in "Guess What's Coming to Dinner", Kara and the Number Six model Natalie (Helfer) attempt to convince Adama and Roslin that they should free the D'Anna Biers models and destroy the Resurrection Hub, the central complex responsible for regenerating the different Cylons - but at what cost to Natalie and the Sixes? Tory? Anders? Tigh? Tyrol? Not to mention the final mystery Cylon that may lurk among the Galactica crew?
"Sine Qua Non" finds Roslin gone from the Galactica, resulting in Lee Adama of all people assuming the mantle of Colonial presidency because of his clarity of morality. Roslin's disappearance, not to mention the fact that Tigh may be the father of Number Six's unborn child, and his own growing personal involvement with Roslin ultimately force Adama to relinquish command of Galactica to Tigh so he can search for her. In "The Hub", Roslin, who is safely aboard the Cylon base ship with Baltar, continues to have visions of her impending death and her growing feelings for Adama. But with the destruction of the Resurrection Hub, Roslin learns the unsettling truth that has bothered her from day one: Baltar was indeed responsible for betraying the Colonial worlds to the Cylons. Finally, "Revelations" finds D'Anna threatening to take Roslin, Baltar, and their crew as hostages if the hidden Cylons are not returned to them. Another brutal secret is revealed, leading Adama to up the stakes in the standoff between human and Cylon. But Kara receives a radio signal that leads both humans and Cylons to finally make it to Earth... and a shocking, sad discovery. Talk about your cliffhangers!
The DVD Presentation:
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - SEASON 4.0 is presented in a stunning new four-disc set, with all ten episodes and the standalone film "Razor" (presented in both its original 85-minute broadcast presentation and its 101-minute expanded form) in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen format and in English Dolby Digital 5.1. There's no edge enhancement at all, and picture quality is crisp and vibrant with sharp colors and details throughout. In addition, each episode is presented with your choice of English or Spanish subtitles or English closed captions. For that matter, you have the option of viewing each episode individually or via the play-all mode on Discs 2-4.
The Extras:
If Universal continues to do something right with each successive GALACTICA DVD release, it's filling the set up to the brim and overflowing with abundant extras that enhance the viewing pleasure. Other studios should definitely take notice of what Universal is doing right with this series, as they continue to set the standard for how TV product should be presented on DVD.
First up, Disc 1 sports both the original broadcast version of "Razor" and its unrated extended version, complete with all of the same features as on the previous standalone disc - the two deleted scenes, the audio commentary, the bonus documentaries, and Season 4 previews - so there's no need to rehash my previous thoughts on the review, which I gave a glowing rating. But I will say this: With the SEASON 4.0 release, you can safely sell off your single-disc "Razor" DVD.
Each of the episodes contains a running audio commentary with Ronald D. Moore, the majority of which are ported from the SciFi.com podcasts. By now you are familiar with Moore's specific agenda for moving the series forward to its inevitable conclusion and the inspiration for each episode, and the commentaries for this latest set of ten episodes are no exception. Most of the commentaries are solo runs, though Bradley Thompson and David Weddle join Moore on "Faith" and "Revelations" (the latter also with editor Julius Ramsay); Michael Angeli with Moore on "Guess What's Coming to Dinner" (a new commentary exclusive to this DVD set); Michael Taylor with Moore on "Sine Qua Non" (also a new commentary for the DVD); and co-executive producer Jane Espenson, editor Michael O'Halloran, and supervising editor Andrew Seklir with Moore on "The Hub". I do have to point out that Moore's original podcast commentary for "Faith" had a number of technical problems that caused it to be almost completely unlistenable, so Moore, Thompson, and Weddle recorded an all-new commentary for "Faith" just for this DVD set - kudos to all!
All of the episodes contain deleted scenes cut from each episode prior to its telecast. All of the deleted scenes are presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen format and Dolby Surround 2.0 sound and feature more interesting character moments that never made it on screen. These additional moments, which result in over an hour's worth of additional material, are great little nuggets that give us further insight into the different characters. These deleted scenes are great to have on the set, but I've got to pose this thought to Universal: How about giving us extended versions of each of these episodes in seamless branching format for the eventual Blu-ray release of the complete series next year? If we can get extended cuts of "Pegasus", "Unfinished Business", and "Razor" on DVD, then we certainly deserve extended cuts of all episodes, for that matter.
Disc 3 contains ten of executive producer David C. Eick's video blogs, also ported from SciFi.com. These ten video blogs - "Love in Space", "Why Hath David Forsaken Us", "So, This is It", "What Next, What Now", "Digital Pressure", "Space Cowboys", "Lucy's Breakdown", "Are You Frakkin' Kidding Me", "I'm a Frakkin' Cylon", and "Last Call" - offer humorous thoughts from Eick, cast and crew on the production of each episode in this penultimate half of the final season.
On Disc 4 we have several new features exclusive to this set. First up is "The Journey" (20:56), which is a look at each cast member and his/her evolution over the past four seasons and how they've grown and branched out. Ronald D. Moore and David Eick are shown in interview footage from this past summer's Comic Con discussing the series and discussing the series' evolution as well. (Why couldn't they have edited out that crappy to-the-left-of-the-camera profile of Kevin Smith? Why in the hell does he have to appear everywhere acting all that, a bag of chips, and government cheese? His appearance ruins an otherwise interesting feature on this disc - there IS such a thing as crop and edit on computers, guys!)
Next we have "Cylons: The Twelve" (15:57), which profiles Aaron Douglas, Michael Hogan, Michael Trucco, Grace Park, Tricia Helfer, Rekha Sharma, and Callum Keith Rennie (Leoben), among others, discussing how their characters have become multidimensional since learning of their Cylon heritage. Sorry, there's no new information as to who the mystery 12th Cylon is, guys - even Ronald D. Moore won't say! After all, he's got to hold some cards back until the final episode, right? Then we have another fun feature entitled "The Music of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA" (22:36), which focuses on Bear McCreary's often emotional, often intense driving score for the series. Actually I should point out that the full title of this documentary piece is "Inside the Secrets of the Behind the Making of the Music of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA Revealed" - the title alone is almost the length of the feature itself! This one has to be simply enjoyed from start to finish, and it's about time we got to see such a feature on the music.
With the final ten episodes set to premiere in January, it's only natural to tease the viewer with a preview of the final ten, which brings us to "Season 4.5: The Untold Story - Untold" (1:22). Nothing significant is seen here, as this all too brief clip spotlights the cast and crew on location in filming segments for the final ten. This is little more than a fluff piece at best. We also have a sneak peek (1:34) of the upcoming prequel series CAPRICA, set for premiere in 2010, starring Esai Morales and Eric Stoltz. Set 50 years before the events of GALACTICA, CAPRICA promises to spotlight two families, among them the Adamas, and the events that will ultimately lead to the Cylon war and the destruction of the Colonial planets. It's an effective tease, and while we're definitely going to miss GALACTICA, I'm sure we'll be happy when CAPRICA eventually arrives.
Finally, on Disc 2, there are four preview trailers, three of them DVD-themed trailers for the second season of HEROES, the new DVD and Blu-ray release of DEATH RACE, and the reissue of the BACK TO THE FUTURE trilogy in separate volumes. The fourth and final trailer is the most effective, as it is a preview trailer (also ported from SciFi.com) for the final ten episodes of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, set for premiere January 16th. Can Moore and company up the ante even more?
Cylon Caveats and Colonial Concerns:
Obviously, with a good-looking set like this, some things got inadvertently dropped by the wayside. Among them are the podcast commentaries for the story meetings in developing "Razor", which run about four hours altogether. These commentaries provide a rare and insightful look into developing the first spinoff TV movie from the story's genesis to its final form. In addition, another of Eick's video blogs, "One More Photo Op", got left off from the set. This is not the first time this has happened - quite a number of video blogs were not ported from SciFi.com onto DVD.
And as I mentioned earlier, it would have also been nice to see extended versions of each episode presented in some kind of seamless branching format, with the deleted scenes completed and placed in context with each episode. But little things like this shouldn't diminish your enjoyment of this latest season offering. With the recent announcement of a complete series collection premiering on Blu-ray in 2009, after the series' conclusion, perhaps all of these things, and more, will be included.
Conclusion:
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - SEASON 4.0 presents another wonderful entry to this dynamic series that just keeps getting better and better with age. Quality features, new audio commentaries exclusive to the set, and crisp-looking and -sounding transfers continue to set the benchmark for how not just this series but any TV series should be presented on DVD. And it's an excellent precursor to countdown to the final ten beginning January 16th. You definitely cannot go wrong with adding this to your series collection!
Rating: 4/5 stars
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The autumn days swung soft around me, like cotton on
my skin. But as the embers of the summer lost their
breath and disappeared, my heart went cold, and
only hollow rhythms resounded from within.
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This was the best stretch of ten consecutive episodes the show has ever produced.
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The autumn days swung soft around me, like cotton on
my skin. But as the embers of the summer lost their
breath and disappeared, my heart went cold, and
only hollow rhythms resounded from within.
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"The show has declined. The writing is poorer, and the plots seem forced. The early BSG stories flowed smoothly."
No it hasn't. You've just been following it for five years, and familiarity breeds contempt. It's a tendency inherent to human nature. And season 1 isn't nearly the perfect specimen your rose-tinted memory believes it to be.
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The autumn days swung soft around me, like cotton on
my skin. But as the embers of the summer lost their
breath and disappeared, my heart went cold, and
only hollow rhythms resounded from within.
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"Lack of Critical Thinking
*rolls eyes*
Wrong. Utterly wrong. The problem is not a lack of critical thinking. The problem is not anything to do with BSG. The problem is you (and others like you).
As often occurs when a program is on the air for a while, a certain cross-section of it's fans--in this case, BSG fans--really start to analyze things, fixate on negative aspects and complain when they didn't do that when the show was still new to them (this is inevitably what happens with every fan-group over time). In fact, none of the percieved 'problems' people keep pointing out are "new". The quality of the writing on BSG has not 'slid'. On the contrary, it's only gotten better. And if I decided to make the same criticisms that people are making now of the supposedly glorious, wonderful and perfect season 1, I easilly could. What was so fucking amazing about Water, Bastille Day, Litmus, Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down or Colonial Day?
It's like when a person becomes a fan of a sports team; they usually over time become more cynical and critical (even if the team is winning), fixating on the flaws of certain players or the records of certain coaches. They dont even seem to enjoy watching the games; they act more like it's their job or a class. Many of them, if you're talking with them about their team, will leave you wondering why they're even wearing the team's jersey (given all the criticism).
Same thing with bands. If a fan has followed a band for a long time, they predictably almost always begin to find fault with them as time goes by. They'll look back fondly--almost with reverence--on how great they "used" to be, and how now they're lame etc.
We 'fans' of BSG are essentially connoisseurs. We spend a great deal of our time thinking and talking about the series; we wouldn't be chatting on a message board about it if we didn't. I think some of us have perhaps fallen into the trap of becoming too invested; and these fans can no longer look at the program in the same way they would if they were just seeking entertainment because now it's become more...now it's crossed over into the realm of 'hobby'.
And while there's nothing wrong with that per se, nobody should expect to regard something nearly as well when it's become a part of their life, rather than a fun one-night-a-week distraction.
Further, the show has gotten progressively more grim because the situation has gotten progressively more grim! What did you think was going to happen? I'm so fucking tired of listening to people complain about how a TV show about the survival of the human race doesn't have enough hugs and puppies.
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The autumn days swung soft around me, like cotton on
my skin. But as the embers of the summer lost their
breath and disappeared, my heart went cold, and
only hollow rhythms resounded from within.
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