So, last episode was laying the groundwork for the next two. Nothing particularly exciting happened. I’m going to lump the next two together.
As usual, beware the spoilers.So, by now we know that Felix Gaeta is off his rocker and thinks that he can run the fleet. All because Bill/Laura/Lee are getting into bed with the rebel Cylons. He’s reached out and found a friend in Zarek, acting President who has finally found somebody stupid enough to deliver a coup into his little dictatorial lap.
At first, everything seems to be going to plan. There’s a lot of support amongst the rank-and-file and the civilians on Galactica because, let’s face it, nobody ever tells them anything. So Gaeta and Zarek take over Galactica and Colonial One and Capture the top brass and all available skinjobs.
If I sound bored at this point, it’s because I can’t bring myself to get excited. Mutinies have been done to death in this series. Lee tried to take on his Dad. Everybody tried to take on Admiral Cain. Gaeta tried to take on Starbuck. It’s like BSG can’t exist without people trying to depose their commanding officers.
Pardon me while I step outside of the review for the moment and remind everyone that this cannot be a major turning point in the plot. We are near the end of the series (6 episodes from now). The political situation in the fleet needs to be pretty much set in stone. A stone that is wheeled to the top of a hill and tipped over the crest, and thus rush forwards to its proper conclusion. Sorry if it’s overly cynical, but I don’t think that there are many surprises left, so I found these two episodes fairly predictable.
Anyway, things get turned around when Laura Roslyn wakes up from the self-pity that she’s been wallowing in for the last few episodes and reminds everybody that they owe Bill Adama far more than they owe Zarek. Zarek then reminds the council of this by having them shot when they refuse to acknowledge him as President. Gaeta realises that his new buddy is capable of much worse things than him, and he hasn’t got Gaeta’s excuse of being crazy.
After Laura’s rousing speech, things go the other way. Lee Adama rescues his Dad, who goes back and retakes his bridge. We close on the execution of Gaeta and Zarek.
I can’t say I feel sorry for them. While quite intelligent, I always found Gaeta to be more than slightly naive in the face of the blinding obvious. From the get-go, he accepted odd behaviour on part of his idol du jour (Baltar, Starbuck, Zarek) considering the actual implications. Baltar would have been discovered as a Cylon collaborator far earlier; he would have had a far easier time proving his innocence in the suffering on new Caprica; Zarek wouldn’t have been able to start a coup.
Still, I guess we have some positive outcomes: Bill and Laura should be re-energised and re-endorsed as leaders of the Fleet. This should (hopefully) help to reforge that uneasy peace between the humans and the cylons. And that stone should start rolling down the hill now.
My prediction for next episode: Starbuck and Anders have to deal with him nearly dying from a gunshot wound sustained in the mutiny.