BATTLESTAR 4.14 "A Disquiet Follows My Soul"

One question the characters on Battlestar Galactica can be certain the answer is always yes to is "Can it get any worse than this?"

The fleet has now left the decimated planet Earth and is going to begin searching for a brand new habitable planet. The Cylons have the means to increase the probability of finding such a planet before the people of Galactica run out of food or fuel for their ships- They will add Cylon engines to the human ships, making the ships move at 3 times the speed.
There is a catch, however. The Cylons want to be made into citizens of the colonial government, and have all the rights of a human citizen.

That is where the main drama of the episode lies, which is why this show is considered more political than sci-fi and compared more with shows like 'The West Wing' than to shows like 'Star Trek'.

The Cylon's request causes a great deal of controversy, and ignites an uprising of sorts between the humans of the fleet. A rift is created between Adama's military and the government being run by Vice President Tom Zarek. The viewer is forced to squirm, while watching intense arguing between Adama and Zarek, realizing that both have very strong arguments, and that if a civil war is created, literally all of humanity will be wiped out.

Since the episode dealt with finding ways to survive versus the rights of a thinking being, there was only one scene that dealt with anything fantastic. The Chief, who has been revealed to be one of the final five Cylons, now serves as an emissary between the Cylons and the Humans. While describing the Cylons offer, he awkwardly trips over his explanation as to whose side he is on, referring to the Cylons as "We" and the Humans as "Us". As awkward as it was for me to just explain that, it was even worse for the Chief. This particular scene exposed what I consider to be the only weakness of the show, having two main characters who are so human in their nature be revealed as Cylons. It just doesn't click.

Other than that, we got a beautiful, scene of a naked man in his fifties or sixties in bed with a woman of the same age who is going through something similar to chemotherapy. I was being sarcastic about the beautiful part.

Also, even though Zarek's first attempt at insurrection is thwarted by Adama, it looks like he and Lt. Gaeta are scheming a way to steal the power away from Adama and his crew.

It looks like things are only going to get worse from here.

Pete

Contributor

I was brought up an only child/only grandchild in a family obsessed with horror films. I am really good at creating terrifying scenarios in my head, which can sometimes lead to dissapointment while watching scary movies. I am a comic book writer, and my love for comics only slightly surpases my love for horror movies.