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TV Piracy, the Good and Bad
The good news: Jim Henley reports on a report of how the pirating of Battlestar Galactica episodes in Britain led to an increase in ratings for the show there.
The bad news: It's still Battlestar Galactica.
Warren|1.17.06 @ 8:37AM|#
But it's really about how advertising will continue to ruin the
viewing experience. I can't believe people will watch a movie with
commercial interruptions. And the sort of ad overlay this guy is
talking about is already being done (TNT I think) and is absolutely
infuriating.
If you are an old geek like me you will have found memories of
watching every night of Carl Sagan's Cosmos when it first aired.
That was decades ago and last year I heard they had give the series
a facelift with new computer graphics. The entire series was set to
run on the Discovery Channel. It was insufferable. After the second
set of commercials I changed the channel.
|1.17.06 @ 8:42AM|#
I see this same silly argument over and over. Every time any new
program becomes popular, the file-sharing crowd claims they caused
it to happen, because their piracy preceded the show's popularity.
Of course, this ignores the obvious fact that shows became popular
before file-sharing. Honestly, there is no way to know what would
have happened to the new Battlestar Gallictica without
file-sharing, as is true of any counterfactual.
However, I generally believe that file sharing hurts most major
media. File-sharing has two major effects, one of which is positive
(which I call the "viral marketing" effect and the second which is
negative (the "free-rider" effect). File sharers, of course, like
to talk up the first effect. The problem is one of scale. The viral
effect does not scale linearly - you only need so many seeds for
something to spread through an entire network of fans. After that
point, adding additional viral marketers does not help the
distributor's cause, as virtually everyone who would want to know
about the product already does. The free-rider effect, however,
scales the other way. The first few viral marketers on the scene
are probably the type that love the product so much that they will
both participate in file sharing and buy the real product.
However, less die-hard fans who enter the scene later are less
likely to do both.
Therefore, as additional file-sharers are added to the system, the
benefits level off while the costs increase faster than linearly.
Eventually the two lines cross. Hence, it is likely, in my opinion,
that file-sharing is good for the artist on the small scale and
harmful on the big scale. This is mirrored by what I see in the
real world. For small, realitively unknown media, file sharing is
good - getting the word out is more important than losing a
fraction of your sales to free-riders. However, for popular
artists, the problem gives the opposite result - just about
everyone already knows about your product, so the benefits of
file-sharing are minimal. Meanwhile, the costs are enormous.
Ultimately, file sharing should be controlled by the artist. For
many new or unknown artists, it is positive. For artists that have
achieved fame, it is negative. Either way, they should have the
choice as to who can use their creation.
Ed|1.17.06 @ 8:50AM|#
I'd prefer to let the owners of this or any other property have the final say on what's good for them. If theft = positive buzz = improved ratings, let the producers of the product act accordingly. But to argue for the dismantling of property rights because occasionally the victim is compensated in serendipitous ways is, to me, intellectually lazy and morally corrupt.
|1.17.06 @ 8:56AM|#
Since I'm always on my PC while watching TV, I don't mind commercials so much, because it just gives me a few minutes to divert more of my attention to the computer. But I agree, there seems to be another advertising war going on, to see how much they can annoy us DURING the show. As if dispensing with opening and closing credits wasn't enough. There's a channel called "G4" that shows a lot of Star Trek re-runs; they came up with the "clever" idea of signalling their self-promoting animated bugs with tricorder noises that jump all over whatever dialog happens to be in the way. Yes, infuriating.
Rich Ard|1.17.06 @ 9:07AM|#
Hey - you kids and your ads, get off of my lawn!
Seriously - it cracks me up that people send a check each month to
a company that provides the service of piping advertising into
living rooms.
Shit, the only way we could have a revolution these days would be
if it were televised.
|1.17.06 @ 9:21AM|#
The bad news: It's still Battlestar Galactica.
Echo Julian, Nick. BSG is terrific. It fits a lot of nice homages
to the old show while bending the concept in thoroughly original
ways.
Sandy|1.17.06 @ 9:24AM|#
Even Tyler Cowen's a convert.
Plus Starbuck and Boomer are now hot chicks, and the main cylon is
an even hotter chick. What's not to like?
Warren|1.17.06 @ 9:25AM|#
The benefits of piracy may be overrated, but the myopia of the
establishment can not be. Remember how VHS was going to be the
death of TV and movies? But after being strengthened by defeat, the
establishment refortified. The ad-zap feature of TiVo has been
successfully litigated away, and the RIAA is suing their customers
(now there's a great business model).
On the other hand, the Firefox web browser has great ad blocking
features. Producers need to embrace new technologies and adapt to
new paradigms. People won't put up with the 'clutter' if they don't
have to, and increasingly they don't. Advertising is going to need
to be something people want to watch. Product placement seems to
straddle the 'I'll put up with it line'. If it's subtle you don't
even notice it, but it's becoming less subtle and more obnoxious.
Amazon has a great model, the ads you see are tailored to what they
know about you. The offer lots of free content that helps you to
make purchasing decisions.
|1.17.06 @ 9:36AM|#
One more vote in favor of BSG. One of the best shows on TV, even if you are not into SciFi. My girlfriend (not into scifi) loves it.
|1.17.06 @ 9:41AM|#
BSG is the favorite show in my household. South Park is 2nd.
These are the only two shows we record.
Combat, politics, metaphysics. What's not to like? In HD!
|1.17.06 @ 9:42AM|#
One more vote for BSG.
My wife does not care for scifi but I got her hooked on BGS.
Its quality is light years beyond the original.
|1.17.06 @ 9:42AM|#
Oh, and BSG was first with the soft woman unexpectedly becomes
President and learns to play hardball.
Geena Davis ain't got nothing on BSG.
|1.17.06 @ 9:57AM|#
I knew that a bunch of libertarians wouldn't let the besmirching of BSG go unanswered.
|1.17.06 @ 10:15AM|#
I'm a fan, too. I expected it to suck, and I watched the
miniseries on DVD (acquired for free from my DVD-sharing public
library) fully prepared to shut it off in disgust. Well, it's
pretty danged good. Other than Firefly, it's the best TV
science fiction I've seen in a long while. I thought that the
second season was weaker than the first, but this one is starting
off strong.
By the way, the president has got to be a Cylon.
|1.17.06 @ 10:18AM|#
By the way, the president has got to be a Cylon.
Jeff says the same thing! Why do you say that? I haven't seen
anything she's done which would bolster that argument--if she is a
Cylon, she's a deep, deep sleeper agent who hasn't been activated
yet.
|1.17.06 @ 10:30AM|#
So the Cylons "evolved" to the point that they can get pregnant, and die of cancer? I think they should have stuck with the metal "toaster" bodies....
|1.17.06 @ 10:35AM|#
So the Cylons "evolved" to the point that they can get
pregnant, and die of cancer?
When the human-looking Cylons die their memories are downloaded out
of their bodies and into new ones. They get the benefits of being
human without various unpleasant side effects, like
mortality.
Though now that the Resurrection ship has been destroyed, we'll see
if anything changes. . . .
|1.17.06 @ 10:44AM|#
The whole "Psychic President" thing said it for me. The Cylons
obviously knew where Kobol was, so planting it in Roslin's head was
easy enough, right? There have been other moments, too, where she
seemed to act oddly. Of course, the show goes out of its way to
shock the audience, so it could just be due to that. Who
knows?
Sometimes I think the big secret is that humans are artificial,
too. They (or "we", though maybe Earth is an outpost of the
original biological humans--hmmm) killed off the original humans on
Kobol, then eventually forgot their origins.
|1.17.06 @ 10:44AM|#
Hey Bubba,
How do you get BSG in HD? I have Dish Network and they only have it
in STD.
Thanks.
|1.17.06 @ 10:49AM|#
. . .And the Cylons are, for whatever reason, goading Galactica et al. to find Earth. Maybe that's to find the real humans for extermination purposes, but my bet is that they want to find Earth (and the real humans) for some religious reason. Naturally, I could be completely wrong.
|1.17.06 @ 10:54AM|#
Pro LIbertate--
Makes sense. I've been theorizing that the Cylons view themselves
as these quasi-religious avenging angels--wiping out the impure
humans so that the Cylons can take their place. Kind of like,
Galactica is Noah's Ark and the Cylons are the rain.
You've heard about the Mormon symbolism behind the original
Galactica, right?
|1.17.06 @ 11:04AM|#
Mormon symbolism? Missed that one, though I was a youngster when
the original series was out. I wouldn't know Mormon symbolism if it
hit me in the head today, though, so my cupidity back then isn't
much of an excuse. Was the series actually just religious
propaganda? Figures.
I did notice some Egyptian symbolism, though :) And I liked their
cool jackets.
Warren|1.17.06 @ 11:09AM|#
OK here's a little history for you. Jimmy Carter ruined
BSG.
The primmer of BSG was a two or three hour special (making a full
length movie to launch a new show was a new concept in the 70's)
and was heavily promoted. I very much wanted to watch but it ran
past my bedtime (it was a school night). I whined and pleaded for a
week and extra hard on the big night and was given special
permission to stay up (with loads of concessions about getting up
and doing chores etc.)
Well right in the middle of the action, they interrupt it to bring
a breaking news item. Sadat and Begin were signing the famous Camp
David peace deal brokered by President Carter and the signing
ceremony was televised live and late at night (politicians hadn't
gotten as sophisticated about capturing prime-time I guess). My
father was glad I was up to see it. I remember him saying "these
men are playing poker with the world". I remember it going on for a
long time and everybody hugging at the end. That's about all I
remember of that. Of course by the time BSG resumed (and it did
resume where it left off), it was far too late and I was ordered to
bed. I watched the series pretty regular, but I don't know if I've
ever seen the end of the premier.
|1.17.06 @ 11:15AM|#
Libertate--
If you do a Google for "Galactica Mormon" you'll get a lot of
stuff. However, most of the Mormonism was washed out of the remake.
It's not that Galactica was Mormon theology--it just used some
aspects of it to tell a story. Similar to the way a story can use
the Devil or the Four Apocalyptic Horsemen without necessarily
being a "Christian" story, for all that it used certain elements of
Christianity.
|1.17.06 @ 11:33AM|#
"I knew that a bunch of libertarians wouldn't let the
besmirching of BSG go unanswered."
I really don't see a whole lot of libertrian themes in the show
(although maybe I haven't been looking hard enough). At least none
like Firefly/Serenity where the anti-government message seems loud
and clear. I watch it just because it's a great show.
Garth|1.17.06 @ 12:19PM|#
I love the new BSG but I gotta tell you it's mostly bcse they got ridda that damned kid and his stupid squeeky fuzzy robot dog. How I hated those two!
|1.17.06 @ 12:23PM|#
Nick,
As a fan of Philip K Dick, you are definitely missing out if you
haven't been watching BSG...
|1.17.06 @ 12:34PM|#
matt,
I think the besmirching post was related to the perceptions that
many libertarians are nerds, and nerds like sci-fi, ergo, many
libertarians like BSG.
I would also agree that the new BSG is a much better show than the
'77 version. One of the best touches--in the miniseries, they
showed the cute orphan who lost his dog, but Kira (Starbuck) told
him to get over it and we haven't seen him since. Some other
examples of its superiority:
Bill Adama (original) Larger than life, always makes the "right"
decisions, and deals with all problems in the most PC-way
possible.
Bill Adama (new) Conflicted, was ready to retire before the main
Ceylon attack, has a strained relationship with his surviving son.
Occasionally makes really "fracked-up" choices.
Colonel Tigh (original) Competent by-the-book second-in-command to
Cmdr. Adama. Otherwise, nothing notable--he could have been killed
in any episode and it wouldn't have made much difference in any of
the stories.
Colonel Tigh (new) Washed-up alcoholic thrown into a position he is
obviously not ready for, mainly because he's an old friend of Cmdr.
Adama.
Lieutenant Starbuck (original) cigar chomping, hard-drinking,
gambling, womanizing excellent pilot. One of the more interesting
characters on the show.
Lieutenant Starbuck (new) cigar chomping, hard-drinking, gambling,
best pilot in the fleet, and a chick. Was once the girlfriend of
one of Cmdr. Adama's sons, until she passed him through Viper
flight school even though he couldn't handle it and it resulted in
his death.
Gaius Baltar (original) Cardboard-cutout villain. Thoroughly evil
and corrupted with no redeeming qualities.
Gaius Baltar (new) Also gave the Ceylons access to the Colonial
defenses (through Number 6) and now regrets his involvement. He is
quite insane, and sees Number 6 in his head, but has come up with
the only certain test for identifying the human-like Ceylons.
|1.17.06 @ 12:38PM|#
Shawn--
Did you see the last episode? Baltar is now acively engaged in
treason; he helped the Cylon prisoner escape and is now,
presumably, hiding her somewhere in the fleet. When the President
dies and he takes over, things ought to get even more interesting
than they already are.
My only complaint about the new show is a contradiction: Earth is
so far away in the distant past that people aren't even sure if it
is real or a legend, and yet they are familiar with Greek
mythology? How can you remember ancient Greece and talk about the
gods they worshiped, but doubt the existence of the planet it is
on?
|1.17.06 @ 12:42PM|#
Well, this thread managed to stay on point for three whole
posts.
Get a room, geeks.
|1.17.06 @ 12:51PM|#
Jennifer, I suppose the idea is that the Greeks somehow managed to hang on to the "original" religion. Or that there was some contact between Earth and the Colonies in the past few thousand years. Of course, that begs the question of what happened to our star-traveling ancestors and how to reconcile our colonization of the Earth with evidence of our independent evolution here. The writers have a lot of work to do, that's for sure.
|1.17.06 @ 12:53PM|#
Jennifer,
Yes, I saw it, and a little spoiler warning might have been nice
for the people who haven't. Oh well.
*** SPOILERS ***
It really became obvious to me, after Adama's conversation with
Sharon, that the Ceylons see themselves as God's cleansers and they
are simply helping the galaxy / universe become more perfect (by
exterminating imperfect humans) to better please God.
Well, there are plenty of (continuity) things to pick apart on the
show--like how does the FTL work? Why would two Battlestars be able
to take out two Base Ships when one Battlestar couldn't take out
one Base Ship? In those cases, I like to suspend disbelief and
dream up possible scenarios where humans found the Greek gods on
Kobol, a la Who Mourns for Adonais in the original
Star Trek, and started worshiping them there for a few
thousand years.
|1.17.06 @ 1:04PM|#
Why would two Battlestars be able to take out two Base Ships
when one Battlestar couldn't take out one Base Ship?
This time they had the Blackbird stealth fighter.
Ed|1.17.06 @ 1:39PM|#
But do they respect intellectual property rights on the Battleship -- er, Battlestar? Or did science and innovation somehow evolve without those protections?
|1.17.06 @ 2:06PM|#
Ed, that's how this will all get resolved. The Colonies' surviving IP counsel will sue the Cylons for violating humanity's patent and copyright rights in the expression, design, and function of the human form. In a crushing defeat at an extraordinary session of the U.S. Supreme Court (that's why the Galactica is looking for Earth, to litigate the case), the Cylons are forced to pay $2 trillion for various forms of infringement. Which buys four new battlestars that are used to destroy the Cylon home world (the location of which is uncovered during the discovery process).
|1.17.06 @ 2:16PM|#
You can purchase and download all the episodes, up to the most current one, from iTunes. That's an FYI for Nick, so he can see for himself whether he's going to hate it at $1.99 a pop.
|1.17.06 @ 2:33PM|#
My only complaint about the new show is a contradiction:
Earth is so far away in the distant past that people aren't even
sure if it is real or a legend, and yet they are familiar with
Greek mythology? How can you remember ancient Greece and talk about
the gods they worshiped, but doubt the existence of the planet it
is on?
Why would two Battlestars be able to take out two Base Ships
when one Battlestar couldn't take out one Base Ship?
The Pegasus is a much newer, more advanced Battlestar -
remember that the Galactica was being decomissioned to
become a museum at the start of the miniseries.
This time they had the Blackbird stealth fighter.
That, to.
|1.17.06 @ 2:40PM|#
Eric, good point about the decrepitude of the Galactica. (But
that begs another question--how did the Pegasus avoid the Cylon
computer virus? Was it uncomputerized, like the Galactica?)
I just remembered another detail about the Greek thing--I don't
remember who, but somebody in the first season was talking
about "the ancient Greeks, who believed Apollo was the god of the
sun." That is when I first said "Wait a minute. How can they
remember Greece but not remeber Earth?"
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 2:51PM|#
It has been established before that Colonial technology and more
importantly colonial pilots & crews' native intelligence
surpasses Cylon military capabilities; the destruction of the two
basestars (new model) bereft of fighters vs. an old battlestar and
a new one shows fairly definitively *why* the Cylons had to sneak
attack through a backdoor. Head to head they can't match up, and
one imagines that the reason they were able to fight to a
standstill in the beginning is only because then, too, the Cylons
did a sneak attack and started out with an industrial edge. As soon
as the industrial/material edge is lost, the Colonials wipe the
floor with the AIs.
Supporting this is the fact that originally cylon fighters needed
three centurions to fly them, and the metal AI was removed in favor
of an organic fill-in system; quicker reflexes and
reaction time than the presumably fully-sentient silicon-based
centurions. And yet still the Raiders can't use the technology
anywhere near its performance potential because it's still too slow
and dependent, mentally. Starbuck notes this when she commandeers
the brain-dead raider and flies back to the fleet.
In any case, part of the point of the Cylons (as evinced by their
creation of biocylons) has to be to erase the
intelligence/innovation gap between their networked, computer-based
selves and that of the human colonials.
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 2:55PM|#
jennifer-
My theory is that Earth came first, the beings that ruled Kobol as
the Lords either invented or genetically reengineered the base
stock of humans, adopted ancient Greek mythos for their rule, and
when their paradise unraveled for one reason or another, the
'humans' left for the colonies while one set went
back to Earth. The fact that the 12 tribes are
originally named after the english names of the Zodiac and the
flags represented the star patterns visible only from
Earth is pretty much (to me) a dead giveaway that life here
(Kobol area) started 'out there' (on Earth). :)
|1.17.06 @ 2:55PM|#
But that begs another question--how did the Pegasus avoid
the Cylon computer virus? Was it uncomputerized, like the
Galactica?
I think it was similarly hardened, with no internal networks.
According to the miniseries, the Cylons had been 133+3 hax0rs
during the last war even without a premade virus, hence the
paranoia about such setups. Cain fled instead of committing to a
suicidal defense, so her crew presumably took time to rip out all
the infected avionics in the Vipers aboard the
Pegasus.
I don't personally remember anything about mentioning Greece or the
Greeks. "The ancients", referring to the people of Kobol, I think,
and the "Lords of Kobol" for the gods themselves.
|1.17.06 @ 3:01PM|#
Brian -
Well, the setup could be that way back in Earth's prehistory, a
starfaring civilization arose (to later fall, leaving only Greek
myth as evidence of its religion and culture), went to Kobol, and
met some friendly, advanced aliens who let them settle alongside
them. Then something went down and the aliens had a civil war,
causing the humans to leave for the Colony worlds. Shortly after,
everyone dies off on Kobol. Some time later, the Cylons all but
exterminate humanity on those colonies.
Of course, it can't have been that many thousands of years
ago - the constellations on the colony flags would have been warped
too much by the proper motion of stars.
|1.17.06 @ 3:03PM|#
The bad news: It's still Battlestar Galactica.
Oooooh Nick, you did NOT just go there. As most have pointed out,
this isn't the cheesy, Erik Von Daniken disco fantasy that you
remember. This show is dark, gritty, and briming with 9/11-WoT
analogies.
Buy it, rent it, download it off iTunes. I swear you won't be
disappointed.
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 3:09PM|#
Eric-
I suppose they could go the route of Star Trek ala the Preservers,
and have the Lords pluck the original (apparently highly
genetically representative sample ^_^) population for Kobol to live
with them in Paradise and assumed the names of the Gods (Greek
Pantheon for whatever reason), and then, after an unspecified
amount of time, the native humans rebelled (though I think there
was a 'rebellious 13th lord who proclaimed himself the One True
God', IIRC), and left, with one set going back home, the others
founding the 12 colonies. Since it has been established that there
have been 2000 years since the exodus and today, that would mean a
"preserver" idea would still put Earth's current time thousands of
years ahead of now.
|1.17.06 @ 3:20PM|#
Brian -
Plausible, though the Kobol religion really doesn't closely
resemble Greek myth except in some aspects of the Gods. It's rather
allegorical and prophetic. If Greek myth were to have sprung from
it, that culture could be rather older than classical Greek
civilization, which would give enough time for "now" in the series
to be the present day. Though, admittedly, that's an echo of the
original series' cheese.
|1.17.06 @ 3:37PM|#
I distinctly remember the "ancient Greeks worshipped Apollo"
bit, but have no idea who said it.
The good news is, I have the whole Season One on DVD (got it as a
gift last week); the bad news is, there's no way that I'll be able
to watch them all and find the Greek mention before this thread
dies.
Nick, you should watch the new Galactica. Or at least the two-hour
movie at the beginning of it. It really is great.
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 3:40PM|#
Jennifer-
What you're thinking of is Tom Zarek's monologue to Apollo in
"Bastille Day". I don't believe there was a mention of Greek in
there, just "the ancients".
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 3:43PM|#
Eric-
The fact of Colonial Religion being allegorical and not a close
match of classical Greek would seem to support the idea that humans
were plucked from the area and they just used the surface names to
represent themselves.
Alternatively, Kobol was settled in our Earth's future by a group
of effectively immortal transhumans who recreated humans on the
world to make a utopia, and copied the names for the hell of it to
represent themselves.
In any case, I think the canonical evidence of "Earth First" is
pretty definitive, and I'll be quite disappointed in RDM & Co
if they try and suggest a Kobol origin for Earth.
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 3:46PM|#
completely off topic, but classical Greek religion was pretty allegorical and not really akin to belief systems and systemized/universalized rituals, etc, like modern monotheistic religions or Eastern religions. It was more "stuff pertaining to Gods" and a slightly more formalized form of superstition/folk animism, which isn't that different from what appears to be the "civic religion" of the colonies, where you pay public praise to the Lords because they're the Lords but otherwise, eh. (ala Rome back in the day)
|1.17.06 @ 3:50PM|#
Brian, that could very well be it. I'm still wondering if that was deliberate, though, or a mistake the writers or editors didn't catch.
|1.17.06 @ 3:57PM|#
Of course, it can't have been that many thousands of years
ago - the constellations on the colony flags would have been warped
too much by the proper motion of stars.
Good point, but here's another possibility--maybe this all takes
place in the distant future, and we are the ancestors of these
people.
|1.17.06 @ 4:08PM|#
Good point, but here's another possibility--maybe this all
takes place in the distant future, and we are the ancestors of
these people.
In which case they're going to have a hard time using outdated
constellation maps to find Earth, depending on how distant that
future is. (Heck, in just five thousand years, we'll have a
completely different North Star.)
|1.17.06 @ 4:11PM|#
Or Earth is inhabited by Cylons. Meaning us.
Or the Cylon/human hybrids. In which case, we apparently lost any
benefits of being anything other than human. :)
Brian Doss|1.17.06 @ 4:14PM|#
Eric-
OTOH, if the Lords were as advanced as they seem to be, and have
still-operational equipment after 2000 years of ruin &
desertion (on a planet that, arguably, was rendered desert
wasteland for centuries), then its not much of a leap to think that
their built in holo-planetarium could update the sky pattern.
Shrug. I don't think RDM et al have thought of that much at all,
much like contrary to the opening credits, I don't think the Cylons
have a plan (or, if they do, I don't think RDM et al really know
what it is- its Chris Carter disease all over again ala the X
Files, and only a matter of time before the lack of forethought
results in a critical inconsistency).
|1.17.06 @ 4:15PM|#
Alternatively, Kobol was settled in our Earth's future by a
group of effectively immortal transhumans who recreated humans on
the world to make a utopia, and copied the names for the hell of it
to represent themselves.
That fits, to. Of course, if you throw in transhumans/posthumans,
you lose any silly aspect to ancient Earth starfarers, since the
advanced civilization of that time could have engaged in heavy
ecological reconstruction that removed any long-lasting evidence of
their technological civilization. :D
In any case, I think the canonical evidence of "Earth First" is
pretty definitive, and I'll be quite disappointed in RDM & Co
if they try and suggest a Kobol origin for Earth.
That would be very cheesy, yes.
|1.17.06 @ 4:20PM|#
OTOH, if the Lords were as advanced as they seem to be, and
have still-operational equipment after 2000 years of ruin &
desertion (on a planet that, arguably, was rendered desert
wasteland for centuries), then its not much of a leap to think that
their built in holo-planetarium could update the sky
pattern.
But it couldn't retroactively adjust the flags that were carried by
the original colonists - the ones Roslin realized matched the star
patterns.
I don't think RDM et al have thought of that much at
all
Probably not - I think they just had a cool idea and went with it.
Unless any of the writers had a serious astronomy bug, they
probably weren't aware that stars move over time.
I don't think the Cylons have a plan (or, if they do, I don't
think RDM et al really know what it is- its Chris Carter disease
all over again ala the X Files, and only a matter of time before
the lack of forethought results in a critical
inconsistency).
I really hope it doesn't go that way.
|1.17.06 @ 4:24PM|#
All I ask is that when they finally get to Earth, they don't have flying motorcycles. Please, Zeus, not again.
|1.17.06 @ 4:30PM|#
Brian Dross,
Not so about the Greek (and Roman offshoot) religions. They were
intensely ceremonial, and the religious ceremonies really set the
paramaters for most people's lives. Read "The Golden Bough" for
more info about Greek religious/ceremonial "magic" and worship (as
well as a lot of other cultural miscellany).
|1.17.06 @ 4:58PM|#
Let me geek in here.
My take is that "humans" created machines which became self-aware
and decided to rebel. They saw their limitations and decided to
create humanoid versions of themselves which contain almost no
non-human material (I'm not clear on what Baltar's machine was
actually looking for), and are able to get pregnant. Soon, there
will be no difference what so ever between Cylons and Humans. The
humans won't need to be destroyed because the Cylons wouldn't be
able to tell the difference. The human will have been assimilated
(or the Cylons will have been assimilated by the Humans, depending
on your point-of-view).
In the end, a few scappy surviving people will find a destroyed
Earth and need to rebuild. At first the Greek gods will be the
primary religion, but over time the Cylon's monotheistic version
will win out and we'll flash forward to present day Samual Alito
hearings.
You see, BSG is a story of Earth's past, not future. Of course, as
we present day humans learn to create our own machines, head off to
colonize the stars, and forget where we came from ("earth that was"
and all that) the cycle will repeat itself.
That's just my take.
And as for how the humans know about Greek religion but not Earth:
It's because the Greek gods are REAL!! Duh...
|1.17.06 @ 11:41PM|#
They've done the Kobol and Pegasus stories from the original,
now we need Ice Planet Zero, Count Ibli, the Eastern Alliance, and
Galactica 1980 with Robbie Rist as the human computer.
And we need Audrey Landers in a fur bikini.
My main reason for thinking the prez is a cylon is the fact that
she's slated to die very soon. A dying leader fit the prophecy a
little too conviniently.
I would also like them to tell us what the fuck is going on! Why
did Cain and Adama back down? Do they have any plans for Caprica?
Are the elections still on track? How and why were Helo and Chief
released? What about the civilian fleet that Cain abandoned? The
Pegasus two-parter, as exciting as it was, really did nothing for
the plot except add a new ship in the mix. In hindsite it resembled
an Andromeda/Voyager/Earth: FC/Insert-shitty-SF-show episode. I
hope they get a move on soon and start progressing the plot a
bit.
As for the timeline, the original took place pretty much concurrent
with our present, and I see no reason why this one can't as
well.
The main stylistic difference between the two BSG series is that
the first one rode the coat tails of Star Wars and made running
away from robots look cool and fun, with cigar-chomping daredevils
and hot chicks and big guns with sizzly sound effects. The new show
makes you realize just how much the situation would suck. Aside
from a handful of troops, no one in the fleet has seen daylight or
breathed unfiltered air in six months. The frazzled nerves of all
involved are quite understandable.
|1.18.06 @ 12:59AM|#
"I don't think the Cylons have a plan (or, if they do, I don't
think RDM et al really know what it is..."- Brian Doss
Listening to the commentaries from the 1st season DVDs, no they
don't. They made quite clear that on several important plot points,
( in particular, Sharon being a cylon and trying to get pregnant by
a human) they just threw in at the spur of the moment without
apparently any real idea of where they wanted to go with it. That
kind of seat of the pants writing may be fun but I hope they don't
write themselves into an embarrassing corner because of it.
On another point: it seems that Mr. Gillespie does not quite share
his audience's enthusiasms
|1.18.06 @ 4:31AM|#
I dont get how the cable companies can sue me or complaing about
downloading Tv shows. When I already pay for the fucking cable, for
christ sakes
the reason we were supposed to pay for Tv is so there wasnt any
advertisments.
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