WhateverThings

I have to start off by saying this episode was a little disappointing after last week.  There was a lot of set up work, but it simply felt a little disjointed.

Gaeta has certainly become more of a leading figure and it seems that the events of the webisodes “Face of the Enemy” have pushed him over the edge.  Any thoughts of working with the Cylons have fallen to the wayside and he seems determined to make sure it does not happen, no matter the cost.  This returns us to a theme that has recurred several times over the course of the series, namely “can those who were once enemies become friends?” 

For Felix, there seems to be no question: any thought of working with the Cylons is anathema.  His betrayal by the Number 8 which we see in “Face of the Enemy“  has led him to the point where he cannot and will not trust the Cylons.  And anyone who would side with the Cylons better watch out.  This question of whether or not peace can come between groups that have fought and hated each other is one that has faced humanity for most of history.  The healing of old wounds and mending of damaged relationships can only happen in the context of trust and forgiveness.  It is these two elements which are lacking greatly in the BSG universe.  And it is ultimately the lack of trust and forgiveness which drives the characters into many of the troubles they find themselves in.   Gaeta here is a prime example as we see him perhaps unable to forgive himself as well as unable to trust the Cylons, having been betrayed by one.  Once again, I am reminded of Miroslav Volf’s Exclusion and Embrace and his penetrating look at our ability or inability to embrace the other.  Volf’s conclusion is that we because of God’s embrace of us we have no choice but to do so, and can do it only through the power of the cross.

We return to Baltar and his religious ramblings where it appears that he also has become disenchanted.  God is no longer love, but God is now guilty of the problems that the people are facing.  He tells his disciples that God is the one who needs forgiveness.  The basic argument is this:  1)  We are in this horrible situation and there must be a reason.  2)  We didn’t do anything to deserve it.  3)  Therefore, God is wrongly punishing us and needs our forgiveness.  Not the first time such thinking has taken place.  I wonder what has led Baltar to believe that they have done nothing wrong.  Although this is not surprising because Baltar has convinced himself that his role in the genocide of humanity was merely a mistake, and that he did nothing “wrong”.  This makes one ask the question of if he did nothing wrong in the first place, why did he work so hard to cover it up?  Perhaps because he thought others would not understand.  What we really see is that over time Baltar had to find a way to justify himself – he could not be excused, he could not find a way to be forgiven, and so his only choice was to convince himself and others that he had done no wrong and therefore did not need to be forgiven.  This is the trail we take when we see no opportunity or possibility for forgiveness: to convince ourselves that we don’t need forgiveness.

If one of the show’s driving thoughts truly is to explore what it means to be human (which Ronald D. Moore has suggested several times) then they have hit the mark here because forgiveness and the ability to forgive are a part of being human.  The question which remains unanswered by BSG is how can we forgive?  I am not sure that the show has really answered that.  Most of the episodes of forgiveness were driven merely by pragmatism (which makes you wonder if it truly is forgiveness) except for perhaps the episode in which Roslin saves Baltar from bleeding to death  (BSG 411 – The Hub).

For random stuff, one of my favorite scenes in this episode is when the Hitei Kan jumps away and Adama quips, “You know, there are days when I really hate this job.”  It was a great line and fit so much better than what I might have expected the writers to do – have Adama slam his fist down and yell “Frak!”  This proves my point that you can do a lot without using frak.

Then, there was what I think was perhaps one of the worst scenes of the series: Roslin running through the corridors of Galactica.  I think the writers were trying to show us something about Roslin and her frame of mind and decisions she was making but it all it did for me was make me want to yell, “Run, Forrest, Run!”

Looking forward to where the writers will take us in the next episode.  So say we all!