Battlestar Galactica

Falstaff · Apr 8, 2008, 04:22 PM

is it the only decent sci-fi show on the tele anymore? I supposedly saved American television at the last Peabody awards I saw on Sky. I find it terribly boring sometimes, but the CGI is good and the plot twists are interesting because of the old series, but honestly, is it really that good? What are the best episodes? Did I miss season 4?
2007 March 23 My Observations

BlueMak · Apr 8, 2008, 04:28 PM

Season 4 just started a few days ago.

I can't say about current series since I don't know, but I am catching up on older series, Andromeda, Earth Final Conflict and they are ok, not top, but ok.

BSG (the current series) is quite good and I definetely suggest watching all the episodes in order.

Falstaff · Apr 8, 2008, 05:20 PM

I have Sky so of course I get them all out of order..LOL
British tele is so eclectic and odd, no wonder DVD movies are so popular here.
BSG it is then, just not happy with some of the episodes I have seen so far, boring as H E double toothpicks and rather bland, I miss the bang them up and shoot them up shows, plot developement is terribly overrated..

***Veridian3*** · Apr 8, 2008, 06:26 PM

BSG needs to be watched in order... including the Mini Series that started it off. Stop catching odd ones and you will enjoy it far more. The main reason for this is that in S1 and S2 there were very specific story arc's which developed through the episodes with mid season and end of season pay-offs. S3 was (through network pressure) more stand alone in its story telling and suffered because of it. There were two sets of episodes which were excellent though, the mid and end of season trilogy's... and some very nice single eps here and there...In addition to the arc's you are also messing up some huge character development, far more than most shows ever have.

When at its best (which is a regular occurrence) it is better than any sci-fi show i have seen... including TNG's best years.

niceguyrichy · Apr 8, 2008, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veridian3

When at its best (which is a regular occurrence) it is better than any sci-fi show i have seen... including TNG's best years.

HERESY!!!
Nothing is better than TNG, absolutely nothing!

TNG is the single greatest bestist sci-fi show in the history of the world, and I won't hear a word against it

Falstaff · Apr 9, 2008, 12:13 AM

Tng ?

technonerd · Apr 9, 2008, 02:03 AM

Firefly is better then any crappy Sci-Fi shows included BSG

I demanded vote!!

***Veridian3*** · Apr 9, 2008, 03:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by niceguyrichy

HERESY!!!
Nothing is better than TNG, absolutely nothing!

TNG is the single greatest bestist sci-fi show in the history of the world, and I won't hear a word against it

Don't get me wrong, TNG is a brilliant show and when it was at its best its hard to beat... i still even watch it about 3-4 times a week and don't get bored but overall it is not without fault.

For starters only two of the main actors ever showed real ability, Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner. Then we have the horrendous mistake that was Dr. Pulaski and the annoyance that was Wesley Crusher.

Also, for every best of both worlds, chain of command or the inner light there is a "The Royale", hero worship or Sub Rosa. And really it was not until the end of Season 3 that the show actually became consistently good.

If we compare that to BSG we see that the cast tends to be better at acting. We have consistently good performances from Bill Adama, Tigh, Roslin and a few others but even cast members who wouldn't normally be associated with stand out performances shine at times (Baltar/Lee Adama) and the show was consistently good from series one, really other than some dips in S3 the shows writing has been top notch.

Its probably in this area that I get the biggest kick from BSG, the whole premise of all these events have happened before and will happen again is done so well... like the swearing in of Roslin closely resembling that of Lyndon Johnson... a scenes from S3 clearly having a basis in WW2 events as much as they do more recent conflicts.

(NOTE: Trying really hard here not to give any spoilers!)

Also, whilst both shows tackle real world issues/events with episodes set in a different setting to us I would say BSG tends to be very good at leaving the viewer to decide which point of view is right or wrong where as TNG often told the viewer what they should think.

There is however two areas where TNG is better than BSG by far... fun and humour. There are so many great one liners in TNG that really are not possible in a show like Galactica... Worf's "Captain, I must protest! I am not a Merry Man! " for example... classic.

For me its a very close call on which is better, something i wouldn't have thought possible a few years ago... but BSG just edges it because it is enjoyable on so many levels... lets hope they dont screw up S4

***temeteus82*** · Apr 9, 2008, 04:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Falstaff

Tng ?

Star Trek : The Next Generation

Stu@ I think that the TNG started to get better after S3 the first two seasons were ok but for me a bit boring... I like see more action in sci-fi...

btw. stu do you have SFC III?

***Veridian3*** · Apr 9, 2008, 04:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by technonerd

Firefly is better then any crappy Sci-Fi shows included BSG

I demanded vote!!

To quote Joss Whedon, creator of Firefly:
I'll sit down and go, 'Thats more entertainment, more twists, more unexpected stuff, more humanity, more shocking, like, extraordinary story telling, than i have seen. That was a great episode... then they will run the opening credits.'
and
'Nobody gets to be perfect, no political view gets to be sacred, everything gets put to the test... and all of this happens during some of the most awesome sci-fi i have ever watched'

No Poll Required

Edit: re SFC3, no.

niceguyrichy · Apr 9, 2008, 04:34 AM

OK , I'll give you Dr Pulaski. Horrible in every way.
but there's so much else going for it. Ms Sirtis in a skin tight suit just for one..

guess I just never got into BSG.

Markius · Apr 9, 2008, 04:35 AM

Tng OWNS bsg, nuff said

***Zardon*** · Apr 9, 2008, 02:15 PM

what a bunch of nerds

Falstaff · Apr 9, 2008, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zardon

what a bunch of nerds

only if we know all the words to all the episodes and use quotes from Spock.

OmegaRED · Apr 9, 2008, 03:51 PM

For anyone new to the series or who hasn't watched it in a while there's a recap special that aired prior to the Season 4 opener called "Battlestar Galactica Revealed"

battlestar galactica revealed - btjunkie

Quote:

In preparation for the fourth and final series of
Battlestar Galactica, this one-off special provides a
tantalising recap of the past three seasons.
Aimed at fans and non-fans alike.

Falstaff · Apr 9, 2008, 03:58 PM

Yeah, I think I caught the episdoic movie called Razor..but fell asleep through half of it...

***Veridian3*** · Apr 9, 2008, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaRED

For anyone new to the series or who hasn't watched it in a while there's a recap special that aired prior to the Season 4 opener called "Battlestar Galactica Revealed"

battlestar galactica revealed - btjunkie

People should also be aware that it will completely ruin some of the big "shocks" from S1-3.

Falstaff · Apr 9, 2008, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veridian3

People should also be aware that it will completely ruin some of the big "shocks" from S1-3.

I saw a bit of that and it was equally as boring...
my God is this show that popular everywhere else?

***Veridian3*** · Apr 9, 2008, 04:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Falstaff

Yeah, I think I caught the episdoic movie called Razor..but fell asleep through half of it...

Razor would only really appeal if you had seen the Pegasus story arc from the main show, and that would only appeal if you had watched the show from the beginning... see a trend here