"Battlestar Galactica" Bastille Day (2004)

Director:

Allan Kroeker

Writers:

Ronald D. Moore (developer)
Toni Graphia (written by)

TV Series:

"Battlestar Galactica" (2004)

Original Air Date:

1 November 2004 (Season 1, Episode 3)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

Plot:

Deciding to use the thousand prisoners on a prison transport ship to mine the ice on the planet they've found, Galactica's plans are upset when a political prisoner onboard leads an uprising, taking hostages. He questions the legitimacy of Roslin's government and demands free elections to be held in the fleet.

Plot Keywords:

Prisoners | Water | Prison Ship | Spacecraft | Terrorist

Cast

Edward James Olmos	...	Commander William Adama
Mary McDonnell	...	President Laura Roslin
Katee Sackhoff	...	Lt. Kara 'Starbuck' Thrace
Jamie Bamber	...	Captain Lee 'Apollo' Adama
James Callis	...	Dr. Gaius Baltar
Tricia Helfer	...	Number Six
Grace Park	...	Lt. Sharon 'Boomer' Valerii
Michael Hogan	...	Colonel Saul Tigh
Aaron Douglas	...	Chief Galen Tyrol
Tahmoh Penikett	...	Lt. Karl 'Helo' Agathon
Kandyse McClure	...	Officer Anastasia Dualla
Paul Campbell	...	Billy Keikeya
Alessandro Juliani	...	Lt. Felix Gaeta
Connor Widdows	...	Boxey
Richard Hatch	...	Tom Zarek

Runtime:

Germany:42 min

Country:

USA | UK | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Vancouver Public Library, 360 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

R&D TV

Trivia:

The character of Cally was supposed to be killed off in the original drafts of this script, but David Eick decided he wanted her to fight back during the rape scene rather than be killed off. Cally later became an important recurring character in the series.

Quotes:

Lt. Kara 'Starbuck' Thrace: [Starbuck's filling in for Apollo at the squadron briefing] Now, one of you has been coming in a little hot lately, a little too hot, a little, um - oh I don't know, he's-burning-up-the-deck-with-his-skids-because-he-just-can't-pull-back-on-the-throttle hot. Now who is this speed demon, my prince?
Boxey: Flat Top, sir!
[the squadron catcalls]
Lt. Kara 'Starbuck' Thrace: Flat Top, you got a need for speed, do ya? Just can't wait to get back to the Big G and the loving embrace of your fellow pilots? Or maybe you have a hot date with your right hand?
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Big Bang Theory: The Vengeance Formulation (#3.9)" (2009)

Picking the Side of Legitimacy

Chief Tyrol concludes that the Galáctica need one thousand men to explore the ice on the planet and pump it to the spacecraft. Commander Adama proposes to use the prisoners on board of "Astral Queen" due to the dangerousness of the mission. However, President Roslin is against slave work and asks that the prisoners should volunteer receiving reduction in their sentences. When Captain Apollo makes the offer to the political activist and leader of the prisoners Tom Zarek, there is an uprising and the group is taken as prisoners. Zarek proposes immediate free elections, questioning the legitimacy of President Roslin.

"Bastille Day" is the best episode so far of this series, with a good discussion of the principles of democracy. In this regard, I loved the attitude of Captain Apollo, picking the side of legitimacy of the government and leadership of the survivors. The problem with this series is the lack of charisma of lead characters, mostly the ridiculous President Roslin, the traitor Dr. Gaius Baltar and the alcoholic Colonel Saul Tigh. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Dia da Bastilha" ("The Bastille Day")