[rant]The show is going down so fast that I can barely believe it. It's a real shame as it started out as one of the best scifi shows I have watched.
OK, I'll pick up the gaunlet for what it's worth:
To date we've had tension building on tension.
As one might expect from a pursuer
apparently bent on the annihilation of the human race, the Cylons initially tried a slew of direct attacks (239 of them in fact) that brought the Colonials to the brink of exhaustion before stopping for reasons yet to be fully explained - don't be fooled into believing the destruction of the
Olympic Carrier was the reason...
After the direct attacks, the Cylons switched to using their "5th column"; first off they tried to cripple the fleet as a whole ("Water"), then they focused on to stopping Baltar's Cylon Detector ("Litmus" and (it could be argued) "Six Degrees") and of spreading confusion / suspicion / fear among the command hierarchy and fleet populace ("Litmus" and "Flesh and Bone").
Bwtween theses, we've also had:
- Episodes that have revealed information on the individual characters & their backstories ("You Can't Go Home Again");
- A glimpse of the potential for political intrigue that could become a factor of the show (Tom Zarek)
- A hint of the kind of issues those in command are going to have to deal with at some point ("Water" and "Bastille Day").
All this has been presented to us in a show that links very good dramatic writing with creative camera-work that frequently does much to tell the story as anything else, and a very fine ensemble cast that easily rival the best of television in other genres.
Add to this the current subtle shifts in the way characters like Baltar's "Six" is portrayed, the clever shifts in emphasis surrounding the Cylons' real motivations, and I unhesitatingly state that you have a series that, far from "going down so fast", is actually delivering compulsive weekly viewing.
Now in this episode we've been introduced to a character who, while almost certainly not a Cylon, still has a raft of unanswered questions about her - how did she get aboard the
Rising Star? How come no-one remembers her for more than "a week" before Adama received word of her survival? Why is she so focused on the question of Earth?
Taking it as read she is not a Cylon, the writers have introduced a character who goes a long way towards explaining Paul/Saul Tigh's "fall from grace" as a respected military officer to alcoholic; she also carries sufficient motivations of her own to be self-centred enough to continue to cause rifts and problems among senior crew with her behaviour
without the writers having to rely too heavily on the Cylon card. She could also prove an interesting foil where the political elements of Colonial life are concerned (the upcoming "Colonial Day").
It's true she may not stand the course as a "regular", but depending on the arc the writers bring to her (hooking up with a "legitimate" Tom Zarek?), she could make an interesting semi-regular.
Given this statement, I can only assume you've seen 2 or 3 episodes - and then possibly misinterpreted what you're seeing.
Yes, we have seen Doral turn up on the
Galactica. Yes "Shelly Godfrey" put in an appearance and Conoy showed up on the
Geminon Traveller. But to state this is "all" that happens falls woefully wide of the mark.
Every episode we've had to date is very richly-layered in terms of content. Yes the
premise to some may appear similar, but in each and every case the content in terms of execution, drama, tension, character development, etc., has been vastly different.
As an example of this, "Shelly Godfrey's" appearance and subsequent vanishing from the
Galactica raises a number of interesting questions surrounding her, her motivations (which appeared more closely aligned to Baltar's "Six" than to the grand scheme of the Cylons), and so on.
Again, you miss the point.
Mistrust between Roslin and Adama has been evident since the mini (indeed, its fair to say that their relationship started out in dislike of one another). Over the weeks we've seen them come to an uneasy truce in their professional dealings with one another, and even the makings of a degree of grudging respect. However, there is still a long way to go before they fully trust one another.
Then there is Roslin's fight against cancer, her desperation to beat it, the orthodox and unorthodox treatments (Kamala extract) she is taking to fight it, etc., - which may easily affect her more rational thinking (as has been hinted at).
Finally, she has been thrust into a position she was hardly prepared for. Not only is she suddenly the President, she's also presiding over the last 47,000-odd remanants of a civilisation that spanned
worlds. That's a hell of an adjustment to make - one which could easily overwhelm a person and lead them into uncertainty about their own decisions and make it harder for them to trust others.
Combine these three elements together, and it's easy to see why Conoy chose to plant his seeds of doubt in Roslin's head - and how some of them might have taken root, despite her better judgement.
His suspicions concerning the Valerii he's travelling with are clearly growing, as evidenced in "Secrets and Lies".
As to adding him to a "list", it's hard to understand how anyone else could be suspicious of Valerii on Caprica, seeing as how only Helo has met her. Similiarly, hard to see how Helo could harbour suspicions towards Boomer on
Galactica, because he has absolutely no idea she's on
Galactica.
Why? His is the most complex character in the show, whose motivations are both the most self-serving and simultaneously the most unclear.
