'Battlestar Galactica': Earth

Well, folks, we're at the "Battlestar Galactica" midseason finale, and boy does Korbi's look at the remaining episodes give me hope for what's to come.

Meanwhile, Starbuck and Apollo hope to walk together in the Temple of Aurora on Earth, at least as described by one of Caprica's philosophers. I wish I could peg Apollo's drawing to a real Earth structure, but it's fairly generic. Anyone want to step up?

On the basestar, Three lets Roslin's crew know they're hostages until the Final Four Cylons are handed over. The shenanigans continue, though: Roslin secretly tells Adama to blow the basestar and everyone aboard if the Final Four are handed over. Three and Adama head over to Galactica, where Three offers to trade the hostages for the Four. Looks like we have a standoff.

Tory, ever resourceful, says, she has to take Roslin's meds back with Three. The two go, and on the basestar Three introduces Tory to the other numbered Cylons. Tory embraces "her people" and refuses Roslin's request to mediate with Three. On the contrary, Three kills a hostage and says she'll kill more until the remaining Cylons are delivered. Well, damn.

Apollo and Adama plan a rescue mission, but music crackles into the heads of Tory, Tigh, Tyrol and Anders. The latter three convene around Starbuck's Destiny-viper, insisting something has changed. Well, that's an understatement. It had been crushed in a gravity well, after all. Tigh tells Anders to find Starbuck, and then goes to Adama.

What follows is one of the series' best scenes. In short, spitting phrases, Saul Tigh confesses his Cylonitude to lifelong friend Bill Adama. I have to think both men disbelieve at first, but Tigh grows more and more comfortable with his true identity, while Adama brings up many of the arguments (like that of Tigh's age) we viewers have been chewing over for months. It's heartwrenching to see Adama come to the truth.

Next up, Adama gets piss drunk! Apollo, meanwhile, takes command and has Tigh brought to an empty airlock. Three doesn't take kindly; at Tory's urging -- and damn, why does anyone listen to Tory? -- Three prepares to execute the hostages and arms the basestar's nukes. To his credit, Baltar tries to argue against this course of action. Tigh gives up Anders and Tyrol, but Three is set on her course.

...Until, that is, Starbuck turns on the Dradis in the Destiny-viper and catches a course heading that blends with the music-signal. Yep, the Final Four are broadcasting, or receiving, or something. Does this make Destiny-viper the last Cylon? Anyway, Starbuck stops Apollo from airlocking Tigh in the nick of time.

Remember when I said the scene above was one of the series' best? This is better. Three and her entourage meet with the Galactica crew (including the now-free Final Four) in the Destiny-viper's hangar. An Eight confirms the heading signal (435, not 325, to my dismay), but Three isn't quite ready to join forces and find Earth. "All of this has happened before..."

"...but it does not have to happen again," Apollo finishes. The human-Cylon war now has both races near extinction, he says, but actually working together for once could save them both on Earth. He's very presidential, and after a moment Three clasps his hand. I have to admit, I got chills.

Just one more jump, then, and... hey, they're at Earth! I actually expected the still-bad Cylons to show up and stop our heroes. But no, they're here, and everyone's happy. Seriously, Apollo even rips off his suit jacket and dances on top of the control table. What, no greetings from the planet? That missile defense system really doesn't work. Soon we find out why: Once on the planet's surface, an away team made up of the main characters finds not much more than radioactive mud and, in the distance, what appears to be the ruins of New York City. Um, oops. Can we at least blame it on the damn dirty apes?

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