BSG, 3.0? Collaborators
Oct. 29th, 2006 12:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakNo better way to start a Sunday than to watch BSG and mull over the issues. Show, pray keep this level up, and the Black Market to Captain's Hand period from last season is forgiven.
I think it's important that we're presented with two cases here, Jammer and Gaeta, not solely Gaeta, because the later would be cheating. We know Gaeta did everything he could to help the resistance. Allow me an aside to one of my favourite Babylon 5 episodes, In the Shadow of Z'Ha'dum. In which the show's leading man, in as much as B5 has one, Sheridan, walks all over the civil right's of one of the show's villains. Now, the audience knows the guy he locked up, Morden, is actually up to no good. But the show still makes the point that this is wrong behaviour on the part of Sheridan. That "well, he's a villain" is no excuse. It's the anti-24-attitude, if you will.
So, Jammer, no matter how well intentioned, did actually get people killed. He did collaborate. He is not innocent or a Misunderstood Woobie (tm). He's probably representative for the majority of the people actively collaborating with the Cylons. But his execution is still something not presented as good or justifiable.
Meanwhile, the people forming the Circle aren't presented as villains, either. In the first season, the weakest episode was probably Litmus because as far as witch tribunal allegories go, this was a bad one, and also because Adama was so clearly meant to be the good guy and his opponent so clearly the boo-hiss worthy villain. Not so here. We know where they're coming from; we know what they have been through. Tyrol, Tigh and Seelix have been with us from season 1 onwards, Sam Anders since season 2, the only unfamiliar face is Connor and he's presented as someone who lost his child, so he's not a hissable villain, either. Compare that to Litmus in which the opposition was someone who only showed up in all of two episodes, or for that matter the annoyingly characterisation-and-believability-less people from Sacrifice or the group who took Gina in, and I'm really, really happy. Well. In a "no, don't do that!" screaming sort of way, but at the characters, not at the writers.
As guessed by everybody and their Cylon, killing Ellen broke something in Saul Tigh. He's now doing what used to be unthinkable to him, critisizing Adama in front of everyone (he wasn't even able to critisize Adama when alone with Ellen in previous times), and of course, he wants to see all the collaborators dead. If they don't deserve to die, then Ellen didn't; if they deserve mercy, then Ellen did; if he doesn't kill them, he killed Ellen for nothing. Nothing at all. All the same, Tigh isn't completely broken; he does cling to the procedures, to the idea that this is justice - six jurors, the presidential justification - he needs to believe he's not executing a personal vendetta.
Kara is the opposite. Kara doesn't have any illusions about this being for a higher principle when she comes to join the tribunal, and she doesn't want to believe that. She knows she is looking for personal payback. What I don't get is that this is surprising anyone, or leading to Kara being declared utterly vile and beyond redemption now. Go back to the miniseries, to the Kara Thrace everyone fell in love with, and what is the very first thing we see her do, that jogging and quick exchange with Adama aside? Lashing out at Tigh, provoking him ("how's the wife, Colonel") and punching him. And this is Kara in peaceful times, in a good mood, as happy as she's likely to be. How does Kara Thrace react to four months of complete isolation and relentless mind games, with the last one being just the final kick in the stomach? Guess what. No, it's not pretty so see. And no, of course Gaeta didn't do anything to deserve that treatment (and even if Gaeta had not helped the resistance but had done nothing but prepare Baltar's coffee, Kara's "beg!" still could have been horrible). But it's entirely in character and anything else would underplay her brokenness, or her general emotional make-up.
(And here's me being predictable again: when everyone loved Kara, I just liked her, but now that she's apparantly getting the Buffy-in-s6-and-s7-treatment from fandom? I could come to be a partisan. Anyway, I agree with this lengthy Kara essay.)
The ambiguity is presented a plenty on the political leval as well. I think it was![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
deborah_judge who recently was afraid that Zarek would be changed in to a white knight, now that the show does something with his chemistry with Roslin. Well, as this episode makes clear, obviously not. And yet he's not suddenly a boo-hiss worthy villain, either. I love how he and Roslin see exactly the same logic as to why actual trials and due process dealing with the collaborators would tear the fleet apart - and come to two very different conclusions about it. Tom goes for the secret tribunal, Laura for the general amnesty (aka the South African model, as the "commision for truth" term makes clear in case anyone missed it). Which is why I'm ultimately glad Laura is Queen, err, President again. But I do hope she keeps her part of the deal and makes Tom Zarek VP (I guess we'll find out next week). They need each other. Checks and balance.
Which brings me to Adama. Note that Zarek says in the initial conversation with Roslin, when she expresses amazement he's so willing to hand over the presidency to her, that he's a realist and that Adama made it clear Roslin had the military support. Bear in mind this is long before Adama finds out about the tribunals. Now, given that the last time Adama stuck up for democracy over personal loyalty, this ended with Baltar as President, I'm not entirely surprised, but it's still Adama making the opposite choice now: Laura Roslin would have had no legal claim to the presidency at all, and he'd have supported her if Zarek had chosen to insist on his position as the legally elected President (well, VP turned President due to Baltar being removed from office). Which is as anti-democratic as his military coup in Kobol's Last Gleaming and would have probably destroyed the notion of democracy in what's left of humanity altogether. Which is probably yet another reason why Zarek went for the deal with Roslin instead. I find it fascinating that Laura instantly offered him the Vice Presidency, because he didn't specify which position in her goverment he wanted. And oh, the irony: that was the very job he campaigned for back in Colonial Day and would have won if she hadn't entered Baltar in the race instead.
Sidenote to on the Zarek-sanctioning-the-Circle matter: I must say, I loved Peter David's take on this:
And, of course, the real kicker is that we have a situation where hidden tribunals, torture and death are sanctioned by the head of a Democratic government. That could NEVER happen in the real world.
Quite.
Not enough Cylon-and-Gaius scenes for my taste, but I expect we'll get more in the next episode. What we did get was interesting as always. Baltar's dream showed Six-in-his-head in a reverse function to what she used to have: she doesn't bring either sex, solace, or urgings to do this or that, but is the embodiment of his guilt. Which, of course, on another level, she always has been. Remember in Fragged, when she told him "I'll be your conscience"?
Meanwhile, CapricaSix is trying to be a Cylon again and to rid herself of her love for him. It's typical for Gaius Baltar that what he does say is dead wrong and unconvincing - but that he's still not lying. Not any more. Because not only does she love him but I do think (now) he loves her. The one point where he could make that declaration with any credibility, though, was, again with a fitting irony, when she couldn't hear it and when for once he didn't want anything for himself. I'm referring to the scene in Pegasus when he was trying to get Gina to eat something, and told her about himself and CapricaSix, ending in "I love her".
Lastly: ever since CapricaSix told Three "if you had ever experienced love, you wouldn't ask", I suspected that somewhere in Three's mind, there was the idea of taking Baltar away from Six. For curiosity, because she's still ticked off about that headbashing in Downloaded, and now also possibly because of Hera. But given her scene this week, my suspicion that she'll try has grown stronger.
Lastly: the silent scene with Tigh and Ellen's clothes at the end made me teary-eyed again. Damm you, Edward Albee couple, for being so tragic!
ETA: can't believe I overlooked this, but: Roslin gave that general amnesty to everyone who collaborated with the Cylons. Without specifying. Which means, in theory, that it applies to Baltar as well! Not, mind you, that anyone is in a position to tell him so, or even that such legalities would matter if he were to be on Galactica right now, but it could be important for later in the season. Bet Laura didn't think of that one...
I think it's important that we're presented with two cases here, Jammer and Gaeta, not solely Gaeta, because the later would be cheating. We know Gaeta did everything he could to help the resistance. Allow me an aside to one of my favourite Babylon 5 episodes, In the Shadow of Z'Ha'dum. In which the show's leading man, in as much as B5 has one, Sheridan, walks all over the civil right's of one of the show's villains. Now, the audience knows the guy he locked up, Morden, is actually up to no good. But the show still makes the point that this is wrong behaviour on the part of Sheridan. That "well, he's a villain" is no excuse. It's the anti-24-attitude, if you will.
So, Jammer, no matter how well intentioned, did actually get people killed. He did collaborate. He is not innocent or a Misunderstood Woobie (tm). He's probably representative for the majority of the people actively collaborating with the Cylons. But his execution is still something not presented as good or justifiable.
Meanwhile, the people forming the Circle aren't presented as villains, either. In the first season, the weakest episode was probably Litmus because as far as witch tribunal allegories go, this was a bad one, and also because Adama was so clearly meant to be the good guy and his opponent so clearly the boo-hiss worthy villain. Not so here. We know where they're coming from; we know what they have been through. Tyrol, Tigh and Seelix have been with us from season 1 onwards, Sam Anders since season 2, the only unfamiliar face is Connor and he's presented as someone who lost his child, so he's not a hissable villain, either. Compare that to Litmus in which the opposition was someone who only showed up in all of two episodes, or for that matter the annoyingly characterisation-and-believability-less people from Sacrifice or the group who took Gina in, and I'm really, really happy. Well. In a "no, don't do that!" screaming sort of way, but at the characters, not at the writers.
As guessed by everybody and their Cylon, killing Ellen broke something in Saul Tigh. He's now doing what used to be unthinkable to him, critisizing Adama in front of everyone (he wasn't even able to critisize Adama when alone with Ellen in previous times), and of course, he wants to see all the collaborators dead. If they don't deserve to die, then Ellen didn't; if they deserve mercy, then Ellen did; if he doesn't kill them, he killed Ellen for nothing. Nothing at all. All the same, Tigh isn't completely broken; he does cling to the procedures, to the idea that this is justice - six jurors, the presidential justification - he needs to believe he's not executing a personal vendetta.
Kara is the opposite. Kara doesn't have any illusions about this being for a higher principle when she comes to join the tribunal, and she doesn't want to believe that. She knows she is looking for personal payback. What I don't get is that this is surprising anyone, or leading to Kara being declared utterly vile and beyond redemption now. Go back to the miniseries, to the Kara Thrace everyone fell in love with, and what is the very first thing we see her do, that jogging and quick exchange with Adama aside? Lashing out at Tigh, provoking him ("how's the wife, Colonel") and punching him. And this is Kara in peaceful times, in a good mood, as happy as she's likely to be. How does Kara Thrace react to four months of complete isolation and relentless mind games, with the last one being just the final kick in the stomach? Guess what. No, it's not pretty so see. And no, of course Gaeta didn't do anything to deserve that treatment (and even if Gaeta had not helped the resistance but had done nothing but prepare Baltar's coffee, Kara's "beg!" still could have been horrible). But it's entirely in character and anything else would underplay her brokenness, or her general emotional make-up.
(And here's me being predictable again: when everyone loved Kara, I just liked her, but now that she's apparantly getting the Buffy-in-s6-and-s7-treatment from fandom? I could come to be a partisan. Anyway, I agree with this lengthy Kara essay.)
The ambiguity is presented a plenty on the political leval as well. I think it was
deborah_judge who recently was afraid that Zarek would be changed in to a white knight, now that the show does something with his chemistry with Roslin. Well, as this episode makes clear, obviously not. And yet he's not suddenly a boo-hiss worthy villain, either. I love how he and Roslin see exactly the same logic as to why actual trials and due process dealing with the collaborators would tear the fleet apart - and come to two very different conclusions about it. Tom goes for the secret tribunal, Laura for the general amnesty (aka the South African model, as the "commision for truth" term makes clear in case anyone missed it). Which is why I'm ultimately glad Laura is Queen, err, President again. But I do hope she keeps her part of the deal and makes Tom Zarek VP (I guess we'll find out next week). They need each other. Checks and balance. Which brings me to Adama. Note that Zarek says in the initial conversation with Roslin, when she expresses amazement he's so willing to hand over the presidency to her, that he's a realist and that Adama made it clear Roslin had the military support. Bear in mind this is long before Adama finds out about the tribunals. Now, given that the last time Adama stuck up for democracy over personal loyalty, this ended with Baltar as President, I'm not entirely surprised, but it's still Adama making the opposite choice now: Laura Roslin would have had no legal claim to the presidency at all, and he'd have supported her if Zarek had chosen to insist on his position as the legally elected President (well, VP turned President due to Baltar being removed from office). Which is as anti-democratic as his military coup in Kobol's Last Gleaming and would have probably destroyed the notion of democracy in what's left of humanity altogether. Which is probably yet another reason why Zarek went for the deal with Roslin instead. I find it fascinating that Laura instantly offered him the Vice Presidency, because he didn't specify which position in her goverment he wanted. And oh, the irony: that was the very job he campaigned for back in Colonial Day and would have won if she hadn't entered Baltar in the race instead.
Sidenote to on the Zarek-sanctioning-the-Circle matter: I must say, I loved Peter David's take on this:
And, of course, the real kicker is that we have a situation where hidden tribunals, torture and death are sanctioned by the head of a Democratic government. That could NEVER happen in the real world.
Quite.
Not enough Cylon-and-Gaius scenes for my taste, but I expect we'll get more in the next episode. What we did get was interesting as always. Baltar's dream showed Six-in-his-head in a reverse function to what she used to have: she doesn't bring either sex, solace, or urgings to do this or that, but is the embodiment of his guilt. Which, of course, on another level, she always has been. Remember in Fragged, when she told him "I'll be your conscience"?
Meanwhile, CapricaSix is trying to be a Cylon again and to rid herself of her love for him. It's typical for Gaius Baltar that what he does say is dead wrong and unconvincing - but that he's still not lying. Not any more. Because not only does she love him but I do think (now) he loves her. The one point where he could make that declaration with any credibility, though, was, again with a fitting irony, when she couldn't hear it and when for once he didn't want anything for himself. I'm referring to the scene in Pegasus when he was trying to get Gina to eat something, and told her about himself and CapricaSix, ending in "I love her".
Lastly: ever since CapricaSix told Three "if you had ever experienced love, you wouldn't ask", I suspected that somewhere in Three's mind, there was the idea of taking Baltar away from Six. For curiosity, because she's still ticked off about that headbashing in Downloaded, and now also possibly because of Hera. But given her scene this week, my suspicion that she'll try has grown stronger.
Lastly: the silent scene with Tigh and Ellen's clothes at the end made me teary-eyed again. Damm you, Edward Albee couple, for being so tragic!
ETA: can't believe I overlooked this, but: Roslin gave that general amnesty to everyone who collaborated with the Cylons. Without specifying. Which means, in theory, that it applies to Baltar as well! Not, mind you, that anyone is in a position to tell him so, or even that such legalities would matter if he were to be on Galactica right now, but it could be important for later in the season. Bet Laura didn't think of that one...
