Holy Frak, Its Coming To An End

 Realistic SciFi fans rejoice! The much acclaimed Battlestar Galactica returns to television this Friday, January 16th, and I am fucking excited. After yet another long SciFi Channel hiatus we will finally begin to answer many of the questions that have been raised: What is Starbuck? Is it really Earth? Who is the Final Cylon?

For those of you who do not know me well, I am addicted to this show. Ever since the Miniseries came on I have been a loyal fan. I have stood by the show against the haters and the skeptics. I have waited during all the hiatuses that any other show would have turned me off. And I have bought the DVDs, which have taken up much of my free time.

If you have never seen Battlestar Galactica go and see the first season. Now. Yes it is Science Fiction, yes it has robots, yes it has spaceships, but dont let that scare you away. BSG is a far cry from the lightsaber waving, laser shooting, techno babble filled space operas like Star Trek and Star Wars. BSG lives in the subgenre of Realistic SciFI. Ships are damaged and sometimes cannot be repaired. Guns shoot bullets. Space is big, empty, and not full of blue-skinned aliens. And the storylines are full of real-world problems; Racism, Genocide, Military Occupation, Religious Fanaticism, Government Corruption. All these elements put together creates a show that feels less like Science Fiction and more like a gritty drama found on an ordinary television station.

I will be sad to see this show begin the second half of its final season. It has been a great experience to watch these characters develop and grow. It has been refreshing to see a prime time show deal with real issues of sex, religion, and rights. This show should be one that in the future will be looked back on as an inspiration for how to write and develop television.