EW Review of Taking a Break

From Entertainment Weekly:


TV Watch
Suicide Solution
On ''Battlestar Galactica,'' Baltar undergoes interrogation and finds a way to test whether he's a Cylon; plus, the partners in the love quadrangle square off

By Marc Bernardin


Amazing, isn't it? That Baltar's first thoughts upon finding out — in the middle of his suicide attempt — that he's a Cylon were ''Thank God, I'm alive'' and ''No one was betrayed.'' It's not that he feels any remorse over the things he's done, the choices he's made; he just wants to know that he didn't really screw anyone over. That he's always been true to who and what he was. His real gift is for rationalization. (Yeah, I know he's not a Cylon — I did watch the rest of the episode. I'm just proving a point here.)

The two presidents are two sides of the same coin. Beginning with the very smart mirroring of Baltar's treatment of Roslin when she was in a Cylon cell, and continuing through her interrogation, they matched each other shout for shout, accusation for accusation. And the thing of it is, Baltar isn't entirely wrong, and Roslin isn't entirely right. Still, the fury of Roslin Unleashed is something to see, isn't it? Even if it was just a ploy to get Baltar to talk, it definitely seemed like that anger was totally real. Why she — hell, why anyone in this cast — doesn't get nominated for awards is beyond me.

It's funny — somehow, I'm not so much rooting for Apollo and Starbuck to find the love they've been chasing for so long as I am thrilled that the cuckolded spouses (Dualla and Anders) finally threatened to stop being romantic punching bags and move on. If only they stuck to their guns. I know I can't be the only one who wanted Dualla to respond to Lee's heartfelt stay-with-me speech with ''No.''

(By the way, I hope that Joe's Bar serves a real dramatic purpose and is more than Ten-Forward on the Galactica. People can drink anywhere; I just hope Ron Moore and his team give us a compelling reason for them to drink there.)

Here's my problem with the Baltar interrogation scene: that they didn't thud him in the nards, Casino Royale-style. Seriously, though, my problem is that they took almost an entire storytelling act to tell us what we already knew. Sure, Adama and Roslin needed to learn about the final five Cylons and Baltar's true role in the Caprica genocide, but did we need to hear it again? Not so much. I'd have gladly traded half of that drug-induced dead man's float (in that weirdo Jesus-inmate outfit) for more of the Roslin-Caprica Six scene that followed the credits, which promised to deliver so much more than ''Oh, no, I'm not a traitor, I did what I had to, whimper whimper, blubber blubber.''

In truth, the only thing that surprised me, in a good way, was Felix Gaeta. I suspected that he had hidden steel after seeing what he did on the surface of New Caprica, supplying the resistance with valuable intelligence — and after seeing him refuse to beg the Circle for his life after he was condemned to death by airlock — but I never thought he'd plunge a ballpoint into Baltar's neck. What set him off, do you think? Was it something that Baltar actually whispered in his ear, or was Gaeta concerned that Adama and Roslin would think that Baltar was passing information to his once and future lackey? And was that tracheal perforation part of Baltar's plan, to insure that he'd get his trial?

Speaking of the inevitable trial of Gaius Baltar, am I wrong in thinking that there shouldn't even be one? Didn't Laura Roslin, in one of her first acts after she was sworn back into office, issue a general amnesty for any and all actions committed during the Cylon occupation? Shouldn't that pardon extend to Baltar as well? If I were his lawyer — and you know he'll get a lawyer — that'd be my first argument.

I was a bit underwhelmed by this episode. The Lee-Kara storyline no longer holds any real juice. As they say, crap or get off the pot. Seeing Baltar repeat things we already knew isn't dramatic. Some dude named Joe building a bar on the hangar deck isn't enough. I want more.

Where were Helo and Sharon and Hera? Why couldn't we have more Caprica Six? Where'd the Cylons go? (And why didn't they barrage the Galactica with nukes before they jumped out of the supernova's path last episode?) So many questions, so few answers, and the answers I got didn't shed any light whatsoever.

Other than that Gaeta's got some wicked penmanship.

What do you think?
Posted Jan 29, 2007

TV Squad Review

From the TV Squad:

Battlestar Galactica: Taking A Break From All Your Worries

Posted Jan 28th 2007 11:52PM by Keith McDuffee

Filed under: Science Fiction, OpEd, Battlestar Galactica, Sci Fi

(S03E13) This episode turned out better than I thought it would be when basing it on the previews shown for the past week. And y'know, that's the way it should be, if you ask me. Why spoil things for everyone with cheap ploys to lure new viewers when you can just wow them with the actual episode that airs?

The first thing I've got to mention is definitely going to seem nitpicky to some. What's with a bar on the Galactica? Another ship, sure, but on a fracking Battlestar? As if troops stowing away booze in their lockers wasn't bad enough -- now we've got Apollo stumbling around throwing wedding rings around, sobbing like a whino through the decks of Galactica.

The interrogation scenes with Baltar were well done. It's not difficult to imagine the world Baltar felt he was in once under the influence of those drugs. The feeling of floating helplessly in a dark sea, with only a strange, bright light to focus on. The light and the voice, your only grasp at something that makes you not feel alone. I did wonder why they didn't just send in the captive Six to interrogate Baltar by offering her some sort of deal, though judging by the extended extra scene at Sci Fi's website, that plan would have gone nowhere.

I really hope we don't keep seeing significant airtime given to the whole Apollo/Starbuck love angst. There are just so many more interesting storylines and goings-on in this show that it's a waste of time to travel more than three episodes into a relationship such as this one. And can I just say that I'm really hating when Starbuck does that thing where she clears her throat, purses her lips and closes her eyes when she's disapproving or uncomfortable? No wonder why Apollo wanted to get her into the ring for a spell.

random thought (sorry, I seem to be full of them tonight): Is it just me or does everyone ... I dunno ... curse too much on this show? Look, I'm no prude, but there are times when maybe "frack" is used a little too liberally. Try replacing that word with the Earth word it's meant to represent, then tell me if it's overused or not. I guess when it's the only curse word anyone seems to know, maybe it's no so bad.

Something very interesting that none of Baltar's interrogators seemed to pick up on, though they may have just quickly brushed it off as drug-induced nonsense: Baltar said "God's plan. God's resolve." Not "THE gods." Is Cylon divinity rubbing off on Baltar now? Maybe we were all thrown way off the trail of considering Baltar to be a Cylon in this episode, when it's still within the realm of possibility.

A definite big break in the episode was the interaction between Baltar and Gaeta. Does Baltar really know something about Gaeta that he wouldn't want anyone else to know? Was Gaeta worried that Baltar might speak up about him, and that's why he set out to kill him? And there's no denying that Baltar did have a point -- who was the one with a literal gun to his head when it all came down and who didn't? And Baltar knew that Gaeta was delivering intelligence; there's no denying that unless you think Baltar's just a good guesser.

Like I said, I was glad this wasn't a bad episode, but it wasn't stellar. Oh, and if you're wondering where the title of the episode came from, go take a listen to the theme song for Cheers, then add the presence of Joe's Bar, and there you have it.

Current fleet population: 41,403

Podcast for Taking A Break

... Is now up online, for those of you who want a jump on it:

313 – Taking a Break from All Your Worries

Take A Break... for two Minutes

Okay, that's probably the first of a couple of bad puns for this episode title.

Here's a preview for when you do take a break:

Canadian Trailer for Taking a Break

From Youtube:



Is it me, or does Baltar look like Jesus?

Season 3 to be a Three Parter

This in from the SyFy Portal:

SPOILERS

BSG Season 3 To End With Three-Parter

SPOILERS: Ron Moore talks about what's to come
Source: E! Online

(December 08 2006) - The following story contains MODERATE SPOILERS for the third season of "Battlestar Galactica."

While the "Battlestar Galactica" story seems to be in transition again, expect that all to change by the time the third season of the hit SciFi Channel show winds up, culminating in what looks to be three-part finale.

"We meet Adama's (Edward James Olmos) wife (Lucinda Jenney) for the first time, in an unusual way, and see who is ex-wife is and the roots of why they were divorced and the problems Lee (Jamie Bamber) had growing up," series executive producer Ronald D. Moore recently told E! Online. "There are some big standalong episodes including one for Helo (Tahmoh Penikett) and one for Tyrol (Aaron Douglas), and there's a really pivotal episode with Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff), sort of a fighter-plane episode about her. Beyond that, it starts to wrap up into our finale, and there is a three-part episode that gets us to the end of the season. By then, we will have major revelations and some major plot turns."

One of the new areas of the Cylons that Moore expects to address befor season's end has to do with the other five Cylon models that the existing seven don't like to talk about.

"I can't even really tell you when it will happen, but I can tell you it will definitely happen," Moore said. "The final five Cylons are different than the other Cylons, but I don't want to give away if they are newer or older or what their relationship is to the other Cylons. That's one of the mysteries we are teasing out over the course of a lot of episodes."

While the series has already made intimations that Adama and President Roslin (Mary McDonnell) may be finding romantic flame, it's not something Moore said he's looking to finalize one way or the other in the near future. The two might continue to have a strong bond with each other, but for now, that's pretty much where it's going to stay.

How long the show will stay on the air is a good question, but there's a good chance that it will ultimately be a decision by the producers, not the network, Moore implied. He said he still has another two years left in him to keep the show going, and maybe more after that.

"I have an idea where we should end the series, and the question si how long the story, I think, can go from here to there," Moore said. "It's so hard. By the end of the season, I'm like, 'How many more of these can we get out?' And then sure enough, we think of a whole lot more in the writers' room -- but at least a couple more years."

"Battlestar Galactica," which airs Fridays at 9 p.m. ET on SciFi Channel, will air its mid-season finale on Dec. 15. The show will then move to Sundays at 10 p.m. in January. - Article by Michael Hinman

Source Article

Upcoming Episode Titles

The Patriot Resource has rounded out the rest of the titles for Season 3. Here's the new ones:

307: Hero
308: Unfinished Business
309: The Passage
310: The Eye of Jupiter
311: The Rapture
312: Taking a Break from All Your Worries (Spring 2007)
313: The Woman King (Spring 2007)
314: A Day In The Life (Spring 2007)
315: Dirty Hands (Spring 2007)
316: Maelstrom (Spring 2007)
317: The Son Also Rises (Spring 2007)
318: The Crossroads, Part 1 (Spring 2007)
319: The Crossroads, Part 2 (Spring 2007)

It's looking like The Passage and Eye of Jupiter are a two parter, and The Son Also Rises (A play on the book title by Hemmingway?) and both Crossroads are a three parter for the season Finale. As previously reported, Season 3 will be only 19 episodes.

Detailed spoilers for these episodes can be found here.

Updated Episode Title List

Just going over the list of confirmed episodes that Gateworld has been posting.

OCCUPATION / PRECIPICE 301
EXODUS, PART 1 302
EXODUS, PART 2 303
COLLABORATORS 304
TORN 305
A MEASURE OF SALVATION 306
HERO 307
UNFINISHED BUSINESS 308
THE PASSAGE 309
EYE OF JUPITER 310
RAPTURE 311
TAKING A BREAK 312
THE WOMAN KING ???