President Roslin demands answers from the newly unboxed D’Anna on BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: Hub(2008).
© NBC-Universal

Mania Grade: A+
TV Series: Battlestar Galactica
Episode: Hub
Starring: Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff
Written By: Jane Espenson
Directed By: Paul Edwards

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TV Review: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: Hub

OK, so we’re down to the last couple of episodes for the season and this one did not disappoint. Some fans have been complaining that they haven’t been getting enough action over the last few episodes but this isn’t a space opera; it goes a lot deeper than simple lasers and explosions. With that said, some of the stuff that happened with Starbuck on the waste disposal ship didn’t come off the way the writers may have envisioned and I was glad to see that arc end. The best scenes in this week’s episode were action free, they were dramatic and powerful.

The episode started with a flashback to what happened when the base ship jumped away in last week’s episode. The hybrid was awakened and she felt the death of the Six over on Galactica. The death pushed the hybrid to action so without an order from a Cylon she set the mission in motion. The hybrid never blatantly says how important the mission is but at the same time she won’t be deterred from catching up with the hub. Since the rest of the inhabitants of the ship don’t know about the death of Six back on Galactica, they continue their uneasy alliance formulating a plan of attack. D’Anna is not only unboxed but brought aboard the rebel base ship. She was always one of the more underrated characters on the series and her return was not disappointing.

The President has become hardened – the message for her of the episode is that she is too hard skinned. Her near Cylon-like emotionless movements through life and decisions were her way of dealing with her impending death and the deaths of all those that follow her leadership. Throughout the episode she is reminded through visions that she is missing out on her humanity, the one thing that makes her different than the Cylons – the capacity to love and the capacity to die. The rebel Cylons are happy to see the destruction of the hub. They feel that their ability to truly die brings them closer to their makers, which are human. The fear of death will surely have an effect on their decision making process. The first example of this came when D’Anna met the President. She agreed to reveal the names of the final five only when she feels she is completely safe because now dying for her is really dying, not just a painful trip to a milk bath.

The two best scenes in the entire episode were Roslin-centric. The first involved Roslin being the only one that could save Baltar after an explosion. At first she does save him, but when he reveals that he was responsible for the dropping of the shields back on Caprica that resulted in the massive Cylon attack, she removes the bandages she had just applied to his wound. She’s not a killer but she believes he will continue to be a villain against the human race and he deserves death because of what he’s already done. The pain and conflict on her face is palpable as is the pain and pleading on Baltar’s as he begs her “don’t do this”. There was never a question that Roslin would go back and do the right thing but the scene was still powerful. The next scene was the reuniting of Roslin and Adama. The scene rivaled the Desmond/Penny scene on Lost in its chemistry and emotion, very nicely done. Another scene worth mentioning came just prior to the explosion that nearly killed Baltar. Baltar fell out of his messiah mode for a few minutes and back into his old manipulating ways. The scene between him and the Cylon was classic Baltar and a welcome turn from the character. It’s good to see he’s still got it!

The episode had a lot of impact on the story arc of BSG and it’ll be interesting to follow the repercussions of the events in the episode through to next season. Roslin has reconnected with her humanity and the Cylons have gained their own version of humanity through their new ability to die and stay dead. What will the two sides do now? The show was firing on all cylinders on this episode making the anticipation for the season finale even greater.