What the Frak?

If you're like me, you're probably having a hard time explaining to yourself exactly why it is you still even take the time to TiVo Battlestar Galactica much less watch it at its ultimate nerd time slot of 10:00pm Friday night.

It's ok, you really aren't to blame. If anyone should have fingers pointed at them, it should be at Ron Moore. Executive Producer and claimed "writer" of the series, anyone who stepped out of their "Starbuck is so hot" bubble could see that the series has shifted from a principle Emmy-deserving action/drama powerhouse that could have revitalized the Sci-Fi channel to a withering dying soap opera full of staling characters, dead-end plot devices and a painful drag across 22 episodes to answer one rather moot question. Ramming the question of who the fifth cyclon is was more important than looking into their souls and asking themselves if they could actually write well enough to have a fifth season.

When BSG first invaded television sets, it packed a powerful punch because it incorporated a very important formula for not only geeks, but other people to appreciate. It's not a closely guarded recipe either. It incorporates action, mixed with drama and moving characterization that syncs with plot device after plot device. The more reoccurring themes, the deeper the story.

Plus it was really fun, and kind of trendy to say frak.

At first, Moore and team nailed this. Humanity was dealt the ultimate low blow and audience sympathized with the external and internal threats and problems. This in itself was a rich accomplishment, because for science fictions, the hardest and most integral part of a show's success is its ability to suspend disbelief. As long as a situation can be explained thanks to some futuristic device/instrument life can continue on.

Episodes like the initial mini-series, the face off with the "Scar" "33 Minutes" are gripping episodes because they reach out on the brink of despair and pull you back through. Successful battles won, but never the war. It was the anti-Lost. The question wasn't a will we be found, the answer was frak yes.

Somewhere after the second season, this formula was thrown to the curb. Maybe some writers who weren't given the credit they deserved where tossed out, or maybe someone was having a bad family crisis with a nagging wife. Who knows. There was plenty of ammunition to use in writing stories. Hell, they were wandering a universe.

Instead, the drama relationships changed more inconsistently between the cylons and humans, humans and humans and then cylons and cylons so poorly that major themes were just thrown right out the window. It just destroyed the series for me. So below is my bulletin style list of reasons why BSG hit the chopping block.

1. This was a Science Fiction Action/Drama. When one episode doesn't have at least more than 30 seconds of space action, (and showing the Galactica before panning in doesn't count) then this show is missing its core audience of Last Starfighter fans. It just becomes a drama. Keep the strengths strong.

2. You can't restructure characters allegiances so willy nilly. Cylons were the reason humanity was on the run. Why the hell are they best friends now? No matter how the plot breaks down, this is the unacceptable portion. Symbolism of humanity's compassion be damned.

3. Season 3's terraforming should never have happened. Again, you took out the space action element and treated it as if it was a ground version of Babylon 5. The show's premise was finding a new home, if you are going to make them build one, you're television show is over. The only saving grace of season 3 is the rescue.

4. You're core audience is mostly atheists and scientists who enjoy selective things, why incorporate so much God? I've heard the stories and the rumors, but again, action dramas don't need to be so heavily mystified in symbolism.

5. When you're show becomes predictable like, "the baby isn't yours," or "I have cancer and I'm dying. But then I'm not and then I am." stop recruiting top talent from days of our lives.

6. The political element of the show gets way to much on-camera time. When did this become West Wing? The results are predictable and campy. Adama gets his Admiral way or Roslyn pleads with the apparent irrational remaining citizens and all ends well. Action/Drama. I'll just keep saying it.

7.The Final Five. I don't even know where to begin. Granted, I don't know the direction that the final episodes are headed, but as a denouement they have been raised to such a pedestal that whatever their significance, it won't measure up. Take Roslyn's aide being one, she was a minor character that arrived late in the series and her sudden revelation and upgrade to major player in the series just screamed, "I'm an actress whose sleeping with someone high up on the production team."

8. And lastly, going back to the Soap Opera reference. When you're show reaches the same kind of controversy among tv questions such as "Who shot JR?" It's really time to reevaluate how you do business. Maybe take a clue and bring on Joss Wedon and some Firefly production guys to help show you how to make a proper show.

Good luck. For frack's sake, you'll need it.