Official dogtag tally
OK, I went through every single episode in which Sam appears and have tracked the dogtags via screencaps.
Resistance: Obviously they do not appear in this episode.
The Farm: Here we have the first, very swoon worthy appearance of the dogtags.
Downloaded: Of course we all know he was wearing them here.
Lay Down Your Burdens Pt. 1: We don't actually see it at all, but I think it's safe to say he's wearing it and it's just under his shirt.
Lay Down Your Burdens Pt. 2: Again, we don't see it but it's more than likely just under his shirt.
He's not wearing it when they're drinking. Personally I believe it's because it was removed along with the rest of his clothes when they had some celebratory sex before drinking. (Somebody should write that fic, BTW)
Now flashforward a year. It's really hard to tell because of the layers. I actually don't see any evidence, but again it could just be under his shirt.
Occupation/Precipice/Exodus Pt. 1/Exodus Pt. 2: Now, you'd think if ever there was a time for Sam to hang on to his reminder of Kara it would be now. So color me shocked when I realized you actually never see it around his neck this whole arch. Not once. There are a couple of possibilites. One, he is wearing it and we just don't see it (although some of his shirts are cut so we should at least be able to see the cord, even if the tag is tucked under the shirt). The only other thing I can think of is that he didn't want to risk losing it so he kept it in a pocket or something so it wouldn't snag on anything. Which doesn't really work that well considering he wore it on Caprica while doing the resistance. Of course, I'm sure the real explanation is that they just didn't think to have Trucco wearing it while filming and we should just assume it's under his shirt even with the lack of visible cord.
Collaborators: We all know he has it in this one.
Interestingly though you can't see it on him earlier in the ep. Obviously he has it with him so it must just be hidden. Again.
Unfinished Business: He's wearing it the flashbacks, which definitely adds to the idea that he was wearing it all the time on New Caprica and it just spent a lot of time in his shirt (lucky tag).
He doesn't appear to be wearing it during present time, which makes sense. (And OMG, Dee's face kills me, poor girl)
Eye of Jupiter/Rapture: Again, not wearing it which makes sense.
Taking a Break From All Your Worries: Not wearing it when he and Kara are having their heart to heart. I looked real hard to see if he was wearing it at the end, after she made her choice, but it doesn't look like he is.
However...
Maelstrom: The tag is back. So sometime between the two eps she returned it. Again, I'm wanting fic for this and I'm far to busy to write it myself.
The Son Also Rises: And of course he's wearing them in this one. Can we all just give Sam a hug?
Crossroads Pt. 1/Crossroads Pt. 2: In Pt. 1 you couldn't really tell if he was wearing hers along with his own new tags. In Pt. 2 he was clearly wearing them while with Tory (*snort*) so I thought maybe it was a matter of wearing his own while on duty (when regs apply) and wearing hers when he's off duty and doesn't have to be in uniform. I finally came to the conclusion that he's wearing it all the time. This was in part influenced by what comes in other episodes.
He That Believeth In Me: Wearing it.
Six of One: It looks like he only has one chain on, and it looks more like the cord than the military chain. But it wouldn't really make sense for him to take his own tags off, even when off duty. But I don't know why he would have if off, so I'm going to pretend the two cords are just tangled up and he's wearing both.
Ties That Bind/Escape Velocity/The Road Less Traveled/Faith: Wearing it for the whole Demetrius arch.
Guess What's Coming to Dinner: Could not find a clear screencap either way, but no reason to assume he removed it.
Revelations: Wearing it when the truth of his Cyloninity is revealed.
Interestingly at the end he only appears to have one chain. And unlike the shot in Six of One it's pretty clear it's only one. So did he take off the military tags because he didn't consider himself military anymore? Did he take off Kara's tag for some reason?
Sometimes a Great Notion: Impossible to tell what he does or doesn't have on under that flight suite.
The Oath/Blood On the Scales: Has both his military tags and Kara's tag on again. So I'm thinking at the end of Revelations he had taken of the military tags, but then put them back on when they didn't kick him out? This is the last time in the series we see Sam wear the tags.
Someone to Watch Over Me: First time we see Sam's bullet on Kara's chain.
And of course, Daybreak Pt. 2: He gets her tags. Not just one this time, but both of them, the whole shebang. She gives herself to him completely.
Resistance: Obviously they do not appear in this episode.
The Farm: Here we have the first, very swoon worthy appearance of the dogtags.
Downloaded: Of course we all know he was wearing them here.
Lay Down Your Burdens Pt. 1: We don't actually see it at all, but I think it's safe to say he's wearing it and it's just under his shirt.
Lay Down Your Burdens Pt. 2: Again, we don't see it but it's more than likely just under his shirt.
He's not wearing it when they're drinking. Personally I believe it's because it was removed along with the rest of his clothes when they had some celebratory sex before drinking. (Somebody should write that fic, BTW)
Now flashforward a year. It's really hard to tell because of the layers. I actually don't see any evidence, but again it could just be under his shirt.
Occupation/Precipice/Exodus Pt. 1/Exodus Pt. 2: Now, you'd think if ever there was a time for Sam to hang on to his reminder of Kara it would be now. So color me shocked when I realized you actually never see it around his neck this whole arch. Not once. There are a couple of possibilites. One, he is wearing it and we just don't see it (although some of his shirts are cut so we should at least be able to see the cord, even if the tag is tucked under the shirt). The only other thing I can think of is that he didn't want to risk losing it so he kept it in a pocket or something so it wouldn't snag on anything. Which doesn't really work that well considering he wore it on Caprica while doing the resistance. Of course, I'm sure the real explanation is that they just didn't think to have Trucco wearing it while filming and we should just assume it's under his shirt even with the lack of visible cord.
Collaborators: We all know he has it in this one.
Interestingly though you can't see it on him earlier in the ep. Obviously he has it with him so it must just be hidden. Again.
Unfinished Business: He's wearing it the flashbacks, which definitely adds to the idea that he was wearing it all the time on New Caprica and it just spent a lot of time in his shirt (lucky tag).
He doesn't appear to be wearing it during present time, which makes sense. (And OMG, Dee's face kills me, poor girl)
Eye of Jupiter/Rapture: Again, not wearing it which makes sense.
Taking a Break From All Your Worries: Not wearing it when he and Kara are having their heart to heart. I looked real hard to see if he was wearing it at the end, after she made her choice, but it doesn't look like he is.
However...
Maelstrom: The tag is back. So sometime between the two eps she returned it. Again, I'm wanting fic for this and I'm far to busy to write it myself.
The Son Also Rises: And of course he's wearing them in this one. Can we all just give Sam a hug?
Crossroads Pt. 1/Crossroads Pt. 2: In Pt. 1 you couldn't really tell if he was wearing hers along with his own new tags. In Pt. 2 he was clearly wearing them while with Tory (*snort*) so I thought maybe it was a matter of wearing his own while on duty (when regs apply) and wearing hers when he's off duty and doesn't have to be in uniform. I finally came to the conclusion that he's wearing it all the time. This was in part influenced by what comes in other episodes.
He That Believeth In Me: Wearing it.
Six of One: It looks like he only has one chain on, and it looks more like the cord than the military chain. But it wouldn't really make sense for him to take his own tags off, even when off duty. But I don't know why he would have if off, so I'm going to pretend the two cords are just tangled up and he's wearing both.
Ties That Bind/Escape Velocity/The Road Less Traveled/Faith: Wearing it for the whole Demetrius arch.
Guess What's Coming to Dinner: Could not find a clear screencap either way, but no reason to assume he removed it.
Revelations: Wearing it when the truth of his Cyloninity is revealed.
Interestingly at the end he only appears to have one chain. And unlike the shot in Six of One it's pretty clear it's only one. So did he take off the military tags because he didn't consider himself military anymore? Did he take off Kara's tag for some reason?
Sometimes a Great Notion: Impossible to tell what he does or doesn't have on under that flight suite.
The Oath/Blood On the Scales: Has both his military tags and Kara's tag on again. So I'm thinking at the end of Revelations he had taken of the military tags, but then put them back on when they didn't kick him out? This is the last time in the series we see Sam wear the tags.
Someone to Watch Over Me: First time we see Sam's bullet on Kara's chain.
And of course, Daybreak Pt. 2: He gets her tags. Not just one this time, but both of them, the whole shebang. She gives herself to him completely.
