Sharon would be a good choice, if only because she represents both the fleet and the Cylons, and got the opportunity to explore destiny/willpower/duty in the form of Athena and Boomer.
I keep thinking about how much fun it must've been to play Sharon (and by extension the whole line of Eights) for exactly this reason. Athena chooses humans, thumbing her nose at her Cylon programming, and Boomer, so sympathetic in these early episodes and on New Caprica immediately after her download, goes through such a change that it's difficult to remember why I liked her early on. It's tough to be a Sharon, but what a great role for an actress.
Personally I always thought of Bill and Laura as the protagonists, followed by Starbuck and Gaius. It is the actions and journeys of these four that set most of the plot in motion and touched everyone else’s lives.
That's a good point. I always have trouble thinking of Gaius as a protagonist because I feel like I should always have a underlying sense that I'm rooting for a protagonist even if I don't always like them or what they do. Even accounting for that, though, it certainly can't be argued that he was one of the most pivotal characters on the show.
Pilot. Coup leader. Pilot. Lawyer. Pilot. Politian. Pilot. Lee was always my least favourite character because I just did not believe in him.
I think you just hit on one of the reasons I didn't warm up to Lee more. I enjoyed the storyline he and Bill shared as father and son and I actually like Lee a lot in season four, but... I don't know. At times he's very gallant and dutiful and smart and even stubbornly idealistic, I think, but other times he's really kind of an asshole and unthinking and I'm not sure where his head is. I like shades of gray in characters, but I do feel a little as though his were more inconsistent than others.
I was disappointed with Bill’s characterization in the last season. I always found it out of character that he did not pardon Gaeta or at least just imprison him.
*sigh* Yeah. The mutiny episodes, which do have some great moments, are hard to watch in this household. I kind of hate that Gaeta was killed. I do see season four as a real breaking point for a lot of characters, and some of it's understandable -- realistic wear and tear on a person -- but I thought the turnaround to siding with Cylons seemed to happened a little too easily. And then the utter lack of forgiveness for Gaeta on the heels of it stings. Imprisonment would've felt better.
Watching this episode reminded me of how the Chief inadvertently helped Boomer escape with Hera in the final season, and how devastated he was at the consequences of his actions.
That was rough. I really felt for him then.
He was always very good at putting Boomer’s wishes first and be willing to take the fallout. I think I would be willing to cover my lover’s ass, especially if I believed they were innocent. Here’s a question for you? Do you think the Chief had doubts about Boomer’s identity this early on?
I'd have understood it if he had a tiny little suspicion, but I think at this point in the show all he really knows is panic and the desire to protect Sharon. At this point sleeper agents aren't weighing heavily on the minds of many, and I don't think the possibility of someone they know being a Cylon has been taken seriously by anyone yet.
I love your choice because it reminded me of a scene out of another favourite show of mine, The West Wing.
As an aside, I've only seen about a handful of episodes of The West Wing, I admit, but it comes so highly recommended. In what I've seen I've had a real soft spot for Stockard Channing as First Lady.
I keep thinking about how much fun it must've been to play Sharon (and by extension the whole line of Eights) for exactly this reason. Athena chooses humans, thumbing her nose at her Cylon programming, and Boomer, so sympathetic in these early episodes and on New Caprica immediately after her download, goes through such a change that it's difficult to remember why I liked her early on. It's tough to be a Sharon, but what a great role for an actress.
Personally I always thought of Bill and Laura as the protagonists, followed by Starbuck and Gaius. It is the actions and journeys of these four that set most of the plot in motion and touched everyone else’s lives.
That's a good point. I always have trouble thinking of Gaius as a protagonist because I feel like I should always have a underlying sense that I'm rooting for a protagonist even if I don't always like them or what they do. Even accounting for that, though, it certainly can't be argued that he was one of the most pivotal characters on the show.
Pilot. Coup leader. Pilot. Lawyer. Pilot. Politian. Pilot. Lee was always my least favourite character because I just did not believe in him.
I think you just hit on one of the reasons I didn't warm up to Lee more. I enjoyed the storyline he and Bill shared as father and son and I actually like Lee a lot in season four, but... I don't know. At times he's very gallant and dutiful and smart and even stubbornly idealistic, I think, but other times he's really kind of an asshole and unthinking and I'm not sure where his head is. I like shades of gray in characters, but I do feel a little as though his were more inconsistent than others.
I was disappointed with Bill’s characterization in the last season. I always found it out of character that he did not pardon Gaeta or at least just imprison him.
*sigh* Yeah. The mutiny episodes, which do have some great moments, are hard to watch in this household. I kind of hate that Gaeta was killed. I do see season four as a real breaking point for a lot of characters, and some of it's understandable -- realistic wear and tear on a person -- but I thought the turnaround to siding with Cylons seemed to happened a little too easily. And then the utter lack of forgiveness for Gaeta on the heels of it stings. Imprisonment would've felt better.
Watching this episode reminded me of how the Chief inadvertently helped Boomer escape with Hera in the final season, and how devastated he was at the consequences of his actions.
That was rough. I really felt for him then.
He was always very good at putting Boomer’s wishes first and be willing to take the fallout. I think I would be willing to cover my lover’s ass, especially if I believed they were innocent. Here’s a question for you? Do you think the Chief had doubts about Boomer’s identity this early on?
I'd have understood it if he had a tiny little suspicion, but I think at this point in the show all he really knows is panic and the desire to protect Sharon. At this point sleeper agents aren't weighing heavily on the minds of many, and I don't think the possibility of someone they know being a Cylon has been taken seriously by anyone yet.
I love your choice because it reminded me of a scene out of another favourite show of mine, The West Wing.
As an aside, I've only seen about a handful of episodes of The West Wing, I admit, but it comes so highly recommended. In what I've seen I've had a real soft spot for Stockard Channing as First Lady.
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