Comments | rose_griffes: I saunter into the room, just a wee bit late to the party.

rose_griffes

I saunter into the room, just a wee bit late to the party.

May 13, 2009 22:04

Hi! Remember how I said I wasn't going to make a post about the Battlestar Galactica show finale because 12,000 words of fic totally counted as episode analysis? Um... I lied.
( This is long and rambly and possibly incoherent; also has spoilers for all of BSG )

bsg, rose is weird

Comments 16

nicole_anell May 14 2009, 03:54:04 UTC

*hearts your review*

He's changed his grade from an F to a C. But it used to be an F, really!
I did see that F, and I thought it was hucking filarious. Two words, Jacob: MODERATE OPINIONS. Check 'em out, they'll change your life.

On Cavemen vs. Astronauts: The depressing Whedon answer was that cavemen always win. Magic, Earth, primal forces over science and safe houses. BSG kind of... oddly embraced that? I don't know if they meant to.

But I think it was you who wrote before about the human race being en route to devolving and losing all their technology anyway. New Caprica was not a thriving city. Galactica was coming apart. *One last tube of toothpaste in the universe*. In that context, Lee's call was drastic, but it wasn't as drastic as some viewers are making it out to be.

I find it makes me resent 'Maelstrom' more than I did when it was first broadcast, oddly enough.Kara is the one thing in the finale I really haven't processed my own feelings on at all. I didn't necessarily like or dislike it. I think the way it ( ... )

rose_griffes May 14 2009, 04:17:01 UTC

Hah, I think I had no thoughts on Caprica and Gaius because you already said it all. Their story arc was the most satisfying--not perfect, but a lot of excellent character moments plus redemption! They were never my POV characters, though except for mocking Gaius a couple of times in ficlets. Caprica still fascinates me, but beccatoria's fic said so much about her character that I don't feel the need to add anything else.

On Cavemen vs. Astronauts: The depressing Whedon answer was that cavemen always win. Magic, Earth, primal forces over science and safe houses. BSG kind of... oddly embraced that? I don't know if they meant to.

More than embrace... it's like they said that the cavemen were better for being less advanced. Nothing wrong with cavemen, or living without a flushing toilet, but I like my toothbrush, y'know?
And, uh, speaking and stuff like that.

Kara is the one thing in the finale I really haven't processed my own feelings on at all. I didn't necessarily like or dislike it. I think the way it was done and the ambiguity of ( ... )

lyssie May 14 2009, 04:20:44 UTC

*is number three to want to know Cylon numbers*

sabaceanbabe May 14 2009, 13:16:08 UTC

You know, your POV characters really do seem to have a LOT to do with whether you liked the finale or not. Helo lived. The man who was supposed to die in the first half of the miniseries and who didn't even have a name, went on to be one of the few survivors of the entire series. And while Kara went poof and Sam flew into the sun, they still established that they truly loved each other and they got a kind of closure. And thus I can live with the whole package without being too bitter about the things I didn't like.

I hadn't thought about the fact that any female child in an unbroken line from an Eight would have that mitochondrial DNA, not just Hera. Thank you for that.

rose_griffes May 15 2009, 01:24:17 UTC

You know, your POV characters really do seem to have a LOT to do with whether you liked the finale or not.
Yeah, I'd agree with that.

And yes, Kara and Sam didn't go live happily ever after but they didn't break apart my OTP, either--which I was expecting.

I daybreak777 May 14 2009, 16:03:54 UTC

I agree with the above comment. As much as I say I care about the other characters, I did care more about my top four. Kara, Felix, Lee and Laura. And heck, they were kind of important this season! So it's hard to be happy with the finale (or the show as a whole maybe? I don't think that's me, though) if their ends don't make sense to me.

I was just thinking about Leoben. I don't know Leoben as well as you do and never will. But there is a part of me that is totally pissed about how he ended here! This guy was almost a prophet in Flesh and Bone. He knew about Kobol! He knew about Kara. It was all creepy and mystical and stuff. But he didn't know about Kara, I guess. Season 4 really took away a lot of what I was interested in with Leoben. Not just his connection to Kara but who I thought he was. But hey, I didn't know him that well so maybe I was wrong all along. :-) But if he were a favorite of mine, I would not be happy with all the times CKR was credited only to be given the occasional throwaway line. It's like he from prophet to ( ... )

Re: I lyssie May 14 2009, 18:40:33 UTC

Because if Boomer had survived, then the depressing statistic about the female characters introduced in AND SURVIVING the mini-series wouldn't be quite so depressing? (out of EVERY WOMAN introduced in the mini-series, who survived it, only HEAD!SIX made it through the finale. EVERY FEMALE CHARACTER DIED. [Caprica wasn't retconned alive until Downloaded, she doesn't count])

Re: I daybreak777 May 15 2009, 01:56:25 UTC

EVERY FEMALE CHARACTER DIED.
I understand what you mean. I made that vid of women of color on BSG, remember? I still love my vid but every woman in that vid besides Athena is dead. It's a little eerie watching, though I still love those women. When I made it I was sure random Quorum women were safe! Now I'm wondering about Seelix, Ishay, and Showboat.

They could have written something interesting for Boomer to do, maybe. But they didn't. See my grade for the finale below. :-(

Re: I rose_griffes May 15 2009, 01:35:32 UTC

I don't know Leoben as well as you do and never will. But there is a part of me that is totally pissed about how he ended here! This guy was almost a prophet in Flesh and Bone. He knew about Kobol! He knew about Kara. It was all creepy and mystical and stuff. But he didn't know about Kara, I guess. Season 4 really took away a lot of what I was interested in with Leoben. Not just his connection to Kara but who I thought he was.

Yes, you're right. I think I'm more annoyed at the loss of opportunity for the character/actor than anything else connected with him. (And yes, he's been a favorite of mine, but I also have a tendency not to think about him as much when he's not around, so... I'm fickle with my character love!)

Your reaction to BSG has always been more milder than mine, I think. I know you love the show but I let myself get emotional about it because that was fun for me. All the angst and squee. You also are more focused with writing fic about the show than I am. I watched the show mostly for the show.Mmm, I think being ( ... )

Thread 6

II daybreak777 May 14 2009, 16:21:13 UTC

Which is also why the 'Let's give up technology and live on the land!' aspect isn't as bothersome to me, either.
It just didn't seem very Lee-like to me. Not a bad idea and it's an interesting point you and nicole_anell make about the New Caprica colony not being viable. I think I didn't realized it at the time but I don't think I ever believed that they'd ever survive on any planet. I still don't. I don't think of the colonists as 'us'. Nope. I think that some people may have dropped themselves here 150,000 years ago but they all died except for a little girl that 'we' adopted and now she's apart of us. I'm good with Hera. Yes, I think of 'us' as those primitive peoples. Yes, they will totally WIN. They should win. Evolution deems it so.

I should mention I have no scientific basis for believing this. It was just my impression when watching. I'm no scientist!

You know who I've missed lately? Especially after watching the fan re-edit? Sammy. I do! I was trying to deny I liked him that much but I do miss him. Somehow he grew on me, sigh. I ( ... )

Re: II rose_griffes May 15 2009, 01:41:19 UTC

You know who I've missed lately? Especially after watching the fan re-edit? Sammy. I do! I was trying to deny I liked him that much but I do miss him. Somehow he grew on me, sigh. I missed having him be coherent and alive. I missed the potential of who he might have been when he was aphasic. I miss that of them all, you know? Such potential lost! Kara could had done or been anything she wanted. I miss her having a choice. Lee who used to believe in civilization and the law. Where did that all go? I miss him being the fleet's conscience. I miss the idea of Leoben knowing mysterious things and being this scary mad prophet whom you can't ignore. All of them had something. That's why Gaius' journey is so satisfying. Gaius reached his potential. It was a truly touching and lovely moment. I'd watch it again and again but it makes me sad because he's the only one who got that. I'm not sure what to say about Caprica. I like her but I don't think I truly got her voice in the text. I've started watching the fan re-edit... haven't finished yet ( ... )

Re: II daybreak777 May 15 2009, 07:12:38 UTC

But if you could, clearly you'd give it back to the student producers and tell them that they can do better... and you'd be right.
Nope! I'm grading what I was given too. (I think we got the same paper and just weighed things differently. :-)) I'm not looking at a new paper. Class is over! One day I may stumble across it and feel I was harsh. But I doubt it. You're Welcome is still an A (my highest grade) five years later. Time changes little for me.

I'm glad you're not tired! Because apparently, I'm not tired of discussing. Though I should be! I should get to bed!

Teacher-me is strict and no-nonsense. :-) I demand high quality in some shows or they'll have to drop my class! I'm talking to you, Smallville! (I have no idea why I accepted SV as a student. I tell you, shows these days . . . ;-))

ubiquirk May 14 2009, 23:18:18 UTC

I'm still deciding about Kara. It may take a series rewatch.

But I'm definitely upset that both strong human women 'died,' even though I cerebrally understand both deaths.

I completely agree that them giving up technology wasn't that big of a shock or horror - they pretty much had to with everything falling apart.

YES. I still hate the dorky robot vids at the end.

rose_griffes May 15 2009, 01:44:01 UTC

I'm still deciding about Kara. It may take a series rewatch.
I think I'm with daybreak777--she mentioned the lost potential of some of these characters. I can't make the show ending different (and I'm not angry about what we got), but I do wish some of the threads hadn't been dropped.