Thank the Gods for Caprica. So Say We All!
April 22, 2009 by nina
Filed under TV/Movie Reviews
Oh, how I had hoped Caprica, the new Sci-Fi original series – Battlestar Galactica prequel – set to air in 2010, would not suck. When I heard the news that season four would be Battlestar Galactica’s (The Best Show in the History of EVER) last, I was sad. Then I watched 4.0 as it aired and was devastated. How could I not have this show to look forward to for 2-3 months of Fridays every year? During season 4.5 it became my “don’t call here, don’t bug me, and no I’m not cooking tonight” show.
I savored every episode. Some four or five times. When I played Halo 3 online I began to refer to the map displaying bad guys as Dradis. I answered the house phone, “Galactica actual,” and I’d been known to cuss a motherfrakker the frak out. I’ve watched the series finale about 15 times and I refuse to delete season 4.5 from the bedroom TiVo until I have the complete series on Blu-Ray this summer. Yes, I might have to sell an ovary to afford it, but hey, I already have two kids (a girl and a boy) and besides, I have another one. My Rock Band name is Caprica and my band’s name is The Final Five Cylons. (Don’t judge me!)
I cried like Gimpy Gaeta when Anders shot in him in the leg as the show ended and the only thing to keep me from going completely insane with grief was the knowledge that I still had Battlestar Galactica: The Plan to look forward to this fall, and Caprica in 2010.
“Please God, don’t let Caprica suck. Let it be good. And let enough of us diehard BSG fans watch faithfully so that the SciFi Network won’t pull a bonehead move and cancel it after like, three episodes. Please God don’t let me have to go black girl crazy and cut somebody.”
Last night, Donny came home with the DVD pilot of Caprica and I was afraid to watch it. I needed this to be good. I needed it to be great. It did not disappoint. I watched it twice last night and another three times this morning.
Caprica is set 58 years before the fall of the 12 colonies. Daniel Greystone (Eric Stoltz) is like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates rolled into one. He’s perfecting his Cybernetic Life Form Nodes (Cylons) when his teenage daughter Zoe (Alessandra Torenson) dies suddenly. After her death, Daniel discovers that he wasn’t the only brain in the family dabbling in artificial life.
Zoe Greystone
Joseph Adams/Adama (Esai Morales), an attorney, has also lost a daughter and through their mutual grief the two men embark on a journey that questions religion, death, life after death, and playing God (or Gods.)
I think fans of BSG (as the cool kids call it) will be satisfied. It has that same blend of drama and sci-fi that worked so well on Galactica. One of the things that made BSG so appealing was it’s rich history. It’s a sign of a great show that we know how it ends, yet we are still interested in seeing how it began. And once Caprica begins, you stay interested.
Yeah, I was a little disappointed that there were’t more… connections to BSG, but it’s a different show and I know I gotta “let it go.” The only character on Caprica that existed on BSG is young Willie Adams/Adama… and he’s 11! I found myself thinking early on, “Right now, the final five Cylons are on their way to warn humanity. Too bad they won’t arrive for at least another 20 years and we know how that ends up.”
I love that we see the origins of Cylons (at least the 12 colonies’ version) and their belief in the one true God. I love that Caprica looked different than the Caprica we saw in flashbacks during BSG’s run. Things change in six decades. This new vision of Caprica looks old-timey, yet sophisticated. It looks like a culture on the verge of big changes and innovations.
Was I the only one that immediately went to Adama giving Apollo his grandfather's lighter when watching this scene?
I wondered whether it was a coincidence that two of the people most responsible for the attack on the colonies (Greystone and Baltar) lived in damn near identical homes/areas. Unfortunately, though entertaining, the commentary by Ronald Moore, David Eick, and director Jeffrey Reiner didn’t touch on that – but we do learn that the V-Club seen throughout the pilot is the same as the Opera House in BSG.
There’s lots of good stuff here – Adama and Greystone are both tortured and driven to do bad things in order to hold on to pieces of their beloved daughters, the early Centurions, great acting by Alessandra Torenson, and wonderful music by Bear McCreary. Seriously, can he just score every show on TV from now on? I found myself restarting the show to have it play while I did homework, just to hear the fabulous music.
My only complaint? We have to wait for 2010 to find out what happens next.
Nina is a 34-year-old mother, wife and writer who spends her days blogging, studying, changing diapers and watching ridiculous amounts of TV. She currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband, two children and three TiVos.
I have never watched BSG, and I’m not huge on sci-fi, but Caprica sounds interesting from this and from the Wikipedia page I just read.
Do you think a non BSG-er can get into it?
I think so. One of the great things about Galactica (and I wasn’t big on science fiction either) is that it had tons of drama and easy to relate to storylines.
Caprica seems to have even less science fiction than BSG.
And Esai Morales is yummy. Win win!
Esai will always be Richie’s big brother in LaBamba. That doesnt make him any less sexy.
So Say We All!
OMG, I was geeking out from the minute it started and I recognized the Opera House. Promise you won’t judge me when I say I not only thought of Adama giving Apollo the lighter, but also teared up a little?
Honestly, I loved everything about it. The fact that we know how it all turns out just makes it even more awesome. The history, religion, racism – all fascinating.
And those last few minutes gave me chills… I want to say more but I don’t know want to be too spoily.
PS. I can’t have been the only one wondering why in the bloody hell he didn’t make a back-up, can I?
Also, why do I have a crush on Eric Stoltz? I don’t even like redheads and Some Kind of Wonderful is way over.
The fact that Baltar’s and Greystone’s mansions look so similar could make sense within the BSG universe. In fact, I thought maybe it was meant to be the same house or development, just shot from different angles. The bedrooms in particular seemed nearly identical.
Graystone is obviously a kind of Bill Gates or Steve Jobs figure: the kind of people who build extravagant houses worth millions. Such properties are rare and hard to get rid of, so it’s not so surprising to think that, 60 years later, it would have been sold to Gaius Baltar, a similarly wealthy figure. The differences could be explained as renovations
.
Oh yeah, I wasn’t pointing it out as a bad thing. I like links and continuity.
I thought Adama’s hat gave it that old-timey look you mention. It’s very 40s mobster. lol
I’m so excited i can’t stand it. I need to watch it again tonight.
I hope this isn’t too “spoily”, but I’m going to say it anyway. We know the Centurions eventually turn on their human masters. Could it be because the rebellious tendencies of a 16-year old girl exist in their “genetic” code?
Also, her belief in One True God makes it to all Cylon models.
And, did you notice there was a point in the show where the music was very similar to old BSG theme? Not the same, but like it was a new composition based on the old theme. I’m watching again right now. I’ll let you know what scene it was.
Yeah, but they never touched on where the belief came from in the Centurions created on Caprica. Ellen said that when the FF got to the colonies the war was on and they wanted to instill the belief in OTG in the Centurions, but they already had it. Then again, in the episode w/ the baby, when Tigh says, “No wonder we had to invent a God for them to believe in. We couldn’t have them deify us.” Ellen says, “We didn’t invent anything…” and then Caprica Six cuts her off. They briefly touched on it twice that the Centurions had that belief before the FF came along. Now we know why.
I choose to believe, though never stated, that that is also behind the split of the 13th tribe from the other 12.
I’m telling you, I like Caprica, but I find the details behind the events on Kobol, the 13th tribe of cylons on Earth, the warning to the FF and their trip to the colonies and creation of the skinjobs FASCINATING!
I’d love to know more about that, too. Of course, you know more than I do. I can’t keep it all straight. Have you finished your timeline for me yet??
Oh, and how about the pin-striped suit on Joseph Adama. I hated it when Lee was wearing it, but it looks good on Joseph.
The beginning part of this blog reminded me, there is this guy who just started working at my job, and his last name always makes me giggle outloud when I see it: Fraker.
If that show isn’t coming on until 2010, I am soooo waiting until closer to that time to watch Caprica.
I don’t blame you!
OH NO…..I don’t have time to get interested in another series!! LOL
I’m glad you liked it and I’m sure now you and Mary can have in depth discussions!!! lmao
shut up, you.
I’m glad you liked this. I have not seen it yet but I know you are a faithful BSG fan like me and so I completely trust your judgment. It’s on it’s way from Netflix as we speak.
I was worried about the conflicting story lines. Specifically, it was the Final Five that gave the Cylons the ability to create human-like models, so I was concerned that the Greystone girl would contradict that. You don’t have to answer about this, I’m just eager to see how this is explained in the show.
Yeah, so I don’t have a clue. Just think of this comment as the equivalent to me giving you Myspace kudos.
I might have to give BSG a try. Dan and I are running out of series to watch, we’re waiting on the new season of Dexter (well, I am…Dan can’t handle Dexter)Lost is almost finished, etc.
It is probably going to be one of those shows that make me say, “okay, why did I wait so long???” It took me ages of mocking LOST: “What a grade B series! These people have plucked eyebrows on a deserted island!” – this was after watching ONE episode when I was pregnant with Sol…I refused to watch any more until two years later when i was pregnant with Zaviera and someone gave us the first series. I got hooked.
I’ll let you know if I become a fan.
just dooo eeeet.
I saw this and immediately thought of you…
http://hplusmagazine.com/editors-blog/buy-raptor-fighter-ship-used-battlestar-galactica
Sarah xx
Caprica was good – feared it would be worse. Some things that bothered me: That Adama’s dad was so bloody close to the creation of the Cylons, helped make them possible in fact.
That Adama was fracking ELEVEN, 58 YEARS before Caprica got attacked?? C’mon. EJO isn’t nearly that old – I think he’s barely past 60 in real life. Huge continuity issue there.
i tried to watch it last night…but i got distracted…i have a boyfriend now you know AHAHAHAHAAH Imma watch it tonight