Battlestar Galactica (2003)/Escape Velocity

Escape Velocity
Season 4, Episode 4
Airdate	April 25, 2008
Written by	Jane Espenson
Directed by	Edward James Olmos
Fleet Survivors	39, 675
← 4x03 The Ties That Bind	4x05 → The Road Less Traveled
Battlestar Galactica (2003) — Season Four

Escape Velocity is the fourth episode of the fourth season of Battlestar Galactica, and the fifty-seventh episode overall.

Edward James Olmos (Admiral William Adama), Mary McDonnell (Laura Roslin), Katee Sackhoff (Kara "Starbuck" Thrace), Jamie Bamber (Lee Adama), James Callis (Dr. Gaius Baltar), Tricia Helfer (Number Six), Grace Park (Number Eight) (credit only)

Michael Hogan (Colonel Saul Tigh), Aaron Douglas (Chief Galen Tyrol), Michael Trucco (Samuel Anders)

Guest Star: Kate Vernon (Ellen Tigh)

Guest Star: Rekha Sharma (Tory Foster)

Co-Starring: Keegan Connor Tracy (Jeanne)

Cast: Leah Cairns (Racetrack), Colin Lawrence (Skulls), Don Thompson (Figurski), Finn R. Devitt (Baby Nicky), Leela Savasta (Tracey Anne), Lara Gilchrist (Paula Schaffer), Donna Soares (Speaking Delegate #1), Andrew McIlroy (Jacob Cantrell), Judith Maxie (Picon Delegate), Iris Paluly (Speaking Delegate #2), Marilyn Norry (Reza Chronides), Heather Doerksen (Surveillance Marine), Laara Sadiq (Priestess), Karen Austin (Lilly), Steve Lawlord (Marine at Baltar's), Hector Johnson (Marine Lieutenant), Lee Jefferies (Redwing)

Uncredited: Rob Hayter (Sons of Ares leader)

Plot Overview

The episode begins with Cally's funeral. Galen makes a mistake repairing a Raptor, almost killing Racetrack and Skulls.

Tory visits Baltar just as his hideout is raided by the "Sons of Ares," a new fundamentalist group. Gaius storms out of hiding to disrupt a ceremony worshipping Zeus, desecrating the temple (in a scene strongly evoking Jesus and the money changers). Baltar is savagely beaten by a guard, and then gives an impromptu sermon to his followers on God's love for them, that they are all perfect as they are (strongly evoking the Sermon on the Mount).

Tigh confronts Six (who beats then kisses him), the President confronts Baltar (who ignores her warnings), Galen confronts the Admiral (and gets demoted for his trouble), and Lee confronts the President at the Quorum (safeguarding freedom of assembly). It's all vaguely therapeutic.

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• A fundamentalist group calling itself Sons of Ares attack the living quarters of Baltar's followers, intent on finding him. Provoked by Six's assertion that the old Gods are fighting back as some of his followers still cling to them, Baltar interrupts a ceremony to vandalise the tempt and berate the attendees for their beliefs. He is taken to the brig and Roslin takes up an emergency measure limiting the size of Baltar's group. Lee objects to making Baltar a special case and after some delegation, it's overturned.

Characters

• Roslin is now wearing a wig. She accepts her death, but appears to becoming more ruthless.

• Tigh has been frequenting Caprica-Six. At one point, he sees her as Ellen. He wants to know how she can turn off the guilt from her actions. She tells him that, as Cylon brains are modelled on humans, she learns from her experiences. Drawn in by seeing her as Ellen, he gets upset when she mentions Baltar, which prompts her to attack him before she kisses him.

• Tyrol's doubts are now amplified and a mistake on the deck only agitates his grief. This leads him to lash out at both Adama and Cally. Feeling his behaviour has become reckless, Adama has him report for reassignment.

• Tory is convinced that they, as Cylons, are perfect.

• Baltar is prompted to fight back, even allowing himself to be beaten. He later tells everyone of his realisation that God, as her prefers to call it, loves him and everyone because they are perfect despite their faults.

Referbacks

• Adama tells Roslin that Baltar is "back at home in the brig again" as he was for a significant portion of Season 3.

Quotes

• Baltar: Sons of Ares, they're the people who committed this attack. Obviously a fundamentalist splinter group. Although, all they're doing is trying to protect the old Gods.

Number Six: Old Gods die hard. Even among your people.

Baltar: (to a woman) I've seen you here before, haven't I? Your name is - don't tell me. Begins with M.

Lilly: Lilly.

Baltar: Lilly. What's in your hand, Lilly?

(Baltar pries her hand open, revealing an amulet)

Baltar: Asclepius. The god of healing.

Lilly: I know you'll heal our people. But I thought...

Number Six: The old Gods are fighting back.

• Skulls: It's okay.

Tyrol: Is it? Skulls? Is it?

Racetrack: Galen!

Tyrol: I don't need to be patted on the head! You can tell me I frakked up.

Racetrack: Nobody got hurt, okay? Forget it. You're only human.

Tyrol: No! Don't say that! Tell me I frakked up! Say it! Tell me I frakked up! Anyone of you! Cowards!

• Number Six: People have room in their hearts for one great belief, you or the old Gods. Which one will it be?

Baltar: Why can't I just be a man? Do I really need to take on the Gods single-handed?

Number Six: Oh, but imagine the kind of man you'll be when you do. Surely such a man must be magnificent, larger-than-life, godlike himself.

• Roslin: I want you to look at me, Gaius. Just look at me. This is a wig. I'm dying. Now, if you look in my eyes -- Go ahead, look. You can probably see it.

Baltar: I'm very sorry.

Roslin: No, no, no, no. I don't want your pity. I'm still doing my job. In fact, I'm gonna aggressively pursue the men that attacked you. And I'm going to limit the size of public assemblies to protect your people, but I'm going to be slipping away from this life very soon. And I've gotten kind of curious as to what that's going to be like, and so I did some research. And there are some people who say that when people are getting closer to their death, they just don't care as much about rules and laws and conventional morality.

Baltar: Are you threatening me?

Roslin: No, no, I'm just saying have a quiet life, and I'll die a quiet little death, and everyone will be happy. It's just that I'm not in the mood any longer to indulge you. And that's... all. And you are being released, so stay safe.

• Adama: She was a good woman.

Tyrol: If you really believe that, you wouldn't have threatened to stick her up against a bulkhead and shoot her. It's okay, though. I thought about doing it many times myself. Believe me.

Adama: Chief, it's...

Tyrol: How many of us ended up with the people we really wanted to be with? Got stuck with the best of limited options? And why? Because the ones we really wanted, the really loved, were dead, and dying, or turned out to be Cylons and they didn't know it. If Boomer had...

Adama: Listen.

Tyrol: If I had known...

Adama: Let's - Let's go.

Tyrol: No. No. I didn't know.

Adama: Let's go home.

Tyrol: I didn't know. So I buried my head in the sand, and I took it, and I settled. I settled for that shriek. Those dull, vacant eyes. The boiled cabbage stench of her. And why? Because this is my life! This is the life I picked! And it's fine, but you know what? It's not! I didn't pick this life! This is not my frakkin' life!

Adama: What the hell's gotten into you? Don't do this. Don't do this to her memory.

Tyrol: You know what? I'm sorry if I'm not going to do this the way you want me to, or the way you might, but I will not make an angel out of someone who wasn't an angel. But I can see you have. And now you've come down here to be in my club. But you're not in my club. You don't know what frakking club I'm in 'cause you never ask the right questions.

Adama: Chief, let's get out of here.

Tyrol: No. Why don't you go? Take care of your precious ship.

Adama: Stop it! Stop all of this! 'Cause if you don't, I'm going to have to act on it. Now shut up!

Tyrol: Great! Do it! Please! For the love of Gods, please demote me! Get me off your frakking ship!

Adama: Specialist Tyrol, I want you off my hangar deck before you endanger another pilot. You're to report to Petty Officer Basim tomorrow morning at 0600 for reassignment. Do you understand?

• Baltar: Thank you.

Lee: I don't do these things for you.

Baltar: You do them because your God compels you.

• Baltar: I am not a priest. I've never even been a particularly good man. I have, in fact, been a profoundly selfish man. But that doesn't matter, you see. Something in the universe loves me. Something in the universe loves the entity that is me. I would choose to call this something "God", a singular spark that dwells in the soul of every living being. If you look inside yourself you will find this spark, too. You will. But you have to look. Deep. Love your faults. Embrace them. If God embraces them, then how can they be faults? Love yourself. You have to love yourself. If we don't love ourselves, how can we love others? And when we know what we are, then we can find the truth out about others. See what they are. The truth about them. And you know what the truth is? The truth about them. About you. About me. Do you? The truth is we are all perfect, just as we are. God only loves that which is perfect and He loves you. He loves you because you are perfect. You are perfect just as you are.