And now for something completely controversialicious.

[Hammerskjold]

I wonder if it is in any way significant that Six is facing the opposite way from Jesus in the original photo, or whether that's just a slight variation of composition.

-Jester

Seems like it's a slight variation, since I've seen more than one composition. None are radically different or anything, one has the Six in red more centered, another has her noticeably less so. Great photo none the less, it'd make a great poster for galactica junkies.

And I personally like this artist's rendition as well.

http://www.projectkooky.com/dylan/art/illo...battlestar.html

Now, I have to yap about the 2 parter opening episode, so spoilers alert.






SPOILERS ALERT!
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The first 10 minutes of the opening of 1.1 to me, contains IMO, one of the most intense and beautiful, heart pounding and sack scrunching, space battle scene ever rendered on screen. It's different from the Escape From New Caprica scene, but in terms of visual impact I would not hesitate to put it on the same level of HOLY S&^%(! that was 7 kinds of awesome.

But what really floored me, was how it's tied in to a sense of danger that makes it hit me on an emotional level. During the battle when one of the Cylon raider careened into a colonial ship, resulting in it's destruction. I actually felt a bit sick. I never noticed the ship, don't remember ever hearing of the ship named the 'Pyxis' before this, yet I caught myself going 'NO!!' when it went kablouie, and Rosland said 600 souls are gone.

I don't mind Tigh's 'waking nightmare' scene, I actually think it's something of a cheeky move that to me, a storyteller on top of their game can pull off.

It's a hell of a way to open a season. I wouldn't be surprised if they blew most of the budget for the whole episode in that opening 10 minutes space battle scene. But I'm not complaining, I trust their sense of pacing. It certainly floored me at least.

Episode 1.2, showed more glimpses on the Cylon side and sets up the pay off I hope, of what was hinted at ep. 1.1 and 'Razor'. That being, dissension in the Cylon nation and tremors of a split in the ranks. If I understand it right, Raiders can recognize a Cylon. Most of the 7 does not seem to be able to detect the 5, but a Raider seems to be able to detect a fellow Cylon no problem, in the case of the 5 once they are 'switched on' at least.

After seeing 1.2, I really wonder if the meaning of the cryptic 'All this has happened before, and will again' phrase is actually hidden in plain sight. The first Cylon war AFAIK was the uprising of the Cylon against their Colonial masters and creators. Now however, there is a similar pattern of if not oppresion, then at least condescension done by the organic humanoid model to the mechanical Centurions and organic-mechanical Raider models.

When one of the Cavil model started saying that Raiders are not suppose to be that smart, they've exceeded their programming and basically that's not necessarily a good thing, this could've been something that came out of the mouths of a colonial 40+ years ago. One of my favourite part being a Cavil model saying the Raiders are not pets, they're tools. 'All this has happened before, and will again?'

Seems some of the Cylons definitely mimicked the humans all too well. You might as well say All Cylons are equal, but some Cylons are more equal than others. The Natalie scenes are great, rise up my mechanical Cyloteriat brothers and sisters! (Well ok if the leader of the new 'Mecha is just as Cylon as the Orga' movement looked like Tricia Helfer I'd probably be more sympathetic to the cause too.)

A few more things. Although the origin of the title text of the Cylon's 'they have a plan' was supposedly just a throwaway 'it sounded cool at the time' thing, I like how it's now turned into a subtle but substantial thing. The text is now gone for the new season, and at one point in ep. 1.2 it's almost explicitly said that the Cylons -had- a plan, my interpretation that plan was executed brilliantly in the infiltration and surprise nuking of the 12 colonies, but now they're almost as blind as the Colonials.

I'm still not quite sure what to think of the Gaius\Jesus\Koresh angle, but it's entertaining to me for the time being at least.