(hopefully that worked.)
Now, all this boating in my head makes me think of ships. And when I think of ships, I think of sci-fi.. because I'm a geek.
(note here: My grammar is horrible, as is sometimes my spelling. Mostly because my thoughts come too fast for my fingers to accurately translate into proper written English, so shut up about it and keep reading.)
So, obviously, when thinking about boatshipscifi.. I think about Battlestar Galactica. Now, I know the entire world, like me, is on the edge of their seat salivating in anticipation of each weeks episode leading up to the climax of this epic and awe inspiring program. But I thought I'd talk about just how epic and awe inspiring it actually is.
I am *not* a reviewer, I can't organize my thoughts in my head well enough to make any kind of point (that I don't later go and completely counter ) so I won't *try* to review BSG.. I simply want to talk about it.
Last night was episode 4.16 or 4.19 technically (since Razor counts as eps 1 and 2 of season 4) which either way you slice it means we have 4 episodes left until probably the best sci-fi epic since Babylon 5 comes to it's close. In honor of any show reaching it's end, I go back and marathon through the entire series.. BSG was no exception. And I must say, everyone *EVERYONE* should watch this show. Battlestar succeeds everywhere Star Trek for the last 10 years has failed, it succeeds where any Star Wars since 1983 has failed. And, well, obviously, (don't you love commas?) it succeeds where it's 1978 predecessor failed miserably.
It tells a story, that frankly, could be told at any time and place. It just happens to be set in space, which is the best kind of sci-fi. Stories that don't bog themselves down in telling a straight science fiction yarn. They simply tell human drama, against a backdrop of stars. That was J. Michael Stracyznski's notion with Babylon 5, and that has been Ron D. Moore and David Eick's notion for the past 6 years with Battlestar Galactica. Yes, it has spaceships, and jump drives, and robots, and zany sci-fi stables, but it never bogged itself down with "plasma chambers, phase conducting inducers, and reversed quantum flow polarities" or as we have lovingly come to know it, "Treknobabble" Arguably the downfall of Star Trek proper. And by not focusing on the hows and whys of sci-fi, they told a story about people. People in a desperate situation defying the odds to survive. In any other genre, I dare say this particular story would be just as good. But it's not any genre, it's sci-fi, and we love it.
The show also made the right move in deciding to end. Yes, 4 seasons is rather short lived, especially given that most sci-fi is more likely to run 7-10 years by today's standards. But despite the overwhelming support for the show, the ratings have never been "Super Stellar". (One could argue that this is due to new media viewing habits as *all* ratings have declined, yet we know people still watch TV ) And it would only be a matter of time before Sci-Fi Channel pulled the plug (hell, they killed Farscape for reasons of ratings, and it was getting approximately the same numbers that BSG has been pulling it. Though the last season has seen BSG's numbers spike nicely). Because Sci-Fi are dicks like that. Anyway, deciding to end the show on their terms gave the writers the opportunity to tell the story how they wanted and not have to suddenly scramble to resolve plot (i.e. SG-1, Atlantis, Space: Above and Beyond, Farscape, Firefly(through Serenity), and even Babylon 5 (season 4)). This is good, because most (decent) sci-fi has some pretty hefty plot to work through, and when we the viewer don't get that satisfying resolution, we tend to go a little mad.. and it also serves to give the show a new sense of purpose. "This is it, we're getting to the end, so let's make it awesome" is the mindset these people get into.
Lost, another gold mine of awesome, has pulled a similar trick (Which Charlie commented on the other day) and the show has never been better. I can absolutely say the same for BSG. I have bled from my eyes every friday night for the last 5 weeks; despite being disgusting, it is also awesome.
I love science fiction. I really do.. I live for the thought that maybe someday in my lifespan we'll be up there.. if only in our solar system, at least up there. The universe is far to vast a space for us to spend our hundred sitting on it shuffling around in monotony. So to be able to escape into a good space tale about living among the stars and struggling to further humanity, it's bliss for me. And that's what this show has been, bliss. It's not an ideal future, it's no Roddenbury. These people are flawed as hell, but that's perfect, because so are we.
It's been one hell of a ride, and while my babbling may not have had any real point.. I guess the point is this. You owe it to yourselves to watch this show. It reaches people on so many different levels that it would be impossible not to enjoy. So go, iTunes it, Hulu it, DVD it, or *ahem* other means of viewing. But do yourself a solid.. watch Battlestar Galactica.
I'm on a motherf*ckin boat.
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