Okay so the whole Anders getting shot was just so he’d have an excuse to suddenly remember everything, but not quite be able to tell us it. kinda lame, but I really needed to know this stuff soon.
also it seemed at first the only reason Boomer was in the room with Ellen was to give them an excuse to tell her part of the story. But at least they redeemed it by having the story convince boomer to fly Ellen to the fleet.
The Anders bit still seems rushed. As much as I loved the Mutiny story line, I almost wish it didn’t happen so the revelations could have been spread out more. I feel like this episode was just reveal after reveal. and while it seemed cool at first it was actually a poor episode, the only redeeming factor was that we got answers we’ve been waiting 4 years for.
Agreed. I believe the term in fictional writing is called a “information dump.” Since they only have 6 episodes left so they need to get their rear in gear and start tying up loose ends.
Yes, quoting one self is goofy but, I just got through listening to some of Podcast #151 and heard Audra talk about ‘info dumping’ in movies and writing:)
Micheal Trucco was in a crash and they wanted to work the scar on his neck into the plot so this is the result. So if it seems rushed it maybe becasue it most likely WAS in real life. But I still loved this ep.
I’m with you on the rush. I liked the ep, though. I actually feel like all of S4.0 was rushed and most of 4.5 so far has been, too. Part of the problem, I think, is that RDM and David Eick were planning for 5 seasons and they kept planting new mystery-seeds all the way through S3. Then they had only 1 season to wrap it up so they couldn’t pace it as well as they previously had. I’m overlooking it since it wasn’t their fault, but considering the constraints I also kind of wish the coup had been cut to give more time to the mysteries.
See, I thought the first half of season 4 moved really slowly and deliberately (a good thing, mind you) until the episode before “The Hub.” Season 4.5 has been a whirlwind. I always got the sense that this was due to a very planned structure where the first ten episodes represent the buildup and the final 10 the denoument and having the episodes aired back to back would’ve reinforced this structure. Having them split apart by nearly a year, however, creates a feeling of rush that I think would seem more organic when viewed as 20 episodes rather than 10+10.
And while “No Exit” does seem like a bit of an info dump (something RDM says as well), it made me think of certain “talkie” plays (think David Mamet–except with less swearing, I guess) where the audience gathers most of the plot from conversations on stage than from a representation of the action, making everything much more psychological.
The thing that strikes me about it, though, is how so much of the history of the cylons as related by Ellen and Cosmo…er, I mean, John Cavil seems made up on the spot yet it makes PERFECT sense in the context of the show so far. This episode left me feeling a bit conflicted, though: for one thing, it’s very nice indeed to get answers to years old questions; for another, however, it feels strange to lose a great deal of the mystery that made the show up to this point what it was. Last night I reached the point where I will never be able to see the first four and a half seasons of this show the same way again. This is probably a good thing, but I have now hit the point where I will never have the joy of discovery in BSG again.
Until we find out who Daniel is and what the frak is going on with Starbuck, I suppose.
Yeah, it did feel rushed, but at least it wasn’t such a magic plot device that there were no consequences. I hate the fact that they might have put Anders out for the rest of the season (hate, hate, hate), but on the other hand, I would have been rolling my eyes like crazy had he just suddenly remembered and nothing bad happen to counter it. There was a price to be paid for all that infodump.
The Ellen flashbacks, on the other hand, felt more contrived, because they were only there to further explain what Anders could not. “Downloaded” did that style of storytelling much better, IMO, because it actually had a plot. Ellen’s storyline was just set-up and exposition, like a lot of Season 4. Can’t really complain, because, wow, we got a lot of answers and it was entertaining. Except, well, I can, because everything deserves a fair criticism, even if I like it in general.
i remember reading somewhere that the finale is going to be 2-3 hours’ long… chill people That equates to some good storytelling yea? Since was dumping of the info laid everything out there, the only way to go IS for the story telling bit…
I was particularly taken by the line “he’s not in there.”
I wonder if, in response to serious brain trauma (like Mr. I’m a PC diggin’ around in your brain. “Golly gee willickers, that doesn’t seem right. Does that go there?”), Anders tried to download … but has nowhere to go.
Or, stranger still … DOES have somewhere to go, and that’s how the fleet will find out about the Cylon Colony. Which, admitedly, is a stretch … since there’s only five episodes and a big honkin’ movie left to go.
Thank all the Gods there’s a 3-hour miniseries to wrap this all up!
I noticed that line too the second time around. I suspect another copy of Anders will come back into the story line at a critical point. The Anders character being written out of the story line brain dead on a table simply does not feel right.
I actually don’t mind the way Anders’ injury caused him to just spew informatoin everywhere, especially since it ended the way it did. What I minded was that outside of Adama/Tyrol and a very brief scene with Lee and Roslin, you were either listening to Cavil and Ellen hash it out or Anders shout information. I want to reiterate that if RDM and Co. hadn’t been so concerned about saving the reveal for the second episode and instead had just gotten on with it starting it with the first ep of 4.5 that we wouldn’t feel so inundated with information at expense of good storytelling. As I’ve always said, bad BSG is still darn good TV, but after the previous two episodes, this one was something of a let-down, lacking the flow and characterization that has made BSG one of my all-time favorite shows.
Cavil and Ellen should have had 2-5 minutes per episode this season half, giving this one so much more time to explore other things.
I don’t know. I still have to watch the episode again to let it sink in, and yeah, it was a lot of exposition to go through, but this sort of thing happens in other fictional genres all the time, especially in longer plays and novels. There’s always some chapter or act that is just about bringing things up to speed before the final push to the finish line in longer form stories. And not everything in this show can be intense fight sequences and mutinies. You’ve all been spoiled by the last couple of episodes. Just sayin’.
Besides, it’s nice to have an acting decathlon like this one from time to time.
The worst possible episode of BSG is still vastly superior to anything else on TV. On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest, the worst episodes rate a 10, the best are off the chart and just frakin amazing.
It actually reminds me of the end of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which was just pages and pages of explanation. I know a lot of people consider that one their favorite whereas that really turned me off and, I felt, killed the momentum. This is a very similar situation except I think the folks writing the show know that it’s better to start dumping it now and lean out the ending, just like how we no longer have to handle Dualla, Zarek, Gaeta, and anyone else from the mutiny that it isn’t convenient to address.
Me too. However, I don’t think re-watching it is going to be all that rewarding. Anders really rambled all over the place and I don’t think you can tie all the pieces together to get a coherent story.
From the preview for next week… [SPOILER]Anders EEG reading looks much higher, but I’m afraid we won’t get to see him recover completely until the finale; that’s what I meant by knocking him out of the storyline.[/SPOILER]
I suppose where Anders being injured in the mutiny was a plot device, I thought it was a nice action/reaction that ultimately feeds 5 more episodes.
You could call Ellen’s return a plot device too, they simply used the dead zone that is the untold story and said, “Hey, we didn’t tell you before but this happened too, see how it fits.”
Is that pre-planning over clever backtracking? Everything is a plot device if you think about. It’s there to further the plot of the story.
Did Cavil know that Saul and Tigh were Cylons and that’s why he tormented them on New Caprica? That’s what they’re suggesting but if that’s the case, wouldn’t Ellen be more pissed at “John” when she remembered what he did to her? Or does she not care now that she knows the truth? Based one what I’ve seen it’s clever coincidence, but maybe they did pre-plan. I’m only speculating of course.
I really enjoyed the Cavil/Ellen sparring. It wasn’t just information dump. There was some neat stuff in there about the nature of existence and the limitations of free will. It was like a warped sci fi version of the book of Job (man sparring with his creator…).
I really liked this ep - particularly the John Cavil / Ellen / Boomer scenes. But then again, a lot of why I liked them (besides getting answers! yay!) has to do with why I find Sartre’s play so interesting, too (I’m not generally a fan of wikipedia but for those who haven’t read/seen the play there’s a short description of it that would be worth looking at.) “l’enfer, c’est les autres,” or, hell is other people.
ETA: Someone already updated the site for the play with a reference to this BSG ep, awesome I don’t have to do it!
That equates to some good storytelling yea? Since was dumping of the info laid everything out there, the only way to go IS for the story telling bit… 
I don’t have to do it!