This is the second of a two-part episode called "Exodus". Back in
1979, the second issue of the BSG70 comic published by Marvel
Comics was also titled "Exodus", the second part of their
adaptation of the pilot, "Saga of a Star World". I used that
title as the title of
"Saga of a Star World" Part 2
in the PopApostle study.
This episode is the first television appearance of the Raptor
pilot
Paolo "Redwing" McKay, though he chronologically appears earlier
in "Gods & Monsters" Part 2.
Ellen Tigh (dies in this episode, but is eventually seen as
resurrected as one of the Final Five Cylons)
Number Four
Number Five
Laura Roslin
Tom Zarek
Gunnery Sergeant Erin Mathias
Tory Foster
Hera/Isis
Maya (dies in the episode)
Charlie Connor
Helo
Captain Kelly
Kat
Racetrack
Boomer
Starbuck
Leoben Conoy
Jammer
Galen Tyrol
Hot Dog
Paolo "Redwing" McKay
Kacey
Caprica Six
Head Six
Julia Brynn (Kacey's real mother)
Cally
Didja Notice?
At 10:39 on the Blu-ray, we see a rotary phone on Gaeta's desk
on Colonial One.
At 10:41 on the Blu-ray, we see that Gaeta is drawing a picture
of a gigantic sword over a simple landscape with trees.
Possibly, this is a reference to the Sword of Damocles.
The Sword of Damocles is from a Greek legend that tells of the
man Damocles who exclaims that the emperor Dionysius is truly
fortunate for all his power and fortune. Dionysius offers to let
Damocles exchange lives for a day so he may feel what it's like
and the man eagerly agrees. Damocles is then treated like a king
and enjoys a sumptuous meal in the court. Only after he finishes
eating does he notice a sword dangling precariously above, held
by a thread, whereupon Damocles asks the emperor's leave, saying
he no longer wants to be so fortunate. The tale is meant to
illustrate the constant fear and danger felt by those in power.
At 18:55 on the Blu-ray, several
Dixon China Markers
are seen on the battle map in Galactica's CIC.
At 25:40 on the Blu-ray, Gaeta threatens to kill Baltar with a
Vektor CP1 pistol. Baltar himself carries a CP1 as he searches
for Number Three shortly after.
At 25:55 on the Blu-ray, a PAN-GAL (Pan-Galactic) ship is seen
lifting off from New Caprica. This is probably the same
Pan-Galactic ship seen escaping Ragnar Anchorage shortly after
the decimation of the Twelve Colonies in
"Flight".
Gaeta accuses Baltar of having brought the remnants of humanity
to the apocalypse, then says "And I turned out to be..." Baltar
finishes for him, "An idealist. There's no sin in that." But
what was Gaeta actually going to say he was? Possibly it was
"idealist"...but might it have been "collaborator"? The way I
see it, Gaeta probably did think he was an idealist at first and by
following Baltar when Baltar was elected president, the
president's
betrayal of humanity led Gaeta into what he sees as being a
collaborator with the Cylons. Gaeta's heart, and, to an extent,
his mind, is broken by this realization. This nicely sets him up
for events to follow, where, in the fourth season of the series,
he betrays Adama and Roslin when they enter into an accord with
the Cylon rebels, he no longer able to trust leadership figures.
Apollo sets the Pegasus on a collision course with one of the
four Cylon basestars, destroying both vessels. The skeleton crew
of the Pegasus escapes in Raptors before the collision. It's
possible the producers were inspired by the BSG70 Marvel comic
book issue #13,
"Collision Course".
In this episode, we learn that Starbuck's "apartment"
on New Caprica was
located within the New Caprica Detention Center.
At 34:17 on the Blu-ray, Baltar finds Maya dead. Does he know
that she was Hera's guardian? It's not revealed, but, as
vice-president at the time the baby was given to her, it's
possible he's known all along and did not reveal it to the
Cylons during the occupation of New Caprica. He calls the baby
Hera, so he knows the girl's name, which suggests he knows her
parentage; the comment from Head Six that
"it's her" also suggests this.
Near the end of this episode, Starbuck learns that she is not
Kacey's real mother. Kacey's mother is seen here, but not named
except in the closing credits, as Julia. Later, in "Torn", we learn her
last name (and therefore, Kacey's last name) is
Brynn.
When Tigh tells Adama that not everyone made it, Adama seem to
realize instinctively that Ellen Tigh is one of the dead.
Adama shaves with a
DOVO
Solingen razor at the end of the episode.
Unanswered Questions
Considering the fleet's limited supplies in the first place, how
much Colonial equipment was left behind on New Caprica during
the evacuation?
Did all of the fleet ships on New Caprica manage to leave it
successfully?
How many people were left behind on New Caprica? What happened
to them?
