Rent Battlestar Galactica: Series 2 (2005)

Battlestar Galactica: Series 2 review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso

Series 2 of Battlestar Galactica really does stack the deck after having such an eventful cliffhanger of the first season. The last episode left Commander Adama shot, a Cylon revealed, and the Galactica crew scrambling for order amid uncertainty. What follows is more of the tense drama we’ve come to expect from the first season, even if there are a few dead spots here and there with exploring the ins and outs of the Colonial Fleet.

The race to restore order after season one gets the series up and running fast, as Galactica crew members find themselves in a tough spot. With Adama out of action, others step up to the plate to assert control and keep the Cylon issue firmly in the crosshairs to avoid another double-cross or surprise. Nobody expected one of the returning pilots to be a Cylon but, then again, she didn’t think she was a Cylon either. More questioning of identity comes up in this season as the Cylons find themselves losing their grip on who they are and what exactly they’re fighting for when life becomes almost a superfluous theory in the quest for robotic dominance.

Where this season hits it best point is in the mid-season arc where the Galactica runs into the Razor, another Battlestar that is operational and combat-ready. However, much has changed since Capirca’s fall, and the Galactica now finds itself standing off with a dangerous Captain who throws the Colonial Fleet into a tricky hostage situation. With the Cylons looming in the background, tough calls will have to be made as Adama jumps back into the role of Captain and perhaps even Admiral if he can navigate his way through such an ordeal.

The Razor arc is compelling but once that rousing battle of Vipers and ideals is concluded, the show settles into some more uncomfortable aspects of the fleet that feel somewhat ill-resolved. There’s one episode in particular where Galactica officers confront a ship that has essentially transformed into a scummy black market of slave labor and mafia dealings. The whole episode feels like a half-thought idea for Star Trek, one which addresses a topic but doesn’t really come to any meaningful resolution. The Galactica crew ultimately decide that this issue is a bit out of their league and more or less leave this situation alone, leaving the ship to deal with its own problems.

The season does pick up towards the end when a solution for the fleet is posed. A planet that habitable is discovered. While this doesn’t initially seem like the planet foretold in the legends of where the new home for humans shall be, there are a lot of desperate people who are hoping this will be the spot where they no longer need to remain in the cold steel of starships for the rest of their lives. The decision to make a colony on this planet ultimately comes down to political control and the grab for power to make this colonization a reality literally shakes the foundations of the fleet. There’s deception, secrets, and an explosive end to this situation. As if that weren’t enough, the season ends with the newly established colony of New Caprica that is soon revealed not to be safe, as the Cylons arrive and forces the Galactica to retreat, leaving the survivors of Capirca undefended from Cylon occupation.

Season 2 has its ups and downs but the highs this season are so damn good that the morally adrift episodes are not as damning. The acting is still exceptionally powerful, the special effects a real treat for peak TV of the 2000s, and music score really gets tense during this season in particular. It’s a rocky season but also features some of the most thrilling scenes of the series, proving just how strong Battlestar Galactica can be as a space opera worth sticking with.