Battlestar Galactica: Razor

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Battlestar Galactica: Razor

DVD cover for unrated extended version of Razor
Developed by Ronald D. Moore[1]
Written by Michael Taylor[2]
Directed by Félix Enríquez Alcalá
Starring see below
Composer(s) Bear McCreary
Language(s) English
Production
Running time 88 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel Sci Fi Channel
Original airing 24 November 2007
Chronology
Preceded by Crossroads, Part II
Followed by He That Believeth in Me
External links
Official website
IMDb profile

Battlestar Galactica: Razor is a television film of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica television series. It premiered in the United States on Sci Fi Channel,[3] in Canada on the Space channel[4] and in the United Kingdom on Sky One.

Contents

[edit] Production

Sci Fi Channel confirmed on March 21, 2007 that part of the show's renewal for a fourth season of 22 episodes included a television film to be released sometime in the fall of 2007. The film comprises the first two of 22 episodes.

While Razor is set in the past (in relation to the conclusion of season three), Ronald D. Moore has stated that "the events set up in that story will then pay off in Season 4."[5] He explained his rationale for involving the Pegasus, saying that "one of the story lines everyone had really liked was the Pegasus story and the character of Admiral Cain, so we decided to go with that."

In the weeks prior to the movie's premiere on the Sci-Fi Channel, a series of mini "webisodes" (each less than five minutes in length) called Razor Flashbacks were screened online to promote it. These featured a young William Adama (played by Nico Cortez) as a Viper pilot on his first mission at the end of the first Cylon War over 40 years earlier. The inclusion of the first Cylon War was a relevant plot point within the Razor TV movie and viewers got to see Cylon Centurions, Raiders and Basestars similar to those in the original series. Further references to the original series included a golden Centurion commander, and another Cylon saying "By your command." However, though the Cylon Centurions seen here are similar in design to the original series Cylons, they were CGI rather than actors in suits.

[edit] Plot synopsis (extended version)

Razor takes place during Commander Lee Adama's first days as commanding officer of Battlestar Pegasus (during the period originally covered in the second half of season 2; after the episode "The Captain's Hand" but before "Lay Down Your Burdens") and uses flashbacks to show Admiral Cain's orders during and shortly after the Cylon attack, as well as events occurring on the final day of the first Cylon War. Cain's actions in the wake of the holocaust are connected to the present by Kendra Shaw, self-described as Cain's legacy.

Events of the final day of the first Cylon war are centered on Admiral Adama, then a Viper pilot, and Admiral Cain, a youngster at the time. Flashbacks of Adama discovering a lab housing the early Cylon experiments on humans as well as the first Cylon hybrid and Admiral Cain abandoning her little sister during a Cylon invasion of Tauron both end as the first Cylon war ends immediately after the life-changing events, leaving each character hanging somewhat (Adama is unable to free the surviving prisoners and Cain cannot find her sister). These are shown to be driving forces for the actions of both admirals as the show continues. Cain goes on to teach Shaw that you have to become a razor to survive during war while referring to her pocket knife, which later becomes Kendra's and then is passed on to Starbuck at the end of the show. Admiral Adama teaches his son Lee a different lesson: that they cannot become butchers.

Lee Adama's first priority as Pegasus commander is to restore trust and integrity to the troubled command he has taken while preserving some continuity in the leadership that had evolved under Admiral Cain. He picks Kendra Shaw as his executive officer, promoting her to major, despite the stark contrast between Cain's fulsome praise and subsequent Pegasus officers' complaints about her performance. First boarding Pegasus less than an hour before the Cylon attack on the colonies, Shaw follows Admiral Cain's order to make a risky "blind jump" that saves the ship from destruction at Scorpion Fleet Shipyards.

After Pegasus receives reconnaissance information that all the colonies have been destroyed, Cain delivers a rallying speech inciting the crew to war for the purpose of revenge. The crew responds by chanting "So say we all" throughout the ship; the still-unexposed Number six agent Gina Inviere awkwardly joins in.

Commander Lee Adama's first mission as commander is a search and rescue mission to retrieve a lost science team. Antiquated Cylon Raiders from the first war appear and attack Pegasus. Simmering bitterness between Starbuck and Shaw is exacerbated when Shaw endangers Starbuck and her wingman in order to defend the Battlestar. Both pilots land safely, though Starbuck has to destroy a Raider that follows her into Pegasus.

Later, during a heated exchange, Shaw reminds Starbuck that defying authority is a risky proposition aboard Pegasus, recalling how Cain shot her executive officer, Colonel Jurgen Belzen, for refusing an order to attack a Cylon staging area filled with an unexpectedly strong force of Raiders. It is during this mission that Gina Invierre helps Cylon centurions board the Pegasus and Shaw discovers Gina's true identity. It is hinted that the sadistic torture inflicted on Gina by Cain's orders may have been influenced by the burgeoning romantic relationship between the Cylon and the admiral. When Shaw is promoted to captain by Admiral Cain, Cain reminds her troubled protegé the Cylon "tricked them all."

Viewing the wreckage of the raider, Sharon Valerii notes that Cylon lore tells of a group of original centurions tasked to guard the first hybrid constructed by the Cylons as a result of their human experiments. Admiral Adama then recalls his rookie mission as a Viper pilot, when he encountered that hybrid and saw what the Cylons did to their human captives in the course of their research. Admiral Adama concludes that the Cylons must still be pursuing the experiments, with the captured science team as new test subjects.

Commander Lee Adama approves a plan to use Pegasus to find the Basestar and lure the Cylon Raiders away from it, then launch a rescue team — including Starbuck and Kendra Shaw — outfitted with a nuclear warhead, in a Raptor. Admiral William Adama transfers his flag to Pegasus to counsel his son on his first command. The diversion succeeds; the rescue team boards the Basestar, but loses its Raptor.

As the rescue team searches the Basestar, the Cylon hybrid can be heard speaking in more coherent phrases than its more-modern counterparts. It repeatedly utters the words "All this has happened before, and will happen again." The hybrid also makes a far more elaborate pronouncement:

“ Soon there will be four, glorious in awakening, struggling with the knowledge of their true selves, the pain of that revelation, bringing true clarity. And amidst confusion, he will find her... Enemies brought together by the apostle, enemies now joined as one. The way forward, once impenetrable, yet inevitable. And the fifth, though still in the shadow yet clawing for the light, hungry for redemption, that will only come in the howl of terrible suffering. I can see them all, the seven, now six self-described machines who believe themselves without sin. But in time, it is sin that will consume them. They will know enmity, bitterness, the wrenching, the agony of the one splintering into many. And then they will join in the promised land, gathered on the wings of an angel. Not an end, but a beginning. ”

The science team is found and partly rescued, but the rescue team comes under fire from Cylon Centurions. While the team manages to evacuate the Basestar in a second Raptor, the nuclear warhead is damaged and has to be detonated manually. Wounded, Shaw remains behind to detonate the warhead and comes face to face with the Cylon hybrid.

The hybrid offers absolution to Kendra, who is haunted by the fact that it was she who fired the first shot in the massacre aboard the civilian ship Scylla as part of an operation to conscript civilians for the Pegasus. The hybrid then tells her that "Kara Thrace will lead the human race to its end. She is the herald of the apocalypse, the harbinger of death. They must not follow her." Shaw tries to relay this information to Lee Adama, but is stopped when the Cylons jam communications. Her final act is to detonate the nuclear warhead, destroying the Basestar.

On Galactica, Admiral Adama reflects on Cain's legacy and proposes a posthumous commendation for Kendra Shaw, over his son's protests that she and other members of Admiral Cain's crew butchered innocent civilians. They close their arguments, however, noting that their logs will lay the foundation for all of history to come, and Lee agrees to consider the commendation.

[edit] DVD release

Universal Studios requested that the producers of the Battlestar Galactica TV series make a one-off stand alone TV movie that could be released on DVD almost immediately after first transmission on television[6] (the cinematic film rights to the franchise are believed to still be held by original series creator Glen A. Larson which may have necessitated Razor's transmission on television before its DVD release). Staff writer Michael Taylor pitched series producer Ronald D. Moore an idea about the backstory of the Battlestar Pegasus which would work as a stand alone production but also set up events for the forthcoming final season of the series scheduled for transmission in Spring 2008. Razor was released on Region 1 DVD on December 4, 2007, 10 days after airing on the Sci-Fi Channel,[3] and the Region 2 DVD was released on December 26, 2007 (three weeks after airing on Sky One).[7] The DVD releases feature an extended cut of the movie and include extras such as the seven "webisodes" that were created to be screened online in the weeks prior to the movie's transmission. The region 1 DVD also has a featurette with cast members discussing their favorite episodes. SciFi.com also allowed fans to choose the cover art for the DVD release, and the winning cover was announced on September 14, 2007.[3]

[edit] Cast

[edit] Notes

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • In the original design of the DVD cover the Battlestar Pegasus is shown to be part of Battlestar group 75 (BSG-75), which is actually Galactica's group. Pegasus's group is BSG-62. This has since been corrected.[8]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Ronald D. Moore at IMDB
  2. ^ Michael Taylor at IMDB
  3. ^ a b c http://www.scifi.com/battlestar/razor/
  4. ^ spacecast.ca
  5. ^ The man behind "Battlestar Galactica"
  6. ^ Battlestar Galactica: Razor DVD commentary with Ronald D. Moore and scriptwriter Michael Taylor
  7. ^ Battlestar Galactica: Razor DVD. Amazon.co.uk.
  8. ^ Battlestar Galactica DVD news: Corrected Box Art for Battlestar Galactica - Razor: Unrated Extended Edition | TVShowsOnDVD.com
  9. ^ Battlestar Screening - November 12

[edit] External links

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