BSG “Blood on the Scales” – Off Bloody Spot, Off
First off, I have to say that it took me some time before I could sit down to write this review of the latest episode of BSG “Blood on the Scales”. There was just so many powerful, emotional moments that it was hard to sit and process all the myriad of thoughts and sentiments swirling inside my mind. It was as if the roller-coaster was finally coming into the station and I was still reeling from the last drop in the ride, in need of a few moments to regain my bearings. It’s storytelling at its best – causing a tangible reaction or impact on the viewer of the work instead of allowing them to be a passive audience looking in from the outside. So, let’s get back inside and poke around.
One thing I’m appreciating with every episode is how they are attempting to make this an ensemble effort and for the most part, doing that by being honest with regards to the strengths of the characters that they’ve established so far. Starbuck, for example, has been a major pain in the side for many BSG viewers lately because of her portrayal as this sulking, broody child whose not getting the desired (not to be confused with required) attention from Mommy and Daddy. In the last two episodes, it’s like a switch went off and we’re back to seeing the ballsy, frak-collecting-prisoners that ultimately is what suits the character best. Helo has been reduced to a half-conscious man lying on the floor – as opposed to a half-conscious man walking around without much purpose. And the list goes on. Sure, it’d be nice to see more dimensionality with these characters, but they tried and it didn’t work. So, it’s nice to see them move on and use them more as facilitators for the plot instead of trying to make them central to the storyline, especially with the clock rapidly ticking down.
However, once again, I’m wishing we’d get more time with Baltar. Yet again, we get this great scene demonstrating a fuller, evolving character with Gaius – this time between Gaius and one of the Cylon Six models – that shows us the character is starting to acknowledge his true identity. I loved how when Gaius looked at the Six model he flinched, reflecting his concern that perhaps he was seeing this woman again in his mind’s eye. But when he realizes she’s for real, it’s a moment of clarity where he’s finally free of all the baggage and façades and can truly see himself. The fact that he ends up reaching out to Gaeta as he sits for his last meal is not only poignant as a scene, it’s a wonderful cap to the relationship that these two had, one Gaeta alludes to when he mentions Gaius’ reputation as a scientist. You can’t help but remember how Gaeta would run around following Gaius asking him all these details about his Cylon detector and Gaius looking down on him as being just another groupie in awe of his brilliance. Granted, Gaius doesn’t forfeit his ego as seen with his patronizing remark about the “provincial intelligence” of his followers as well he shouldn’t because that egotism is a part of who he is. But in this scene aboard the Cylon ship, he finally realizes that it shouldn’t be everything and that he must take responsibility for his life and what dependencies he creates around him. Hopefully, we’ll get to see more of Gaius and his new found acceptance of who he really is and what that will bring to his character.
I also enjoyed watching Tyrol running around the ship through all these backwater conduits because it reasserts the character’s fundamental identity. The reality for Tyrol is that Galactica is his life, it’s who he is and watching him roaming around this gargantuan ship without a map is a testimony to his relationship with this environment. Indeed, these scenes help to bring the character full circle from his sense of disconnect and disillusionment when he no longer served the ship since as this episode showed, only Tyrol could have stopped the ship because he knew what needed to be done. The fact that after he saves the day, he sees that the ship is starting to fall apart, worn out from all the stress of over use and old age, is not only a new concern for the fleet of how they will continue to survive without any defence capabilities, but also for Tyrol as he’s poised to lose the last thing that means anything to him.
Obviously, another big player in this episode is Adama and his relationship not only with Tigh and Roslyn, but with the fleet as well. Zarek’s ploy to attempt to break Adama by telling him that Tigh had been killed trying to escape was one of the episodes’ poignant moments as it not only shed more light on the depth of his friendship and loyalty to Tigh, but also because we see Gaeta seeing his past relationship with Adama given his appreciation for how the news of Tigh’s death would affect Adama. Of course, the fact that he so quickly used this information to skewer Adama regarding his willingness to work with a Cylon helped to reinforce the notion that Gaeta was on a one-way path with no turning back. On an aside, it was wonderful to see them bring back the Romo character, even if it was for a brief stint. Having him point out the whole court-martial as being a circus affair was particularly delightful considering his effort to free Gaius of his accountability for what happened on New Caprica.
Then there’s the fatal move that Zarek plays in claiming that they’ve executed Adama as a ruse to get Roslyn to surrender. Her visceral reaction to the news was the turning point, the beginning of the end for Gaeta and Zarek as they both realize just how vital Adama is to the fleet. Indeed, seeing even the rebel Cylons reacting to the news of Adama’s demise helped to draw the idea that while others might blame Adama for their current predicament, they’re not ready to go on without him. This no doubt was a key reason why his emotion-tinged address to his execution squad that he was taking back his ship shook them out of this insanity. Watching the crew falling back in line behind Adama as he marches back to the CIC worked as a great visual metaphor to the fleet re-grouping around their leader, around the man who despite everything, did help them to survive this long. The reunion between Adama and Roslyn near the end is a wonderful reminder again about the fleet’s humanity and it serves as a stark contrast to the harsh realities that are to come with the episode’s conclusion.
And this brings us to the fallen hero and the real focus of this story arc – Felix Gaeta. As I mentioned to some fellow BSG fans during some discussions on Twitter, since “A Disquiet Follows My Soul” we’ve seen Gaeta’s internal turmoil being played out through the pain and agony he was experiencing in his amputated leg. And this episode carried that imagery with such heart-aching beauty right to the very end. As he did in “The Oath”, we see Gaeta struggling with this inner pain right at the start, groping at his leg in the CIC while trying to get a handle on things – his inability to soothe that pain and discomfort in his leg mirroring his sense of helplessness to stop the situation from escalating and having more blood on his hands. But the most illuminating moment had to be when Gaeta was in Adama’s quarters, where he once again grimaces in pain before walking over to sit in the ‘old man’s chair’, massaging his amputated leg to try and stop this ever-present pain in his leg to no avail. Undoubtedly, Gaeta had hoped that when this moment came, he would be relieved of this agony, that his efforts would in fact put things back in order and with it, a release from this haunting, ever-lurking feeling that’s been his driving force of late. This continued torment he feels despite accomplishing what he set out to do evokes images of Lady MacBeth, desperately trying to wash off the memory of Duncan’s blood on her hands; despite succeeding in getting what they want, both characters are still haunted by their actions from the past. Indeed, the fact that he pushes others to carry out his order to execute Adama, changing his mind of being present for the very act, brings to mind Lady MacBeth’s push to change the status quo toward something more appealing and yet refusing to be present for the actual act of murdering their leader.
Listening to Gaeta recalling the dreams of his youth at the episode’s end reminds us of who he is, that unlike Zarek who no doubt hopes some will create a legacy of his being a martyr, this is someone who set off to do good, to do right by others. And yet, somewhere along this path fraught with chaos and despair, he slowly began to lose that part of himself only to find it again at the bitter end. Lady MacBeth has this line shortly before her demise “Here’s the smell of the blood still: all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.” In many ways, this is also telling of Gaeta, that the blood of those who died on New Caprica has never washed off the hands of his conscience. And while we can dispense with Zarek – or at least I know I can as my previous reviews demonstrate – letting go of Gaeta is not so easy and his demise is all that more painful not only because we can recall who he was at the start of this series’ journey, but also thanks to the continued use of time codes during the episode which reminded us that this all happened over the period of one day.
Gaeta tells Gaius at the end that he hopes that one day people will understand who he really is – an acknowledgement of how far removed he is from the man he used to be. While some might question why Adama needed to execute him, this statement by Gaeta sheds some light on that, indicating that perhaps the only way he could be saved was by letting him go. In that final scene when Zarek looks over at Gaeta, there is a shared look of acceptance over their fate that, although not for the same reasons, they did what they felt needed to be done. His last words “It stopped” is not only a reflection of his release from the physical pain in his amputated leg that has driven him to this form of madness, but also of his final acceptance of the guilt and shame he feels for his past acts and that with his own death he can feel that justice would at last be delivered. Knowing that he finally found that peace at the very last moment of his life is not only liberating for him, it is the ultimate tragedy of his character, as the only way for him to find that justice he so desperately sought was through the fleet’s insistence that he pay the price for the mistakes that he had made with his very own life.
Some other posts you may enjoy:
- BSG “The Oath” – It’s Payback Time
- BSG “Sometimes A Great Notion” – Honey, I’m Home
- BSG “A Disquiet Follows My Soul” – Paging Howard Beale
- BSG “Islanded in a Stream of Stars” – Finding One’s Place To Call Home
- BSG “Deadlock” – Between Hate and Love
- BSG “Daybreak, Part 1” – The End Is Found In Where We Began
What an eloquent review. Beautifully written. Thoughtful and precise. Gorgeous. I will make it a point to come here more often.
Wow, that was beautiful! you are a talented writer indeed!
Thanks, Karen and Dave for the compliments.
It was very nice of both of you and I’m sincerely flattered. I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed my piece and I hope you’ll enjoy my future entries.
Wow…the title for this episode was very appropriate as there was a lot of bloodshed in it!
Still, some great, great moments. I think that the final Gaeta moment as you described it, was one of the best. I was sad because over the past 4 years, I’ve enjoyed the character and have enjoyed seeing the character grow. There is a scripture that says that as you point out the mote in someone else’s eye, be sure to notice the beam in your own. I think that’s sort of the road that the Gaeta character embarked down. By projecting his failings on to Adama and Roslin, Gaeta hoped to look past that beam in his eye and find some sort of way to justify his actions. I thought that it was pretty powerful that when Zarek ordered the Quorum to be killed, Gaeta realized that he had gone too far. Sure he tried to maintain that tough guy attitude, but I think that this picture he had painted for himself of how things would be, quickly went from a Monet to sidewalk chalk.
If Richard Hatch wasn’t such a fantastic actor, I think the Zarek character would have been shot long before this happened. Still Zarek got what he always wanted, a death. Too bad he didn’t get it in the way that he wanted it and that was to go out as a martyr. He definitely got what he deserved.
As always, a brilliantly written review!
See, all of this is ostensibly true, but I just wasn’t feeling it.
Sure, I was watching it in poor conditions, but it felt like we were seeing an eventuality unfold in front of us: while each individual eventuality played out in stunning fashion (the reactions to the falsified reports of death, in particular), I felt like I had already blogged about (and discussed with you, heh) so much of it that I didn’t have anything to really say about them.
Yes, the episode was chock full of stunning moments, and I was pumping my first into the air at various points, but looking back on it gives me a sense that nothing really surprised me. I was calling Gaeta’s leg-issue Lady MacBeth-esque last week, and to see it all play out as a tragic allegory is extremely well executed but something I’ve already dealt with. After last week surprised me by integrating character development and action so well, this week seemed content to let those scenarios play out and never really focus on the Cylons (Caprica carrying Hera out of the brig gave me Opera House flashbacks) or Baltar (who, despite your efforts to make it appear as if the writers gave his moment of realization enough time, was again incredibly shortchanged here).
Combine this with the oversimplification of Zarek’s evil (Lady MacBeth to deal with her guilt about a murder of one man, not the cold-blooded murder of the political congress of the fleet), and it just felt like we were rushing through this to get to somewhere. It’s not quite the show’s usual reboot structure, considering how many people are dead and the ramifications we are dealing with, but it felt like too much resolution for this much conflict.
But as others have noted, this is very eloquently stated, and captures how I wanted to feel about the episode if not how I actually ended up responding to it. I blame a bitterness-filled weekend.
You have a new fan. I couldn’t quite understand myself what made this episode the best in the entire series until I read your review. Somehow, you set the episode to a melodic rhythm of emotions in your review. Stunning.
I watched the episode 3 times and replayed the last 10-minutes at least a dozen times. Like you said Tanveer, I loved seeing how loyal the crew of Galactica was to their true leader, Adama. And the look of defeat of Felix’s face when the FDL drive went down – he knew it was the end of his maddening journey.
Thanks Matt for highlighting another scene in the episode. One scene that I’d like to emphasize is Roslin’s response to Zarek when he told her that both Tigh and Adama were dead. Tanveer, you mentioned the scene, but I want to point it out even more.
What I loved about Roslin is that her voice was mixed with hurt and anger. It wasn’t wimpy or shrilly, but deep and controlled. When she said to Zarek “I’m coming for you,” that line put shivers up and down my spine. So incredible to hear a woman being so assertive, so in control without falling apart and using the wrong “emotions” to dilute the effectiveness of her message.
First off, hello Leesa and thanks for the kind words. It is much appreciated and I do look forward to seeing you around these parts of the blogosphere.
In regards to Roslyn’s reaction to Zarek’s pronouncement that Adama was dead and the fight was over, I agree that it was a perfect moment for her character, especially in light of how she felt that she was of no use to the fleet anymore. Her reaction was a rekindling of that fire that had allowed her to keep going these last four years, despite all the setbacks and watching the numbers falling on her white board. Indeed, I think the fact that she had to step up to the plate and argue for the Cylon baseship to stay also worked to remind her that, like Adama, the fleet still needs her and perhaps now more than ever to be that unyielding leader. And now, in light of the fact that the ship that serves as the very anchor for their survival is starting to literally fall apart, Adama and Roslyn are sure to have bigger concerns as to what to do next, given how they have no clear alternative to their original destination.
Myles, I do think that perhaps the delay in viewing this and in light of overhearing the whispers of what others were saying may have tinted your reaction since, much like MacBeth, the tragedy here was that the end was not only inevitable, but understood by all to be the final outcome.
Gaeta knew that he was a condemned man the minute he put this all into action – remember, even Adama pointed out so much to him in the CIC, much as the three witches in MacBeth warned MacBeth of what’s to come. Besides, as I’ve said many times, Zarek was not a hidden or unknown quantity; the whole fleet knew exactly who this guy was, including Gaeta (as I’m sure you know, I wouldn’t see this episode as oversimplifying Zarek since what we saw was pretty much his M.O. since the start). That’s why I wrote that in that final moment when Gaeta looks over at Zarek, they acknowledge this is what was meant to be – in many ways, Gaeta must have known that by joining forces with Zarek, he would bring about his own downfall. That’s also why he probably said with resignation to Gaius that he hoped one day people might know who he really was. That comment alone shows that the character knew internally right from the start what the inevitable outcome would be. Also, remember what Gaeta told Gaius in their last moments together – he was fine with this outcome. In other words, he had accepted well before this episode that this was to be his fate.
For me this three-episode arc was about the fleet contending with all the sacrifices and concessions they felt obliged to make in return for getting a fresh start. And Gaeta was the best outlet for the expression of the sense of betrayal and futility that many of them feel now that they’ve reached their target. But I don’t think anything’s been washed over – look at how the execution team leader told Adama that as much as he respected Adama, he could not forgive him for taking in the Cylons. Or the fact that many of the ships in the fleet showed solidarity to Zarek and Gaeta despite being told what was really going on. This is a clear message for both Adama and Roslyn that while the fleet may fall back into formation, they shouldn’t confuse that as being support or agreement, let alone taking such for granted from anyone in general. Will this resentment/ambivalence be expressed in subsequent episodes? Guess that depends on whether an appropriate conduit like Gaeta could be found once again to channel all that into decisive action, if not whether other more pressing issues turn up that require such matters be put aside for now. If you ask me, those tears in the FTL engine compartment could be the start of just that.
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