Battlestar Galactica - Exodus Part II

I was thinking as I was watching “The Prince of Winterfell”, it feels like forever since we last seen Stannis and Davos. Their pursuit of the Iron Throne (and what Stannis felt was rightfully his, not belonging to a product of incest) was always (or should have been, but with so much else going on, out of sight out of mind does sort of work against Stannis and those within his own sub-story) in mind and mentioned by those concerned of his approach. With so many “kings” looking to claim Westeros, I hearken back to Ygritte’s conversation with Jon Snow about freedom on the lands, outside of and inside the wall. And Jaime’s comments in jest to Catelyn about the number of vows and how one forgets them all due to their being so many. Claims and vows and sacrifice…perhaps the White Walkers should overtake them all.

Despite his grasping need to be respected and dignified, Theon perhaps cannot comprehend the weight of his presentation that the Stark boys were burned alive and served as an example of how far he would go to substantiate his willingness to do whatever it takes to be recognized as a threat to all. His sister arrives, not with an army as he hoped so that he could defend Winterfell, with orders to return home so that his father could speak to him, but Theon remains dedicated to his position, unwilling to abandon what he has so secured. The memory of seeing Theon in his crib smiling at her despite his unnerving and persistent crying is related to him by his sister, Yara (Gemma Whelan), who admits pretty much in this conversation that she cares about him. Yara might oftentimes emasculate Theon in front of the Greyjoy soldiers but truthfully she doesn’t want him dead, realizing that butchering a cripple and weak little tyke, the Stark boys, would encourage an uprising of angry Northerners wanting revenge. And if Robb were to hear about his brothers being presented as burned corpses for all to see, Theon would certainly become quite a target. Theon so badly wants to be taken seriously but at what cost?

I would definitely consider Exodus Part 2 a crowd pleaser, an audience-friendly episode which continues the ongoing saga of the Galactica’s pursuit of Earth. New Caprica, the year Baltar was President and the eventual Cylon Occupation that led to the Resistance and a lot of human loss, was but a roadblock in that pursuit. There was sacrifice—as Saul Tigh can tell you, as well as Apollo when giving up the Pegasus—and heroism (what it took for the likes of Tyrol, Anders, and Sharon to lead the rescue mission on ground and out of cells), but the Cylons took heavy loss as well. Pegasus’ loss (which took out Cylon BasteStars and saved Galactica from certain destruction as the ship was taking heavy damage) was necessary in order for the rescue operation and Galactica’s safety to be assured. All the principles made it off the planet, while Baltar would leave with the Cylon leadership. Major subplots that were heavily featured on New Caprica were updated before the exodus such as Leoben’s one last attempt to secure Starbucks’ affection (the reveal that the little girl wasn’t hers just goes to show you how desperate and pathetic Leoben was in trying to do so), Hera ending up in D’Anna’s possession (there was fear from “Caprica Six” that D’Anna might set off a nuclear weapon if Baltar prevented her from taking the child), Tigh having to “take care of” his wife who betrayed them (she did it out of love for him but just the same because of her actions human lives were lost), the heavy Cylon attack on Galactica while Vipers were on the surface picking up humans on New Caprica, and the Pegasus final mission resulting in the demise of several BaseStars before Apollo, Dualla, and the crew departed. Once onboard the Galactica, Admiral Adama was hoisted on the shoulders of the crew and treated to a celebration. But Saul will never be the same while Kara Starbuck realizes that the child she thought was hers was actually another human woman’s, taken from her by Leoben just to manipulate in an attempt for his quarry’s love. Admiral Adama’s symbolic shaving of the face and mustache establishes a new beginning, as Roslin boarded her Colonial ship once again, it seems, as President. I guess I wouldn’t necessarily call it a reset in as much as a departure that indicates the New Caprica era was a failed attempt to establish roots when the Cylons simply wouldn’t allow for that. So with Gaius Baltar now an enemy of the fleet, having surrendered and allowed the occupation to undermine human colonization, it will be up to Roslin and Adama to get things back on track.

3/5