Battlestar Galactica

With a title like Battlestar Galactica, you might have some preconceptions of this show as being another random mediocre space sci-fi show, but you should throw those away, because really, this show kicks some serious ass.

A remake of a short-lived 70s series, Battlestar Galactica is kind of a meld of two popular sci-fi notions: most of the characters are the crew of a spaceship, and humans are being rebelled against by their own robot creations (called Cylons). This is a future where Earth is a long-lost planet, and humans live on twelve colony planets ruled under a single government that is oddly linked to some kind of unified religion. That, is, that’s how it was until the Cylons destroyed the colonies and left only 50,000 or so humans on a handful of ships, who are now trying to find Earth. And the Cylons, still after them, have somehow evolved to look and act and even think like humans.

For a sci-fi show, the style is pretty unique in that it's actually pretty ordinary. I love that they didn’t waste time trying to come up with dumb futuristic clothes, there are no aliens, and things like cancer and news reporters still exist. But there are resort spaceships that simulate sunlight and of course, plenty of space battles and weird biological enemy spacecraft. And even though the special effects are top-notch, Battlestar Galactica is very character-driven. This isn’t about all the weird things you encounter in space, it’s about how the human race is literally struggling against extinction. The main cast of characters is balanced nicely, and they all have great backstories. I’m almost done watching season 1 on DVD and I’m hoping to catch up with the first half of season 2 before new episodes start up again on Sci-Fi Channel in January. And I’ve been told that the show gets even better!

Finally, a sci-fi show to get excited about!