I've done something I knew I shouldn't do- I've discovered and fallen in love with a new series- Battlestar Galactica.
I actually have gone out of my way to avoid BSG, among other series, just because I knew I would get hooked, and when I get hooked it's bad... like must buy the all merchandise/collectibles/meet the actors/attend the conventions bad. I really can't afford more series that I'm involved with on this level (ie Star Trek, Chuck, B5, Firefly, and so many more), so I avoid new ones like the plague. I've avoided the entire Harry Potter series and Buffy the Vampire Slayer for this very same reason- I know I'll love it, become obsessed with it, so I just can't watch it.
This newfound BSG love was accidental- I've actually worked with some of the cast members in the past at events/cons and because I didn't know the show, none of them really did much for me. Through circuitous means, I happened across an older film of Mary McDonnells, realized just how amazing she was, and while perusing TV listings saw the new miniseries was premiering on BBC America, DVR'd it, and here I am, 5 episodes in and in total, unrelenting love. So far, this new obsession has already cost me $$ (in buying the full DVD set, even though I know I can watch in on Netflix/Hulu), and it looks like it's gonna convince me to make a trip to Dragon Con in September (not exactly a hardship, thats my favorite con anyway), but oh well. What a show.
The unfortunate part of finding it now is that I've gotten so used to watching shows "together" with other fans (the last 3 years of Monday nights have been one long Twitter Chuck/Castle viewing party), and it's a little less fun to find something so amazing, and not be able to share it en mass... but I'm exited to have found it, and even happier to see where it's going to go.
Welcome to the party Mina.
BSG is amazing... "So say we all!"
what would have to be your favorite episode so far?
Welcome to the frackin' party! :)
Just wait until Exodus part 2.
Oh, and just in case you didn't know. Starbuck is kinda my favorite character! :wub
We never would have figured that out! :D
Ashley Eckstein was on the Force Cast this past week and said Katee is going to be a voice actor on Season 4 of the Clone Wars!
Quote from: Bryancd on July 05, 2011, 08:11:13 AM
Ashley Eckstein was on the Force Cast this past week and said Katee is going to be a voice actor on Season 4 of the Clone Wars!
wait, really?! :) yay!
I fell in love with Mary McDonnell in Dances With Wolves...Stands With a Fist.
I was completely unaware of BSG for a long time. And Syfy and my cable carrier have always had issues - sometimes I'm not sure if I'll have it from one day to the next. But I finally decided to watch BSG last summer, and I could not stop! I actually increased the number of discs my Netflix plan more than once so that I wouldn't have to wait for new episodes (it wasn't streaming then). Such an amazing show. :)
And, I'm kinda glad I wasn't watching it during the original airings - no long waits between episodes. :D
By the way, I still have the entire series on DVD I am selling! :)
Quote from: turtlesrock on July 05, 2011, 06:43:43 AM
what would have to be your favorite episode so far?
Liked the Miniseries alot, but so far 33 has done it for me in terms of the way it was paced. By the time I got through that episode, I felt as emotionally drained as the crew. So well done.
Whats really resonating with me is how similar and yet different it is from other shows. There are shades of Babylon 5, Trek and many other similar shows, but it truly also all it's own creature. Quite an accomplishment.
Quote from: spaltor on July 05, 2011, 11:23:18 AM
And, I'm kinda glad I wasn't watching it during the original airings - no long waits between episodes. :D
I'm getting the feeling this is so the way to watch it (as quickly as you can). I'm all for getting the full dramatic potential out of things, but after the 5 years of Lost, I also appreciate just getting something watched and digested in one long sitting. I never appreciated the overall story arc of B5 in it's first, actual airing, but rather once I got all the DVD's and got to watch it straight through.
My Netflix and Hulu Plus subscriptions are sure paying for themselves this month, thats for sure. I'm literally almost never home, so I've been watching any way I can. Today I watched 2/3'rds of an episode on my Iphone traveling to and from work, then finished it on my computer when I got home. I also bought the DVD's from Amazon, but that's more because when I like something I try to officially support it, even if I probably won't watch many of the actual discs initially.
Quote from: Jobydrone4of20 on July 05, 2011, 11:18:47 AM
I fell in love with Mary McDonnell in Dances With Wolves...Stands With a Fist.
Haven't seen her in that, but will have to now, for sure. I saw her in Passion Fish, on the reccomendation of another person from another totally unrelated fandom, loved that film, then went looking for more, and voila, BSG. Ironically, I've been a talent liason at several conventions where she's been a guest in the last few years, but was so in the dark about her I never paid any attention or went out of my way to meet her- a fact I could kick myself for now! Looks like she's going to be at DragonCon this year though, so I've signed up to work that one, and will rectify that situation.
Quote from: Rico on July 05, 2011, 07:19:50 AM
Oh, and just in case you didn't know. Starbuck is kinda my favorite character! :wub
Whats funny is that I knew of her and Tricia Helfer from other genre stuff (Chuck, etc) but never understood where all the love was coming from in the genre population at large. I get it now! Same with Edward James Olmos- saw him at opening night at a show in LA last year, and new he was big in the nerd community, but wasn't sure why.
Quote from: Bryancd on July 05, 2011, 11:25:09 AM
By the way, I still have the entire series on DVD I am selling! :)
Shoot, wish I saw this 4 hours ago! JJust bought the first 3 seasons individually on amazon.com.. are you selling the box set or seperate seasons? How much?
I have Season 1 Box Set, Season 2.0 Box Set, Season 2.5 Box Set, and Season 3 Box Set. How about $30 for the whole series? Amazon will take a return no problem.
I too went through BSG in (more or less) one hit. It reached the point that I'd occasionally sneak home from work and watch an episode over lunch. The only drawback to this approach is that it's over that much more quickly.
(Halfway through I discovered that my brother had the second two seasons on DVD so my viewing pace increased)
I consumed the series as soon as it was available on-line.
I don't envy anyone who had to wait through the writers strike, that must have been awful.
Such an intriguing story - the one large story arch worked well.
Quote from: Feathers on July 08, 2011, 04:41:56 AM
I too went through BSG in (more or less) one hit. It reached the point that I'd occasionally sneak home from work and watch an episode over lunch. The only drawback to this approach is that it's over that much more quickly.
(Halfway through I discovered that my brother had the second two seasons on DVD so my viewing pace increased)
Sounds like the same way I went through 'Lost'. Did seasons 1-5 over a period of a few months with the wife before the final season.
Quote from: billybob476 on July 05, 2011, 06:56:10 AM
Just wait until Exodus part 2.
Haven't gotten there yet, but just saw 'The Hand of God', and wow. Watching this show feels like going to school for storytelling. The use of negative space and sound, the ability to illustrate and create a highly conceptualized and complicated space battle with almost none of the requisite space shots (the use of the models in the battle floored me- what an idea!) and of course the music. And the ability to tell such a highly serialized story, with so many components, seamlessly woven in and out of the plots. Just amazing.
Glad you are watching and enjoying it as much as I think we all did. I watched it as it aired and kind of like it that way. I think it builds maybe a bit more suspense. But if you missed it the first go, this is a great way to catch up. Definitely a series you need to watch from the start.
Quote from: AwesomeRococo on July 10, 2011, 01:36:46 AM
Quote from: billybob476 on July 05, 2011, 06:56:10 AM
Just wait until Exodus part 2.
Haven't gotten there yet, but just saw 'The Hand of God', and wow. Watching this show feels like going to school for storytelling. The use of negative space and sound, the ability to illustrate and create a highly conceptualized and complicated space battle with almost none of the requisite space shots (the use of the models in the battle floored me- what an idea!) and of course the music. And the ability to tell such a highly serialized story, with so many components, seamlessly woven in and out of the plots. Just amazing.
Hand Of God is a great episode, and a nice splash of familial warmth amidst the gloom & doom of season 1. I'm a fighter-ship nut, so the scenes with the vipers had me grinning like a kid on christmas. :) The music for this episode is pretty cool too; "A Good Lighter" and "Wander My Friends" convinced me to start buying Bear McCreary's BSG soundtracks. Each and every one of them is incredible.
It's good to see a new fan discover BSG. You are in for a fun ride.
Quote from: Rico on July 10, 2011, 04:59:14 AM
Glad you are watching and enjoying it as much as I think we all did. I watched it as it aired and kind of like it that way. I think it builds maybe a bit more suspense. But if you missed it the first go, this is a great way to catch up. Definitely a series you need to watch from the start.
There's a visceral downside to watching it like this so quickly- I envy those that got to enjoy it at it's intended speed- I feel like it would play much more powerfully that way, weighted down by time.
Originally I intended to watch it as it aired on BBC here, but after 3 episodes I was so hooked, I had to keep going. Im on the last 2 eps of season 1 now, so I might take a break before starting season 2 to digest it a bit before continuing.
Quote from: wraith1701 on July 10, 2011, 08:12:15 AM
Hand Of God is a great episode, and a nice splash of familial warmth amidst the gloom & doom of season 1. I'm a fighter-ship nut, so the scenes with the vipers had me grinning like a kid on christmas. :) The music for this episode is pretty cool too; "A Good Lighter" and "Wander My Friends" convinced me to start buying Bear McCreary's BSG soundtracks. Each and every one of them is incredible.
It's good to see a new fan discover BSG. You are in for a fun ride.
You're right about the soundtrack, it's fantastic. Been trying to download it, and not having success. Going to have to suck it up and buy it outright ;-)
Just finished Kobals Last Gleaming Part 2 (Season 1 Finale) and all I can say is Holy Frak. There are so many game changers in that thing, it's kind of blowing my mind. I had planned on taking a break before starting season 2, but now I'm not sure how long I can wait. Roslins in the brig, Adama's been shot, Starbuck is on Caprica, one Boomer just shot Admaa, the other is pregnant??!! This show is insane and wonderful.
Also started listing to Ronald Moore BSG podcast where he goes back over the episodes- the insights are really great to hear, and brings a lot more layers to the episode. Maybe I'll finish up those podcasts for season 1, rewatch Kobal 1&2, then move on to Season 2.... This already feels like it does to read an awesome book- you want to watch as fast as you can, then you don't want it to be over. I'm already dreading the end, and I'm only 14 episodes in!