Things I've Learned from Watching Battlestar Galactica: Part One

Lesson One: "Sometimes you've got to roll the hard six."--Commander Bill Adama


No matter what television series you prefer, you can almost guarantee that here are lessons within to be learned, philosophical underlyings that linger long after you've turned of the TV and gone about your daily life. One of the most profound television series to have been created (or should I say recreated,) in my lifetime is Battlestar Galactica, the reimagined series. For those not familiar with the series, let's just say that man created cylons to make daily living easier. The cylons were essentially slaves, designed to carry out the mundane tasks that humanity no longer had time for. As the cylons evolved, they rebelled and there was war between man and his machines. Eventually the machines discovered a way to integrate themselves so closely into the fabric of humanity so as to be indistinguishable from them. The cylons created humanoid models in man's image, and then they attacked the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, wiping out all of mankind, save for about 50,000 survivors. Yikes. There are Twelve cylon models. Some of them were programmed to believe that they were human beings, but underneath the programming they were designed to carry out sabotage. In the beginning the humans had no idea that the cylons looked like them, but they soon found out.

The series follows the journey of all that is left of humanity, as the cylons chased them through galaxy after galaxy. In the beginning the hope of discovering Earth, the thirteenth colony, was used by the military and government leaders to keep humanity's spirits high.

Because there are only 50,000 humans left and their situation is absolutely dire, you would think that their experiences would have little relevancy to our own, but nothing could be further from the truth. They are still people, still governed by a political body and protected by the military. They face hunger issues, health issues, terrorism, religious struggles and an enemy so righteous they will not stop until humanity itself is eradicated from the universe.

During my time as a fan of the series I have learned a great deal. For example: appearances really are deceiving and the word frak is pretty much interchangeable with fuck in ways that would make your grandmother's dentures fall out.

One of the most important lessons I recall learning over the extent of the series took place near the end of season one. The fleet has already more or less exhausted their tylium (fuel) resources and only have enough tylium left for two jumps. The people are concerned about what will happen if the fleet runs out of fuel, as they will be left like sitting ducks for the cylons if they don't stay on the move. While out on patrol, Sharon "Boomer" Valerii and Alex "Crashdown" Quartararo discover an asteroid teeming with tylium. Unfortunately the asteroid is also a cylon refinery, meaning that the fleet will have to look elsewhere.

This is where the lesson comes in. Commander William Adama decides that they can't just let the tylium go so easily. They are coasting on fumes as it is, and the best solution is to get in there and take the cylons by surprise. He commissions viper pilot, Kara "Starbuck" Thrace, to come up with an out of the box plan to do away with the cylons and take the tylium for themselves. During the mission, Adama pulls a risky ace out of his sleeve and tells President Laura Roslin, "Sometimes you've got to roll the hard six."

Have there ever been clearer words to live by? Whether you're flipping a coin to decide if you should go with paper or plastic or making a life or death decision, sometimes you have to take the necessary risk, ie., roll the hard six. The phrase originated from the game of craps, in which a hard six is achieved by rolling two threes on six-sided dice. The probability of the hard six is very low, but the profitability pays seven to one. It's a huge gamble, but the outcome is much more desirable, and in a situation where you have no choice you've got to take a gamble.

Risk is a terrifying thing. It holds many of us back from going for new jobs, keeps us from stepping outside our boundaries. In some cases the fear of it becomes a disease that limits people from leaving their home, but without risk we need to ask ourselves, "are we really living our lives to the highest potential we can?" Without a little risk, and in some cases a lot of risk, the answer is no. And if we fail, we fail, but we won't know unless we try.

To truly experience life and all it has to offer you've got to take a chance sometimes, or in the words of Commander Bill Adama, "Sometimes you've got to roll the hard six." I hope the next time you're debating over whether or not you should risk it, roll the hard six and see where you wind up.

Previously on Battlestar Galactica...

Woo! It's Friday! How do I know? You know how I know. Friday means Battlestar Galactica and I never miss a Friday. Frak all what I'll do with my life in a month when the series finally comes to a close. I don't even want to think about it.

As you all know, last week on Battlestar Galactica, the bullet lodged in Sam's brain gave hihm all of his cylon life memories back. As Tigh, Tory and Chief gathered around to hear about their purpose and their mission, Starbuck stood by fretting that at any given moment Sam was going to lapse into a coma and be done. Suddenly all of their troubles in the past have been washed away by the bare reality that Starbuck has NO idea who or what she really is, and Sam means something to her again.

One of the groups I belong to online had tossed about some very fascinating theories about last weeks episode, including the possible identity of the mysterious #7 cylon, Daniel, who was contaminated maliciously by the #1, in a very Cain and Abel way. There have been theories that the #7 is actually Starbuck and that her DNA was altered so that Daniel became female. There is also a theory that Daniel is perhaps Starbuck's father, and that she is actually the first cylon-human hybrid. Then there is the theory that Gaius Baltar could still be a cylon, and he is the coveted #7.

Ellen described Daniel to Boomer as an artist... There is a scene on New Caprica where Gaeta is sitting in the chair drawing in a notepad. What if it turns out that it was Gaeta? The writers have often revealed cylons in the most insane places. Just take a look at four of the final five. Ellen, Saul, Chief and Sam were all very deeply involved in the resistance. Wouldn't it almost make sense that Gaeta, who had such a hard time dealing with the cylons and what they had done to humanity, turned out to be a cylon himself?

Possibilities. And speaking of possibilities, now that Boomer is returning to the Galactica with Ellen, this is the perfect opportunity for Chief and Boomer to come together again. They were so in love and both suffered so deeply that it would be such a wonderful thing to see them happy and together again. How will Boomer be received by the crew? Can Adama forgive her? He once cared for her very deeply, which is evident in his relationship with Athena. That relationship would not have been made possible without the prior softness for Boomer.

As the show came to a close last Friday, they centered on Sam's brain death. Selfish Starbuck pushing it to the limit and then losing him... I read somewhere that with Chief using the organic cylon compound to repair the Galactica's cracks, that the ship itself would become a cylon ship and what if Sam became the Galactica's hybrid. The frantic emotion in his chatter before the surgery was reminiscent of the baststar hybrids. End of line.

With less than five and a half hours until tonight's episode airs, there are tons of questions on my mind. I can't wait to settle in and find out more of the answers we've all been waiting for for the last six years.