Battlestar's final shot

Below is a clip from the "Battlestar Galactica" midseason finale. The show, which has been uneven this season, snapped together in its last hour for an Emmy-worthy cliffhanger.

The final tracking shot that has fans reeling is not only the most pivotal moment in the show's history but is masterfully composed by director Michael Rymer, who managed to top his own "One Year Later" transition from the season two ender.

The shot is a bit like Annie Leibovitz’s "The Sopranos" key art photos, such as this one, come to life (interestingly, both “BSG” and “Sopranos” -- here and here -- have also used gaudy visual plays on “The Last Supper” for their art campaigns). Upon first viewing the shot, viewers only strain to glimpse the revealing background. But it’s the cast’s varying movements and expressions that pack the emotional punch. Even on full screen, much is lost in the grainy YouTube clip, but here goes. Spoilers abound.

And for those who switched off during the "Stargate" preview and missed the "Battlestar" teaser for the series return...

Comments

[mother Fraker]

Agreed brilliant ending and great scene.

But I couldn't help thinking "damn you dirty apes!!!"

[Blac Ren]

Is that Colonel Tigh saying you're the fifth at the end of the promo.
In the scene where it looks like he's holding gun on Adama is that where he says it?,or maybe it's just nifty editing

[Diallo]

My theory is that the Fifth is the child in Six's stomach. She was made pregnant not by Tigh, but by immaculate conception.

And that the child will be Baby Gaius. He will be born, and after all the Cylons die out, he will grow up to create them again. Giving them the code so that the cycle can begin all over again.

[Moocow]

What I think how this plays out and how it will end is that this is history replaying itself over again just as the hybrids on the basestars have been uttering "it has happened before, and it will happen again", mind you, im paraphrasing. I think that yes this happens in the future, but the story originates from Earth! Hear me out, the ppl of earth eradicate the planet and end up colonizing the 13 colonies. It happened such a long time ago, that Earth has b/cme a legend. Now that the colonies are bombed, they go back to Earth, not knowing that they are originally from there. they havent died from radiation poisoning when they first land on Earth, the skies are blue/gray compared to the orange color on Caprica when it was bombed, which shows that its destruction happened a long time ago. But hey, thats just a theory and there's some holes, but im game to here what you got

There are some holes in that theory, admittedly, but it's still a good one. There have been a ton of clues over the past few season that the true homeworld of humanity in BSG is Earth, not Kobol. For example, everything that they find that is a relic from the 13th tribe is getting older and older as they approach earth, instead of younger. Pythia's prophecies also describe the exodus TO Earth - how would they be in the sacred scrolls if Pythia was traveling TO Earth FROM Kobol?

[Darren5102]

The 13 tribe left to make Earth a new home belived in one god. Thus had to leave as hounded out, arrive on Earth, create cylons, cylons leave earth, programed to start war with colonies as old 13 tribe hated the other 12 and want them destroyed, captured cylons from 1st war proclam to be man made, after 1st war retire to their own part of the universe, to get stronger to continue 13th tribe war, create human clones and distribute them before all out attack, Tigh is one of the first gen clones after 1st human and cylon war, thus being older same as cavell model. 13th tribe destroyed by themselves. the battlestar galatica and basestar decide to make earth again with cylon and human models intergrated into population, thus making our human earth as we see it today, 12 old astrological signs and many religions, and one god, also on our earth olyimpic games and historical stuff is based on the old cylon and human belief or tributes to the past. Thus having earth reimagined for us the viewers.