Torn by Luke Hung

This is the first of the multiple episodes told from a Cylon point of view. We open with Baltar talking to Holo-Six on a beach. Tricia sure knows how to fill out a bikini. Must be all that practice from being a Victoria Secret Lingerie Model. She encourages him to learn all he can of the Cylons because he will need it. Baltar awakes alone in his room to sad classical music. Three and Six enter and ask him about Earth and if he could find it. Baltar says that he doesn’t know anything. Three comments it’s a shame because if he knew where it was it may save his life. Baltar back tracks so quickly you hear squealing and can see skid marks. You have to figure out where. Now says he knows more than anyone else and he could find it. The Cylons, half smirking, leave saying that they intend to make Earth their new home. Greedy Bastards, twelve planets aren’t enough.
In the area around the Galactica multiple Vipers are in a simulated fight. Lee is flying a Viper that says Major Apollo, which could mean he was demoted or that he just got into his old ship, but I’m leaning towards the demotion. Anyways they do some dog fighting until Starbuck breaks formation to steal a kill. She wings another Viper and has to make an emergency landing. Apollo hits the ground bitching, complaining about Starbuck’s death wish. He grounds her and she complains that she doesn’t know what he’s bitching about. She made it and the Viper made it. Well she kind of has a point, but come on, like Apollo needs a reason to bitch and moan. In another part of the ship, Tigh is in his cabin and drunk and he hears Ellen’s voice. He follows the disembodied words out into the corridor until he grabs a blond with similar hair. He freaks her out a little, but no harm no foul. In a different corridor Starbuck rejects Kasey and her mother and in a third area of the ship, Apollo looks himself topless in a mirror. He has lost the all of his hiatus weight, back to his ripped-ness.
In what I think is Adama’s quarter, Gaeta is showing Adama and Roslin a bunch of maps. He has Baltar’s old papers and muses that Baltar was working on deciphering the map the found at the end of the first season that leads to Earth. Baltar learned that the first step on the path shown by a lion’s head with a red blinking eye. Baltar interpreted this blinking eye to be a red pulsar. Gaeta suggests sending a patrol to the coordinates Baltar suggested. In a mirrored scene, Six states that the Cylons have sent a Basestar to the coordinates Baltar suggested. Baltar tries to emphasize the sacrifice he’s making informing the Cylon on the probable route to Earth. Six counters that he made the sacrifice very quickly when his life was at risk.
Also during their conversation Six informs Baltar that Cylons project fantasy environments around themselves, much like the fantasy environments he puts himself in when he’s with Holo-Six. This makes him postulate that he’s a Cylon. Personally I doubt it. On the Galactica Boomer is “interviewing” Racetrack as a new co pilot, nice that they don’t hate Boomer as much as the hate Gaeta. The Racetrack calls her Boomer and Sharon indicates that that was a different Cylon. Helo takes that moment to poll the pilots about possible call signs and among wonderful options like “chrome dome” he selects Athena. Well I know that the Classic BSG faithful are going to be up in arms about that. Personally I’m a little irritated too. She had already had a classic call sign she doesn’t need two.
In the next scene Tigh wanders in the officers’ mess and jumps into Starbuck’s card game. He starts in immediately with how hard it was on the planet and Starbuck agrees with him. It doesn’t take a genius to know that all hells about to break loose because these two don’t agree on anything. Kat chimes in that it was hard on the Galactica trying to find a way to save the whole planet, but Tigh and Starbuck ain’t having that. Tigh reminds them that they strapped homemade bombs on their chest while the Galactica crew was having three square meals a day. Hotdog tries to put everything back on track, by toasting that no matter where you are there will always be someone to have your back. But Tigh and Starbuck piss on that thought too, much to the chagrin of Kat who attempts to argue back.. However we all know you can’t argue with a drunk much less two of them, both of whom outrank you. Helo seems a little frustrated as well but he doesn’t say anything yet. Tigh argues that you can’t trust anyone and people they trusted collaborated with the enemy. Later Helo and Adama discuss a mission for Sharon, now called Athena to check out pulsars. Adama also wants to know what Tigh has been doing. Helo adds in Starbuck and gives Adama the full spiel, basically calling the two of them seditious.  
On the Basestar, Six muses with Baltar on how she hoped one day they would have children together. Baltar wants to know why only seven Cylons voted on his fate. Hey that’s my question from last week, glad to see R. Moore reads my reviews. She responds that they don’t talk about that, ever. Things that make you go Hmmm. Baltar quick on her tail asks, “would you recognize one if you saw one?” Before she can answer a Three pulls her in the other direction. There is a problem with another Baseship. The Baseship that they sent to the coordinates Baltar gave. As details trickle in they determine that the Cylons became infected with some sort of virus and if they resurrect they will carry the infection with them. That doesn’t make sense to me. A physical virus can’t cross an electronic medium, although I guess, if they argue that the virus corrupts programming it would make more sense. They pull all resurrection ships far away from the infected Baseship and question how they can investigate without getting infected themselves.
Holo-Six takes this opportunity to tell Baltar to volunteer himself. While he thinks about self-preservation, she counters that he must prove that he is valuable, plus what are the odds that what kills Cylons will affect humans as well. He agrees with her postulate and surprisingly offers himself up as a scout. The Cylons like that idea and they agree to use a captured Raptor to remotely pilot him to the infected ship. Baltar just before he boards the Raptor walks past a Humanoid Cylon still in a resurrection pool of goo. She is strapped in with an electrode covered skullcap and tentacles attached where her legs should be. She is babbling random words. I presume this is one of the Cylon models that they don’t talk about. According to Six she is some Baseship master controller, but most Cylons think she is mad.
Anyways, Baltar boards the infected Cylon Baseship and finds numerous humanoid Cylons in various stages of death and near death. He takes some pictures and one of the Six models gasps drawing his attention. She blames him for sending them to the Lion’s head nebula. Apparently, they found a beacon left behind by humans full of a poison. Baltar initially attempts to help Six, giving her water and speaking reinforcing words, but as she continues to rant at him calling him a killer so he chokes her to death. Which ironically is exactly what a murderer does. Nice. Stunned he takes his blood samples and pictures and leaves. He does not inform the Cylons of the beacon or of the few humanoid Cylons that do live.
Back on the non-infected Baseship the models argue about what to do with the infected ship. They quickly determine that they can’t create a cure, and if the infected Cylons are resurrected they might destroy their whole race. They further decide to blame Baltar for their misfortune, but they still have a hard time coming to a consensus about they actually should do. Xena or Three, whichever you prefer puts her fist down literally and determines that they should leave the Basestar and its inhabitants to die. Under direct questioning Baltar continues to deny seeing anything of relevance, which is one point for Baltar’s humanity but he has a long way to balance out his scorecard.
On the Galactica Adama enters the officers’ mess to find Tigh and Starbuck still there and still drinking. He orders the room cleared, but indicates that Tigh and Starbuck should remain. Tigh offers him a drink, but instead Adama asks for Starbuck’s sidearm, which she reluctantly places on the table. He chambers a round and throws it back on the table. He asks one of them to shoot him. They rightly look at him like he’s nuts. He says they have poisoned the crew and damaged morale. Starbuck starts with “if you expect me to apologize,” but she never gets to finish the sentence because Adama shoves her out of her seat. Awesome. He calls her a malcontent and if she wants to stay on the Galactica she needs to clean up her act. He dismisses her.
Tigh asks if he’s going to get knocked out of his seat as well. Adama is a little nicer as he offers him all the time he needs to get his head on straight. Tigh says the man Adama knew is gone and never coming back. He walks out of the mess. Tigh consoles himself with more booze and stares at a picture of Ellen. Starbuck cuts her hair. Well I liked her with short hair, but I guess that’s her getting in touch with her warrior side. She also goes to Kasey and gives her a hug. Well isn’t that sweet.

Overall the episode was a B-

Acting: B, As always good acting, although I think Hogan is either tired of playing drunk or the writers don’t have an alcoholic amongst them because his scenes are starting not to ring true. Callis was a weasel, but he always plays a sleaze ball. Its possible that I am becoming jaded and I want more from my actors than I did over the last two seasons, but the show raised the bar and got the awards so now they have to live up to it. 

Plot: B+, A nice plot driven episode. I like how Tigh’s and Starbuck’s issues last more than one episode. On the other hand I didn’t care all that much about the Cylon internal world. I would prefer just quick clips opposed to the lengthy scenes the Cylons are going to have. I don’t like any of the Cylons, with the exception of Sharon ‘Athena’ Agathon, and the only reason why I kind of like her is because she is on the good guys’ side. I don’t want them over humanizing the Cylons. I don’t want them to be grey. Yes you can give flashes here and there, Moore set up the series for those opportunities but I fear he will go too far. Great villains and horrific evils lose their terrifying menace feeling if they are fractured and internally weak. Its how Star Trek ruined the Borg, by giving them emotions and internal strife. Don’t do it here.  

Action/Episode Energy: C, The episode was primarily plot driven, so the action level isn’t going to be there. However there was some tension. Callis has some interesting scenes and Olmos’ confrontation with Hogan and Sackhoff was nice.