Battlestar Galactica On SciFi Channel

[Atrocities]

Just in case you had not heard, the Sci-Fi Channel has produced a mini series based upon Battlestar Galactica due out in Decemeber.

I don't know much about it other than it looks like a standard Sci-Fi channel mini series, ergo - ok acting, ok special effects, ok story line, and ok in general.

It does look promising, and who knows, perhaps it will be a great source for a new series based upon the old one.

[Prince Xizor]

I really enjoyed Battlestar Galactica as a kid, despite all the similarities to Star Wars (it was like getting to watch Star Wars every week--this was before VCRs were commonplace keep in mind ). I'm sure I'll watch the Sci-Fi remake come December and find something to enjoy (Dune and Children of Dune weren't bad). There have been a lot of bad things said about it already though, such as the casting decisions. Starbuck and Boomer are women now?!

[JLPicard]

I think that Sci-Fi's Battlestar Galactica is going to be interesting also. But better yet would be a series based on Wing Commander (potentially deeper plot/storyline) or even
better yet, resurrecting Babylon 5!

[geoschmo]

I watched BG as a kid, but I never noticed any similarities between it and Star Wars except for your typical stuff that every sci-fi has, space ships, ray guns, aliens etc. That's like saying "Saving Private Ryan" and "Terms of Endearment" are very similer because they are set on Earth, both have people in it, and some of the people die.

Although I guess if you never had any contact with Sci-Fi before SW and then started watching BG you might think they were similer. So I guess it depends on your perspective.

[David E. Gervais]

The only similarity I know between SW and BG is John Dykstra worked on the SP/FX for both. I think he did have something to do with the 'Viper' model too. I always liked the Viper model. very nice fighter design.

Cheers!

Edit: BTW, I just spent some time going over the different info on the new BG series and it looks like they have basically trashed the original concept in favor of a new-age story that bears little resemblance to BG. They could (and IMHO) should change the name of the new series to something else. The cylons are now 'humanoid' (think replicants from BladeRunner) and are now 'defending the 'colony' instead of searching for the lost colony and the mythical planet called earth.

IMHO they have just strapped the BG name on a new Sci-Fi series in hopes to gain a wider audience. (The fans of the original will not be a happy crowd, and with good reason.) Calling this new Sci-Fi show Battlestar Galactica is akin to calling 'Andromeda' "Star Trek: Commomwealth"

Maybe Richard Hatch will eventually succeed in reviving the 'real' BG. That I would look forward to seeing. This new BG is not on my list of things to look forward to.

nuf said, Cheers!

[ October 06, 2003, 15:35: Message edited by: David E. Gervais ]

[EvilGenius4ABetterTomorro]

Battle Barge Collapsica? Oh yeah, I remember now. Isn't that the show that had a Monkey in a robotic dog costume? I just watched to catch a glimpse of those fine Tektronix waveform monitors and ocilliscopes donated to make up the bridge set.

Battle Star 1980: Cylons taking out L.A. and the Capital Records building! Good television!

[Baron Munchausen]

Originally posted by Prince Xizor:
I really enjoyed Battlestar Galactica as a kid, despite all the similarities to Star Wars (it was like getting to watch Star Wars every week--this was before VCRs were commonplace keep in mind ). I'm sure I'll watch the Sci-Fi remake come December and find something to enjoy (Dune and Children of Dune weren't bad). There have been a lot of bad things said about it already though, such as the casting decisions. Starbuck and Boomer are women now?!

Please explain why you think Battlestar Galactica is similar to Star Wars? Other than the use of space ships? I've always wanted to look up the George Lucas lawsuit and see what possible reasons he could have had to think it was a SW rip-off...

And yes, from what I've heard the 'new' BG is only slightly more similar to the original than the old BG was to SW, as others have noted. It looks like they just wanted to hijack the brand-loyalty of the old show for their new SciFi series. I won't bother to watch it.

[SpaceBadger]

Originally posted by Baron Munchausen:

quote:

---

Originally posted by Prince Xizor:
I really enjoyed Battlestar Galactica as a kid, despite all the similarities to Star Wars (it was like getting to watch Star Wars every week--this was before VCRs were commonplace keep in mind ).
*snip*

Please explain why you think Battlestar Galactica is similar to Star Wars?

---

Try to look at it without 23+ years of hindsight. When Star Wars first came out, one of the best things about it for us kids (I was 14) was the special effects - the ships in space, the bLaster bolts, the light-sabres - all a quantum leap beyond what we were used to seeing in Star Trek re-runs on late night TV, or on Space: 1999. These were pretty much the only referents we had, and without VCRs we did not have the opportunity to study them in detail, we could only try and catch them when they happened to show up on TV.

From that point of view, yes, Battlestar Galactica certainly did a pretty good impression of Star Wars. The ships had a similar look to them; the appearance of ships in space, and ship combat, was very similar; and I think the hand-weapon effects were similar, too.

I didn't get to see Galactica much, only when I was over at the home of someone who lived in town and had cable TV, as it was on a network that we could not recieve by broadcast (ABC, maybe?), but I remember thinking back then that it would be so cool to be able to watch it regularly, like getting Star Wars on TV. (I watched Star Wars three times the summer it came out, then did not get to see it again in any form until Empire Strikes Back came out several years later; did not see the original Star Wars again until it was shown on TV about the time that Jedi came out, I think. My kids have them all on VHS and watch them whenever they get a notion, and think nothing of it.)

So anyway, yeah, I understand exactly what Xizor was saying, and agree with him.

SpaceBadger

[Atrocities]

Originally posted by JLPicard:
I think that Sci-Fi's Battlestar Galactica is going to be interesting also. But better yet would be a series based on Wing Commander (potentially deeper plot/storyline) or even
better yet, resurrecting Babylon 5!

The Wing Commander movie with Freddy Prince (sp) was a good movie and was produced by the same Glen Larson one of the original Battlestar Galactica producers.

[ October 06, 2003, 18:53: Message edited by: Atrocities ]

[narf poit chez BOOM]

The cylons are now 'humanoid' (think replicants from BladeRunner) and are now 'defending the 'colony' instead of searching for the lost colony and the mythical planet called earth.

in other words, the cylons are no longer imperialistic robots?

i can't come up with words for the apparent suckiness.