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Deadlock (Battlestar Galactica)
Encyclopedia
"Deadlock" is the eighteenth episode in the fourth season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica
. It aired on television in the United States and Canada. The survivor count shown in the title sequence is 39,556.
and Boomer arrive at the fleet and Boomer is immediately taken to the brig. Ellen and Saul
reunite and, after making love, go together to visit Sam Anders, who is still comatose. Tory Foster
, Galen Tyrol
, a Six
and an Eight are also by Anders' bedside. The Cylons propose that since Ellen has returned, they should leave the human fleet, especially since Caprica Six is pregnant with Saul's fully Cylon child and they no longer need humans in order to reproduce. Ellen did not know about Caprica Six being pregnant, and is angry at Saul as she was never able to conceive children, and Caprica could only have become pregnant if he truly loved her. Furthermore, because the other Cylons are the Final Five's creations, she views Saul's relationship with Caprica in an incestuous light.
A vote is had by the Final Five on whether they should stay with the human fleet, and they promise to be bound by the results of that vote. Tory Foster and Galen Tyrol vote they go, Saul Tigh votes they stay and they assume from what Anders has said previously he would also vote to stay, which leaves Ellen with the deciding vote. She states that she needs more time, and goes to visit Caprica Six in her quarters. She "accidentally" tells Caprica Six that she and Saul had sex, before telling her she believed Saul loved Caprica more than he loved her. Ellen then calls another meeting, and says she has decided that the Cylon fleet should leave. Saul refuses to leave, and Ellen says this is because he loves the ship and William Adama
more than herself or Caprica Six. Caprica becomes upset and starts to lose the baby. He and Ellen unite to try to tell Caprica that Saul does love her which Ellen believes will save the baby, but Caprica Six still suffers a miscarriage
. Saul goes to Adama for support, revealing that the baby's name was "Liam", short for William. Writer Jane Espenson confirmed that Saul wanted to name his child after his best friend.
Elsewhere, Tyrol and teams of Cylons attempt to fix the ship by using a Cylon polymer to grow into the cracks. Gaius Baltar
rejoins his believers, who have taken up arms in order to get and keep supplies, but gives some away to starving people in "Dogsville" before the rest is stolen by the Sons of Ares. He appeals to Admiral Adama, who supplies him with weapons to prevent it happening in the future. Near the end of the episode, the monitor near Anders indicates that he has higher brain functions and his eyes flutter as in REM sleep. The episode ends with Roslin and Adama walking through the ship past a Six and an Eight working on the ship's hull and a group of mixed human and Cylon pilots. A Six has stopped in front of the Wall, staring at the photos, and Roslin realises that the Cylons have begun memorialising their dead there in the same way as the humans.
viewing), about 200,000 fewer viewers than for the previous episode.
commented: "This episode makes clear that Cavil didn't invent entirely new personalities for his "parents" when he imprisoned them in new bodies. The real version of Ellen is smarter than the one we knew, and maybe more regal, but she's still just as frakked-up, just as trapped in the ring of fire with Saul as she ever was." Michael Saba of Paste Magazine felt the pace of the episode was "a little bit clunkier" compared to previous ones but that "standout performances" from Michael Hogan and Kate Vernon
"rounded out" the episode. Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune
praised James Callis
' performance of "Baltar's altruism and canny strategizing at once" as well as praising Kate Vernon and Tricia Helfer
for their performances. Jevon Phillips of the Los Angeles Times
was less impressed by Ellen Tigh's characterization, calling her "annoying" and the change from the "cool character" of the previous episode "disconcerting". Marc Bernardin of Entertainment Weekly
felt "bored" by the repair of Galactica by the Cylons and was also unimpressed by the Baltar storyline, stating that "I just don't care enough about Baltar and his blinkered messiah complex to give a hoot" but "choked up a bit" at the scene where Adama comforts Saul on the loss of the baby but felt that overall the episode was just "full of arguing". Kelly West of Cinema Blend
felt the episode was a "battleship version of Days of Our Lives".
Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)
Battlestar Galactica is an American military science fiction television series, and part of the Battlestar Galactica franchise. The show was developed by Ronald D. Moore as a re-imagining of the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series created by Glen A. Larson...
. It aired on television in the United States and Canada. The survivor count shown in the title sequence is 39,556.
Plot summary
Ellen TighEllen Tigh
After she is killed for treason against the resistance on New Caprica, Ellen resurrects aboard a Cylon ship, where John Cavil holds her prisoner. However, by downloading into a new body, she regains the memories that Cavil had blocked decades earlier...
and Boomer arrive at the fleet and Boomer is immediately taken to the brig. Ellen and Saul
Saul Tigh
Saul Tigh is a fictional character on Battlestar Galactica played by Michael Hogan. The character was named Paul Tigh in early scripts, and was renamed due to legal issues, according to producer Ronald D. Moore. He is one of the main characters of the show.-Overview and personality:Saul Tigh is a...
reunite and, after making love, go together to visit Sam Anders, who is still comatose. Tory Foster
Tory Foster
Tory Foster is a fictional character from the 2004 TV series Battlestar Galactica, portrayed by Rekha Sharma.-Character biography:Tory, like the other members of the Final Five, was originally from a planet called Earth...
, Galen Tyrol
Galen Tyrol
Galen Tyrol is a character on the television series Battlestar Galactica. Tyrol is responsible for the maintenance of the Vipers and Raptors aboard Battlestar Galactica...
, a Six
Number Six (Battlestar Galactica)
Number Six is a family of fictional characters from the reimagined science fiction television series, Battlestar Galactica. She is portrayed by Canadian actress and model Tricia Helfer. Of the twelve known Cylon models, she is the sixth of the "Significant Seven"...
and an Eight are also by Anders' bedside. The Cylons propose that since Ellen has returned, they should leave the human fleet, especially since Caprica Six is pregnant with Saul's fully Cylon child and they no longer need humans in order to reproduce. Ellen did not know about Caprica Six being pregnant, and is angry at Saul as she was never able to conceive children, and Caprica could only have become pregnant if he truly loved her. Furthermore, because the other Cylons are the Final Five's creations, she views Saul's relationship with Caprica in an incestuous light.
A vote is had by the Final Five on whether they should stay with the human fleet, and they promise to be bound by the results of that vote. Tory Foster and Galen Tyrol vote they go, Saul Tigh votes they stay and they assume from what Anders has said previously he would also vote to stay, which leaves Ellen with the deciding vote. She states that she needs more time, and goes to visit Caprica Six in her quarters. She "accidentally" tells Caprica Six that she and Saul had sex, before telling her she believed Saul loved Caprica more than he loved her. Ellen then calls another meeting, and says she has decided that the Cylon fleet should leave. Saul refuses to leave, and Ellen says this is because he loves the ship and William Adama
William Adama
William "Bill" Adama is a fictional character portrayed by Edward James Olmos in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica television series...
more than herself or Caprica Six. Caprica becomes upset and starts to lose the baby. He and Ellen unite to try to tell Caprica that Saul does love her which Ellen believes will save the baby, but Caprica Six still suffers a miscarriage
Miscarriage
Miscarriage or spontaneous abortion is the spontaneous end of a pregnancy at a stage where the embryo or fetus is incapable of surviving independently, generally defined in humans at prior to 20 weeks of gestation...
. Saul goes to Adama for support, revealing that the baby's name was "Liam", short for William. Writer Jane Espenson confirmed that Saul wanted to name his child after his best friend.
Elsewhere, Tyrol and teams of Cylons attempt to fix the ship by using a Cylon polymer to grow into the cracks. Gaius Baltar
Gaius Baltar
Gaius Baltar is a fictional character in the TV series Battlestar Galactica played by James Callis, a reimagining of Count Baltar from the 1978 Battlestar Galactica series...
rejoins his believers, who have taken up arms in order to get and keep supplies, but gives some away to starving people in "Dogsville" before the rest is stolen by the Sons of Ares. He appeals to Admiral Adama, who supplies him with weapons to prevent it happening in the future. Near the end of the episode, the monitor near Anders indicates that he has higher brain functions and his eyes flutter as in REM sleep. The episode ends with Roslin and Adama walking through the ship past a Six and an Eight working on the ship's hull and a group of mixed human and Cylon pilots. A Six has stopped in front of the Wall, staring at the photos, and Roslin realises that the Cylons have begun memorialising their dead there in the same way as the humans.
Cut scenes
Some material expanding on the situation in Dogsville was cut as the episode was originally eleven minutes too long for broadcast. In the cut scenes, it is explained that due to three years of war and a mutiny, there are no longer enough marines to maintain order in the fleet and they have been forced to retreat from Dogsville. The Sons of Ares take control of the food supply, except for the stash held by Baltar's cult. Lee Adama and Roslin discuss the possibility of bringing in Centurions to provide more security in civilian areas, however, Admiral Adama is firmly opposed. Thus, when Baltar approaches him for better weapons, Adama is faced with two options:
Effectively, the question for Adama is, allow a criminal gang to control the food supply, or allow Baltar's crazy cultists to control it. And Baltar's group, now armed to the teeth, would also serve as a civilian security force, which Adama figures is better than using centurions. In the end, Baltar's militia is the lesser of two evils.
Ratings
"Deadlock" was seen by 1.528 million viewers (live viewing plus same day digital video recorderDigital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
viewing), about 200,000 fewer viewers than for the previous episode.
Critical reception
Alan Sepinwall of The Star-LedgerThe Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to The Jersey Journal of Jersey City, The Times of Trenton and the Staten Island Advance, all of which are owned by Advance Publications.The Newark Star-Ledgers daily...
commented: "This episode makes clear that Cavil didn't invent entirely new personalities for his "parents" when he imprisoned them in new bodies. The real version of Ellen is smarter than the one we knew, and maybe more regal, but she's still just as frakked-up, just as trapped in the ring of fire with Saul as she ever was." Michael Saba of Paste Magazine felt the pace of the episode was "a little bit clunkier" compared to previous ones but that "standout performances" from Michael Hogan and Kate Vernon
Kate Vernon
Kate Vernon is a Canadian-born film and television actress. She is best known for her roles as Lorraine Prescott on the CBS soap opera Falcon Crest from , the stuck-up and popular Benny Hanson in the comedy film Pretty in Pink , Mary-John Lovejoy in The Lost Colony Feature of Lovejoy and...
"rounded out" the episode. Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
praised James Callis
James Callis
James Callis is a British actor. He is best known for playing Dr. Gaius Baltar in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica miniseries and television series, and Bridget Jones' best friend in Bridget Jones's Diary and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason...
' performance of "Baltar's altruism and canny strategizing at once" as well as praising Kate Vernon and Tricia Helfer
Tricia Helfer
Tricia Janine Helfer is a Canadian actress and former model, best known for her roles as Number Six in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica miniseries and television series, "Carla" on Burn Notice, and FBI Special Agent Alex Rice on Dark Blue, as well as for hosting the first season of Canada's...
for their performances. Jevon Phillips of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
was less impressed by Ellen Tigh's characterization, calling her "annoying" and the change from the "cool character" of the previous episode "disconcerting". Marc Bernardin of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
felt "bored" by the repair of Galactica by the Cylons and was also unimpressed by the Baltar storyline, stating that "I just don't care enough about Baltar and his blinkered messiah complex to give a hoot" but "choked up a bit" at the scene where Adama comforts Saul on the loss of the baby but felt that overall the episode was just "full of arguing". Kelly West of Cinema Blend
Cinema Blend
Cinema Blend is a website founded and run by Josh Tyler dedicated to news and reviews of upcoming and currently playing films, movie projects, Television Shows, and a newly founded Music section which covers album reviews, band interviews and daily news from the industry. It combines gossip from...
felt the episode was a "battleship version of Days of Our Lives".
External links
- "Deadlock" at Battlestar Wiki
- "Deadlock" at SyfySyfySyfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...