Flesh and Bone (Battlestar Galactica)
Encyclopedia
"Flesh and Bone" is the eighth episode of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica
television series.
sees a copy of Leoben Conoy
, a duplicate of the Cylon
that Commander Adama
encountered on Ragnar Anchorage, in a dream. Soon afterwards, a copy of this Cylon is caught aboard the Gemenon Traveller and arrested. Adama initially orders Conoy to be executed, but the President decides to interrogate him first. Adama assigns Starbuck
to go to the ship and conduct the interrogation where she finds Leoben "praying" in the holding room. Starbuck quickly learns the Cylons' concept of a single God and their renouncement of the pantheon of multiple deities that the people of the Twelve Colonies
worship.
Leoben dodges questions and resorts to playing games, such as successfully guessing Starbuck's name. When Starbuck tries to leave, Leoben tells her he hid a nuclear bomb
somewhere in the fleet that is set to detonate in nine hours. The Colonials lose the initiative in the interrogation. Adama orders radiological sweeps of all ships; in the meantime, Starbuck is told to do whatever is necessary to get information out of the prisoner, which later includes torture.
Elsewhere, Galactica-Boomer
continues to suspect that she may be a Cylon agent, and so asks Dr. Baltar
to test her with his prototype Cylon Detector. She fails the test (revealing that she is in fact a Cylon), but Baltar, frightened by Number Six
's claim that blowing Boomer's cover will turn on her Cylon programming, lies to Boomer about the results fearing she might kill him if he tells her the truth.
On Caprica, Helo
and Caprica-Boomer continue to run from the Cylons. Unknown to Helo, Boomer is now genuinely on the run with him after disobeying orders from the other Cylons to lead him on.
Back at the fleet, President Laura Roslin
, spurred on by recurring nightmare
s, decides to talk to the Cylon herself and arrives on the Gemenon Traveller. She intervenes in the torture and apologises for the harsh treatment at Starbuck's hands. Leoben then makes some startling predictions about the future of the fleet. He claims that they will find the legendary planet of Kobol
(the "lost" planet where humanity originally came from), and then admits he lied about planting a bomb. Suddenly he grabs Roslin and whispers in her ear that Adama (specifying neither Commander nor Captain) is a Cylon agent. Roslin turns pale at the thought. The guards pull Leoben away. In disgust, Roslin orders him vented into space, saying that you do not keep a killing machine like that around alive. Resigned to his fate, Leoben places his hand on the window glass within the airlock as Starbuck explains to Roslin that Leoben is not afraid to die, but afraid that his soul will not make it to God. Starbuck places her hand on the airlock window where Leoben has placed his hand, and he removes his hand and bows his head in respect. As the airlock vents into space, he looks at her through a window and is then blown away from her, exactly matching a scene from the dream Roslin had earlier.
Afterwards Starbuck prays for the soul of the lost Cylon, even though she is unsure that he had one.
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...
television series.
Plot
President RoslinLaura Roslin
Her first actions include organizing all FTL-capable ships together and convincing Commander William Adama to abandon a retaliatory attack on the Cylons. President Roslin and Billy Keikeya, her aide/press secretary/chief of staff, establish a working office space aboard her transport, renamed...
sees a copy of Leoben Conoy
Leoben Conoy
Leoben Conoy is a fictional character portrayed by Callum Keith Rennie appearing in the reimagined Battlestar Galactica series....
, a duplicate of the Cylon
Cylon (Battlestar Galactica)
The Cylons are a cybernetic civilization at war with the Twelve Colonies of humanity in the Battlestar Galactica science fiction franchise, in the original 1978 and 1980 series, the 2004 reimagining, as well as the spin-off prequel series, Caprica...
that Commander Adama
William Adama
William "Bill" Adama is a fictional character portrayed by Edward James Olmos in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica television series...
encountered on Ragnar Anchorage, in a dream. Soon afterwards, a copy of this Cylon is caught aboard the Gemenon Traveller and arrested. Adama initially orders Conoy to be executed, but the President decides to interrogate him first. Adama assigns Starbuck
Kara Thrace
Kara Thrace is a fictional character in the reimagined Battlestar Galactica franchise. Played by Katee Sackhoff, she is a revised version of Lieutenant Starbuck from the 1978 Battlestar Galactica series...
to go to the ship and conduct the interrogation where she finds Leoben "praying" in the holding room. Starbuck quickly learns the Cylons' concept of a single God and their renouncement of the pantheon of multiple deities that the people of the Twelve Colonies
Twelve Colonies
The Twelve Colonies of Man are fictional locations that constitute the principal human civilization in the original Battlestar Galactica television series, the "reimagined" series of the same name in 2004, and in the prequel series, Caprica...
worship.
Leoben dodges questions and resorts to playing games, such as successfully guessing Starbuck's name. When Starbuck tries to leave, Leoben tells her he hid a nuclear bomb
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
somewhere in the fleet that is set to detonate in nine hours. The Colonials lose the initiative in the interrogation. Adama orders radiological sweeps of all ships; in the meantime, Starbuck is told to do whatever is necessary to get information out of the prisoner, which later includes torture.
Elsewhere, Galactica-Boomer
Sharon Valerii
Number Eight is a female humanoid Cylon model on the television series Battlestar Galactica, a reimagining of the classic show of the same name. She is portrayed by Grace Park...
continues to suspect that she may be a Cylon agent, and so asks Dr. 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...
to test her with his prototype Cylon Detector. She fails the test (revealing that she is in fact a Cylon), but Baltar, frightened by Number 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"...
's claim that blowing Boomer's cover will turn on her Cylon programming, lies to Boomer about the results fearing she might kill him if he tells her the truth.
On Caprica, Helo
Karl Agathon
Karl C. Agathon is a fictional character on the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica TV series, portrayed by Tahmoh Penikett.-Background:...
and Caprica-Boomer continue to run from the Cylons. Unknown to Helo, Boomer is now genuinely on the run with him after disobeying orders from the other Cylons to lead him on.
Back at the fleet, President Laura Roslin
Laura Roslin
Her first actions include organizing all FTL-capable ships together and convincing Commander William Adama to abandon a retaliatory attack on the Cylons. President Roslin and Billy Keikeya, her aide/press secretary/chief of staff, establish a working office space aboard her transport, renamed...
, spurred on by recurring nightmare
Nightmare
A nightmare is an unpleasant dream that can cause a strong negative emotional response from the mind, typically fear or horror, but also despair, anxiety and great sadness. The dream may contain situations of danger, discomfort, psychological or physical terror...
s, decides to talk to the Cylon herself and arrives on the Gemenon Traveller. She intervenes in the torture and apologises for the harsh treatment at Starbuck's hands. Leoben then makes some startling predictions about the future of the fleet. He claims that they will find the legendary planet of Kobol
Kobol
Kobol is the name of a planet in the fictional Battlestar Galactica universe.Within the context of both Battlestar Galactica stories, Kobol is the birthplace and original home of humanity, from which the civilization departed and formed the Twelve Colonies on other worlds...
(the "lost" planet where humanity originally came from), and then admits he lied about planting a bomb. Suddenly he grabs Roslin and whispers in her ear that Adama (specifying neither Commander nor Captain) is a Cylon agent. Roslin turns pale at the thought. The guards pull Leoben away. In disgust, Roslin orders him vented into space, saying that you do not keep a killing machine like that around alive. Resigned to his fate, Leoben places his hand on the window glass within the airlock as Starbuck explains to Roslin that Leoben is not afraid to die, but afraid that his soul will not make it to God. Starbuck places her hand on the airlock window where Leoben has placed his hand, and he removes his hand and bows his head in respect. As the airlock vents into space, he looks at her through a window and is then blown away from her, exactly matching a scene from the dream Roslin had earlier.
Afterwards Starbuck prays for the soul of the lost Cylon, even though she is unsure that he had one.
External links
- "Flesh and Bone" at the Battlestar Wiki
- "Flesh and Bone" 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...