Tom Zarek
Encyclopedia
Thomas "Tom" Zarek is the name of a fictional character
on the Syfy
series Battlestar Galactica
. He is played by Richard Hatch
, who had previously portrayed Captain Apollo
, a character on the original Battlestar Galactica series
of the late 1970s.
Zarek is a charismatic and philosophical populist
political leader from the Colony of Sagittaron, who was jailed twenty years before the Cylon holocaust for terrorist activities (he planted explosives in a government building, destroying it and causing many deaths) and for spurring political unrest. After the destruction of the Twelve Colonies
, he and a number of other inmates find themselves stuck on the Astral Queen, a prison ship which joins the Battlestar Galactica
in fleeing the Cylons
.
Gathering followers among the prisoners, Zarek leads a riot against the leadership of the ragtag fleet, protesting the poor living conditions on the Astral Queen. He creates a hostage situation which then-Commander Adama
and President Roslin must resolve in the midst of a crisis of water supply in the fleet. ("Bastille Day
"). As an homage to the original 1970s series, at one point in the episode Zarek and Lee Adama are in discussion sitting opposite each other in one of the cells. One of Zarek's co-conspirators calls "Apollo!", at which point they both turn in recognition.
Later in the series, Zarek runs for political office, and is elected representative for Sagittaron on the new Quorum of Twelve
(the upper house
of the legislative branch of the government, and the only one expedient to use under the circumstances). He then runs for the vacant office of Vice President, in a power play meant to take a step towards ascending to the presidency, but is defeated when Roslin makes a surprise replacement for her own nominee, and Dr. Gaius Baltar
is elected Vice President.
Actor Richard Hatch has stated that Zarek ran for office because "he's always looking for positions where he can leverage himself, where he can have more influence. He obviously believes that he's fighting for the people, but very much so often the idealistic revolutionary becomes the self-serving politician. So often, what you think is for the people ends up being for you. I think that happens to so many political leaders. They start out for beneficial reasons but they get caught up in the process for their own purposes and agendas."
During the time in which Col. Tigh
imposed martial law
on the fleet, Zarek assists Lee Adama
in hiding Roslin from the military. ("Resistance
"). While on the run, he unsuccessfully tries to persuade the younger Adama to record a message to the fleet publicly denouncing his father for ordering Roslin's arrest. ("The Farm
"). After the Astral Queen leads the pro-Roslin faction to Kobol
, Zarek and his lieutenant, Meier, accompany Roslin's party to the planet's surface, ostensibly to provide security as they search for the Tomb of Athena. Zarek tries to dissuade Meier from his plan of assassinating Lee to no avail, and Meier ends up dead when the plan fails. ("Home
").
Soon after reuniting with the fleet, Lee turns to Zarek for information on his "shady friends," who control a black market for essential goods. Zarek names a gangster named Phelan, who is later killed by Lee. Although he denies any involvement in the black market saying that he broke off contact with Phelan when he discovered Phelan's child prostitution ring, Zarek is nevertheless shown associating with one of the late Phelan's former henchmen. ("Black Market
").
Subsequently, Zarek goes on to become Gaius Baltar's campaign manager in his bid against Laura Roslin
. He engineers a winning platform that called for the fleet to settle on an isolated, newly discovered planet later dubbed "New Caprica." When Baltar is elected President of the Twelve Colonies
, Zarek became his vice president. Zarek was placed in confinement, however, when he refused to collaborate with the Cylons after they forced the surrender of the Baltar administration. He, along with Laura Roslin and Cally Tyrol, was one of 200 citizens sentenced to death by the Cylon-controlled Colonial Government. Believing themselves to be doomed, Zarek elicited a confession from Roslin about the election fraud that almost denied Baltar the presidency. Upon hearing the truth from Roslin, Zarek admitted that in light of the Cylon occupation, settling on New Caprica was a bad idea. The group is saved at the last minute by the human resistance movement.
After Galactica's return to help the remnants of humanity escape, Baltar is left with the Cylons. Zarek becomes president of the Colonies, but decides to step down, believing that without the military's support he wouldn't be able to control the fleet. Before his resignation, he appoints Laura Roslin as his Vice President. Although saying he would like any position in Roslin's new administration, Zarek is clearly surprised when Roslin asks him to be her new Vice President. Before Roslin resumed her presidency, Zarek in conjunction with Saul Tigh
secretly authorized "The Circle" to carry out death squad
executions of those who collaborated with the Cylons on New Caprica. Roslin is horrified when she learns of this, but Zarek says that the fleet needs quick justice to prevent chaos and that Roslin's new mandate needs to start with clean hands. The executions are stopped when Roslin declared a general amnesty in her inaugural address. After Baltar is returned by the Cylons to the Colonials during the Eye of Jupiter incident, Zarek repeatedly counsels Roslin against giving him a public trial, again citing the potential for chaos in the fleet that could ensue. He strongly advises Roslin to declare martial law as a precaution during the trial. When Zarek leaves, Roslin and Tory note that Zarek seemed extremely worried about possible unrest, as Zarek's political philosophy has always been fundamentally opposed to martial law.
When Roslin is kidnapped by renegade Cylons in the episode "Sine Qua Non
", Zarek, under the Colonial Constitution, declared himself "Acting President" pending Roslin's return. Although the Quorum of 12 fully supported Zarek's actions, Lee Adama
later advises him to step down due to the fact that the military will not back Zarek's administration. Zarek reluctantly agrees to exercise a provision that allows for an "Interim President" to be appointed in a time of crisis. This results in Lee Adama becoming interim president until Roslin is returned to the fleet.
After the fleet finds Earth to be a desolate, irradiated wasteland, Roslin retreats from the public eye, leaving Zarek as the government's de facto leader. In "A Disquiet Follows My Soul,"
tensions quickly arise between him and Admiral Adama over the latter's plan to install advanced Cylon jump drives on all civilian ships. While the admiral believes the use of Cylon technology will expedite the discovery of a new homeworld, Zarek sees it as an illegal military usurpation of civilian authority, and yet another step towards an unwise permanent alliance with the rebel Cylons. At Zarek's behest, the Quorum soon passes legislation forbidding Cylon engineers from boarding any ship whose captain refuses them, and Zarek privately exhorts the fleet to resist Adama's attempts to force compliance. The fleet's tylium ship, the "Hitei Kan," jumps away shortly after communicating with Zarek; Admiral Adama then has the Vice President arrested. In Galactica's brig, Adama confronts him with a stack of documents purportedly proving that Zarek is corrupt. Although it transpires that the documents are merely ship laundry slips, Zarek relents, giving Adama the coordinates to which the "Hitei Kan" jumped.
Not long afterward, Felix Gaeta
visits Zarek in the brig, proposing a mutiny and coup d'etat. Zarek agrees. In "The Oath"
, Gaeta sets his plan in motion, removing Zarek from the brig and escorting him to the hangar deck. Claiming to have spotted a dangerous fuel leak, co-conspirator Racetrack
clears the deck of all personnel save for Crew Chief Laird and Jeanne, one of Baltar's acolytes. A suspicious Laird is about to contact the LSO when Zarek strikes him in the back of the head with a wrench, killing him. Racetrack then flies Zarek back to Colonial One, where he claims to Lee Adama
that the Admiral had changed his mind about the imprisonment. Zarek remains in communication with Gaeta throughout the mutiny aboard Galactica, expressing annoyance when he hears that Admiral Adama had not been killed but congratulating Gaeta on his good work.
Shortly after Gaeta seizes control of Galactica, Zarek meets with the Quorum. When it becomes clear that the Quorum will not follow Zarek as the new President, Zarek orders the entire Quorum to be executed.
Zarek and Gaeta end up only controlling Galactica for a brief period of time. It soon becomes clear that the mutiny does not have as much support as Zarek and Gaeta anticipated. The relationship between the two breaks down shortly before Adama and loyalists break into the CIC and regain control of the ship.
After regaining control of Galactica and defeating the mutiny, Adama has Zarek and Gaeta executed by firing squad.
. The novel is set twenty years after the first Cylon War. At this time, Zarek is a junior crew member aboard the free cruiser Lightning, a scavenger/pirate ship owned by Captain Nadu.
A four-part comic book miniseries provided his biography.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
on the Syfy
Syfy
Syfy , 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...
series Battlestar Galactica
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...
. He is played by Richard Hatch
Richard Hatch (actor)
Richard Hatch is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Captain Apollo in the original Battlestar Galactica television series, and also as Tom Zarek in the remake of Battlestar Galactica....
, who had previously portrayed Captain Apollo
Captain Apollo
Captain Apollo is the name of a fictional character in the Battlestar Galactica franchise. He was first played by Richard Hatch, who would also later appear as the character of Tom Zarek in the reimagined Battlestar Galactica series in 2005....
, a character on the original Battlestar Galactica series
Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series)
Battlestar Galactica is an American science fiction television series, created by Glen A. Larson. It starred Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch and Dirk Benedict and ran for one season in 1978–79. After cancellation, its story was continued in 1980 as Galactica 1980 with Adama, Lieutenant Boomer and...
of the late 1970s.
Zarek is a charismatic and philosophical populist
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
political leader from the Colony of Sagittaron, who was jailed twenty years before the Cylon holocaust for terrorist activities (he planted explosives in a government building, destroying it and causing many deaths) and for spurring political unrest. After the destruction 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...
, he and a number of other inmates find themselves stuck on the Astral Queen, a prison ship which joins the Battlestar Galactica
Battlestar Galactica (ship)
The Battlestar Galactica is a space battleship in the original and re-imagined science fiction television series Battlestar Galactica.The Twelve Colonies of Man in the original television series built a number of Battlestars during their thousand-year war with the Cylons, whose battleships are...
in fleeing the Cylons
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...
.
Gathering followers among the prisoners, Zarek leads a riot against the leadership of the ragtag fleet, protesting the poor living conditions on the Astral Queen. He creates a hostage situation which then-Commander Adama
William Adama
William "Bill" Adama is a fictional character portrayed by Edward James Olmos in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica television series...
and President Roslin must resolve in the midst of a crisis of water supply in the fleet. ("Bastille Day
Bastille Day (Battlestar Galactica)
"Bastille Day" is the third episode of the first season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica television series.-Plot:After a source of water is located on a nearby moon, Apollo suggests the use of the 1,000 prisoners aboard the Astral Queen to extract it, but President Roslin does not want to...
"). As an homage to the original 1970s series, at one point in the episode Zarek and Lee Adama are in discussion sitting opposite each other in one of the cells. One of Zarek's co-conspirators calls "Apollo!", at which point they both turn in recognition.
Later in the series, Zarek runs for political office, and is elected representative for Sagittaron on the new Quorum of Twelve
Quorum of Twelve
The Quorum of Twelve is a fictional governing body of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol on the two Battlestar Galactica television series. In both series, it was composed of one representative from each colony.Series creator Glen A...
(the upper house
Upper house
An upper house, often called a senate, is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house; a legislature composed of only one house is described as unicameral.- Possible specific characteristics :...
of the legislative branch of the government, and the only one expedient to use under the circumstances). He then runs for the vacant office of Vice President, in a power play meant to take a step towards ascending to the presidency, but is defeated when Roslin makes a surprise replacement for her own nominee, and Dr. 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...
is elected Vice President.
Actor Richard Hatch has stated that Zarek ran for office because "he's always looking for positions where he can leverage himself, where he can have more influence. He obviously believes that he's fighting for the people, but very much so often the idealistic revolutionary becomes the self-serving politician. So often, what you think is for the people ends up being for you. I think that happens to so many political leaders. They start out for beneficial reasons but they get caught up in the process for their own purposes and agendas."
During the time in which Col. Tigh
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...
imposed martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
on the fleet, Zarek assists Lee Adama
Lee Adama
Leland Joseph "Lee" Adama is a fictional character in the television series Battlestar Galactica. He is portrayed by actor Jamie Bamber. He is one of the main characters in the series.-Early life:...
in hiding Roslin from the military. ("Resistance
Resistance (Battlestar Galactica)
"Resistance" is the fourth episode of the second season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica television series. It aired originally on the Sci Fi Channel on August 5, 2005....
"). While on the run, he unsuccessfully tries to persuade the younger Adama to record a message to the fleet publicly denouncing his father for ordering Roslin's arrest. ("The Farm
The Farm (Battlestar Galactica)
"The Farm" is the fifth episode of the second season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica television series. It aired originally on the Sci Fi Channel on August 12, 2005...
"). After the Astral Queen leads the pro-Roslin faction to 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...
, Zarek and his lieutenant, Meier, accompany Roslin's party to the planet's surface, ostensibly to provide security as they search for the Tomb of Athena. Zarek tries to dissuade Meier from his plan of assassinating Lee to no avail, and Meier ends up dead when the plan fails. ("Home
Home (Battlestar Galactica)
"Home" is a two-part episode of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica television series. Part 1 aired originally on the Sci Fi Channel on August 19, 2005, and Part 2 aired on August 26, 2005....
").
Soon after reuniting with the fleet, Lee turns to Zarek for information on his "shady friends," who control a black market for essential goods. Zarek names a gangster named Phelan, who is later killed by Lee. Although he denies any involvement in the black market saying that he broke off contact with Phelan when he discovered Phelan's child prostitution ring, Zarek is nevertheless shown associating with one of the late Phelan's former henchmen. ("Black Market
Black Market (Battlestar Galactica)
"Black Market" is the fourteenth episode of the second season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica television series. It aired originally on the Sci Fi Channel on January 27, 2006. In the episode, Apollo's investigation of the fleet's black market becomes intertwined with his involvement with a...
").
Subsequently, Zarek goes on to become Gaius Baltar's campaign manager in his bid against 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...
. He engineers a winning platform that called for the fleet to settle on an isolated, newly discovered planet later dubbed "New Caprica." When Baltar is elected President 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...
, Zarek became his vice president. Zarek was placed in confinement, however, when he refused to collaborate with the Cylons after they forced the surrender of the Baltar administration. He, along with Laura Roslin and Cally Tyrol, was one of 200 citizens sentenced to death by the Cylon-controlled Colonial Government. Believing themselves to be doomed, Zarek elicited a confession from Roslin about the election fraud that almost denied Baltar the presidency. Upon hearing the truth from Roslin, Zarek admitted that in light of the Cylon occupation, settling on New Caprica was a bad idea. The group is saved at the last minute by the human resistance movement.
After Galactica's return to help the remnants of humanity escape, Baltar is left with the Cylons. Zarek becomes president of the Colonies, but decides to step down, believing that without the military's support he wouldn't be able to control the fleet. Before his resignation, he appoints Laura Roslin as his Vice President. Although saying he would like any position in Roslin's new administration, Zarek is clearly surprised when Roslin asks him to be her new Vice President. Before Roslin resumed her presidency, Zarek in conjunction with Saul Tigh
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...
secretly authorized "The Circle" to carry out death squad
Death squad
A death squad is an armed military, police, insurgent, or terrorist squad that conducts extrajudicial killings, assassinations, and forced disappearances of persons as part of a war, insurgency or terror campaign...
executions of those who collaborated with the Cylons on New Caprica. Roslin is horrified when she learns of this, but Zarek says that the fleet needs quick justice to prevent chaos and that Roslin's new mandate needs to start with clean hands. The executions are stopped when Roslin declared a general amnesty in her inaugural address. After Baltar is returned by the Cylons to the Colonials during the Eye of Jupiter incident, Zarek repeatedly counsels Roslin against giving him a public trial, again citing the potential for chaos in the fleet that could ensue. He strongly advises Roslin to declare martial law as a precaution during the trial. When Zarek leaves, Roslin and Tory note that Zarek seemed extremely worried about possible unrest, as Zarek's political philosophy has always been fundamentally opposed to martial law.
When Roslin is kidnapped by renegade Cylons in the episode "Sine Qua Non
Sine Qua Non (Battlestar Galactica)
"Sine Qua Non" is the tenth episode in the fourth season of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica. It first aired on television on May 27, 2008. The episode name is a Latin term referring to something essential that cannot be done without...
", Zarek, under the Colonial Constitution, declared himself "Acting President" pending Roslin's return. Although the Quorum of 12 fully supported Zarek's actions, Lee Adama
Lee Adama
Leland Joseph "Lee" Adama is a fictional character in the television series Battlestar Galactica. He is portrayed by actor Jamie Bamber. He is one of the main characters in the series.-Early life:...
later advises him to step down due to the fact that the military will not back Zarek's administration. Zarek reluctantly agrees to exercise a provision that allows for an "Interim President" to be appointed in a time of crisis. This results in Lee Adama becoming interim president until Roslin is returned to the fleet.
After the fleet finds Earth to be a desolate, irradiated wasteland, Roslin retreats from the public eye, leaving Zarek as the government's de facto leader. In "A Disquiet Follows My Soul,"
A Disquiet Follows My Soul
"A Disquiet Follows My Soul" is the fourteenth episode in the fourth season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. It aired on television in the United States and Canada on January 23, 2009, in Australia on January 31, 2009 and on Sky One in the UK on January 27, 2009. According to the director,...
tensions quickly arise between him and Admiral Adama over the latter's plan to install advanced Cylon jump drives on all civilian ships. While the admiral believes the use of Cylon technology will expedite the discovery of a new homeworld, Zarek sees it as an illegal military usurpation of civilian authority, and yet another step towards an unwise permanent alliance with the rebel Cylons. At Zarek's behest, the Quorum soon passes legislation forbidding Cylon engineers from boarding any ship whose captain refuses them, and Zarek privately exhorts the fleet to resist Adama's attempts to force compliance. The fleet's tylium ship, the "Hitei Kan," jumps away shortly after communicating with Zarek; Admiral Adama then has the Vice President arrested. In Galactica's brig, Adama confronts him with a stack of documents purportedly proving that Zarek is corrupt. Although it transpires that the documents are merely ship laundry slips, Zarek relents, giving Adama the coordinates to which the "Hitei Kan" jumped.
Not long afterward, Felix Gaeta
Felix Gaeta
Lieutenant Junior Grade Felix Gaeta is a fictional character on Battlestar Galactica played by Alessandro Juliani.- Character overview in his early career :...
visits Zarek in the brig, proposing a mutiny and coup d'etat. Zarek agrees. In "The Oath"
The Oath (Battlestar Galactica)
"The Oath" is the fifteenth episode in the fourth season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. It aired on television in the United States and Canada on January 30, 2009 and in the UK on Sky One on February 3, 2009....
, Gaeta sets his plan in motion, removing Zarek from the brig and escorting him to the hangar deck. Claiming to have spotted a dangerous fuel leak, co-conspirator Racetrack
Margaret Edmondson
Margaret Edmondson is a fictional character in the television series Battlestar Galactica, portrayed by actress Leah Cairns.- Character biography :...
clears the deck of all personnel save for Crew Chief Laird and Jeanne, one of Baltar's acolytes. A suspicious Laird is about to contact the LSO when Zarek strikes him in the back of the head with a wrench, killing him. Racetrack then flies Zarek back to Colonial One, where he claims to Lee Adama
Lee Adama
Leland Joseph "Lee" Adama is a fictional character in the television series Battlestar Galactica. He is portrayed by actor Jamie Bamber. He is one of the main characters in the series.-Early life:...
that the Admiral had changed his mind about the imprisonment. Zarek remains in communication with Gaeta throughout the mutiny aboard Galactica, expressing annoyance when he hears that Admiral Adama had not been killed but congratulating Gaeta on his good work.
Shortly after Gaeta seizes control of Galactica, Zarek meets with the Quorum. When it becomes clear that the Quorum will not follow Zarek as the new President, Zarek orders the entire Quorum to be executed.
Zarek and Gaeta end up only controlling Galactica for a brief period of time. It soon becomes clear that the mutiny does not have as much support as Zarek and Gaeta anticipated. The relationship between the two breaks down shortly before Adama and loyalists break into the CIC and regain control of the ship.
After regaining control of Galactica and defeating the mutiny, Adama has Zarek and Gaeta executed by firing squad.
Backstory
Zarek is a central character in The Cylons' Secret (2006) by Craig Shaw GardnerCraig Shaw Gardner
Craig Shaw Gardner is an American author, best known for producing fantasy parodies similar to those of Terry Pratchett.He was also a member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America , a loose-knit group of Heroic Fantasy authors founded in the 1960s, some of whose works were anthologized...
. The novel is set twenty years after the first Cylon War. At this time, Zarek is a junior crew member aboard the free cruiser Lightning, a scavenger/pirate ship owned by Captain Nadu.
A four-part comic book miniseries provided his biography.