BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - SEASON 2.5 (EPISODES 11-20) (2005)

Battlestar Galactica - Season 2.5 (Episodes 11-20) (2005)
 

Actors: Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis
Format: AC-3, Box set, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Region: Unknown.
Number of discs: 3
Run Time: 521 minutes
 

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The episodes, spread over three discs, prove once again that this is quite easily the best science fiction show on TV right now, especially now that they are no longer making Star Trek. Battlestar's closest competitor is probably the new Doctor Who revamping.

The plot is familiar: a group of humans facing extinction flee from a race of murderous robots known as the Cylons. What the show does with it is not. What makes this Battlestar Galactica so good is not only how elements of the original show has been updated for modern sensibilities, but how plot and story elements have been completely reworked into something completely fresh and different. Interesting is how our human heroes are intensely flawed beings with their own foibles, often more intent on fighting each other than they are fighting the Cylons; and how the robot villains are actually quite moral and even religious in their world outlook.

This is a show that is not afraid of taking chances, a fact which is clearly illustrated by its several unexpected plot directions and developments. Without giving too much away, but the season finale on this DVD set will have your jaw dropping . . .

THE DISCS: There audio commentaries on all of the episodes, some deleted scenes and several making of featurettes. Sometimes one gets the idea that the video compression may be a bit extreme, but the image and sound is still okay. For some reason an episode from the previous Battlestar Galactica 2.0 box set is repeated on this one. (It may be a slightly extended episode but one gets the idea that the producers probably felt that one should probably rewatch the episode to get up to scratch on what is happening in the series.)

WORTH IT? To be honest I'm not too keen on the way some studios have been splitting complete seasons of television shows into separate box sets on DVD, but since this is the only way for the moment to view these episodes on DVD I'm willing to drop those objections in this case.

RECOMMENDATION: Unlike Star Trek, this new updated Battlestar Galactica has few standalone episodes and it is recommended that if you haven't checked out this series yet that you start with the mini-series that launched the new show. The mini-series can be found on the Season One box set and there is no need to purchase it separately. If you have watched the show until now, then you will know that this Battlestar Galactica is far far better than the original 1970s series that inspired it and your copies are probably in the mail right now. Highly recommended.