BATTLESTAR GALACTICA 4.7 – "Guess What's Coming To Dinner"

Writer: Michael Angeli
Director: Wayne Rose

Cast: Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck), Grace Park (Sharon/Athena), Tricia Helfer (Number Six/Natalie), James Callis (Baltar), Edward James Olmos (Adama), Jamie Bamber (Lee), Mary McDonnell (Roslin), Alessandro Juliani (Gaeta), Kandyse McClure (Dee), Bodie Olmos (Hot Dog), Callum Keith Rennie (Leoben), Richard Hatch (Zarek), Donnelly Rhodes (Doc Cottle), Rekha Sharma (Tory), Jennifer Halley (Seelix), Leah Cairns (Racetrack), Brad Dryborough (Lt. Hoshi), Colin Lawrence (Skulls), Tiffany Lyndall-Knight (The Hybrid), Michael Trucco (Anders), Aaron Douglas (Tyrol), Tahmoh Penikett (Helo), Michael Hogan (Tigh) & Alexandra Thomas (Hera)

The rebel Cylons propose a truce, as Roslin decides to get answers from the Hybrid about her visions...

After 6 episodes that have mainly focused on character and philosophy, Guess What's Coming To Dinner gets back to the thrilling spectacle BSG also does remarkably well, with welcome progression to underlying big themes and questions. I've enjoyed season 4 so far, but considering there are only about 15 episodes left of the whole series... this is the first episode to pick up the pace and tackle stuff head-on...

The Demetrius and the rescued Basestar synchronize a jump to the colonial fleet, only for the Demetrius' drive to come backfire, meaning the "enemy" Basestar lands in the midst of the colonials and faces imminent destruction – with the human crew onboard unable to communicate their benevolence. As a swirl of activity gets underway aboard Galactica, it's Tigh (Michael Hogan) who senses something's not quite right, and calls of Adama's (Edward James Olmos) imminent call to attack. Call it Cylon intuition, I guess.

Moments later, the Demetrius appears and relays to Galactica that Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff) and her crew are aboard the enemy vessel. Disaster averted, the Cylon occupants – Natalie (Tricia Helfer), Leoben (Callum Keith Rennie) and Eight (Grace Park) – state their case to Adama, Roslin (Mary McDonnell) and other high-ranking crewmen. Put simply: they want to "unbox" the Number Three, so she can identify the Final Five, who are hidden amongst the colonials and know the way to Earth. In return for the humans' help in reviving the Threes, Natalie will help them destroy the Cylon Resurrection Hub, which will consequently disable the Cylon's ability to download into another body, rendering them mortal and beatable. But can Adama and Roslin trust these Cylon rebels and call a truce?

At the same time, Roslin is still having visions of the opera house: where she chases Hera (Alexandra Thomas), with her mother Sharon (Park), before Number Six (Helfer again) and Baltar (James Callis) whisk her away through a bright doorway. It's a troubling vision she shares with Caprica Six (Helfer -- again!), but now she wants answers after being told of the Hybrid's prophecy about a "dying leader" showing them the way.

Roslin and Starbuck decide to speak to the Hybrid, but first Roslin has to appease the Quorum Of Twelve – after Baltar revealed her visions to his captive radio audience, and decisions about the alliance with the Cylon rebels were made without consultation. Lee (Jamie Bamber) voices their concerns after he's volunteered as spokesman for the spineless Quorum.

To smooth her political standing, Roslin invites Natalie to give a speech to the Quorum in person, outlining the whole Cylon situation. In her speech she makes it clear that her fellow rebels have come to believe that mortality is a necessary flaw of being truly alive, as it helps define your life. As Natalie speaks, Starbuck ponders the Hybrid's phrase that she's the "harbinger of death" – as it could actually signify her role in ensuring the Cylons will now know conclusive death after their hub is destroyed.

Roslin also learns that Tory (Rekha Sharma) is sleeping with Baltar, and can be counted as another of his many religious, monotheist followers. Given Baltar's prominence in her opera house vision, she invites him to join her aboard the Basestar to commune with the Hybrid and get to the bottom of the mystery. He agrees, and a large team cross over to the Basestar with half of Galactica's Raptors for protection...

At this crucial point, a few other interesting developments help to increase expectation: alone, Natalie has started to view the humans as untrustworthy, so gets Leoben and Eight to agree to her proposal to recapture their Basestar with the help of Centurions, once Roslin has met with the Hybrid. Also, Sharon's human-Cylon hybrid child Hera has started acting strangely – culminating in a Shining nod to her drawing book being full of stick-figures of Number Six with "6" scrawled everywhere. Is she having the opera house vision, too? Or does she just have a psychic link to Number Six?

A little later, Hera parallels the opera house vision by going walkabout on Galactica, pursued by a worried Sharon. Eventually, Hera bumps into Natalie with some armed guards, and the two seem to have a connection. Sharon discovers them and orders Natalie to back away from her daughter. She does so, but Sharon still shoots Natalie multiple times – killing her permanently, thanks to the lack of Resurrection Ships nearby.

Anyway, everything culminates magnificently with (possibly) BSG's best cliffhanger ending, as Roslin has the Hybrid reconnected, only for her to scream "Jump!" and the Basestar vanishes from the fleet – containing Roslin, Baltar, dozens of troops, and most of Galactica's Raptors. Has the Hybrid taken them somewhere specific, or was it just an instinctive reaction after being switched back on and misconstruing the situation as a Basestar "invasion"?

Adding some mystique was Gaeta (Alessandro Juliani), whose leg injury after being shot by Anders (Michael Trucco) results in him having an amputation. Weirdly, Gaeta copes with the trauma by singing (Juliani's real voice) a haunting melody known as "Gaeta's Lament", which is used throughout the episode to mix in some creepiness. His singing even draws Baltar near to his bedside at one point. But should we take his sudden musicality as anything more than a flourish by writer Michael Angeli? After all, the Final Five were "awoken" by hearing music last season ("All Along The Watchtower") so is it significant that Gaeta has started singing? Does this mean he's the newly-awakened Fifth? I don’t think so; but it's food for thought.

Overall, if you've been intrigued but a bit underwhelmed by season 4, recent episodes have definitely started providing some forward momentum, and this episode is a big shot of adrenaline. It's great to see the show start tackling the mysteries at the heart of the series, and I can't wait to see what Number Three says when she's unboxed and points the finger at the Final Five. Will she know who the missing Fifth is, too? And aren't the Cylon rebels going to be disappointed when it becomes clear the Final Five are self-hating colonials who have no memories of coming from Earth, or what to do next? Or will secret programming reveal itself when that particular bridge needs crossing?

Whatever happens next, things look to be building very nicely as we approach episode 10 -- when, sadly, the final season most likely goes on extended hiatus till 2009.


20 May 2008
Sky One, 9.00 pm