Starbuck is awakened as she's being dragged by her parachute through the rough terrain of the moon. She manages to cut herself free before the parachute takes her down a steep canyon, but not before she cracks her knee on a rock. Her only hope, now, is to get to the highlands so that she can be spotted and rescued. Starbuck has 46 hours before her oxygen runs out. The only problem is that, with the resources they have available and given the visibility and bumpy atmosphere of the moon, it will take weeks to find her. But, Adama, as well as Apollo, are adamant about exhausting every resource. Apollo even suggests to use the ships that are currently guarding the fleet so that they can speed up the process.
On the way to the highlands, Starbuck spots the Cylon ship that cliped her and sent her spinning on to the moon. Luckily, the ship is disabled. She manages to find her way inside and discovers that Cylon ships are actually Cylons themselves. Not only that, but they've got some kind of biological element to them. Now, if she can just learn to fly the frakin' ship.
Meanwhile, on Galactica, despite warning by the President Roslin and Commander Tight, Adama and Apollo continue to push to continue searching for Starbuck. But, when resources continue to dwindle, the President is pissed enough now to actually board Galactica by surprise and read Adama and Apollo the riot act. She tells them that she knows they will not give up the search because Starbuck is the last connection with Zak. They've made it personal and are endangering not only the fleet, but the future of the human race.
Adama and Apollo realize that they are being unreasonable and Adama calls for Gaeta to start the clock for the jump. Apollo asks why Adama wouldn't give up. Adama replies that sometimes you have to do more for family. When Apollo asks if Adama would have done the same for him, Adama tells him that if it were him, they would never leave. And, thus, the healing begins.
The clock has started and they're about the jump when Duala spots an incoming Cylon ship. Of course, most of the Vipers are being fueled and are not ready to launch because of the search for Starbuck. Only Apollo is able to make it out there and begins to engage the ship. He's puzzled as to why it's acting so weird, but through fancy flying, we realize that it is Starbuck inside the ship (she managed to paint "Starbuck" on the bottom of the ship). Everyone is happy and, while Starbuck is in sickbay, Adama comes in, gives her a kiss on the head, tells her she did good, and offers her his last stogie. Starbuck knows she's back in the family.
Meanwhile, on Caprica, the Cylons manage to find Helo's and Boomer's hideout and it appears that they've kidnapped Boomer.
When I first watched this episode, I thought it was out of character for Adama to insist that they continue the search for Starbuck. I would have expected it from Apollo, but Adama always impressed me as a by-the-books kind of guy. But, watching it again, it makes a lot of sense. He never got an opportunity to tell Zak how proud he was of him and how much he meant. Now, he just can't let the last words to Starbuck, his last connection to his son, be harsh words. Starbuck has become Zak to him.
I love the scene where President Roslin comes to Galactica and has to be very firm with Adama. The two of them have had a very strained relationship. He's had a distinguished military career and is used to giving orders. She was forced into this situation, but has managed to take her role very seriously and with great authority. I think that it was this interaction that changed the dynamics of their relationship from disdain to mutual admiration. Mary McDonnell has always been one of my favorite actresses and I see why the show's creators wrote the part for her to play. She's got that quiet demeanor that commands respect.
The other scene that I love is when Adama visits Starbuck in sickbay. When Adama kisses Starbuck on the forehead, the look on her face just said so much. Mad props to Katie Sackhoff who has managed to pull off some wonderful acting. It's wonderful how she plays the character with so much toughness, but, deep down, she just wants to be loved.
Finally, in the contuing anti-Star Trek trend, I love the fact that many of the worlds that they manage to land on have harsh conditions. It's more realistic this way and it makes for some fantastic dramatic scenes. Not only do we understand the difficulties of searching on a world with little to no visibility, but we feel it.
Photos credited to GateWorld. [Cylon on BlogDigger]
