Battlestar Galactica "Resurrection Ship" Part 2 TV episode Written by Michael Rymer and Ronald D. Moore Directed by Michael Rymer Original air date: January 13, 2006

The Galactica and Pegasus join forces to take out the Cylon Resurrection Ship, while both Admiral Cain and Commander Adama plot to remove one another from power.

Read the summary of the episode at the Battlestar Wiki

Didja Know?

The opening titles show the fleet at a population of 49,604, no change from the previous episode "Resurrection Ship" Part 1.

Characters appearing or mentioned in this episode

Apollo

Starbuck

Chief Tyrol

Helo

Specialist Gage

Specialist Vireem

Lt. Thorne (mentioned only, deceased)

Colonel Fisk

Admiral Cain

Colonel Tigh

Commander Adama

Caprica-Valerii

Lt. Gaeta

Dee

Lt. Hoshi

Lt. Mei Firelli

Gina Inviere

Baltar

Head Six

Kat

Billy Keikeya

President Roslin

Didja Notice?

Admiral Cain tells Starbuck that people like them inevitably have to commit the horrible sin of killing another human being and that she should not flinch when that moment comes. Cain doesn't know that Commander Adama has just given Starbuck a mission to kill Cain herself after the Resurrection Ship mission is over.

    At 16:49 on the Blu-ray, Starbuck and Colonel Fisk pass each other in the Pegasus corridor as they are deploying for the Resurrection Ship mission, and Fisk greets Starbuck with, "Good hunting, Captain," and she responds, "You too, Colonel," neither realizing that the other will be awaiting the order to execute the commander of their respective battlestars after the mission.

    When Fisk arrives on Galactica, he briefs Colonel Tigh about the marine assignments between the two ships and Tigh tells him, "Be sure your marines and our marines are aware of their areas of responsibility in case we're boarded by the Cylons. The last thing we need is Colonials shooting at each other." This is another ironic statement about the mutual assassination plots.

At 17:30 on the Blu-ray, Commander Adama looks at himself in the mirror and runs his fingers over the large surgical scar he has on his chest. He is probably reflecting on the fact that the scars are the result of a previous assassination attempt on him (by Boomer in "Kobol's Last Gleaming" Part 2) and now he has ordered a hit on another Colonial officer himself.

At 18:03 on the Blu-ray, a previously unseen framed photo of what is presumably Adama's wife and two sons as children is seen in his cabin behind Caprica-Valerii when she sits down on the commander's couch.

After Apollo informs Starbuck that he's successfully destroyed the Resurrection Ship's FTL drive so it can't escape, Starbuck says, "Roger, Apollo. Redwing initiated." "Redwing" must be the name of the part of the operation assigned to nuke the Resurrection Ship. This may be a reference by the writers to the United States' Operation Redwing, a nuclear test series that took place in May-July 1956 at Bikini and Enewetak atolls in the Pacific Ocean.

It's a little hard to see because it goes by so fast, but it is a damaged Raptor that Apollo collides with in the Blackbird at 20:13 on the Blu-ray.

At 27:01 on the Blu-ray, a bunch of Cylon humanoid bodies are expelled into space from the explosions aboard the Resurrection Ship. The bodies look pretty much like generic CGI bodies though!

Returning to Pegasus after the successful attack against the Cylon fleet and the Resurrection Ship, Starbuck is so apprehensive about the impending order to shoot Cain that sweat is clearly visible all over her face. So much so that it seems odd that Cain herself doesn't comment on it or seem to notice that something is not right with her new CAG.

When Gina Inviere holds Cain at gunpoint in her quarters, Cain says, "Frak you" and Gina responds, "You're not my type." In the later episode "Razor", it is revealed that the two had been lovers before it was discovered that Gina was a Cylon infiltrator.

During the funeral service for Admiral Cain, Colonel Fisk indicates he has been given command of the Pegasus. He has the rank of Commander in the next episode ("Epiphanies") and its possible he has already been promoted to that rank by the time of this funeral.

Why was Dee standing outside the pilots' bunks to overhear the discussion of Starbuck and Apollo about his recent close call with death? Presumably, Dee had come to tell Apollo she was glad he made it back alive and possibly to profess her growing attraction to him, but then didn't enter the room when she heard the two talking about personal matters.

Adama is promoted to Admiral by President Roslin at the end of the episode.

Notes from the audio commentary by Ron Moore on the Blu-ray release

After Apollo ejects from the Blackbird, he witnesses the battle against the Cylon fleet as he floats through space. Moore says that the idea originated from the true story of Ensign George Gay (1917-1994), a U.S. bomber pilot whose plane was shot down during the Battle of Midway in WWII. He was the sole survivor of the bomber crew and witnessed the battle, including the sinking of three Japanese aircraft carriers while he floated in the ocean awaiting rescue. 

Unanswered Questions

The Blackbird, built in "Flight of the Phoenix", is destroyed in this episode. Why does the fleet never build a new one? It would seem a stealth Viper is very handy to have around!