"Exodus" (Saga of a Star World, hour 2) 42:00-1:23:15 on Side 1 of the DVD Written by Glen A. Larson Directed by Richard A. Colla

The fleet risks passing through a minefield to reach a planet that can provide fuel and food.

(This episode begins with Starbuck's apology to Athena and ends with Starbuck and Boomer entering the casino on Carillon.)

Read the complete synopsis of the three-hour "Saga of a Star World" at the Battlestar Wiki site.

Didja Know?

I borrowed the title of issue #2 of the BSG comic book by Marvel Comics for the title of this hour of Saga of a Star World. 

Didja Notice?

The dialog by the refugees on the freighter suggests that it has been two days since the fleet rendezvous at the end of "Annihilation".

A refugee claims that he saw the luxurious conditions aboard the Rising Star before he was cast out and put on the freighter among the Borays of humanity. We don't learn here what Borays are, but in the episode "The Magnificent Warriors", we are introduced to a pig-like race of sentient humanoids called Borays.

As Starbuck takes down Cassiopeia's information, we learn that her name means "fairy queen".

Cassiopeia describes her profession as socialator. The following dialog between her and Starbuck suggests that socialator is akin to prostitute or, perhaps, geisha.

Explaining the anger of the woman to her on the freighter to Starbuck, Cassie says the woman belongs to the Otori sect which does not believe in physical contact between genders except when sanctified by the priests during the high worship of the sunstorm every seven years. This is somewhat similar to the Vulcan's mating practice of Pon Farr on Star Trek!

At 52:03 on the DVD, a Cylon centurion identifies himself as Flight Leader Serpentine. Is Serpentine the Cylon's name? Or just the name of his flight squadron?

Jolly says that pluton poisoning from the radiation of the Cylon bombings is breaking down much of the food that was scavenged from the devastated Colonies. The term "pluton poisoning" appears to be a fictional concept.

At 58:00 on the DVD, in the control room hallway of the Rising Star, the name of the ship can be seen on the nearby console as T.S.S. Rising Star. The T.S.S. probably stands for Trans-Stellar Services since the guard outside the Club Elite says he is being paid by Trans-Stellar to keep people out of Sire Uri's celebration.

At 58:43 on the DVD, the same symbol that was on what I guessed was a first aid kit and fire extinguisher in the pilots' barracks in "Annihilation" is also seen on the door of the Life Center, suggesting that it is a universal emergency symbol.

At 1:06:14 on the DVD, a fake tongue can be seen protruding from the metal mouth of Muffit the mechanical daggit.

From 1:08:00-1:09:13 on the DVD, as Adama is speaking with Athena in his quarters, the light shining through the oval portal gradually moves up and down the wall behind him. It must be intended to convey motion of the ship as it moves through space past a nearby sun.

When Athena hits the steam purge button for the launch tube in which Starbuck and Cassie have sequestered themselves, why is Starbuck the only one we see jumping up and screaming in pain? I guess the producers decided the audience wouldn't find it funny to see that happening to a woman!

At 1:12:34 on the DVD, we can see that most of the viper helmets on the shelf in the pilots' barracks have the Galactica's "Egyptian" symbol on them, but one has no symbol at all.

At 1:15:41 on the DVD, it appears that some foreign substance got stuck on the film stock or the camera lens.

We again see the lizard resting on Imperious Leader's shoulder (as we did in "Annihilation") at 1:17:37 on the DVD.

When Baltar argues with the Imperious Leader that his colony was to be spared, the Imperious Leader replies, "I now alter the bargain." This is similar to a line later said by Darth Vader in the 1980 film Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, "I am altering the agreement. Pray I do not alter it further." 

The image of Carrilon that appears on the viper scope at 1:18:41 on the DVD, looks like the same aerial land shot photo on the wall of Dr. Wilker's lab at 1:06:09! Some similar images also hang in the Quorum chamber at 6:38.
Carillon scan	Picture in Dr. Wilker's lab

The woman Starbuck and Boomer meet outside the casino is wearing a large headdress of long, white feathers. Notice that as she speaks to the two and moves her head around, the feathers smack the two actors in the face at various times!

As the first vacationer they meet on Carillon starts to trot off down the trail, Boomer says to Starbuck, "She must have been smoking plant vapor," a veiled reference to our Earth's own cannabis plant and its effects when smoked.

During his conversation with Boxey about the Cylons, Apollo mentions that the Cylons can exchange parts, so they can live forever. Perhaps this line of dialog was Ron Moore's inspiration for having the Cylons of the reimagined BSG being able to resurrect over-and-over, hence living forever.

Notes from the deleted scenes on the DVD

The deleted scenes include the excised subplot of Serina becoming ill with a fatal disease. The doctor reveals that several other refugees have succumbed and died from it and his research indicates it was caused by an agent in the Cylon bombs that were dropped which breaks down the components of food to make it inedible and it also turns out to be deadly to humans who are exposed to the agent. It might be argued that this omitted subplot was the inspiration for President Laura Roslyn's cancer in BSG2000.

Notes from "From Construction Kits to Battlestars: An Interview With Model Maker Ken Swenson" in the book Mission Galactica: The Cylon Attack

Swenson reveals that the three-disked ship from the fleet (seen heading to Carillon, implying it is a mining ship), was made of three film cans in a line, one behind the other, and was intended as a livery ship for carrying the livestock of the fleet.

Notes from the novelization of "Saga of a Star World", Battlestar Galactica by Glen A. Larson and Robert Thurston (The page numbers come from the 1st printing, paperback edition, published September 1978) Pages 87-152 cover the events of "Exodus"

Pages 98-99 extend the scene between Adama and Athena as she consoles him over the burdens of his command in the face of such devastation. She points out the ragtag fleet may be old, rusty, beat-up, and battered, but it contains life--life searching for a new world to grow in.

Page 106 describes Sire Uri as tall and handsome, despite his age, not like the old, heavyset man seen in the series.

On page 109, Cassie is treated by Dr. Paye, who was played by John Fink in the episode. Later episodes featured Dr. Salik, played by George Murdock, as the head physician on the Galactica. Paye is mentioned later in "War of the Gods" Part 2 as having treated Apollo after his return from death at the hand of Count Iblis.

On page 111, Commander Adama announces to Colonel Tigh his intention to resign as president of the Council of Twelve. He does so, but later withdraws his resignation after the battle of Carillon, which the Council allows him to do.

Page 118 describes the robotic Muffit II as looking like a real daggit, not the metallic toy with fur seen in the TV series. At times, Muffit is also referred to in the text as a droid, a term short for "android" popularized in 1977's Star Wars.

In the Adama Journals entry on pages 121-123, Adama recounts a pre-annihilation anecdote about Starbuck during his days as a green ensign.

In the novel, the explosive mines have been placed in orbit around Carillon, not within the nearby Nova of Madagon as depicted in the episode.

Pages 132-134 feature a scene not found in the episode, as Adama and Athena discuss the dangerous mission of Apollo, Starbuck, and Boomer to clear a path through the mines in Carillon's atmosphere. 

Notes from the comic book adaptation of "Exodus" "Exodus" Battlestar Galactica #2 (Marvel Comics) Script by Roger McKenzie From the teleplay by Glen A. Larson Art by Ernie Colon April 1979 (Also, part of this episode continues into BSG #3)

On page 5, the fleet shuttles are depicted quite a bit differently than they appear on the TV series!

On page 7, the Rising Star exterior is depicted quite a bit differently than the model used in the show.

Also on page 7, Jolly is depicted with red hair!

In the episode, the security guard outside Sire Uri's elite club on the Rising Star tells Boomer he works for Trans-Stellar Services. Here in the comic, he calls it Trans-Galactic Star Lines.

On page 11, panel 3, Sire Uri's concubine (or what-have-you) is wearing her hair in Princess Leia danishes!

Opposite of the handsome characterization of the novelization, here Sire Uri is depicted as being quite corpulent.

Dr. Wilker is depicted quite a bit differently here than in the TV episode. On TV he was a gray-haired, middle-age man. Here, he is younger, with a shaved head and a Van Dyke beard.

BSG #3: As the story from this episode continues in BSG #3, note that on page 1, the mines in the Nova of Madagon are depicted with the generic look of an underwater mine, with horns sticking out all around instead of the more satellite-looking mines seen in the TV episode.

BSG #3: At least in my copy, there is a blank dialog balloon coming from Boomer's viper on page 1, panel 2.

BSG #3: On page 2, panel 2, an unidentified young woman with braided hair is seen seated at a bridge console on the Galactica. This must be a representation of Rigel, since actress Sarah Rush also wore braids in most of her scenes.

BSG #3: Page 3 uses the distance unit "quadron". I know of no Colonial or Earthly unit by that name.