BATTLESTAR GALACTICA NEWS
Bamber likes Galactica's formula

Sunday - October 22, 2006 | by Skydiver

Beware of spoilers for the Season Two finale, "Lay Down Your Burdens," and early Season Three episodes.

"I don't dumb down to go to work, and that's a privilege to me," Jamie Bamber said as he took a few minutes to talk with GateWorld about his role in the hit show Battlestar Galactica. "The very inception of the show, as Ron [Moore] came up with it, is it's all about our world. Good science fiction is always about holding a mirror up to the society in which we live now. And by stretching and looking at other societies we can always say a lot about where we are."

The current inception of Battlestar Galactica is a far cry from its predecessor, which premiered in the 1970s and was heavily imbued with the requisite camp and fun. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, Battlestar Galactica tells the tale of the "rag tag" fleet, fleeing from the Cylon tyranny -- but now with a much darker edge that many fans find appealing.

"When I first read the script, my heart sank when I saw the title," Jamie revealed. "I thought, oh why, why go back and do this again after all this time. But then there was a manifesto that Ron [Moore] and David [Eick] had come up with at the beginning that was a mission statement about what we are and what we not. And it was all about reinventing sci-fi on TV and bringing the drama out and losing the space opera aspect."

Drama is certainly the name of the game, as the show has dealt with the very serious questions of humanity, such as when the Galactica crew comes into contact with another surviving crew -- of the Pegasus -- and are confronted with the gut-wrenching issue of precisely what it is to be human. The characters come face to face with the reality that sometimes the humans are less humane than the machines.

Over the course of two years the survivors have confronted such issues as rape, torture, and suicide, and faced the harsh reality of just what it takes to survive. How far are they willing to go to survive? And is there a time when surviving just isn't worth it?

And yet, sandwiched in all the drama are humorous moments that serve to break the tension. "There's always humor in the darkest situations," Bamber said. "A great World War I play called 'Journey's End' by RC Sherriff is about the very bleak of the war, and in it is tons of humor and how we cope with dark situations. We hold on to the sort of rituals we have in life. And one of those rituals is laughter."

Lee challenges his father's decision to leave the fleet and go back to New Caprica on a hopeless rescue mission. From "Occupation/Precipice"

Another element that makes the show so appealing to viewers is the strong and ever-changing relationships between the characters. "We're making drama and it's a pretty stark drama. People are under pressure the whole time, there aren't that many people around. The ones that are around you have to interact with daily, very close relationships, they're always fraught and they always change. And that's what makes them interesting."

One large change came at the end of Season Two when -- in the middle of a scene, no less -- the viewers were suddenly "fast-forwarded" one year. This was an even bigger shock because, during much of Season Two, several of the show's episodes took place over the span of a few hours, continuity-wise.

"I thought it was a great idea as soon as I read that I had to wear a fat suit," Jamie told GateWorld. "How else will you do that? Change the physicality of the character, to suddenly go to a different mental place, as well. I thought it was a really interesting, bold decision from the writers.

"We jumped a year not even in an act break -- it was in mid-scene. We panned out on Baltar and suddenly it was a year later, just before the season ends. I thought it was really bold, really striking. There's these huge changes that have occurred and it piques the question of how. That's the cliffhanger."

As Season Three opens, change is in the wind. "We've lost a couple of characters so far and there are more to come," Bamber said on stage at this year's Shore Leave convention during one of his two talks.

Secrets are revealed, amongst them a "dark, guilty" secret held by Bill Adama. And fans will also find out precisely why Apollo and Starbuck -- once friendly rivals -- now hate each other (which won't be revealed until almost midway through the season), and why Kara is now so buddy-buddy with Colonel Tigh.

Speaking of the show in general, Bamber doesn't see it lasting forever. "It's no Stargate," he said on stage with a smile. "And I think it is a show that would rather stop on its own, once the story is done, rather than be ended by ratings." If he had to lay down a guess, he would give it about five years to tell its story. However all things, especially in TV, are open to change.

With the ominous promise of "born again Cylons" and a continuing character drama, the future -- while maybe a bit dark and dramatic -- looks to be a fun ride for fans of the show. Especially if the show's creators keep up their tradition of bold and striking plot changes.

Stay tuned for GateWorld's complete interview with Jamie Bamber, later this week! Season Three of Battlestar Galactica airs every Friday at 9 p.m. Eastern/Pacific on SCI FI Channel.

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