The Hub - Episode Review

Okay, Ron Moore, David Eick (the show's creators) and the writing staff have decided to just go dark with the tone and story developments and The Hub was downright cranky in its tone. I had hoped for elation, elevation, and enlightenment, but there was nothing of the sort this time around. Even the gentle Elosha was snarky and disputational in her many scenes with Laura. At first it seemed the Hybrid was jumping the Base ship to allow Roslin to have these visions and discussion with Elosha in That Space Between ... but by the end of the episode she was seeing and talking with Elosha right there in the presence of the Hybrid. It is Head-Elosha now? And her message from beyond? Find love in this lifetime, as in acknowledge the mutual feelings with Adama! Hmmmm, I had hoped for something a bit deeper and directed at their quest for Earth and survival. Hate to be snarky myself, but is The Beatles All You Need Is Love the next 1960s song to play in the show?

One of the absolute high points of the entire series was when D'Anna had the religious experience in the Temple of Five/Eye of Jupiter and saw in the starlight of the supernova the faces of the Final Five Cylons, and collapsed and said, "So beautiful, so beautiful." Her eyes went white and she died. Terrific scene, wonderfully acted.

And now we get a petulant and bitter D'Anna - not one who is joyous at the knowledge she now possesses. She says with utter condescension to Cavil about Boomer-Sharon, "Just put something shiny in front of her," [Mreeow] regarding her lone allegiance to the 1-4-5 side in the Cylon civil war, and then viciously snaps Cavil's neck. She seems to see poetic justice in the attack on the Hub during a her initial tête-à-tête with Cavil.

Remember how happy and fulfilled she seemed when Cavil boxed her in the Rapture episode? Hopefully the show will provide a good explanation as to the shift.

The attack on the Cylon Hub was ridiculously easy. If the Hybrid on the rebel Base ship knows when D'Anna is resurrected and can gather data about it remotely, why then didn't the Hybrids on the many other Base ships allied with the 1-4-5 faction defend the Hub in great numbers? Huge error in logic [yeah I know, the CGI budget is not unlimited] If the Hybrids can jump at will - free will - we need to know why they are willing to make war on each other - perhaps because "It likes violent vibrations ..." A tiny band of Colonial Vipers was able to get Helo and a Sharon inside the Hub and they found D'Anna quickly and easily on that big ship. Er, far-fetched - but it saved time, eh? Then they get out and the humans nuke the Hub and KerBlooiE, it's gone ... and now all Cylons are mortal. What about the smaller resurrection ships? And we've heard in the past that there are "millions" or "billions" of copies of the humanoid Cylons. Why, for one? Second, where the hell are they - especially when there be some fightin' goin' on???

Once D'Anna is brought back to the rebel Base ship she is taken by Helo (following orders) to see Roslin first - violating the deal with the 2-6-8 faction with whom they've allied themselves (D'Anna was supposed to be shared). This upsets the Sharon who had been working with Helo - she feels betrayed and we have another unstable 8 to deal with now (they had bonded over a backrub). Once at Roslin's "room" on the Base ship D'Anna is brought in and the girls talk. D'Anna looks to Roslin and taunts her that she may know about the Final Five but says, "You don't know you're one of them" and then they give us a reaction shot of Roslin. Would Sci-Fi Channel really give that away in the trailer? Sure, they gave us Tory backhanding Callie. Roslin considers it for a moment. Hold on ... it's a CHEAP fake-out, with D'Anna laughing, then saying that she's the "only 3 in the Universe" and she must now look out for herself and doesn't trust the Cylons either so no one should expect the truth from her until she feels secure.

Roslin's visions with Elosha keep showing her on her deathbad with Adama there (and Lee and Kara at one point) ... declaring his love with his presence and body language - he even places his ring on her finger after her last breath. The end of the episode is the rebel Base ship jumping to the coordinates where Adama is waiting, alone in his Raptor [good reaction shots by Eddie Olmos] and, later, on the hangar deck of the Base ship he and Roslin embrace and finally, tenderly, declare their love. Touching, but not wholly satisfying.

Subplot with Baltar was odd. He shouts at the Hybrid when it won't respond to Roslin's questions when actually it did become lucid more than once and answer, or make a statement. Roslin, a Sharon, and Baltar all discuss openly their various experiences in the Opera House vision - Hera was the focus, a need to protect her, and Roslin was shut out by a closed door, but Baltar was inside with Hera and a Six. But these questions were peppered at the Hybrid, an in almost off-hand jabs and spars. Baltar gets fed up and leaves the Hybrid chamber and goes to have a curious one-way chat with a Centurion metal model - at one point about a dog holding a biscuit on its nose until its master let it eat it - we get it ... and cue: EXPLOSION rips into the Base ship during the assault on the Hub and the Centurion is torn to shreds and Baltar seriously injured (a large gash cut into his midsection - Roman spear-zone anyone?). Good follow-up scene of Roslin tending to his injury only to react (terrific acting again by Mary McDonnell) to Baltar's delirous rant about his freedom from guilt for his terrible crime (he finally admits to her giving the access codes to the defense mainframe for the Colonies to Six and hence being responsible for the deaths of billions of humans). Roslin had gone from disdainful empathy to a flailing yet murderous intent only to rebound (after another Elosha moment) into savior mode and re-bandage the wound she had already bandaged and then tore off. Baltar drifts in and out of consciousness. And where was Head-Six ??? If EVER there a was a moment Baltar's "angel sent by God" was needed, it was this one. Curious curious creative choices. When D' Anna is brought in she shouts, "Gaius!" and tends to him and declares that "he'll live," and Roslin has a window onto that relationship. Fits and starts. Fits and starts.

Roslin and Baltar were teased as the possible Final Cylon this ep, which begs the question -What then was the point of the big Gaeta-dangle in Guess What's Coming to Dinner??? And why would Roslin and Baltar both share the Opera House vision? So far the reveals havn't had much of a payoff feeling, so hopefully the Opera House vision will be a doozy.