Theory: How the Battlestar Galactica Reboot Could Work
Drew Taylor
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As we reported last week, news of a Battlestar Galactica reboot is in the works.
There aren’t many details about the new show yet, but we do know it’s based in the 2004 continuity. (Related: Battlestar Galactica Reboot Coming From Mr. Robot Creator – Will Debut On NBC/Universal’s Streaming Platform Peacock)
Based on that, I decided to take a look at just how a reboot could work in the BSG universe. Just an FYI, if you haven’t seen the 2004 BSG series, now would be a good time to binge it.
There will be spoilers ahead for you, so watch and then revisit this article later.
Ok, let’s spool up the FTL drives and jump ahead:
Direct Sequel
I’m very torn on this one. It likely requires a lot of the old humanoid Cylon model actors to return.
This also requires rebuilding the old base ship sets, and it would involve the Earth split into 12 colonies.
The new Cylon leadership structure would have Hera in charge of the faction. The only other way to bring the Cylons back would be just to bring back the strictly mechanical ones (Centurions, Raiders) instead.
It would be feasible that during the end of the 2004 show, the Colonials would have retained some sort of knowledge base. This would include culture, technology blueprints, and the like. You could concieve that they buried all of it somewhere on Earth like a time capsule. This could be found like a time capsule, and then used as the source of our technological and industrial advances. That way there’s a basis for building new ships, bases, and cities.
Going this route honestly makes things much more convoluted, however. It’s going to be hard to explain why the earth has 12 – 13 colonies instead of countries.
There is also the problem of establishing why the Cylons would want to return and get after humans now. Did they just get bored after 150,000 years? Sorry, not really feeling this concept.
Let’s move on to what I feel would be the best idea.
Revisit the First Cylon War
This makes all the sense in the world. You can recast young versions of some key characters, and explore a time period that hasn’t been shown much.
There is also the added advantage of having the game Battlestar Galactica: Deadlock running concurrently in the same timeline.
There’s a wide open opportunity for new human and Cylon characters. New ships on each side that haven’t been see before could be shown for the first time on television.
You would have the proper Colonial planets and colonies. It would also be much easier to do some nods back to the roots of the BSG mythos and the 1978 series.
In other words, picking up during the first Cylon war is a potential goldmine.
There are so many good things to write stories around and so much to explore, and it would be foolish not to start here. The only limitation is you would not have some newer Colonial and Cylon ships from the 2004 show, but that’s a small price to trade.
No matter which way the show creators decide to take the new series, let’s hope they keep the woke factor to a minimum. Nothing can kill a show faster than preaching to an audience instead of letting them think for themselves.
Battlestar Galactica will return in April 2020, when NBC/Universal launches the new Peacock streaming service.
Share your theories below, BSG fans. What would you like to see?
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