Battlestar Galactica Islanded in a Stream of Stars Episode 4x18

The opening moments of the episode feature glimpses of the Opera House and Hera sitting in the CIC playing with the Galactica and pointing it at a Cylon base ship. Roslin is recuperating in sick bay, but she is very weak. She keeps seeing flashes of the Opera House as her eyes open and close. She is dreaming while awake now. She advises Adama to let Galactica go or lose both Galactica and Roslin at the same time.

What We Knew

Boomer kidnapped Hera. Boomer's jump so close to Galactica caused severe structural damage. Roslin's health continues to decline. Sam's mental condition remains in question. Starbuck found her own body on Earth and she still seeks the answers to what she is.

What We Learn

This episode is a pregnant pause; a held breath in anticipation of the final two hours. The forward momentum of the storyline slows and stagnates in some places while paddling forward in others. The Chief is conspicuously absent in this episode despite his actions leading directly to Hera's kidnapping in the previous episode, he's nowhere to be seen.

Meanwhile, the repair crews continue working overtime trying to strengthen the ship's badly damaged hull. The Cylon sealant is not maturing quickly enough to do the job and tensions run high between the Galactica repair crew's human and Cylon contingents. When a hull breech occurs, a Six sacrifices herself to save the human she argued with earlier and to seal the airlock.

Adama and Tigh argue about letting Galactica go as Adama mourns his ship. Lee argues with the new quorum representatives who are all set to gut Galactica for spare parts and move on. Athena and Helo are still struggling with the loss of their child and Athena can barely look at Helo after watching him make love to Boomer.

Ellen suggests looking for Hera at the Colony, the planet the Final Five and the Centurions retreated too after the first Cylon War. But a Raptor sent to investigate finds that it is gone. Ellen struggles to get through to Saul as he still clings to his human life and she reminds him that he is a father to millions of Cylons (which makes his child with Caprica just a little bit dirty).

Kara and Sam

The most forward momentum in the episode actually occurred with Kara and Sam. Kara admitted to Baltar that she found her dead body on Earth. She gives him the dog tags she found on the body and demands that he test them to find out what she is. Because she knows she died. She knows she's not a Cylon. So what does that make her?

Baltar, a master of bad timing, uses the funeral of all the dead from the hull breech to announce Kara's actual demise and apparent resurrection as an angel among them. Ellen looks startled, but intrigued. Admiral Adama is pretty pissed and Lee is thoughtful. When he finds Kara in the photo shrine for the dead, gazing at a picture of Kat (there's a shot of Dualla nearby), Lee tells her he doesn't care what she is - he just cares that she is.

She smiles at him, touched by the gesture, but that's all it is, a gesture. He leaves her there to put her own photo back up on the wall next to Kat; because the Kara in that photograph is dead. Kara is now determined to solve the mystery of the music that Hera gave her and she knows that Sam is the one who can help her, but Sam is now a Hybrid.

Yep, the Cylons decided to plug him into Galactica's power grid to help him reboot his central processor. (Not to be too snarky, but that's a bizarre plan considering Galactica's current condition). Sam's in a pool just like the Hybrids and he's wearing one of their swim caps. He's just staring off into space until Kara decides to put him out of his misery. Then he grabs her gun arm and begins a long ramble of Hybrid babble (including the fact that Kara is the harbinger of their deaths).

Sam being plugged in is causing Galactica's pulsing lights and power surges. Tigh orders him unplugged, but Kara plugs him back in later to talk to him about the music.

Boomer and Hera

The most disturbing story twist of the episode goes to Boomer and Hera. Hera's sobbing that she wants her mommy and driving Boomer batty. Boomer's seemingly damaged Raptor isn't so damaged and she's happily jumping across the universe (including near a gas giant that looks suspiciously like Jupiter - could Cavil have moved the Colony to Earth?)

Boomer threatens to drug Hera if she doesn't stop crying and then seems appalled at her own horrible attitude (she wasn't such a hot stand in for Athena when Hera was an infant either). Boomer shows her a projection of the house that she showed Tyrol (apparently that story was true) and Boomer is floored when Hera shows up in the projection. She can do it too. She explores the house and bounces on the bed in the room that was supposed to belong to Boomer's daughter.

Hats off to Grace Park - the actress delivered Boomer's pain and regret in the simple look she gave Hera when the little girl bounced on the bed. Boomer doesn't like her choices. She's never liked being a Cylon and it's been one bad choice after another looking for a place to belong. She wants what Athena has, the life that should have been Boomer's. Now Boomer has stolen Hera and the two bond.

Unfortunately, the bonding doesn't prevent Boomer from handing the little girl with her delicate curls over to Cavil (again with the dirty images) and staring sadly as Hera cries out "I want Boomer! Boomer!" Cavil promises her she won't be alone for much longer.

Is Cavil going to clone Hera?

Is that his great plan to save the Cylons?

What exactly is the Colony? It looked like a Hive ship.

Will Boomer ever grow a spine and stop living in a tragedy?

Where is the Chief?

What is Starbuck?

Only two episodes remain.