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''Battlestar Galactica'' was first reimagined as a Science Fiction Miniseries that was first broadcast on the Sci Fi Channel on December 8 , 2003 . It spawned a regular Television Series which premiered on Sky One in the UK on October 18 , 2004 and on Sci Fi Channel in the U.S. on January 14 , 2005 . This new series was promoted as a "re-imagining" of the Universal Studios 1978 movie and television series '' Battlestar Galactica ''. It is not simply a Remake of the original but a new direction taken from the same original premise, analogous to a " Reboot " in Comic Book s. The series is filmed in Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada . OVERVIEW The new series departs from the original in several respects. In style, it rejects the traditional televised science fiction styles of '' Star Trek '' adopted by the original in favor of what executive producer Ronald D. Moore calls " Naturalistic Science Fiction ". In premise, the new series recasts several key characters from male to female and introduces the notion that the Cylon s, the cybernetic enemies of the humans, were created by man. In addition to the Cylon Centurions there are also Humanoid models that very closely mimic a complete human down to the cellular level. The look of the new series also benefits from recent advances in Computer-generated Imaging and digital Special Effect s. Although a small group of purists from the original series' fandom loudly disapproved of changes to the premise, the show was the highest- Rated cable miniseries of 2003. In fact, it has been the highest rated original program in the Sci Fi Channel's history. Its strong audience draw was enough to prompt the channel to commission a new ongoing television series, the first episode of which drew an estimated 850,000 viewers — an 8% multichannel viewer share — on its world premiere on Sky One in the United Kingdom . Furthermore, the miniseries and the subsequent weekly series have enjoyed general critical acclaim as being superior to the original, leading ''TIME'' Magazine to declare in the spring of 2005 that the new show was one of the six best drama series on television. In the tradition of science fiction series such as ''Star Trek'', the writers use science fiction to examine contemporary social, moral and ethical issues in allegory. REIMAGINING '' magazine.]] History Previous efforts to remake or continue the story of ''Battlestar Galactica'' by Tom DeSanto , Bryan Singer , and original series star Richard Hatch involved using either the original cast or the original characters and plot. None of these projects proceeded beyond the development stage. Ronald D. Moore, physics and the use of bullets and missiles instead of energy weapons such as Laser s make the programs unique. Ronald D. Moore has also admitted that the miniseries and series drew inspiration from the tragic events of 9/11 and its aftermath. The shows feature elements such as "sleeper" agents, the threat of sneak terrorist attacks using civilian transports, Cylon suicide bombers, the torture of prisoners (alluding to the Abu Ghraib Prison abuse), and a struggle motivated by intense religious differences. Season Two's episode thirteen also featured Useful Idiots , in the current political parlance, as foolishly idealistic activists attempted to use sabotage against the fleet to force "peace talks" with the Cylons. Comparison with the 1978 series See Also: Comparison of Battlestar Galactica (1978) and Battlestar Galactica (2003) Among the most notable changes made from the older series are the inclusion of Cylon models which mimic humans, and numerous characters who are of a different race or gender. Human culture is made to more closely resemble contemporary 21st Century Western Culture , with names and costuming often indistinguishable from other television shows. Human technology is deliberately Retro , which is explained as a military necessity given Cylon tactical advantages. The tone is also changed from a heroic fantasy to a more Naturalistic survival narrative with many allusions, both subtle and obvious, to current events. References to modern culture The show references many aspects of modern culture and the military. The original Cylon attack plays upon the fears that came about after the 9/11 attacks, and the frequent episodes of xenophobia and fear of Cylon "sleeper agents" hiding in the fleet mirror current fears of terrorist "sleeper cells" in Europe and the USA; in one episode a Cylon android blows itself up in a successful suicide bombing attempt. The Blackbird stealth fighter is a direct reference to a sophisticated Surveillance Aircraft developed by Lockheed Martin , the SR-71 Blackbird . Although christened "Laura" (in honor of at-the-time president Laura Roslin. {Ep. 2:09; "Flight of the Phoenix"}), this name is almost never used on-air. Season Two's Episode Eleven, "Resurrection Ship", Part 1, includes a scene in which Starbuck, flying the Blackbird, is mistaken for an enemy and promptly attacked by the supposedly friendly surrounding ships. The show has also addressed other issues, such as abortion and the morality of prisoner torture. MINISERIES (2003) See Also: Battlestar Galactica (2003 miniseries) REGULAR TELEVISION SERIES (2004) See Also: Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series) EPISODES AND DVD/ONLINE DOWNLOAD INFORMATION See Also: List of Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series) episodes For the first season, thirteen episodes were produced and all have been made available on DVD in the United States and United Kingdom. The second season consists of twenty episodes, ten of which have been released on DVD in the United States. A third season has been Greenlight ed and is expected in the fall of 2006. In January, 2006, Apple 's ITunes began offering the miniseries, season one and season two episodes for purchase on its service. NBC Universal , the owner and distributor of the show, have provided a number of its shows for purchase to U.S. customers, to be released the day after the original broadcast. {Link without Title} All episodes of the series, as well as the miniseries, are available. Downloadable Podcasts for each episode are also available via iTunes and SciFi.com . NOTES |
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