“Final Cut” is episode eight of season two of the new Battlestar Galactica.
Footage is being shown of the shooting on the Gideon in “Resistance”. A reporter says that this was recently discovered and appears to show Galactica Marines firing indiscriminately on a crowd of unarmed civilians, but no charges have been filed. This isn’t a news item, but is being edited. And Marines show up to ask the reporter, D’Anna Biers, to come with them. No, she isn’t under arrest.
Biers is taken to see President Roslin and Commander Adama on Colonial One; the commander asks where she got the tape. Anonymous patriot. Biers asks if this is a social visit, or are they on the verge of another coup? Adama says the Gideon encounter was a tragedy, not a massacre, and though her tape shows Marines firing on defenceless civilians, his Marines tell a different story. Not to Biers. She’s submitted dozens of interview requests, all denied.
The president tells Biers that’s changed. Adama has agreed to unlimited access to Galactica to make a story about the ship. Not a propaganda piece. People are angry and distrust the military, and they want to put a human face on the officers and crew who are protecting the fleet from Cylons. A balanced story, showing what the men and women on Galactica are really like. Now, before they tear each other apart.
In CIC, Dee answers a call and tells Colonel Tigh his wife is calling; there’s something wrong. Tigh returns to his quarters. On his mirror is written in red ‘From the darkness you must fall’.
Biers returns to Galactica with Adama on a Raptor, filming him looking through some Caprican magazines. Racetrack says they were left over from a civilian run; she’ll get rid of them. Adama says to put them in a safe place instead. He also tells Biers that if she or her cameraman shoot anything that compromises the safety of the ship, it will be cut.
Starbuck and Apollo are talking about the threat to Tigh; Starbuck can’t believe she wasn’t called in for questioning. Apollo says she was top of the list, but he told Tigh there’s no chance she’d know Caprican poetry. Except Starbuck does know the work, which she proves. Then asks if she can please be a suspect.
Dee is showing Biers around the ship; Biers isn’t finding this interesting. Until she sees two pilots running back to the pilots’ duty locker after showering and follows. Kat plays up for the camera and Apollo suggests Biers leave. Now.
Dee is interviewed; apparently her father didn’t think much of her decision to join the military. Later, Dee and Biers are talking in the corridor when Gaius passes. Then hovers. He tells Number Six he’s the vice president; he should be being interviewed. Number Six says Biers will be helpful. Biers does speak to Gaius and asks if he wants an interview. He claims to be too busy, but suggests tomorrow. After Gaius leaves, Biers calls him a strange little man. Dee agrees.
Apollo is interviewed and he says the pilots’ duty locker is off-limits for a reason. It’s the one place they can unwind and be themselves. Biers asks if he believes his pilots deserve special consideration. Yes. He does. Like everyone else, they lost everything. Unlike everyone else, they have to put their lives on the line every single day for a fleet that is more interested in what they do wrong than right. They don’t deserve pity, but they do deserve respect.
Chief Tyrol is checking over an impatient Kat’s viper as they’re being filmed. The chief is sure something is wrong with it. He’s right. Kat starts quarrelling with the chief until Starbuck breaks it up. Starbuck tells Apollo that Kat should be taken out of rotation. Apollo says they can’t; they have no-one to replace her with.
A Marine, Kelso, is interviewed about the Gideon. He disagrees with the description defenceless as he’s got ten stitches in his head to prove otherwise. Kelso describes it as a command frack up and starts talking about Tigh being threatened when the interview is ended.
In CIC, Tigh, who isn’t pleased about being on camera, is being told by the commander that Adama wants Tigh to go to a meeting on Cloud 9. Because Tigh isn’t afraid of going and it will give people a chance to vent their feelings rather than seethe in private. Plus Tigh could do with some R&R.
Before Tigh’s Raptor can leave, though, a fire breaks out and they have to abort the launch. The chief takes a look and says it looks like someone took a hammer to the main bus. If that had blown in transit, it would have vented the cabin to space. The crew would likely have survived, being in suits and usually wearing helmets. Tigh would not. It looks like someone is definitely trying to kill him.
It looks like Biers may be getting a picture of the Galactica crew being humans, rather than anything else.