“Litmus” is episode six of season one of the new Battlestar Galactica.
Civilians are boarding the Galactica and Chief Tyrol is having a secret rendezvous with Boomer, with Cally’s help, despite Colonel Tigh having told them to stop their affair. One of the civilians looks familiar to Tigh, who calls security. Adama sees the civilian as well and calls out. The civilian is Doral, who was left on Ragnar Station in the second part of the miniseries, and who has been revealed to be a humanoid Cylon. Doral has a bomb and he detonates it, Tigh dragging Adama out of the way.
Adama asks the doctor what the count is. Three dead, thirteen injured. Tigh asks Adama if he got a look at the bomber. He did; it was him. Adama wants to see the master at arms in his office in 10 minutes. Sergeant Hadrian (Jill Teed) arrives and is told about the human Cylons and Doral, and that there are multiple versions of the same Cylon. Hadrian is to investigate how that Cylon, or any civilian, broke through security. She points out there have been multiple security incidents and now this. Her point? She wants the authority to follow the evidence wherever it might lead without command review. An independent tribunal? Yes. Adama agrees; Hadrian seems surprised. They also decide that the public should now be informed, especially if there are multiple copies of Doral. Keeping quiet has not helped; maybe shining a light will.
Cally and two others of the deck gang have made a still. Tyrol catches them and asks for the booze. He sniffs it, and pours it out. Tyrol has a go at them; they only thing they’ve done is earn themselves a one-way trip to sickbay or the morgue. Bring him some materials later and he’ll show them how to build on properly. The chief likely realises a still will be made whatever, so it’s an idea to make sure it’s a safe one.
Adama speaks to President Roslin about getting the public to help with the humanoid Cylons. She tells them there’s a price for the public’s help; someone will have to be made accountable. Adama explains he’s setting up a tribunal. Roslin tells him it will have to come back to the public with the name of someone who screwed up. Adama doesn’t know if anyone did. The president points out that a Cylon agent penetrated security and killed three people. At least one person screwed up. Roslin is concerned; she doesn’t want this to become a witch hunt.
Hadrian interviews Cally and two more of the deck gang about Chief Tyrol’s whereabouts. They all give different answers, making it pretty obvious that at least two and probably all of them are lying. The president holds a press briefing about the explosions, and tells everyone about the humanoid Cylons. The deck gang are talking about this when Hadrian arrives to escort Tyrol and Boomer to the wardroom for the tribunal. Boomer says she and the chief stopped their relationship as ordered, and she doesn’t know where the chief was.
At least one of the deck gang start to get paranoid. Cally tells them that’s what the Cylons want; to turn them on each other. The chief and Boomer are lying and look guilty, but they’re guilty of someone else. Though it’s possible Boomer’s unknown Cylon side did help the Doral. Adama points out that if Chief Tyrol wanted to take down the ship, he already could have. President Roslin was right to get worried about a witch hunt as Hadrian starts to get a little out of control.
Apollo doesn’t appear at all in this episode and Starbuck is still healing from the injuries received in the previous episode, “You Can’t Go Home Again”, and therefore does little more than be in sickbay when the injured arrive and make a suggestion about the bomber’s target that scares Gaius Baltar.
On Caprica, Caprica Boomer, a Number Six and a Doral are watching Helo. If he wants to go after Boomer, who was apparently captured by the Cylons, he will go one way. If he plans to go off planet, he will go another. The Cylons look to be plotting something between Helo and Caprica Boomer.