“Saga of a Star World: Part 1” is the first part of what was the original pilot movie for the classic series of Battlestar Galactica that is now generally shown in three parts.
It begins with an opening narration suggesting that human life on Earth began somewhere far away, and that tribes of humans still fight to survive somewhere beyond the heavens.
On the Battlestar Atlantia, one of a fleet of battlestars, the president of the Twelve Colonies is speaking to the members of the Quorum of Twelve about finding peace with the Cylons.
On the Galactica, a pilot, Zac, approaches another, Starbuck, as he wants to go out on patrol with Apollo, Zac’s older brother. When Apollo (played by Richard Hatch, who would later play a significant role in 2003 series) arrives, he does agree for Zac to go with him.
On Atlantia, the president is telling Count Baltar that they wouldn’t have this armistice if not for Baltar. After the meeting, Commander Adama of the Galactica is still suspicious; the Cylons hate them.
Zac and Apollo are out in Vipers and Zac reports two targets. Apollo goes to investigate. The first is a Cylon tanker, and there’s another behind it. And they’re being jammed. Because there’s a huge fleet of Cylon Raiders hiding. Enough firepower to destroy the Colonial Fleet. They turn to head back and are pursued by four Raiders. They take them all down, but Zac loses an engine. And there are far more Raiders after them now. Zac tells Apollo he has to go on ahead to warn the fleet because Zac can’t keep up.
Adama is returning to Galactica and is told the ship is on alert. In the command centre, Colonel Tigh tells Adama that their patrol is in trouble and being jammed. Adama contacts the president; he wants to launch intercept fighters as a precaution. Baltar urges the president not to do so, as it could endanger the peace talks, and the president agrees. He will consider putting the fleet on alert. Tigh tells Adama afterwards that it’s his sons on the patrol. Adama thinks it would be a good time to hold a battle stations drill.
Adama is told that a large number of ships and a single patrol craft are incoming. Galactica‘s Vipers are ready to launch. Baltar is claiming this is a Cylon welcoming committee. Zac is under attack and Adama tells the president that the welcoming committee is firing on his ship. Baltar has gone and Zac is killed.
The fleet comes under attack and only Galactica launches Vipers. Apollo arrives on the bridge wand tells his father about the ambush. He’s told it’s too late to go back for Zac. Tigh asks how many and Apollo tells him no baseships, but maybe thousands of fighters. They’d refuelled from a tanker. Tigh wonders why they didn’t use baseships when they could have. Adama thinks the baseships are elsewhere; he suspects the colonies are under attack and wants to head home.
Atlantia is destroyed and the rest of the fleet isn’t doing well. And the colonies themselves come under attack by the Cylon baseships.