“The Hand of God” is episode twenty-four of season one of the classic series of Battlestar Galactica and the season and series finale.
Apollo, Starbuck, Cassiopia and Sheba arrive at what Apollo says is the highest point of Galactica, directly over the main thrusters. He opens a dome, revealing the stars, and explains this is a celestial dome, the last one left. They were originally used for navigation sightings. Sheba is at the instruments and asks Apollo what something is. Long range scanners, but she won’t get anything as the gamma channels are outdated and no longer used. However, she has something. It’s transmission of a spaceship, one Sheba hasn’t seen before but which Apollo has in history videos, like the Colonies used to fly a long time ago.
They go wake Boomer, who is an expert on long range communications. He’s interested when he hears the channel they were on. He clears up the audio a bit. It might be from somewhere nearby, or a long, long way away.
Adama is told and roughly where the transmission came from. The area is scanned and Tigh says there’s a solar system in the line of transmission that’s the only thing of interest. It’s too far to get more than planets. Adama orders a Viper patrol dispatched.
Apollo, Starbuck and Sheba head out; Starbuck picks up something rising behind a planet. A Cylon Basestar.
The head back and tell Adama and that they probably weren’t detected. Tigh says nothing left the solar system and both are too far away to directly scan each other. They’ll have to backtrack a long way to avoid the Cylons. Adama thinks the transmission came from the basestar as a lure. Apollo isn’t so sure. Adama thinks there’s something else they can do rather than turn back. Attack. Commander Cain is the only one to try attacking a basestar since leaving the Colonies, but he attacked two. They only have one.
The basestar got a blip prior to achieving orbit and the leader orders a patrol dispatched.
Tigh briefs the pilots on the basestar’s capabilities; it can destroy every ship in the fleet, including Galactica. Adam says they have the element of surprise. The Vipers will launch prior to getting in scan range to draw out the fighters. Galactica will come in from another direction. They should get the first strike.
After the briefing, Apollo speaks to Starbuck; he’s thinking if they knock out the scanners, Galactica will get the first strike. It would need doing from the inside. Starbuck makes a sarcastic remark about flying past all the Cylons and sneaking aboard. Apollo thinks that will work. They’ll use Baltar’s ship. Adama is uncertain until he has an idea. Get help from Baltar.
The signal received earlier would likely have been important in the next season, but the series was cancelled before being revived as Galactica 1980.