Happy Birthday Galactic Watercooler

Aw yeah.

In September, two-thousand and six, the Galactica Watercooler blog and podcast made its first foray into the wide wide world of the interwebs. Charles “Chuck” Cage, Audra Heaslip, and Sean O’Hara made the decision to spend some time each week writing and ‘casting about their favorite TV show, the then-Sci Fi’s (insert Y’s at your leisure) Battlestar Galactica.

It was a simpler time, long before Colonel Saul Tigh (or Chief, or Sam, or…) had any inkling that they were Cylon(z). Gaius Baltar had yet to become a hands-on (IYKWIM) religious bigwig, although he was still the President of the colonies. The Pegasus (minus Helena Cain) was still around and in all one piece, and Galactica herself didn’t yet creak like a rusty hinge whenever somebody hit the throttle. Good times, discounting the whole genocide-and-running-away thing.

And Lee Adama, as detailed here in Audra’s very first blog, had yet to assemble the treadmill in his quarters. He’d married Dee and packed on a few in that year we somehow missed.

Fans of the series were still feeling the recent loss of presidential aide and all-around good kid Billy Keikeya, and Sean’s inaugural blog reflected that as well. When we look back on the series as a whole, I think we can all agree that it was a miracle Billy lasted as long as he did. Doesn’t mean we all weren’t POed at the time, though! We were!

Galactica Watercooler quickly established itself among BSG fans as the go-to podcast, but there was much more going on here. ‘Casts began to hit on all areas of science fiction and fantasy, as the frequent and lengthy hiatuses between BSG viewing seasons (and half seasons) made for lots of time to not only rewatch Battlestar Galactica, but also look around elsewhere. Our hosts’ love of all things science and fiction, and their talent for engaging in fun informative discussions about almost anything under the sun, made for tremendously enjoyable “in-between” podcasts as well.

In September 2007, the Forum was born. A huge undertaking by any account, but one that helped turn the GWC community into something special.

Luckily, the awesomeness that Chuck, Audra, and Sean had fostered within their podcasts and blog held firm. The Galactic Watercooler Forum must be experienced to be believed. A finer, friendlier, or more intelligent internet community you will not find. Period. This could not have been proven in any better way than the GWC Meetup in Texas, in March 2009. A mass gathering of GWCers from all over the USA and Canada joined to watch the final BSG episode and then participate in a live podcast. An epic ending for Galactica, and one that has forged lasting friendships.

Today the GWC Forum is a lively and expansive arena not only for sci fi, comics, gaming and fantasy, but almost any topic you can imagine. Discussions of each weekly podcast rule the day, but frak parties and a hundred other topics all have their place, and the GWC Hivemind is always available to give excellent advice or assistance. There’s lots of silliness as well. (You know who you are.)

The podcast continues each and every week, for after bidding a fond farewell to BSG, our hosts wasted no time in turning to the nearly infinite listings of films, TV, and gaming available. But if you’re reading this, you probably already know, and agree: the ‘cast simply rocks.

So, fans of the podcast, of the blog page or the forum, why not take a few moments and stop by GWC’s Happy  Birthday thread and say hello?

Three years of excellence and enjoyment. As a longtime GWCer, I’d just like to say to my friends Chuck, Sean, and Audra: Thank you. It’s been an honor.

Happy Birthday, GWC !!