GWC Frak Party: “Dirty Hands”
If you’re not already attending a Frak Party — or hosting one! –join us here for the GWC online ‘party. Or hell, even if you are watching with friends, post their comments, too! There’s room for everyone, though you’ll have to bring your own snacks…
And, since we record the podcast right after the episode, we’ll check in here first to see what you had to say in real-time. Sweet.
See you here tonight!
PS: As a guy who does get out of the office and into the shop from time to time, I suspect I’m going to like tonight’s episode. I feel for the Chief and all those who do the “dirty work” on a day-to-day basis throughout the fleet. I love that we’re seeing a feature about them, and I hope they get a fair shake.
Galactic Watercooler 
Modern Geek 
Save Eureka 
Eff This Week 
FitSmart
I’m looking forward to this episode, too. I love Tyrol and the deck crew. Have since the miniseries.
See you all on the far side of iTunes…
I too feel for these guys, however, there is a big difference between a strike and mutiny. This is Battlestar Galactica and it is a military vessel. Adama loves the Chief, but this may be one straw to many…..we shall see.
dude what if tyrol gets killed
Adama will be fraked if they lose Tyrol.
The 13th Cylon is correct.
Tyrol is to Adama as Scotty is to Kirk (sort of)
Hey, if Helo can get away with all the Craaaaaap he has pulled…..surly the Chief is safe.
Which is worse – shooting your wife to death so she can download to rescue your daughter, or beating your not-yet-wife-to-be about the head in a psychotic stupor?
Helo’s not the only one who gets away with crap.
here we go!!!!!
anyone know what is up with RDM’s podcast? Late two weeks in a row.
Chuck, I am so uber-excited about this episode too. I’m a mechy and quite often work in shops. Tyrol is my hero! This episode should also answer many questions abotu how the fleet works too. Ok, it’s starting!
Wow…we did just see Vipers flying???
Was that a mechanical arm?! buh?
Wow! We just saw a raptor take off. …
What? NO!!! Roslin, look out!
two vipers and a raptor flying and we haven’t even gotten to the opening sequence yet, there is hope!!!!!
Oh it would be cool to see the raptor crash into her office!
I totally agree Frank.
Oh no! That is Racetrack, isn’t it?! Racetrack and Roslin’s lives in danger in a span of about 6 minutes. That’s a destiny double whammy.
chief is nominated for an academy award what the….. oops wrong channel.
I was wondering why ellen degeneress was on Galactica.
forget eth oscars, I wanna see BSG emmy’s!
bah, no crash visual!
Oh boy……another bonus scene. Maybe it will last more than 4 seconds this time.
Oh Oh…Roslin is welcome in Adama’s bed.
WHAT?! They should had shown what happened. They’re doing that a lot. I bet you it will be part of the extra footage…
WOW…they said Earth!
First commercial break; Right after Teaser.
Anyone hope that Raptor creams Colonial One and kills that dictator of a President?
Oh, it’s back on. I’m liking this episode so far.
That baby can act!
Okay, it’s official. I hate Roslin.
Nice to know it is a crime to piss off the President…the one who was NEVER elected!
Since when did “pissing off the President” become a crime?
Oh Oh! Unions? Working Class? Ruling Class? I smell socialist ideology!
Anyone else see that smile on Roslin’s face? Frak am I starting to hate her.
Is the baby always cold? What’s with the hat?
Also, i missed where they got his writings from…it’s not where I think they got it from…should I be glad I missed it?
I thought they had found a enough fuel after season one to last for years??? Anyone know what happened?
Tylllium=sand
Who knew?
After seeing Roslin, I am almost hoping the Cylons take out the fleet.
When does a viper or raptor go boom? I want action!!!!
I am with you Cavatar, I thought the fuel problems were over.
It’s nice that Roslin can have a glass of space wine with Bill while expounding on the hardships of the rest of the fleet. How dare the workers complain!
Yeah, she is a tight ass. Wow, so intense!
Okay… Cavatar. Are you with me when I say that the Admiral and the President are now officially dictatorial and out-of-touch?
Gods. I am SO phoning in about this episode.
Here we go again…..
Roslin is the bad guy
Baltar is the good guy.
who falls for this heeping pile of frak?
Man; I’m finding it hard to like Roslin and Adama right now…
Seems like the writers are driving the show toward an essay and commentary on politicla power and abuse especially as we move toward a trial. Not must emphasis on Cylons…..
He’s not 12 (almost). Try 27.
There must be a cardboard factory in the fleet also.
Wow, a draft for factory workers.. I did not see that coming.
How many pages constitute a book? Anything about the font type help determine if it should be called a book, or should we call it a short story, or a comic book (sans pictures).
Don’t you hate it when Baltar is right!
I see they took all of Baltar’s stuff…reminds me of that Kate Winslet movie with Gregory Rush. (I think that was his name)
Baltar’s striped “pajama” shirt is very WWII death camp-esque. On purpose, perhaps?
Arrested for Striking, Forced Labour, Condoning Intercolony racism, Barely Legal Presidents? Frak! This Fleet is going down fast!
Wow this is touching a nerve, character development story….again.
I must say that I am finding this interesting, they are making us think twice about Adama and Roslin, and reconsidering Baltar. I guess that is what they are trying to do.
Damnit! What the hell is wrong with Roslin? Isn’t she suppose to be a school teacher?! I have never been on the side against Roislin and Adama, but they are actually pissing me off in this episode. It’s totally unerstandable that the boss, the leader, the President has to make hard decisions that no one likes, but its th right thing to do. That’s not the case this time! There needs to be a school ship in the fleet where children learn. Like a boarding school. This episode is so wrong! Grrr!!
They found enough Tylllium but it has to be refined. Just like having oil doesn’t mean having gas…it needs to be refined first.
This week’s text message poll is particularly great. “Are the tyllium workers being treated unfairly?” lol
Is anyone else getting Hitler vibes off of Baltar? “My Struggle (Mien Kampf), My Triumph” written while in prison and of course the whole “I’m buddies of the people” thing.
That blank post is odd. What I said is that I’d call Baltar’s ‘book’ a manifesto.
…Now that there are no Cylon slaves to do the dirty work, it looks like the colonists have made the natives of the “lower class” planets into their new “cylons”…
Tyllium looks like cat litter.
YES! Go Tyrol! Shut down that Aristocratic machine of proletariat oppression!
So… Let me get this straight.
If you try to improve working conditions in civil society, it’s a general strike. But if you do that same thing in the military, it’s a mutiny?
Frak you Admiral. You used to be cool – now I’m not so sure.
Let’s hope a Basestar doesn’t jump into the system…..they’d be fracked.
Go Tyrol! You’re my hero!
After this it is easier to see why Baltar beat Roslin so easy in the election.
Dan, that is a lot of syllables.lol
Rich, you found the colonial secret, the ships run on cat craaapp.
Airlock “The Airlock”! 🙂
Well of course it’s mutiny! For the deckgang to be on strike is putting the whole fleet in immediate danger! They aren’t civilians and have a higher responsibility than anyone else on any otehr ship. No?
Do these people want slightly better working conditions or to survive to fight another day? I’m all for the people, but they are being extremely foolish.
civilians are one thing, but the military takes an oath!
So it is now a crime by association.
I’m calling in.
Saberhawk has a point. Did anyone consider a plan b in the event the bad cylons show up? Or someone who called the strike has special knowledge of where the cylons are.
Do you see that what’s happening to the knockdraggers is what happed to the colony under the cylons. What if the Galactica leadership are the other cylons…
Yes, and the “common man” will rise up during the trial to take Baltar’s side. No way to find him guilty and execute him. Everyone will think they are just railroading Baltar in order to put down the civilian unrest.
So now everything’s okay? The Admiral coerces the Chief into backing down, and the Chief gets a little chat with the President and everything’s all right?
Tyrol for president!!!
Dear Battlestar Galactica Editing Staff,
LAME!!!
How touching….. I guess Chief will forget that Adama threatened his wife.
Let bygones be bygones.
I am no psychologist, but I would call whatever happened to Laura a case of multiple personalities.
Wow, that was anticlimactic.
Bill wasn’t afraid to play hardball. He would’ve had Cally killed if that’s what he thought it took to protect the fleet.
And those wanting more uplifting endings, there you go. The Chief’s gonna fight for their rights and Seelix is a nugget. Oh yeah, Starbuck got to be a hard ass again. lol
Dan, they have been doing that a lot lately. Tidying things up to quick. If they were going to end it that way they playe the first 45 min of the show much to HARD core. Not really reasonable to jump from such hard core positions to reasonable ones.
Finally, back to some Cylon threads within the story next week.
OMG! Next week we get back to the big ideas. Destiny of Starbuck and creepy Leoben action. TV Guide has said that these next 5 episodes are biggies as we lead up to the season finale. We’ve had these stand alone episodes lately because of Feb sweeps, which is big for the ratings and, in turn, big for getting advertisers in the future.
Rich, I put some kitty litter in my car now it won’t run, I think the cat craaap thing doesn’t work.
Saber, nice sum up. Now I have to think of something else to say.
Maybe they are trying to make the Cylons all mysterious again by not showing them for a couple of weeks.
Where was Tigh?! He would’ve laid the smackdown on those little striking frakkers. Stink eye Tigh.
When Galen stepped out of that cell, I was *praying* he would just clock Adama in the face.
OK.. So now we have a few things that need to happen.
Kids need a school. Training for necessary occupations. Thet should have set this up before New Caprica if not right afterwards. It always seems like they are allowing the fleet to just “float” along and that is going to wear down the people doing the work.
The Refinery needs to be militarized. Should have been a while ago as a strategic asset. Then the workers are under the same protections as the deckhands and the pilots. No over working. Healthcare, food, rest time rules apply then. Maybe this is the ship to give Helo to run. He seems to know right from wrong better than most.
What Adama did was perfectly in character and he was right. Maybe a bit extreme but he needed to make a point and quickly. He protected his ship and command and allowed the president to negotiate from there. Problem should never have gotten this bad but, it did.
Roselin was a bit scary but then dictators normally are. She’s protecting more than her command and hard decisions are having to be made quickly. I know you have discussed the whereabouts of the Quorum and I think like other things it’s been allowed to float along and soon we may see it reform. Maybe with Zarek at the head?
Magycian, you put it into finer words than I could. You are absolutely right and I agree 100%
Good episode????
Well GWC Crew, the only vipers and raptors were in the opening scenes, maybe next week something will go boom?
I feel like I keep saying maybe next week, week after week. But overall, I felt it was a good episode. Like I said earlier in the week, even the worst episode of Galactica is better than any other show on TV.
What the frak is up with the RDM podcast? Did any one hear anything?
Roslin may be a dictator, but she sure as heck beats Baltar! And in her defense, she was teaching a little school in a tent back on New Caprica as the Cylons landed.
And already we’re seeing Zarek’s words come true. The entire strike could be considered a result of all this Baltar imprisonment and future trial.
You know, Magy. I actually agree.
What Adama did was in character, it just wasn’t *right*. If you didn’t do what I wanted you to do, is it right for me to threaten your family? Of course not! Although the situation was different between Adama and Chief, in the end, Adama still threatened to kill the Chief’s family. That’s a line nobody should cross – ever.
As for Roslin. Words cannot express the disdain I feel for that woman at this moment. If that’s what existence is like in the Fleet, I would rather live with the Cylons back on New Caprica! Being arrested for reading a book? Getting tossed in the brig for striking? Gimme a break! But it’s all right because she’s just looking out for the safety and welfare of humankind? Frak that noise.
You can say anything you want about ends justifying the means and the survival of humanity, but at the end of the day, Adama and Roslin are dictatorial, illegitimate, and morally wrong in their actions. I don’t doubt their motives, just their methods.
Interesting episode, though. At least it’s drawn a strong reaction from me, and that’s the sign of good writing!
right on the money 13, you are the first to mention Zarek tonight, it slipped my mind, but you picked it up, maybe the leadership should stop treating Zarek like a Loon, and start taking him seriously, he could be a valuable asset.
Replace “Adama and Roslin are dictatorial, illegitimate, and morally wrong in their actions. I don’t doubt their methods…” with:
“At the end of the day, Adama and Roslin acted dictatorially and wrongly on this one. It wasn’t justifiable given the circumstances. Their motives may have been pure, but they were just too extreme for me.”
ok, yeah Roslin was unreasonable in this episode. She was mean and didn’t listen to what these people had to say and as a result, people got hurt. The tyllium strike worked! That’s the point. That’s what it took to make Roslin listen. Can you imagine all the craaap she has on her mind? You’re being way too hard on her, even though she was wrong in her actions during the episode.
When you look at it closer, Adama didn’t have a problem with the refinery ship strike. He didn’t care. Tyrol took teh strike way too far! He expanded it from the Tyllium ship to Galactica. That was irresponsible. I think that was lost in translation due to a bad editing job and not the fault of the writing.
But hey, then again, you can go back to what Roslin said in Measure of Salvation. It was something like how their decendants won’t look kindly on some of the things they’ve done, but at least they’d have decendants to live. And let’s be honest, we’ve never been regular civilians and during the course of a day on the run from terrorists and propelled headfirst into a war. People who were on vacation or whatnot suddenly became soldiers. This is a total war effort and I think sometimes those people forget that.
And Tyrol isn’t a civvie. He’s taking orders from Big Bill and what he did was mutiny.
Adama did not concern himself with the refinery ship. That was a civilian matter and fell to the office of the President. Tyrol ordered his deck gang to refuse to work. That is mutiny punishable by death during a time of war. Like Adama said, if you allow people throughout the military to refuse whatever order they like, people will die. Adama was in character and right to do what he did. Even if he killed Cally, he would still be right.
Frank, the cat litter needs to be processed, i’m guessing the real power is in the clumps. Hence the men and machines used to work the tyllium. This may also explain other things witnessed in today’s episode:
1. Why are they so unhappy?
You try working around cat litter all day.
2. Why are some of the workers looking like they just had a fight with a cat? (scratched faces, etc)
Well, that would be because they probably did. Giants cat from the Leonian colony produce the raw material. Giant cats don’t like people taking away this raw material.
Anyway, it’s getting late. I will share with you another good reason why the workers needed to strike: http://cats.about.com/cs/litterbox/a/clumpingclay.htm
That “Tyllium” is dangerous stuff.
Hahaha, Rich, that’s great. Maybe if we were watching the Original Series that would be true. GIANT CATS FROM OUTER SPACE!!!
“”Even if he killed Cally, he would still be right.”
Samatra, do you even know what you just said? That’s ridiculous! The best way to get someone to do their job is to threaten to kill their family? That’s *exactly* why I dislike Adama right now.
Number one, there’s the obvious moral issue involved in threatening to kill someone’s wife. Two, the only leverage Bill had was in *threatening* to kill Cally. If he had actually killed her, Tyrol probably wouldn’t have cooperated at all. Three, there was no military threat at the time. If there had been a Dradis contact or the ship had been at Condition One, it’d be a different story, but there wasn’t any pressing emergency that required Bill to act so harshly. Four, Bill’s a coward for threatening -Cally- for something she did not do (i.e. initiate the strike, which was Galen’s doing.)
Also, for the record, I’m not arguing that Bill or Roslin’s actions were -out of character- for the most part; I’m primarily concerned with the morality and philosophical issues involved in their actions.
Also, for the record:
One, I *supported* the strike on the Refinery Ship, and opposed Roslin’s handling of the situation. Deux, I’m not so sure Tyrol’s Deck Crew strike was technically mutinous and I’m not necessarily sure if I agree with it. Three, Adama handled the Deck Crew work stoppage *totally* inappropriately, even if was in character for him.
Oh, and 13th. I’m not denying that the survival of the human race should be the highest priority in the Fleet at all times, because that’s not the issue – the Cylons did not attack even *once* all episode. So while in peacetime, The Colonials have established a relatively functional civil society and given the nature of that society, some serious labour issues are going to have to be dealt with. Simply saying, “We’re in danger 24/7, work your butts off without representation and if you try to affect change, we’ll lock you up!” is *not* the way to deal with it. When you deny people the right to participate in the decision-making of their own society, they become *very* angry.
But that’s just my opinion. 😀
I was just thinking. Chuck should add a chatroom to GWC – I’d really enjoy talking about these things in real-time with many of you. In the meantime, anyone up for swapping MSN names? 🙂
Goodness, I hope you guys don’t think the whole cat litter thing was insensitive. It was completely coincidental. May Zach forever roam the fantastic dunes of Leonid as the King of Galactica Tyllium lore.
Yeah, who knew the FTL drives are powered by… what? What did you say? Sand? Well… forget oil, OPEC needs to start scooping up that sand they’ve got.
And Joe, we all know the kitty litter stuff was totally coincidental. I’m sure there’s plenty of Adama quotes about the past and all that jazz that can go here.
Spoiler warning for everyone who visits the BSG website! They accidentally posted the bonus scene for next weeks episode alongside this weeks. They don’t give away much, but it’s a huge clue for what the next episode is about. Looks like a good one!
Dan,
Pretty good thoughts, I agree with some, disagree with others, but damn the debate is what makes this so great.
msn name….frank1909
If Tyroll is really going to be a labor leader, then he’s going to be the next president of the colonies.
Roslin should give him an office on Colonial One.
What kind of R&R is there in the fleet now that Cloud 9 is gone?
(I am a cylon)
was it just me or was “Milo” really Boxey
I liked the episode as a whole but the ending seemed just a little too convenient.
I do enjoy the angle they are taking with Baltar, the chat he had with the Chief was the highlight of the show, him disclosing his humble upbringing… Callis is quite the actor. I agree about the similarities with Hitler.
Hopefully though, starting with the next episode, things should heat up towards the season finale. Season had a great start and a bit of a lull in the middle.
Cheers!
“no military threat at the time”- Being chased by a superior force with one undermanned, under supplied, heavily damaged Battlestar to defend the last suvivers of humanity. That’s pretty threatening in my book. When the people at the bottom get to decide what is a vital mission and what is not is not just a threat to the military chain of command, it is a threat the the fleets defenses.
“Bill’s a coward for threatening -Cally- for something she did not do”- In my viewing of the episode, she seemed to be pressing Chief into this. As seen in the last episode with the airlock, she wanted special treatment from duties because she was Chief’s wife in my interpretation. She was infact part of the mutiny and a ring leader. If I recall correctly, when starbuck and the other pilots came down to fly, the deck gang said the order came from Chief through Cally. She gave that order to that deck gang which to me indicates that she is one of the leaders of the mutiny.
“Number one, there’s the obvious moral issue involved in threatening to kill someone’s wife. Two, the only leverage Bill had was in *threatening* to kill Cally. If he had actually killed her, Tyrol probably wouldn’t have cooperated at all.” – Cally is enlisted military personnel participating in a mutiny. If Chief had not cooperated Adama would have killed the mutineers. Yes this would have massive effects on the civilian population, but the mutiny on Galactica would be over.
You can see that Adama was actually on the chief side right after chief ended the mutiny with that line about Chief having a meeting with the President.
What confused me was Roslin. It seemed that one minute she was anti-labor than the pro-labor all the sudden at the end. Guess I’ll have to watch it again to see how that happend.
Nice thing about this episode is that it indicated what people were doing on other ships. I was always wondered how people got their jobs on the civilian ships and if they were rotated around.
If Adama were in the right, Tyrol and Callie wouldn’t be married. That’s pretty bad when it comes to enlisted personnel, especially aboard a ship.
Want to know why? Because of what Adama did this ep — he threatened the family to get his way.
But this isn’t the military of old. This is about “making babies.” The problem, in this episode… Is what happens -after- you make babies.
Realize that those kids have been under Cylon attack for 2 years, with New Caprica being the only time off. And by the sounds of it, the refinery kept working constantly during that year, too. These kids don’t know any other life… And it will get worse.
Eventually.. people will be born who don’t remember what it is like on a planet.
Kudos to SciFi and iTunes for getting the episode up so quick.
I didn’t like this one. The plot was basically recycled from (argh, blanking—the first Zarek one.) If you want something done, threaten the brass or the fleet. Then when you back down, they’ll do it. Feh.
And what are they using for money? And what on? How does overtime pay help anyone?
Oh, forgot. Why the heck can you not stop the production line when something gets jammed? Huge design flaw, or just a huge drama chip? Probably the latter, because if nothing is stuck, it shuts down just fine.
They get paid in time off. At the point that ship was in, money is nothing.. rest is the only commodity.
And basically, the thing was that if they stopped it while it was jammed, the procedure of stopping the belt and the refinery would sieze up the machinery, perhaps due to cooling down. Thus, it would make it much harder to fix, and get restarted. It’s a bad explanation, I know.. But I assume they filmed this in a real refinery, and they got consulting from real factory workers on what would cause drama like that.
I love that Cylix is going to be a pilot… but it makes me think she’ll be killed!
I think Adama’s actions with Tyrol are quit *in character*. He proved that he has the balls to do the right thing – keep the fleet together. Mostly importantly he proved it *TO* Tyrol who was testing it. He knew Tyrol would respond the way he did… that’s why Adama is an Admerial.
This episode is setting-up the trial and Baltar’s defence… it will be interesting!
yeah but i was in the episode
I didn’t particularly like this episode. In fact, after my friends and I watched it we started referring to it as the Black Market of season three.There were moments within it that I liked but it was really just filler. I DEFINITELY liked the part when Gaius was talking about his past and the accents and roles of the different colonies.
I thought that Adama and Roslin were being rather stupid though, especially in the first part. I don’t particularly like the direction they’re taking Roslin, either. She doesn’t really seem to be caring so much about the people anymore, she just hangs out with Adama a bunch. In fact, she’s been kind of annoying ever since Billy died. He was sort of a balance for Roslin and he actually disagreed with her sometimes. Tori just sort of does the President’s bidding. There’s no one there to contest her and discuss with her. They could definitely have more scenes with Zarek to do that, but that hasn’t happened yet.
And what’s up with those bonus scenes? They accomplish nothing. In fact, the one for Dirty Hands undid what they accomplished in the episode. “Well, we can’t let the classes get too seperated and jobs can’t be inherited…..” and then they come back with the bonus scene, “….Bu the fact of the matter is the people with the skills we need come from the poorer colonies.” Dude. No.
The only bonus scene I’ve liked so far is the one with D and Gaeta gossiping about Adama and Roslin just because it was so quirky and a moment that you could relax and breathe because I definitely dont’ think we’ve been getting enough feel good moments in the show. And, did you notice that Gaeta had to ask D for a pen? He’s just not allowed to have pens anymore apparently. Heh heh heh……
Also, Adama is such a player!! “You’re welcome in my beds anytime.” Dude. Yes.
And the part at the end when Starbuck was in flight instructor mode was awesome. I really hope Seelix doesn’t die though, she’s a cute character.
Also, the new shots of the fleet are pretty darn cool. I’m wondering if the sweeping angles of the shots are getting away from their documentary style though. And it was the first time we got to see a raptor actually take off! That was pretty cool.
I’m so excited for the next episode though!! Yay, finally a Starbuck Episode that won’t focus on that stupid love square!! And I really hope they’re actually going to address Starbuck as an artist instead of just using it as a means of saying, “Hey she might be the prophet” (but of course I would say that, being an art student myself). I really wished after seeing her totally awesome apartment that they would have shown her sketching and doodling every once in a while though. She definitely seems the type to cover every paper she gets her hands on in doodles and sketches. Seriously though, her apartment looks quite a bit like mine (except I’m not allowed to paint on the walls, a fact which saddens me greatly). I love the mess she had on her coffee table.
I am voting for Starbuck as prophet though, for sure. Afterall, she went and got the Arrow of Apollo and put it in the statue’s hands, and now with her paintings looking like the eye of Jupiter….. I’m sure I’m forgetting other stuff, but this post has gotten quite long enough already.