One of the big questions still asked and debated about today from the ‘Battlestar Galactica‘ reboot is what exactly was the Cylon’s plan? According to showrunner Ronald D. Moore they actually didn’t have one. Yes, that amazing multi-season run which fans fell in love with and were divided by the series finale promised us a great Cyclon plan from the pilot and even dropped hints at what it was throughout the series never actually created one.
Every single episode that opened with that iconic saying:
The Cylons were created by man. They evolved. They rebelled. There are many copies. And they have a plan.
… was actually a lie.
In a recent Q&A at the Austin Television Festival where Moore was reunited with the cast we loved was asked about it. While laughing, he responded:
“There was no plan.
It all came about when we were doing the main titles, and we had to have what’s called a ‘precap’ as opposed to a recap. So we had a precap before the main title. And David [Eick, executive producer] said we should have a punchy line there at the end…’and they have a plan.’ And I was like ‘What does that mean?’ He said ‘It doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter. It’ll be great. The audience will love it.'”
And, boy, did we love it! Only Moore agrees with us that there should have been something in place:
“I said ‘But they don’t have a plan, David.’ He said ‘Trust me, this is marketing. We’ll figure it out later.’ So for the next fourteen years of my life people have asked me ‘So what was the plan?’ There’s no f***ing plan!”
Honestly, with fourteen years this visionary director and creator has had plenty of time to figure out a plan, so that is a bit of a letdown that he didn’t at least conceptualize something in that time.
For those wondering what the show would be like if it was made today instead of in a post 9/11 world which is where they drew their themes from, Moore wasn’t sure though did state:
“Today we would write it as a flat-out serial. There was no way to catch up on shows, DVR penetration wasn’t that high. Networks wanted each episode to stand alone.”
However, President Laura Roslin herself, Mary McDonnell, did offer a theme for a more peaceful message to be included in the show:
“The idea of forcing a collected group of people to see each other as one is the thing that continually resonates with me. The powers-that-be are trying to create as much difference between us as their pocketbooks will allow. With Battlestar Galactica, we have a reminder that it could all go away like that.”
Considering she, Edward James Olmos, and more of the cast and crew were invited to speak before the United Nations on the topics presented in ‘Battlestar Galactica’ and did so quite intelligently should mean that this idea isn’t taken with a grain of salt.
Are you annoyed that no one ever came up with a plan for the Cylons? Would you be excited for another ‘Battlestar Galactica’ reboot if it was in the hands of Moore and was written as a serialized show? Share your thoughts below!
Source: IGN
Stuart Conover is an author, blogger, and all around geek. When not busy being a father and husband he tries to spend as much time as possible immersed in comic books, science fiction, and horror! Would you like to know more? Follow him on Twitter!
