The first five minutes of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica go a little something like this: A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far Far Away - oh, wait, sorry, wrong space opera. We open on an armistice station in deep space belonging to the humans of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol.  They are waiting, as they have waited once a year for the last 40 years, for the Cylon delegate to show up to discuss diplomatic relations. 

Wait a minute.  What's a Cylon, you ask? Well, the Cylons were robots created by man to make life on the Colonies easier.  Everything was going just fine until the day that the Cylons evolved.  And they rebelled.  They killed their masters until a truce was called and the Cylons departed for parts of the galaxy unknown.  No one has seen or heard from them since.

Until now.  We hear heavy clanking metal before the Cylons are revealed, these enormous robots with weapons for hands and a single glowing red "eye."  And then.  We hear another kind of clank on metal, the kind made from very high heels.  And down the hallway comes amazingly gorgeous perfect blonde clad in a red suit.  She looks human.  She feels human. But she's not.  She's a Cylon.  You see, the Cylons kept on evolving.  They look human.  They have managed to infiltrate the colonies and they have one goal: the annihilation of the human race.

Come on, you know you're curious now.

This show is so much more than a sci fi show.  It's been called The West Wing in Space.  It has Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell leading a stellar cast. It won a Peabody award.  Some of the actors and the creator, Ronald D. Moore (you Trekkies out there should recognize the name) were invited to a panel at the United Nations to discuss the show's portayal of "human rights, children and armed conflict, terrorism, human rights and reconciliation and dialogue among civilizations and faith," and how it relates to our world today.   It has landed on the Best Of lists of Time, Entertainment Weekly, the LA Times, the Chicago Tribune, Newsweek, and more.  And hello, have you ever seen a cast this PRETTY?  Or one that does the Last Supper so well?  I think not.

This show is not afraid to go to very dark places.  There is genocide, rape, murder, suicide bombings, baby stealing, sex, kidnapping.  There are questions of gods and faith, a very deep mythology, an Arrow that points the way to Earth, a place they hope to call home once theirs are destroyed.  You will recognize the names of their Colonies as variations on our Zodiac: Caprica, Geminon, Sagittaron, Virgon, and their gods share names with our Greek Gods: Artemis, Apollo.  Their society is much more advanced but their problems are our problems.

Its parallels to the times we are living in are easy to spot, but it is never preachy.  It deals with religion and technology, what it means to be human, the light and dark sides of humanity, the gray area that we all live in.  The humans are not all good, and the Cylons aren't completely evil.  Humanity is a flawed creation, and the show explores all facets of that.  Plus, it made Starbuck a woman (in the original she was a guy), and let me tell you, Starbuck kicks ass and takes names like no one's business.

I leave you with this quote from the miniseries, made by Commander Adama on the eve of what he thinks is his ship's decommissioning (they're turning it into a museum):  You know, when we fought the Cylons, we did it to save ourselves from extinction. But we never answered the question: why? Why are we as a people worth saving? We still commit murder, because of greed, spite, jealousy, and we still visit all of our sins upon our children.  We refuse to accept the responsibility for anything that we've done. Like we did with the Cylons. We decided to play god, create life.  When that life turned against us, we comforted ourselves in the knowledge that it really wasn't our fault, not really. You cannot play god, then wash your hands of the things that you've created. Sooner or later, the day comes when you can't hide from the things that you've done anymore.

So.  Get yourself on Netflix, or hit up Blockbuster before they go bankrupt, and pick up the miniseries.  I guarantee you will want more (unless you are Adam S. who is lame).  Heck, give me a call.  I'll lend you my DVDs.  It's worth it.