Episode Name: Crossroads, Part 1 Episode Number: 318 Written by: Michael Taylor Directed by: Michael Rymer Original Air Date: 3/18/07 on SciFi Channel Review Posted: 3/18/07
Review of Episode 3.18:
It's taken a while (pretty much the entire second half of the season), but things are starting to heat up just in time for the season finale. The Cylons are back on the fleet's heels just as the fleet closes in the nebula and another clue to Earth. Roslin's cancer is back. The main storyline with Baltar's trial is mostly about Lee really putting his foot in it. Lee quits the military. He follows it up by betraying Roslin. Dee then finally quits him, which is sure to make all the L/K shippers giggle with delight.
Along with Lee basically allying himself with slimy Lampkin and Baltar, Tigh manages to hit a new low. He's hearing music that isn't there, which Anders and Tory apparently notice as well. However, a visit to Caprica Six to learn how the Cylons are following them leads to her Inner Baltar stirring her up enough to tease Tigh about his killing Ellen. Caprica Six is just full of all sorts of information. She knew about Roslin spacing Leoben and now knows that Tigh killed Ellen. That drives Tigh to drink his sorrow away just before going to the witness stand. Lampkin realizes something is up and prods Tigh into admitting what happened to Ellen. Tigh totally undermines his testimony by ranting that he would say anything to see Baltar dead.
Roslin hits the stand next and her testimony immediately makes the defense team nervous. An unexplained recess occurs which gives them plenty of time to strategize. Lee tips his hand that he might have something. Lampkin again tries to pull his strings, but Lee seems to hold his own a little better this time around.
Adama helps his old friend, who is once again being a headache to Adama. Yet Adama stays loyal to him again. One thing left open to question is whether Adama knew that Tigh killed Ellen himself. After that rough scene, Lee pays him a visit in what is basically the catalyst for Lee's turn. Adama figured that Lee told Lampkin about Ellen during the tribunal. He doesn't believe Lee when Lee says that he didn't know about Ellen. Lee gets all prissy and resigns his commission, which Adama readily accepts. If he wasn't sure before, Lee's now all in.
Lee now shows up at the trial in a civilian suit and wants to question Roslin himself. He's promoted himself from security detail to second chair. After some stumbling, it doesn't take long for Lee to get going and Roslin to know exactly where he's heading. She asks him not to go there. He asks anyway. Adama tries to derail the line of questions, but the other judges overrule and the audience receives its first big revelation in that Roslin's taking the kamala root again and is doing so because her cancer is back. The kamala root at least explains why she had the vision to open the episode, which led her to suggest they question Six.
Based on the tribunal scene and the one earlier in CIC, it would seem that Adama knew about Roslin's cancer, which might explain why he was so unhinged in last week's episode. However, this doesn't jibe with the timeline unless Roslin was lying to the press with her answer of "about a week." We don't know how much time has passed between episodes, but Lampkin is up and around and Anders seems to have lost the crutches.
Racetrack seems to be the designated pilot these days, picking up the bits that used to go to Kat. We get another Caprica Six sighting when Roslin points out the obvious that they might as well ask her for some intel. Adama never thought twice about at least asking Athena for information. No one says that it's trustworthy, but there can't be any harm in asking. unless you're Tigh. Speaking of the Cylons, does it bother anyone else that Adama and Lee don't think twice about sending the all-important tylium fuel refining ship off as a decoy with only a couple of Raptors for protection?
Let's spend a little time on those recurring characters. Since we just mentioned Anders, we'll start with him. It looks as though he's joined flight training so he can follow in Starbuck's footsteps. He and fellow nugget Seelix seem to already be getting along very well and spending a lot of time hanging out at the bar. Tory stops by as well, but she seems to be having a rough time of it. She looks like she hasn't slept in days and is endangering her job security as Roslin's aide.
Meanwhile, with Kelly locked away and Tigh flipping out, Helo is back to XO and this time with a full crew and this promotion comes only weeks after being stuck running Dogsville. Now he's No. 2 in command and warning Gaeta of coming storms. Since we commented about it in the opening paragraph, we'll elaborate on Lee and Dee here. We really don't mind that Dee walked out on Lee (yes, L/K shippers you read that right). We loathed the way she ditched Billy for Lee in the first place and Dee has stayed with Lee way too long with the way that he's carried on and pined for Starbuck through their marriage. Question is who she'll shack up with now?
All in all, it was an above average episode which put a lot of storylines into motion. It's final grade will ultimately depend on how part two turns out. It was nice to see the Cylons are back and conveniently just in time for the fleet to be rapidly (went from twelve to three jumps away from the nebula) closing in on another clue to Earth. Our concern that the episode would drag on in the courtroom for the entire episode was unfounded. Even though courtroom scenes were cliché, they contained some nice bombshells. Meanwhile, Roslin's cancer is back and now the talk of the dying leader can begin again. The trial is not going well at all for the prosecution and so we wouldn't be surprised that Baltar gets off if only because the star witnesses are all backfiring on Cassidy.
The episode leaves just a few questions to be solved next week. Do we get to see Caprica Six on the stand (TPR would really, really like to see that)? Is Baltar being found not guilty a foregone conclusion? Where are the Cylons? Now the whole fleet knows that Tigh was so whacked out on New Caprica that he killed his own wife, how is he ever going to get his job back as XO after this? What's up with the music? Will Tigh go crazy and airlock himself trying to find the music in the ship? What's up with Tory? Will Lee and Lampkin open their own law firm in Season 4 (presuming that they get their celeb client off in the finale)? How long will it take for Lee to make up with Adama and Roslin this time ? And Dee for that matter, or is that relationship over finally? How long will it be before Helo manages to get demoted again? What other visions is Roslin going to have now that she's taking the kamala root again?
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