War of the Gods, Part II isn’t quite as good as Part I. But it’s still a very compelling and engaging episode. The story takes a mystical, some might say biblical, turn. We come face to face with evil. And we’re left with several profound revelations. But some of the skill in crafting the episode has been lost.

The episode begins with Baltar’s judgment. The Quorum of Twelve sentences him to life in prison. During the proceedings, Count Iblis speaks and Baltar recognizes the voice. Later, in his cell, Baltar confirms that the voice of Iblis is the same voice as that of the Imperious Leader. And here we get some history of the Cylons: that they allowed their technology to take over their being and when that happened, the wars against the Colonies began. But as Baltar states, that was thousands of years ago. Calling Baltar his “friend,” Count Iblis implies that he was there when the Imperious Leader was programmed and that his voice is that of “truth.” And from this we get the first explicit confirmation that Iblis is as dangerous as he is powerful. It’s a good scene, particularly for its implications for the true nature of both Baltar and the Cylons.

But the rest of the fleet does not yet see this. And Count Iblis’ influence is growing. The Quorum are on the verge of electing him President of the Colonies. And Iblis is doing everything he can to influence the vote in his favor. During another Triad tournament, Iblis influences Boomer’s team to route Apollo and Starbuck — despite Boomer’s admission that Apollo is simply the better player. Following the victory, a celebration is made in which a great many people join in the revelry — including Starbuck. Once again, we’re subjected to the embarrassing Triad uniforms. And the scene just isn’t very entertaining — we’re interested Iblis, afterall, not a Triad game.

From here, Iblis’ power play begins to drag a bit. The revelry causes the Viper pilots to all suffer hangovers. And so, when the bright lights return, no one is ready to fly on any missions — except for Apollo, that is. Count Iblis uses the opportunity to blame Adama’s lack of discipline and promises to inform the council. The whole scene goes back to the tendency for the series to overplay its hand a bit. The growing influence of Count Iblis was already well established. This wasn’t entirely necessary.

Be that as it may, things are starting to get desperate. Apollo visits his father, only to find that Adama can actually move small objects with telekinesis — just as Iblis had in Part I. Adama reveals that this was a result of special military training, as well as the extended life span of Colonials, “a couple hundred yahren,” taking advantage of the full capacity of the brain. It’s interesting to see this portrayed on screen. And it leads to Adama’s further discussions about the strange lights, and Iblis. To him, the lights and Iblis could possibly be the same beings that once visited the Lords of Kobol. And if so, the lights would be “angels,” and Iblis would represent a fallen angel. It’s a clear biblical reference. And it certainly fits the tendencies of the show thus far. For the episode, it plays out well enough.

Apollo and Adama decide that the real answers to Count Iblis are back on his “red planet.” So Apollo secretly plans to go there and take a look at the shipwreck. Starbuck meets up with Apollo in the launching bay and joins in the mission. Iblis learns about it (he’s psychic, afterall) and so he heads for the planet. Oh, and Sheba goes there, too.

On the planet, Starbuck and Apollo look inside the ship and make a shocking and disturbing discovery. We do not get to see the insides of the craft and, I must assume, that decision was made because the show had to be “family friendly.” I certainly cannot fault the episode, but I sure wish we had seen at least some hint as to what was inside. But the scene is effective: the remains clearly show that Count Iblis is an evil entity.

Sheba arrives and is on the verge of entering the wreckage when Iblis appears and forbids her from seeing it. Apollo then confronts Iblis, calling him Mephistopheles, Diaoblis, and Prince of Darkness. If we hadn’t figured it out yet, Count Iblis is the devil. Apollo shoots him with his laser gun, but the blast passes right through Iblis with a successfully sinister and disturbing visual effect — revealing Count Iblis’ true nature.

Still intent on confronting Count Iblis, Apollo intervenes when Iblis attempts to strike down Sheba for disobeying him. The result: Apollo dies. It certainly is a shock to have him pronounced dead. And one has to wonder, even just a little bit, if he will stay that way. Starbuck, showing a very sincere outrage, also tries to shoot Iblis — but the result is the same, including a close up of the red-eyed, horned visage of Iblis’ true form. Immediately afterwards, Count Iblis is suddenly driven away by the approaching strange lights — but Apollo remains dead. And that tiny little question about Apollo’s fate seems to grow a bit stronger.

What follows next is when the episode loses a little bit of its cohesion. Quite literally, the final act requires a leap of faith. Carrying Apollo’s body back to the Galactica, Starbuck and Sheba commiserate over Apollo’s death. The lights reappear. Starbuck states he would trade his life for Apollo’s. The giant crystalline ship appears. Starbuck and Sheba pass out. And then …

… and then Starbuck awakens in a room filled with white light and white robed (and veiled) beings. Even his Colonial Warrior uniform has been altered into varying shades of off-whites. It’s all done to give the scenes a “heavenly” glow. It’s a bit on the cheesy side, but it works. The beings explain who they are: beings of great power, from a different dimension. And, echoing Adama’s earlier conversation with Apollo, they explain that Count Iblis was once one of them, but he has fallen from their ways, and now uses his power for evil. It’s an intriguing revelation, to be sure, but it takes the series well beyond just science fiction … we’re now into science fantasy. I’m not yet sure if this is a good or bad decision … I guess we’ll have to see how the rest of the series plays out.

After asking both Sheba and Starbuck if they would give their lives for Apollo, the beings restore Apollo back to life, saying he wasn’t fully dead, at least not spiritually (though, I cannot help but be reminded of Billy Crystal in The Princess Bride). But the connection between Apollo and the resurrection of Christ should not be missed, either. After describing Apollo as having the ability to transcend is fleshly body, the beings go on to say that they have helped because they were once like Apollo and Starbuck — but have evolved. But, like the Galactica and the Cylons, they, too, were caught in a struggle of good and evil — with Count Iblis.

There is one final revelation in store: Back on board the Galactica, Apollo, Sheba and Starbuck recite coordinates and details for finding their way to Earth.

Good stuff, for sure.

War of the Gods, Part II feels epic, especially with its surrealistic, and mystical, conclusion. But along the way, it’s execution wasn’t quite on the same level as its predecessor. Either way, BSG will no longer be the same.

Oh … and whatever did become of Baltar? Is he still in a holding cell?

Filed under: 1978 Reviews

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