With “Apotheosis,” Caprica comes to a stunning, eventful resolution — a conclusion that was as impressive as anyone could have hoped for. The final act of the episode is thrilling and suspenseful. And its coda, titled “The Shape of Things To Come,” works brilliantly as a five-minute mini-movie, portraying all of the important character and thematic elements of the series — not to mention the connections it makes to Battlestar Galactica. In typical Caprica fashion though, its successes are tempered by imperfections. The result is an episode which, while still embodying many of the flaws that have been a hallmark of Caprica, is clearly the best in the series.

Much of the episode is narrative nonsense. What I mean is that, while what we see is important from an exposition standpoint — to put characters in their proper places for the final act — the machinations don’t necessarily make much sense. And aren’t especially interesting. The GDD agent and STO sympathizer suddenly takes on a near omnipotence in abilities. He’s somehow finds Clarice on a random bridge in Caprica City. He flawlessly frames the Graystones as terrorists. He routes every single call about the Graystones or the impending terrorist attack on the Seabuc’s Stadium to himself, personally. And he even has time to go to the Graystones to arrest them. It’s all thoroughly necessary to push move the story forward, but it stretches plausibility … oh, just a wee bit, I should think.

For their part, the Graystones manage to move about as wanted criminals — with their pictures plastered across giant video screens everywhere — in a city filled with surveillance cameras, without anyone stopping them at all. They fly a ship away from their home, land in a park, search for Clarice’s missing holoband, walk through the city, take cabs, have clandestine meetings, wait around for allies to return … all without the slightest blip on the police radar — this from a police that has managed to frame the Graystones and subvert public safety to the point of allowing dozens of bombs to be smuggled into a sporting facility. Sure it’s possible … but it’s bloody unlikely.

The only really intriguing scene with the Graystones was a brief moment between Zoe and Amanda in the V-world. The two are slowly beginning to understand one another and form a legitimate bond. Zoe is upset at the gaps in her memory and the state of her existence — only being allowed power in a virtual world. Amanda comforts her. And this brings up some fascinating ideas about the nature of existence and, even more importantly, purpose. Zoe has yet to find (or accept) her purpose and Amanda is there as a kind of guide. Unfortunately for them both, Amanda is ripped away (mid-hug, no less) by the arrival of the GDD.

The episode’s best, self-contained story line comes from the Adamas. As they mourn the loss of young Willie, the Guatrau’s daughter arrives to parlay with Joseph. They both want to avert a war — Willie’s death has galvanized the Guatrau’s rivals — but the cost of peace, of reparations, is high. Ultimately, the Guatrau’s daughter agrees to allow Joseph and Sam to assassinate the Guatrau, for vengeance, I suppose, in return for allowing her to become the new Guatrau. It’s an interesting bit of politicking and subversive alliances. One has to wonder how it all would have played out in a new season. But at the very least, it brings to a close the intrigue and puts Sam and Joseph in positions of undisputed power within the Tauron mafia.

But almost all of the above is forgotten once the episode reaches its final climactic sequences (hang on to that scene between Zoe and Amanda).

Conceptually, the notion that Clarice and her garage-bound conspirators could engineer the destruction of an entire stadium, is as implausible as the rest of the episode’s developments. But this is where the execution really shines. Daniel has contrived to gain access to a squad of Cylons and a laptop with the ability to control them. He and Amanda — as wanted criminals, mind you — manage to enter the stadium and commandeer a cameraman’s position. They fly in the Cylons, land them in the center of the stadium, and set them to detect the explosives and execute anyone carrying a bomb. It’s a simple enough idea. But the arrival of the Cylons, their impressive stature, their relentless pursuit of their goals, all against the backdrop of annihilation for tens of thousands of innocent people, works. Extremely well. Even when you consider how implausible it all is to begin with.

Parallel to this we have a final confrontation between Zoe and Clarice in the V-world. Clarice has, conveniently, found an excuse to not be one of the suicide bombers and is, instead, casually waiting for the rest of her compatriots to arrive once they’ve completed their mission. Surprisingly, to her, Zoe is already there. After having been separated from her parents, Zoe wants answers. Clarice reveals her own plans and Zoe reacts, angrily, at the notion of Clarice playing god — Zoe, after all, is God in the V-world. And she demonstrates this … rather biblically. It’s an impressive sequence, underscored by Zoe’s declaration: “If people believe they’ll go to heaven no matter what, they’ll lose control of themselves.”

It’s this statement that holds the key to the sequence, the episode, and the series. What people do, without fear of consequence is, well, pretty consequential. And it leads directly into the events portrayed in the flashforward sequence titled, “The Shape of Things To Come.”

This five-minute montage, ostensibly narrated by a sermon given by Clarice, depicts what “happens next” after the foiled attack on the stadium. People, recognizing the usefulness of the Cylons, incorporate them into just about every part of life — from construction to walking their daggets. Ominously, though, Daniel stops short of acknowledging that the Cylons are anything more than tools — a prime example of a person without fear of consequence for being a protector of his won creations. It’s telling that the biggest advocate of the Cylons is Clarice herself, who seems to have somehow won over Zoe, who sits in her congregation.

The brilliance of this short-film is in how succinctly it not only encapsulates all of these issues, but provides explicit continuity to Battlestar Galactica. We see, for the first time, a young Bill Adama. Zoe becomes a “skinjob” rising out of a resurrection vat. The Cylons hang on to every word Clarice says about the One True God. And there are the character moments, too. Zoe and Amanda together on a couch, Lacy becoming The Revered Mother of the STO. Daniel and Amanda reverently wrapping up the newly minted Zoe skinjob.

Really, I can think of no better way to have concluded the season or the series. The montage itself functions as a self-contained work of art. And the “open-ended” possibilities it hints at are intriguing — particularly because we know that, whatever the path these characters take, it all ends in ruin. Still, it’s in that exploration that Caprica could have been a truly exceptional series. It would have required, much like the last half of the episode, excellence in execution. But the finale contains enough promise that, perhaps, the series could … like the Cylons themselves … have evolved.

Overall Grade: B+

“Apotheosis” is a grand finale for Caprica. It ends the series on the highest of notes, ironically reaching the pinnacle of its purpose at the very moment the series ends — the epitome of artistic apotheosis. On a personal note, as much as I have criticized Caprica, I do believe it still had the potential to have become a very engaging, meaningful series. This episode demonstrates that potential. Though it comes as no surprise and not without reason, it is unfortunate that we’ll never get to see how the series would have handled the integration of the Cylons into Caprican culture.

Topics: Sci-Fi, TV Reviews
Filed under: Caprica Reviews

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