Below is an interview with Jane Espenson, who wrote "Deadlock," Friday's episode of "Battlestar Galactica." I've also posted a few of my thoughts of my own below that Q&A.
This installment of the "Battlestar" Q&A's has an Extra Special Bonus Attraction. I asked Espenson some questions, and so did Star-Ledger critic Alan Sepinwall. Both sets of questions are below.
There's lots more info on this site about "Battlestar Galactica":
Look here for an interview with Ryan Mottesheard and Espenson regarding "No Exit," the Feb. 13 episode. Look herefor an interview with Michael Angeli, the writer of "Blood on theScales," the Feb. 6 episode. Actor Richard Hatch shared his thoughts onthe developments in that episode here. Look here for an interview with Mark Verheiden, the writer of "The Oath," the Jan. 30 episode.Look herefor an interview with executive producer Ronald D. Moore, who wrote anddirected "A Disquiet Follows My Soul," which aired Jan. 23. Look here for interviews with Moore and with the writers and the director of "Sometimes a Great Notion," which aired Jan. 16. Look here for a recent interview with actor Tahmoh Penikett, who plays Helo on "Battlestar."
On to the interview. It's best if you've seen "Deadlock" before proceeding.
Questions are in bold type, answers are in regular type.
This episode struck meas a family reunion that goes the way most family reunions go --everyone starts out with good intentions, but then baggage andgrievances (old and new) get in the way. Ellen in particular seems likea mother who is shocked and hurt by the way her "children" have acted.Care to riff on or just rip on that analogy?
What I will do with that analogy is applaud it. I think that's very apt. Why isn't the Ellen of "Deadlock" as cool and collected as the woman wesaw last week in "No Exit"? Was it the devastation of finding out thatTigh got Caprica Six pregnant? Or were there other factors that broughtback hints of the "old" Ellen?
Great point! That was something I really loved about Kate Vernon'sperformance -- she totally played the way that returning to familiar(and familial) relationships can make us revert. Ellen and Saul bringout each other's worst traits, and I think Ellen was doomed to be theold Ellen Tigh again the second she saw him, regardless of anycircumstances. Also, the greater availability of alcohol doesn't help.
After thousands of years together, could Ellen really believe that Tigh loves Caprica more than he loves her? Does he?
I believe that Saul really loves Caprica. But not more than he lovesEllen. I don't even think Ellen *really* believes that. But it'sclearly more than a casual relationship, and Cylon beliefs aboutpregnancy and love seem to confirm her fears. And remember that the"thousands of years" is said whimsically -- they didn't perceive it asnearly that long.
If the Cylons on Earth could have children, how come Ellen and Tigh never could?
Some people can't. And then when the Cylons developed their theoryabout love and procreation, it was ready-made for Ellen to grab in hurtand anger.
It seemed like "Deadlock" had the potential to be kind of soapy --women confronting each other about the man they both love, etc. I didn't think it was, but wasthat a concern for you as you wrote it -- the desire to keep it frombecoming soap-opera-esque?
I never thought of it as soapy, but as emotional. Fights over loveprobably feel soapy because these are the sorts of stories that weretraditionally told about women, while men got workplace stories. Nowthese two types are just some of the stories we tell, but they're stillworth telling. And they don't have to be soapy. I hope the Six/Ellenscene isn't too close to Dolly Parton's song "Jolene," because Isuppose that is the danger. I just tried to write an exchange Ibelieved, about emotions as complex as I could muster.
Was the baby's distress and eventually his death brought about by theextreme stress that Caprica Six was under? Or was Liam's death aninevitability -- did he die because a Cylon-Cylon child was never goingto be viable?
I like those questions. If you want to, you could add the question: "Did the baby die because Tigh, witnessing Ellen's gesture ofsacrifice, fell in love with her all over again and deprived Six of hislove in that moment?" And I'm sure there are other possibleexplanations, too.
It seems like there are two different factions, among the humans andamong the Cylons -- those who want to retain the "purity" of their raceand those who are willing to live with a "blended" culture. I sensethis will not go well -- looking at history, any time you have twogroups like this close proximity, they tend to clash. Thoughts?
Well, I think the clashing of those two factions was carried out pretty well during the recent mutiny. How much of Baltar's altruism toward the residents of Dogsville ismotivated by a desire to wrest power back from Paula? Or is there somereal, honest-to-goodness altruism mixed in with Baltar'sloaves-and-fishes theatrics?
Honestly, I don't think even Baltar could answer that.
What had to be cut from "Deadlock"?
I'm watching it now -- as it's going past, I'm trying to recall this. Oh, there was a whole little runner about the possibility of bringingCenturions over to help keep order among the civilians. It was a verycool idea, but there was ultimately no room for it. And there was abig debate about whether Laura/Lee/Adama would allow the Final Five toreunite, with or without witnesses. And there was a really funexchange between Tigh and Ellen about her poisoning in which shepretended to be furious about it. Tigh: I thought you know it waspoison! You asked for the cup! Ellen: I was thirsty!
What was the hardest part of writing "Deadlock"? The most fun part of writing it?
The hardest part was making the moves clear -- how the votes wereshaking out, what a "yes" would mean, what a "no" would mean, all ofthat. Most fun-- I got to put some jokes in this one! Sometimes it'snot right for the tone of the episode, but this one had some lightelements (up until it gets very dark indeed).
What was it like when you were up in Vancouver making the episode --was it one of the more challenging episodes to shoot? Any memorablemoments from the set?
I remember that everyone on set was getting very curious -- anxious,even -- about what was going to happen next. Memorable moment -- I hadthoughtlessly used the word "earthshaking" in dialogue, so there was alast-minute realization and then a quick debate about what to use toreplace it. We ended up with "mythic".
Was it a big deal to know that this was your last episode of"Battlestar"? Did that affect the writing or shooting process for you?
Yes, it was very hard, knowing this was my last one. But this episodeshot before "No Exit," and I stayed for the shooting of that. So thiswasn't my last trip to the stages.
Why does Galen Tyrol want to leave the fleet? I thought the fact thathe took his old job as Chief meant that he wanted to stay with theGalactica.
He took his job back because Adama asked him to. But he is increasingly distanced from his old life.
Why would Adama -- with Roslin and Lee's apparent agreement -- giveBaltar's fringe faction lots of large guns? I know Adama hasn't beenhimself lately, but this seems like a bad idea.
Adama is having trouble maintaining order on the ship. He lost a lotof marines during the mutiny. If he doesn't get some sort of forcethat can keep the civilians under control, he will have to considerusing Centurions from the base ship, and he fears a civilianinsurrection if he did so. Baltar says that this is the last humansolution, and Adama has to agree.
Here are some questions from Alan Sepinwall (whose thoughts on the episode are here):
This is something that maybe needs clarification from "No Exit": Are the bodies that the Final Five have now identical to the bodiesthey had on Earth? Was the 13th Tribe indistinguishable from the morefamiliar Cylon skinjobs? Or was Saul and Ellen's difficulty inconception entirely a result of winding up in these new bodies?
Ah... yes... the bodies are supposed to be identical, but of coursethey did download, so they're not the same bodies, which suggests thatthat could be a factor. But, personally, I just think they're a couplewho cannot conceive. And, seriously, aren't you glad for that? Personally, I'm not convinced they'd be the very best parents.
At this point, given the number of identities and jobs he's assumed,and how quickly he's shed them when something better came along, shouldwe really believe anything that comes out of Baltar's mouth? And, ifso, is that a challenge for a writer to try to differentiate betweenthose moments when he's just playing a convenient role and when he'sbeing sincere?
I think he's almost always sincere when he's saying it. I write it as if he's sincere.
This one seemed to be more filled with memorable one-liners thannormal: Adama's line about the "project" he's working on in the head,Tigh having a power sander for a grandfather, Caprica Six suggestingthat Laura's called him many different names, etc. Was that a functionof doing an episode built around one of the series' more overtly comiccharacters in Ellen, or just you using up some good jokes you'd beensaving for your final script?
I always look for places to put jokes. Not specific jokes, just placesfor ANY jokes. Sometimes a script isn't right for humor, but if Ithink the situation can support it, I jump on it.
Is there a mythology reason why Head Six has been absent for so long,or why she happened to return at this exact moment? Or have a lot ofHead Six (and/or Head Baltar) scenes been left on the cutting roomfloor for a while for more practical reasons?
There is not a mythology reason for it.
Was Bill right that Saul consciously chose Liam as a diminutive of William?
He was naming his child after his best friend.
Mo here again: There are some thoughts from me on the episode below.
"Deadlock" struck me as a family reunion -- there are big hugs at the start and everyone has the best of intentions. And then the whole thing devolves into petty squabbles and recriminations.
There was heavy drinking, and a "parent" disappointed in her unruly "children." There were arguments, there were were power plays, there were factions. Some people just wanted to leave. But everyone ended up staying, and instead of arguing over a Thanksgiving turkey, they stood around and bickered over the hospital bed of Anders, who at least got to be unconscious throughout the whole thing.
Ah, family reunions. They bring out the best in all of us!
The Ellen in this episode seemed more like the old Ellen we used to know -- the Ellen who likes a drink, likes to make trouble and usually overplays her hand.
And I could see where the change in her demeanor came from. She had the upper hand, or thought she did, with Cavil. She created him, she sees herself as his wise, patient mother. Given her confidence level around him, she can dismiss his ideas as the ravings of a disappointed and disappointing child, the one who was supposed to carry on the family legacy but instead is becoming the universe's crabbiest old guy ("Damn kids, get off my cybernetic lawn!")
But aboard Galactica, she's back with all the people she knew in her former life as Ellen Tigh, the wayward officer's wife. All those old tensions have resurfaced and all that old baggage is back -- and on top of that, she has to deal with her husband's betrayal.
I'm sure she really would not have cared if Tigh had a fling or two after her death. Goodness knows she had her share of flings when they were married -- well, more than her share. 

But for Tigh to have an ongoing love affair with Caprica Six, one of her "children" -- and to make Caprica pregnant? Thus (possibly) proving the strength of their love? That's just too much for her to take.
What I enjoyed seeing was that, deep down, the two Ellens -- the cool Cylon version and the impetuous human version -- basically have the same programming. Whatever and whoever Ellen is, to have had a relationship last for so long, then have that connection sliced to ribbons must have been devastating. The show has demonstrated that the Cylons aren't so different from us -- jealousy, rage and betrayal make them do irrational things too. Ellen wasn't the only one deeply hurt. We saw both Ellen and Caprica SIx react silently to devastating news: Ellen to the news that Caprica was pregnant, and Caprica to the news that Tigh had slept with Ellen, and that they had planned to name their son, if they ever had one, Liam.
Both actresses nailed those moments; Kate Vernon gave Ellen (at first) the excessive dignity of a woman who is truly mortified and furious. And Tricia Helfer made Caprica's pain and betrayal tangible. You could almost see the pain in the room with her and Ellen as they circled around each other.
But why was Tigh able to make Caprica pregnant? Surely he has a stronger bond with Ellen. I'm guessing their status as Original Flava Cylons had something to do with the fact that they could never have their own children. The Cylons on Earth, we've been told, could reproduce, but I wonder if Tigh and Ellen became part of the team working on resurrection because, for some reason, they could not have kids?
It could be that it was just physically possible for Caprica to become pregnant but not possible for Ellen, and love's got nothing to do with it. But Caprica -- and apparently Ellen, too -- think that the missing ingredient, the thing that prevented the Cylons from bearing children, was love.
So to think that after thousands of years, Tigh loved the other woman more -- that must have cut Ellen deeply. So deeply that she'd want to collect her Cylon "children" and scram.
As for the Baltar story line, that left me with more questions than anything else. I think Adama must be hitting the bottle pretty hard -- way too hard -- if he thinks arming the Baltar's Church With Benefits (not my term, it was invented by the Mystery IMDb.com Recapper) is a good idea.
What purpose can this serve? Can't the brain trust at the top envision several dozen ways in which this could go wrong? Very, very wrong?
Still, I loved, as usual, how James Callis brilliantly played Baltar's altruism and canny strategizing at once, and managed to make all of that faintly hilarious.
Other memorable moments:
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Read and sign: Guest book for John Byrne
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