Blowback is an episode of the TV series Caprica.
Plot[]
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Sister Clarice Willow has given Lacy Rand a reprieve on the sole condition she, as a new recruit into the Soldiers of the One, take part in proper training on Gemenon. Lacy arrives at the space port in Oronu, and finds herself lost. Having never been to Gemenon before and ignorant of off-world culture, she flags a young man, Odin Sinclair, hoping to find someone who knows Caprican who can give her directions. He replies that everyone speaks Caprican. The two give out their reasons for coming to Gemenon, with Odin citing a boarding school he attends and Lacy, an internship. Only when Diego arrives to collect the two do they realise the other is an STO recruit.
The private shuttle containing STO recruits takes off from the space-port, bound for their training camp high in the mountains. Odin quietly asks Lacy if she is a strong believer in the One True God, and she admits her faith has been tested. He himself admits to not having strong convictions himself, having been pressed into the STO by his parents. Diego gives a speech about their prospects as STO recruits, casually describing graduates as those that survive. Those that do will be raised by the Holy Mother as though her own children. Lacy, and later the other recruits, is distracted by something moving in the clouds. It reveals itself as a larger shuttle, with tethers to them with cables. Diego declares them to be Polytheist extremists - "Polies" - renewing their holy war against Monotheism.
In Caprica City, it is night-time at the Willow residence. Amanda Graystone does her best to spy on Clarice through the keyhole in her bedroom, but is caught in the act by Mar-beth Willow. Amanda bluffs she isn't so much as spying but checking on Clarice's health, implying her late-night Holoband usage is related to her drug use. Mar-beth is dismissive, but as Amanda returns to her room, watches for herself, unable to shake off the thought that her wife may be taking drugs.
In V-World, Clarice is talking to her STO handler, who has continuously refused to reveal their identity. She hopes to negotiate the retrieval of Zoe Graystone's brioche, which should have the Avatar Program stored within its hidden computer storage drive. The handler knows this may blow the cover of their mole in the GDD, who previously gave up Pann and Hippolyta's names for execution. Assured it is crucial, she is promised the brioche. Elsewhere, the STO handler takes off their own Holoband, revealing GDD director Gara Singh to be both the handler and the mole. Singh, alone in the GDD building after-hours, walks over to the evidence storage room and takes the brioche out of a plastic bag, the only signs of any disturbance being the palm prints over the dusty evidence box.
Back on Gemenon, the shuttle tethering is complete and the Polies begin boarding the STO shuttle, shooting the trainers and crew and hijacking the shuttle within seconds. The shuttle is taken into orbit and the recruits held captive. The Poly leader delivers a speech in Gemenese. Odin, who knows some Gemenese, translates to Lacy that the "many gods are striking back". Lacy spots a handgun on the ground next to a dying STO member and tries to grab it, only to get the attention of the Polies, who shoot the man.
Act 1[]
In the morning on Caprica, Amanda meets with Agent Jordan Duram about the current status of the investigation. She is having doubts about pulling it off due to the run-in with Mar-beth. Mar-beth is in control of the Willow household, and if she suspects Amanda to be a Confidential Informant, she will be killed. They still have found no crucial information of value to the investigation, though Amanda notes Clarice has a tendency to mumble words while using her Holoband, having never learnt how to avoid the common rookie error. Agent Duram thinks they can use Clarice's sloppier habits to their advantage, but this will require surveillance equipment, and the GDD having paperwork naming Amanda as their mole for him to get it. Duram meets with Director Singh at the GDD building and reveals he has a CI but cannot name them due to suspicions there is an informant placed within the GDD. As expected, he is refused the necessary equipment.
Meanwhile, Daniel Graystone holds a private meeting at the Graystone Industries headquarters. He shows CCTV footage to Sam and Joseph Adama, wherein Ha'la'tha members smuggle U-87 Cylons out of the premises in wooden crates. Sam is dumbstruck, knowing the Guatrau already decided against supplying the Tauron rebels with small-arms. Joseph reluctantly reveals the U-87s are going to Gemenon, having been purchased by a "crazy fringe group". Sam forces him to declare this group to be the Soldiers of the One, disgusting Sam utterly, as not only is the Ha'la'tha supplying weapons to the terrorist organisation responsible for Shannon and Tamara Adams' deaths, but that Joseph is a willing participant. Daniel is equally appalled at this turn of events as he is not only responsible for several murders but is an accessory to a treasonable offense he could be executed for. He demands Joseph set him up with an emergency meeting with the Guatrau, warning him the GDD will inevitably come looking for others involved.
In orbit over Gemenon, the Poly leader converses with the STO leadership via wireless, having kept the children alive while negotiating a prisoner exchange. The seats have been removed, exposing a series of pipes, and the recruits are forced to kneel down with the hands on their heads. When the STO refuse co-operate, he threatens to execute a recruit as proof he won't take "no" for an answer. Lacy and Odin meanwhile begin working together with other recruits through nods and whispers, but have a difference of opinion as to how they should act. Lacy thinks they should manipulate their hostage takers to create a distraction for an uprising, though Odin thinks they should wait for a recruit to be sent off before they make their move. He carefully twists a pipe to prove they can be loosened when the time is right. The Poly leader walks around, and identifies a young man, Cass, as their first candidate for execution. Cass is terrified by the ordeal, and screams out his offer of doing anything in exchange for survival. He is beaten and taken to another room. Forced to kneel down, the door shuts and a gunshot is heard. A body is jettisoned out the airlock.
Act 2[]
On Caprica, Agent Duram goes over to the evidence room intent on getting the equipment without a warrant. He exchanges pleasantries with the clerk, Agent Alpert, about their previous work together in busting a Libran-based porn ring. Alpert understands what he is after, and accepts the offer to go for a cigarette break, allowing Duram to enter the evidence room without having to sign himself in. After taking the spy camera from the Libran porn ring's evidence box, Duram spots the hand prints on the Graystone residence box. Asking Alpert if anyone has been in to example the evidence recently, he is told there is nothing in the log, and if someone did look in they would have to be top-brass doing after-hours work. Opening the box, Duram finds an empty plastic bag, confirming his suspicions there is a mole. With the revelation from Alpert, it points towards a senior GDD member.
Daniel plays host to the Guatrau in his company office. He hopes that by up-selling "Grace" - the merchandised Avatar Program - he can convince him that selling Cylons to the STO is a short-term gain and the real money is elsewhere. The Guatrau is offended by the interference in his business strategy, but hides it. However, his warning of Grace having a two-week deadline says all Daniel needs to know.
Joseph and Sam meet the Guatrau in the streets. Daniel is not a man he can trust, and to save the Ha'la'tha from any GDD investigation, he suggests they have Daniel killed in two weeks time. Then it will simply be a murder investigation.
Back on the shuttle, the Poly leader delivers a sermon to the recruits, calling for them to reject their faith in the One True God and mocking His failure to save them, and offering amnesty to all who renounce Him. A boy calls out his apostasy, and is made to kiss the Poly leader's necklace charm of the Arrow of Apollo, to the disdain of the nearby Lexon. He is picked up and lead out of the room on the offer of amnesty. When the leader offers the same to a girl, Devanna, she instead offers a prayer to the One True God to have mercy on his soul. She is lead out for execution, and the gun is fired as the door closes, obscuring her body. As this happens, Odin tries again to loosen the pipe.
Act 3[]
Agent Singh goes out to get the newspaper, leaving a case within the storage box. He sends out an e-sheet message to Clarice as he goes.
Daniel enters V-World to meet the Amanda Avatar once more. She is now well aware she is an Avatar, and is still too polite to be real. When Daniel tells her he will be killed in two weeks if he doesn't finish the program, Amanda becomes enraged, telling him he deserves to die and smashes a plate. Daniel sees through her act, as she cannot even convincingly pretend to be angry. Daniel leaves V-World and decides to just delete the avatar entirely, branding it a failure not worth having a back-up of.
Olaf recovers the box Singh left, and takes it back to the Willow residence. At the attic, which is now used as their makeshift STO headquarters, they hook the brioche to Nestor's computer and download all of its files. They confirm the backup Avatar Program is among the files, finally giving Clarice what she has wanted for months. Clarice declares the program is so great it will be added to the Sacred Scrolls.
Agent Duram meets with Director Singh at the GDD building. He confirms he has a CI within the Willow residence, and provides the relevant documentation to get his warrant, advising Singh destroy the document upon reading it to prevent leaks. As Duram leaves, Singh reads the document, then closes his office blinds. He sends an e-sheet message to Clarice calling for an urgent meeting, and talks to her on Holoband as her mysterious STO contact once more. He warns her quickly his GDD mole has found an Informant in the house. After being told who it is off-screen, Clarice takes off her Holoband and looks out the attic window to Amanda and Mar-beth returning from the store with shopping.
On the Gemenese shuttle, the number of hostages has dwindled, giving little time left for resistance, though Odin continues to nod to Lexon, who is prepared to help out. Lacy's muttering gets the attention of the Poly leader, but when told not to speak she talks back, telling him she was praying. Forced up, she proclaims her love for the One True God and is dragged off for execution. Lacy blames her upcoming death on Odin for taking too long to fight back. This creates a distraction, and she is able to grab a gun. Lexon and Odin get up, armed with the pipes and begin beating the Poly militants while Lacy continues to bash their leader. She is stopped by none-other than Diego himself. As Diego takes a gun off of Odin, he reveals the entire hostage crisis was a training exercise in separating the committed STO recruits from the weak, and the Politheistic rebels were in fact just the other STO trainers and no one was really shot, with Lacy concluding they were jettisoning dummies. Feeling they have done more than enough work, Diego brings the 'dead' recruits back with their fellow passengers, and tells them they will arrive at the STO camp within the hour.
At the Graystone residence, Daniel meets with the real Amanda finally. She accuses him of exploiting his own fear to get what he wants, and they have sex. Afterwards, Amanda gets a text and leaves while Daniel is asleep and heads out to the park to meet Duram. Nearby, Clarice takes out a knife and stalks her pray. She jumps out at Mar-beth while she strolls with her newborn baby, slitting her throat. Olaf and Nestor jump out of the bushes and place the body in a black sack to clear the scene while Clarice cleans her hands and walks off with the baby.
Duram meets with Singh over coffee. He's got word of a female body being found in a river 200 km away from Caprica City. The body has been dismembered, with only a torso found. Medical checks so far uncover the woman had recently given birth, but he is not confident they will be able to determine the identity based on hospital inpatient records due to the number of people preferring home births. Singh asks if Duram has had word from his contact lately, but Duram says she left the Willow household during a fight with Clarice, who reported her missing and likely suffering post-partum depression. Singh insists he had nothing to do with it, and Duram accepts she "knew the risks". He is unaware Duram has uncovered he is indeed an STO mole.
Act 4[]
The STO recruits make it to their mountain hideout, where they are shown around. She meets the "Poly" leader, who is introduced as Kevin Reikle. He is impressed that someone fought back, and goes with the recruits to party. Before heading inside, Odin and Lacy turn back to the balcony, where they hear noises down the mountain. They look down as the five recruits who renounced their faith - Cass amongst them - are executed one by one near a bonfire lit for their bodies' disposal. When all is done, the shooter approaches them, revealing to be a U-87, who looks back up at Lacy.
Production[]
Writing[]
The writing staff were excited with "Blowback", as its premise of children being in danger, held hostage by terrorists evoked the kind of tension Battlestar Galactica was used to. "Blowback" went through some degree of alteration during the writing stage. During writing of Season 1.0 it was pitched that the STO mole be revealed to be Youngblood, and scenes suggesting something off with her were recorded which would have revealed itself in this episode. However, Ron D. Moore felt the reveal of Jordan Duram's partner to be the mole was too cliché, and switched it with Gara Singh during Season 1.5's writing process. The personalities of the STO recruits on the shuttle were also changed somewhat. Cass was originally intended to be a tough-guy character who is quickly exposed as a coward.
Directing[]
Director Omar Madha employed techniques used in the Star Trek franchise during the scenes when the STO shuttle is grappled by the faux Polytheist shuttle. As typical when the Enterprise was under attack, the cast in the shuttle rock back and forth. Madha had trouble shooting the hostage scenes, as the imposing atmosphere and shouting characters disturbed the other actors. Aponowicz was constantly distracted during her scenes and screwed up her lines.
Post-production[]
"Blowback" was special effects-heavy, giving actress Magda Apanowicz little to work on in some of her scenes into how exactly she was to be directed. In the scene where Lacy keeps looking through a window to a ship on the other side of the clouds, Apanowicz had nothing physical to work with. The banquet hall on Gemenon was all CGi except for the floor and some railing.
Casting[]
With Season 1.5 reaching the midway point, a fresh cast of STO characters are introduced in this episode. Among the characters to appear in later episodes are "Devanna", played by Eva Bourne, and "Odin Sinclair", played by Ryan Kennedy. Luc Roderique would appear in two more episodes as "Lexon", but is referred to as "Dex" in the Blowback subtitles. Kennedy was cast as a new love-interest for Lacy Rand in place of Keon, who was killed off. Callum Worthy played the one-time role of "Cass", an STO recruit who gets killed. Actress Magda Apanowicz had a positive experience working with all, and felt Worthy gave a particularly strong performance. This episode also saw the introduction of Christopher Heyerdahl, an STO leader to be paried with Ryan Robbins' character, Diego.
Cast[]
| Actor | Character |
| Eric Stoltz | Daniel Graystone |
| Esai Morales | Joseph Adama |
| Paula Malcomson | Amanda Graystone |
| Magda Apanowicz | Lacy Rand |
| Sasha Roiz | Sam Adama |
| Brian Markinson | Jordan Durham |
| Polly Walker | Clarice Willow |
| Peter Wingfield | GDD Director Gara Singh |
| Jorge Montesi | The Guatrau |
| Ryan Robbins | Diego |
| Ryan Kennedy | Odin Sinclair |
| Christopher Heyerdahl | Kevin Reikle |
| Anita Torrance | Mar-Beth |
| Panou | Olaf |
| Jim Thomson | Serge (voice) |
| Eva Bourne | Devanna (as Eva Allan) |
| Tom McBeath | Agent Alpert |
| Calum Worthy | Cass |
| James Kirk | Sagitarron Recruit |
| Luc Roderique | Dex |
| Matthew Smalley | Cadet Recruit #1 |
Further notes[]
- The DVD commentary with Tom Lieber and Magda Apanowicz identifies a suit of armour in Daniel Graystone's office as being an authentic Kobol-era suit.
Sources[]
External links[]
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