The Gun on Ice Planet Zero is an episode of the TV series, Battlestar Galactica 1978.
Plot[]
- The following is taken from Wikipedia, and can be found here.
Blue Squadron is sent out to search for Cylon forces, consisting of Starbuck and Boomer, with cadets Cree; Bow and Shield. After several attacks, Commander Adama is adamant they are being herded towards a trap. The Vipers investigate a planet ahead of Galactica, and are detected by a Cylon force on the planet armed with a battery capable of destroying a Battlestar. Bow is killed first, with Shield killed when attempting to avenge his fellow cadet, and Cree shot down and taken prisoner. With the Cylon base jamming transmissions, Boomer and Starbuck are forced to abandon Cree to warn Galactica.
Commander Adama orders the formation of a surface unit to infiltrate and destroy the weapon, consisting of people from the fleet with experience in sub-zero conditions and demolition, and has the ship's computer identify such people. Starbuck, desperate to go back to the planet and save Cadet Cree, enters the computer room and distracts Corporal Komma so he has an opportunity to reprogram it to assign him the mission, which is successful. When the computer completes its search, it identifies three people for the mission who, to the crew's chagrin, are convicted criminals on board the fleet's prison barge.
Apollo has command of the mission as a whole, but the demolition team leader position goes to the prisoner Commander Croft, an officer who ordered an unauthorised attack on a Cylon platinum mine to get rich. Also in the team is Specialise Wolfe as demolitions expert; Thane, a murderer who was formerly an exoatmosphere expert, and Croft's wife, Medic First Class Leda, who was trained for sub-zero conditions. The Shuttle team includes Gunners Haals and Vickers, Lts. Starbuck and Boomer and Weapons Specialist Voight, with Killian assigned to fly escort Vipers. Apollo is unaware that Boxey and Muffit have also stowed aboard the Shuttle.
The Shuttle arrives at the planet and is detected. Killian is lost while defending the Shuttle from a Cylon patrol, and the Shuttle is shot down.
Act 3[]
Hearing of the Shuttle's downing Commander Adama is forced to give it up as any attempts to contact it will give away Galactica's position. The Cylons make attempts to find the Shuttle. The crew did in fact survive the crash, though Voight is seriously wounded. Leda tries to treat him, and Wolfe steals his weapon. When the Cylons attack, Apollo commandeers a snowmobile, discovering Boxey. The snowmobile has a turret on board, which Starbuck uses to shoot down the ships.
Meanwhile, Cadet Cree's interrogation takes place. He refuses to give up Galactica's location and insists he is a stranded pilot from Columbia, which was destroyed at Cimtar. The Cylons have Cree subject to a brain probe to force the information out of him.
Back at the Shuttle, the team takes the snowmobile to the Cylon battery, but morale is low. Wolfe is bitter at being assigned the turret by Haals, and during the trip has had enough and tries to shoot him. In the confrontation, Haals is thrown from the vehicle and the vehicle loses power. Wolfe accuses the unconscious Haals of clumsily taking the power out, and the team are forced to stay inside the powerless vehicle for warmth.
A Cylon search party finds the crashed Shuttle and quickly determine it has been abandoned and head out to the battery, expecting to find the survivors at a plateau. Muffit, having left the vehicle, spots the Cylons.
Act 4[]
Muffit wakes up the team. They are no longer in the vehicle but a cave, having been rescued from certain death by a group of humans, who dub themselves "Theta-class life forms". The Thetas are clones of a research team which was led by Dr. Ravoshol, who they worship as their "Father Creator". Ravoshol is also creator of the Pulsar weapon the team is eager to destroy, having been spared by the Cylons on the condition he creates weapons for them. Leaning the team has Solonite explosives, the Thetas accept the possibility of the weapon's destruction and agree to aide their wounded, while the others will be taken to the Thetas' village.
As the Colonials and Thetas head through the snow, Wolfe shows Thane the weapon he stole, hoping to get his help should they have to fight the Colonials. Starbuck asks the female clone if she has seen any other Warriors, but she has not.
The Centurions meanwhile have discovered the snowmobile and, while they find no sign of it occupants, conclude that the environment is too dangerous for them to have survived, and their search is called off. However, another patrol comes close to the humans.
On a Cylon Basestar, Lucifer meets with Count Baltar to inform him of the developments on Arcta; Baltar is well aware, having planned the fleet's movement there. Baltar plans to launch a Cylon raider attack on Galactica, against the wishes of Lucifer who is concerned about the serious losses sustained recently.
Production[]
- Although broadcast as the sixth and seventh episodes of the series, the two-part "Gun on Ice Planet Zero" was shot immediately after "Saga of a Star World". At the time, this show was planned as a three-part miniseries, and "Gun" was going to air as the second of three television movies. While "Gun" was being filmed, the network decided to buy the series and abandon its plan to air this show as a miniseries, and so the production switched to a regular series format.
- The episode was originally titled "Ultimate Weapon, Part Ⅰ", and the script was based on material from the abandoned two-parters, "Crossfire" and "The Nari of Sentinel 27", respectively.[1] Gun on Ice Planet Zero is noted by Cassiopeia's absence. This is because at the time of shooting, Cassiopeia and Jane Seymour's character Serina were both planned to be killed off in the pilot. Late decisions against this led to their death scenes being cut and the actresses asked to make a return.
- Because Baltar was supposed to be killed off in Saga of a Star World, John Colicos were not on hand during the filming of "Gun" (although scenes featuring Baltar were simply shot later, and incorporated into the storyline).
- After shooting "Saga of a Star World", Dirk Benedict got a haircut and has much shorter hair in this episode, which in production order was actually the second one filmed. By the time "The Gun on Ice Planet Zero" aired (as the sixth and seventh episodes of the series), a subplot had been added in which Starbuck tampers with the computer in order to be selected for the Arcta mission. In these scenes, Benedict has much longer hair.
Goofs[]
- Ice Planet Zero is described as an asteroid, but asteroids have neither atmosphere nor substantial gravity. It's probably a large asteroid, or a substantial planetary fragment, which has been modified.
- Adama and Athena refer to Cylon Battlestars. The baseships are considered to be Cylon equivalents of Battlestars.
- Starbuck addresses Adama as Captain instead of Commander. The term Captain is appropriate for the Commanding Officer of a ship, irrespective of their actual rank.
Cast[]
- Roy Thinnes as Croft
- Richard Lynch as Wolfe
- James Olson as Thane
- Christine Belford as Leda
- Dan O'Herlihy as Dr. Ravoshol
- Denny Miller as Male Thetas
- Britt Ekland as Female Thetas
- Larry Cedar as Cadet Shields
- Alan Stock as Cadet Cree]]
- Alex Hyde-White as Cadet Bow
Sources[]
- ↑ BATTLESTAR GALACTICA. hassleinbooks. Retrieved on 2018-07-07.
External links[]
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