The Living Legend is the tenth episode of Battlestar Galactica. It premiered on November 26, 1978.
In syndication and on streaming, "The Living Legend" is sometimes listed as the twelfth episode of the season. This happens when the series premiere episode, "Saga of a Star World", is split into three episodes.
Plot[]
- The following is taken from Wikipedia, and can be found here.
While on a routine patrol, Captain Apollo and Lieutenant Starbuck encounter an unidentified patrol, which puts them on the defensive. The ships, it is revealed, are Vipers crewed by Colonials not from Galactica. The hostile flight leader scans Apollo's Viper, with her computer confirming it to be crewed by a human. She broadcasts a ceasefire request on an open channel. Apollo and the woman's wingman, Bojay, are sceptical and believe the other Vipers are part of a Cylon trick. The Galactica pilots overhear Bojay's callsign and remember him as a fellow Galactica pilot who had been transferred to the Fifth Fleet two yahrens ago. The group leader refuses to answer Starbuck's questions, and demands radio silence while they are taken to the Battlestar Pegasus to be interrogated.
Meanwhile, the Galactica and her civilian fleet are dead in space due to a fuel shortage; soon this shortage will threaten life-support. Colonel Tigh reports the presence of a nearby planet occupied by Cylons which may explain Apollo and Starbuck's absence.
Apollo and Starbuck are congratulated by the Pegasus pilots, who explain that Pegasus escaped a massive battle in which the Fifth Fleet was destroyed. Unable to return to the colonies due to a Cylon trap being set up, Pegasus instead abandoned the colonies altogether and turned to deep space, gathering its supplies by raiding Cylon bases. The two pilots meet Pegasus' CO, Commander Cain. He understood the colonies to have been destroyed, but was unaware of survivors.
On Galactica, Athena reports a possible disruption in their sensors, mistaking Pegasus for Galactica's reflection. Omega seconds it as a "visual echo". Galactica receives a transmission from Pegasus, which finally persuades Adama it is a second Battlestar. Cain arrives on Galactica in a Shuttle and returns Apollo and Starbuck, revealing it was his daughter, Sheba who intercepted them. The nearby planet, Adama learns, is Gamoray, a planet formally within the Delphian Empire but has since been annexed by the Cylons as a large-scale fuel depot. Cain has been raiding Gamoray, though until Galactica's arrival lacked the firepower to destroy the base. Adama turns down Cain's offer of a two-battlestar attack as it would put the fleet in jeopardy, and his offer of hijacking Cylon tankers is rejected. Though Cain offers a Pegasus-only assault using a combined force of Vipers, he reluctantly agrees to Adama's proposal.
Adjusting to the new arrivals, Cain learns that his lover, Cassiopeia, is alive and hopes Starbuck and Apollo can find her for them, unaware she is Starbuck's girlfriend. Starbuck heads to his quarters while Cassiopeia babysits for Boxey; when Boxey leaves the room, he tells her the news. Cassiopeia rushes out to greet Cain when she hears his name. She explains the situation to Cain and tells him to give her time to think it through, feeling that Sheba had never appreciated someone her own age being with Cain. Starbuck meanwhile expects her to leave him and goes to Apollo for consolation before abandon it altogether.
Apollo converses with Sheba and the Pegasus crew, suggesting the Pegasus crew change their combat styles to better suit protecting the fleet. Commander Cain enters the room with Cassiopeia, but Sheba leaves the room to stay away from the woman.
Cain and Adama discuss battle plans for the attack on Gamoray. Cain wants to attack only with his own fighters, but Adama urges an integrated crew for morale reasons. Cain returns to Pegasus and crews a Viper as part of Silver Spar Squadron, which rendezvoused with Blue Squadron for the attack. Lieutenant Boomer is confused by Cain's presence in the fleet, but Cain explains he has knowledge of the Cylons masking their defences. The Vipers engage a Cylon force defending two tankers. The raiders are scared off with Blue Squadron in pursuit; in their absence, Cain fires at the tankers and destroys them. Cain initially tries to pass off the tanker absence as them escaping during the fight, but later argues in front of Commander Adama that Blue Squadron likely destroyed the tankers out of incompetence, against Apollo's protests. With the tankers gone, the only solution to the fuel shortage is to attack Gamoray itself. Apollo catches up with Sheba as she and Commander Cain prepare to depart and demands she explain what happened in the fight, but she sides with her father.
Planning the next mission, Adama rules against any attack on Gamoray and instead insists that the fully-fuelled Pegasus be used to supply the rest of the fleet and allow them to attack another outpost. Cain is a gambler, and pleads an attack on Gamoray with both Battlestars which would allow a quick victory before the Cylon Basestars stalking the defenceless fleet could intercept them. Cain refuses to allow the requisitioning of Pegasus' fuel. Now admitting and defending his destruction of the tankers to force an attack on Gamoray, Adama has Cain relieved of command, with Colonel Tigh reassigned as its CO.
In the attack, Cain intentionally destroys the tankers in order to get his way. Adama then relieves Cain of his command, claiming Pegasus's fuel. The Pegasus crew support Cain and get into a tense confrontation with the Galactica crew.
Fortunately, before the dispute could come to blows, a forthcoming Cylon attack led by the human traitor Count Baltar is detected, which prompts the Colonials to ready themselves against the common enemy. This ultimately results in Adama restoring Cain to command of the Pegasus after Cain concedes that he was wrong and the refugee fleet would have been helpless and doomed but for Adama's prudence.
In the ensuing battle, the Commanders plan to have The Galactica occupy Baltar's attention while The Pegasus does a flanking maneuver to strike at him. The Galactica takes heavy damage in the fighting with Baltar having its landing bays targeted to prevent its vipers from being refueled. However, just as Baltar gloats at his imminent victory, The Pegasus launches its surprise attack, much to Baltar's alarm at the shocking sight of a second battlestar coming right at him.
Production[]