Dead Tree Alert: BSG Preview

Sci Fi

I feel I should offer something of an apology to BSG fans for my Battlestar Galactica preview in this week's TIME: there's probably not a lot in it for you. That is, I discuss the new episode, debuting next Friday, only in very general terms, for two reasons. (1) I usually assume a more general audience in the print magazine than in the blog, so I wrote it to be comprehensible to people who may never have watched the show but are interested (whereas I assume a blog post is more likely to attract people who are already fans). And (2) as you'll see when you watch the episode, it's really hard to discuss it without getting into pretty serious spoiler territory. Suffice it to say that (cover your eyes if you don't want to read the vaguest spoilers):

* we learn a lot in a little time about Earth and what transpired there

* there's not a lot of action in the premiere, so much as information and reaction

* that reaction, however—the effect of the revelations about Earth on the fleet—is tremendously powerful

Beyond that, I'll let you wait until next Friday.