Karmajungle

"It has always been easier to destroy that to create" - Spock

The mantra for Star Trek (yeah, I was a Trekkie) was to "go boldly where no man has gone before". And with that spirit of adventure the series was mankind`s generous and caring evolution (money was needless in the new human world of the Enterprise) taken to the stars.

On Nov.24, the opening episode of Battlestar Gallactica:Razor was a must watch prequel episode of a fascinating TV series that shows a pain of human evolution and survival that is a stark contrast to the civility of Star Trek. The Gallactica and its colony are under attack and near extinction. Their pressures are severe and their institutions:democracy, theocracy, military and justice are barely holding together.

This 2 hour frackfest (the Razor) features the lost Battleship Pegasus. It focuses the tribulations of her commander, Admiral Cain, her demon will to survive and her haunting influence on the Pegasus` desperately hopeful crew. They believe that they`re the last human survivors after a Cylon attack on the colony. They think they are all alone in a big bad Cylon Universe. Its a little bit of "The Lord of the Flies meets Star Trek on the Dark Side of the Moon". And what evil might men or women do to avoid the wrath and torture of Cylon Devils?

The story focuses on Kendra Shaw, played by Stephanie Jacobson, and we see Admiral Cain`s actions on the lost and disturbed Pegasus through Shaw`s eyes. Michelle Forbes, as Cain, shows a depth and humanity that gets lost in her need to save the crew. She kills innocent people that are useless to her cause and maintains a deadly focus on justifying her ends. She becomes the complicated, impassioned tyrant.

Kendra Shaw with her discipline and duty to Admiral Cain will lead a massacre of innocent civilians that will leave viewers  stunned in a violent moment. A horror button is pushed. And the rest of the episode revolves around Shaws torment and need for absolution. Movie gold for good actors. She needs to make this right and will in an "Armageddon" like ending that leaves Gallactica Commanders questioning their humanity?

A metaphor for the lunacy war causes of modern Western Man seems obvious to me and a smartly written TV series cries for the fantasy of a Star Trek future. As Gene Roddenberry would say " Star Trek was an attempt to say that humanity will reach maturity and wisdom on the day that it begins not just to tolerate, but to take a special delight in differences in ideas and differences in all life forms". While Battlestar seems to take us down the tough road to this kind of thinking. It asks the viewer to considider both sides of every decision that might take humanity to its ends. Its bloody hard taking the high road for humanity under fire.

Admiral Cain takes the Pegasus into the dark shite of psycho justification while Star Trek goes boldly with principle where no man has gone before.  Watch Battlestar Gallactica. It raises all the questions our world needs to ask itself before we can reach the karmic level of the Star Ship Enterprise. Great fracking show!