Battlestar Galactica
"The Ties That Bind"
Air date: 4/18/2008
Written by Michael Taylor
Directed by Michael Nankin
Review by Jamahl Epsicokhan
There's a lot going on in "The Ties That Bind," and if there's a unifying theme, it's that friction and dissent in all the storylines seems ready to explode. In some cases the ticking bombs keep ticking for another day. And in other cases they do, indeed, blow up.
In Plot A, we have the Secret Four (actually three, since one is currently off the ship) still trying to come to grips with their discovery. There's a fork in the road, and that fork is whether to resist the road to Cylon-town and continue as a human, or to embrace new discoveries as an opportunity to start from scratch and do what you feel. The seeds of the episode's dark climax are sown right up front with Tyrol and Tory sitting in Joe's Bar and discussing their grappling with this new problem.
Tyrol's marriage is on the rocks (and thrashing upon massive shards of broken glass, for that matter) and he's approaching his Cylon problem like a man who has learned he has a secret illness about which he can discuss only with members of a support group sharing that illness. Tory, meanwhile, seems to approach Cylon-hood as a newfound gift: Hey, now I can throw away all the crap that used to be my life and start again as something else. Tyrol's take on the matter is just the opposite, and very honest and simple in its Tyrol-ness: "I don't do well with change." Some of us don't.
What I love about the fact that these people are Cylons is that it's treated in terms of the human condition. It's not simply a plot element; it's a personal crisis and the story is about how to live with it. Like I said in my "Six of One" review that I posted last week (har, har), it's like a psychological condition because it has no other (known, as of yet) symptom other than the fact that some people might be willing to kill you for having it.
Cally sees Tory and Tyrol together and assumes they're having an affair, which has a cascading effect of suspicions and accusations, climaxing with her finding a note (left by Tigh, about where the Secret Three are to meet), which she follows to Weapons Locker 1701D (a cute touch worth a grin) and hears the conversation that confirms not her worst fear, but something far worse — that her husband is a Cylon, and her child is thus ... something.
In Plot B we have the Demetrius, a ship helmed by Kara and supplied the oh-so-simple mission of "Find Earth." Kara's role as commander seems to consist mostly of locking herself in her quarters and painting dreamlike images on the walls in a desperate attempt to remember where Earth might be, if in fact she actually was there. The ship (whose crew includes such notables as Helo, Anders, Gaeta, and Seelix) is brewing with tension, as multiple malcontents grumble aloud their doubts concerning this dubious mission and its even more dubious commander. This is gonna be a problem.
And you thought Kara and Anders had a dysfunctional, volatile relationship before she died. Kara pretty much tells him that their marriage is a joke (which was never exactly a secret), before then telling him that "I just want to frak," which they do, angrily. So to recap: He's a Cylon, which she doesn't know. And she's back from the dead and now experiences life like a disconnected, out-of-body dream. Sex must sure be interesting, though perhaps not very fun. Their feelings, whatever they may be, are helplessly confused and complicated by not only their present situations, but their messy history.
In plot C, we have governmental politics brought back to the forefront in a way not seen for quite some time, and perhaps not with quite this overall feeling/tone since the first season. It begins with Roslin forced to field questions about the Demetrius, which she has to downplay; the whole situation has put her and Adama at slight odds, even though Adama still reads to Roslin as she lies in her hospital bed. (What a great, complex relationship these two have.)
I like that the series is gearing the political machinations back up, and thrusting Lee right into the middle of it feels like the right choice. Lee is installed to the Quorum, and we've got VP Zarek back in the mix giving advice to Lee that may be motivated by Zarek's own agenda. This should prove to be an interesting dynamic. Right off the bat, Zarek is sounding the alarm about Roslin and her increasing secrecy in conducting government under the label "classified," and he urges Lee to push back against it where appropriate.
Push back Lee does, but perhaps not in the way Zarek expected: In the list of curious secret executive orders, Lee brings up "Executive Order 112," which I believe is the order Zarek gave (and Roslin did not know about, and vehemently disagreed with when she found out) in "Collaborators" to enact secret tribunals to dispatch with the New Caprica traitors. Lee could be a thorn in everyone's side here, which might not be what Zarek had in mind. Interesting how this particular instance backfires on Zarek.
In plot D, we have the Cylons and their divisions. Dissent among the Cylons is still split down the middle following Six's violently bold statement at the end of "Six of One." Cavil reluctantly agrees to negotiate, saying violence is not the answer. Meanwhile, the Centurions want to hear the word "please" when they're ordered around. Cavil warns of the can of worms Six has opened, and Six says she wants the D'Annas unboxed to make the deciding vote over whether to seek out the Final Five. As a footnote in all this, Boomer is the lone Eight to stand apart from her model.
This aspect of the episode gets perhaps the shortest shrift, but that's okay. It does what it needs to, culminating in the reveal of a ruthless deception by Cavil as he initially seems to acquiesce to Six and unite the splintered Cylon fleet, only to lure them into a trap with no resurrection ships and open fire on them. Six seems blindsided: "They're really trying to kill us!" This move constitutes a game-changer in the series' factional makeup. Here we see a Cylon civil war with the Colonials relegated (temporarily, at least) to the sidelines.
It's perhaps a blessing that Plot E, Baltar's Religious Cult, is kept off-screen for the hour. In a story so jam-packed with goings-on, I doubt another storyline could've been sustained.
What will be remembered most about "The Ties That Bind" is how Cally's story ends with dark, tragic consequences. As I said, the opening scene sets the stage, and the closing passage writes the inevitable (in retrospect) conclusion. Cally is aghast at learning the truth about Tyrol, and it leads her to the brink of flushing herself and her half-Cylon baby out an airlock. The one who steps in and stops her is Tory, and what happens between them is interesting because of how telling it really is.
The story approaches this problem from the personalities and psychologies of the characters: Cally as a hopelessly distraught woman who had already reached the end of her rope; Tory as a born-again opportunist who now feels she can write herself a license to do whatever she can get away with. Cally can't see beyond her own invectives of Cylon skin-jobs who are the enemy, even if her husband is one of them. And Tory talks Cally down from suicide just long enough to get her hands on Cally's son and then flush Cally out the airlock anyway.
The episode's most intriguing line is Tory's, when she assures Cally, "We're not evil." Perhaps not. But Tory does commit a clearly evil act. The point here, is that it's not "a Cylon" that murders Cally. It's Tory, a woman with free will, who turns a corner and makes a decision because she has this new knowledge that she is a Cylon, and that knowledge itself allows her to commit evil. It's a fascinating turn of events. Would Tory have done what she did if she didn't know she was a Cylon? No. But I suspect she would've been just as capable of it. It may be that the knowledge of being a Cylon will simply reveal to the Secret Four what their true colors always were.
Footnote: I stopped watching Sci Fi's ridiculously spoiler-prone trailers after the one for "The Ties That Bind," which basically showed Tory airlocking Cally. I understand the need to market your show, but if you give away the shock ending to your upcoming episode, you've clearly crossed the line.
Previous episode: Six of One
Next episode: Escape Velocity
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56 comments on this post
Fri, Nov 21, 2008, 8:01pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Nov 21, 2008, 9:13pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Nov 21, 2008, 9:14pm (UTC -5)
I stopped watching the previews after the end of Crossroads part II, which had Tyrol saying "so it's true. We're Cylons." And given who was acting strange in part 1, it wasn't hard to figure out who "we" was. You never, ever, give away the bombshell of a cliffhanger like that!
Fri, Nov 21, 2008, 9:19pm (UTC -5)
LOL. Love your style, Jammer. Great review!
Fri, Nov 21, 2008, 9:35pm (UTC -5)
Sat, Nov 22, 2008, 6:25pm (UTC -5)
Sat, Nov 22, 2008, 6:33pm (UTC -5)
Sat, Nov 22, 2008, 6:34pm (UTC -5)
Sat, Nov 22, 2008, 6:48pm (UTC -5)
Kick ass review, jammer. Looking forward to more, as they always give me lots to think about.
Sun, Nov 23, 2008, 12:34am (UTC -5)
Sad thing is its been so long since I watched this ep, that I don't know if I agree with the review or not, except in its broadest points.
Sun, Nov 23, 2008, 8:18am (UTC -5)
Mon, Nov 24, 2008, 3:30am (UTC -5)
Some time ago, I watched the whole BSG on TV, one episode per week. Recently, I watched it again, but in a quick succession - even several episodes a day. Interesting how the show feels different when you watch it that way - better than before. I guess, when a show is so heavily serialised as this one is, waiting a whole week for just 40 minutes of content can feel very frustrating at times, giving the feeling, at least to me, that not enough is going on. But, watching it as you should, as a one big novel, or a series of novels, the impression is fantastic.
Mon, Nov 24, 2008, 7:49am (UTC -5)
Maybe a minor complaint about a series I have come to really love, but I stand by it. :-)
Have a great Thanksgiving everyone, I mean it (my second in a row here in Iraq and third in four years! Whooo Hooo!) and please be safe.
Tue, Nov 25, 2008, 1:27pm (UTC -5)
Wed, Nov 26, 2008, 7:36pm (UTC -5)
Wed, Nov 26, 2008, 9:29pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Nov 28, 2008, 4:12pm (UTC -5)
Mon, Dec 1, 2008, 5:11pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Dec 5, 2008, 2:00pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Dec 5, 2008, 7:14pm (UTC -5)
Sat, Dec 6, 2008, 12:42pm (UTC -5)
Sat, Dec 6, 2008, 8:06pm (UTC -5)
Sun, Dec 7, 2008, 2:28am (UTC -5)
Well, you have to admit that your 'breaks' do tend to be quite long ;-) Just kidding. Take your time. This site rocks. I can't believe I've been reading it since Voyager. Time sure flies.
Mon, Dec 8, 2008, 1:10am (UTC -5)
I frakkin' loved it. So fascinating on every level.
But I can see how you could give it a mixed review.
Thu, Dec 11, 2008, 2:19pm (UTC -5)
would hand over her baby to a cylon. small complaint really.Watching the show on dvd at the moment, works better that way.Hope they dont mess up the "final" season.
Thu, Dec 11, 2008, 9:57pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Dec 12, 2008, 6:41pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Dec 19, 2008, 7:40am (UTC -5)
Fri, Dec 19, 2008, 3:58pm (UTC -5)
You won't need to count to 5. The next review will be posted in hours, not days.
Fri, Dec 19, 2008, 7:03pm (UTC -5)
Tick Tock...
Tick Tock...
JK man, take your time, I'm patient! Good stuff is worth waiting for.
Fri, Dec 19, 2008, 8:01pm (UTC -5)
Wed, Jan 14, 2009, 6:27pm (UTC -5)
Thu, Jan 29, 2009, 3:44pm (UTC -5)
The only thing I could criticise is the fact that two of my favorite side characters (Cally and Tory) are no more ... (well, and the stupid idea of wasting the crews most capable officers on a flying bucket)
Fri, Jul 1, 2011, 12:27pm (UTC -5)
Still, over the last 2 seasons, writers made us like Cally somewhat more. And, she really didn't deserve to die this episode. But, I guess, with the entire human race wiped out "deserve" doesn't mean much.
Sat, Jul 2, 2011, 3:21pm (UTC -5)
Mon, Jul 25, 2011, 11:46am (UTC -5)
Tory is easily the most "cylon" of the 4. And because of that I knew what was going to happen as soon as she entered the Airlock. It is logical. The cylons are programmed to protect hybrids, and if Cally lived, she would out the 3 known cylons to her. Killing Cally and saving the baby was the only logical way of going about it. I also wonder if she was aware of it? the same way Boomer was not really aware of shooting Adama back in season 1. Tory had some "instinct" the child was in danger.
Overall, one helluva episode.
Fri, Oct 21, 2011, 9:33am (UTC -5)
On the flipside, we've got a Cylon Civil War! I've been waiting for this since "Downloaded". In fact, season 3 seems more and more like an almost-pointless interlude now. More than ever this season, I'm enjoying the Cylon storylines a lot more than the Colonial storylines.
One last point:
"Lee brings up "Executive Order 112," which I believe is the order Zarek gave (and Roslin did not know about, and vehemently disagreed with when she found out) in "Collaborators" to enact secret tribunals to dispatch with the New Caprica traitors."
Are you absoloutely sure about that? I didn't get that impression at all. It sounded more like a Bill that had not been passed yet. If Lee has his hands on a copy of the order, I'm sure there's a date on it, so he would know if it had been passed while Zarek was still president. This seems like another Bill entirely.
Fri, Oct 21, 2011, 10:52am (UTC -5)
Sun, Nov 27, 2011, 10:10am (UTC -5)
I'm an excited as Nic to witness the nascence of a cylon civil war. It's been a while coming, but it might be just what the show needs to pick up after a very torpid third Season.
I liked the ambient voice rendition of Tyrol's when he returned to Cally after her discovery. She was in a state of very surreal shock, and Tyrol's disembodied voice plus the eerie and somewhat decadent musical score depicted that impeccably.
Now, Cally I never warmed up to. She was always pretty much a non-entity, plus--someone mentioned it already--I could never comprehend how the hell she (or anyone!) could ever shack up with a guy who beat the holy smokes out of her, regardless of how it happened. I also did not get her assaulting Tyrol and then automaton-like meandering the halls of Galactica toward an airlock, instead of hauling ass to Adama.
Really glad to see a semblance of "old" B.S.G. that I knew and liked slowly returning.
Sat, Mar 17, 2012, 5:59am (UTC -5)
And don't get me started on Roslin; it never fails to enrage me when she gets caught (usually by Lee) trying to pull a fast one, and then has the nerve to give him that "how dare you, sir?" look. Listen, bitch; stop trying to pull all this devious shit and you won't have to be humiliated when you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar.
If I was a woman, I'd be totally offended by these writers' insistence on making every female a blowhard, a hypocrite, a bitch, or some combination thereof. As it is, I'm just offended by the nonstop insulting of my intelligence in expecting me to buy into it all. But, then, this show makes less and less sense all around with each passing episode, so...
The last likable character on the show at this point is Baltar. I've liked his tragic, messed up tale right from the beginning, and now more than ever, given his antics of late.
Mon, Apr 23, 2012, 5:54pm (UTC -5)
My second: i really don't get all the whining about the timeliness of these reviews. It's not like it's your horoscope and you've really got to know right away. Geez.
@joshiah: "the baby degraded her spirit and made her lose hope" i shouldn't laugh but that sounds really funny to me.
@nic: "Did the writers really think that finding out her husband was a CYLON wouldn't be traumatic enough on its own? That she needed to be a drug addict too?" I completely agree. I also agree somewhat with Nic's comment about Season 3. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a pointless interlude but the middle of that season was a muddle. Some of those stand alone episodes bogged down the momentum and some of the story arcs didn't flesh out as I've liked, but you can't satisfy everyone, right? That said I reluctantly began watching BSG and have been hooked pretty solid. It hasn't gone off the rails enough for me to give it up. In that regard I'd compare it to the Sopranos. I know many will balk, but Sopranos was the same way - a bit inconsistent and every season there'd be a good chunk of episodes that didn't meet expectations only to be followed by some amazing writing/acting/storylines and when all was said and done, still head and shoulders above most tv fare.
@nic again: "Oh, and boy are the Final Five stupid. The first rule of a secret meeting is that you don't write its location on a piece of paper that can easily be found." Seriously.
And I hate Tory. I always have. She has been rather cylon-ish before we or she even knew it. And Six becomes less and less the cylon we expect. Hurrah! I'm liking this switcheroo.
Michael: I don't think it was so grievous to give Kara her own ship, but the crew selection doesn't make any sense. Supposedly some were volunteers, but Gaeta, for example? He surely didn't volunteer, and i don't know why Adama would assign him. I don't buy it.
@Ryan: "If I was a woman, I'd be totally offended by these writers' insistence on making every female a blowhard, a hypocrite, a bitch, or some combination thereof." Whoa, Brother. Your panties are on way too tight on that one.
Wed, Jun 20, 2012, 2:54am (UTC -5)
Thu, Jul 19, 2012, 11:01pm (UTC -5)
I always disliked Cally (for reasons that previous commenters have already listed) and I still disliked her in this episode, and yet I also felt sorry for her. Why didn't she go to Adama with what she found out? I can only guess that she no longer trusted anyone - not even Adama. After all, Tigh and Tyrol were the two resistance leaders on New Caprica, and she probably trusted them more than Adama. Then she finds out that the two most anti-Cylon men she knows are Cylons themselves! That means that anyone - even Adama - might be a Cylon.
The Starbuck storyline is as frustrating as it was upon first viewing. She annoys the hell out of me sometimes. Others have already noted that it's odd that Adama sent so many important officers with her. I was specifically surprised that both Helo and Athena were on board. Come on, there is no way Athena would leave Hera alone on Galactica, knowing that if the Demetrius was lost or destroyed, Hera would be orphaned!
One final observation - it was ironic that Boomer was feeling guilty for helping the Cavills destroy her own line (her sisters, the Eights). It's ironic because Athena similarly has sided with the humans against the Cylons and has opted to help them destroy her own race. The Eights share this common trait - their willingness to "go rogue" against their own kind.
Thu, Jul 19, 2012, 11:38pm (UTC -5)
Fri, Aug 3, 2012, 4:08pm (UTC -5)
Sun, Aug 4, 2013, 1:23am (UTC -5)
Sun, Aug 4, 2013, 1:24am (UTC -5)
Thu, Oct 31, 2013, 9:46pm (UTC -5)
I propose that others give Starbuck some slack. Her messed up relationship with her mom and then the Leoben mind frakking would scar anyone. Plus now she has the weight of the entire world on her shoulder knowing that she is the only one who could find earth and no one really believes her or can help her. I mean what else could she do? I assume that her painting the nebula was a way for her to try to connect with that feeling she has about earth to aid in its location. Starbuck deserves a Kit Kat break (I should've used that one for when Kat was still alive).
Wed, Jul 23, 2014, 5:44pm (UTC -5)
Tory: Tory is not acting out a program. Just like Saul and Tyro, aren't. They are individuals. They have no program. Saul is a loyal soldier. Tory is opportunistic, amoral and murdering was done in "self-defense." Learning she is a Cylon, just allowed her to fully express her sociopath nature. And it was done in "self-defense."
Cally: Cally was alway a place-holder more than a character. If anything, she was the victim of poor paling on the writers part. Think about it: Hera is the Special One, right? Well, Hera ain't so special if Nik is around. So, I guess Nik's gotta bit it too.
Nice Destiny they got going there....
Civil War: First, AWESOME! Second, how dumb is Six? If you're gonna play power politics, you got to think. Totally walked right into it.
Sat, May 23, 2015, 1:36am (UTC -5)
You're enraged by Roslin, you want her to "stop trying to pull all this devious shit...." but Baltar is the only likeable character left? Now there's a character who's always on the up-and-up.....
Roslin clearly admits that Order 112 is draft legislation she's working on, not some hold-over from Zarek.
Kara -
Maybe people should cut her some slack, she's always been messed up, particularly since New Cap. But, sorry, she's the CO. She doesn't have the luxury of being messed up. She acts like this, sooner or later she'll have a mutiny.
Cally:
I *liked* Cally. No, she wasn't a main character, she was just sketched in, not fully developed, but she was the young innocent who just signed up to get dental school paid for. And she did her job. Better than many.
Cottle did not imply she was taking opium. She was taking anti-depressants, and he (in his usual acerbic way) wanted her to stop taking the meds, go home, and get some sleep.
Clearly, she should have gone to Adama. But, she's totally sleep deprived, her life has just gone from a nightmare to her worst nightmare, and she's totally strung-out. Had Tory not shown up, she probably would have calmed down and gone to Adama. (Oh, here's a deus-ex-machina -- how did TORY find her -- how did Tory even know to look for her? Jammer calls this the inevitable conclusion and I don't disagree -- but it's a plot hole you could fly Colonial One through....)
I was really sorry to see her airlocked.... and I was feeling neutral about Tory until this.... now I'm ready to see her roasted over a slow fire...
Tue, Jul 24, 2018, 7:31pm (UTC -5)
Mon, Jun 17, 2019, 9:07pm (UTC -5)
Thu, Jul 4, 2019, 7:52pm (UTC -5)
The fact that she is operating under the cloak of Democracy and democratic norms pretending to give a shit about the quorum and all that makes it all worse and keeps exposing her as the autocrat she really is. Now I dont think she is power-hungry. I think she really thinks times require a different form of governance - not a democratic one for sure. And if that is the case, then she needs to go with that. If she doesnt, then it's cause she knows she cant get away with it, which means that she needs to then stop being an autocrat and embrace this whole democracy and transparency business instead of repeatedly getting caught with her hands in the cookie jar and then feigning outrage at whoever exposes her.
Mon, Dec 28, 2020, 3:28am (UTC -5)
Oh and what would hurt Tyrol the most - taking the baby with her. I'm not sure if she was taking the baby with her because he's half Cylon or to punish Tyrol. I know she isn't in her 'right mind' in this episode but I never liked the Cally character.
Sat, Dec 10, 2022, 10:04pm (UTC -5)
The Cylon civil war's opening salvo of an attack on the Twos, Sixes and Eights, committing them to the "true death", was utterly horrifying. To me that had the biggest impact in the episode, even though it had some of the shortest screen time. Cavil really is a huge problem. He blames the Sixes for instigating it, but really it was the Cavils that did... and the whole reason for that will be revealed later.
Sun, Mar 12, 2023, 11:23pm (UTC -5)
Starbuck sure is a dick to Anders, but I suppose he's a sucker for punishment.
Cally, Cally, Cally - you think maybe you could, I don't know, relay some vital information you just found out about? Why are you going straight to the airlock? Does your brain think Adama and the rest of the crew are just going to force you to stay married to Tyrol? Why would you want to murder your kid along with your own suicide? "I won't let you have him!" [her son] Okay, well, maybe after one more minute I'll just willingly hand him over.
Shows tend to have a couple of parallels in each episode, and clearly the one here was that someone does a ridiculous flip, either from the prior episode or just the prior minute. Caprica 6, how were you not the least bit suspicious of Cavill's sudden turn? The guy just suddenly caves on pretty much every single demand and you don't find that even a little sus?
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