BSG squee, with spoilers

[amanuensis1]

I've got to be the only BSG fan who retains love for Boomer at this point, but I do--Boomer was my entry character into the show at the beginning, the "who am I what am I" anguish that invited the viewer to walk the line between feeling human and fearing to be the enemy of all one knows. If Hera was her initiative from the time she brought Ellen Tigh to Galactica, I'm still looking for reasons to understand and forgive her. Imagine how dreadfully she's been rejected by humanity, and it's not hard to feel for her conversion. Is there a soul out there who feels similarly?

Comments

[saturn92103.livejournal.com]

I definitely remain intrigued by Boomer's story and very empathetic to her journey.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

*holds you in solidarity* I've always found her more interesting than Sharon Agathon.

[rickey-a.livejournal.com]

A long standing joke (as in from the Orig BSG) was that hubby likes to call that character "Booper" (as in he thinks Boomer is quite the silly nickname and just as silly as Booper). When the new series made the character a girl, it really stuck. So now we often say "awww poor Booper".
*pets poor booper*

I hear ya.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

Booper? Migod, that's going to stick in my head. :D

[beck-liz.livejournal.com]

You are not the only one, (http://butterfly.livejournal.com/1273384.html) although I can't join you there.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link nonetheless! :D

[dramaphile.livejournal.com]

I think the thing that I love the most about this show is there is no black and white, with characters or situations or decisions that people make. On one hand, yeah, Boomer used Tyrol to escape and tricked him into helping her get to Hera, but does that still mean that the feelings she shared with him weren't real? Whatever the right or wrong of it, Boomer believes in her cause, and, in her mind, is doing what is right. And yeah, having sex with Helo was kind of low, but I can understand feeling so starved for contact and jealous of what Athena has that she'd take his offer for intimacy, even if she knew she was deceiving him.

I can't bring myself to hate anyone on this show, because everyone's got something to love and hate about them. Even after the mutiny, I can't bring myself to truly hate Gaeta and Zarek, because Gaeta's turn to revolution had a path to it, and he truly believed that it was the only way to survive as a race, and Zarek is a man who, after trying so long to mainstream and go with the political process, has been shot down so many times that he reverts to his belief that extremism is the only way to get things done.

I think I could ramble on all day about grey areas with this show.

[persephone-blue.livejournal.com]

You just reminded me why I cried when Gaeta was shot. War (and Battlestar Galactica) is no place for idealists. D:

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

How can people hate Gaeta? He felt that Adama had caved to the Cylons secondary to being blinded by his best friend being a Cylon. Felt Adama had betrayed the purpose of the fleet. And was willing to be executed for it, because that's in the frakking rules of what happens to mutineers if they don't win. Sigh.

having sex with Helo was kind of low Low? B-but she didn't have a choice! Helo was going to know something was up if she pushed him away. It was boff him or shoot him at that point; I'm grateful she took the former.

[persephone-blue.livejournal.com]

Boomer is damaged and her treatment of Sharon was deeply disturbing to watch. It's a struggle for me to remain sympathetic to her. Her saving grace, right now, is her love for the Chief.

If she's still a good person, she's a good person who makes horrible decisions. She was dealt a bad hand from the beginning of the show, though, and part of me still hopes her luck will change.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

It would have been much easier for Boomer to kill Athena than to subdue her; I give her humanity credits for not doing that. (Am I grasping at straws?)

[persephone-blue.livejournal.com]

Yes, while she gets points for leaving her alive, I think Boomer lost more points when she accidentally-on-purpose frakked Helo in front of Athena's bruised and bloody form.

Couldn't Boomer have turned on the charm and been like, "Oh, not right now, I have a headache"? Nope. Boomer is hurt that Athena officially has almost everything she once desired: husband, home, and daughter. Getting it on with Helo was more petty vengeance than desperation.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

Mmm, I kind of think she considered the "not right now" excuse and realized it was just too risky. I don't argue that there may have been an element of "this could have been mine," but I still say she felt she had no choice. I'm going with my own gut reaction, which was, "Craaaaaaaaaaap, I'm not going to be able to let him go without making him suspicious. Craaaaaaaaaaap..." ^_^

[persephone-blue.livejournal.com]

It does add some more sympathetic tragedy to Boomer's situation to think that she really had to do this in order to escape. Watching Athena watch that, though, was horrifying. Both of them are in awful situations.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

*raises hand* I like Boomer! And if nothing else, there are tons of characters like a lot less than her.

Lee.
Sam.
Starbuck (99% of the time)

She's at least interesting and complex without being annoying (*cough*Starbuck*cough).

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

I grew to like Starbuck. Lee still makes me snooooze.

My early favorites were Baltar and Sharon, my middle favorites became Adama and Gaeta, now I take the whole show as an ensemble piece.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I like Starbuck on and off. When she's big tough Hero Woman, ace fighter pilot, etc, then I like her. When she's insane or tries to sleep with anything that moves, then dislike her a lot.

Lee and Sam are so amazingly boring. zzzz I can't believe how many Starbuck/Lee fics there are out there, the very thought of reading them makes me nod off.

I don't know if I ever really liked Baltar. He's a very interesting character, and he's been in some bad spots (of his own doing!)... I guess I like him enough to hope he comes out okay at the end of the series.

Adama and Gaeta I love. :) I hate how Gaeta ended, but... poor/stupid guy. And Adama just rocks my world. I've never been into het, but Adama/Laura is just the most amazingly sweet, special thing ever. Eee!

now I take the whole show as an ensemble piece.

I think that's best. It's kind of like loving your whole family instead of just picking out a favorite parent or sibling. They're all so interwoven...

I can't believe there are only three more eps left. It doesn't feel like the series is ending, it feels more like they're headed into a whole new story arc. :/ (I have this unrealistic hope that after the "last" ep they're going to go "Gotcha! Stay tuned for season five!".)

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

I've literally just finished watching the penultimate episode. No spoilers, but it kills me how I can't pick any one character that makes me say, "I must see how his/her story turns out; that's the one I care about." I care about them ALL!

[dbassassin.livejournal.com]

Nope. I've loathed Boomer from the very beginning. Probably the only character I dislike more than Starbuck (and that's saying something!). She's always seemed to me such an off-putting mess of boygeek fantasy cliches that I can't get invested in her dramarama. There are so many much more interesting female characters on this show (and yay for that!).

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

Heh, duly noted!

such an off-putting mess of boygeek fantasy cliches

Ooh, what do you mean by that? That's something I've not seen or considered.

[incapricious.livejournal.com]

Sort of? Boomer's whole story is so sad and is definitely a big part of what got me hooked on the show. To have everyone you loved turn against you would damage anyone, but Eights especially I think have this tendency of throwing themselves body and soul into one thing (in a very quiet, intense way), and Boomer was that way with Galen and with her job on Galactica.

I keep thinking of that scene in season 3 (I think?) when Athena died to go get Hera, and Boomer was just brushed aside and made to feel like an unwanted failure. She feels rejected by her whole Model as well as humanity, so I feel like I understand her actions in siding with Cavil. It's not pleasant to watch, but it just is all so tragic. I hurt for her even while I hurt for the people she hurt.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

and Boomer was just brushed aside and made to feel like an unwanted failure

God, yes, that killed me. I kept saying, "Stop showcasing the bliss that is Sharon Agathon and give us more reasons to like Boomer!"

[amalthia]

Butterfly still really loves Boomer. Me, I felt rather frustrated this last episode because I felt like everyone was condemning Boomer and it really wasn't her fault that she shot Adama and I feel like I was watching Romeo and Juliet and getting frustrated at the stupidness of some characters. How could they not know that the Chief would try and rescue Boomer??? Basically, I felt like they set up a situation where she either had to kidnap a kid to get off the ship safely or she's playing a longer game? Won't know until the last three episodes.

But for me I'm disappointed that they chose to make her into a villain since I really did like her story.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

And given what else we've seen, I'm keen on seeing how her story ends.