“Flesh and Bone” is the strongest story yet to come out of the season one arc. It is the first time that everything meshes with a synchronicity that is simply awesome: season arc development, episode arc, character growth, character revelations, religious insights, Cylon and human motivations – all combine into 42 minutes of magnetic television.

I have to admit, from reading the synopses of this episode, I had a smidgen of concern: “Litmus” has Doral turning up on the Galactica and setting off a bomb that was possibly intended for Baltar; in “Six Degrees of Separation” we apparently have Six – in the form of “Shelly Godfrey” - turn up on Galactica and accuse Baltar of treason; now in “Flesh and Bone” we are promised Conoy turning up having planted a bomb on Galactica. “Ho hum,” went the little mind, “Three in a row?” That’s pushing things a little. Even if it should turn out “Shelly Godrey” was not actually real, but some form of mass-psychosis, after she and Doral “turned up” on Galactica, one would hope that the Colonials have beefed security sufficiently enough to prevent a third Cylon agent getting on board the ship – much less plant a bomb. Had the episode actually moved in this direction, then credibility would have been stretched to the breaking point.

Fortunately the writing team at R&D TV aren’t that stupid. In proving the essential synopses wrong, they open a story that is rich in its layering and totally believable in its context: Conoy never comes anywhere near the Galactica, and the bomb isn’t targeted at her, but at one of the other ships in the fleet. Not only does this latter point avoid stretching our credibility to the limit given the events of the previous episodes, it also reminds us that we are dealing with a fleet of vessels – almost all of them very fragile and very vulnerable.

Assessing this episode is no easy task: the religious undertones / overtones alone are rich enough in material for a minor treatise. As others will no doubt debate this particular aspect in far greater depth than can be achieved in a review like this, I’m going to move it to one side. Instead, and in keeping with previous reviews, I’m going to start with a look at the characterisation.

As usual, the featured actors turn in outstanding performances, with Mary McDonnell again adding depth and vulnerability to Laura Roslin. Is the President’s hardened attitude a result of her on-going adjustment to the plight of the Colonials, a direct reflection of her growing determination to beat her cancer, or a result of her acceptance that life for her may not be as rich and as full as she may once have hoped? Or is it a combination of all three? Whatever the underpinning reasons, the last few episodes have seen Roslin develop the kind of hard shell one would expect of a leader in her position; and McDonnell’s portrayal of Roslin as she goes through this transition has been outstanding.

Katee Sackhoff also shines in this episode – alongside of Callum Keith Rennie, she has the most time on screen – and she again shows that for a relatively young actress, she has a broad range and depth. At every turn, Thrace’s over-confidence, her flippancy, her inborn doubts, her fear of failure, of being found out – all are so perfectly portrayed through word, look and attitude.

But the accolades this week go not to a regular member of the cast, but to a guest star: Callum Keith Rennie for his portrayal of Leoben Conoy.

The last time I encountered Mr. Renee at any length was in the (also Canadian-filmed) series “Due South”. At the time, he did not impress – although to be fair, he was trying to fill David Marciano’s considerable shoes. Indeed, on seeing him in the mini, I was similarly unimpressed. But in “Flesh and Blood” Callum Keith Rennie proves the faith the BSG producers clearly had in him. His personification of Conoy is a marvel to watch. Not only does he evoke sympathy and concern as he is systematically beaten; he also maintains a degree of detachment towards the events around him that sufficiently reminds us that, while human-looking, his character is not truly human. By turns he is philosopher, victim, man, child, inquisitor, and agent provocateur – and in all, he is utterly convincing and absorbing.

Through Conoy, we get our greatest insights today into Cylon thought processes, religion, and view of life - and insight into the Colonials themselves. He is a mirror, held up to reflect the angst, the perceptions, bias and insecurity of the human race, as personified by Kara Thrace. Through him we also gain what appears to be a further hint of Cylon capabilities.

Conoy first turns up in Roslin’s dream – causing her to demand he is interrogated, not destroyed on being discovered. During his interrogation, he demonstrates personal information concerning Thrace’s upbringing, and shortly before his death, he again appears to Roslin, prompting her to go to the Geminon Traveller where he can meet with her and plant a bomb potentially every bit as devastating any the nuclear warhead he claimed to have hidden somewhere in the fleet.

All of this tends to raise the question: are Cylons – or at least the Conoy model – psychic? Does the ability to transfer their conscious minds at the point of physical death enable them to do other things mentally as well?

It could be argued that Conoy’s knowledge of Thrace has been gleaned from records – perhaps her military file; maybe she revealed things to Boomer on Galactica, and she was able to communicate them elsewhere. BUT – watching and re-watching the scene as a half-drowned Conoy talks about Thrace’s mother and upbringing, it seems altogether too personal, as if he is, through describing the events, reliving them – and we see this reflected in the intensity of Thrace’s look. There is more here than has been gleaned from official records and half-revealed anecdotes relayed through a third party.

“I see the universe. I see the patterns,” Conoy states with the conviction of a man speaking the truth. “I see the foreshadowing that precedes every moment of every day. It’s all there. I see it, and you don’t.” These are the words of a man convinced of the fact that he knows what is to come; how things will end, even before time has run its course, and as such, it is hard not to accept he does not, somehow, have the ability to foretell the future.

Or is it merely that through words, through the persuasion of his “half-baked philosophy”, Conoy can influence, twist, turn and manipulate to bring about the events and situations he requires in order to give himself the appearance of precognition? Is there any way we, as the audience can tell if Conoy can “see” the future and thus determine how much of the truth he is telling? Well, apparently there is.

As his time runs out, he reveals his surprise to Thrace: “And I told you I had a surprise for you. Are you ready? You are going to find Kobol, birthplace of us all. Kobol will lead you to Earth. This is my gift to you, Kara.”

You are going to find Kobol. The essence of truth – we know that this is indeed what will happen; the Colonials will indeed find Kobol; this much is apparently certain from the title of the two-parter that concludes season 1: “Kobol’s Last Gleaming”. So Conoy is telling a degree of truth.

But is he telling the whole truth? On the surface, this comment seems pretty direct. But one thing we have learnt in this series is that nothing is every quite what it seems. Messages are always delivered in layers. And if we strip away the surface gloss to this comment, we come across a deeper meaning: You are going to find Kobol….This is my gift to you, Kara. There is no mistaking the meaning here: Kobol will be found – but it will be Thrace who realises the fact of the matter. He is almost saying that while the Colonial may find Kobol, it will take Thrace to realise that it is Kobol…Should this happen, then we may well have additional proof that Conoy is telling the truth.

So, if Conoy is telling the truth about Kobol – what about his other statements? What about he whispered revelation to Roslin? Adama is a Cylon? Could this be the one falsehood, carefully woven into a fabric of truth that is sufficient enough to persuade, and thus bring into being the inevitable mistrust of Adama? As Roslin herself states, Conoy plants insidious and deadly thoughts in the mind that are far more effective than any warhead. Perhaps this was the real goal of his mission aboard the Geminon Traveller – to recreate the mistrust and uncertainty that marked Roslin’s early relationship with Adama; build on her prejudices and use them to create something more destructive within her own mind?

If so, he may have succeeded. Or, again, he could be telling the truth. There has been much speculation on “who is” and “who isn’t” a Cylon on various BBs on the web; I’ve engaged in some of the debates. I’ve even postulated (admittedly somewhat in jest) that of all the Colonials, Adama is actually best placed to be an unwitting Cylon agent: he is, after all, the one who put them on the “path” to Earth, the one who is, presumably, making the decisions on their course, and thus the one who brings them to the star system that turns out to be the location of Kobol….

Like everything else that has been hinted at in BSG, the truth about Adama works whether he is or isn’t a Cylon. BUT – if he is, it could be one of the most outstanding denouements seen at the end of a series – assuming the writers won’t reveal the fact until we reach the end of the main story-arc.

If Conoy isn’t psychic – then what of Roslin? Is it Conoy communicating with her through her dreams in this episode? Possibly, but perhaps not. When she first “encounters” Conoy in her dream at the start of the episode, Roslin has yet to learn of his presence – yet she pictures him in her dream wearing the very clothes he is wearing when he is captured – and his face is scarred and bruised from the beatings he has yet to receive during his interrogation. How is this? Either he really does see everything – the future, the past, the foreshadowing of events, and is able to pass on those impressions to others around him, or something in Roslin caused her to “see” him before she even knew of his presence.

If she does indeed have precognition, this is the first time we’ve seen it. What has caused it? Could it be the results of her using Kamala extract in her fight against cancer? The Galactica’s Major Connell indicated it is a fringe treatment, frowned upon by mainstream medical science. Could it be that this apparent precognitive ability is a side-effect of her treatment using the extract? If so, then the character of Roslin may be evolving into more than just the head of the civilian population. Indeed, in keeping with the religious overtones of the series, most religions need a prophet. Why not Laura Roslin?

And why, in her dream, does he warn her about “Cylons”, only to have Colonial guards chase her? Is this a veiled reference to Adama’s true status, or is it something else? Is Roslin simply worried about “who is and who isn’t”, and the worry is affecting her dreams? If this is the case – are these worries something Conoy picked-up on, allowing him to use them to implant the doubts about Adama – routing a lie in foundations of genuine concern?

Indeed – in watching Adama’s scene in the morgue we see him make a considerable effort to control his rage, to avoid smashing the telephone handset into Conoy’s face. Then he leans over the cadaver and states firmly, “No.” Just what is going on here? Is the “soul” inside the cadaver trying to tell him something? Should Adama be a Cylon, is his human half caught in an internal struggle with his Cylon “half” without him actually being aware of the cause of the struggle? Or is him simply concerned that the Conoy on the Traveller will seek to confuse Thrace, twist her thinking much as the dead Conoy tried with Adama himself at Ragnar Achorage?

Away from the central action, we begin to see the pieces fall into place around Helo on Caprica. Last time around I suggested the answer might lie in the act of procreation. This week I’ll go further: the reason is deeper than the “mere” act of reproduction. The Cylons are seeking…love.

Love is a theme that resonate throughout the episode – and indeed, has resonated through the series since Six’s first on-screen appearance with Baltar. As he is interviewed for a news broadcast, she enters his house, a look of adoration on her face. Then, after the interview, as they start to make out, she asks him in a child-like voice, in need of reassurance, “Did you miss me Gaius?” Still kissing and undressing her, he replies, “Can’t you tell?” and her tone grows more petulant, “Your body misses me. What about your heart…your soul?”

Intent on sating his lust, Baltar remains flippant, “Yeah, those to,” Six’s voice returns to one of need. “Do you love me Gaius?” When he does answer, she stops him from kissing her, making him look her in the eye. “Do you love me?” It is something he cannot answer except to ask her if she is serious. For a moment there is hurt in Six’s expression – which she covers and still proceeds to have sex with him.

Do you love me? The need is real. Could it be that, in carrying her primary mission of sabotage through Baltar, Six did actually come to love him – she actually, if accidentally came to experience that one emotion, that one driving force of life that the Cylons have equated to Godhood, (“God is love”)?

If so, it would suggest that, indeed, whatever is in Baltar’s head - whatever caused “Shelly Godfrey” to appear in “Six Degrees…” - is not a product of Baltar’s own mind….

Certainly, it is the question of love that appears foremost in this episode – both with Conoy, who returns to it time and again in his references to Cylon religion, and more particularly with Valerii on Caprica, where the first question she is asked after her revelation to Doral and Six that she had sex is “Does he love you?” A comment which is immediately followed by a dismissive “then you’re just guessing,” when she admits he had not actually said as much.

Following the interview with Doral and Six, two things are clear: Valerii has fallen for Helo. That much is evident from the flashbacks of her time with him. She also very much shares the memories of Boomer back on Galactica – at least up until the point where Boomer left Helo on Caprica, indicating the various incarnations of a specific humanoid Cylon share experiences throughout their existence – although this may be limited by the distance between one another.

Did the Cylons anticipate that any love expressed by a human might be reciprocated by one of their own? If they wish to experience love, then it is hard to see how they could avoid coming to this conclusion. Indeed, it might well explain Doral’s question to Valerii in “Litmus” when Helo sets out to “find” her: “Are you prepared for the next step?” A comment that at the time appeared to have implications well beyond the beating she then received at the hands of Six.

Again, putting these items together – the fact that different incarnations of a Cylon humanoid share experiences and the attempts to have Helo fall in love with Valerii on Caprica – go a long way to explaining Six’s very apparent sarcasm and vindictiveness towards Valerii, as witnessed in “Litmus” (“He doesn’t love you,” and the unnecessarily-harsh beating she then gives Valerii), and her jealousy towards Valerii shown in this episode (She acts like one of them, thinks like one of them. She is one of them”). Why? Because if Baltar’s Six did indeed fall in love with Baltar, then Six on Caprica may well have experienced some of it for herself – a vicarious thrill, the very thing the Cylons seek – but it is down to another to achieve the goal of having a human fall in love with her, not Six.

Layers in layers, clues and counter-clues, wheels within wheel all are revealed, all light the path of the story while simultaneously obscuring the truth behind what is happening. We receive glimpses and shadows of what might be happening, and what might yet come to pass; but like the insidious nature of Conoy’s half-truths and riddles, they serve to weave a story that even here, more than half-way through season one, inspires discussion, evokes enthusiasm and engages the imagination. Long may it continue!

Reviewing “Flesh and Bone” is a complex matter. There is so much going on here, that covering everything in any depth is near-impossible in the space available. To this end, I’ve skipped over the Boomer situation on Galactica – although the issues here do, for now, seem clear to all. Similarly I’ve avoided plumbing the depths of the rich religious imagery contained within the episode, as I’m sure this will be the subject of debate for days – if not weeks – to come.

Instead, I’ll close now by stating that “Flesh and Bone” is the strongest story yet to come out of Battlestar Galactica – more than that, it is one of the most thought-provoking and evocative 42 minutes of television drama ever broadcast.

What we learn in this episode:

- This episode takes place within 24 hours of those portrayed in “Six Degrees…”

- Galactica’s medico has apparently been successful in his quest for Kamala – Roslin is now using it in her fight against cancer

- There are 47,954 survivors in the fleet, presumably including Galactica’s crew, as the figure has fluctuated between 45,000 and 50,000 over the past few weeks in rounded figures

- Laura Roslin may have precognition, and / or Cylons may be psychic

- Boomer believes her family were all killed – together with almost her entire past in a “tragedy” that destroyed the colony of Troy

- Baltar’s Cylon detector works

- Baltar now knows Boomer is a Cylon
 

Overall rating: 4.5 out of 5.