Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome

This prequel to the acclaimed Syfy series was originally produced as a TV-movie-sized pilot, but was subsequently cannibalized and chopped up into tiny chapters for a web series before finally being aired on Syfy as a standalone feature. Blood & Chrome is a little thin compared to the Battlestar reboot productions, but is certainly more ambitious than typical Syfy original films (most of which have “mega” in the title, and involve catastrophic geological events or mutant creatures). This story, set early on in the first Cylon war, is built around young William Adama (Luke Pasqualino), a cocky rookie fighter pilot fresh from flight school and now in military service. With no idea of the reality of war, he's immediately put on transport duty with burned-out co-pilot Coker Fasjovik (Ben Cotton) and a passenger: a civilian software engineer named Dr. Beka Kelly (Lili Bordán), who sends them on a mission into the heart of Cylon-occupied territory. Unfortunately, this plays mostly like an extended episode—with stock personalities dropped into the mission of the week—making it strictly for diehard Battlestar fans. Presented on DVD and Blu-ray, extras include a visual effects featurette and deleted scenes. Optional. (S. Axmaker)