Battlestar Galactica: The Plan

While the campy science fiction series Battlestar Galactica may be over, its creators have one last chapter for the fans—this direct-to-DVD 2009 feature, which is neither sequel nor prequel but an imaginative bookend, a retelling of the saga in digest form from the perspective of the Cylons, those sentient robots waging war against their human creators. Dean Stockwell plays John Cavil, the Cylon fanatic behind “The Plan” to eradicate the human race, infiltrating the survivors as a man of the cloth. Every major character from the series appears in this project, which is woven from seemingly unconnected threads from the first two seasons of attacks and resistance, both within the fleet and back on the planet Caprica. But rather than simply mounting yet another story of human resilience in the face of overwhelming odds, the different perspective here reveals the evolution of the Cylons from monolithic force to individual beings, irrevocably affected by their relationships with the humans. This new viewpoint adds a retrospective resonance and poignancy to stories we've already seen, capturing the sacrifice of Cylon double-agents who protect the humans they have come to love. This feature-length production (unseen on TV or cable) won't make sense to those unfamiliar with the series, but it adds a marvelous new chapter to the epic tale for fans. Edward James Olmos (who also stars as Admiral Adama) directs and provides audio commentary with producer-writer Jane Espenson. Other DVD/Blu-ray extras include behind-the-scenes featurettes (exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a trivia track). Recommended. (S. Axmaker)