Tonight’s show was mostly focused on a single event – Greystone’s appearance on Sarno’s show – prep, event and aftermath. All were very well-handled and intriguing.
Prep – Daniel is giving “talking points”, and told what the audience is looking for. He tells his wife that a comment won’t “play well.” All very reminiscent of a political debate preparation and the concept of spin – trying to put a good face on something bad. Amanda finally admits her daughter may have been just running away and not a terrorist. Daniel reminds her she started this ball rolling by making her opinions public. She protests she didn’t do it deliberately, but that now he is!
Event – Sarno starts out with a bad monologue comparing his joke bombing to terrorist bombing. Daniel attempts to start with a bit of a joke himself which falls flat. I felt myself cringing for him. He ends up saying his daughter was “troubled” though he didn’t want to use the term before. Sarno jumps on it like it was a smoking gun, while Daniel’s colleagues concede it was the wrong word to use even though they had chosen it. Suddenly, Amanda charges onto the show and rescues the situation, saying that Zoe was “angry” not “troubled”. Not sure why “angry” sounds better than “troubled”, but perhaps “troubled” is associated with “disturbed”, while angry could be thought of more as “frustrated.” It’s all semantics.
Daniel in effect wins the debate by suggesting that he will no longer profit off the sale of the “holobands”, which Sarno and others were trying to say led to the terrorism. Making it non-profitable does not really cure the problem but it turns out to be a good PR move. Sarno credits Amanda with the best save since some event in a pyramid game, and she responds how about a comparison where the Bucs won the game? Again, that all sounded like dialogue that might be said on this faraway world.
Aftermath – Amanda has a scary drive home after Sam passes himself off as a driver for the studio willing to take her home. At home, she watches the show again and later she and Daniel banter about what other people are saying about the Graystones and the interview.
Other events in the show: William’s grandmother seems even more Tauron than Sam. She’s okay with Will ditching school as long as he’s with Sam, tells him you often get more favors from your enemies because they’re afraid of you, and jokes about playing jacks with the finger bones of young boys who have lost the game earlier. I’d say no wonder Joseph and Sam grew up like they did, but apparently she’s the mother of Joseph’s wife. She is fine with having Amanda murdered, but fortunately Joe has a change of heart and lets her live. Sam, who seemed a little disturbed at being ordered to kill her last week, now seems disappointed in Joe for changing his mind – telling him he’s acting more Caprican than Tauron.
Clarice’s cult not only believes in polygamy, but spouse-sharing as well. Zeon was keeping explosives in his school locker. Cylon Zoe is nice to the tech - who is supernice to her - and even dances for him.
Drawbacks to the story – the GDD supervisor refers to the god the STO believes in as a “moral dictator” with indignation. Does that mean his multiple gods do not have some kind of moral code? If they do, then are they not dictating morality as well? Is it okay to have a moral code just as long as it’s from several gods instead of just one? Or do his gods allow people to do whatever they choose?
On the flip side, Sarno talks about what the teens do in their virtual world teaches them behavior with no consequences, leading them to the STO, because it has a god with rules – and then to the irrational step of terrorism. If he is complaining the teens have no rules, doesn’t this mean that they should have rules? Parents should be limiting their teen’s time in VR based on a reward system for doing their studies, etc. Or perhaps the teens should be obeying the laws of their god or gods. The concept of a god with rules and the holoband VR world don’t seem connected – they’re more like opposite ends of the spectrum.
And the whole profit margin argument. The idea often cited in legalizing drugs is that people will take drugs anyway. Why not legalize them and let companies and the government make those profits instead of drug dealers? I don’t see how eliminating Graystone profits will change anything. The kids are aware of the holobands and enjoy them already, so they won’t stop using them. It really won’t change much of anything, except put the Graystone Company in worse shape than it already is (except for the PR boost.)
Also, Daniel blurts out that he has an avatar of Zoe. He does do a nice save in talking about it, but that will lead to more issues, among them that now Clarice knows for sure the avatar is real.
Anyway, I give the episode 8 chicken bone jacks for being well-written, suspenseful and thought-provoking.
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madp
11 years ago
by brimfin » 1 hour ago (Fri Mar 21 2014 13:49:56)
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Drawbacks to the story – the GDD supervisor refers to the god the STO believes in as a “moral dictator” with indignation. Does that mean his multiple gods do not have some kind of moral code? If they do, then are they not dictating morality as well? Is it okay to have a moral code just as long as it’s from several gods instead of just one? Or do his gods allow people to do whatever they choose?
To me that's been quite clear that with a plurality of gods you can choose which ones to follow, or at least have a contrasting moral code. I believe monotheists, on the other hand, would have reservations against the moral relativism that this would cause. One single moral code becomes the work of a dictator, according to Capricans.
On the flip side, Sarno talks about what the teens do in their virtual world teaches them behavior with no consequences, leading them to the STO, because it has a god with rules – and then to the irrational step of terrorism. If he is complaining the teens have no rules, doesn’t this mean that they should have rules? Parents should be limiting their teen’s time in VR based on a reward system for doing their studies, etc. Or perhaps the teens should be obeying the laws of their god or gods. The concept of a god with rules and the holoband VR world don’t seem connected – they’re more like opposite ends of the spectrum.
You're right, it doesn't seem to make much sense. But I was under the impression that Capricans see this one god's moral rules to include bombing trains. But in the end that was not very clear.
Other events in the show: William’s grandmother seems even more Tauron than Sam. She’s okay with Will ditching school as long as he’s with Sam, tells him you often get more favors from your enemies because they’re afraid of you, and jokes about playing jacks with the finger bones of young boys who have lost the game earlier. I’d say no wonder Joseph and Sam grew up like they did, but apparently she’s the mother of Joseph’s wife.
That was established in the beginning. Their relationship has always been a little difficult. Joseph lost his wife and daughter. To add insult to injury, now all he has of his family is his mother-in-law. Tough break, Joseph.
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robertegblack
11 years ago
i think the key to taking out the profit angle for the holobands is explained just before daniel says they will not be profiting. he argues that the reason the hedonistic stuff, the human sacrifice and whatnot that zoe would have seen, happens in there because of the profit margin involved.
a) i'm not sure i understand that argument, but it does exist in regards to the same VR world where the point to the new cap city segment is built around putting realistic consequences into an unrealistic environment
b) i don't like the argument that the hedonistic tendencies lead to violence but i understand why the characters would--plenty of people make that leap in the real world, so why not in caprica?
-author of the groundhog day project (groundhogdayproject.blogspot.com)-
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