They sprinkled bits of this song throughout the season, that moment that it all finally came together in the episode was amazing, cementing this song into my mind. This song became a very important cast member, and the reveal was an epic moment in the series. Please, if you like Sci-fi, Battlestar Galactica is one of the best TV series of all time, an expansive character driven show that shows off outstanding acting and writing.
it can NOT be said enough how absolutely excellent this show is. It delves into the human persona on an existential level while simultaneously being terrified for the continued existence of the human race it is truly an epic story more discussion is welcome on it at any time
The way they integrated this into the show and made it integral to one of the most important plot points of the entire thing was just masterfully done. To this day, BSG has remained my favorite TV show of all time.
Back when it was airing, I came across a leak describing what would happen in this episode and thought, "this is the most ridiculous, outlandish thing, there's no way this leak is true." Lo and behold, I watched the episode when it aired and my reaction was, "holy crap, they're actually doing it AND IT WORKS" 🤯
@@BrianKoppe Yeah I can kind of imagine reading it as a leak and, I never really thought of it before, but if you aren't actually sitting there watching every thing unfold, I can 100% understand how it would sound completely silly. 😂 I probably would have never believed it either if I read it as a spoiler. And yet somehow.. it turns out to be one of the most non-ridiculous things. Amazing.
This series had no right to be as good as it was... but boy, it was INCREDIBLE. And the music plays a HUGE part in the series. One day, I would LOVE to hear your opinion of the Farscape theme song because I simply cannot fully comprehend its oddity.
Farscape in general is something else! I love that show. BSG and Farscape are my two favourite sci fi series for sure. I guess TNG would be third. But there are some I've not seen and probably should. Like DS9 for example haha. And anything remotely recent.
@@PiousMoltar take some time for The Expanse. I feel like the BSG and Expanse fans Venn Diagram is almost one circle. But I also know I'm weird because I actually preferred DS9.
There's so much amazing music in BSG - to the point of where in some places they started cutting the show to the music, in some cases (like AATWT here) blurring the line between diagetic and non-diagetic music. And the group of musicians he built met the challenges of the ambitious score. For the culmination of the Watchtower themes, check out "Kara's Coordinates" The musical pinnacle of the show is the Diaspora Oratorio , though.
Ronald D Moore was the showrunner for Galatica, he was a producer/writer for TNG, DS9. Wrote some of my favourites, like Data's Day, Relics (Scotty), Tapestry (Picard's A Wonderful Life), Trouble with Tribles. All great, saying that Galatica, is very different, serious sci-fi while struggling to stay alive on the run, but one of the best. Finished the series when they wanted to, which is rare nowadays.
@@GeeVanderplas Yup, and by the time he was working on _Voyager,_ Moore had grown incredibly dissatisfied with all the _hand-waiving_ (especially the liberal use of "technobabble" to explain anything that was _actually_ unexplainable) that was being used in the _Trek_ shows. Luckily for everyone, out of this frustration, the _Galactica_ remake was born, within Moore's singular vision.
Love the series and love the music. The remnants of mankind in a last ditch battle against their own creation, the Cylons. It doesn't get more epic than that. So say we all!
Others have mentioned it but it's so true: this track is not just the background of a cool scene, it's practically a character revealing a great and terrible secret.
BSG is imo THE Best series ever made, hands down. I always re-watch it, at least once or twice a year (that includes the Movie and Caprica, the pre-quel too.) 🍻
BSG is a fantastic show, not least because it’s a sonic adventure. I think I have never seen such a smart and effective use of music. You would enjoy it, I think
"The Cylon Intro" is actually the Song "Heeding the Call", where four of the final five Cylons find out that they're Cylons, while they're reciting the first few lines of "All Along the Watchtower". The song is what woke them. It's one of the rare moments in Movie/Television where the music itself becomes kind of a character in the show. The final episode of the show ends with the Jimi Hendrix version. You should really watch it. It's great. Although the story drags a bit in the 3rd and 4th season, the character development is awesome. And the show doesn't paint black and white there's a lot of grey areas, where you'd ask yourself 'how would I act in that situation'? One of my top 3 shows of all time.
I love BSG so much. Still remember very vividly how I had the full lightbulb moment way back when I watched it first and the lyrics kicked in the first time and I was like "WAIT WHAT!?!?" It all came together in that scene so beautifully. Still gave me goosebumps watching Doug's video today. If more die-hard BSG fans out here are into podcasts & want to hear fantastic insights into the filming, comments by directors, script writers etc: look up & listen to the podcast "Battlestar Galacticast", hosted by Mark Bernarden (a screen writer for other projects & ardent BSG fan) and Tricia Helfer (the actress playing number 7 = the blonde Cylon). They talk through each & every episode share important insights, discuss the implications. They're really easy to listen to & provide a ton of information & entertainment.
Thanks so much for reacting, and for including the Cylon intro… it sets the scene perfectly. Those of us who loved the show can envision exactly what's going on as it plays. :) BSG is in my top 5 shows of all time, and Bear's soundtrack is a huge, huge part of that. My favorite track of his from the show is probably "Something Dark is Coming" (from season 2).
What a great series, has its detractors towards the end, I'm not one of them. It's more a hard drama set in space than a traditional scifi story. Make sure you watch the miniseries before season 1 '33' and keep an eye out for a cartain (blink and you'll miss it) Firefly class cargoship out the wibdow in the doctors scene in the first miniseries episode.
this moment in the show, when this song plays, is absolutely one of the most INCREDIBLE MOMENTS IN SCI-FI HISTORY! god I just teared up at the crescendo! fuck so gooooood!!!!
So the brilliant thing about the show (as others have said) is that this song wasn't just part of the soundtrack or OST but part of the plot (diegetic) as well. If i recall correctly, There is a point (during the intro section I believe) where the show runners asked "Can we make this louder?" when the mixing was already all the way up
Definitely make time for BSG; it repays the effort. Has its issues (of course) but overall a superior series, rooted in the paranoia of 9/11 and a changing world.
This song turns out to be pivotal to the story arc of the entire show. Battlestar Galactica is a treat. I just re watched it for the first time since it came out, with my gf who'd never seen it and isn't into sci-fi. She was alternately laughing and crying by the end, in love with all of the characters, and was raving about it to all her friends. It's a really great show, and the music is just one of many great things about it. People often get it mixed up with Stargate and are dissuaded from watching it because of that association, which I get because Stargate was lame. There's no connection. Watch Battlestar Galactica, Doug. Treat yourself.
I've never seen a piece of music become as integral to a show as this did. It wasn't just a soundtrack but a plot point. Stunning. (And this is my favourite version of the track full stop; sorry Bob, sorry Jimi).
Just watched the vid now and you love sci-fi but haven't watched BSG? Oh boy... you're in for a treat if you do watch it (and start with the miniseries).
This is an amazing interpretation, imo. My favorite piece from the show is the Roslin and Adama theme, but that is in part related to the shows context. BSG is my all-time favorite show. It's well worth viewing, a great treatise on a post-9/11 apocalyptic series.
I really enjoy the opening of this thematically within the show, trying to avoid spoilers, its like having that earworm of song that you dont know the name of nor the lyrics but can only remember one refrain from the bridge or the opening verse. Some characters are experiencing it and its only when they all realise whats going on and come together the full tune coalesces @5:24 and they each bring their derivative of the tune to the table it all clicks and they remember the whole 'song'
This was a pivotal scene in the series, and a total mind***k when we watched it -- especially since the ending of the show suggests that the song already existed when Bob Dylan "wrote" it. In other words, it Dylan didn't create it -- it was revealed to him. :)
the fact it took nearly a whole season to reveal what the song actually was..from "people" humming it, to playing it on a piano with one finger, to the full blown attack sequence!
God listening this takes me back to such a huge reveal on the series. The series was amazing and part of that was its stellar soundtrack. I'm so pleased you enjoyed it even without any knowledge of why so many of us fans find it impactful. Really interesting review, I'm going to go check out your other videos
Loved to hear your analysis of one of my all-time favourite tracks. Bear really reinvented it in his own way making it really groovy and his brother Brandon sang it perfectly ❤❤
If you want to stick with Bear for a bit, there's the OST song "Dirty Hands", and there is a live version of the BSG Orchestra playing the song "Baltar's Dream" - it's... transcendental.
Bear's work on BSG was absolutely fantastic. There's a lot of that drawn out atmosphere that's in this cover throughout the soundtrack. For most of the other tracks on the show though it's his use of drums that really stands out
Bear was given massive trust by the show's directors to become more and more important in the show's story. The music pretty much became a character and added to the plot. For the show he wrote a piano sonata called "Dreilide Thrace Sonata No. 1" that I think you'd find interesting.
BSG was an excellent series, well worth watching. Another show's music that might be of interest is Babylon 5, scored by Christopher Franke of Tangerine Dream. He did an epic job, especially in the Season 5 finale. (Babylon 5 is still my favourite SciFi show, I haven't found another that quite matches it's epic scale).
Yeah, there is some really really good BSG soundtrack music. This is definitely one of the best. Other ones i like are 'The Shape Of Things To Come' and Passacaglia. However they are more instrumental, not really this type of song. Excellent sci-fi shows to watch are Battlestar Galactica, The Expanse and The Silo. All have good music and and excellent plot/acting. The Expanse intro sequence always gets me so excited.
It would be nice to see a comparison between the Battlestar Sonatica versions and the OST versions of some other tracks, Bear's solo piano performances on RU-vid are awesome, Something Dark is Coming and Prelude to War are particular favourites of mine :)
This was such a mind-blow experience when I finally realized what song they were building up to over the episodes. Bear does such an amazing job. If you haven't yet, do yourself a favor and check out his work on the Black Sails soundtrack. The theme itself is killer and it just gets better and better.
Not sure if it's been said, Ron Moore was the primary writer/producer for BSG. He cut his teeth on Star Trek. And Bear did all the music for the show except the mini series (although he was a part of that). He took over from episode 1 on to the end.
I'm a massive star trek fan but I have to say that the battlestar galatica remake is possibly the best sci fi series made to date. I've watched it 4 times and it never gets boring.
When I saw the reaction was for the Battlestar Galactica version I had to listen to your review I'm glad I watched and you didn't disappoint. I'm going to share a little bit of what you need to watch for, without giving you any spoilers. First of all I'm old enough that I watched Battlestar Galactica in the late 70s which was freaking awesome but I was 11 years old and heavily influenced by Star Wars. The show was cheesy but that's not how I remembered it. For me my brother and my best friend it was our universe. The reboot that this song is from is what I envisioned Battlestar as is a kid. It wasn't, the Battlestar is a serious and dark sci-fi / drama. When you go to watch Battlestar make sure you watch the miniseries first. Episode one is actually episode 3 and it will make no sense whatsoever if you don't watch the miniseries first. That is extremely important. The miniseries introduces you to all these significant characters. And it sets up the entire story. The best written show of all time as West Wing, Newsroom is close, both of those are written by Aaron Sorkin who is probably the best writer in Hollywood. Battlestar Galactica is well written enough to be considered one of the greatest dramas of all time not just sci-fi. A great example of this is season 3 episode 4 the Adama maneuver. There is a lot of sci-fi that has Space Battles, this episode has the best space battle strategy of any show or movie in history and it will take your breath away. I don't want to give any more information because I want you to be watching for it but not aware of what is going on until you see it. Now, for the music you just reviewed. It isn't just one episode. This music is an integral part of a reveal that takes a very long time to come to fruition. It is so extraordinary well done and interlaced through a number of episodes that it is Epic Mastery of writing, composing, acting and cinematography. It is what sets Battlestar Galactica apart from almost any other Sci-Fi TV show. I'm not exaggerating, I've watched a lot of sci-fi over the last 45 years. It is important towards the end of the series as well. So as you're watching it and given the fact that you are a composer you will notice the music probably without me telling you. Hopefully someday you can post a video with your reaction to the entire series and the relationship between the music and the show. I would absolutely love to see that. And one final omage to the old show, in the miniseries they actually have a scene that plays the original theme music from the show in the late 70s, that made me smile when I saw it.
Without the show alongside the music, context is lost on why this version is the way it is. This trickles along in certain scenes and it Epic. There are so many songs from BSG which are top notch. his Passacaglia anyone? :)
@Doug Helvering: If you've not seen and heard it yet you may REALLY enjoy "So Say We All: Battlestar Galactica Live - "All Along the Watchtower" (feat. Katee Sackhoff)". It's a live performance with McCreary and crew!
In case you would like to watch the great Battlestar Galactica series: definitely start with the 3 hour 'miniseries'. It serves as a pilot and sets up the whole show.
I also tend towards TV shows that Bear McCreary has worked on. Another of my favorites is the Pirate era "Black Sails". The shows intro theme makes wonderful use of a dubiously tuned upright piano and gets one in the right mood for the upcoming episodes. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-XFTcA4QLHw0.html
Great show music. Many of this shows themes used sticks and sitar sounds. There is a very tribal sound used for the shows non-orchestral music. Would love to see you react to his Sonata piece from season 3, Battlestar Sonatica.
Another show with Bear McCreary soundtrack is Terminator - The Sarah Connor Chronicles. In addition to the excellent soundtrack, it features Summer Glau (River Tam from Firefly) as a terminator. She's a better Terminator than Arnold!
Go watch! The song is a plot point! The Bear amazingness is a gift that keeps on giving. Watchtower-related tension starts to build with hints throughout the season and climaxes in "Kara's Coordinates."
Highly recommend BSG based on what you've said. Bear's music is an ever-present and integral part of the series (except the pilot miniseries). Additionally, BSG was co-helmed by Ronald D Moore, who you already know as the executive producer of Outlander. AND, icing on the cake, Ronald D Moore got his start as a writer for Star Trek: TNG and Star Trek: DS9. He was a writer for Star Trek: Voyager briefly, but left over creative differences-including the lack of realism with which the series treated the challenges that would face an isolated ship out in space. Part of his approach to BSG was to apply that realism he felt was lacking in Voyager, with episodes addressing the need to find water, fuel, and other resources.
" My name is saul tigh , I am an officer of the colonial fleet , whatever else I am whatever else it means that's the man I want to be... And if I die today , that's the man I'll be "
Battlestar Galactica is one of the greatest sci-fi shows of all time. Specifically, the 2000s era reboot. The creators did an unbelievable job, reworking the original premise of the 70s original show. Well worth the watch. It is a complete series, which was created with a planned beginning and end, that leaves nothing hanging… I was never cancelled. It was completed.
Battlestar Galactica is a PHENOMENAL Sci Fi series... It was so good, it ruined anything less that great Sci Fi for me... the acting / writing / special effects / and... yes... music... were all top--notch. It's become one of my all-time favorite TV series... period... and well worth checking out. Another absolutely brilliant score for a film... Yan Tiersen's amazing work for the film "AMELIE" (Probably my favorite film score of all-time). A joyous and beautiful romp which perfectly accompanies that amazing film. Cheers!
Enjoyed your four chord song comment. I'm a rubbish guitarist but played this acoustic for my father (an actual musician) with 3 chords and he loved it when i just played 2 minutes of downstrokes to finish. Took him back a few decades. As for bsg, the beauty of the reveal of the song was quite something. That intro you listened to was woven into one or two episodes and then as an intricate plot reveal occurred, so did the song (altho I'm guessing most older music fans will have picked it earlier). Edit, if you're considering doing more soundtrack reactions, I'd love to hear your thoughts on Where Eagles Dare. Possibly my favourite title to a film
Dpug, you HAVE to watch BSG!!! One of the best sci-fi shows EVER! Richard Gibbs does the music for the miniseries (watch it first!!!), but Bear takes over for the regular seasons. I listen to the music from BSG on a nearly daily basis and have one of his songs from the show as my ringtone.
