WTF Happened to Battlestar Galactica? (1978) 

Hey guys! This episode was made from suggestions from fans who emailed us demanding this show be covered. If you want to make suggestions for future episodes of GBNF then e-mail GBNFSeries@gmail.com and maybe we’ll cover your show!

battlestar galactica never seemed like a Star Wars rip off to me. I loved it as a kid.

My favorite episode was the one where the Galactica and other ships ran into the lost Battlestar Pegasus. Seeing Lourne Greene with Lloyd Bridges was excellent.

It still has one of the greatest theme songs.

Didn’t know Richard Hatch turned down Battlestar 1980. He didn’t go on to have a great career nor was he rich so he could only have turned it down because he recognised it was a betrayal of the original series. That’s character and that’s why he so loved and respected by true fans. R.I.P in the stars Apollo.

Galactica 1980 has one AND I MEAN ONE good episode: THE RETRUN OF STARBUCK where the aforementioned has to befriend a cylon to survive while being stranded on a remote planet. It’s still my favorite episode of all Galactica lore. Definitely recommend watching.

You didn't talk about Dirk Benedict 2nd show, The A-Team. It's intro featured a Cyclon crossing and Benedict pointing with a questioning look.

The original series was brilliant. The cylons were terrifying as a kid.

"Richard Hatch went onto be heavily involved with the franchise even after the show was gone with writing books" - -- - - - - but no mention that he also appeared in the 2003 version as Tom Zarek??

The final episode of Galactica 1980 is mandatory viewing, IMO. It’s (inexplicably) actually set in the original (1978) continuity and focuses on Starbuck becoming marooned on a planet, and out of desperate loneliness he repairs and attempts to befriend a cylon that was also shot down and is now marooned with him.

Battlestar Galactica 1978 was such a classic sci-fi series. I liked it premise "What if there was another race of humans that lived out there beyond the stars and they fought a race of robots bent on their extermination?". I liked the Cylon Centurions and admired their design and they reminded me of Roman Centurions. The cast had good chemistry. The late Lorne Greene was the perfect actor to play Commander Adama and he was the heart of the series. It was a real shame Jane Seymour decided to leave Battlestar Galactica. When her death scene was filmed, the entire cast was crying for real and Richard Hatch was really frustrated with her decision to leave. I admit my favourite Batttlestar episode was "The Lost Warrior" cos I thought it was a good plot and it predates the 80s cartoon "Bravestarr". Such a shame it was discontinued after only 1 season and it was a shame it didn't get a proper finale. We ended up getting the short lived sequel series Galactica 1980 set many years after Battlestar Galactica. Battlestar Galactica was one of the greatest sci-fi TV shows ever made.

As a child of the 70's, I can tell you that EVERY kid wanted a Muffit! Are you KIDDING ME?! That robot dog was AWESOME! In the wake of "Star Wars" (and long before home video was mainstream), having a show that was "kinda' like" Star Wars was every kids DREAM! I never missed an episode! Until... ... yeah... "Galactica 1980"... total embarrassment. I had a friend at the time who asked, "wouldn't it be cool if Star Wars happened here on Earth?" Well, Galactica '80 shut that idea up, right quick. I frakking LOVED the reboot series! The ending was a little disappointing, but I can't say that I've been bothered to think up of a better one. The show was good enough that the weak ending didn't spoil it all for me. And, no... don't do another reboot. Please. Can we stop suckling off the dried teat of old properties, please? Ugh.

I loved the original series. It really ended too soon.

Even though the show gets bogged down by reusing a lot of FX shots (even obvious to juvenile viewers) and plenty of dud episodes, it has 4-5 episodes that stand as some of the best sci-fi TV of the 70’s. I especially appreciated the end episode where they meet Lloyd Bridges as the captain of another Battlestar and he goes on this amazing death ride to draw the cylons away, taking out many baseships with him (though it’s up to interpretation if the other battlestar gets away or not). I think it wonderfully left the door open to an even better second season, which didn’t happen in favor of the garbage Galactica 80, which had only one decent episode that was like a proto-ENEMY MINE with Starbucks and a Cylon trapped on a planet together. The best most of us can do after finishing BSG is to go and watch the first few episodes of “Buck Rogers”, which reuses a lot of sets, props, and sound effects from BSG and in many ways feels like a (albeit more kitschy and comedic) spiritual sequel.

Here's a BSG/Lost in Space connection: Jonathan Harris (who portrayed Dr. Smith) provided the voice of "Lucifer", Baltar's Cylon henchman.

BSG 1978 was VERY special to my family. I was the step-son to one of the producers that produced the show and I actually spent a large amount of time on the various BSGs filming sets. I got to know Lorene Greene, who became like a 3rd father to me, Dirk Benedict, who was VERY funny and quite a jokester OFF camera!! He kept ALL of us in stitches, he was so funny!! He also was a great person OFF camera too. I fell in love with Laurette Spang, who was so kind and friendly to me off camera. Richard Hatch was far more serious, but still was a good person too - he was like a big older brother to me! John Colicos was AWESOME off camera!!! All these people were like FAMILY to me!! And because the set filming was always stopping a great deal while my step-dad and others worked and changed this and that (most people have no idea how complicated it is to film a project like this), we all got to know one another. I also remember going into the editing room. What a mess!! It seem like every film shot was done by so many cameras because I remember a lot of tv screens showing endless amounts of TVs frozen on this angle or focused on that line or “specimen”. The actors certainly did an amazing job performing the scripts but it was HERE, in the editing rooms, both on set and back at the studios, that truly “created” the BSG show. I can tell you that great effort was made NOT to copy Star Wars. But that was a tall order!! At that time, Star Wars DOMINATED everything that had anything to do with space. And everyone was “Star Wars Crazy”, seeing something about the Star Wars movie in everything. Hell, the decision to keep BSG out of the theater and only on TV was ALSO in an attempt to NOT be like Star Wars. But I’m just not sure, at that time, it was even possible. With the success of SW, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and other movies and tv shows, ALL with a focus about outer space, the BSG studios had just as much right to exist as SW did! Space programs is what the general public wanted to see at that time!! But the BSG family will ALWAYS be special to me! You know, somewhere in my storage of boxes, I still have some gold colored “dagits” (BSG money) from the original BSG movie set where Hatch and Benedict played cards. I also have a deck of the “rounded” playing cards too that they used. And, I still have one of the Viper Warrior brown leather suede jackets that the team wore. I’m not exactly sure WHO wore the jacket I have, but it still exists. Today, I proudly wear it every now and then just to see how many people still recognize the jacket. Oh!! How I miss that family. Sure, the politics were high (luckily back in those days I was too young to understand them and my step-father did a GREAT job to hide me from all that anyway!!) but the rewards were worth it… I watched the production of many, many, series… The Gene Kelly Special, Donna Summer Hollywood Bowl Special, etc., and I’ve met many actors and actresses along the way (some good and some bad) but BSG was different. We were on something NEW and DIFFERENT!! Now, with the rapid development of AI, I believe the show is making the transition from Sci-fi to fact!! Today, in real life, we are seeing the ancestors of the FIRST CYLONS born (or I should say built). Listen to what very smart people like Elon Musk and the Late Stephen Hawkins have both said about the development of AI and robotic development!! I now believe that in real life, true and actual CYLONS are coming and unless the human race does the right thing, we will risk a war for our destruction by the Cylons if we are not careful. BSG and The Terminator movie share a great deal in premise. Much more needs to be done to heavily regulate AI to ensure that does not happen. Sounds crazy, I know. But all science based stuff usual does before it is fact!…

There was so much potential for this show. I feel like it was sort of the Firefly of its time.

Larson downplayed the inclusion of Mormon theology in the show, but it is definitely there. The episode where it is most apparent is "The War of the Gods", where the fleet encounters the mysterious "Count Iblis", wonderfully portrayed by the late Patrick Macnee. The LDS concepts of free will, fallen/adversarial "angels", eternal progression (the idea that gods evolve from mortal men), and the conflict between light and darkness are front and center throughout the story. In addition the "Council of Twelve", the ruling "congress" of the colonies, is a direct copy of the Mormon church's General Authority's quorum. "Kernel of truth" is an understatement. Never bothered me though. Creators use what they know when they craft a fictional world, and BSG in all its forms has always been one of my favorites.

I remember my mom buying the toy ships at Kmart for me (after much begging). She said: "How do you know if you like these, the show hasn't started yet." And I replied: "Yes, I like it already!"

Please do an episode for Babylon 5. So under appreciated and deserving of recognition.

Original was fantastic, especially watching it in the late 70's early 80's. That red eye along with the knight rider scanner spawned entire industries for reproductions. Thanks Mr Larson.

Starbucks great adventure was the only gem to come out of Galactica 1980

Galactica 1980 had a theatrical release here in the UK, I remember going to see it as a kid with my Dad at the cinema

I don't understand people who were let down by the finale, I think it's one of the best endings to a TV show ever.

BSG was awesome... until they found Earth. Buck Rogers was awesome... until they LEFT Earth. Coincidence? Or Glen Larson? You decide.

I truly miss being invaded by cylons on a weekly basis.

The Galactica is the first ship I ever saw that made any kind of sense, it had redundant well defended systems and a reasonable launch recovery mechanism. I was so psyched for the network premier that I sat down in front of the TV 2 hours early and waited. Later on I got to see the theatrical version (In Sensurround!) which is amazing and really should be seen if the chance presents itself. I'm a big fan of the reboot series too, it was so well written that I couldn't believe they got it onto television. I do like certain elements from the original series more, especially the Cylon origin, but I'd have to be dead not to see how much excellence they brought to bear on the reboot.

"It was beautifully written, with compelling characters, conspiracies, and shocking revelations." So say we all!

Those toys were dope! I still have a Cylon Raider to this day. The missiles are long gone, I never considered until today that maybe some kid choked on them.

My dad loved/Loves the 80's Buck Roger's. William "Buck" Rogers was definitely my favorite. Also Colonel Wilma Dearing was Smoking hot beautiful. Although Buck Rogers jumped the shark when they brought in the bird dude.

Both of the Battlestar Galactica series were great! Galactic 1980 had one great episode (What Happened to Starbuck), and it should be watched!

17:55 I always think that Dr Zee was the lost child of John Denver

Man I wanted a Viper pilot uniform sooo bad. That jacket was awesome. BSG is still one of my favourite shows to binge watch.

Used to love this show in my youth was on around late morning/early afternoon on Saturdays in the UK. Who can forget the heart rendering episode of Face man befriending the cyclone when they are trapped in isolation?

This was my show back when I was a kid and Starbuck was Face in space and I loved the meta nod in the A-Team episode S2E10 when the Cylon walked past him, story goes Dirk Benedict saw a guy in a Cylon suit at Universal Studios, asked the director to shoot a scene with him, director said no, he did it anyway and the rest is history🤣

The last episode of battle star 1980 haunted me for 30 years because poor Starbuck was left alone on a planet. But then I learned that the first episode planned for the next season made him an ascended being.

Whoa! Obscure? Forgotten? I had no idea. Me and my buddies eagerly waited every week for Battlestar Galactica. Had the action figures and every issue of the sadly short-lived comic series. And actually as epic as Star Wars was (I can still remember the goosebumps I got seeing it opening week, despite only seeing it because my planned movie was sold out), I was a more of a Battlestar fan. Starbuck is still one of my favorites. And Colons one of my top robots. Just wish Rick Springfield has stayed. I knew the modern one had been popular when it was on, but didn't realize it's actually more well know. Still, from what I've seen, it doesn't disrespect mine and is actually a worthy successor (one of the few times I can say that of a reboot).

I was 6 when this came out and it was the greatest thing ever 😎 and the theme music is still epic

I watched this show rerunning in the early 80's. I absolutely loved it. It was on Saturday nights at 7pm. I never missed it as a young kid. 👍

There are many ways to bring back Battlestar Galactica. The reimagined series was not the end all to the story of BSG.

I was 8 in 1978. Battlestar Galactica was awesome. Sometimes it's better to leave things in the memory, right, Star Wars?

The original is still superior because despite its flaws, it has had a long lasting impact on the sci-fi series that followed it and it created legions of fans without which there would have been no reboot.

I remember that there was a program where you sent in so many coco puffs box tops and got a cardboard replica of the fighter cockpit controls. I may still have that tucked away somewhere.

You missed Larry Manetti among the pilots. He played Rick on Magnum PI.

So, the question begs to be asked: How many T.V. shows that started out to be really good, or even great, were ruined by what the network execs wanted?

TIL Star Wars invented headscarves, helmets, and explosions.

1980 was a wreck from the beginning. When a sequel series starts by contradicting the finale of the previous series in a way that can't be easily explained and makes no effort to justify the contradiction its an incredibly bad sign. The Original Galactica;s finale involved them intercepting a garbled transmission which was stated to be ancient if it wasn't an echo of another transmission. The transmission was the Apollo 11 moon landing. Yet they arrive on Earth more then two decades later in the 1980s. Even if the transmission was actually an echo and they were in the Alpha Centauri system during the original finale they would have had to receive it before the landing took place.

I'm gonna easily show my age here lol, but I LOVED this show and couldn't wait for the next episode. P.S. 1980 sucked!

the thing that got me with this was, how the new version could have, imho learned alot from the original, that sense of fun, wonder, enthusiasm... stuff they just.. cant seem to do these days.

Rick Springfield was in Battlestar Galactica? I didn't know that.

BSG2K3 is perhaps one of the best modern sci-fi shows around. It was a great to meet a new millennium, and is sad how far things have fallen since then. I grew up on OG BSG and really didn’t give 2K3 a chance at first. By the middle of season one though, I was hooked.

I loved this as a kid in the 70s and I love it still

I watched the pilot movie on tv in 1978, but I remember it being interrupted by a speech from Jimmy Carter and the show returned still in progress. Anybody else remember that?

Great television show. It's a bit tacky by today's standards but at the same time, television doesn't have the positivity and enthusiasm that this show has. It's a fun watch.

No mention of Anne Lockhart's Sheba?

I used to speak into my fan and say "I am a Cylon", doubt I was the only one. I loved this series and and BSG, such an amazing sci-fi world. It was ground breaking for tv as well, there was nothing like it until Babylon 5.

Prior to the revival show, the longest lasting legacy of the original Battlestar Galactica was the live “show” that was the concluding three minutes of the Universal Studios Tram Tour for about five years in the early 1980’s

John Colicos was also the voice of Apocalypse in X-Men: The Animated Series back in the 90’s.

Loved this as a kid. I remember trying my best to watch all the episodes. When I was watching Galactica 1980, I missed one episode, the one with Starbuck. I was soooooo upset!

Galactica 1980 had one brilliant element... the flying bikes... sooo cool.

Another Classic Added 👍 Could you do Jack Lord's Hawaii Five-O? That Would Be Awesome

I was born in 75, so I was crazy young, but I wanted a Muffet. 🤷🏻‍♂️ I always wanted my hair cut like Starbuck or Faceman. Dirk Benedict’s hair…awesome. Great ensemble cast on this show. One of the best!!

Very excellent video, sir!

I'm old enough to have watched both series, and I can safely say that the reboot was superior. Much as I enjoyed the original, the reboot ranks among the finest science fiction shows to ever play on mainstream television. The series ending of the reboot was utterly devastating, and I like it because it doesn't pull any punches or spoon feed the viewer a happy ending just to stick an easy landing.

You missed Larry Manetti he played Miles. He was Orville Rick Wright in Magnum PI and Lt. Bob Boyle in Black Sheep Squadron.

Having seen the original and then seeing that reboot I can definitely say the original was far superior. That and they didn't have to swear every other word. Even if they did try to mask it as frack this or frack that.

I loved the original Series

I once wrote a script (I'm not a script writer) about one character that would bring together BSG, Star Trek NG, and Star Wars together to fight the combined forces of the Cylons, the Borg, and the Empire (there was still an Empire when I wrote it). A character based on The Highlander who lived long enough to find himself in a Special Operations Group of the Star Trek Universe, running around the Galaxy collecting technology that might otherwise be banned from The Federation, runs into a Jedi (future characters since Episode 9 would still be a LONG time ago). While forming alliances and exchanging tech, BSG finds Earth to warn them about the Cylons. Meanwhile, The Enterprise runs into the Borg. While the Borg are regrouping, they find, and assimilate, the Cylons. Chaos ensues.

Can't say I am the biggest fan of this video and will admit to being a huge fan of the original series (more so than the remake). Firstly the Star Wars clone part. The stories are really not that similar and the main characters, resemble characters from a dozen different series and films (Almost as if Star Wars ripped off various films itself). The biggest similarity is the viper, which with their colouring do look like an X Wing. As for the episodes. The original 3 episodes Saga of the Star World is great and I say holds together really well. The only real complaint is that many of the miniature effects are repeated because they were so expensive to create. For me, the story is in many ways more interesting than Star Wars and I say this as a huge original Star Wars fan. Generally after that, most of the episodes are pretty good, with some real highlights such as The Living Legend and Fire in Space being my high lights. There are a few low points but for the most part even episodes like The Lost Warrior are quite enjoyable. As for Galactica 1980. It is pretty terrible and for the most part can be ignored but the final episode The Return of Starbuck being a true highlight of the series. Battlestar Galactica was very 1970's in some ways and for a modern audience it probably doesn't stand up as well but I remember watching the film version in 1979 and loving it and when I could see the series, I loved that as well. It was fun and whilst it had its share of dark moments it didn't just focus on them, which was something that the re-imagined series did a lot. As for a remake, I would love to see what we could do with a decent budget and effects and actually recreate the original (I think the remake will probably be more based on the re-imagined series). Having aliens in a series doesn't just make it silly, when done will it can be really good and the idea of the original cylons was good.

i loved the original BSG in the 70s... cuz it was all we HAD.. and i wanted ANY Sci Fi.. but, it was also very good for its time, just never got the audience it deserved. yes, reboot is simply worlds better, loved every episode, and rewatched it a couple times when aired. I met Richard Hatch in a Trek Convention in Vegas in 2014.. the guy LOVED talking "shop" to fans, had no pretense at all about him, and once he started talking to you, he really wanted to TALK to you. just a first rate "Fan" of his fans, and loved his job. very sorry he passed away shortly after.

I watched the original series as a 4 and 5 year old with my father. The strength of the show was that it could be watched and enjoyed by all ages. RIP OG BSG.

Zac gets blown up and at that exact moment a commercial about grilling starts. Bravo RU-vid commercial algorithm.

1. The original BSG was the best: no shakey-cam theatrics, storylines were less depressing and the show was great fun overall. 2. The craft designs were cool. Starbuck was cool. Tighe was cool. And Athena... was *hot*!! 3. Fred Astaire! No one thought *he'd* appear in a science fiction TV show, huh?

Started watching the remake with my fiancé who has never heard of it. She fell in love with it. Then she was like. Oh this is my favorite character and I was like. Yeah. This show was Game of Throning people before it was cool. Don’t get attached. BOOM. Half the pilots and her favorite died immediately. Lol Game of a thrones meets Star Wars is how she described it to a friend 😂

I remember watching every episode. Its biggest problem was its cost. I think it was TV guide that ran the story of the most expensive TV show in history on its cover during the series premier. I think the cost was 1.million per episode. It had a large following and was selling the toys 8 months before the sunday night movie( it was big back then) came out.

Had you known who Rick Springfield WAS when the pilot was shot then, yes, you would have been surprised he was killed off so quickly. He was a Pop Idol at the time and eye candy for the females (and some of the males) in the audience. Sadly, though, Jesse (whose girl he had the hots for) tuened out to be one of the original "lizard people cylons" and exit Rick. He went to shoot the pilot for the cool vampire series (before Buffy and Twilight, and blah blah blah) "FOREVER KNIGHT" playing the lead but when series time came around was replaced by Geraint Wyn-Davies who hit the ball out of the park as Nick Knight. Not that Rick was bad...he wasn't. But Geraint was clearly BORN to play that part

Hey if I remember, wasn’t the baron robot helper voiced by Dr. Smith?

Muffit and Boxey really brought the kids into the show back in the 70s -- everyone wanted a robot dog! I loved the series (the first 5 or so episodes) until it got somewhat campy. G 1980 did not happen. No reboot unless it could be done correctly and follow the original exactly and I don't think it could be done today as it would contain too much politics and ruin it.

The absolute beauty of Galactica 1980, William Daniels guest starring 2 years previously to lending his voice to KITT 😁

Plus, everyone knows that cylons are the origin of The Borg of Star Trek! lol. Roddenberry and Larson even toyed with the idea of original BSG being part of "The Preservers" nareative. It looked like Star Wars because John Dykstra did the special effects for both shows. That is where the similarity ends.

I was maybe 15 when this show aired, just loved it. When I first heard it was canceled after just 1 season I was like how could this happen? Lol I was not laughing then but I was just pissed. Remember going to Universal Studios may a year or so after it was canceled and on the tram tour they drive you pass some of the larger props from the show, like rubbing salt into my wounds.

Mind you - I still want a flying motorcycle, thanks to Battlestar Galactica.

Commentor Captain Retro Station stimulates a good point. 1977 Star Wars was released, the next movie took 3 years to come out and Star Trek, at the time, was just not filling the void Star wars created. Battle Star Galactica was a welcome fix for the SCI-FI junkies, (like myself) that George Lucas created.

Pretty sure the people who were glued to the TV when the Mini Series came out were the kids watching the originals on Saturday afternoon repeats.

Battlestar Galactica was a great show on TV. It still holds up today ! Those were the days. For "many" things back then...a more simpler time.

Someone needs to run with Richard Hatch's "Second Coming" script! Plus, I miss lasers in BSG!

I was 14 years old when this series came out, and my family loved (nearly) every episode. it was great for the time it came out, and over the years of growing up and having a few dramas of my own, I appreciated the drama that unfolded with the reimagined series in the early 2000's.

A hearty thank you to Glen🥰

One of the greatest shows in history!

God I loved this show. In fifth grade my buddy and I made up an imaginary game where they meet up with the crew of Space 1999, which like BG and Buck Rogers also had a terrible second season.

I was in high school when BG first came out. It was one of my favorite shows. I never even heard of the BG'80 show. This is the first I am hearing of it! When you said it played opposite 60 minutes that explains everything. We only had the one TV in the house and no one messed with dad watching 60 minutes.

Saw the theatrical release of the pilot in Penticton, BC. Thanks for the nolstalgia

Dave would be the Captain of the Battlestar JOBLO while Jesse is the brash Fighter Pilot protecting the ship.

I loved the modern BSG ending. Full circle and mystery that made me want more.

Rick Springfields roll as Zac was good. He died in the first episode. That set up the entire attack.

Best thing from the 1978 version - - > Jane Seymour.. My first crush 😍

Yes it's too soon for another battle star series. I really enjoyed the 2004 version. The ending was good in my opinion. I mean it could have been longer but really it's not easy to wrap up a show like that.

Where do you record you lines? In the bathroom?

When I was very young our family was stationed in Germany in 1978 where there was no ABC. I saw this in the movie theater after seeing Star Wars just as if it was a theatrical release, having no idea it had been a TV movie back in the states. It held up as a theatrical movie too ... at least to my young brain.

Your channel is amazing! PLEASE get better quality mics though!