Islanded in a Stream of Stars
Ben Scarlato
2009-03-08 00:00:00

In the beginning of this episode, Starbuck and the others try to convince Adama of the importance of the human-Cylon child Hera, but he refuses to risk a full rescue mission. Seeing Hera as only one child, he chooses the good of the many over the good of the few. The others argue that Hera's destiny is important not only for the Cylon race, but also for humanity and its survival. Even so, Adama has had more than enough of prophecy and “destiny” and sends only a single Heavy Raider in pursuit of Hera, taking the initiative of determining his own fate.

As Adama continues in his desperate attempts to repair Galactica, the collapsing ship vents several of its workers into space. At the mass funeral that follows, Gaius Baltar declares that he has proof that Kara Thrace rose from the dead, and offers hope for reaching beyond death:
“Listen to me, for death is not the end, and I am not talking about Cylon resurrection. I am talking about the gift of eternal life that is offered to each and every one of us. Yes, even the most flawed amongst us. All we need is the courage to face death when it comes calling for us, embrace it even, only then will we truly have the ability to cross over, as one amongst us here has already crossed over. One amongst us here is living proof that there is life after death. The blood on these dog tags comes from necrotic flesh, that means a dead body, the DNA analysis is a 100% proof positive match for one Captain Kara Thrace.”
While I would not advocate truly embracing death, a certain degree of acceptance may be necessary in order to fight against it. If one is too horrified by the inevitable prospect of death, then the mind may construct rationalizations for why that horror is necessary and even good. On the other hand, if we do not flinch when death truly appears to be our lot, but fight and tooth and nail as long as there is a chance for survival, we may overcome it yet.

Another notable element of Baltar's speech is when he mentions that even the most flawed individuals can achieve eternal life. In the first half of this season Baltar also spoke about human flaws:
“Something in the universe loves the entity that is me. I will choose to call that something God, a singular spark that dwells in the soul of every living being, if you look inside yourself you will find this spark too, you will, but you have to look deep. Love your faults, embrace them. If God embraces them, then how can they be faults? Love yourself, you have to love yourself, if we don't love ourselves, how can we love others?...The truth is we are all perfect, just as we are. God only loves that which is perfect and he loves you, he loves you because you are perfect, you are perfect, just as you are.”
In this instance, I can find little redeeming in Baltar's admonitions to embrace human faults and label them as perfection. Human flaws are many and varied, but it is difficult to imagine how, for example, embracing the human tendency towards the many types of violence would result in a better world. The way forward is to restrain such tendencies, and if such restraint requires inhuman willpower, then the answer may be to turn to technologies that give us that strength.

Not only does the suggestion that we are all perfect eliminate the need to strive for improvement, but even outside a transhumanist perspective the idea has disturbing implications. According to Baltar's doctrine, would a hardened criminal be just as perfect as one who sacrifices to save the lives of others? It would seem so, as Gaius Baltar, while a complex and conflicted character, has much blood on his hands, not the least of his crimes being giving up the defense codes to the Cylons and allowing the nuclear devastation of the Twelve Colonies. If we were all perfect, while there wouldn't be anything wrong with improving ourselves, there would be little imperative to make ourselves better, and attain greater intelligence, wisdom, morality, happiness, and longevity.

One of the more intense scenes in “Islanded in a Stream of Stars” is when Helo, reeling from the kidnapping of his daughter last episode, confronts Adama and asks for a Raptor to search for her. Upon being denied this request and told to let her go, Helo calls Adama out on his own refusal to let go of the dying Galactica. Knowing when to let go is an important skill, as there are many situations that look beyond hope where one must continue to fight, but at the same it is essential to learn when to accept loss.

A contemporary example of such a dilemma is people who, somewhat like Samuel Anders, are unconscious for an indefinite period of time. When a patient is brain dead there is no hope of recovery and it is a great waste of resources, both in terms of monetary drain and the organs they could donate to others, to keep them alive. Cases of a persistent vegetative state are more challenging, however, as seen in this anecdote recently covered by Mind Hacks of a woman unexpectedly returning from such a state. Along with Baltar, Starbuck too might benefit from being more enthusiastic about change, for while Anders lies unconscious she says “you are my Sam, and that's how I'm gonna remember you,” and points a gun at him.

In considering our decisions, not only is the ability to accept change important, but so is the capacity to see the difference between an ill-fated suicide mission driven by the inability to accept loss, and a calculated gamble that relies on one of our last, but best hopes. Such choices range from accepting that a relative is in a truly irrecoverable state, to continuing to fight for one's own life, to realizing when a rescue mission may only result in more death, or continuing to strive for a better tomorrow. Adama, at least, ultimately has the courage to let something go, and as the episode ends he decides Galactica must be abandoned.