First things first: I have never gotten around to watching Battlestar Galactica, and I felt justly hesitant about reviewing the pilot episode of the spin-off series, Caprica. This despite assurance from David Eick, Caprica’s Executive Producer, that the series would not require previous knowledge of the Battlestar universe to be enjoyed.¹ Having watched the pilot in its entirety, I can attest to this claim, at least in relation to its inaugural episode. There were elements of the pilot that left me perplexed and requiring a second viewing, but this was not the result of lacking Battlestar knowledge. Caprica is a whirlwind of politics, religion, culture, ethnicity, and technology. And this is just the first episode.

The pilot opens fifty-eight years prior to the events of Battlestar Galactica, on the planet of Caprica, where we begin following a sixteen-year-old named Zoe (Alessandra Torresani). Early on, Zoe falls victim to a suicide bombing onboard a train, and from this tragedy emerges two vengeful fathers who become friends out of mutual grief: Zoe’s father, computer scientist Daniel Greystone (Eric Stoltz); and Joseph Adama (Esai Morales), a lawyer whose daughter and wife were also killed in the bombing but whose son William, Battlestar fans will already know, is still living. Daniel soon discovers that before her death, his daughter created a virtual representation of herself (called, yes, an avatar), and with the right technology Daniel can upload this avatar’s “mind” into a Cylon (a robot, for the uninitiated) thus creating a lifelike clone of his late daughter. Joseph, with his Mafia-like underworld ties, has the ability to procure that technology, and Daniel asks his newfound friend for assistance in essentially playing God.

Virtual reality masks look so much cooler on Caprica.

Religion is a prominent component of this pilot, and it seems poised to become a major focal point of the series. Caprica is a mostly polytheistic planet, and the suicide bombing (as well as Zoe’s own purpose for being on the train), is revealed to be motivated by monotheistic beliefs. Naturally this upsets the Caprican government, which views terrorism and monotheism as inseparable. There’s an intriguing subplot developing with Zoe’s friend Lacy (Magda Apanowicz), who was poised to leave Caprica with Zoe but who decided against it and is now questioning her own beliefs. While we’re not sure exactly what caused Zoe to want to leave Caprica, she alluded (in flashbacks) to finding a true, singular god. Lacy’s investigation into her friend’s life has the potential to completely change the landscape of the show if she discovers that Zoe did, in fact, find evidence of one all-powerful God. And if this doesn’t turn out to be the case, then what will Lacy find instead? This subplot has the potential to be the most compelling aspect of the show.

Morality and religion weigh heavily on the decisions made and the conflicts that arise within the pilot, but there are other prominent issues that are also poised to become recurring themes. There is, for instance, a certain cultural prejudice that Joseph faces as he interacts with members of the Caprican government, because he is from another planet and comes from a linage of peasants. In one of the best scenes of the pilot, Joseph explains to his son that he had to change his family’s last name when he moved to Caprica because of discrimination. The fact that Joseph is played by an American actor of Hispanic descent will liken his situation to our own treatment of immigrants, a topic that is sure to provide some heated interactions in Caprica.

Cinematographer Joel Ransom and costume designer Glenne Campbell do an admirable job of establishing the social differences between a working-class stiff like Joseph and an upper-class millionaire like Daniel. For starters, look at their homes. Daniel’s house is nearly stark white with huge windows, marble countertops, and tile flooring. Joseph’s house (the little we see of it) is done up in mostly dirty brown and tan with wooden paneling. Campbell has decked Daniel out in suits that look as though he has been ripped straight from an Armani ad while, curiously, Joseph is dressed in pinstripe suits better suited for the 1950s, topped aptly with a fedora.

But as the adage goes, the clothes don’t make the man. I had trouble relating to Daniel and Joseph because they’re both vessels for nefarious acts. Joseph’s shady ties help to illegally acquire an important piece of technology to put into the wrong hands. Daniel, guiding Joseph, constructs a Cylon with equipment stolen from a rival company and receives all the credit for the robot’s creation. However, both characters are poised for dramatic story arcs in which they just might find redemption. The pilot alone sees both men make radical changes in their personalities.

They may be inspired by different eras, but these guys dress with flair.

Caprica’s adolescent characters will be the ones to watch this season and will likewise be the ones to which the audience will most likely invest their emotional interest. The aforementioned Lacy has a lot of exploring to do if she wants to find out more about Zoe’s monotheistic life, and in the pilot alone she garners a lot of sympathy by getting stuck in the middle of something she does not immediately understand. Joseph’s son, William, being such a crucial element of Battlestar, must have much more ahead of him in Caprica. Of course there’s Zoe/Cylon-Zoe who appears likeable enough in this episode but who is a bit too enigmatic for my tastes. If the end of the pilot is any indication, she still has much to learn about the religious faction with which she had aligned herself, as do we. Her development alone will be worth watching.

Caprica’s pilot is a curious start to what is likely to be a complex and involved show. Some of the show’s primary plot points — like the impending robot uprising and the debate of whether mind-copies should be considered humans — do not present novel ideas. Caprica doesn’t need to be about mind-clones or robots, though, because it contains such a bevy of potentially interesting characters and underlying social issues that it will surely compel viewers in one way or another. It might have fifty-eight long years to go, but Caprica is off to a great start.