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Battlestar Galactica: Season 4.5 |  | Directors: Edward James Olmos, Gwyneth Horder-Payton, John Dahl, Michael Nankin, Michael Rymer
Actors: Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis
Studio: Universal Studios
Category: DVD
List Price: CDN$ 57.99
Buy New: CDN$ 34.99
as of 3/13/2010 20:25 EST details
You Save: CDN$ 23.00 (40%)
New (10) from CDN$ 34.99
Seller: Amazon.ca
Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 113
Format: AC-3, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: Unrated
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Running Time: 763 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.4 x 1.2
MPN: 61105927
UPC: 025195050029
EAN: 0025195050029
ASIN: B001HZXYDC
Theatrical Release Date: 2004
Release Date: July 28, 2009
Shipping: Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 The extended episodes are worth it alone for the conclusion to this amazing series August 22, 2009
Iqbal Faizer (Montreal to Toronto, Canada)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'll do a more in-depth review later, but suffice it to say that the last 2 years of Battlestar Galactica have suffered from rushed plotting and a lack of texture that made the drama so wonderfully realistic in the show's first season. While the conclusion to the series in Season 4.5 might not have been all it promised in terms of further rushed plotting -- mostly due to the Syfy Network not promising the show a 5th season -- this release rectifies those problems for 3 of those episodes, which are given new life here. "A Disquiet Follows My Soul" is over 9 minutes longer, "Islanded in a Stream of Stars" is over 19 minutes longer, and the finale, "Daybreak", is over 11 minutes longer. They are all in far superior form here, especially the first 2 extended episodes, which take on a whole new life, when compared to the aired versions.
My one major complaint that hopefully will be rectified with future releases is that this was not done with more episodes. As reported by other fans, "Deadlock" had a much more elaborate subplot with Baltar that was cruelly cut down; "Blood on the Scales" had 40 minutes cut out of it. All this tends to weaken the drama, as even bits of dialogue are omitted from the aired versions. However, recutting episodes with new music and sound mixing costs quite a bit, so the producers may have wanted to hold off more extended versions for future releases, which we'll hopefully get for not only the remainder episodes of 4.5, but also 4.0 and much of Season 3's action-oriented episodes.
In any case, despite its lesser political exploration, simply not enough story moments for Lee Adama and many lesser characters, and far too much Starbuck, Season 4.5 is still a great and emotionally satisfying conclusion, especially the finale, to the most politically insightful show in the history of American pop culture.
Brilliant and daring series, yet imperfect... August 3, 2009
Bruno Desjardins (Montreal)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
In this age, TV producers and writers don't dare create storylines that span 4 or 5 years because the Damocles sword of cancellation looms over their heads. So Ron Moore and David Eick candidly admitted that after season 2 they did not know exactly where the series was going. Considering this, the ending of BG is a tour de force since it wraps up the story quite nicely. Science-fiction - at least good sci-fi - is always about exploring the human condition and looking critically at the world we live in. Here, BG succeeded better than Star Trek ever did since humans are not always at their best... Corruption, the destruction of democracy in the name of stability and security, the power of religion, good vs evil in the human condition (and in the Cylon condition!), BG dares look at humanity for what it is, and the picture is not always pretty.
The series finale is interesting. Photography is superb and the pace slows down considerably after the final battle with the Cylon colony. One might even call 'visual poetry' the scenes of the Earth the Galactica reaches: a warm and quiet place so different from the cold and harsh environment of the battlestar... Much symbolism there: after the death of the ship, a new life begins in Paradise... Humanity ressurrects to start anew. The religious overtones are everywhere... Genesis 6-14: 'the sons of the Gods came in unto the daughters of men'... Moore and Eick have transformed the Galactica crew into protagonists of Earth religions and into the missing link of human evolution... The union of Caprica 6 and Baltar symbolises the union of Cylons and Men - and by the way, the number 6 has always been associated with Man - consider the Prisonner series where the hero is simply called Number 6... Caprica 6 goes full circle: after destroying manking she become the first Cylon to bear a child... There is genius in this series... But it is not perfect and some will be frustrated with the way Starbuck fullfills her destiny, or with the ease by which the fleet accepts to abandon all technology... This makes little sense considering the many political battles fought in the series over stakes much less crucial than that one... The paradoxes of time travel are unexplained, but then again the unexplained is explained by the presence of the third force, that of God and angels - probably a way to tell the viewers 'Don't try to figure it all: it's a mystery and it does not have to make sense. Can we hope to understand God's intentions?'... I don't buy it....
Overall, this series is perhaps the best sci-fi series ever written. It should be acclaimed for its stunning visual FX, but mostly for the courage and lucidity of its writers who superbly and coldly depicted the quiks of humanity and society without ever becoming moralistic about it...
The DVD set features a few extended versions of the pivotal episodes. The episodes are even better that way. Great value!
too bad there won't be a 5.0! July 7, 2009
A. Burnell
7 out of 11 found this review helpful
What a great wrap-up to a spectacular series. The final episode and how the writers came up with that ending was remarkable. While the possibilities of what would happen once they found Earth are plenty, we saw in Galactica 1980 that it didn't work, although I remember the chill of seeing the Cylons blast LA! Anyhow, it was very creative of how the "cycle" repeats. It leaves you wondering!
 Disappointing July 1, 2009
Moe Sasseville (Montreal, QC, Canada)
9 out of 48 found this review helpful
What is worse than a disappointing end to a TV series? A disappointing end that is streched out over several months. This whole season is long and filled with dead-end plots everything seems to be forced. A sad end to a great series.
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