Characters in Battlestar Galactica (1978).
open/close all folders
Colonials
In General
- Ace Pilot: All of the Viper pilots, with some being better than others.note It's implied that Adama, Tigh and Cain were this back in their youth.
- Men of Sherwood: The Viper pilots aren't completely safe, but more than 2/3rds of the named ones (most of whom only appear in a couple of episodes) survive the show and/or inflict decent casualties against the Cylons.
Commander Adama
Commander Adama
Played By: Lorne Greene
"Forgive me, Mr. President, but they hate us with every fiber of their existence. We love freedom, we love independence. To feel, to question, to resist oppression. To them, it's an alien way of existing... they will never accept."
Leader of "The Fleet". A veteran, a father and a grandfather. The one thing he hates other than the Cylons is politicians. He has set out on a quest to find the lost "Thirteenth Tribe" in the hopes that the two groups can fight back against the Cylons.
- Authority Equals Asskicking: He is by no means a slouch when it comes to direct combat, as seen when he helps Apollo, Starbuck and Boomer fire at the invading Borays. Of course, they were just scaring them off.
- Being Good Sucks: When he has to deal with the Council of Twelve.
- Big Damn Heroes: Tries (and fails) to do this for the 12 colonies, but succeeds in doing so to rescue Terra from a thermonuclear exchange.
- Blue Is Heroic: Adama wears blue and is the Big Good.
- The Chains of Commanding: Adama takes his responsibilities as commander and general leader very seriously and feels any loss keenly. One scene in the pilot focuses on him and Athena as he recounts a point where he tried to save a mother and child only for them to be left behind, with Adama feeling forced into the role of God.
- Commanding Coolness
- Crusading Widower: Judging by the burned-out appearance of his home, his wife Ila was killed in the attack on Caprica.
- Dad the Veteran: He is after all a warrior with three children (one of whom died).
- December–December Romance: Seems to hit this off with Tinia at the end of 'Baltar's Escape'. Belloby attempts to have this with him in an earlier episode, 'The Magnificent Warriors'.
- Gut Feeling: He often feels this way when it comes to the Council in whatever decisions they make for the good of the fleet. He even points out that they are bent on repeating the previous Quorom's mistakes that led to the Destruction of the Colonies. He is proven right when the Eastern Alliance officers the Council decided to release align with Baltar and the Noman, and take the Council (along with Boomer and Sheba) hostage.
- I Minored in Tropology: During the Count Iblis story, we learn that Adama had studied Telekinesis when he was attending military academy; he invokes 90% of Your Brain, and reminisces to Apollo about how his wife made him promise to stop bending spoons with his mind. This gets used as a possible excuse to Do In The Wizardry of Count Iblis' miracles.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Tigh, which probably goes as far as their early days as Viper pilots.
- Invincible Hero: He tends to give off this vibe, especially when he's in command of the entire fleet. Even the doubtful Tigh still follows Adama unquestionably, and maybe one or two members of the Council want to take him down a peg.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: In the Berkley novels, Adama is a much more stern, strict man than he appeared to be in the TV series, as the members of his crew were said to have feared him as much as they loved him. That being said, there's an alternate version of him in the Dynamite comics, in a reality that Starbuck and Apollo are stuck on where there never was a Galactica and the Cylons rule supreme.
- Meaningful Name: His name is derived from the father of all humans, Adam. Like him, Adama maintains balance between godlike wisdom and personal doubt.note
- Outliving One's Offspring: His younger son Zac is the first onscreen casualty on the entire series.note President Adar [reacting to Zac's Viper exploding] What was that?Adama: That was my son, Mr. President.
- Papa Wolf: He's a nice guy, but don't get him mad...
- The Patriarch: Being played by Lorne Greene helps. This isn't his first time at this, either.
- A Father to His Men / The Men First: He likes to help out his warriors whatever he can, including keeping them out of the loop in one of his Batman Gambits.
- Properly Paranoid: More often that not, Adama's skepticism has saved the crew; the most triumphant example of this is in the pilot, when his doubts about the Cylons are proven right and the Galactica winds up being the last Battlestar.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: He's usually one of the first commanding officers to figure out what Apollo has planned.
- Screw the Rules, I Make Them!: Justified, since the Council led by Adar has made a stupid mistake. The fleet has since been under martial law, which sometimes puts Adama at odds with the Council.
- Sole Survivor: The only surviving member of the original Council of the Twelve at the pilot episode's start.
- So Proud of You: Adama says this to his son a lot. Way more often than the new Adama, that's for sure.
- Tired of Running: He says this almost word for word when Tigh suggests they can outrun the basestar in the last episode.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Cain.
Colonel Tigh
Colonel Tigh
Played By: Terry Carter
"There are probably as many voids in the universe as there are ideas."
Adama's Executive Officer. Eminently skilled as a senior commanding officer, serious to a fault and completely hopeless when it comes to trying to relax and be one of the guys.
- Bavarian Fire Drill: Pulls one on Apollo and the rest of his squadron when he needs to keep them out of the loop on a Batman Gambit.
- Butt-Monkey: Poor Tigh...
- The Cynic: Perhaps even more so than Starbuck.
- Da Chief: To the younger warriors - especially Apollo and Starbuck.
- Dead Alternate Counterpart: In the Dynamite comics where he pulls a Heroic Sacrifice in an alternate timeline.
- Drill Sergeant Nasty: Of course everyone knows his bark is worse than his bite.
- Friend Versus Lover: With Siress Tinia, who's not exactly Adama's interest at first but in any case it's because she was part of the Council. It officially comes into play when Tigh orders a round of grog when he sees Adama walking Tinia into the Officer's Club.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Adama, which probably goes as far as their early days as Viper pilots. This kind of relationship allows Tigh to speak frankly in matters of protocol and defense.
- Number Two: To Adama and for everyone below, his authority is unquestioned.
- Plucky Comic Relief: Not so much plucky but, he's gotten in and out of hairy situations through comedic means.Tigh: "When Adama sees these (uniforms) he's gonna go crazy!"
- Straight Man: And how!
Captain Apollo
Captain Apollo
Played By: Richard Hatch
"I came from a world where the people believed that the opposite of war was peace. We found out the hard way that the opposite of war is more often slavery."
Apollo is the leader of Blue Squadron. A no-nonsense kind of guy who doesn't take no for an answer. Kind and helpful to his friends and family.
- Action Dad: He's a Viper pilot, and he's raising Boxey.
- Authority Equals Asskicking: He's the captain of the Blue Squadron and has got plenty of piloting and sharpshooting skills to boot.
- Back-to-Back Badasses: He and Starbuck pull this off awesomely against the Cylons during the raid on the Basestar.
- Batman Gambit: Apollo is known to pull this, especially if the lives of his friends are at stake.
- In "Murder on the Rising Star", the only way Starbuck could be acquitted from murdering Ortega was to have Baltar positively identify Karybdis, the latter's fellow collaborator and the real killer. Apollo purposely lets Karybdis aboard the shuttle before picking up Baltar from the Prison Barge. Apollo knows he and Baltar would both likely be killed as Karybdis turns out to be Pallon, who works as a waiter aboard the Rising Star.
- "Baltar's Escape" has Apollo and Starbuck helping Wilker fixing up the two Cylon pilots for Baltar who has the Council of the Twelve as well as Boomer and Sheba (along with two "Blackshirts") captive. Apollo's plan? The shuttle takes off as planned, but Baltar finds out too late that these Cylons aren't functioning properly, which allow Apollo and Starbuck to remove the detonator and recapture him.
- Beauty Equals Goodness:
Word of God implies that Apollo has unnatural good looks as well as a balance between concern for others and unwavering dedication to his duty as a Colonial Warrior. - Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Sheba, who even lampshades this in the last episode.
- Big Damn Heroes: Apollo rescues Starbuck (and vice versa) about Every Other Episode.
- Cartwright Curse: Played straight with Serina.
- The Chosen One: A mild example; his tendency to save many innocent lives is why the Beings of Light have taken an interest in him.
- Commanding Coolness: He is the commanding officer of a fighter squadron.
- Crazy Enough to Work: He improvises an alternate plan upon seeing the repaired Cylon fail to activate the control panel, leading to the very same Centurion damaging a captured Raider ship which prevents Baltar's escape plan from succeeding.
- Dead Alternate Counterpart: In the Dynamite comics where he finds out that his alternate self was betrayed and killed by Baltar in the Cylon-occupied universe.
- Death Seeker: Sheba accuses him of being this since Serina's death.
- Defrosting Ice King: Being around Starbuck and Boomer (and raising Boxey) has helped the initially tight-assed Apollo mellow out.
- Distressed Dude: Starbuck has had to save his skin at least more than once.
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: With Zac; he's the older and responsible one - which makes sense because he happens to be a Captain.
- Freudian Trio: With Starbuck and Boomer; the Super Ego of the group, and the most moral (and moralizing).
- The Good Captain: Hello! Captain Apollo!
- The Gunslinger: Apollo proves he's quite the accomplished marksman when he stands off with Red-Eye.
- Gut Feeling: He's pretty much the only one (aside from Boomer) who knows Starbuck would not go as far as murder, even if he's a cigar-chomping scoundrel.Apollo: "Father, you know him as well as you know me. He would never kill anyone in cold blood!"
- Other notable feelings includes his suspicions of people being more than they claim to be - like Chameleon for conning Starbuck and Count Iblis for being more malevolent in nature.
- Heroic Sacrifice
- Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu / Taking the Blast: He tries to shield Sheba from Iblis, only to be killed in her place in "War of the Gods". (Don't worry, he got better!)
- It Is Not Your Time: The Beings of Light resurrect Apollo because he was not meant to die and that Iblis had broken their laws by killing him.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Starbuck. They treat each other like brothers so much that it's often easy to forget they aren't related by blood. And while it's not mentioned out loud, it's obvious that Adama thinks of Starbuck as another son.Apollo: "Hey, hey. It's me, Apollo. Remember? We talk about things."
- It becomes a trio when Boomer is in the mix.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: The two sometimes venture into this territory, though.
- Incorruptible Pure Pureness: He appears to be the only one (if not one of the few) who seems unaffected by Count Iblis' charms. Subverted in that he can be a bit of a jerk at times, especially when under stress.
- Invincible Hero: Let's just say every time he comes up with a hunch, he always ends up being right.
- The Kirk: Being the most moral character in the show, it's no surprise he fits well into this role.
- Knight in Sour Armor: Not as much as Starbuck, but it's there. He can be rough around the edges at times.
- Like Father, Like Son: He and his father share a high morality.
- Love Interest: To Serina, and after her death, Sheba.
- Love Makes You Dumb: He can barely keep his temper in check when it concerns Sheba.
- Man Hug: He and Starbuck share this in "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part 2" when the latter was released by the Cylons.Starbuck: "Don't you know it's against regulations to hug a junior officer?"Apollo: "Not if I mean it."
- Manly Tears: The ending of "Lost Planet of the Gods, Part 2", when Serena dies from her injuries. There's also a smaller instance in "Fire in Space" when he's reunited with his family in the Life station.
- Meaningful Name: Named after a famous God, Apollo maintains a balance between being a poetic soul and a warrior of necessity, and that love and understanding as well as valor and responsibility are the key points to the character. They're both also unlucky in love (in the warrior's case, it's fate).
- Military Maverick: Of a Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! variety. He and Starbuck are often considered as such by the Council.
- Noble Male, Roguish Male: With Starbuck; is the noble of the pair, due to being more reserved when it comes to duty and women - the latter of which he unfortunately doesn't seem to have luck with, and is also a Parental Substitute.
- Off on a Technicality: He uses rather unorthodox methods during his time as legal council.
- Parental Substitute: He raises Boxey as his own following Serena's death, probably only because he was married to her.
- The Philosopher: Instead of being a fighter pilot, Apollo would much rather chart the stars. One of his first conversations is about hoping the colonies could get back to deep space exploration with the war winding down.
- Properly Paranoid: There's a reason why he does not like the idea of Count Iblis taking over command of the fleet, and why he doesn't completely buy Chameleon's familial connection to Starbuck despite his mixed feelings on the matter - he really wants to believe that Chameleon is Starbuck's father.
- Quick Draw: Had to employ this in "The Lost Warrior" during his stand-off with Red-Eye.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue to Starbuck's Red; compared to his irresponsible wingman, Apollo is the more mature half of the daring duo. Starbuck himself pretty much sums it up when he introduces him and himself to Chameleon:Starbuck: "I'm Starbuck and this is my conscience, Apollo."
- Sibling Rivalry: With Zac in the novels.
- Sibling Team: When he and Zac went out on patrol together.
- The Smart Guy: The Berkley novelizations show Apollo being much more scientifically skilled than in the show proper. Of course, one can assume that much of those traits were transferred to Boomer.
- Not So Stoic: He definitely has his moments, as Count Iblis could attest. Then there's Sheba.
- Sugar-and-Ice Personality: Apollo usually keeps a cool head and is usually stiff around his fellow officers (only because he knows the Cylons won't back down), but he does get more relaxed with his family and friends.
- Straight Man: Not as much as Tigh, though.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: He tries to apply this to the people of Terra in a speech, to buy Starbuck time enough to reach the Galactica.
Lieutenant Starbuck
Lt. Starbuck
Played By: Dirk Benedict
"Everyone's entitled to a little confusion in their lives. I practically thrive on it."
There's really only one word to describe Lt. Starbuck... trouble. Name the scam or scheme and chances are Starbuck has tried it, or he'll get around to it. Good at heart and an excellent pilot. Unfortunately he's also a classic con-man - most likely he gets it from his old man, Chameleon.
- A Day in the Limelight: Many. Sometimes it feels like Starbuck is the real lead of the show.
- Amusing Injuries: Suffers one when Athena catches him on the surveillance cameras making out with another woman and vents steam from the catapults on him.
- Anti-Hero: While he is a hero, he does some pretty unheroic things - juggling between women or gambling in his spare time. This may or may not have disappeared entirely as of the last 1980 episode, where he actually befriends a Cylon and sacrifices his chance of returning to the Fleet for the sake of a mother and her child.
- Back for the Finale: The final episode of Galactica 1980 is basically a BSG episode in all but name depicting Starbuck's last known fate. Being left alone on an empty rock, having used his chance to return to the fleet to instead save a mysterious woman and her child.
- Back-to-Back Badasses: He and Apollo pull this off awesomely against the Cylons during the raid on the Basestar.
- Befriending the Enemy: One of Starbuck's bad habits. He even befriends Baltar's subordinate, Lucifer!
- Big Damn Heroes: Trades off with Apollo doing this regularly.
- Butt-Monkey: When it concerns Pyramid, he would either always lose or something bad will always happen if he does win. Not to mention his two love interests ganging up on him.
- Captain Crash: He sure doesn't know how to land any spacecraft right.
- The Casanova: He is famously known for flirting with various women throughout the show, though it doesn't help when he has two women currently vying for him. A scene in "The Living Legend Part I" has Boxey ruminating over all the women in Starbuck's life... to Apollo's chagrin.
- Chivalrous Pervert: On the other hand, he's not out to hurt any of them. He would rather hop in the Viper and help his fellow warriors kick Cylon tail in order to keep the fleet on its journey.
- No Guy Wants to Be Chased: If the novelizations are anything to go by.
- Cassandra Truth: In 'The Young Lords', Starbuck experiences this while trying to convince Kyle that the Cylons wont turn over his father in exchange for him. Thankfully, Kyle is eventually talked out of making the exchange.
- The Cynic: Starbuck can be very cynical.
- Deadpan Snarker: His usual stock of trade. Almost half of his lines are usually sarcastic remarks.Starbuck: "I wonder how this place looks like in the daytime?"Boomer: "Hey, this is the daytime."Starbuck: "Oooh... lovely..."
- Distressed Dude: Subverted; he was captured by the Cylons in 'Lord Planet of the Gods - Part II', but is soon released after forming an Odd Friendship with Lucifer.
- Enemy Mine: With Cy in "The Return of Starbuck".
- Expy: According to the creators, he is basically Bret Maverick IN SPACE!.
- First Kiss: He gives one to Miri.
- A Friend in Need: In "Murder on the Rising Star", where he is accused of Ortega's murder and his innocence is only believed by Boomer and Apollo.
- Freudian Excuse: Starbuck's womanizing nature comes from being practically abandoned as a child by his father and absent mother, so he tended to keep the people around him as large of a group but at a distance so he'll Never Be Hurt Again.
- Freudian Trio: With Apollo and Boomer; the Id of the group, as the most emotional and desire driven.
- The Gambler: He likes to wager in the game of Pyramid, though he often loses. More evident when he first meets Chameleon, who quickly sees the flaws of Starbuck's new system.
- Got Volunteered: A subversion in 'A Gun at Ice Planet Zero' two-parter, Starbuck recruits himself so he'll have the chance to rescue cadet Cree. Once he is chosen he feigns ignorance.
- Headbutting Heroes: With fellow Viper pilot Flight Sergeant Ortega - until his murder which Starbuck was framed for, that is. Subverted in that Ortega wasn't very heroic to begin with.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Apollo, to the point where Starbuck does not like the idea of Serina replacing him as Apollo's wingman. It definitely helps that Adama has also considered him a family, which Apollo is not afraid to point out.
- He is also this with Boomer, at least when it comes to playtime. Put the three together and it's a trio.
- Honorary Uncle: Is one for Boxey.
- Hot-Blooded: Oh, so very much. He even lampshades this himself at one point.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: Despite his occasional altercations with people who piss him off, he's rather quick to befriend everyone around him, Cylon or not. Even other con men. Lucifer is rather impressed by Starbuck's easy-going nature. He even re-activated a Cylon pilot when they're both stranded on a planet. As Starbuck tells Apollo:Starbuck: "You were always part of a very big family and I never had that, so I just grew up keeping the number of people around me as large as I could."Apollo: "So you couldn't be hurt by any particular one?"
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: To Aurora. In fact, he abandons his usual flirty behavior when he discovers that she is among the mutineers on the Celestra. He even has a pep talk regarding her with Damon, her current lover.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his devil-may-care attitude, Starbuck is not actually out to hurt anybody.
- Knight in Sour Armor: He may be cynical, but at least his heart's in the right place.
- The Lancer: To Apollo; shares this role with Boomer.
- Like Father, Like Son: Both he and his father are natural con men.
- Lovable Rogue: He's a pretty likeable guy when you aren't annoyed at one of his irresponsible schemes.
- Love Triangle: With Athena and Cassiopeia, and also with Cain and Cassiopeia for only one two-part episode.
- Manchild: According to Word of God, a large part of him is childlike (despite the fact that he smokes his trademark fumarellos) because he gets easily distracted in the face of very serious situations.
- Man Hug: See Apollo.
- Manly Tears: He weeps near the end of "War of the Gods, Part 2", when when he takes in that fact that Iblis murdered Apollo right in front of him, and again when the Beings of Light resurrect Apollo.
- Meaningful Name: To contrast Apollo who is named after a perfect being, Starbuck is named after Captain Ahab's imperfect first mate from Moby-Dick who rushes in where others fear to tread simply out of necessity. It helps that the original character's also a Number Two.
- Military Maverick: He is known to break a lot of rules - just ask Boomer.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Not really touched upon in the series, but the novels revealed that Lucifer launches a Cylon attack near the end of the episode against Baltar's orders, having been inspired by the same bout of recklessness in Starbuck. Of course, this gets Serina killed.
- Noble Male, Roguish Male: With Apollo; is the roguish of the pair, being a gambler and smoker who tends to find himself in fights and generally juggles between two women (or maybe more).
- Number Two: To Apollo.
- Only Sane Man: He thinks he's this, and yet his plans and schemes are some of the most wacky of all.
- Parental Abandonment: He was 'orphaned' on the forests of Caprica. But...
- Missing Mom: Turns out his mother is indeed dead while Chameleon, despite using Starbuck, is actually his father.
- Pretty Boy: Some say it's not in the same extent as Apollo, but it's to the point in 'Greetings from Earth' where Hector mistakes Starbuck for Michael's grown-up daughter before Vector corrects him. Apollo and Cassiopeia were both amused.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: He's the Red to Apollo and Boomer's Blue; Starbuck is more likely to take risks than the two and is the most impulsive and irresponsible warrior in the squadron.
- The Rival: To Ortega. According to Athena, their rivalry has been there since their time as cadets, stretching from Pyramid, Triad and even women.
- Robot Buddy: Cy in "The Return of Starbuck".
- Screw Yourself: Literally. He sleeps with Kara Thrace in the crossover comic and quips that the next time someone tells him to go frack himself he can say that he already has.
- Undying Loyalty: To Apollo.Starbuck: "...I just know you're not gonna do whatever it is you're going to do without me."
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Apollo. This is more prominent in the novelizations than the show proper; though close like brothers, Starbuck would sometimes snicker about Apollo having a stick up his rear-end.
- What the Hell, Hero?: In "The Man with Nine Lives", he calls Apollo and Boomer out for investigating Chameleon but then forgives them when he finds out for himself that Chameleon has conned him into protecting him from the Nomen who put him on their blood trail.
- He also gives one to Kyle in "The Young Lords" when the latter plans to exchange the former with his imprisoned father.
Lieutenant Boomer
Lt. Boomer
Played By: Herb Jefferson Jr.
"Just keep it up, old buddy, you're going to get us into real trouble."
Dubbed by: Med Hondo (European French)
Ace pilot. Smart enough to stay away from Starbuck during his "Get Rich Quick" schemes. Whenever Starbuck and Apollo are both missing in action, Adama counts on him to command Blue Squadron.
- Big Damn Heroes: He has his moments, but the best one is in the second half of the Lords of Kobol two-parter.
- Black and Nerdy: He serves as the brains within the Blue Squadron.
- Captain Obvious: Boomer loves stating the obvious, sometimes...
- A Day in the Limelight: Along with Athena and Boxey, Boomer takes center stage in 'Fire In Space'.
- Deadpan Snarker:Tigh: "You can barely stand!"Boomer: "A Viper is flown from a seated position."
- The Everyman: At least when compared to Apollo and Starbuck...
- Former Teen Rebel: Implied by Boomer himself when he mentions he spends more time hot-wiring hovormobiles than doors. Which makes one wonder...
- Freudian Trio: With Apollo and Starbuck; the Ego of the group, tries to balance out the other two.
- Green-Eyed Monster: It's not that he doesn't like Apollo and Starbuck. It's just the fact that he's tired of losing to them in Triad matches, and he doesn't realize that making a deal with the devil would only make matters worse.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: Again, with Apollo and Starbuck. Those secret handshakes between the three warriors say it all. Not to mention him and Apollo being the only ones who believe Starbuck's innocence in "Murder on the Rising Star".Apollo: "Hey, I've never seen you fuss so much."Boomer: "I guess I would feel better if I were going."Apollo: "We need you to lead the squadron."Boomer: "But it doesn't change the way I feel."
- The Lancer: To Apollo; shares this role with Starbuck.
- Mr. Fixit: Which he displays when he hotwires the door to open in 'Fire In Space'.
- Only Sane Man: The one most likely to point out how insane Starbuck's schemes are.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: He's the Blue to Starbuck's Red, being more reserved and thoughtful of the two.
- The Smart Guy: He is more familiar with engineering than most warriors (as as shown in 'Fire In Space') and is fluent in many languages (notably, Gemonese).
- Straight Man: To Starbuck, who he often tries to keep on the reins.
- Undying Loyalty: To Apollo and Starbuck, and that's to say the least.
- You Cannot Fight Fate: He has bits of this outlook - when there's a particularly risky job present, he know he's one of the best qualified for the job.
Lieutenant Athena
Lt. Athena
"Commander, we're picking up some attack signals between Purple and Orange Squadrons. We don't *have* Purple and Orange Squadrons."
Athena is Adama's daughter and Apollo's sister who has feelings for Starbuck and he has feelings for her... and Cassiopeia... and Aurora... and Merium. Sometimes she just wants to hit him on the head, and she may very well have.
- Accidental Aiming Skills: Poor Athena, she managed what no Cylon ever could. She killed Starbuck, true it was just a simulation...
- Action Girl: She is one of the women trained to be a Viper pilot when the warriors fall ill. It is implied she already is one anyway.
- Adaptation Dye-Job: She was blonde in the Berkley novelizations. Maren Jensen is a brunette.
- Betty and Veronica: Apparently she's the Betty to Cassiopeia's Veronica for Starbuck's Archie, being that she is a bridge bunny who's the most devoted to her father out of all the children.
- Bridge Bunny / Communications Officer: Her main area of expertise. The novelizations reveal that she is always on the bridge rather than in a viper because she is the most qualified person to do the job.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: She was this to Starbuck for quite awhile, even if she was the one who emotionally pushes him away.
- Daddy's Girl: While not as passionate about it as Sheba, Athena is the loyalest to her father out of her siblings (who of whom is now dead).
- A Day in the Limelight: Along with Boomer and Boxey, Athena takes center stage in 'Fire In Space'.
- Dead Alternate Counterpart: In the Dynamite comics where her alternate self is killed in a darker universe.
- Demoted to Extra: She ends up getting this treatment after the pilot. She was originally supposed to be a front-line female character.
- Devoted to You: Towards Starbuck; it even shows when she helps him land his Viper in the hangar through the counsel. Of course, it sours a bit when Cassiopeia enters the picture. Granted, she was the one who dissolves her relationship with Starbuck after the Destruction, but still.
- The Dutiful Daughter: Seems to have shades of this in earlier episodes. While it's not to say Adama favors neither her or Apollo, she does stay on the bridge while Apollo flies around shooting off Cylons in his Viper.
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: With Zac; she's the older and responsible one.
- Love Triangle: With Starbuck and Cassiopeia.
- Meaningful Name: Athena possesses many attributes of a Goddess from the Greek mythology, including strength and determination as seen when she comforts her father when they both lose two of their family members. It definitely helps that she's also a Viper pilot.
- Put on a Bus: Alongside Boxey and Muffit, she never appeared for the rest of the season after "Greetings from Earth".
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Athena is the passionate Red Oni to Cassiopeia's more mellow Blue. Athena, despite her 'good girl' status, can be very short-tempered.
- Romantic Runner-Up: At least we think so...
- Tsundere: If she were any more hot tempered she'd be a redhead, especially as far as Starbuck is concerned.
- Woman Scorned: In the pilot episode, Athena caught Starbuck making out with Cassiopeia in the Viper launch bay. She vents steam from the catapults on him.
Cassiopeia
Cassiopeia (Laurette Spang)
"There are others in greater need than I."
Originaly a... Socialator/Hooker by trade. Cassiopeia decided to make a more helpful contribution to the fleet by becoming a nurse.
- Action Girl: She once guarded a downed teammate on a black-ops mission all by herself.
- Adaptation Dye-Job: She was brunette in the Berkley novelizations. Laurette Spang is a blonde.
- Ascended Extra: She was originally supposed to die in the pilot but was then kept as one of the series regulars.
- The Atoner: She becomes a nurse to Dr. Salik in order to put her socialator life behind her.
- Betty and Veronica: Apparently the Veronica to Athena's Betty, both vying for Starbuck's affections. It doesn't help that she used to be a socialator long before taking the job as a medtech.
- Damsel in Distress: She was rescued by Starbuck when the Ovians were about to eat her.
- Fire-Forged Friends: With Sheba, who doesn't seem to be taken with her thanks to her relationship with Cain. It isn't until the battle on Gamoray that the two develop a newfound respect for each other.
- Greater Need Than Mine: Almost says this word for word in the pilot when Starbuck tries to get her medical attention for her broken arm, underlying her modest nature despite her status. Used as an Establishing Character Moment.
- Hooker with a Heart of Gold: Her original profession is as a Socialator, apparently a largely respectable profession in Colonial High Society, and she has the kind of gracious and generous personality to make that claim believable.
- Hospital Hottie: She later becomes this after her ordeal on Carillon.
- Love Triangle: With Starbuck and Athena, and also with Starbuck and Cain for a two-part episode.
- May–December Romance: Was in this with Cain sometime prior to the series.Cassiopeia: "I could be your daughter as well."
- Meaningful Name: Cass shares a parallel beauty with that of the original Cassiopeia from the Greek mythology, though they also share opportunism and pride in some degree. They both also seek to atone for their past deeds.
- The Medic: She's a med-tech, after all.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Cassiopeia is the mellow Blue Oni to Athena's passionate, short-tempered Red. Unlike Athena, Cass is rather amused by Starbuck's shortcomings and finds his bad habits more charming than annoying.
- Secret Secret-Keeper: She is the only one who knows that Chameleon is Starbuck's father.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: With Sheba; is the girly girl of the pair.
Lt. Sheba
Lt. Sheba (Anne Lockhart)
"Did you ever think about that maybe two people who snap at each other for no reason, are doing it to avoid their real feelings?"
Daughter of the Legendary Commander Cain (NOT the female one). She's just as stubborn as he is.
- Ace Pilot: Her own father has often called her, "One of the best".
- Affirmative Action Girl: She was not added to the main roster until around halfway through the show, probably to serve as the main female Viper pilot.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Apollo, as said in her pic quote.
- Big Damn Heroes: Rescues Starbuck and Apollo as her introductory move.
- Daddy's Girl: It especially shows in her debut episode, where it gets to the point she initially resents Cassiopeia.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: During her initial introduction, Sheba is a realist with a tough exterior but during her time aboard the Galactica she forms a friendship with the rest of the crew - even Cassiopeia.
- Distaff Counterpart: To Apollo, according to the creator of the re-imagined show.
- Divine Date: She and Iblis spend a lot of time alone together in various ships throughout the fleet.
- Fire-Forged Friends: With Cassiopeia, who tends to Bojay's wounds during the raid on Gamoray.
- Like Parent, Like Child: Shares her father's stubbornness and bravery.
- Love Interest: To Apollo.
- Love Makes You Dumb: She is completely taken in by Iblis in a two-parter episode. Thankfully, she throws him off near the end after he kills Apollo.
- May–December Romance: With Iblis. He even looks like he could be her dad!
- Missing Mom: Cain mentions that Sheba's mother died at some point in the past, which coincided with his relationship with Cassiopeia.
- One of the Boys: Subverted - She's a skilled Viper pilot and hangs out with the boys. But she does talk to Athena and Cassiopeia, too.
- Platonic Life-Partners: She initially had this with Bojay and once openly referred to him as such in "War of the Gods".Sheba: "Bojay is like my family. He's all that I've got left."
- The Sixth Ranger: Along with Bojay, she joined the Galactica after she was forced to flee the Pegasus in an injured state.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: With Cassiopeia; is the tomboy of the pair.
Serina
Serina (Jane Seymour (Actress))
"We waited. We watched and prayed, and you never came!"
Mother of Boxey. Appears in only the Pilot and the two-part episode "Lost Planet of the Gods", but an important character nonetheless.
- Action Girl: Learns how to fly a Viper when the regular pilots fall ill.
- Action Mom: She did have a son to raise.
- Adaptation Dye-Job: In the novels, she has auburn hair and green eyes. Jane Seymour is brown-eyed and a light brunette in the show. More accurately, one eye is brown: the actress has heterochromia (eyes that are each a different colour).
- Brooding Boy, Gentle Girl: With Apollo.
- Dead Alternate Counterpart: Inverted in the Dynamite comics. She is alive and well in a universe where the Cylons rule supreme and has been an able-bodied resistance fighter.
- Fourth-Date Marriage: To Apollo.
- Intrepid Reporter: She was reporting on the peace celebrations when the Cylons attacked.
- Jump Scare: She is understandably startled when she spots a corpse the tomb she and the others are exploring.
- Killed Off for Real: She was blasted by a Cylon in the two-parter, 'Lost Planet of the Gods'.
- The Lost Lenore: A Type B for Apollo.
- Love Interest: To Apollo whom she later marries.
- Meaningful Name: Her name is derived from Cylene, one of Apollo's lovers in the Greek mythology; both attract their respective Apollos through different means of strength - while Cylene attracted the God by wrestling with a lion, Serina attracted the warrior by coping with life and crisis with exceptional strength, and by training as a Viper pilot.
- Missing Mom: Becomes one for Boxey when she dies from the blast she took from the Cylon during the Battle of Kobol.
- Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome: Though she has lived through the events of the pilot, she was killed off two episodes later.
Boxey
Boxey (Noah Hathaway) and Muffit (Evie the Chimp)
Apollo's son. Boxey is a bright and outspoken boy who loves adventure. Boxey lost his beloved daggit/dog Muffit when the colonies where destroyed. So Muffit II was created to take his place. Now the pair are almost always together. Both Boxey and Muffit have used their unique talents to save lives many times.
- Cheerful Child: He can retain being this even when in danger. When it comes to Muffit, however...
- A Day in the Limelight: Along with Athena and Boomer, Boxey takes center stage along with Muffit in 'Fire In Space'.
- Dead Alternate Counterpart: In the Dynamite comics where his alternate self is killed during the Cylon invasion.
- Family of Choice: Since his mother's death, the entire core Galactica crew has become Boxey's surrogate family. Starbuck even becomes his Honorary Uncle.
- The Heart: They're supposed to be this to the whole 'Galactica' crew. Especially Adama and his family.
- Heroic Dog: Although Muffit is normally just Boxey's playmate, it has put itself at risk to rescue people, distract Cylon centurions, and so on.
- Heroic Fire Rescue: Muffet running back into the ventilation duct to rescue an injured firefighter he'd spotted earlier.
- Kid Sidekick: Boxey.
- Named in the Sequel: In Galactica 1980, it's asserted that Boxey is only a nickname, and his given name is Troy. While Galactica 1980 is generally treated as non-canon by fans and creators alike, the name Troy has stuck and carried over to most Expanded Universe material since then.
- Non-Human Sidekick: Muffit the Robo Dog. Muffit is pretty much the only thing on the ship with whom Boxey can get into childlike misadventures with.
- Parental Abandonment: His father died during the Cylon attack on Caprica, while his mother was killed in action during a mission on Kobol.
- Parental Substitute:
- Boxey's mother was killed shortly after Apollo married her, so Apollo took on the task of looking after him.
- Starbuck spends enough time with Boxey to be considered a surrogate second parent.
- Put on a Bus: Alongside Athena, Boxey never appeared for the rest of the season after "Greetings from Earth". Muffit is not seen again after "War of the Gods".
- Replacement Goldfish: Muffit II is one for Boxey after the latter's real daggit was killed during the Cylon attack.
- Sidekick Ex Machina: Again, Muffit.
- Tagalong Kid: Subverted during the pilot; played straight in "Gun At Ice Planet Zero" and "The Magnificent Warriors". Muffit has proved useful in those situations, though.
- When You Coming Home, Dad?: Boxey seems to always wonder this whenever Apollo is out on patrols or fighting Cylons.
Zac
Zac (Rick Springfield)
Apollo and Athena's younger brother, out on his first patrol in the pilot.
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: Zac is the eager excitable sibling compared to the responsible Apollo and Athena.
- Killed Off for Real: When his fighter explodes.
- Man on Fire: He's visibly shown bursting into flames before his fighter explodes.
- New Meat: It's mentioned that he's to be on his first patrol in the pilot.
- Odd Name Out: Unlike his older brother and sister, Zac's name has no connection to Greek mythology.
- Sacrificial Lamb: He is the first character to die in the show.
- Sibling Rivalry: With Apollo in the novels.
- Sibling Team: When he and Apollo went out on patrol together.
- The Unfavorite: In the novels, his father believes he just Can't Catch Up.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Zac is quickly and unceremoniously killed off barely twenty minutes in.
Lt. Jay
Lt. Bojay (Jack Stauffer)
Sheba's wingman aboard the Pegasus and former member of Blue Squadron.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While fiercely loyal to Cain, he does have a caring side.
- Platonic Life-Partners: He initially had this with Sheba, but...
- Put on a Bus: He was not seen again since the beginning of "War of the Gods".
- Remember the New Guy?: Bojay was originally a pilot on the Galactica before being transferred to the Fifth Fleet under Commander Cain who hadn't been mentioned before "The Living Legend".
Commander Cain
Commander Cain (Lloyd Bridges)
"Tomorrow we go on the offensive. We'll show those golmonging Cylons how to fight now! Yes, by the Lords of Kobol, the Cylon Empire is about to fall!"
Sheba's Father. Commander of the battlestar Pegasus. Appears in only one episode ("The Living Legend"), but is too hammy to pass up.
- Action Dad: He's old enough to have an adult daughter, and leads from the front.
- Bling of War: Cain's pilot fatigues sport gold stripes, which help distinguish him.
- Blood Knight: Ho boy!
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: In order to have his way, he destroys needed fuel tankers to force Adama to attack a base. Adama calls him on this, everyone expects him to backstab again, and no one is surprised when he disobeys orders again in a later attack.
- Drowning My Sorrows: Cain does this after he's demoted for attacking the Cylon tankers.
- Four-Star Badass
- Frontline General: Cain personally leads raids on Cylon supply ships.
- General Ripper: While an inherently good person (unlike his reimaged opposite sex counterpart), Cain does some very shady things in his attempts to get the Galactica's help taking Gomorray.
- Hero of Another Story: Cain and the Pegasus have been fighting a guerilla war against the Cylons in their little corner around Gomorray for about two years.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Though whether or not he survived during the confrontation is unknown.
- Hit-and-Run Tactics: Cain knows he can't fight the Cylons in extended battles, so he focuses on quick strikes.
- Informed Ability: Commander Cain is famous as a bold commander, brilliant strategist, and an inspiring leader. In practice, his leadership consists of swaggering around boasting about himself and sneering at others, and his strategy is Attack! Attack! Attack!. It works, mostly because Baltar is an idiot and he is a tactful competent general.
- Junior Counterpart: An inverted one to Starbuck. Like Starbuck, Cain is a friend of an Adama, likes to break the rules and is a ladies' man in a relationship with Cassiopeia.
- Large Ham: Most of his lines are very hammy. Admiral Tug Benson IN SPACE!.
- Living Legend: There's a reason why the two-parter episode featuring him is called 'The Living Legend', and he truly lives up to the legend.
- Love Triangle: With Cassiopeia and Starbuck. Fortunately, Cain himself resolves this by taking on the two Cylon basestars alone.
- May–December Romance: With Cassiopeia.
- Military Maverick: Ho boy!
- Never Found the Body: Never found the ship in his case when the Fifth Fleet went missing two years before the series began. And it's believed that anyone on the Pegasus (including him) did this again at the end of 'The Living Legend'.
- Not Quite Dead: Cain and the rest of his crew were originally thought lost some time before the series began.
- Old Soldier: Cain is clearly the oldest crewman onboard the Pegasus and still goes into battle alongside his younger pilot subordinates.
- Parent-Child Team: Cain fights alongside his daughter Sheba during the raid on the Cylon tankers and implied to have done so on multiple occasions.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: He's the hammy Blood Knight Red to Adama's stoic, cautious Blue. Their color schemes also reflect this dynamic, with Adama's blue commander's uniform while Cain wears the brown leather fatigues of his subordinate pilots.
- Self-Deprecation: He's mature enough to recognise when he is wrong, such as the fact that the refugee fleet would have been doomed if his attack was carried out, and then defer to Adama's authority when working out a battle plan.
- Staff of Authority: Cain is often seen carrying a swagger stick with a pegasus figurine on the top to denote his status as commander.
- Undying Loyalty: Cain's crew almost take this to the extreme.
- You Shall Not Pass!: He throws the Pegasus at two Cylon Basestars to protect the fleet. After which his ship disappears. It is speculated that he is too much of a badass to be dead.
Other Colonials
Chameleon (Fred Astaire)
- Con Man: Like father, like son. Apparently.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Sure, he can be very deceptive when it suits him. But overtime, he grows to care for Starbuck. Indeed, the warrior turns out to be his own son - a fact which he told only Cassiopeia.
- Luke, I Am Your Father: To Starbuck. He didn't actually tell him that, though.
- My God, What Have I Done?: The look on Chameleon's face as Starbuck tells him he's quitting the service to spend more time with him just screams this.
Dr. Salik (George Murdock)
- Humans Are Morons: His attitude towards the Council of Twelve.
- The Medic: In the Galactica, he's senior of them all.
Dr. Wilker (John Dullaghan)
- The Smart Guy: It's part of his electronics job resume. He's also the one who built Muffit II, not only as Boxey's replacement pet but to also serve as a basis for the War Daggits designed to take watch over the Warriors as they rest in situations where they are isolated or on a ground mission.
Flight Sergeant Jolly (Tony Swartz)
- The Big Guy: In the Blue Squadron. Shares this role with Greenbean.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Greenbean. Only elements of this come to play in the show, but is delved a little deeper in the novelizations.
Flight Sergeant Greenbean (Ed Begley Jr.)
- All Love Is Unrequited: It is revealed in the novelizations that Greenbean has had a crush on Serina. And then she dies.
- The Big Guy: In the Blue Squadron. Shares this role with Jolly.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Jolly. Only elements of this come to play in the show, but is delved a little deeper in the novelizations.
Flight Sergeant Ortega (Frank Ashmore)
- Asshole Victim: He was murdered by Karybdis. But it's only because he has blackmailed him along with two other men who sneaked aboard the fleet using aliases, and was also a jerk to some other warriors - but especially Starbuck.
- Jerkass
- Jerk Jock: He is a rival Triad player, after all.
- Killed Off for Real
- The Rival: To Starbuck. Those two have had quite the rivalry history...
- Token Evil Teammate: He took the bribe from three men, and has been blackmailing them ever since.
President Adar (Lew Ayres)
- Head-in-the-Sand Management: With disastrous results.
- Killed Off for Real
- My God, What Have I Done?: He sinks into despair upon realizing that his actions have caused the destruction upon the Twelve Colonies."How could I have been so completely wrong? I have led the entire human race to ruin..."
- Sacrificial Lamb
Croft (Roy Thinnes)
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: With his wife Leda, who is not too fond of him.
- Military Maverick: According to his wife, he 'invites trouble' and is a little more extreme than even Starbuck. He was even sent to the Prison Barge for this.
- Token Good Teammate: Among the criminals recruited to disable a laser weapon meant to target the Galactica passing through Arcta, he's the only one willing to stick to the mission. The rest of the prisoners, however, devise an escape plan.
Leda (Christine Belford)
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: With her husband, Croft. It appears to be one-sided as she outright states that she hates him despite their marriage, though she ends up dying for him in the end.
- Heroic Sacrifice / Redemption Equals Death: She takes the blast from Vulpa meant for Croft.
- The Medic: For the Arcta team.
- The Smurfette Principle: She's the only female in the demolition team.
Commander Kronus (Paul Fix)
- Heroic Sacrifice: He is shot while trying to get the Celestria back upright during a skirmish.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: He ultimately decides to take matters into his own hands upon finding out what Charka was really up to.
- "Stop Having Fun" Guy: He is among the most strict Colonial Commanders in the fleet, and his attitude towards the other officers (even Colonel Tigh) shows.
Aurora (Ana Alicia)
- Forced into Evil: She is among the mutineers who staged an escape from the Celestra, but we later find out that Kronus' second-in-command, Charka, is the reason the mutiny took place due to his inhumane treatment toward the workers.
- Love Triangle: With Damon and Starbuck, though the latter later defies this.
- Remember the New Guy?: Aurora may be one of Starbuck's past love interests, but she was not seen until next to the last episode. Somewhat justified, as she is thought to be killed during the Destruction.
Sire Uri (Ray Milland)
"Warriors are always the last to recognize the inevitability of change."
- Adaptational Attractiveness: Sire Uri was described in the Berkley novels as 'handsome', though this could count as an inversion since the novel and the show were released around the same time.
- Ambition Is Evil: According to Adama, he was once an honorable Councilman before the Destruction, which has now corrupted his moral and ethical standings as well as physical appearance.
- Bald of Evil: An amoral councilman with no hair on the top of his head.
- The Casanova: He has at least two or three ladies sitting with him during his initial introduction. They're much younger than he is, making him a Dirty Old Man.
- It's All About Me: Subverted. He was highly thoughtful and full of moral spirit in his early days before power and fame eventually got to his head.
- Karma Houdini: Assuming he survived the attack on Carillon...
- Lack of Empathy: He could care less about the dangers the rest of the Colonials would have to face. He also shows no sadness towards the fate of his wife.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: Arguably more so than the rest of the Council.
- Slowly Slipping Into Evil: Happened off-screen, perhaps sometime prior to the first episode.
- Ungrateful Bastard: Adama voted for Uri to represent Caprica on the council but Uri frequently backstabs or tries to undermine him. Apollo calls Adama out on that.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: He is never seen again after the events of 'Saga of the Star World'.
The Council of the Twelve
- Aristocrats Are Evil: Almost any Sire or Siress is of high-brow low-moral character. Especially in the Council.
- Hero Antagonist: Quite a few of them are this. One of them, Siress Tinia, explains they are really only trying to do their job.
- Humans Are Morons: Dr. Salik thinks this towards the Council, anyway.
- Lawful Stupid: They believe everything they do for the Colonies and later the rag-tag fugitive Fleet is for peace. They are even willing to call a truce for both the Cylons and the Eastern Alliance, only for both to stab them in the back.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: Almost all of them are this, with Anton and Tinia being notable exceptions. There may be even one or two who want Adama removed from office.
- Only Sane Man: At least Sire Anton is this in the pilot. Of course, he is not seen again after that.
- Straw Civilian: Except Adama, of course.
Council Security (aka Sentries)
- Asshole Victim: For all of their trouble, they're usually on the receiving end of the abuse. Reese, especially. He got attacked twice, first by a scared man whose family was captured then by the escaping Nomen.
- Driven by Envy / The Resenter: In the novelizations, the Council security are called Sentries and the reason they were not present until the 'Tombs of Kobol' arc was because the men who weren't qualified to be warriors were recently selected by the new Council representatives and and the jealousy they feel helps explain why they always cause so much trouble for the warriors.
- Gang of Bullies: Mainly to the warriors.
- In-Series Nickname: The warriors officially dub them 'Blackshirts', due to their uniforms.
- Jerkass: Due out of pure spite and jealousy they feel towards the warriors.
- Jerkass Ball: Boomer screws around in the shuttle just to get back at a couple of them for insulting him.
- Lawful Stupid: Probably the reason why the council chose them in the first place.
Borellian Nomen
Borellian Nomen
From left to right: Taba (Anthony De Longis), Maga (Lance LeGault), and Bora (Robert Feero).
A subrace of humans who are a little more caveman-looking than the others, and are culturally a Proud Warrior Race. They are part of the colonial fleet, but only appear in one episode.
- Badass Boast: "We ARE Warriors!" Bonus points if in response to some who would dare think otherwise.
- Big Ol' Eyebrows: All male Borellian Nomen appear to sport them.
- Blatant Lies: The trio arrive at the Rising Star, insisting that they have come to enjoy themselves. Fortunately, the Colonial Warriors know better.Boomer: "I knew we had some among the survivors but I never heard of them mixing with the other colonists."Jolly: "They don't, unless they're on a blood trail."
- Blood Knight: Seems to be a common trait among the Nomen.
- Draw Sword, Draw Blood: The Borellian Nomen had a warrior's code that said that if they drew their long knife, they would prefer suicide to seeing the knife resheathed unbloodied.
- Frazetta Man: It's never made explicit, but with the eyebrow ridges and general shagginess, the implication is that the Nomen are there to answer the question, "Hey, if our ancestors came from space, then where did the Neanderthals come from?" Well, they came from the same place. So there.
- Honor Before Reason: Once a Borellian Nomen sets out on a "blood trail", nothing will ever dissuade him from his "hunt".
- Hot-Blooded: Taba, the youngest out of the three. Maga even removes him from the blood trail for this.
- The Leader: Maga.
- Proud Warrior Race: They take their status as honorable warriors very seriously.
- The Stoic: This also seems to be a common trait.
- This Is Unforgivable!: The reason they're on the blood trail for Chameleon was because the latter has conned one of their own.
Cylons
General
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: They destroyed both their original creators and humanity, neither of which were with any explained motive. Because this show was written when everyone made of metal in Sci-Fi was automatically racist.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: Most of the Cylons barring the Imperious Leader (whose eyes we don't see) and Baltar sport red robotic eyes that constantly swivel back and forth.
Baltar
Baltar (John Colicos)
"I have a plan. All I need is the opportunity to present it. That will come."
Baltar is not a Cylon - he's the man who sold humanity out to the Cylons. A chronic liar and coward, he loves to think of himself as superior to everyone else. He thinks he's using the Cylons when they're the ones using him. Of course none of that matters because he could never do the one thing they wanted him to do - destroy the Galactica.
- Aristocrats Are Evil: Baltar is a Count, one of the most commonly 'evil' ranks.
- Asshole Victim: In the movie, he is executed by the Cylons (ironically the same people who he betrayed humanity for), it's a fate well-deserved for someone as despicable as Baltar.
- Bad Boss: In the climax of "The Living Legend Part II", Baltar drops his own basestar back while leaving the other two in his trio to handle the Pegasus.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: In "Lost Planet of the Gods", he tries to get into a position to backstab either the Cylons, the Rag-Tag Fleet, or both at once — and not even the audience is sure where he actually wants to aim the knife. It all ends with him pinned under rubble at the bottom of a Space-Egyptian pyramid when both sides refuse to trust him.
- Classic Villain: With "Evil Lighting" and everything.
- Depending on the Writer: In Baltar's Escape Baltar is not only a coward, but whiny when he is faced with the reality that Adama would act solely on whether or not he believes Baltar will release his hostages. Given Baltar's history of treachery, Baltar's Oh, Crap! look and almost Breaking the Fourth Wall moment before the cut to commercial only makes him look more pathetic but in an amusing way.
- Devil in Plain Sight: Initially when he was part of the Council. Now he's just an all-around villain.
- Dirty Coward: Boy is he ever.
- The Dragon: To the Cylons' Big Bad, and later to Count Iblis.
- Evil Costume Switch: He initially wore his white councilman robes, but then he took up the green suit when his life was spared and was given command of his own basestar - which even comes with a snarky IL Cylon!
- Faux Affably Evil: He is charismatic and well-spoken, but it only serves, and does little, to hide his true nature as a narcissistic, slimy backstabber.
- Frontline General: In "The Living Legend Part I", he accompanies the Cylon Raider attack wing in his own craft to get credit for the destruction of the Galactica. It doesn't last long as he's sent running when he finds himself face-to-face with the Pegasus.
- Green and Mean: His green outfit during his affiliation with the Cylons screams very much this.
- Hated by All: Virtually nobody likes this guy, not even the Cylons, who are just using him for their own benefit. And considering his personality, it's easy to see why.
- The Heavy: Since the Imperious Leader spends most of his time as Orcus on His Throne on his basestar or on the planet Cylon, Baltar is given the responsibility of chasing down the remnants of humanity.
- It's All About Me: Definitely has moments of this. At one point, he believes he'll be treated like a prince.
- Karmic Death: Subverted. Originally he was supposed to be killed by his new "allies" but the audience liked him so much the big wigs gave him a break. New scenes were therefore shot for the series to keep him around as a recurring villain. The Marvel Comics adaptation, being based on the early version, has the Cylons execute him on-panel.
- Light Is Not Good: For the pilot episode, Baltar wears the white robes of a councilman.
- Misanthrope Supreme
- Mouth of Sauron: The main reason why the Cylons keep him around, to persuade the remnants of humanity why life under the Cylons is better.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: If it wasn't for Baltar leading an attack against the Galactica, the crew of the titular battlestar as well as those of Pegasus would have gone on fighting over the latter's fuel exchange - which has been ordered by Adama.
- Not Now, Kiddo: Does this to a Cylon as he is too busy relishing the Galactica's destruction until the Pegasus attacked.Cylon: "Sir, I really think you should take a look at the other battlestar."
- Off with His Head!: Decapitated in the original version before being spared.
- The Quisling: Sold out humanity to the Cylons.
- Smug Snake: Despite his overwhelmingly huge opinion of himself, he's not that good of a schemer. In fact, many of his plans are undone by his continental ego, intense overconfidence and borderline intolerable demeanour undermining his efforts before he even reaches the finish line.
- The Sociopath: He is self-serving, narcissistic, has a complete lack of empathy, and will use others and betray them when they are no longer of any use to him.
- Tempting Fate: In 'Baltar's Escape', he cheers about how successful his plan is going, just before he orders his Centurion pilot to launch.
- Token Human: The lone human working with the Cylons. And for good reason.
- Unexplained Recovery: It isn't stated how he got loose from getting trapped under rubble in "Lost Planet of the Gods".
- Ungrateful Bastard: It is revealed in the novelizations that despite Lucifer saving his life, Baltar has hated him since he was abandoned at Kobol.
Lucifer
Lucifer (voiced by Jonathan Harris)
"Anything is possible, but the odds are astronomically against it."
The smartest Cylon in the whole universe. He has the brains, the style, and most importantly, he's modest. His only handicap? Having to work under Baltar. Despite this handicap Lucifer seems to enjoy his banter with Balter, or perhaps he just like watching him sweat when things get hairy.
- A Father to His Men: Sort of. In The Gun On Ice Planet Zero he objects to Baltar's intention to use the ship's pilots as reserves.
- Affably Evil: Instead of hating him for being a member of the evil race of robots, you'll spend most of your time laughing at his razor sharp wit.
- Beware the Silly Ones
- Deceptive Disciple: He seems to be this at first. But when Baltar gets the idea to surrender to the Galactica, he sounds genuinely concerned for the man's safety.
- Deadpan Snarker
- Even Evil Has Standards
- Heel–Face Turn: He does this in the novelizations, due to his friendship with Starbuck.
- Likable Villain: Lucifer isn't likable because he does good or isn't as evil as he claims so much as it's because he's so good at calling Baltar out on his hammyness. That's probably why we love him so much.
- The Rival: Baltar believes Lucifer has a rivalry with Spectre.
- The Starscream
Spectre
Spectre (voiced by Murray Matheson)
"Unfortunately, we are programmed to destroy humans, not save them. Our knowledge of their anatomy is so limited."
- Blatant Lies: Subverted; while he is good at coming up with lies, Lucifer doesn't buy him for a second as he finds most of his behavior faulty.
- Deceptive Disciple: Perhaps even moreso than Lucifer.
- Evil Counterpart: To Lucifer. While both of them are evil, Spectre is shown to be more deceitful and devious, which Lucifer doesn't really approve of.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: Specter does an excellent job of sucking up to Baltar.
- The Rival: Lucifer sees him as this, according to Baltar.
- Smug Snake
- Would Hurt a Child: Specially those 'renegade' children.
Imperious Leader
Imperious Leader (voiced by Patrick Macnee, body by Dick Durock)
The Imperious Leader is the leader of the Cylon Empire and of the entire Cylon race.
- Always Chaotic Evil: He declared the attack on humans.
- Big Bad: He is the instigator of Thousand-Yahren War, the leader of the Cylons and the main antagonist of Battlestar Galactica (1978).
- Disc-One Final Boss: The first Imperious Leader who led the near-extermination of humans is killed at the end of "Saga of a Star World". A second Imperious Leader is introduced in the epilogue and Baltar is following his orders.
- Evil Counterpart: To Adama, as the leaders of their own separate fleets.
- Exactly What It Says on the Tin: Imperious Leader is the leader of the Cylons.
- Fantastic Racism: Towards humans. The second Imperious Leader is somewhat more tolerant, and thus allows Baltar to be spared.
- Large and in Charge: The Imperious Leaders were played by the 6'6" Dick Durock.
- Mobile Menace: Rules the Cylons from his capital basestar.
- Orcus on His Throne: The Imperious leader very rarely leaves his seat on his basestar, with the exception of "The Living Legend Part II" when he appears to commemorate a base.
- Rank Up: The Imperious Leaders are generally drawn from the IL-series Cylons, such as Lucifer.
- Warmup Boss: The first Imperious Leader seen is killed at the end of the pilot when his Basestar is caught in the gravitational pull of Carrilon, which at that point was on the verge of exploding thanks to Apollo and Starbuck setting fire to the tylium throughout the planet.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: The Second Imperious Leader isn't seen after "The Living Legend Part II".
Cylon Centurions
Cylon Centurions
- Bayonet Ya: Their rifles are typically equipped with bayonets.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Higher-ranked Gold Centurions.
- Cyber Cyclops: They have a single red light as their "eye" that moves from side to side.
- Deadpan Snarker: At least the one in the Imperious Leader's personal guard was. When the Imperious Leader asks how their attack failed after they took the Galactica by surprise, he replies "Apparently it was not as big a surprise as we had hoped for".
- Evil Sounds Deep: And the Command Centurions (the gold ones) have even deeper voices.
- Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: They're not particularly great shots.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: They're the most visible face of evil in the series and have red robotic eyes.
- Sliding Scale of Shiny Versus Gritty: Definitely on the shiny side.
Other Characters
Others
Count Iblis (Patrick Macnee)
"All people are capable of feeling each other's thoughts. It merely takes time and experience. Place your trust in me, and I promise you all things will be possible."
- Alien Non-Interference Clause: The general reason that the Ship of Light seraphs cannot stop Iblis themselves, despite the fact that he is a renegade member of their order."We cannot interfere with the freedom of choice. His, your's, anybody's."
- Aristocrats Are Evil
- Attention Whore: Of course, he's claiming to be a god, what do you expect?
- Bright Is Not Good: He wears shining white robes with gold trimming.
- Charm Person: He proves capable of wooing just about every woman he meets.
- Devil in Plain Sight
- Divine Date: He and Sheba spend a lot of time alone together in various ships throughout the fleet.
- Evil Is Sterile: Iblis cannot create followers of his own. He can only corrupt others so that they choose to give him dominion over them.
- God's Hands Are Tied: This is why the Seraphs cannot interfere with freedom of choice. And that includes Iblis's choices to be evil. As a side effect, Iblis also cannot directly confront those who defy him and see him for what he is. He is not allowed to take the life of those who have not given him dominion over them. He must rely on his followers to act against those who challenge him.
- God Test: He claims to have great powers and knowledge. The Council of Twelve gives him three challenges: to deliver their greatest enemy (Baltar) to them, to lead the fleet to Earth, and one more to be named later.
- Kneel Before Zod: He forces the initially-resistant Baltar to do this.
- Louis Cypher: As with being an allegory for the Anti-Christ, he uses mysterious powers and miracles to persuade the Colonials to willingly grant him their loyalty, while mysterious beings of light start appearing and the characters start talking about theology. He's eventually driven off when he accidentally strikes down Apollo who explicitly rejected his authority.note
- May–December Romance: With Sheba. He does look like he could be her dad!
- Meaningful Name: Iblis is the name for Satan in Islam.
- Mind Control / More than Mind Control: His persuasive powers are phenomenal, and dangerous.
- Physical God: What he claims to be.
- God Guise: This is a disguise, however.
- Satanic Archetype: He is a mythical fallen angel, after all.
- Shapeshifter Default Form: When Iblis is shot by a blaster we briefly see his true form as a demon with a piglike face. He also takes this form when he leaves for good..
- Slasher Smile: Iblis' Shapeshifter Default Form has one as a default expression. His human guise also smiles when Starbuck tries and fails to kill him.
- Sufficiently Advanced Alien: What he really is.
- Walking Techbane: Instrumentation goes haywire whenever he is around.
Characters in "Galactica 1980"
Admiral Adama (Lorne Greene)
Colonel Boomer
- Field Promotion
- Plot-Relevant Age-Up: Almost 30 years have passed, so it makes sense.
Captain Troy (Kent McCord)
- Plot-Relevant Age-Up: Galactica 1980 aired two years after the original Battlestar Galactica - in universe, 30 years pass by, so the former Boxey is now played by Kent McCord.
- Straight Man
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute
- Upbringing Makes the Hero
Lt. Dillon (Barry Van Dyke)
- Comically Missing the Point: No Dillon, the spining doors weren't built to keep aliens out of the building.
- Drives Like Crazy: Through the streets of Los Angeles, no less!
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute
Dr. Zee (Robbie Rist; later James Patrick Stuart)
- Creepy Child: Robbie Rist's incarnation of the character in the three-part pilot story. This was changed to him having a much more normal personality in the following episodes thanks to Executive Meddling.
- Teen Genius
Colonel Xavier (Richard Lynch; later Jeremy Brett)
- Big Bad: Almost as big as the Cylons, in fact.
- Giving Radio to the Romans: He wanted to give the Nazis rocket technology so modern day Earth would be advanced enough to repel Cylons.
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To Baltar, and with good reason. Baltar was originally intended for this role. But either John Colicos was unavailable, or just as likely, omitted as part of the paring down of the cast and other production cost cutting for Galactica 1980.
- Terminator Twosome: He goes back to World War II to give technology to the Nazis so Troy and Dillon have to go back and stop him. Doing this in different periods was originally meant to be the concept for the whole show.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: He decides to raise Earth's level of technology by helping the Nazis improve their rockets and fighters.
