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Battlestar Galactica

You Can't Go Home Again (2)

Season 1, Episode 5, Aired Feb 04, 2005

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9.0

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When Kara goes missing under enemy fire, Lee and his father stir up resentment by using too many of the fleet's scanty resources in their attempts to find her.

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Cast & Crew

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James Callis

Gaius Baltar
Tricia Helfer

Number Six
Grace Park

Sharon "Boomer" Valerii
Mary McDonnell

Laura Roslin
Edward James Olmos

William Adama
Katee Sackhoff

Kara "Starbuck" Thrace

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Fan Episode Reviews (20)

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You Can't Go Home Again

10

"Perfect"

By TrueTvWatcher, Jan 11, 2012

You Can't Go Home Again was a perfect follow up to the previous episode and I really enjoyed watching because there was a lot of emotional drama for the characters as the fleet searched for Starbuck at great expense and risk. Starbuck had some great scenes as she explored the inside of the Cylon Raider. The President was in a tough spot most of the episode though in the end she had heartfelt relief. The scene where Galactica was about to jump and a Cylon Raider was detected up to when Apollo discovered it was Starbuck and he brought her home was quite awesome! The last scene with Commander Adama and Starbuck was very touching and it happens so quick you might miss it. This was very touching after every thing they have all been through. I look forward to watching the next episode!!!!!!!!!moreless
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The one where I make a terrible plot-related pun: Raiders of the lost Starbuck. SO lame, I know.

8.0

"Great"

By MovieMark, Sep 20, 2011

Riddled with guilt from their last conversation with one another, the old man runs the risk of leaving his entire fleet defenseless in his efforts to search for Kara Thrace. Had he not basically told her to die in a gutter somewhere (hard to find in space, I'd imagine) before she valiantly sped off to defend against a troop of oncoming raider ships, I'm sure he would have probably just sent a viper or two out and about the place for a half an hour. And not waste 45% of reserve fuel. But he did say those things and he does waste all of that fuel and it makes for one hell of an episode.
Granted, it's not quite as good as ''Act of Contrition'', with a few niggling plot-holes, but this is an exceptionally shot hour, with a lot of compelling arguments made, for and against, saving Starbuck. Every scene feels meticulously crafted, director Sergio Mimica-Gezzan knows how to make your standard dialogue driven scene truly come to life.
This time around, though, I had a lot of trouble with Starbuck and her pet raider. For one thing, how the heck was it still able to function after she basically carved it a new one? (Not to mention ripped out its brain! Ok, so she has her own, but what in the frak did she have to insert - and where – to coordinate her thoughts with the machine). And that tiny jacket of hers was enough to withstand the scary vacuum of space?! And when did she have time to nip outside and write her name on the wings of the ship? And WITH WHAT PAINT!?
Right. No, you're right. It's a show with killer robots. I said you're right. I'll just have to cut it some slack.
But, like, how was she able to control which way it moves by pulling a few random organs? And she out-flew Lee...who was in a viper!
No, okay... robots, slack, I got it.
Once again, Mary, James and our usual contingent of bankable actors knock it out of the park. I also really enjoyed the blah story with Helo and Sharon since it gave us some slick Cylon action.
Frak-O-Meter: Not a bad week, with 7 fraks in total. Not bad at all!Cylon Sex: Since Baltar and head-Six were absent for this one, it's a definite no.
Spot the six: Caprica Six pops up for a bit with some guy but that's pretty much it.
Injuries: Starbuck busts her knee pretty badly. And stabs the sh-- out of a Raider. (LOL''are you alive?'' *Stab!!*)Boomer or Sharon? Sharon again! She just lazes about in a hammock for most of the episode. Snore!Ships Lost: The fleet is still standing strong...well, for a fleet that escaped the entire genocide of its people.Battlestar Bleakness: Everyone eventually decides to up and leave Starbuck behind. The scenes inside the raider were also really gory!The show is finding its own two feet, and offers up another strong episode quite early into the game. Impressive stuff!moreless
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After Starbuck is stranded on a moon, Lee and William Adama both will not give up the search for her. Colonel Tigh and President Roslin, however, are prepared to step in and make the fleet jump, scared of an impending Cylon attack.moreless

7.5

"Good"

By benboy606, Jun 10, 2011

Nowhere near as good as the first part. The first part was a very emotional experience, absolutely stunning. This episode, while extremely good, was not a masterpiece in any sense of the word. The sequences with Kara had brilliant cinematography, and Katee Sackhoff did a great job, but those sequences really bored me. It didn't have an emotional affect on me. I loved Baltar trying to get the fleet to leave, because of Head!Six hurting him. That was nice. Roslin was very good in this episode, and while I wasn't rooting for her (I love Starbuck!), I really wanted the two Adamas to understand that they were being stupid. Their love for Starbuck was a very emotional thing. I loved seeing the lengths these two would go for Starbuck, but, really, it was dragged on way too long. I know it sounds like I'm bashing this episode to death, but hey, I really liked this episode! A 7.5 is a great score! The Caprica sequences were brilliant! We finally get something interesting with Helo and Athena. I was so into their story that I was mad to leave their story as opposed to going to their story.

I mean, this is a great episode. No way around it. It has glaring flaws, though, and isn't nearly as good as its predecessor. I give it a 7.5/10, it's a very, very good episode. 7.5 equals a B.moreless
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'While we learn that a Cylon Raider isn't as machine-like as we thought, we learn that the Cylons are much more human-like psychologically." SPOILERS.

9.5

"Superb"

By tiewashere, Feb 26, 2011

irstly, I was happy to see Hotdog wasn't hurt :P Hahaha! Poor guy. It was nice that he got his recognition though. The actress that played Starbuck REALLY impressed me. As an actor, I know that it is so had to pull off lines that your character is saying only to yourself and this entire episode revolved around Starbuck saying lines to herself. Her character kind of strikes me as one that would speak out loud when she was in trouble in order for her to keep her cool, and I think we've seen her do it before so it wasn't awkward or very "hello, audience. This is what I'm thinking." It seemed very natural. Kudos to her. What else has she been in? I think this episode truly got into the hearts and minds of Apollo and Adama and I think, as a first time viewer, it's something I really needed. It was nice that the whole "you killed my son" doesn't seem like it will be dragged out for much longer so props to the writers for writing it like that. Very smart. Keep things new and fresh. Since we didn't actually know Zak, it would be hard to believe the storyline when we only have seen Zak for maybe 20 minutes in flashbacks at best. Nor have we seen his relationship with Apollo or Adama. The relationship between Adama and Lauren I still think is awesome. Baltar needs to do something. I'm still trying to figure out what Six is really doing in his head and what her motives behind this are. I want to see Baltar get the warhead and start working on the Cylon detector. That storyline seems pretty intriguing to me.

The stuff on Caprica seems to be the most interesting so far and it connected the most the main storyline this time around. While we learn that a Cylon Raider isn't as machine-like as we thought, we learn that the Cylons are much more human-like psychologically. I expected them to not act so human. I expected the one Cylon to break through the glass wall and give Helo a woopin' but that wasn't what happened. They seemed to be suspicious, much like humans, and they only took out their guns when they thought someone was in the room. This adds a much more interesting dynamic to the show.

9.5/10moreless
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Are you alive?

8.0

"Great"

By kickdoor, Nov 07, 2010

I felt bad for the actress playing Starbuck, all that solo expository dialogue is tough to pull off for even the best actors. I will say Starbuck does strike me as the kind of person that talks to herself, so at least they had that going. Seeing the "guts," so to speak, of a Cylon Raider was...surprising. Looking back it played well with the scenes on Caprica, specifically when the metallic-bodied Cylons discovered Helo and Sharon's little hideaway.

I was taken aback by how human the Cylons seemed to act. I was half expecting one to break through the glass partition and grab Helo thanks to some thermal vision or something of the like, but no. And then the way they didn't "pull out" their guns until they actually suspected someone was there(by either "smelling" or seeing the smoke from the toaster or hearing Sharon getting up). The thing that really humanized them for me though was the way one shoved the other Cylon aside after Helo had shot it. It was just interesting that while the audience was learning that the Raider was more physically "human" than they might have thought, they were also learning the Cylons were more psychologically human.

Adama and Apollo's scene near the end after Adama called off the search was done well and added to their already good dynamic.

My favorite episode since 33.moreless
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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (2)
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- We learn that Cylon Raiders are partly organic.
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- According to the numbers on the white board on Colonial One, there are over 47,000 civilians in the fleet.
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QUOTES (3)
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- Kara: Like my new toy? Lee: Boy, when you take a souvenir, you don't screw around.
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- Lee: And if it was me down there instead? Adama: You don't have to ask that. Lee: Are you sure? Adama: If it were you, we'd never leave.
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- Number Six: (to Baltar) Guess you'll never get to find out if she's a real blonde.
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NOTES (4)
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- When Helo is hiding from the Centurions, it is a toaster that gives him away. This is likely a reference to the Colonial nickname for a Cylon -- "Toaster."
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- This episode first aired in the United Kingdom on November 15, 2004, on Sky One. Sky One co-financed the first season of the show.
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- Significant homage is also paid in this episode to the original series episode "The Hand of God" in which Starbuck and Apollo, returning from a mission in a stolen Cylon Raider, have to convey who they are by waggling the wings of the ship. Starbuck and Apollo waggle their wings at each other as they form up for approach to the Galactica.
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- This is a reworking of the Galactica 1980 episode "The Return of Starbuck." In that episode, Starbuck is trapped on a planet with only a Cylon for company.
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