'Battlestar Galactica' Retro Recap: 'A Disquiet Follows My Soul'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

It’s rare that I find myself hesitant to watch an episode of Battlestar Galactica, but I definitely found myself a touch reluctant to start ‘A Disquiet Follows My Soul’ simply because the perfect combination of distant memories and a powerhouse predecessor of an episode reminded me that this particular tale ventured into the kind of darker territory that most television shows try to avoid since it showed us point blank how a broken mind and aching soul can drive men and women to do questionable things when they feel they have nothing to lose.
 
But, in order to get to that point, the two key characters in this tale that helped to explore this notion, had to be brought to their respective breaking points and well, for Tom Zarek, his breaking point involved the Admiral’s discussions on potentially putting forth a permanent alliance with the Cylons, something that would integrate them and some of their technology into the Fleet as the search for a new home continued and in classic Zarek fashion, Tom took the time to rile up the Quorum and do everything within his power to keep the alliance from working with Laura more or less abandoning her role for the time being. 
 
Yet, as I mentioned before, that’s really nothing new or exciting from Tom Zarek, so what made his arc in this story so incredible, is the sheer fact that he influenced the crew of the Tylium Refinery Ship to jump away to cause more trouble in the Fleet and this is really his boldest move to date, one that eventually came to a resolution, but let’s be honest…insurrection is a dangerous thing in a time of crisis and well, it’s spreading through the Fleet one person at a time and the most heartbreaking storyline of the night came about by way of Felix Gaeta, who clearly…has snapped in the midst of this whole mess.
 
Which is fascinating when one considers how Felix pretty much can withstand any crisis. But the loss of his leg, the death of Dee and seeing mankind treat the Cylons like equals, was more than he could bear and he began to stir the pot aboard Galactica by challenging the Admiral at every turn and well, clearly Zarek’s actions inspired him in ways we never thought possible because the two of them were clearly agreeing to some kind of plan together and well, when all is said and done, this really was a tough episode to watch and while this may not seem like an ultra-dark plot line, it really is when you take a moment and ponder on it.
 
Because, up until this episode, all of mankind was united in their hunt for Earth and a better tomorrow, and the Admiral was always viewed as a leader who was never to be questioned. But now, there’s no course to stay or need for loyalty apparently and well, that’s downright terrifying. Because Zarek and Felix firmly believe now that they have nothing to lose, and that makes them dangerous individuals indeed, because they’ll do whatever it takes to keep mankind safe in their minds and while this episode wasn’t exactly action packed nor did it vault the plot forward, I appreciated the fact that it turned into a reverse character study and solid breakdown of what makes noble men go sour and it only gets worse from here because the unthinkable is about to occur, thanks to Zarek and Gaeta’s machinations… 

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