A rip-off of Star Wars? (Battlestar Galactica (1978))

Member Name: sharktrager

Product:	Battlestar Galactica (1978)
Date:	25/11/00 (71 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lorne Greene as the father figure which he does so well

Disadvantages: A very dodgy revival series (GALACTICA 1980)

This series was created by Glen A. Larson, first appearing on American television in 1978. He claimed that it was not a 'rip-off' of Star Wars, but the show has been accused as being such many times over the years.

The show involves the last remnants of human civilisation inhabiting the mighty Battlestar Galactica (hence the title) searching for their lost colony - Earth.

Commander Adama, the main character in the show, was played by Lorne Greene, who had for many years played the father on the Western TV show BONANZA. Here he plays a father figure again, to Apollo and Starbuck, the two gung-ho young heros.

Apollo was played by Richard Hatch - not the best actor ever, but not bad. Hatch is now committed to reviving the show for the 21st Century but has come up against Larson himself who is trying to revive it himself!

Starbuck was played by Dirk Benedict, played the same happy-go-lucky-type character that would later serve him so well in THE A-TEAM.

Special effects are not bad for the time, although some of the sets are wobbly.

The show was cancelled after the first year, but Larson revived it in 1980 as 'GALACTICA 1980' with a different cast (apart from Lorne Greene) and the storyline having moved on to the Battlestar actually having found Earth. Production values on this revival were very low and thankfully this one didn't last too long either.

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