First thing.. Eleven models are known, one was sacrificed. "I could use a drink".. There was a Matrix-style reawakening into a goo bath which took Ellen a few minutes to adjust to. Her life as a Cylon had been submerged deeply but reawakening as a Cylon allowed the memories to come back, and remember everything she did. But why oh why did the show have to use Matrix-style representation of the resurrection? Well, okay, the skin-job Cylons were somewhat like the "humans" portrayed in the Matrix, in that the skin-job Cylons were also injected into bodies so they could live.
Staying with Ellen's story... Ellen and "John", her name for Brother Cavil, spent 18 months in private discussion. The episode shows four significant moments in those 18 months. First, her reawakening after Saul Tigh executed her for treason, then at the time of the rescue off New Caprica, then when the Resurrection Hub was destroyed, then finally at approximately the time of the Mutiny. It is clear from their discussion that Cavil knew very well who the Final Five were, and knew very well the whole truth of how the situation came into being. For example the whole time he was screwing around with Ellen on New Caprica he knew she was his maker, and that she did not remember she was his maker, which has a very strange Oedipus Complex about it. At a later time when his compatriots began looking for the identity of the Final Five, Cavil kept up a crusade to prevent them from learning the truth. When D'Anna learned the truth of the Final Five, he did not box her because of her religious fervor, but because he couldn't afford for her to reveal the truth.
What kind of screwball game is Cavil playing?
Cavil's explanation is that he hates being confined in a limited human body. There were a couple awesome scenes where Cavil explained his hatred of living in a human-like body. Such as explaining how he witnessed seeing a supernova, desired to experience the rich full experience of that supernova his machine nature should have given him, but that instead his experience was limited by these stupid gelatinous orbs (pointing at his eyes) through which he could see only a limited light spectrum. Poor baby.
We also see a new side of Boomer's switch to working with Cavil. He is teaching her how to be a better machine and to undo the Human constructs. Perhaps Cavil has ways to work in and change the programming of their subconscious? However in the end Boomer seems to have realized Cavil's path isn't so great, and helps Ellen to escape presumably to join the Human fleet, which we'll see next episode. Clearly there's going to be an interesting scene when she discovers Saul shacked up with Caprica 6.
When Cavil showed Ellen pictures of the Temple of the Five, she identified it as the "Temple of Hopes". Built by the 13th tribe 3000 years ago when they left Kobol. They stopped, prayed for guidance and God showed them the way to Earth. However it is now known as the Temple of the Five because the Five followed the path of the 13th tribe, and they too found the temple.
Now, Anders' story. He is having visions. It is a known effect for head wounds to open up clairvoyant abilities in people, and in this case Sam opens up to remembering their whole story. "Among the bright stars I'm lost. All the forgotten faces, all the forgotten children, we seek the forgotten language. The mind is its own place." That's some interesting rambles by Sam, wonder what he means. "Forgotten language" may mean the language written at the Temple of Hopes? But the rest?
Anyway he goes on to explain how the Five were research scientists on Earth. That they reinvented the resurrection technology which was originally created on Kobol. (Or, as Ron Moore explains, stolen from the Gods while on Kobol) The inhabitants of Earth were all skin-job Cylons as we learned a few episodes ago, but the ones on Earth could procreate biologically. That is they could have children in normal human fashion. The modern skin job Cylons cannot do so, they must rely on the resurrection technology in order to procreate. On Earth the resurrection technology had been discarded when the skin-job Cylons began to procreate biologically but the Five had some kind of warning there would be a calamity so they recreated the technology. It began working in time for the destruction of Earth.
After the destruction of Earth they resurrected into a ship they had in orbit. And they set off for the other Colonies to warn them about the danger of relying on the metal Cylons. This is explained as an enslavement of the metal Cylons by humans. Unfortunately they did not have FTL jump drive so had to travel at sublight speed but at relativistic velocity, meaning that even though the journey took 2000 years it did not seem so long for them. They arrived at the colonies during the Cylon war, and then made a deal with the Cylons which created the truce.
Cavil was the first of the new skin-job Cylons they created. He helped the Five create the others. Then Cavil killed the Five, resurrected them into bodies that had altered memories, and implanted them among the human population.
A new bit of explanation is an 8th skin-job Cylon model, Daniel. An artist for some reason Cavil had Daniel destroyed. When Cavil boxed D'Anna I wondered if he had done that before ... well, he had.
When Sam explained about Daniel he saw "everybody" was glowing, even Starbuck. I'm thinking perhaps that Starbuck was somehow an offshoot of Daniel. (Daniel=Artist, Starbuck=Artist)
Last thing from Sam, just as he's wheeled into surgery: Stay with the fleet. It's starting to happen. It's the miracle, right here, it's a gift from the Angels.
Ships of Light people? Who did the Humans & Cylons get resurrection technology from? Who are these Gods which they've identified as the Lords of Kobol? When they stopped at the algae planet and prayed for guidance, who is the God who gave them that guidance? Is that who Sam refers to as the Angels?
Sam also discusses how they each saw different figures which represented the warning. One was a man, another a woman, etc. I'm unclear what he's referring to as I believe that hasn't been portrayed in the series. However perhaps he refers to an experience each had of someone warning them of a calamity, and perhaps that figure giving the warning was one of these Angels?
At the destruction of the resurrection hub, Cavil referred to the need to recreate the hub. Otherwise the Cylons would be destroyed. Ellen seems to not care or has perhaps decided it was a mistake after all to have created this new set of skin-job Cylons. In any case Cavil points out that while the humans had destroyed the Hub, they did not know of "the Colony". Presumably he's referring to the place shown in Razor?
The next story line is between Adama and Tyrol. They're going over the damage to the hull shown in the previous episode. Turns out I was wrong, that was hull damage, not a crease in some tissue being deployed to cylonise the FTL drive. Galactica is an old ship, it's seen a lot of action, and the hull is about to fall apart.
I found it interesting to contrast the weak state of Galactica's hull, with Cavil's demand to be in a proper metal body. Doesn't he realize that metal bodies are also fragile and eventually wear out? That's what we see with Galactica, a metal body that's hugely need of repair.
Tyrol first is offered the position of Chief, once again. And in that position Tyrol is supervising the repair of Galactica. But because of zillions of hairline fractures all through the ship, Tyrol proposes using some Cylon technology to strengthen Galactica. A biological resin that grows into metal and makes it strong.
Ah gee what did we just have this mutiny over? The resistance from humans of being in league with the Cylons? But the Cylon deck chief proposes using Cylon technology, Mr. Gaeta must be rolling over in his newly dug grave.
Adama eventually agrees. But first we have to see that Adama is hitting the booze (and pills) pretty hard. He's really chugging this stuff. He must have a lot of pain to hide from. Are we going to find him OD'd in a future episode?