Highlights
- Admiral Helena Cain, a disturbing presence, left fans wishing for more of her character’s story in Battlestar Galactica.
- D’Anna Biers, a fascinating Cylon character played by Lucy Lawless, didn’t get the attention she deserved.
- Cally Henderson, with her fight for what’s right, had a hard life and left fans feeling she deserved better in the series.
The Battlestar Galactica franchise has been mostly dormant for over a decade now, but with new projects planned and on the way, the revival of the series has many fans revisiting their favorite parts of the franchise to date. This includes marveling at the incredible ensemble cast that the 2004 series brought together.
With everyone suspected of being a Cylon, the beloved sci-fi series had fans focusing on different characters, always wondering who was hiding something. Some of these characters, despite their fascinating stories and arcs, never quite managed to get the level of screen time and focus that they deserved.
7 Admiral Helena Cain
Number Of Appearances: 3
- Played By Michelle Forbes
A character who deserved more screen time, Admiral Cain was a disturbing presence within the Battlestar Galactica series for the short time she was there. An Admiral who arrived in the Pegasus and took over command from William Adama, Cain was willing to do anything to destroy the Cylons, trusted nobody, and betrayed nearly as many humans as the Cylons themselves.
Willing to steal supplies from other human ships, Cain leaves many people stranded to keep her ship well-supplied. Her antagonistic human presence on the show made for an amazing story arc, and the story of the Pegasus in Battlestar Galactica: Razor prompted many fans to wish they could have seen more of Cain’s character in the series.
6 D’Anna Biers
Number Of Appearances: 16
- Played By Lucy Lawless
Lucy Lawless appeared surprisingly as the mysterious Number 3 of the Cylon’s seven human likenesses. She was a fascinating character; the entire line having been boxed by the rest of the Cylons because one model visited the Temple of Five. Her curiosity led to disappointment, with her choosing to die on Earth when she found it ruined.
The role of D’Anna, both as a reporter and as an intriguing Cylon, was a great one, and having the infamous Lucy Lawless take on the role brought a lot of fan attention toward her. Nevertheless, she never got the level of attention that many hoped for and felt the character deserved.
5 Cally Henderson
Number Of Appearances: 35
- Played By Nicki Clyne
Cally Henderson, one of the engineers on Galactica and one of the closest friends and later wife to Galen Tyrol, was always an interesting character. Instead of merely sitting by and letting things happen, Cally always acts when she feels something wrong is being done.
This usually lands her in trouble, but makes her feel like far more of a significant character than the show generally portrays her. Due to the militaristic nature of most characters, this civilian engineer shone through, always fighting for what was right. Cally had a hard life, helping Galen carry on his affair with Boomer despite Cally loving him herself. She later married and had a child with him, only to discover he was a Cylon, leading to her eventual demise. The hard life she led and the way she always strove to fight for what was right left many fans feeling she deserved better.
4 Dr. Cottle
Number Of Appearances: 37
- Played By Donnelly Rhodes
The Battlestar Galactica version of Dr. McCoy was a marvelously underrated character. This grumbling old man with a secret gold heart was a wonderfully calming presence. In the face of all the military figures who lived life as a steady regime, this caring soul with a harsh exterior was a fun and refreshing character to have around.
Dr. Cottle treated everyone the same, which was a rarity in a show dominated by the differences between soldiers and civilians, and by the differences between humans and Cylons. Cottle never got a lot of focus in the series, but he was often around and showed love and care for the other characters by placing actions over words.
3 Lt. Felix Gaeta
Number Of Appearances: 59
- Played By Alessandro Juliani
Felix Gaeta was a recurring character in Battlestar Galactica. He appeared initially as a minor supporting character, one of the young faces whom Commander Adama trusted with an important role aboard his ship. However, Gaeta gradually began to take on a more important role, being put in charge of important activities like the Galactica’s navigation, due to short staffing after the fall of the Twelve Colonies.
Later, Gaeta is put in charge of counting ballots for the Presidential Election, and he subsequently takes on a role with Gaius Baltar as an adviser after Gaius becomes President. Gaeta works as an inside man for the Resistance and eventually tries to kill Baltar, before taking command of the Galactica during the attempted coup. Gaeta was a smart, complicated character, but he didn’t get the screen time that his development and variety of roles deserved.
2 Chief Galen Tyrol
Number Of Appearances: 67
- Played By Aaron Douglas
One of the characters who appeared in almost every episode of the series, Galen Tyrol was nevertheless hugely underrated. His variety of roles was intriguing, always attempting to speak up for what was right against the military that surrounded him and his civilian crew. Galen was enraged and willing to speak out when his people were overworked or killed.
Later, Galen attempted to peacefully help on New Caprica, forming a worker’s union that opposed the Baltar Presidency. After discovering he was a Cylon and one of the Final Five, Galen struggles and nearly commits suicide, not wanting to turn against humanity despite the discovery. Best of all, Galen has a hugely relatable ending, moving away to live as a hermit, tired of both humans and Cylons. Despite this, fans felt he was underrated, deserving of more attention and development.
1 Colonel Saul Tigh
Number Of Appearances: 70
- Played By Michael Hogan
Colonel Saul Tigh appeared in almost every episode of Battlestar Galactica, but fans still felt that the XO of Galactica was an underrated character. Despite being second-in-command to William Adama on the ship, Tigh had a difficult life, with his wife having “pushed him to drink” in the words of Commander Adama.
Saul seemed relatively unhappy, but he was trustworthy, giving his unfailing love to Adama and the Fleet, voting to stay with them as a Cylon, and refusing to let the discovery that he was one of the Final Five change him. He also outed himself and the other Final Five when their presence led to danger for the Fleet, proving himself a man of honor and natural goodness. However, he didn’t get as much focus as fans of the show wanted and was often overshadowed by the Adamas.
Leave a Reply