Giant Freakin Robot

Here’s something you may not know about folk duo Simon & Garfunkel: they were way ahead of their time. So far ahead, in fact, that in spite of the fact that Glen A. Larson’s original Battlestar Galactica didn’t air until 1978, the pair recorded a tender tribute to the remake of that show that was even further into the future. How did they do it? How did they get the footage to compile this music video? Has Art Garfunkel been bogarting the secrets to time travel for 50-plus years? Sadly, the answers to these questions remain elusive. On the upside, however, this is a pretty awesome video.

After working on it for more than four years, a group of hardcore Battlestar Galactica fans have finally finished their labor of love, a BSG game called Diaspora: Shattered Armistice. The Diaspora Development team is made up of likeminded enthusiasts that shared the singular desire to play a videogame that lets them pilot a Viper. The finished product is now good to go and available for download. Did I mention that it is completely free?

Check out this release trailer, it should give you a good idea of what game play looks like. When you’re done with that, hit this link for system requirements, downloads, and all the important technical information.

X-Men director Bryan Singer has been talking about doing a Battlestar Galactica movie for what seems like forever. Screenwriter John Orloff (Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole) was attached to write the script, but that was the last we heard about the project.

In an interview with IGN, Singer divulged that there’s been some recent movement on the Battlestar front. He says that he has a script that is currently going through revisions—he doesn’t say if Orloff is handling that or not—and that it is “very cool.”

Much as I enjoyed the original Battlestar Galactica when I was still running around in footie pajamas, Glen Larson’s TV space opera hasn’t aged terribly well. One of the things it did have going for it, however, was a great core premise just waiting for a budget and Ron Moore. But as much as I loved the BSG reboot series, it failed to make use of one of the original show’s best parts: that freakin’ theme song. The original Battlestar Galactica‘s theme song was the best part of the show, and to this day is one of the best bits of SF music ever, TV, film, or otherwise. Sure, Moore’s series dropped in that iconic theme now and then, but it just wasn’t the same without it playing over the opening credits.

What’s that on the horizon? Why, it’s YouTube, riding to the rescue! Check this out, and then start a letter-writing campaign to have them replace the opening credits on all the Blu-rays and DVDs. Now let’s get on with it, because you know you’re already humming it in your head.