'Comcast / NBC-Universal's Overall Mishandling of The 'Battlestar Galactica IP' Since 1978, Renders Any Notion of Them Being Able to Handle a 'Comic Book' as Ludicrous

 'So Say We All!!'

It's Amazing What You Don't Find Out, When 'Comcast / NBC-Universal' is in Charge of Publishing 'Battlestar' Books

 

'So Say We All!!'

Someone Wake The Entire World When Yet Another Five Years Passes, With 'No New Battlestar' Coming Along

 'So Say We All!!'

This Blog Forgot to Put Its 'Thinking Cap' On!!

 

'Comcast / NBC-Universal' actually is keeping 'Battlestar 1978' out of the 'Public Domain' (and not making a new production) by repeatedly flooding the marketplace with new 'Battlestar 1978 Merchandise!' Which is what it is doing right now.

It's other alternative for keeping 'Battlestar 1978 out of the 'Public Domain' without making a new production, (as it has been doing for 25 years and counting) is flooding the Internet with its 'Fake Battlestar Galactica Movie / TV Show Press Releases!'

This Blog Breathlessly Anticipates 2027: When "Comcast / NBC-Universal" Will Spend Another Year Making an Absolute Spectacle Out of Itself With "Battlestar Galactica"

 

More 'fake press releases?' More 'new merchandise' without a new production to go with it?

Let the rolling and landing of the dice dictate which direction 'Comcast / NBC-Universal' goes next in 2027 ....

"So Say We All!!"

If 'Comcast / NBC-Universal' Is Done With Its 'Fake Battlestar Galactica Movie / TV Series Press Releases', It Then Faces The 'Battlestar IP' Lapsing Into The 'Public Domain'

 

'So Say We All!!'

'Comcast / NBC-Universal' Was Too Cheap to Make a New 'Battlestar' Production In a Quarter Century...

 

...And then suddenly goes 'Bat Shit Crazy' with new merchandise in 2026.

"So Say We All!!"

Ever Wonder What Happened to All of The Effects Footage John Dykstra and His Crew Filmed For 'Gun On Ice Planet Zero?'

 

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The high quality, custom space battle sequences that John Dykstra and his 'Apogee' team filmed for 'Gun on Ice Planet Zero' were completely wiped out and ruined due to a laboratory chemical error during film processing.

The catastrophic chain of events unfolded behind the scenes due to the following factors:

The Laboratory Blunder

Dykstra's team shot an extensive array of stunning, intricate miniatures and motion control space-battle sequences specifically tailored to the plot of the 'Ice Planet' episodes. However, when the negative was sent to the lab for processing, a technician mistakenly used the wrong chemical mixture (or ruined the chemical bath consistency.) This error completely ate away and dissolved the emulsion of the film, physically destroying all of the footage.

The Looming Airdate

Because Battlestar Galactica was working on an incredibly tight, grueling weekly tv schedule, there was absolutely no time or budget left to reconstruct the models, re-set the motion control rigs, and re-shoot the lost sequences.

The Desperate Patchwork

To deliver the two-part episode on time to ABC, the production team was forced to scramble. They threw together crude, rushed, 'quickie' replacement effects on a shoe-string turnaround and heavily relied on recycling stock shots from the pilot episode ('Saga of a Star World') to fill the gaps.

Because of a single lab mistake, what should have been one of Dykstra's absolute crowning visual achievements for the regular series was permanently lost, leaving fans an episode that awkwardly mixed high-end ground production values with noticeably cheap , repeated space effects.

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"So Say We All!!"

At Least Stu Phillips Work is Being Honored and Respected In This 'Never Ending Cess-Pool' of 'Comcast / NBC-Universal's'

 

"So Say We All!!"

The Deleted Scenes Keep Coming

 

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Missing Footage From The First 30 Minutes

The Extended Cimtar Scout Mission

The sequence where Apollo and Zac discover the Cylon fleet hidden in the gas nebula (cloud cover) originally featured significantly more dialogue. Zac's Viper suffers an explicit, extended mechanical malfunction with his fuel line / energizer, which built up tension before they realized their scanners were being jammed.

The Flayer Attack Context

During the initial Cylon ambush, there were cut, cockpit cutaways of minor Colonial pilots being picked off by the Cylons before Apollo and Zac could sprint back to the fleet.

Adama and Tigh's Defenses

A deleted conversation on the Galactica bridge explicitly shows Tigh and Adama attempting to raise the other Battlestars via encrypted sub-space links during the ambush, only to hear the static and panic of the other Commanders as they realize their scanners are useless.

The Fall of Caprica Surface Panics

While we see the iconic shots of Serina on the balcony and the destruction of the Capital city, several street level sequences of Caprican citizens panicking and rushing for shelters were filmed but cut out to rely on the faster paced, model miniature explosion shots.

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"So Say We All!!"

Yes, The Major "Battlestar" News Is, "Voyage to The Bottom of The Sea" Is Being Revived

 

Someone wake up the entire world when "Comcast / NBC-Universal" learns how to conduct itself in our economy.

'So Say We All!!'

Another Cut Sequence From 'Saga of a Star World'

 

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The Cut Cylon Magnetic Storm Sequence

The Strategic Argument

As Civilian Ships are frantic, chaotic, and arriving in completely unorganized clusters behind the Galactica, Col. Tigh suggests moving the defenseless fleet into a nearby radioactive nebula.

The Camoflage Idea

The nebula would act as natural camouflage, blocking Cylon long range scans and giving the Galactica breathing room to organize the ships by speed, fuel capacity, and supply type without being sitting ducks.

The Trap

Adama rejects the idea (or hesitates) because entering the storm would also completely blind their own scanners, effectively trapping the civilian ships in a radioactive soup where they couldn't see a Cylon ambush coming until it was too late.

And another cut sequence....

A major character named Lyra (played by actress Laurie Prange) was entirely cut from the pilot. She was a member of the 'Council of 12', who clashed aggressively with Adama over his skepticism of the Cylons. Her removal erased a heavy amount of dialogue detailing how the human government utterly blindfolded themselves to the Cylon threat. Her character on the council was supposed to represent a youth and peace movement within the Colonies advocating trusting the Cylons.

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'So Say We All!!'

This 'Halloween', What is Still Lurking Inside of The 'Universal Studios Film Vaults?'

 

Still missing from 'Saga of a Star World', the 3-hour pilot episode to the '1978 Battlestar Galactica' series, and also missing from the '4k Theatrical Version of The Pilot'....

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"These specific scenes were largely cut before final effects compositing and scoring were completed for the broadcast master, they exist in Universal's vaults as un-scored, raw un-composited production dailies (workprint material.)

1. The Security Eviction Sequence

In the original script and extended assembly, the tensions between the surface personnel and 'Colonial Warriors' boiled over much sooner. 

A tense, fully shot sequence featured Carillon security personnel confronting Apollo, Starbuck, and Boomer, formally ordering them off the planet and demanding they return to the Galactica.

The sequence changed the narrative stakes. Instead of the Warriors just choosing to sneak around out of suspicion, they were actively being hunted and escorted off the premises by the planetary authorities, making their subsequent infiltration of the 'Ovion' layers an act of direct defiance.

2. John Dykstra's Lost 'Outdoor Carillon Footage'

This footage is still in the 'Universal Film Vaults'

The footage features a sprawling and massive industrial complex operating under the surface of the planet-revealing a joint 'Ovion / Cylon Weapons Depot' and a massive 'Tylium Mine' Processing Factory.'

It was meant to give the audience an immediate visual realization of the 'Cylon' trap before the characters discovered it.

The sequence was cut primarily because the rapid pivot to a weekly tv series meant Dykstra's team ran out of time to seamlessly composite and polish every single complex optical layer.

3. Extended Fleet Evacuation Protocols

The early acts of the pilot feature trimmed dialogue and atmospheric sequences where Adama and Colonel Tigh arrange the 'Civilian Fleet.' A completely finished, atmospheric scene exists where Tigh and Adama debate the dangers of leading the fleet into a highly volatile, magnetically charged void space before entering it.

4. Several extended sequences on the resort planet Carillon were trimmed down. This includes longer cuts of Starbuck and Boomer navigating the Casino, and an extended sequence inside the elevators (which notably feature a Mayan numbering system on the buttons.)

5. The original cut featured a much slower, more overwhelming sensory overload sequence as the Colonials first enter the casino, featuring just how alien and bizarre this deep space oasis truly was.'

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'So Say We All!!"

The 'Battlestar Board Game' is Coming Back, But No New Production

 

Welcome to The 'Insanity World' of 'Comcast / NBC-Universal'

'So Say We All!!'

The New Trend? New Merchandise, Yet Never Any New Productions to Go With Them

 A new 'Topic of Study' for The 'Battlestar Galactica Mismanagement Classes' currently being taught in 'Lecture Halls'....

'So Say We All!!'

The "Hacked-Up, Edited Mess" That is Universal Studios "Saga of a Star World" Movie

 

"The moment 'Saga of a Star World' threatened their (Universal Studios) bottom line or fell behind schedule, the corporate machine happily mutilated Glen A. Larson's epic space opera, just to feed the broadcast grid, and the studio's account ledgers.

Universal Studios was operating under a completely different set of structual, financial, and temporal priorities where artistic continuity was viewed as a financial liability, and speed-to-market was the only path to solvency.

From an accounting and executive standpoint, the damaging editing was actually viewed as a series of necessary, risk mitigating business corrections to solve three existential problems:

1. The Sunk- Cost Cash Crunch

Universal had a massive cash flow crisis because they had sunk nearly $9 million into a television asset. In 1978, a license fee from ABC covered only a fraction of that cost.

The Studio Logic: The quickest way to inject cash back into the studio, was to dump the "Pilot" into international theaters immediately.

The Cost of Narrative Continuity: To get that theatrical classification, the film had to hit a precise 125 minute runtime. If keeping an extra monologue of Starbuck, or the physical logic of walking down a hallway meant the movie ran 135 minutes, it meant fewer theatrical daily screenings, higher shipping costs for physical film cannisters, and delayed revenue. The studio prioritized the clock over narrative because every minute cut was a direct savings in global distribution mechanics.

2. Legal Self-Preservation, The Lucas Lawsuit

When George Lucas's and 20th Century Fox sued Universal for plagiarism, the studio faced the ultimate financial disaster: A potential federal injunction that could completely halt the broadcast and distribution of Battlestar Galactica entirely. 

The Studio Logic: The jagged, frantic, cutting room edits were often defense mechanisms against the lawsuit. Executives ordered editors to scramble the sequence of specific scenes-like the Cylon Arcade and Casino environments-to actively disrupt visual similarities to Star Wars concepts like the Mos Eisley Cantina.

The Cost of Narrative Continuity: 

Universal deliberately sacrificed smooth, artistic scene transitions so their legal team could stand in a courtroom and argue that their project had a completely distinct, structural rhythm and pacing than Lucasfilm's masterpiece.

3. The Disposable Nature of 1970s Television:

In 1978, there was no home video market, no DVDs, no streaming platforms, and no concept of 'prestige tv permanence.' A television pilot was viewed as a highly ephemeral commercial product meant to be consumed on a 19 inch tube television and forgotten.

To the suits, spending extra weeks of expensive 'union-rate editing bay hours' to perfectly smooth out a scene transition shot was a massive waste of Capital. They chose to ship a 'fractured, good enough cut' on time rather than spend an extra $100,000 fixing continuity errors they assumed would be disposable.

Universal Studios 'Corporate Math' favored a flawed, corporate product over a bankrupt masterpiece."

"So Say We All!!"

Did This Guy Know About The 'Battlestar Pilot' Initially Filmed by Richard A. Colla From Leslie Stevens 'Pilot Script?'

Richard A. Colla was initially filming the '1978 Battlestar Pilot' - (Saga of a Star World) from co-Producer Leslie Stevens pilot script.

1. A lengthy scene of Apollo, Jolly, and Serina slowly walking through the 'Ovion Catacombs' with an 'Ovion Escort' immediately before reaching the point where Apollo is asking the 'Ovion' queen where 'Boxey' is at.

2. Actor Jim Peck as a second newscaster on the planet 'Caprica' reporting on the armistice signing right behind 'Serina.'

3. Much darker footage of the 'Galactica' bridge before ABC-TV intervened and ordered brighter lighting, so the audience could see the millions of dollars spent building the 'Galactica' bridge. 

4. Starbuck confronting Adama over why he pulled the 'Galactica' out of battle, before Starbuck knew the 'Colonies' had been destroyed.

5. Much more footage of the 'Carillon' casino, including all of the alien creatures built for the sequence.

6. A more graphic depiction of 'Ovions' consuming humans.

7. Bleaker circumstances within the fleet, including starvation and prostitution. 

8. 'Baltar' walking the surface of 'Caprica' after the 'Cylon' attack, including surveying 'Adama's' home after 'Adama' was there. Just before 'Baltar' meets up with the two 'Cylon Centurions' and is informed of prisoners near the 'Spacedrome.'

Where is all of this missing footage, 'Universal?'

'So Say We All!!'

Maybe All of Richard A. Colla's Missing Footage to 'Saga of a Star World' Could Also be Found in The 'Trendmasters Warehouse'

 

'So Say We All!!'

Sparing 'Baltar' in The 'Battlestar Pilot' Led to The Sloppiest Editing Splice In Film History

 'So Say We All!!'

Whether 'Comcast / NBC-Universal' Likes it Or Not, Its Mismanagement of The 'Battlestar Galactica Property' Is Being Studied in College Curriculums

 

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'Transmedia Franchise Failures

In modern media management and television study courses, the trajectory of the 2004 SyFy Channel reboot series serves as a case study in how poor franchise planning can kill an critically acclaimed brand. 

The Spin-Off Mismanagement

Scholars of media convergence analyze how NBC-Universal attempted to turn the 2004 reboot into a multi-generational franchise. The subsequent prequel Caprica shifted genres entirely into a slow paced corporate soap opera, alienating the core audience and resulting in a steep ratings collapse.

Waffling Strategy

The subsequent prequel, Blood & Chrome, is studied for network executive indecisiveness. NBC-Universal fluctuated between releasing it as a premium television pilot, or a web-series, eventually carving it up into a low budget Internet release on Machinima, which eventually killed the franchise's forward momentum.

The 25 year cycle of unmade Battlestar Galactica films is considered by modern entertainment business professors to be a premier case study in Development Hell and studio asset stagnation.

Universal Studios repetitive cycle of announcing high profile directors, ordering new scripts, and then letting projects quietly expire represents a specific type of IP mismanagement. In media studies, this is analyzed as a symptom of a legacy studio holding a highly valuable brand but possessing no unified creative vision or long-term franchise architecture.

Historians trace this specific corporate failure through a recurring timeline of broken announcements:

The 2001 Pivot: The Cancelled Revival

In 2000, Universal partnered with X-Men director Bryan Singer and producer Tom DeSanto to develop a massive revival series for the FOX Network. Sets were partially built and filming scheduled to begin in November 2001. 

The interruption: Following the September 2001 terrorist attacks, production suffered logistical delays, forcing Singer to leave the project to fulfill his contractual obligation for X-Men 2. Fox ultimately dropped the project entirely.

The 2009-2014 Deadlock: Rehiring Singer

By 2009, with the Moore television series concluding, Universal decided it wanted a major theatrical film.

The Regurgitation

They re-hired Bryan Singer to direct a complete re-imagining that would bypass the 2004 series entirely.

The Management Failure

Universal spent 5 years paying writers-including hiring Trancedence scribe Jack Paglen in 2014, to draft scripts. The project ultimately collapsed due to a combination of Singer's scheduling conflicts with the X-Men universe and growing personal controversies surrounding the director. Scholars point to this era as a total failure of forward looking brand strategy. The studio alienated fans of the then, current television series, to chase a movie that had no script.

The 2016 Variant: The Hunger Games Era

In 2016, Universal restarted the movie cycle from scratch. The studio announced that Francis Lawrence was circling to direct, with Lisa Joy hired to write the screenplay.

The Stagnation

The iteration fell victim to a lack of corporate prioritization. Universal let the project sit on the back burner while Lawrence directed Red Sparrow, allowing the momentum to disappear into a vacuum.

Also in 2016

The 2016 simultaneous feature film reboot of Michael DeLuca, Scott Stuber, and Dylan Clark failed to get off the ground due to a failure of frequent, creative regime changes, script stage stagnation, and competing corporate priorities at Universal Studios.

When DeLuca, Stuber, and Clark were brought on board in 2016 to Jump start the feature adaptation, it was already plagued by a decade of Development Hell. The producers initially made quick headway by hiring Lisa Joy and Frances Lawrence to direct.

However, the creative direction stalled, leading to a succession of resets:

1. By 2018, Universal hired Jay Basu to rewrite Lisa Joy's script. 

2. In 2020, the studio completely overhauled the project again, by replacing the creative team with Simon Kinberg. Kinberg created a second draft in 2022 and touted a grand, corporate strategy: The movie would exist in a shared universe with the parallel tv series being developed for Peacock. 

Competing Corporate Priorities

Universal's Strategic focus then shifted with the launch of its streaming service, Peacock, in 2020. 

Rather than prioritizing a massive, budget busting theatrical film, the studio chose to develop a parallel Battlestar television reboot helmed by Sam Esmail. Juggling two high profile, separate iterations of the exact same intellectual property stretched development thin, and both versions ultimately stalled.

Why Curriculums Study This Pattern

When media management programs study this 25 year loop, they use it to teach three industrial realities:

1. IP Squatting - Legacy Studios often keep an IP in active development simply so the copyright control doesn't lapse or fall into a competitor's hands. Production announcements are used as public relation's tools to show Wall Street that the studio is 'managing its library' even if there is no intention of greenlighting a budget.

The Reboot vs. Continuation Paralysis

2. Universal executives could never resolve the franchise's identity crisis. They fluctuated between making Glen A. Larson's 1978 original, a movie that built on Ron Moore's 2004 version, or a movie that wiped the slate completely clean. The creative indecision paralyzed the project for two decades, going on three.

3. The Sunk Cost of Development

Announcing a movie, hiring A-List talent, and commissioning multiple screenplays over 20 years costs millions of dollars in executive hours and holding fees. Universal effectively spent a blockbuster sized budget across a quarter century on legal fees and scripts without ever exposing a single roll of film.

Hollywood Option Laws: Battlestar

In Hollywood contract law and IP Management courses, the 25 year unmade movie cycle for Battlestar Galactica is studied as a unique collision between corporate copyright ownership and creator 'separated rights.'

Unlike most 'Development Hell' stories, where a studio buys a temporary option from an author and must produce the film before the option expires (or lose the rights), Universal Studios deadlock with Battlestar Galactica was governed by a permanent, legally fraught split in the property's foundation.

The Separation of Film vs. TV Rights

The multi-decade delay stems from a complex, contract dispute between Universal Studios and the franchise's creator, Glen A. Larson.

The Legal Split

Following the cancellation of the original 1978 Battlestar series, legal restructuring and subsequent settlements determined that Universal retained the exclusive television rights, but Glen A. Larson personally retained the theatrical feature film rights.

The Standoff

This created a unique corporate deadlock. Universal could not make a Battlestar movie without Larson, and Larson could not make a Battlestar movie without Universal Studios backing and trademark clearances.

The Quitclaim and Turning Back The Clock

In 2009, just as the Ron Moore SyFy Channel series was concluding, Universal quietly entered negotiations to buy out or partner with Larson, to finally consolidate the film rights under the studio banner.

When Universal finally secured the film rights, they did so under specific studio option agreements and holding fees paid to Larson, and later his estate, following his passing in 2014.

In traditional Hollywood option law, if a studio options a book or script, they have a strict window (typically 18 to 36 months) to trigger a 'green light', and begin principal photography. If they fail, the rights revert to the creator.

To circumvent this reversion, and protect their massive investment, Universal used a strategy of  'continuous active development.' By continually hiring a rotating door of 'A-List Directors', (Bryan Singer / Frances Lawrence) and screenwriters (Lisa Joy / Simon Kinberg), Universal legally proved they were exercising 'progress to production.' This kept the option active and stopped the theatrical rights from slipping away, even though no movie was being made.

The 'Two Master Creative Paralysis'

The legal split created an ongoing disaster for the franchise's brand architecture. Because the film rights were tied to Larson's original 1978 concept, the filmmakers Universal hired for the movie were legally and creatively disconnected from the 2004 television reboot.

'Entertainment Law' courses look at the resulting timeline as a 'masterclass in structural inefficiency:

The 2009 Dilemma 

Bryan Singer wanted to make a sci-fi epic based strictly on Larson's 1978 universe. However, the 2004 tv show was at its peak of critical acclaim. Universal's marketing team realized that releasing a movie that completely wiped out the 2004 canon would alienate the active fanbase, causing executives to stall the project. 

The 2020 Pivot

When Simon Kinberg and Sam Esmail tried to create a 'shared universe', between a Peacock tv show and a Universal theatrical film in 2020, they were trying to legally stitch together the two halves of the IP that had been severed decades prior.

Ultimately, Universal used the mechanics of option renewals and development cycles not to produce art, but as a 'defensive corporate shield' (spending millions on a 25 year loop of scripts), just to ensure a rival studio couldn't secure the theatrical rights to one of science fiction's most recognizable names.'

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'So Say We All!!'

When You Want to Keep The 'Battlestar IP' Active But Are too 'Welfare Joe Cheap' to Finance a New Production

You manufacture toys.

 'So Say We All!!'

7 Years and Still No 'Battlestar?' Merely, All In a 'Decades Work' For 'Peacock'

 'So Say We All!!'

'Universal Studios' Will Treat The '50th Anniversary' of 'Battlestar Galactica' Like The 'Groundhog Day' Movie. Endlessly Repeating Not Doing Anything With The Property For The Previous 50 Years

 'So Say We All!!'

''Peacock' Went into Business So That it Wouldn't Have to Be in Business

 'So Say We All!!'

Where Does One Even Begin When Describing This Crap?

 

It looks like Ronald D. Moore's "GINO" - (Galactica in Name Only) series had a 'Wet Dream' in the 'Space: Above and Beyond' universe, while 'Firefly' and the entire 'Bonnie Hammer SyFy Channal Apparatus' came along for the ride. Throw in some 'Welfare Joe Wardrobe' from the 'Vancouver Homeless Shelter off The Rack Clothing / Free of Charge Bins', set against a backdrop of outdoor location shooting somewhere in Canada. 

For the final touch, slap the 'Battlestar Galactica' brand name on it.

'So Say We All!!'

And 'Universal Studios' Has Been Screwing Everything Up On Purpose (Battlestar Related) For 48 Consecutive Years

 'So Say We All!!'

'Comcast / NBC-Universal' Keeps Missing The Memo That a New 'Battlestar' Production is Supposed to Go Along With The New Merchandise

 

'So Say We All!!'

Yet Another Missing Scene From 'Saga of a Star World:' The 'Rag-Tag Fleet Settling Into Orbit Above Carillon'

 

'The fleets arrival at Carillon was meant to be a majestic, multi-tiered visual sequence demonstrating the scale of the migration. 

The scene was never filmed: The legal heat from Lucasfilm and ballooning production costs caused Universal to abruptly pull the plug on using 'Industrial Light and Magic' for the rest of the pilot. The effects team was forced to scramble, pack up, and stop working on unfinished composite shots.'

'So Say We All!!'

Another Missing Scene From 'Saga of a Star World:' The 'Missing Cylon Tanker Sub-Plot'

 

'John Dykstra and his visual effects crew actually completed work involving a massive fuel tanker vessel planet-side. In the original narrative design, Starbuck was supposed to heroically pilot the massive, highly volatile, Tylium fuel tanker off the surface of Carillon and through a wave of Cylon attacks to help supply the fleet. Because the editing room had to truncate the Carillon segment heavily to adapt to the last-minute, weekly tv show pacing, this entire surface action sequence was abandoned. The Tylium was reduced to a plot device that Apollo and Starbuck simply blow up in the underground caverns at the end of the pilot.'

'So Say We All!!'

Universal Studios Not Upgrading The Visual Effects For The '1978 Battlestar Series' Is Even More Pathetic.Given The 'Bargain Basement Cost' It Would Take to Do So

 

It would cost roughly $300,000.00 to upgrade the visual effects per episode for all 17 episodes of the '1978 Battlestar Galactica Series.' Roughly, $5,100,000.00 for the entire series.

Keep this in mind. If Universal Studios is unwilling to spend a piddly $5 million to upgrade the visual effects in the entire '1978 Battlestar Galactica Series', of course it's also going to be unwilling to spend $15 million per episode, for a 10 episode 'Battlestar' series for 'Peacock', for a total cost of $150 million.

'So Say We All!!'

This Is What The 'Potential and Fake Battlestar Press Release' Would Be About In Early 2027: Preventing The 'Battlestar IP' From Lapsing Into The 'Public Domain'

 

Where 'Battlestar' would get made into a horror movie.

'So Say We All!!'

What Is Really Being Said Here....

 Come January / February 2027, 'Comcast / NBC-Universal' will make yet another 'Fake Battlestar Movie / TV Announcement' to drive up 'Battlestar Merchandising Sales', and to prevent ownership of the 'Battlestar' IP from lapsing into the 'Public Domain.'

Perish the thought that 'Battlestar' should join....'Winnie The Pooh'....'Bambi'....and....The 'Banana Splits'....in becoming a....'Public Domain Horror Movie Franchise.'

'So Say We All!!'

What 'Universal Studios' Should Be Worrying About, Is That It (For The Longest Time), Has Had ZERO CREDIBILITY With This Property

 

Three Consecutive Decades of 'Fake Movie / TV Show Press Releases' tends to do that.

'Universal Studios' is now being....'Probed'....'Analyzed'...'Dissected'....'Judged'....'Studied'....'Psychologically Evaluated'....'Credibly Broken Down'....and....'Routinely Discarded'....by every Media Historian, Business Analyst, Scholastic Business Educator, and IP Ownership Professional in their chronic Mismanaging of the 'Battlestar Galactica IP' from 1978 - 2026.

'So Say We All!!'

There's Barely a 'Pulse' In The Usual Places

 

'So Say We All!!'

'Comcast NBC-Universal' Was Caught In a Lie, and They're Back to Their 'Silence Game'

 

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'The Core of The Hollywood Shell Game

The narrative that Star Trek: Starfleet Academy's failure somehow justified killing Battlestar Galactica is a classic corporate deflection. Trying to blame generic, genre fatigue or fans for their own cold feet is a flat-out lie. Especially given Universal Studios decades long history of freezing out the Battlestar property.

The reality of this situation exposes both the true financial breaking point and Universal's historical pattern of deception.

The Real Reason: The $150 Million Wall

The math is what stopped Peacock dead in its tracks. Fans and industry insiders knew exactly what happened: Universal Content Productions was staring down a $150 million dollar price tag for just 10 episodes.

The High Risk Streaming Climate

In an era where streaming platforms are desperately trying to trim losses, spending $15 million an episode on a hard sci-fi project is a massive financial gamble.

Rather than admitting they didn't have the budget, the nerve, or the subscriber base to sustain a premium space opera, executives pointed outward. Citing the low viewership and quick cancellation of other sci-fi experiments like Starfleet Academy was just a convenient, face-saving shield to mask their own lack of financial confidence.

The Berman Era Parallel / The Absolute Proof of a Lie

The Rick Berman Era of Star Trek (1987-2002) completely dismantles the studio's modern excuse.

During that 15 year window (Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, Enterprise) were generating billions of dollars, proving that the appetite for deep space television was at an all time global peak. 

If Universal truly made Battlestar decisions based on whether or not the sci-fi market was healthy, they would have green-lit a new Battlestar series during the 1990s. Instead, they sat on the IP and did absolutely nothing with it. Universal's reluctance has never been about Star Trek's performance, it is about their own institutional fear of spending money on spaceships.

Decades of Battlestar Ghost Projects and Fake Press

The public has a long memory of Universal Studios dangling Battlestar Galactica in front of fans just to pull it away. The studio has used the franchise as a vaporware headline generator for over 20 years.

The Bryan Singer Film That Never Was

For nearly a decade, Universal routinely issued press releases about a massive feature film reboot directed by Bryan Singer, keeping fans on the hook while the project sat perpetually stalled in pre-production.

The Sam Esmail / Peacock Loop

The modern Peacock iteration was announced in 2019 before the app even launched, serving as a shiny piece of PR to convince investors that Peacock would have a prestige franchise. For five years, they cycled through writers, gave vague updates, and engineered concept art , only to drop it the moment actual production bills came due.

Ultimately, the Internet called them out because the lie was too lazy. Universal Studios has always treated Battlestar Galactica like a corporate trading card, something to brag about to boost their own brand profile, but a property they are fundamentally too risk-averse to ever fully finance and set free.'

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'So Say We All!!'

Universal Studios Has Worked Its Way Over to Ignoring Children Who Are 'Battlestar 1978' Fans? Welcome to This Blog's World

 'So Say We All!!'

The 'Field Trip' to The 'Universal Studios Film Vaults' Will Not Be In Vain

 

Not completely accurate. Dykstra also did a movie's worth of extra footage on 'Gun on Ice Planet Zero' and 'Lost Planet of The Gods.'

'So Say We All!!'

It Has Ultimately Come Down to What 'Comcast / NBC-Universal' Really Is: 'Cable Boxes, Plumbing, and Wires in The Dirt

 

'The thesis that many corporate historians and media critics use to summarize Comcast / NBC-Universal's modern era. Ambiguous is the perfect diagnosis. Unlike Disney, the (Family / Franchise vault), Netflix (the Tech Disruptor), or Warner Brothers Discovery (prestige and grit), NBC-Universal under Comcast has become a massive, multi-billion dollar shapeshifter that is everything and nothing all at once.

The Peacock Reboot Limbo

When Peacock launched, one of its big promises to sci-fi fans was a brand new Battlestar Galactica series spearheaded by Sam Esmail (Mr. Robot). It sat in development hell for five years, passed through multiple writers, and was quietly abandoned. Illustrating a complete corporate inability to nurture, fund, or execute high concept, genre storytelling. 

The Sports Trap: Owning The Rights, Missing The Culture

Even when they successfully buy the rights to Sports, they fail to cultivate a Sports Culture. Tech-forward companies like Apple TV+ built slick, premium, and unified hubs for MLS and Friday Night Baseball. Meanwhile, Comcast managed to fragment it's sports identity. They took historic, beloved properties like the Tour de France, Premier League, and the Olympics, and split them awkwardly between failing cable channels, USA Network, and various Tiers of Peacock-frequently leaving the average sports fans confused, angry, and feeling nickeled and dimed.

Involuntary Ambiguity as a Business Model

The root of this systemic failure is that Comcast is, at its core, a utility provider, not a creative studio. It is a company built on plumbing, wires, cable boxes, and broadband infrastructure.

The Bureaucracy of Synergy

When a utility company buys a creative empire like NBC-Universal, the corporate culture prioritizes board room metrics over artistic vision. Decisions are made by committees trying to satisfy golf tournaments, theme parks, local news affiliates, and broadband subscribers all at once. 

The Spin-off Capitulation

The ultimate admission of this management failure came when Comcast announced it was spinning off its legacy cable channels (like SyFy, USA, and MSNBC) into a separate entity. It was a corporate white flag, proving they couldn't figure out how to integrate their massive media footprint into a cohesive digital future.

By trying to please everyone and balance too many conflicting corporate legacy systems, Comcast managed to strip the flavor out of everything it touched. They are left holding some of the most valuable intellectual property, sports rights, and history in entertainment, yet they remain paralyzed. Hovering on the outside looking in, unable to carve out a single, defining niche.'

In progress

"So Say We All!!"

'Universal Studios Executives' Are Now Personally Shipping Merchandise as Well?

 

'So Say We All!!'

'Universal Studios Executives' Would Gladly Re-Release This 'Hunk of Junk' Even Now

 

'So Say We All!!'

Yes, We're Still Noticing That 'Universal Studios' Still Isn't Producing a New 'Battlestar' Series to Go With The New Merchandise

 

"So Say We All!!"

The Talent Behind The Scenes of 'Battlestar Galactica 1978' Were Never Fully Allowed to Do Their Jobs

 

"So Say We All!!"

7 Years in Development Hell Only With 'Peacock?' That is Only, a Fraction of The 'Mismanagement'

 

In All Honesty, this is a snapshot of 'Comcast / NBC-Universal's' 'Mismanagement Style' towards 'Battlestar Galactica' since 1978....

"So Say We All!!"

A Great Deal of John Dykstra's "Special Effects Magic" Was Left on The "Cutting Room Floor"

 

"The visual effects butchery inflicted on John Dykstra and his 'Apogee' team was massive. While they famously delivered over 300 fx sequences for 'Saga of a Star World', the frantic format re-edits and corporate panic forced the deletion of several highly ambitious, specialized effects shots.

The Carillon Exterior Mining & Energy Flares

Dykstra's team built intricate matte paintings and miniature models meant to establish the outside of 'Carillon' as a volatile, industrial hellscape. The shots featured active, 'Tylium Mining Operatons' with massive energy venting flares shooting from the planet's crust into deep space.

ABC and Universal cut these establishing shots entirely to speed up the transit to the resort floor. By deleting them, the movie loses the visual foreshadowing that the planet is a giant, ticking time bomb."

The Lost Tylium Refinery Miniature Sequence

The Brightly Lit Fortress

'John Dykstra's Apogee Team' designed and partially executed a sprawling exterior 'Tylium Refinery Complex' that was ultimately cut due to a mix of extreme time constraints, budgetary issues, and script pacing changes.

The 'Brightly Lit Fortress Model' was designed as a massive, multi-tiered, industrial citadel built directly into the jagged canyons of Carillon. It featured hundreds of tiny, incandescent, grain of wheat bulbs and internal, fiber optic lighting to give it a sprawling, functional city scale look under the planet's dark sky.

The Extraction Tubes

Prominently featured on the exterior were large, translucent tubes and processing pipes. 

Dykstra's team used internal lighting effects and liquid elements to simulate the glowing, volatile, liquid 'Tylium' being vacuumed up from the deep, subterranean, insect 'Ovion' mines into surface holding tanks.

The shot was meant to establish that 'Carillon' was not just a desolate rock or a simple casino resort. But a massive, 'highly synchronized, Cylon-backed logistics hub' fueling the Empire's local war machine.

All of this was cut by Universal because it became a production bottleneck."

More to come.

"So Say We All!!"

If It's 'Sold Out', 'Unaccounted For', 'Missing', 'Destroyed In a Fire', or 'Destroyed via Neglect', It is Being 'Mismanaged by Universal Studios'

 

'So Say We All!!'

Universal Studios Deliberate Mismanagement of The 'Battlestar Galactica IP' Is Reaching 'College Lecture Halls'

 

It's always important to teach 'Defective Management Practices' as well.

'Business Term: IP Warehousing or Strategic Asset Hoarding....What it means....

In Corporate Strategy, companies often maintain control of a valuable asset not to actively use it, but to prevent competitors from acquiring it. Universal Studios keeps the Battlestar Galactica IP alive through small scale licensing (like video games or theme park rides), and endless development cycles. This ensures the copyright and trademark remain locked down tight, keeping a major Sci-Fi brand away from rivals like Disney or Paramount.

Business Term: IP Dilution and Fragmented Continuity....What it means....

Unlike Franchises like Star Wars or Star Trek, which strictly manage their lore and timelines, Universal has historically allowed Battlestar Galactica to splinter. They have juggled the 1978 Battlestar Galactica series, the widely panned Galactica: 1980, the 2003 Ronald D. Moore reboot, and various cancelled spin-offs.

Business Term: Brand Dilution or Fragmented Brand Equity....What it means....

When a corporation introduces products that confuse or alienate the core customer base. It weakens the value of the brand name, by failing to build a singular and cohesive cinematic universe. Universal split the fandom between different generations of the show, making the IP harder to monetize on a massive scale compared to its competitors.

Business Term: Litigation-Induced Risk Aversion....What it means....

Business studies often analyze how early, bruising legal battles cause a corporation to become overly cautious. The multi-year legal battle with George Lucas over sci-fi tropes made Universal executive culture historically hesitant to pour blockbuster - level movie budgets into the franchise, viewing it as a legal and financial landmine.'

"So Say We All!!"

What Hasn't Gone Missing in Universal Studios 'Eternal Mismanagement' of The '1978 Battlestar Galactica' Series?

 

"So Say We All!!"

Yes, All of The 'Chartered Buses' Have Been 'Booked' For Our 'Field Trip' to The 'Universal Studios Film Vaults'

 

'So Say We All!!'

What Else Did John Dykstra and His 'Apogee Crew' Film For 'Saga of a Star World' That Universal Studios Has in its Film Vaults?

 

In 'Saga of a Star World' (The 1978 Galactica Pilot Episode), Dykstra and his crew filmed aerial shots of some of the '12 Colony' planets just before the 'Cylon' attack.

'So Say We All!!"

One of Those "Buried Battlestar Galactica Mysteries" From The Past That Universal Studios Prefer No One Knows About

 

Original "Saga of a Star World" (the 1978 Battlestar Pilot episode) director Richard A. Colla filmed a good 95% of the pilot episode. He only had "4 scheduled remaining days left to go" before Glen A. Larson fired him, and dumped his perfectly good, theatrical quality footage in the trash heap never to be seen by anyone, ever.

One of the sequences he filmed was a long and extended sequence of the "Ovions" escorting Apollo, Serena, and Jolly through the "Ovion Catacombs." Just as "Boxey" was captured by the "Ovions" and taken someplace else....Apollo, Serena, and Jolly are loaded into a "tram" and taken to the entrance of the "Ovion Catacombs." Apollo, Serena, and Jolly get off the tram and begin a slow walk through the catacombs. A rather lengthy sequence with no dialogue. Apollo, Serena, and Jolly follow "Ovions" with other "Ovions" walking behind them. Apollo staring at ceilings and walls while the walk continues, Jolly nervously looking down at his gun during the walk, with Serina looking very upset. This leads up to what is left in the movie, Apollo communicating with the "Queen Ovion - Lotay" asking her where "Boxey" is at.

This is just an example of the great stuff we lost in extended footage from the movie. ABC-TV and Glen A. Larson cut this fantastic footage, Universal Studios never catalogued and stored the footage in protected surroundings (destroyed forever through neglect), and the other fantastic, extended stuff that Richard A. Colla shot was apparently lost in a fire. (Convenient).

"So Say We All!!"

''Bi-Polar Mismanagement' of The 'Battlestar Galactica Property' is Nothing New

 

Welcome to this blog's world.

"So Say We All!!"

We're Getting Buried Underneath New 'Battlestar ' Products But Never Any New Productions

 

The entire existence of the 'Battlestar IP' will always be remembered for: 'Universal Studios and Battlestar Never Mixed Well Together.'

'So Say We All!!'

They Actually Should Have Released All of The Rarely Seen and Obscure Aliens on Planet 'Carillon' That Ended Up On The Cutting Room Floor

 John Chambers and a bunch of other 'name artists' of the time, who designed and built creations for the 'Aliens on Carillon' sequence for the 'Galactica' pilot episode directed by Richard A. Colla, were all furious that all of their creations and hard work ended up on the cutting room floor.

'So Say We All!!'

From The Beginning, People Should Have Been Thinking About "Universal Studios Needs to Concentrate on Repairing The Damage to The 1978 Battlestar Series Before Making a New Movie"

 

Universal Studios Has never been a big fan of going into its own past and repairing the damage it caused. The '1978 Battlestar Galactica Series' is no exception.

1. Universal Studios has left the 'editing damage' in the pilot episode unrepaired for 48 years. It needs to go no further in proving its thorough unprofessionalism in misnanaging this IP since it has owned it.

2. The 1978 Series also needs a thorough visual effects upgrade in all of the other episodes as well. Universal Studios would never do this because it involves something called 'Physical Labor." And another business practice it doesn't like either: "Spending Money." Keep in mind that upgrading all of the visual effects in the 1978 series would cost Universal Studios a fraction of what they paid to finance 'Cocaine Bear.' So that instantly obliterates the whining and crying Universal Studios would do about spending the $$ to upgrade the 1978 series.

3. Mentioned before, John Dykstra filmed unseen special effects sequences in the pilot episode, and entire unseen sequences in 'Gun on Ice Planet Zero' - (an entire Ovion external manufacturing / city complex for Tylium on the planet Carillon which was also a 'War Depot' for the Cylon Empire), and 'Lost PLanet of The Gods." By coincidence, all of these fully completed effects sequences by John Dykstra and Apogee have been sitting safe, sound, and fully preserved in the 'Universal Studios Film Vaults' since 1978. Always ready at any time for Universal Studios to pull them out of the film vaults and begin sharing them with the public in 4k.

4. The episode 'Hand of God' needs massive visual effects upgrades. Especially the final sequence where the 'Galactica' takes on a 'Cylon Basestar.' As it is now, the effects are blurry and smudgey 5th generation copies of pilot episode footage.

5. The episode 'Living Legend' had the entire 'Cylon Tanker' sequence lifted from the pilot. This needs to be replaced with new footage.

6. The 'Experiment in Terra' footage at the end of the episode where the 'Galactica' protects the planet from a nuclear attack needs to be upgraded.

7. All of John Dykstra's original footage from 'Gun On Ice Planet Zero' needs to be put back in, where Vipers are attacking the giant 'Pulsar Cannon' in circular assault patterns. And the Pulsar is city block huge in this footage with Cylons manning the exterior of it.

After Universal Studios does all of this, then maybe they could begin thinking about a new movie.

"So Say We All!!"

The "Litmus Test" For Universal Studios Always Has Been "If It Can't Even Go In and Repair The Editing Damage in The Galactica Pilot Episode After 48 Consecutive Years"...

 

"....Then it sure as hell also, is not going to make a new production either...."

"So Say We All!!"

This is The Only Property That Goes 'Bat Shit Crazy' on New Merchandise, With Never any New Productions to Go Along With It

 

"So Say We All!!"

This Book is Proof That Universal Studios Only Wants 'Galactica' fans to Know, What it Wants Them to Know

 Yes, Universal Studios would never shatter the 'Status Quo Bubble' on multiple fronts it has enveloped the 'Battlestar IP' in for dedades. 

For example, what it doesn't want you to know....

1. Multiple deleted scenes in 'Gun on Ice Planet Zero' include Cylons executing the 'Theta Clones' out in the snow.

2. An entire lost scene of Apollo and Dr. Raveshol confronting an entire 'Council of Elders' about the 'Pulsar Weapon.' And not just the snippet of dialogue in the scene in the Blurays and DVDs.

3. That 'Lost Planet of The Gods' was actually written and filmed as a coherent, logical story. And not what replaced it: Fragmented and spliced together scenes, especially in part 1.

4. More scenes with Adama and Baltar in the tomb.

'Battlestar 1978' has perhaps more unused and never seen footage than any other series in history.

Why don't we all take a 'Field Trip' to the 'Universal Studios Film Vaults', and see what we can see in Richard A. Colla's never seen deleted footage, and John Dykstra's never seen deleted footage?

'So Say We All!!'

And Nothing About The Miles of Still Missing Footage in 'Saga of a Star World' (The Galactica Pilot) From Fired Director Richard A. Colla

 

....And nothing about the still missing special effects footage by John Dykstra in 'Saga of a Star World', 'Gun on Ice Planet Zero', and 'Lost Planet of The Gods.' (All of the missing footage actually locked away in the Universal Studios vaults.) Never seen before by anyone.

The book is thorough, alright.

"So Say We All!!"

"Battlestar Galactica" Posterbook Cancellation

 

"So Say We All!!"

The "World Building" by John Dykstra in The "Battlestar Galactica" Universe Was Extremely Extensive in "Gun on Ice Planet Zero"

 

Recognize it? You only saw it in flashes of split seconds in the actual episode. And it never looked very big. Dykstra built it as being the size of a city block. He fully completed effects sequences with it, with Cylon warriors walking up the staircases and manning the 'Pulsar Cannon' from different vantage points of this exterior model.

Dykstra also fully completed other effects sequences with this model, with Vipers flying repeated, circular patterns around it, in full combat, drifting in and out of clouds.

All of this footage was fully completed by Dykstra, and never seen by the general public because it has been locked away in Universal Studios vaults since 1978.

Universal Studios needs to release ALL of John Dykstra's never seen 'Battlestar' footage in 'Saga of a Star World', 'Gun on Ice Planet Zero', and 'Lost Planet of The Gods', to the general public on special 'Blu-Ray' and '4k' discs. The footage is awesome because it is crystal clear in '4k' visual quality. You get the immense size of the 'Pulsar Cannon' in the footage, with the Cylons walking and standing on it while it is in operation.

All of Dykstra's footage in the entire series is of a high standard '4k' visual quality. Yet, the public has never seen it. And he fully completed all of his effects shots.

Universal Studios needs to release the footage to the public, now.

"So Say We All!!"

A Reliable Source Ranks Universal Studios at #5 as One of The Top Mismanagement Practitioners of an 'Intellectual Property' (Universal Studios Should Actually Rank #1)

 

'If you restrict the definition of 'mismanagement' strictly to the preservation, respect, and technical curation of an original 1970s Sci-Fi IP, then Universal Studios locks in a spot on that 'Top 5 List' of 'Corporate Shame.'

By treating the 1978 series as a neglected line item on a spreadsheet - refusing basic editing fixes, leaving visual effects un-upgraded, and suppressing the attempts of original creators and actors to keep the flame alive, Universal Studios acted more like a jailer than a custodian.

When analyzing the broad spectrum of pop culture, Universal's decades long neglect of 'Battlestar' shares the stage with a very specific, infamous group of corporate managers who treated legendary IPs with similar contempt:

1. Warner Brothers Discovery - Batgirl, Coyote vs. Acme

2. Fox - The Firefly and Alien franchise Sabotage

3. Paramount / Viacom - The Star Trek Fan Film Crackdown

4. Disney / Fox - The Blue Sky / Star Wars Expanded Universe Wipe

5. Universal Studios (The Battlestar 1978 Icebox)

Universal earns its spot right alongside them.

Their refusal to spend a fraction of a movie budget to correct the audio pops, mismatched aspect ratios, and glaring editing loops in 'Saga of a Star World' (The 1978 Galactica Pilot episode) - in both the 125 minute theatrical cut  and longer, 3 - hour tv version - is the ultimate sign of corporate apathy. They actively chose to let a historically significant piece of 1970s Sci-Fi history look like a degraded bootleg rather than honor the legacy of Glen A. Larson and the fans who kept it alive.'

The editing and sound mixing of 'Saga of a Star World' (the 1978 Galactica pilot episode) remains an archival disaster.

The Frankenstein cuts - Universal chopped up the pilot into multiple formats - the 125 minute European / Canadian theatrical cut. The 148 minute ABC television premiere, and the syndicated 3-part episode version.

The Unfixed Glitches - Instead of painstakingly assembling a definitive, properly paced 'Director's Cut', Universal Studios repeatedly re-released versions plagued by jarring audio drops, mismatched film grain, continuity errors, and deleted scenes carelessly shoved back in without proper audio balancing.

The Refusal to Upgrade Visual Effects - For a fraction of the cost of a modern blockbuster, Universal Studios could have pulled a 'Star Trek - The Next Generation' enhanced, or a 'Star Wars - Special Edition' treatment on 'Battlestar 1978.'

The Digital Solution Left Ignored - In the 2000s and 2010s, CGI technology matured to the point where replacing those repetitive, grainy optical composites with crisp high-definition digital models would have been incredibly cost effective. Paramount did this flawlessly for the original 'Star Trek' and 'The Next Generation.' Universal Studios flatly refused, leaving the original show heavily dated and repetitive to modern audiences.

The ultimate proof of Universal's apathy towards the 1978 IP during its major milestone anniversaries. When they finally brought the original series to Blu-Ray, 4k Ultra HD, they performed basic, high definition scans of the existing film elements but did absolutely no restoration work on the practical effects lines, matte boxes, or editing flaws. They packaged it with minimal new bonus features, treating it like a 'budget catalog title' rather than a historic, television milestone.

Universal Studios essentially locked the 1978 series in a time capsule, refusing to give it the dignity of a modern restoration, because they assumed the classic fan base was too small to justify the spreadsheet expense.

Universal Studios continues to refuse to fix the jarring editing and technical flaws in 'Saga of a Star World' 48 years later because of disastrous archival fragmentation, corporate-risk averseness regarding historical continuity, and a cold financial calculation regarding the classic IP's return on investment.

Universal treats the 1978 pilot as a locked historical document rather than a living piece of media driven by several, reality based corporate factors.

The Frankenstein State of The Original Negatives -

The jagged editing is a physical artifact of how the pilot was aggressively butchered in 1978. To recoup it's historic $8 million television budget, Universal frantically cut the footage into two, separate masters simultaneously.

The theatrical cut at 125 minutes and the ABC-TV cut at 148 minutes.

Because of this rapid-fire hacking, the original camera negatives were physically cut, swapped, and shared between two entirely different editing rooms.'

In progress

"So Say We All!!"

The Beheading of "Baltar", Richard A. Colla Style

 

Yes, Richard A. Colla did actually film it for "Saga of a Star World", the (1978 Galactica pilot episode.)

The upper torso a mannequin with a prosthetic head.

More deleted scenes filmed by Richard A. Colla....

1. Richard A. Colla shot hours of background coverage, extended musical numbers, and wider dialogue scenes inside the 'Carillon' resort.

2. Everyone wonders why Starbuck and Boomer were just standing off to the side listening to Apollo plot the route through the 'Nova of Madagon' (Red Starfield) while Adama and the council were listening. Where did Starbuck and Boomer come from? The scenes immediately before that? Before it was cut? Adama sent a security detail down to the 'Carillon Casino' looking for Starbuck, Boomer, and Apollo. Adama wanted the three of them brought back on board the 'Galactica because Adama wanted his three 'Senior Warriors' at his side while he submitted his resignation to the council. His resignation got sidetracked when Apollo interrupted the conversation of the council to submit his idea for taking the fleet through the red starfield. After Apollo says to Starbuck and Boomer: "Well, just the two fellas I wanted to see. Follow me gentleman." From there, the uncut scene proceeded of the three of them walking to Adama's quarters and waiting for Adama to get there. Once Adama arrives, he orders Starbuck and Boomer to leave. From there, the uncut scene kicks in with Adama yelling at Apollo: "And just what were you doing volunteering for a mission like that? Sire Uri must be laughing up his sleeve."

3. Baltar slowly walks the surface of 'Caprica' after the 'Cylon' attack.

Inspecting the surface damage of the home planet of his political enemy, Commander Adama. A short time later, Baltar will be informed by two Cylon Centurions that prisoners have been taken near the 'Spacedrome.'

In progress

"So Say We All!!"

The Little Known 'Galactica Fact' That Sent Glen A. Larson into a 'Tailspin' and Eventually Got Richard A. Colla Fired

 

Co-Producer Leslie Stevens did an unscheduled re-write of Glen A. Larson's script of the 'Galactica' pilot episode (Saga of a Star World) that Glen A. Larson didn't know about. 

When he did, he made the 'Galactica' pilot episode much darker, including the graphic on-screen be-heading of 'Baltar', turning the 'Ovions' into human consuming carnivores, and turning the 'Rag-Tag Fleet' into a hive of intense suffering, prostitution (not just Cassiopia), and ship to ship conflicts.

Glen A. Larson eventually got around to checking in on what Richard A. Colla (the Director) had been filming for weeks. With only four days left of Colla's filming, ABC-TV and Larson collectively asked 'what the hell is all of this?' (The dark and gloomy footage). It was then that ABC-TV told Larson to fire Richard A. Colla, and bring in Alan J. Levi for an un-credited re-shoot of Colla's gloomy footage, and lighten it all up.

'So Say We All!!'

Now That We Know All of John Dykstra's "Galactica" Footage is Crystal Clear and Razor Sharp in Appearance

 

....Including all of the deleted and never seen footage....

What additional (deleted footage) of John Dykstra's, does Universal Studios have stored away in its vaults?

1. The "Apollo / Zac" exploration of 'Cimtar' and "Cylon Tanker Cloud Cover" (Uncut)

Additional footage of Apollo and Zac flying past the two 'Cylon Tankers.' During one of the fly bys, Apollo initially notices some 'Cylon Raiders' hovering just beneath the cloud cover, with its engines displaying a low glow.

This footage was also intercut with "Starbuck's card game.

2. As the fleet emerges from the 'Red Starfield' after destroying all of the 'Cylon Mines', the 'Galactica' assumes orbit above 'Carillon', as does the entire ships in the fleet. 

Shuttlecrafts eventually emerge from the ships taking the fleet inhabitants down to the surface.

3. Pretty much every 'Rag-Tag Fleet Ship" had its own, lingering and extended 'beauty shot.' Including 'Rising Star', the 'Livery Ship' (the three film cannisters with giant landing pods), 'Celestra', and 'Colonial Movers.' The extended beauty shot of the 'Rising Star' is seen unedited in the episode 'Murder on The Rising Star.'

4. The explosion of the 'Battlestar Atlantia' was filmed (unedited) as an ever expanding explosion and slowly dissipating, without cutting to Adama and Tigh shielding their eyes.

5. Underbelly shots of the 'Galactica' and 'Rag-Tag Fleet Ships' filmed for the pilot but only seen thus far in "Mission Galactica: Cylon Attack."

More to come.

"So Say We All!!"

Is All of John Dykstra's "Special Effects Work" (From 'Saga of a Star World'), Including Fully Completed and Never Seen (Cut Scenes), Safely Stored and Preserved Somewhere?

 

"The footage remains safely and meticulously preserved.

Universal Studios keeps this entire visual effects catalog within the subterranean NBCUniversal vaults. This specialized facility is an industry leader in archival preservation, maintaining specific, climate-controlled conditions, designed to halt the degradation of vintage, 1970s film stock.

The security and continued preservation of the 'Galactica archive' are maintained through several key protocols:

1. The NBCUniversal Vault System

The raw camera negatives, cut scenes, and isolated Dykstraflex elements reside within a massive repository featuring over 40 miles of high density shelving.

The Climate

The vaults operate under strict temperature (typically 35 to 45 degrees) and humidity (around 25% to 30% RH) controls.

The Benefit

This environment completely prevents 'Vineger Syndrome', the chemical breakdown that destroys acetate film, ensuring that the fragile optical layers, mattes, and master negatives remain pristine.

2. High Resolution, Digital Back-Ups

Universal treats this footage as a high-value, historic asset. The studio relies on an active digital, preservation program.

The Scanning

Universal runs master negatives through advanced, high speed film scanners.

The Restoration

Digital artists use proprietary tools to clean up scratches, deficiency aging frames, and manage grain. For major home media milestones, such as the shows remastered Blu-Ray and definitive 4k releases, technicians pull directly from these original elements, to re-build scenes with perfect color accuracy.

3. Corporate Asset Protection

Because Battlestar Galactica remains a foundational intellectual property for NBCUniversal, the archive is legally protected as a core, company asset. Universal treats these effects elements as historical, legal proof of proprietary, production pipelines, keeping the  master stock protected under top-tier security against loss, fire, or accidental purging."

Imagine that! I'm just beginning to understand the magnitude of the "Special Edition Blu-Ray and 4K Releases" Universal Studios could do on "Saga of a Star World" (the Galactica 1978 Pilot Episode), especially having access to the pristine, never seen John Dykstra footage of the "Exterior Carillon / Ovion / Tylium Mine Cityscapes." And all of the other never seen John Dykstra footage, fun stuff!!

"So Say We All!!"