A Da Vinci Code for 'Battlestar Galactica'?
Battlestar Galactica's splashy poster for its fourth and final season may look like Da Vinci's The Last Supper, but series star Katie Sackhoff said today that as far she knows it was just a cool photo shoot, not a clue-riddled map to things to come.
"It's interesting that everyone thinks there is something hidden in that Last Supper photo, like if you look hard enough, you can find a hidden message in it," Sackhoff said. "To be honest, I think we [the cast] would have had to be in on it to create a hidden message, and we were all just there having a photo shoot."
But it wouldn't be the first time that Battlestar's producers have kept their cast in the dark about plot developments, so there could be hints to uncover yet.
Of course, the photo isn't a direct translation, making any clues harder to nail down. There are 12 Battlestar characters pictured; Da Vinci painted 12 apostles and Jesus to make an unlucky 13. Also a key clue in the original Da Vinci Last Supper is that Judas has his elbow on the table - a sign a rudeness in the ancient world that was said to foreshadow his betrayal of Jesus. Yet in the Battlestar version, at least four major characters (Sackhoff's Starbuck included) have their elbows firmly planted on the table.
Also, with a knife in his hand, Chief Tyrol (Aaron Douglas) seems to be cast in the role of Peter. But he's in the wrong position. We could go on, but I think I'm done geeking out for the day.
Battlestar Galactica returns for its final season next Friday on the SciFi Channel.
Above: Photo from the SciFi Channel
Comments
*ahem* Dee. *ahem*
Posted by: Pablo | March 28, 2008 7:19 PM
Reverse the order, and Tyrol is Judas.
Posted by: JoAnne | March 29, 2008 12:27 AM
It's a very intriguing idea. If there are hidden meanings
the lack of a 13th could be telling. It could be trying to hint at who the final cylon model is.
That said, it is interesting that six is in the middle, in the role of, well, Jesus. could it be that six is the one who is the central figure? after all, of all the cylons, she's the one that expresses the insecurities of humans, the raw emotions of humans, at least, moreso than the rest. perhaps she is the bridge, the one that saves.
of course, that does beg the question of who the missing person would be then. could whoever's missing be the judas of the bunch? the problem is, there's very few core cast members that are left that could fill that role? gaeta? sort of been down that road. a spiteful dualla?
a lot more possibilities, but then again, your other point could be true. that is, this could be much ado about nothing.
Posted by: tj | March 29, 2008 8:12 AM
Great show - what SciFi really should be about (NOT accurate, always hardcore science - please, as a physicist, I don't want hard core!) Lots of fun and love the religon angle, too. The MD that smokes (only main character that does?) is perfect.
Posted by: DBrown | March 29, 2008 4:13 PM
The image depicted is a mirror image of Da Vinci's "Last Supper"
There are two factions illustrated by the two benches upon which they are seated.
With the image being mirrored, this places Anders squarely in the "Judas as Betrayer" position. Tyrol is not Judas. Tyrol, according to the position of his legs in both the photo above and in the Da Vinci painting is third over from center. Therefore, Tyrol is, in fact, Peter.
The empty position in the photo above is reserved for Philip in the mirrored Da Vinci and according to all the gospels mentioning him, Philip is recorded as being "The Fifth" which could be allegorical to being the "Fifth Cylon"
Posted by: George | March 30, 2008 11:12 PM
Of course the writers can keep the cast in dark about some things, and there is probably a reason why the new 6 character is angrily pointing, why Helo and Athena look scared, why Chief is holding a knife, etc. But fans have really over-analyzed everything, including postures, etc. For it to mean anything, the cast would have had to been on it.
DBrown: Dr Cottle is not the only character who smokes. Baltar smokes, and Starbuck used to smoke cigars a lot in season 1 (mimicking Dirk Benedict's Starbuck), but they stopped showing her doing that since.
Posted by: Ivana | April 1, 2008 1:46 PM