Another BSG filming location identified

In perusing the BC Film Commission's website, I discovered quite a few familiar locations in the BSG verse. Many already identified, but a few new ones as well. What especially jumped out at me was the "Waterfall Building" featured in the miniseries, "Epiphanies" and "Black Market."

Roslin visits the doctor in the miniseries and again in "Epiphanies":

Vancouver's Waterfall Building was designed by Arthur Erickson with Nick Milkovich Architects. It is now home to the Elliot Louis Art Gallery. If you'd like to see more, you can watch a slideshow of the building's interior and exterior at the gallery's website.

In "Black Market", Lee watches his girlfriend run down the stairs and then pause before the glass-faced building below.

Though I doubt we were meant to recognize Roslin's doctor's office, it would have added a bit of nuance if we were: Lee's pregnant girlfriend running to see the doctor after Lee's rejection of her and their child.

Read about the whole Waterfall complex in the article, "Erickson's Urban Waterfall" from Architecture Week.

Previous posts on BSG filming locations:

- Where in Vancouver? I mean Caprica.
- Where in Vancouver... update!
- BSG Shooting locations on Google Earth
- Helo in "The Alibi Room"

New plot details for Trapped Ashes

Thanks to HouseofHorrors.com, new plot details have emerged for Tahmoh's new film, Trapped Ashes. It sounds like Tahmoh's role of "young Leo" will be quite substantial.

"Leo" played by John Saxon is an "over-the-hill screenwriter of B-pictures, 74" who is trapped inside an infamous "House of Horror" with 6 other strangers during a Hollywood movie studio tour, who are forced to tell their most terrifying personal stories to get out alive. So it seems the movie will mostly consist of flashbacks, one of them being to "young Leo."

Episode 3 -- "Stanley's Girlfriend"
Director: Monte Hellman

In Hollywood, 1957, two ambitious young filmmakers become unlikely friends: Leo (Tahmoh Penikett), writer of sadistic little B-pictures like "The Strangler," and a soon-to-be-famous director named Stanley (Tygh Runyan). They find they share a passion for photography, jazz -- and chess. During all-night chess matches, the two men open their creative souls to each other. Nothing could come between them -- until the day Stanley shows up with a mysterious beatnik girlfriend, Nina. There's something ancient and modern about her, some indefinable, irresistible quality that drives Stanley half-mad with desire, turning his back on his work, his films, his friend Leo.

After a long silence, Leo receives an invitation to play chess one afternoon -- but when he arrives at the apartment, he finds Stanley has left town on a film project, leaving girlfriend Nina behind. Leo can't resist tasting the forbidden fruit, even if it means betraying his best friend Stanley. But he soon discovers that Nina's love comes with its own terrible price to pay ...

More about the other 3 episodes and the story's setup.

New icons of Helo in uniform

The LJ icon-making community, bsg_stills, made the recently released promotional photo of Helo in his dress blues their challenge for last week, with some nice results. So if you're looking for a new official Helo icon, look no farther:



See the rest.

BSG panel with cast in LA this March

The William S. Paley Television Festival at the Museum of Television and Radio in Los Angeles will feature a panel on Battlestar Galactica with most of the cast and Ron Moore and David Eick in attendance.

March 3 | Friday | 7:00 p.m.
Battlestar Galactica

In Person: Jamie Bamber, Tricia Helfer, Edward James Olmos, James Callis, Mary McDonnell, Grace Park, David Eick, Ronald D. Moore, Katee Sackhoff

Tahmoh's not on the list at the moment, but then he wasn't supposed to be at Comic Con 2005 and there he was. Anyone in the LA should definitely check this out though. Make your reservation soon so you don't miss out!

Visit the Museum of Television and Radio website for more information.

Thanks to Jamila for the heads up!

BSG profiled in Rolling Stone

A review of Battlestar by Gavin Edwards appears in this month's issue of Rolling Stone magazine. It's also been posted online:

Intergalactic Terror
Battlestar Galactica tackles terrorism like no other show

Civilization is under attack by religious fanatics -- and the fanatics are winning. There are suicide bombers, a clueless president and prisoners who get tortured by the good guys. No, this isn't a particularly grim night on CNN: It's Battlestar Galactica, the smartest and toughest show on TV. In its second season, this remake of the 1978 camp classic has become -- no joke -- TV's most vivid depiction of the post-9/11 world and what happens to a society at war.

Read more

New Poll and some Poll Results

In case you haven't noticed yet, there's a new poll at right. What do you think Helo was doing off-screen during "Black Market"? (vote for as many as you think apply):

- talking to Sharon?
- working out in the gym?
- wondering if he'll get a new black tank top too?

And since I've been distracted, here are the last two weeks of results.

"Epiphanies" Poll Results:

Most people think that Helo would have drawn his weapon to defend his baby (88%), though the majority don't think he'd have actually fired.



"Resurrection Ship, Part 2" Poll Results:

"Keep surviving" won out as the most likely Helo response to Sharon's "Where do we go from here?" Though the romantics in the room made "figure out how to get locked up in the same cell" come in second, closely followed by "we get married." No one apparently wants them to go "back to Caprica".

"Black Market" airs tonight at 10/9c on Sci-fi

Not sure how much Helo will figure in this Lee-centric ep, but it'd be nice to see a little followup between him and Sharon...

Watch a preview for the episode here.

Ron Moore's podcast is now available for download.

Tahmoh to play "young Leo" in Trapped Ashes

As I previously announced, Tahmoh has been cast in the horror anthology, Trapped Ashes, which "spins tales of witches, parasites and other ghastly entities."

He will appear in Kubrick's Girlfriend as young Leo. The film has wrapped production, but the release date has yet to be set.

See the IMDB profile of Trapped Ashes.

Here's what the series writer, Dennis Bartok, had to say about the films:

FX-driven it may not be, but Bartok promises that Trapped Ashes won’t be a run-of-the-mill, homogenized horror film. “I don’t want to say too much and spoil the surprise, but the stories are all very wicked, erotic and extremely twisted,” he says.

Read more with Bartok over at Fangoria.

I have a strong aversion to horror films myself, so I'll be relying on other fans to report back about it.

New cylon-focused videoblog

A new videoblog has been posted to scifi.com. It goes behind the scenes of Episode 218 "Downloaded" on Day 2 of shooting.

15: It's a gooey job but someone has to do it.

It's quite spoilery, so be aware.

It's a cylon-focused segment so Helo doesn't appear.

PS: For those interested the site just passed 40,000 unique visitors yesterday. Not bad for only 10 months online...

Helo in "The Alibi Room"

While I'm no Vancouverite, I am pleased to answer my own question regarding the restaurant Helo and Sharon discover in S1 ("Act of Contrition" and "You Can't Go Home Again"), thanks to the Official BSG Companion. The scenes were shot at "The Alibi Room" in Gastown, Vancouver.

"The Alibi Room is an industrial heritage space with two levels locatied in Vancouver's historic railtown. The Alibi occulpies the two lower floors of a five story post and beam, brick building."

The restaurant also advertises itself as a filming location with features such as "large windows on the north and south sides of the building".

They have 4 VR/panoramic images of the restaurant that you can explore in 360 degrees. Click on the images below to compare.

Here's the restaurant facade. They seriously compressed it for the show. Sort of like they did to the Scotia Bank building.


They seem to have brought in that wall of square glass panes themselves and pulled up the blinds. Otherwise the window and the tables are the same:


Note the bar, bar stools, railing and Sharon coming out of the emergency exit.


Helo up against the kitchen counter:


It's interesting how they made quite a large restaurant seem quite small onscreen.

Read/see more about BSG filming locations in my earlier posts:

- Where in Vancouver? I mean Caprica.
- Where in Vancouver... update!
- BSG Shooting locations on Google Earth

"Epiphanies" Reactions

New poll posted at right. If Baltar hadn't appeared, would Helo have actually drawn his gun to protect the baby? Yes? No? Yes, but he wouldn't have fired?

Vote now! ------>


See more Tahmoh pics from this episode over at Northern Lights.

Discuss the episode over at Hidden Elysium.

Ron Moore's podcast is available for download.

See cast commentary and a sneak peek for next week here.

"Epiphanies" airs tonight!

Tonight's Laura-centric episode also promises to include alot of drama for Helo, so be sure to tune in to Sci-fi at 10/9c!


Watch a preview for the episode here.

Ron Moore's podcast is now available for download.

New Tahmoh Interview in BSG magazine #3

Tahmoh's interview with Sharon Gosling, "Helo of a Time," in the new issue of the Battlestar Galactica magazine is now available on newstands!

In the interview, he discusses Helo's journey in Season 2, from the confrontation with Lee in "Home, Part 1" to his fight with Tyrol in "Flight of the Phoenix." It's a great read.



Thanks to un4scene for scanning the interview!

Read more interviews with Tahmoh here.

BSG Season 1 Trading Cards

On March 22, 2006 a new set of Galactica trading cards produced by Rittenhouse Archives will appear. The 81-card series will cover the entire first season and each box will contain 1 Autograph Card and 1 Costume Card.

Tahmoh was one of the many stars to sign autograph cards:

• Tahmoh Penikett as Lt. Karl C. "Helo" Agathon
• Mary McDonnell as President Laura Roslin
• Grace Park as Lt. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii
• Kandyse McClure as Petty Officer Dualla
• Donnelly Rhodes as Doctor Cottle
• Jamie Bamber as Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama

See more details and the full list of autograph and costume cards.

Though the cards are ostensibly from S1, they seem to have picked a shot of Tahmoh from the miniseries for his autograph card. Of course, so is Grace Park's, so at least both Helo and Boomer are together.

More Comic Con 2005 pics

divideby0.com has some great pics of the BSG panel at San Diego Comic Con 2005, including quite a few of Tahmoh.


Check out the rest!

BSG Shooting locations on Google Earth

If you've been visiting since last summer, you may remember my "Where in Vancouver?" series of posts about BSG shooting locations. Thanks to lots of fans, most of the sites I posted were identified. You can see the posts and people's comments here and here.

Now, thanks to Lloyd, a set of BSG shooting location placemarks for Google Earth has been posted.


These are wicked cool. You can see where in and around Vancouver BSG is shot. Some of the locations include:

- Baltar's house
- Cloud 9 rose garden
- Stairs near the Delphi museum

Great for planning a BSG tour of Vancouver!

Helo card in this week's TV Guide

Scifi.com has announced that this week's issue of TV Guide, on newsstands now, features 16 exclusive SCI FI Friday Fan Cards. So go pick up your own Helo card today (or at least before the end of the week)!

See the other seven Galactica cards, thanks to The CIC!

Plus, visit tvguide.com for your chance to win a Video iPod loaded with a free episode of Battlestar Galactica!

According to Gateworld, each TV Guide contains only 4 cards, so you'll have to hunt through them to find your Helo card.

ETA: I found a Helo card. It comes with Admiral Adama (and Teal'C and Ronon Dex from the Stargate shows). I added a photo of the back of the card above.

Poll Results: Helo's backstory and his best attributes

Well everyone seems to have different opinions when it comes to Helo's backstory and his best attributes.

- People are almost split as to whether Helo was the oldest (28 votes) or youngest child (21 votes).
- Most do believe he was raised by both his parents (40 votes).
- But almost as many people think he has a younger sister (37 votes).

See the rest of the stats:

As for Helo's best attributes:

1. His loyalty to & love for Sharon (26%).
2. His arms (17%).
4. His eyes & his strong jaw (tied at 13%).

Find more poll results here.

New David Eick Video Blog

A new videoblog from executive producer David Eick has been posted to scifi.com. It talks about a scene from upcoming episode 217 when they were debating the physics of an explosion versus what they could afford to do.

14: Irresistable physics vs. Immovable budgets

It is highly spoilery as they show the scene in question.

"Resurrection Ship, Part 2" Reactions

New poll posted at right. Sharon asked Helo: "Where do we go from here?" What do you think he said? "To bed"? "Back to Caprica"? "We get married"?

Vote now! ------>


See more Tahmoh pics from this episode over at Northern Lights.

Ron Moore's podcast is now available for download.

See cast commentary and a sneak peek for next week here.

"Resurrection Ship, Part 2" airs tonight

The conclusion to the now three-part Pegasus story airs tonight. So tune in tonight at 10/9c to find out what happens to Helo!


Watch a preview for the episode here.

Ron Moore's podcast should soon be available for download.

New "Scar" promo pics

New spoilery promotional photos for the upcoming Kara-centric episode "Scar" have been posted to NBC Universal's Media Village. Thanks to Dark-Thoughts, the full size versions are now available.

Looks like Tahmoh and Katee were rehearsing the first scene when Sci-fi Magazine snapped this photo:


See the rest of the "Scar" promo pics here.

New Helo icons

_glistening has posted some great icons of Helo and Tahmoh over in her LiveJournal. Here are few of my favorites:



See the rest!

Picture of Tahmoh in Entertainment Weekly

Thanks to un4scene for spotting Tahmoh in this week's Entertainment Weekly. Nice to see Tahmoh getting some national exposure.

See more press clippings over at Northern Lights!

"Resurrection Ship, Part 1" Reactions

New poll posted at right. What are Helo's best attributes? His loyalty and love for Sharon? His nobility? His biceps?

Vote now! ------>


See more Tahmoh pics from this episode over at Northern Lights.

Ron Moore's podcast is now available for download.

See cast commentary and a sneak peek for next week here.

"Resurrection Ship, Part 1" airs tonight!

BSG returns tonight with the first part of "Resurrection Ship" airing on Sci-fi at 10pm ET.


If you still haven't seen the Sci-fi Inside: BSG special, it's now also available as a streaming video over at TVGuide.com.

In the run up to the premiere a bunch of interesting and spoilery articles have appeared. Here are some of the best:

Chicago Tribune: "President Roslin gets tough on 'Battlestar Galactica'"

Be prepared for even more mindboggling twists and turns as the season heads toward a conclusion that’s full of “curveballs,” according to “Battlestar Galactica” executive producer Ron Moore.

Baltimore Sun: "Sci-fi escapism has a touch of reality"

"All these situations are pretty much things that you could imagine human beings doing in desperate situations with different agendas and in conflict with one another, like wasting inordinate time and resources while they're facing an even greater threat from without. Because it seems like one of the circumstances of human existence is our ability to really [hurt] ourselves.

"Science fiction at its best is socially relevant, interesting and provocative," Moore added.

Hollywood North Report: "Battlestar Galactica Set Visit, Part I"

Edward James Olmos: This series and its stories reflect everything we’re going through here on Earth right now. It’s amazing to me, quite honestly, the way Ron Moore and his staff have encompassed what’s going on in the outside world, and psychologically the emotional trauma that is happening to all individuals, particularly with respect to fear and how that fear plays into our everyday lives on the planet right now. Our 21st century has much more inherent fear than the 20th century did, in my estimation. And in our show, everything essentially revolves around the fear of dying and human extinction.

Scripps Howard News Service: "Rebellious Starbuck in for another rough ride"

Katee Sackhoff says she often feels the urge to strangle her "Battlestar Galactica" character _ the rebellious, childish Starbuck.

"Many, many times," Sackhoff said in a phone interview from Los Angeles. "I think it's way (Kara 'Starbuck' Thrace) acts toward people.

Subject 2 Discussion: Radio Interview with Katee Sackhoff

Read highlights from the interview.
Listen to the show.

New Tahmoh cast photo and "Epiphanies" promos

At long last, an official BSG cast promotional photo of Tahmoh has been released. You can see it with the new batch of promo shots for episode 213, "Epiphanies", up in beautiful high-res over at Dark-Thoughts.


Tahmoh is partially visible in at least one of the photos (with Sharon). The shots are spoilery though, so be aware.

New Eick videoblog: Drinking on BSG

A new David Eick videoblog has been posted to scifi.com. It provides an interesting and humorous look behind-the-scenes of an upcoming episode.

13: A Drinking Problem on Battlestar Galactica

It follows the genesis and evolution of one of Ellen Tigh's cocktails for a future bar scene. The drink's metamorphosis occupies the attention of a surprising number of production crew and is pretty funny to hear about.

Warning, the blog is spoilery!

Sci-fi Inside: BSG special airs tonight

Sci-fi is airing their 30 minute special on Galactica tonight at 10pm. Be sure to check it out if you haven't already.

It's also available for free download at iTunes and available as a streaming video at AOL.com.

Here's the full broadcast schedule.

The show largely recaps the first half of season 2 (and briefly season 1). Only about the last two minutes hint at what's to come... so even the spoiler-phobic can enjoy it. As I mentioned earlier, Tahmoh figures rather prominently in it.

BSG novelizations compared

In a recent blog essay, Timothy Sandefur thoughtfully compares the two Battlestar Galactica novelizations: the original novel by Glen Larson and Robert Thurston, and the novelization of the new miniseries by Jeffrey Carver.

Although both series feature the genocide of the human race, Larson’s original was much gentler; the Cylons were bumbling fools, for one thing (mostly because Universal ordered him to avoid human casualties as much as possible so as to make the show child-friendly).

And far more humans escaped the destruction of the home worlds: Larson says in the book that the fleet is comprised of more than 22,000 ships, far more than in Moore’s version. (Moore hasn’t told us how many ships there are, but there are only about 50,000 humans surviving in his version.)

Read the rest of the essay.

Of course, only Jeffrey Carver's novelization features Helo and thus its superiority to Larson's version should come as no surprise.