Battlestar Galactica Changed Cylon Lore Because Of A Star Quitting
Battlestar Galactica is one of the finest sci-fi shows ever made, with amazing performances and memorable moments, and decades after its cancellation, it’s still attracting new fans. Given the lack of planning and flying by the seat of their pants, the writer’s room did while making the series, it’s a miracle it became an all-time classic. One example is the “boxing” of Cylons to prevent them from being resurrected, which was only created as a concept because Lucy Lawless was leaving the show, and creator Ronald D. Moore needed to explain why all Number 3 Cylons were now missing.
The Boxing Of Number 3
Boxing a Cylon is quite literal, with the newly downloaded consciousness diverted from the waiting Cylon body to a small metallic box attached to the resurrection tank. The digital consciousness is trapped inside the box in a punishment reserved for individual models that could pose a danger to their society, normally by becoming too sympathetic towards humans. In Battlestar Galactica Season 3 Episode 12, “Rapture,” John Cavil/Number One (Dean Stockwell) boxes the entire Number 3 model line due to her fanatic quest to uncover the secret of the Final Five getting close to unraveling his plans, a dramatic exit for Lucy Lawless that ended up becoming a pivotal plot point later.
Number 3, introduced as D’Anne Biers, an investigative reporter in Season 2’s “Final Cut,” was the only Cylon fascinated by religion. Battlestar Galactica always had religious undertones, but with Number Three’s quest for the mythical Final Five, Lucy Lawless was able to dig into the role, and her performance helped make Number 3’s evolution believable. Just before she’s boxed by John Cavil, she has a look in her eyes that she’s accepting her fate like a true believer, confident she’ll see the Five someday.
During its run, Battlestar Galactica didn’t have a lot of cast changes during its run, with Lucy Lawless’s departure remaining the most high-profile. The human characters could be killed off, well, five of them couldn’t be, but the rest were fair game, which is why a Cylon’s departure required a creative solution. The first time boxing is mentioned is in “Downloaded” in Season 2, by Number 3 threatening Number Six (Tricia Helfer) and Number Eight (Grace Park) with it, but behind the scenes, the writing was already on the wall for Lawless to walk away, which gives the scene a touch of irony when rewatched.
Battlestar Galactica Never Had A Plan
Battlestar Galactica’s lack of planning from day one isn’t uncommon, in fact, Babylon 5, famously written out entirely from beginning to end before it started filming, is the exception among sci-fi shows and not the rule, which is why there was no trapdoor planned for Lucy Lawless’ Number 3. It’s also why the reveal of the Five introduced enough plot holes to fuel a generation of YouTube explainer videos. The revival series giving a view into the workings of Cylon society helped humanize the cybernetic lifeforms, but as fans learned after the fact, there was never a plan.
Both Battlestar Galactica and Lucy Lawless are still beloved by thousands, if not millions, of sci-fi fans around the world, lack of planning or not. The rough around the edges writing and plotting works well with the series’s dark tone, making it sometimes seem like horrible things happen, reflecting what life would really be like trapped on spaceships trying to outrun an unrelenting enemy. The concept of Cylon boxing ended up working out for the best and presented a brilliant counter to their digital immortality because nothing is more horrifying to a race that has conquered death than the existential dread of eternal nothingness.
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