You have to admit that Starbuck is going off the scale in the BSG personal issues department lately:
comic © sheldoncomics.com
But here is the thing… Conflicted characters make for good TV. This is because usually having well defined, conflicted characters with issues translates into character driven stories. I said this before and I’ll say it again:
Character Driven Stories > Plot Driven Stories
Why? Because we grow to like these characters, and become invested in their stories. Dialog and character interaction become much more than just devices to move the plot from point A to point B or to deliver back-story fluff or to explain the unraveling story to the viewers. When you have a good set of characters, each with personal goals, issues and agenda you don’t really need a “crisis of the week” type of scenarios. If you need a filler episode that is not part of the major story arc, just take two characters with conflicting agendas, have them butt heads and then just play the group dynamics to see shifting of alliances and etc… Depending on how you play it, you can have a suspenseful drama, a tear jerker, or action packed joyride.
But that’s just my opinion.
[tags]battlestar, bsg, galactica, starbuck, character driven, storytelling, tv[/tags]