This document is ©2005, John Larocque. All rights reserved.
[This section, originally published in Anomaly, was posted on the BSG mailinglist on July 6, 1995.]
The following is a list of scripts that were written for Galactica, but for one reason or another were never shot. All except the last one, which I have never seen, plus differing versions of the premiere script, are available from several commercial sources.
THE BETA PIRATES, by Leslie Stevens, a two-hour screenplay dated 31 October, 1977 (Prod. #85274). A look at the early form of the series; Apollo is Skyler, Boxey an orphan unrelated to anyone who Athena cares for. In this episode, Athena, Boxey, and Muffit are captured by pirates, sold at a slave auction, end up in a Cylon prison, and are finally rescued by Skyler, Starbuck, and a pirate with a heart of gold. Despite a number of obvious similarities to "Star Wars", an entertaining script that should have been filmed and in fact might well have been a contender for one of the originally-intended two-hour specials that were to follow the premiere (Originally "Galactica" was conceived as a series of specials, not as a weekly one-hour show). One element from this script resurfaced in "Gun on Ice Planet Zero"; Boxey and Muffit stow away.
CROSSFIRE, by John Ireland, a one-hour screenplay dated 30 November and revised 8 December 1977, originally titled "The Nari of Sentinel 27". Apollo is still Skyler, the Cylons are reptiles, and Lyra is a Council member. Similar to but shorter than "Gun on Ice Planet Zero"; added to "Gun" were Dr. Ravashol, the convicts, Boxey and Muffit, and considerably better characterization; for those who compare "Gun" disparagingly to "The Guns of Navarone", all I can say is, this is worse.
FIRE IN SPACE, by Michael Sloan, a two-hour screenplay dated 22 June 1978. "Fire in Space" by Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell was rather broadly based on this script, which opens with Apollo, Starbuck, and Boomer undercover in a bar seeking information on the Cylon pursuit. Later, Starbuck is charged with murdering the husband of a woman he's been involved with, the Cylons, thanks to a new project codenamed "The Delta Factor", locate, attack and ram the Galactica, Apollo must lead a dangerous mission to obtain laser power packs for his father's surgery, aided by Starbuck dumping fire extinguishent on the fire with a viper, the true murderer tries to kill Boxey, who is a witness to the crime, but is foiled by Apollo, and of course everything works out in the end. Generally a very good script that should have been shot as is. Evidently Larson liked the basic ideas enough to recycle them; Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell, who wrote "Fire in Space" never saw the script but were given the basic plot Larson wanted followed and wrote under his direction. "Murder on the Rising Star", which is only superficially similar, was an original idea by Carlson and McDonnell but credit for "based on a story by" was given to Sloan for legal reasons since he had previously submitted a script with a murder in it.
SHOWDOWN, by Frank Abatemarco, a one-hour screenplay dated 5 July, 31 July, 3 August, and 15 August 1978 (Prod. #50903). Renegade hangar crewmen steal a shuttle and three land probes, the flying motorcycles of G80, built for this evidently very nearly filmed episode, and terrorize a settlement on a recently-discovered planet before Apollo and Starbuck stop them. Like most of the early, unfilmed scripts, features Athena prominently.
THE MUTINY, by Guy Magar, a one-hour screenplay dated 2 October 1978 (Prod. #50914). Fairly silly script in which everyone decides they're tired of the journey and desert the Galactica and the fleet to settle a habitable planet. Naturally the Cylons arrive just in time to cure the Colonials of their delusion.
I HAVE SEEN EARTH, by Steve Kreinberg and Andy Guerdat, a one-hour screenplay dated 26 October 1978, revised 3 November 1978 (Prod. #50911). Concerns a prospector who has to abandon an asteroid with a solid gold core when the Cylons arrive; he claims to have been to Earth and endears Boxey to him with his colorful tales. Everyone doubts his veracity, but in the end he gives Boxey a medallion with Earth's continents engraved on it. The version available in fandom is evidently that rewritten by Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell; this is the only one of the early, unshot scripts they saw when they joined as story editors. Their version was apparently being considered for a second-season script.
TWO FOR TWILLY, by Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell, a one-hour screenplay dated 12 December 1978, revised 22 December 1978 (Prod. #50923). According to Anne Lockhart, it was nearly filmed -- the script was passed out, then withdrawn. A soap opera concerning a friend of Starbuck and Apollo who has wives all over the fleet, the basic idea, according to Carlson and McDonnell, came from a 50s Alec Guinness film, "Captain's Paradise".
FINAL FLIGHT/RETURN OF STARBUCK by Glen A. Larson. Its original title and dates are unknown ("Final Flight" is from a rumor, so may not be definitive), but according to Stu Phillips and Richard Hatch, this G80 episode was based on a second-season BG script. In the original version, Starbuck was shot down on a deserted planet, reconstructed Cy for company, and met up with a woman who had landed on the planet after fleeing from some sort of trouble. Starbuck selflessly sent her back to her world in the escape craft he and Cy had made, and was fortunately rescued himself by Boomer. Guesswork suggests that only the Starbuck/Cy dialogue in the G80 version is a direct survivor of the original.
LOST PLANET OF THE GODS, by Glen Larson and Don Bellisario, a two-hour screenplay. The first part is dated 27 July 1978 (Prod. #50204), the second part on 2 August, 7 August, 14 August, 17 August and 20 September 1978 (Prod. #50205). This episode appeared on US television in two parts, on 24 September and 1 October 1978.
GUN ON ICE PLANET ZERO, by Leslie Stevens, Michael Sloan and Don Bellisario, a two-hour screenplay originally titled "Ultimate Weapon" (Prod. #50202, formerly #50203). Revision history: 16 March, 3 May, 16 May, 18 May, 9 June, 9 June (2nd rev.), 12 June, 16 June, 21 June, 29 June, 5 July, 13 September (reshoots), 14 September (reshoots), and 20 September 1978 (retyped and xeroxed). This episode appeared on US television in two parts, on 22 October and 29 October, 1978.
THE LOST WARRIOR, by Don Bellisario, dated 25 August 1978 (Prod. #50912). This episode appeared on US television on 8 October 1978.
THE LONG PATROL, by Don Bellisario, dated 16 June, 23 June and 12 July 1978 (Prod. #50902). This episode appeared on US television on 15 October 1978.
THE MAGNIFICENT WARRIORS, by Glen Larson, dated 25 September, 26 September and October 2 1978 (Prod. #50912). This episode appeared on US television on 12 November 1978.
THE YOUNG WARRIORS, by Don Bellisario, Frank Lupo and Paul Playdon, dated 9 October, 13 October, 16 October and 17 October 1978 (Prod. #50905). This episode appeared on US television on 19 November 1978.
THE LIVING LEGEND, by Glen Larson, a two-hour screenplay. The first part is dated 17 October, 24 October, 27 October, 30 October, and 2 November 1978 (Prod. #50919). The second part is dated 30 October, revised on 4 November 1978 (Prod. #50920). This episode appeared on US television in two parts, on 26 November and 3 December 1978.
FIRE IN SPACE, by Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell, dated 26 October 1978, revised on 1 November 1978 (Prod. #50917). This episode appeared on US television on 17 December 1978.
WAR OF THE GODS, by Glen Larson, a two-hour screenplay dated 27 November, 30 November and 4 December 1978 (Part I is Prod. #50921, Part II is Prod. #50922). This episode appeared on US television in two parts, on 14 January and 21 January 1979.
THE MAN WITH NINE LIVES, by Don Bellisario, dated 19 December, 28 December 1978, and 2 January 1979, originally titled "The Furlon" (Prod #50916). This episode appeared on US television on 28 January 1979.
MURDER ON THE RISING STAR, by Don Bellisario, Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell, story by Michael Sloan, dated 7 December 1978, 4 January, 16 January and 17 January 1979 (Prod. #50924). This episode appeared on US television on 18 February 1979.
GREETINGS FROM EARTH, by Glen Larson, a two-hour screenplay dated 26 January, 29 January, 2 February, 2 February (2nd rev.) and 5 February 1979 (Prod. #50926). This episode appeared on US television on 25 February 1979.
BALTAR'S ESCAPE, by Don Bellisario, dated 15 Feburary 1979 (Prod. #50927). This episode appeared on US television on 11 March 1979.
EXPERIMENT IN TERRA, by Glen Larson, dated 26 February 1979, revised on 1 March 1979 (Prod. #50928). This episode appeared on US television on 18 March 1979.
TAKE THE CELESTRA, by Jim Carlson and Terrence McDonnell, dated 9 March 1979, revised on 12 March 1979 (Prod. #50929). This episode appeared on US television on 1 April 1979.
THE HAND OF GOD, by Don Bellisario, dated 16 March 1979 (Prod. #50930). This episode appeared on US television on 29 April 1979.
THE WHEEL OF FIRE, a one-hour screenplay by Louise R. Kelley, Alan S. Young, story by Alan S. Young, dated 25 March 1980 (Prod. #55120). This is a sequel to Galactica 1980's last episode "The Return of Starbuck". In pursuit of Xaviar, his Viper about to be destroyed by Cylon fire, Troy is captured and taken aboard the Ship of Lights, where he meets Starbuck. Starbuck is now one of the "guardians of the Universe", who assigns Troy on a special mission -- to follow Xaviar (and the Cylon craft) into Earth's distant past (592 B.C.) and prevent the potential damange to Earth's history. At the same time, Adama sends Dillon and Jamie to the same period, where they rescue the pair, destroy the Cylon Raider and return to the present. In the resulting confusion, Xaviar's ship is lost. The "Wheel of Fire" refers to the way the burning Cylon wreck crashed to the Earth, and tries to tie the event to the famous vision from the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel.