I happen to like the show very much for how theatrical and intriguing it is, and I knew that Battlestar Galactica: Razor had a lot to live up to. I wasn't expecting it to be as good as the show and it wasn't, however it is better than the other Battlestar Galactica movie The Plan. Razor does have its problems of course, the characters don't have as much depth as they do in the series, the story does have moments where it is rather rushed and contrived despite some very intriguing moments and the dialogue at times does sound as though the writers didn't proof-read to make sure it made sense. Also what questions were left to answer after Season 3 weren't resolved as well as they could have been here. On the other hand, it has some cool-looking costumes and sets and is edited well. The music has many moments of rousing, haunting intensity, the idea was interesting and when it made sense and didn't feel rushed the film was quite thought-provoking as well as with some quirky revelations. The acting is decent enough. Overall, not bad(better than I have heard it made out to be, from what I heard I was expecting horse poop) but mildly disappointing at the same time. 6/10 Bethany Cox

To be able to help people that are trying to understand what Razor is and what is not, I decided to write a humble review. Lets start with what it is. Razor is a science-fiction movie that is tightly connected to the series Battlestar Galactica. Therefore, if you don't know the series, it is very unlikely that you can enjoy Razor. The character development part for the characters that are in the series are skipped and we see character development for only three people (Helena Cain, Kendra Shaw, Number Six). As a matter of fact, without knowing events and characters in the series, it is not easy to follow this movie. You can think Razor as a long episode after season three. Now let me briefly talk about what it is not. It is not a must to view before season four. The story of Razor is somehow independent from what is going on in the series and if you don't know it, you can still follow what is going on. As a movie, Razor is not more advanced that the series in terms of CGI. I found it a bit awkward since movies are supposed to have a bigger budget. I didn't find the story very interesting either. The main characters are portrait as extreme females. This is not something we are used to I guess. Also, I can't skip the accent of Stephanie Jacobsen. She really needs to do something about it. Anyways, if you want to watch Razor, do it after season three, not before that. And if you don't know the series, I don't think you can enjoy it.

Before its destruction in battle the crew of Battlestar Pegasus underwent many changes in command. One common crew member through these changes is the green Lt Kendra Shaw who joins the ship shortly before the attack on the colonies. She remains in place in a higher role much later when Lee Adama assumes command although it is clear that her experiences have changed her approach to leadership. It is under Adama that she makes tough but risky calls that lead to the discovery of an very old model of Cylon ship – a model that brings memories back to Commander Adama relating to his encounters in the first Cylon wars.I must confess that learning that the massive cliff-hanger at the end of season 3 was to be followed by a "flashback" film was not the most cheering thing in the world. Quite how it was back when fans had to wait a year to find out they were waiting a bit longer I don't know but at least for me everything is out on DVD now so the only delays are those associated with my spare time. Anyway, Razor took me a minute to get into, partly because I didn't want to jump back. In it we get events on the Pegasus under Cain that we had previously only heard about, events under Lee Adama and some back-story on the Cylons by way of Commander Adama. In terms of the main plot of the overall series, Razor doesn't add a huge amount apart from adding a little bit of information on the Cylon experiments with humans and a warning about the destiny of one of the main characters.Where Razor works though is in its look at the nature of command within Pegasus, the tough decisions required and the regret that somehow has to be managed. We see this through new character Shaw, who we see as both a relative "rookie" of sorts as well as the more experienced, jaded Lt of Adama's command. She is the common thread across the majority of the film and it works because she does. She is very well played by Jacobsen who is convincing in all the parts she has to play. She fits into the cast well and captures the darker mood the series has gradually taken on. Her threads are full of action and space battles where the effects are impressive and quite exciting – sure it doesn't move things along in the way one would hope but the events are engaging and make for a solid drama. Not all the cast are as good as Jacobsen although most are solid. The regular cast all do their stuff but it is the Adama flashbacks that are not that well acted, with a bit too much overacting and over-expression that does border on being hammy.Razor may not answer the questions left hanging after season 3 but, viewed without the pressure of answers (I did not have to wait long after 3 for the season 4 DVD release) it is a solidly entertaining film. The various threads all engage but it is the common presence of Jacobsen's Shaw that makes it work as well as it does. Worth seeing for those watching the series proper.

Having just watched this, and then read some of the comments that have been posted, I suspect that there are a few subtleties that have been overlooked.While most people who have commented on this special episode have recognised the use of flashbacks to "flesh out" things we already know have occurred, the development of the back story of the "Old Cylons" did (I feel) link in with a great deal of what has been hinted at regarding the development of the Cylons, particularly their human-like forms; the ability to "see" the future; and their religion (and may I say, rather than feeling "force fed" by writers, the whole concept of machines developing a religious belief system just like my own scares the *heck* out of me! Do the Cylons *really* believe what they are saying? Is it something they collectively discovered; or did a leader get delusions somewhere and infect them all with a psychosis? Worst of all though, is the question "if the Cylons have a belief system like mine, while the humans have a "multi-god" view, then which side should *I* really be on?". But I digress!) My point is that this issue of (some) Cylons having the belief that they can see the future "because it has all happened before" has been floating around for a long time now. Also I think many people may have missed the hint from this particular episode that the "old" Cylons appear to be the link between Earth and everyone else (in the original series, *** ooh, ooh, spoilers from 30 years ago follow - frak me!*** the Cylons actually made it to Earth - though I can't recall what the outcome was, as by then they had been reduced to parodies of their former menacing selves). It also showed that the Cylons have an aspect of their past that they aren't so proud of either, and the revelation of their treatment of humans made an interesting counter-point to what we saw happening with Pegasus (in both cases, the events are set on vessels "outside" of the mainstream fleet; and in both cases it is hoped that the events can be left on the respective vessels when they are eventually destroyed).So, I don't have a problem at all with the whole "old Cylons" sub-plot, and I very much suspect that this will become very important in Series 4. And in regards to Adama *not* revealing his previous experience to anyone before, perhaps he didn't understand enough of what he saw to be able to say anything (especially since he would have been pre-occupied with rescuing the other survivors).Anyway, how about we all wait for Series 4 and see where it takes us, then see if "Razor" fits in with it or not? Oh, but I can't leave without commenting on one thing - *whose* idea was it to have the main character speak with an Aussie accent? Yes, I know, she *is* an Aussie, but that's not the point - Jamie Bamber is as English as Prince Charles, but *he* can do an American accent, so why do I have to listen to someone who sounds like *I* do? (I mean, Baltar has an English accent because he's a villain, and at least when Lucy Lawless was in it, she did her "Kiwi" accent, which has a minute trace of class about it! Yep, I can just hear those emails already!!!) So, to finish up - there was a lot of story to cover in "Razor", and while quite a bit of it had already been covered, this presented a new context to it all and was all the more thought provoking for it. I don't agree that any of the production efforts were below normal (I thought the special effects were brilliant - but may be others have forgotten that Cylon spaceships can't *really* fly around - and land it - city environments. And although I'm supposedly "grown up" at age 45, *don't* get me started on how *creepy* the Centurions are - them and the new Cybermen are the stars of my worst nightmares!) If you've read this far, thanks for staying with me! For anyone associated with making BSG, thanks for keeping me so entertained for the past few years - and giving me plenty to think about! Oh, and if you plan on sending the Cylons to Australia, please start with Sydney, then Canberra ....