Battlestar Galatica.

I recently purchased Battlestar Galatica on Blu-ray. I have since started to re-watch the series. It was an amazing take on the space opera, with modern political and social commentary. The best sci-fi isn't about the future, it is about right now, set in a different setting. The points they make are poignant and telling about what is going on in the world. I posted something last night that BSG is the best sci-fi around, and was contradicted by a young guy, just out of high school. He argued that Star Wars, Firefly, and Stargate are all better. He is wrong. Star Wars has it's moments. The Empire Strikes Back continues to be one of the best films ever, not to mention just sci-fi. Firefly was an awesome space Western, with gun fights, outlaws, and running from the law. Don't get me wrong, Firefly could be one of the wittiest non-comedy shows ever. Stargate was alright. However, these films and shows and idea might not live up to the test of time, because they don't incorporate the commentary of the time. 1984 is long past, but the critiques and fears that it espouse are timeless. Will the themes of Firefly or Stargate be relevant in 10 years? Probably not, since they don't really have themes, they only have actions. They are narrative without ideological substance. Star Wars does have some of that Western, Samurai, and pulp serial themes of good versus evil. I get that. However, the extended "universe" of Star Wars lacks all of that feeling and morality. It is just narrative. I can say this was a lot of certainty, since I spent several of my teen year obsessed with Star Wars, reading, watching, compiling, collecting stuff related to it. I'm glad I didn't have access to the internet until I was past that phase, because I would have been beyond obsessed. But so much I have read and seen regarding this series is just a list of emotionless facts or stories without any heart. True, some of the stories might be good or have emotion or ideological substance or political commentary, but the vast majority do not. But BSG has a core of commentary on the impact of the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks, and what it does to people. There is confusion, anger, fear, depression, and hope. The show doesn't shy away from these topics. Each character does things differently, and is imperfect. But it is a futuristic mirror that Americans needed to see what they were doing and how they should be reacting. Colonel Tighe is an alcoholic, who deals with tragedy through a bottle. Starbuck deals with it by tempting fate and bucking authority. President Roslin deals by taking charge of the government of the Colonies and treating everyone as people, worthy of respect. We need more shows like BSG to help us to see the ills of society and to help us want to change and improve the world around us. James Cameron's Avatar got us halfway there. It showed us our mistakes, but didn't really answer how we could fix them. BSG doesn't really fix them, at least not right away. Still, it will go down in history as a commentary on the post-9/11 world.