'Battlestar Galactica' A to Z

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The final season of the acclaimed 'Battlestar Galactica' promises twists, turns and human-Cylon drama. Whether you're a diehard fan or a newbie (<a href="http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Battlestar_Galactica_Season_3/70061401?mqso=80018614" target="_blank">catch up on DVD</a> now), our guide has everything you need to know before watching. Who the frak is the last Cylon? Will the ragtag fleet reach Earth -- and what will they find there? We've got answers (spoiler alert). -- <i>By Kelly Woo</i>

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Adama

The tense relationship between Admiral William Adama (<a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/edward-james-olmos/105065' target='_blank'>Edward James Olmos</a>) and his son, Lee (<a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/jamie-bamber/359486' target='_blank'>Jamie Bamber</a>), boiled over at the end of Season 3, when the latter resigned his commission to become a lawyer. Lee will commit fully to civilian life, taking a position under President Roslin.

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Boxing

How does the 'BSG' crew let off steam? They beat each other up. Last season, Lee "Apollo" Adama and Kara "Starbuck" Thrace stepped into the ring and the brutal match symbolized their intense, combative bond. Lee grieved when Kara "died," but she's been "resurrected" -- if it's really Kara, of course.

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Cult

The third season ended with the acquittal of former president Gaius Baltar (<a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/james-callis/284762' target='_blank'>James Callis</a>) on charges of treason. After the trial, Baltar forms a cult (and a harem) and broadcasts religious messages. <a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/nana-visitor/126852' target='_blank'>Nana Visitor</a> guest-stars in Episode 6 as a Baltar acolyte with cancer who challenges President Roslin's faith.

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DRADIS

In the CIC, the CO mans DRADIS to spot bogeys for the CAP. Hey, it wouldn't be sci-fi without acronyms. But the technology that sounds light years away is closer than you think. As for DRADIS, it stands for "Direction, Range and Distance" -- similar to another acronym, RADAR ("Radio Detection and Ranging").

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Earth

Unlike other space operas, which find mankind moving away from Earth, 'BSG' has our little planet as its destination. Last season, Starbuck came back from the dead to proclaim she'd been there. Now, the fleet keeps searching -- and may just find Earth sooner than expected.

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Frak

If 'Battlestar Galactica' can be known for one thing and one thing only, it should be for inventing the best non-curse word in television history. Frakking awesome!

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Gods

Religion has always played an important role in 'BSG,' particularly in the fight between the monotheistic Cylons and the polytheistic humans. In Season 4, the fleet's beliefs are divided after Baltar's proclamation that the gods do not exist, while Roslin faces a personal test of faith as she battles cancer again.

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Hybrid

In last fall's TV movie 'Razor,' a dying hybrid -- the result of early Cylon experiments on humans -- warned, "Kara Thrace will lead the human race to its end. She is the herald of the apocalypse, the harbinger of death. They must not follow her." Too bad nobody (still alive) heard her.

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Ionian Nebula

The season premiere begins where we left off: The Galactica discovered four Cylon basestars bearing down on them after jumping to the nebula, another signpost to Earth. While a battle enuses, Starbuck returns to a wary Adama to find out she's been "dead" for months -- though she thinks it's only been a few hours.

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Joe's Bar

Even sci-fi characters need a good, stiff drink now and again. Located in one of the hangar decks, it's where Samuel Anders -- Kara Thrace's husband, former star Pyramid player and pilot-in-training -- first hears 'All Along the Watchtower.' This song triggered the realization that he and three others were actually Cylons.

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Kara Thrace

Starbuck claimed she'd found Earth. But does anyone believe her? Expect for Kara to see a lot of time in the brig, then find refuge on a ship called Demetrius. As for her future, creator Ron Moore teased to Cinema Blend, "There are similarities [and] connections between Starbuck and Baltar."

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Last Cylon

One of the big mysteries during the Season 4 will be the identity of the last Cylon. Remember that seven models were already known, while four new ones were revealed in last year's finale. Just who is that last model? Moore revealed a hint via a <a href='http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20169703,00.html' target='_blank'>promo photo</a>: The last Cylon is NOT sitting at the table. Do the math.

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Movie

Don't expect 'BSG' to go the big-screen route like <a href='http://television.aol.com/show/star-trek-the-motion-picture/1022700/main' target='_blank'>'Star Trek.'</a> Moore denied that option at a Season 4 preview: "The series works best as an ensemble TV drama. If it translated into a feature, it would be a different animal." Hey, anyone think a different animal would be fan-frakking-tastic?

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Natalie

A new Number Six, Natalie (<a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/tricia-helfer/362555' target='_blank'>Tricia Helfer</a>) is "different from the other Sixes we've dealt with in that she's a bit more assertive as well as authoritative and not afraid to take charge," Moore told Starburst magazine. The Cylons grow more divided, and Natalie will be one of the agents of conflict.

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Opera House

This structure, among the ruins on the ancestral planet of Kobol, has figured into significant visions of several characters. In the finale, Roslin, Caprica Six and Sharon Agathon shared one about Sharon's half-Cylon daughter, Hera. Later, Caprica Six saw herself, Baltar and Hera facing the robed Final Five.

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Prequel

This is the last season, but it's not the last fans will see of its universe. SCI FI announced it would make a 'Caprica' pilot. The prequel, set 50-70 years before 'BSG,' would focus on Joseph Adama, father of William, and the development of artificial intelligence in the first Cylons.

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Quorum of 12

'BSG' has never shied away from real issues; past episodes dealt with terrorism, torture, religious intolerance and racism. And though the Quorum (a sort-of Senate for the Colonies) and President Roslin's administration will come into play again, expect this season to be less political.

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'Razor'

If you missed this movie about the Battlestar Pegasus, make sure to <a href="http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Battlestar_Galactica_Razor/70081763?mqso=80018614" target="_blank">watch it on DVD.</a> It follows officer Kendra Shaw as she serves under Admiral Cain before rising to XO under Lee Adama. In her final mission to a Cylon basestar, she alone hears the Hybrid's prophecy about Kara before dying.

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Strike

The Writers Guild strike cemented an idea to split the final season; the last 10 episodes will air this fall or early 2009. The downtime also gave Moore time to "really think," he told the L.A. Times. "We're still going to have an ending ... but how we get there has been changed a little bit."

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Toasters

The nickname for Cylons was first coined because the original models resembled the shiny gadget. This season, as the Cylons splinter over the Final Five, the old-school "Toasters" may be at odds with the humanoid models -- three of whom (same gender) will be completely wiped out.

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Unboxed

Last we saw Number Three, aka D'Anna Biers (<a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/lucy-lawless/270147' target='_blank'>Lucy Lawless</a>), the model was deemed flawed and then "boxed," or deactivated. But Three is unboxed around Episode 10; bet she'll have something important to say about what she saw in the Temple of Five and about the last Cylon.

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Viper

The space planes flown by ace pilots like Apollo and Starbuck have gotten banged up pretty badly over three seasons of intense warfare. No wonder Admiral Adama is suspicious when Kara returns from the dead in a spiffy, brand-spankin' new Viper.

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Webisodes

At its upfront in mid-March, SCI FI announced it will produce another set of 'BSG' webisodes, most likely to run in between the two halves of the final season. Last fall, SCIFI.com ran a 10-part webisode series called 'The Resistance,' about humans grappling with Cylon occupation on New Caprica.

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XO

The Executive Officer, cranky Col. Tigh (<a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/michael-hogan/425255/main' target='_blank'>Michael Hogan</a>), was revealed to be one of four new Cylon models, along with Anders, Chief Tyrol and presidential aide Tory. Look for them to deal with the revelation in different ways: Tigh lives in denial, Tory embraces it, Tyrol rationalizes, while Anders finds his darker side.

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Year

'BSG' relishes shocking plot developments, like the year-long time lapse during the Season 2 finale. Before the series ends, <a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/katee-sackhoff/298119' target='_blank'>Katee Sackhoff</a> told Comic-Con fans, "We will find Earth." But what they find there may be the biggest twist of all. A hint: Scenes have been filmed on-set with ruins.

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Zarek

The original 'Battlestar Galactica' bears only passing resemblances to the reimagined series, but it did pass on one torch: <a href='http://television.aol.com/celebrity/richard-hatch/30969' target='_blank'>Richard Hatch</a>, who once played Apollo and now is the ruthless vice president, Tom Zarek. Want a blast from the past? Watch Hatch on the <a href="http://television.aol.com/show/battlestar-galactica/348436/videos" target="_blank">original series</a> on Hulu on AOL.