Yet another 'Terra' theory?

[Zlaticko]

Sorry if this has been done to death:

What if it's a Nationalist planet, but instead of biological warfare, it's nuclear. That would keep with the darker themes of this BSG and bring the Eastern Alliance into the fray. It doesn't have to incorporate the ships of light or anything along those lines.

I dunno, just a thought, and perhaps a bit late-coming too.

[Neakal]

As I mentioned in another post, when I saw the teaser for Revelation, I assumed no way that was Earth. Was probably a waypoint planet like the Algae Planet.

But when I saw the buildup, the emotional responses, the mood etc... when they arrived, I was convinced it was Earth. Simply because (from a cinematical point of view) having "omgitsEarthlotsofhappiness" followed by "Oh. Its not Earth. Ok lets keep going" can't be followed with another "omgitsEarthlotsofhappiness". It will simply not have the same impact and would ruin the arrival to the real Earth for the audience in a "been there done that" way.

Moreover, like others said, fitting Terra AND Earth to the last 10-odd episodes would simply be too much. It makes more sense that they have to deal with the suicides and despair in the Fleet as well as finding out what happened on Earth and how the Final Five ("the Five Lights of the Apocalypse") are connected to it. Now, if there would be another season on 20 episodes, I could see the whole Terra thing working (although the leadup to it should still be different) but not now. I mean, if I am not wrong, the whole Terra story in original BSG took 3-4 episodes. We know BSG has bigger story arcs (compare the length of the Kobol arc in BSG-TOS and BSG-RDM). So if they had gone with Terra, theyd probably be out of episodes by the time series finale is here.

[Bureizu]

I disagree, 10 more episodes is good enough to find out why this planet isn't earth and have the final clue to find it. It's half-season.

On the contrary, resolving the main cliffhanger of the series, finding earth, 10 episodes before it's finale would leave us with too much episodes for epilogue...

Eventhough, it can be Earth AND they still can look for another planet to end their journey. We've been thinking Earth is the final destination, and maybe it's not... Maybe Earth is only another waypoint planet and the journey ends somewhere else.

[smelly_feet]

I disagree, 10 more episodes is good enough to find out why this planet isn't earth and have the final clue to find it. It's half-season.

On the contrary, resolving the main cliffhanger of the series, finding earth, 10 episodes before it's finale would leave us with too much episodes for epilogue...

Eventhough, it can be Earth AND they still can look for another planet to end their journey. We've been thinking Earth is the final destination, and maybe it's not... Maybe Earth is only another waypoint planet and the journey ends somewhere else.

We'll know what the final destination is the moment Roslin dies

[Basestar Blaster]

Something...time travel..beings of light..or something similar is gonna come into play. Starbuck's comments on her first trip to Earth were that the planet was green and alive. Plus the fact that she thought she was gone only hours..not weeks (not to mention the whole resurrection thing)...leads me to think that situation isn't as bleak as it appears...

[Neakal]

True but she clearly states she never actually landed on the planet in He Hath Believeth in Me. She mentions arriving, seeing the Earth, taking the photos, turning back and blacking out. Now, she probably DID land on Earth during the blackouts (how she got a new Viper etc...) but doubt she remembers it. So all shed know is that she saw this planet she knows its Earth and looked blue and white from orbit.

Moreso, the planet still had "fluffy clouds" from the orbit when the Fleet arrived. And plantlife can still exist. Remember many people mentioned the planet seems to be in a process of recovery. Forests etc... could have survived or regrown (especially if something I saw about a spoiler is correct). We definitely saw shrubs among the ruins they landed.

[Zlaticko]

It still does not preclude it from being a Nationalist planet, either. Perhaps this is earth, and they're starting 'the 12 colonies' on this side, with Caprica being the lost 13th. Kind of like a yo-yo back and forth with the 'that-one's-mythical'.

I 'spose it's not all that important, 'tho.

[willhowdy]

I'm fairly certain that they found Earth, but it doesn't seem like the Earth that we saw the the season 3 finale, or what Starbuck described. The locations right, the constellations match and that would only occur in or around our own solar system. Plus from the Miniseries its been "we need to find Earth, the 13th tribe". All of a sudden to say Earth is a dead planet and the 13th tribe is destroyed would be a let down.

I think it's a trick, something's not in place in order for Earth to be open to the fleet, perhaps they aren't ready for Earth and the 13th tribe. Someone's manipulating things on a very large scale in order to get both the fleet and the Cylons to follow a certain path without their knowing they're being directed. That capability could also hide a true planet. Perhaps everyone who went down to Earth saw a projection of a destroyed Earth, they couldn't see what it actually looked like.

[Neakal]

The shot of Earth in S3 ending, as important it was, was mainly done to emphasize that they are close to Earth. There are several factual errors about that photograph including the lighting and its relation to the sun. Besides, all we saw was North America in what seemed to be in a cloudless moment with some green. As I mentioned, a planet in recovery may still have greenery and, while I am not sure how nuclear winter works, I think its quite likely that the whole of Earth would not be clouded. We actually saw much less of Earth in Revelations (orbital view I mean) than we did in Crossroads Pt II and for all we know, the changes in cloud pattern could have been a seasonal thing. Also, I don't think it is a letdown. I think making humanity on Earth extinct was the best way to connect it to Earth and us without involving us directly (thus making "Reimagined Galactica 1980" a reality). And it fits with the whole theme of the series.

These being said, I agree Zlaticko and Willhowdy about Earth's role in the Cycle and the control of a greater being(s) (which I refer as the third party and feel that Final Five may have been part of that). I can even accept that the ruins are not our ruins but they belong to a previous/future cycle and our existence was simply one of the infinite cycles. However, I don't buy the idea that this isn't Earth or that it is somehow a trick. I had not thought of a mass projection trick. Interesting idea but not sure if I agree.