The Living Legend (Battlestar Galactica Series, No. 6)

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Summary: Commander Cain and the Battlestar Pegasus Come to Life!
Review: As you can tell from my Amazon.com name, "Battlestar Galactica" is one of my all-time favorite sci-fi series. Shown on ABC-TV in the late seventies, it was the most expensive sci-fi series aired on television up to that time (it cost roughly $1 million per episode, which is one of the main reasons why ABC canceled it after only one season, despite its consistently impressive ratings). The large and impressive cast was led by Lorne Greene (Pa Cartwright of "Bonanza"), as Commander Adama, the captain of a huge warship called the Galactica. The Galactica was (presumably) the only human warship to survive a sneak attack by the Cylons, a race of ruthless, emotionless mechanical warriors whose sole purpose was to exterminate the human race (basically, they were the forerunners of the Borg on Star Trek: The Next Generation). After destroying the human fleet, the Cylons then laid waste to the twelve human colonies. Under Adama's leadership the survivors of this holocaust gathered together a rag-tag collection of old spaceships and set sail for the legendary "lost" thirteenth human colony, Earth. This novel, "The Living Legend", is based on one of Battlestar Galactica's most memorable episodes. As the episode begins the Galactica and her fleet of survivors are in desperate shape, as the fleet has nearly run out of fuel, and three Cylon battleships (called "basestars") are closing in for the kill. However, a fighter patrol led by Adama's son Apollo and his best friend Starbuck are captured and taken to another human warship - the fabled Battlestar Pegasus, led by the legendary military genius, Commander Cain (Lloyd Bridges, in a memorable guest performance). The Pegasus was thought to have been destroyed in a battle with the Cylons years earlier, but Cain's military genius had allowed the Pegasus to escape and survive in Cylon-controlled space. Cain is often a hot-tempered, egotistical rulebreaker, and he and Commander Adama (who has a higher rank) soon butt heads as to who's in charge of the human fleet. But it soon becomes clear to Adama that Cain - for all of his recklessness and refusal to follow orders - is also the only person who can defeat the Cylons and save the human race. This two-part episode featured some great battle scenes (the special effects for the series were created by John Dykstra, who did the FX for the first "Star Wars" movie), and it is often listed as the single most popular episode of the original series. This short novel by "Galactica" creator Glen Larson adds a wealth of detail to the episode's storyline, and while I don't expect a TV novelization to resemble "Cold Mountain" or even Stephen King, this novel is surprisingly well-written, and the prose flows smoothly. If, like me, you enjoyed the "Battlestar Galactica" TV series as a kid, then you'll probably enjoy reading this account of a fondly-remembered episode. Long live the Pegasus!