Battlestar Galactica (TV Series) The Ties That Bind (2008) User Reviews

Clinic on the real nature of dramatic tension

[A_Different_Drummer · 8/10 · 31 December 2014]

One of the most powerful episodes in the entire series (a series which if memory serves was nominated for about 80 awards) is short on physical action but loaded to the gills with friction and what the French call "contretemps." Especially like the parallelism where attempts at democracy in both camps (human and Cylon) backfire, bigtime. The viewer is left with the unanswered question, is that because the latter are the creation of the former, and therefor suffer the same imperfections; or this is the nature of all life, whatever the source? Just when you think that things could not get any more interesting, Cally (as the logline says) finds out the truth about her husband (also ironic since even he does not know the truth about himself) and takes action.

Wow.

Moving the plot along nicely... but with a tragic end

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 30 January 2012]

After the events on the Cylon fleet in the previous episode it looks as though the Cavell's and their allies have come to terms with the fact that they have been out manoeuvred and agree to end the lobotomising of the raiders and to unbox the Threes. However this was a ploy with the intention of luring his opponents away from the resurrection ship with the intention of killing them permanently; only time will tell whether they were successful or whether a Cylon civil war will ensue. Back on the fleet Cally is at the end of her tether; her son is keeping her up all night and her husband, Chief Tyrol claims to be busy all the time. She catches him in the bar with Tory and assumes they are having an affair but later learns the awful truth; that he, Tory and Col. Tigh are Cylons; a discovery that will have tragic consequences. Elsewhere Starbuck is still off searching for a clue about Earth's location but her crew are growing restless.

This was a fine episode even though I didn't like the ending... that is not to say the ending wasn't brilliantly handled and right for the story; I was just sad to see the loss of a character I'd grown to like over the course of the series die in such a way. The various plot lines remain interesting and promise much more to come. Dean Stockwell continues to impress as Cavall; one of the more interesting characters amongst the Cylons. The best performance this week however came from Nicki Clyne who was brilliant as Cally; usually a secondary character but this was her episode as she played a woman who is exhausted to begin with then learns that the man she loved is not what he seems at all.

Improving but still missing some important ingredients

[chrichtonsworld · 8/10 · 19 April 2008]

While there are some interesting developments. I can't help but notice that overall this episode is nothing but a filler episode. Cally has some issues and it is obvious that there are some consequences to these issues. Cally discovers that Galen,Tory and Tigh are cylons. But what does she do? She smashes Galen's head in. She picks up the baby and walk towards the airlock to commit suicide. OK,I know that she wasn't clear in the head because of drugs and lack of sleep. But why couldn't she inform Adama or any other of command? This just doesn't make any sense in the context of the story. I know that the writers want to maintain the secret as long as possible. And to make matters worse it is Tory who finds out that Cally was spying on them. Galen and Tigh who have had military training,who were part of the resistance,who should be experts in being cautious and suspicious, did not notice the open hatch even when they clearly heard something falling seconds before. Yeahh right! Again the dramatic events on the Battlestar itself lacked some serious impact. I loved the intensity of some of these events in the past. But it isn't as intense as it was. This should improve soon otherwise this will be the worst season of the series. If it weren't for the developments concerning the cyclons (Six,Boomer and Brother Cavil) I would not have rated this episode ad high as I did. Their story line is the most interesting so far.

Nicki Clyne Is the Weakest Link

[spasek · 8/10 · 17 April 2022]

If there was a blemish in the acting department of the show, it was easily Nicki Clyne. I'm still not sure what the casting department saw in her. When you're acting across some serious talent, your own weaknesses stand out like a sore thumb. And right from the get-go, Clyne demonstrated that she just doesn't hold up, especially across from the rest of the cast.

Clyne has always had poor deliveries, and she has a tendency to completely over-act. In other words, many of her lines are forced because she's clearly trying to get into the character rather than letting it happen. Even her "outbursts" during this episode were almost laughable because her delivery was so poor. We were supposed to feel sympathy for Cally, but instead, it was like listening to nails on a chalkboard. And we were supposed to feel shocked and upset at the end of the episode. Instead, it was a relief. Finally! No more Clyne. Whew!

Aside from Clyne, the story is still a good one. Cally is the first to find out the truth about the four Cylons. And if she hadn't been caught up in her own immaturity and narrow-mindedness, she may very well have lived. But Cally proved her cowardess by attempting to--not only kill herself--but her son as well. We've seen her immaturity--like a blind, naive high school girl--manifest about Boomer, so it was no surprise that she had another outburst with Tory.

We also find that the Cylon civil war is now in full swing. I love the Cylon storylines as we delve in deeper into the mind of Cavill and why he so firmly objects to anyone learning about the Final Five. Stockwell played that role to the hilt!

And we also find that Starbuck has basically alienated the crew on her trek to trying to re-discover the road to Earth. Seelix is almost as annoying as Cally, acting like she's somebody, but at least the actress has the chops.

The final season would see the most dynamic changes and the most "out-of-the-box" thinking that would ultimately tie up one of the best series (the best in my opinion) ever made.

Tori was a real piece of work

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 13 January 2023]

There was something unlikable about her, even before she was revealed as one of the final five. This episode reveals exactly what that is.

She was the only member of the five to willingly go with D-Anna. And her motivations are entirely selfish, even when it gets to the involvement of the five during the last two episodes of the show.

I remember, there was a short conversation between her and Ellen, when Ellen is explaining the importance of the child Hera. Tori's attitude was basically "what good does this do for me?".

Because Tori liked being a cylon, wanted resurrection tech, wanted to be better than everyone else. And that made her worse than everybody else.

And what she does here to Cally is one of the worst abuses by one person to another ever shown on television. And I can't say anything about that, either. Watch this.

Not that Cally was a saint, she was overdosing on incompatible antipsychotic medications. And this is a strike against Doc Cottle, who never noticed it, just kept prescribing bottle after bottle of horrible antipsychotic meds. We see dozens of these spent bottles in Tyrol's and Cally's quarters.

And Cally was visibly deteriorating. Basic jealousy brought about nosiness which made things even worse.

But Chief Tyrol was not helping very much, either, and as he was associated with Tori on the 1st Earth 2000 years previous, that simply made the eternal triangle complete.

Probably the most difficult BSG episode to watch, even without knowing the ending.

Kudos to Nicki Clyne **minor spoilers**

[npip-1 · 6/10 · 18 April 2008]

Don't get me wrong, I love Battlestar Galactica and watch it faithfully. But, as the series enters it's final season, I find it more difficult to believe the final outcome will be worthwhile. Every human character is becoming less likable and fatally flawed.

This episode was very upsetting. In 'The Ties That Bind', President Roslin demonstrates her increasing disregard for democratic principles and seems more like a deceptive dictator. Characters we used to be fond of (Chief Tyrol, Torrie, even cantankerous Colonel Tighe) are now known to be enemy conspirators. Who's left to root for? Every story needs a protagonist. Surely there could be a few with such a competent cast and creative staff. If Admiral Adama takes a turn to the dark side, you may lose me as a viewer. Ultimately, don't we want a positive conclusion to the long journey we've taken?

In this episode, Nicki Clyne gives her best performance yet as Cally Tyrol. Her character has been loyal, with integrity and perseverance through the toughest of situations. Though, in the final scenes of this episode, fans of the show (and Cally) are given another reason to give up hope.

Starbuck had another gratuitous and unnecessary sex scene that did nothing to move the story along. The only comic relief this season, Gaius Baltar, didn't appear in this episode. Overall, this episode served as a transition to a larger story. But in the process, characters were wasted that still had better stories to tell.

Finally, an improvement to the cast

[trey-yancy-572-763547 · 5/10 · 7 June 2020]

Throughout the series the most annoying character has been Cally - immature and childish, having her emotional and cultural maturity arrested at the age of twelve. Having her spaced was great. No longer was there the dread from on episode to the next that we would have to endure any more Cally scenes. Frankly, the role was hugely miscast. There were easily a dozen of great young actors who could have mopped the floor with Nicki Clyne. (There's a reason why it took her eight years to get another acting job after this.)