Battlestar Galactica: A Companion to the Original Series

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Battlestar Galactica: A Companion to the Original Series A book of the Unauthorized Original Series Companion line
Book No.	{{{bookno}}}
Author(s)	Lee Fratantuono
Adaptation of	{{{episode}}}
No. of Pages	208
Published	{{{published}}}
ISBN	9781036141691
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	Battlestar Galactica: A Companion to the Original Series
Paperback Version
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Available at Amazon.co.uk – Purchase
Audiobook Version
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Battlestar Galactica: A Companion to the Original Series is an unlicensed, independent reference work published by White Owl Books in 30 January 2006, authored by classical scholar Lee Fratantuono. The volume examines the original Battlestar Galactica series through the lens of classical mythology, biblical sources, and ancient literary traditions, positioning the series as a significant cultural artifact that draws heavily from the classical canon.

Content and Structure

The companion provides detailed episode synopses and commentary for the complete run of the original series, along with scholarly analysis of the show's mythological and religious influences. The book explores how Battlestar Galactica borrows extensively from classical mythology, biblical sources, and myths associated with nation-building and travel narratives.

Fratantuono's analysis positions Battlestar Galactica as an Aeneid in outer space, drawing parallels between the series' narrative and Virgil's epic poem about exiled Trojans seeking a new homeland. The book examines how the series tells the story of defeated, exiled people seeking their ancestral home while surmounting countless perils along the way.

Special Features

The volume includes several distinctive features:

• A foreword by actress Cathy Paine, who provided the voice of C.O.R.A. in the episode "The Long Patrol"
• New interview questions with series star Dirk Benedict, who portrayed Lieutenant Starbuck
• Character analyses examining the development and significance of major characters
• Color plates featuring imagery from the series
• A detailed index for reference purposes

Author Background

Lee Fratantuono is a professor of classics and chair of the Classics Program at Ohio Wesleyan University, where he also holds the William Francis Whitlock Chair in Latin. He received his undergraduate degree from the College of the Holy Cross, his master's in classics from Boston College, and his doctorate in classical philology from Fordham University.

Fratantuono is a prolific scholar specializing in Latin epic poetry, particularly Virgil's Aeneid, and Roman imperial history. His previous works include comprehensive studies of Virgil's Aeneid, Lucan's Pharsalia, and Ovid's Metamorphoses, along with military history volumes on Roman conquests and historical figures.

His expertise in classical mythology and ancient history provides the scholarly foundation for analyzing Battlestar Galactica's mythological underpinnings.

Publisher Information

White Owl Books is an imprint of Pen & Sword Books, a publisher based in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England. The imprint specializes in producing accessible and entertaining books covering topics including lifestyle, wildlife, gardening, space, sports, and popular culture. White Owl was launched in January 2017 as part of Pen & Sword's expansion into hobby and lifestyle publishing.

Academic Approach

The companion addresses what the author identifies as a gap in scholarship surrounding the original series. According to Fratantuono, despite its popularity, Battlestar Galactica remains a largely unstudied series with relatively few resources available for those interested in learning about its development and afterlife. The volume positions itself as the definitive resource for fans, containing essential facts about each episode while uniquely exploring the scholarly and philosophical influences on the series.

The book's methodology applies classical scholarship techniques to television analysis, examining how the series incorporates elements from the Aeneid, biblical exodus narratives, and ancient mythological traditions about displaced peoples seeking homeland. This approach contextualizes the series within the broader tradition of Western literature's foundation myths and journey narratives.

Reception and Significance

The companion represents one of the first major scholarly works to examine the original Battlestar Galactica series through the lens of classical studies and comparative mythology. Its publication addresses the relative absence of academic analysis of the series, particularly in contrast to the extensive scholarship devoted to the Re-imagined Series.

The inclusion of new material from Dirk Benedict provides contemporary perspectives from one of the series' most iconic cast members, while Cathy Paine's foreword offers insight from a voice performer whose contribution to the series has been documented but rarely discussed in detail.

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