When "Battlestar Galactica" premiered on sci-fi channel, I foolishly wrote it off as another pointless re-make. Boy was I wrong. When I sat down and watched the pilot/miniseries, I was completely and utterly blown away. The kiddy aspects and cardboard characters of the original series were nowhere to be found in this updated version. Instead, showrunner Ronald D. Moore has gone above and beyond the original show by creating a dark, thinking man's sci-fi series that has revitalized the science fiction genre as we know it.

The premise: The robotic cylons have declared war on the human race. Having destroyed countless planets and a vast majority of humans, only a few survivors remain on board a fleet of spaceships. As they try to outrun the cylons, Commander William Adama and President Laura Roslin have set out on a quest to find the planet Earth, which they believe is their last hope of salvation. Throughout the journey, however, the Commander and President constantly butt heads causing chaos and complications galore. The new version of "Battlestar Galactica" is not only one of the best sci-fi shows ever made, but one of the greatest television shows of all time. Not since "Star Trek" has a sci-fi show been so rich and layered. Unlike "Trek," however, BSG is not a series that makes us look forward to the future. Make no mistake about it, "Battlestar" is an unflinching look at a frakked up post-apocalyptic world in which humanity is on the verge of destroying itself, religious beliefs cause conflicts, and the struggle to survive both the cylons and the harsh living conditions grows increasingly more difficult. To make things more interesting for viewers, nothing is cut and dry. One would think the cylons would be the enemy, but even that is questionable at times when seeing how the humans treat each other. The line between good and evil becomes even more confusing as the characters you thought were 100% human turn out to be cylons themselves (see the season 3 finale). Award winning writing aside, the cast is what really makes the show come to life. Standouts actors include James Callis as Dr. Gaius Baltar (who is partially responsible for the destruction of the human race), Michael Hogan as the drunk, tough Colonel Tigh, and of course Edward James Olmos as the bad-ass, gruff Commander William Adama. As for the best episodes of the first season, here are my personal favorites: * Miniseries parts 1 and 2- From the gut wrenching sequences to the shocking revelations, this miniseries will hook you from the get go. * Colonial Day- Tom Zarek (played by Richard Hatch from the original BSG) vies for Vice President. A great political episode that is a departure from most episodes. * "Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down"- This episode sees more humor and more character development on the fascinating Colonel Tigh character. * Note: The flimsy cardboard case is without a doubt one of the worst packaging designs I have ever seen. If season 2 and beyond are released on HD DVD, please change the design.

As a huge fan of the series, I was excited to see how they cleaned up the show on HD. Unfortunately, the 1.78:1 widescreen picture quality actually looks a tad worse than the DVD version. The problem is that grain and darkly lit scenes are more apparent on HD. True, some scenes look "razor" sharp, but more often than not I felt as if I'd rather be watching my DVD set. Thankfully, the audio tracks (Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and 5.1 Dolby Digial Plus) are a vast improvement over their DVD counterparts. From the booming score to the cylon ships whizzing by, everything sounds sharper here.

Disc 1: * Commentary on the miniseries part 1 by Michael Rymer, David Eick, and Ronald D. Moore. * 8 behind-the-scenes featurettes on the cylons, f/x production, technology, etc. * 12 deleted scenes consisting mostly of filler and animatics. * Sketches and art * Web enabled features * U-Control feature allows viewers to access "Encyclopedia Galactica" and "Picture In Picture" while watching miniseries part 1. The Encyclopedia gives files on various characters, as well as information on ships, colonies, and so forth. Picture In Picture contains interviews with the cast and crew. Disc 2: * Commentary on miniseries part 2 and "33" by Michael Rymer, Ronald D. Moore, and David Eick. The group talks about the performances, how they sold the show, themes, as well as fun tidbits for devoted fans. * 5 minutes of deleted scenes from "33." * U-Control features. Disc 3: * 11 minutes of deleted scenes from "Water" and "Act Of Contrition." * Commentary on "Bastille Day" and "Act Of Contrition" by David Eick and Ronald D. Moore. Disc 4: * Commentary on "You Can't Go Home Again" by David Eick and Ronald D. Moore. * 6 minutes of deleted scenes from "You Can't Go Home Again," "Litmus," and "6 Degrees Of Separation."- Again, the majority of these scenes are simply extended versions that were rightly trimmed down for time and pacing purposes. Disc 5: * Commentary by Ronald D. Moore on "Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down" and "The Hand Of God." * 5 minutes of deleted scenes from "Flesh And Bone," "Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down," and "The Hand Of God." Disc 6: * Commentary by Ronald D. Moore on "Colonial Day" and "Kobol's Last Gleaming Parts 1 and 2." * 16 minutes of deleted scenes from "Colonial Day" and "Kobol's Last Gleaming Parts 1 and 2."

If you don't already own "Battlestar Galactica: Season One" on DVD, you need to run out and buy this HD DVD set. If you already own season one, I'm sad to say there isn't enough here to warrant a double dip.