Lies My Father Told Me

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

 

Her face when she figures out that Roslin was telling the truth about Adama lying about knowing where Earth was is this crazy mix of rueful and angry and stubborn. What do you think would have happened if he'd told her the truth and leveled with her? I think Kara would've understood his desire to give people something to hope for. But what about her own personal beliefs in the scripture and the parable of the 13th tribe/the "myth" of Earth? Would those still have sent her back searching for that arrow?
 

Comments

[rayruz.livejournal.com]

I think hearing the truth could have also been motivating to her because she is so deeply religious. Sort of along the lines of "ok, you don't know? Watch me help you find out." Not saying that obviously.

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

I like someone's fic (Leda? Daphnaea?) that has a scene where she comes back and Adama is in a hospital bed, recovering from the shooting, and he asks why she did it and she says something like "I did it to make what you said the truth." And then the prose says something about I think from Lee's POV, only Kara rationalizing an act of mutiny as a demonstration of loyalty. (I'm butchering the prose--but don't have time to find it right now--but I really thought that was an interesting motivation to ascribe, similar to what you say here.)

[zenzero42.livejournal.com]

Kara and her loyalty... sigh

it sounds beautiful, now I really want to read this fic.

[scifishipper.livejournal.com]

Gah. Lies lies lies. I'm not sure Bill was ready to reveal the secret and felt pretty proud of himself for selling a bill of goods to the Fleet. I understand his motivation, but I think Kara would've accepted and, as ray said, would have tried to prove him wrong by trying to find earth anyway. More broken trust. Not surprising around BSG land. :(

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I don't know that he would be smug about having to lie about it to the fleet, but I do think he'd consider it a necessary evil for morale. He cared about his people once. :(

[reginaspina.livejournal.com]

OK, I was watching "Home" again last night and was really touched by the emotions in Adama's reunion with Kara. (Also, what is up with Sharon ruining Kara's reunions with the Adama boys? First she screws up Kara and Lee in "Home" Pt. 1, and now here in this one, she pops up just as Adama is - I'm sure - about to give Kara a hug too. Good grief, Sharon, learn some timing!) Anyway ... I really think that the revelation that Adama was lying about Earth is what motivated Kara to go off and get the Arrow. She's grown up with an absent father and then she gets this new father, Adama, whom she loves and trusts completely ... and then it turns out he was lying to her all this time. I think Kara was both pissed off AND betrayed that he didn't include her in the secret.

(Conversely, just from Lee's face early on when Adama first mentions earth, I think he always suspected his father was spinning a line. Plus, unlike Kara, I don't think he idealized his father at that point - or maybe ever ;P - so the revelation of his father's lie wasn't such a powerful motivator for him which is why - in the deleted scene - he basically shrugs and is all "no, President Roslin, I'm not breaking my oaths and going off to get the arrow.")

It's interesting to me that both Kara and Lee at this juncture react to a betrayal by Adama: for Kara, he betrays their personal relationship ("I love you like a daughter") with the revelation of the lie; for Lee, he betrays a principle (democratic control of the military) by attempting a military coup.

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

Ha! Maybe that is why I never liked Sharon. ;)

I do agree that she believed Adama and felt betrayed, and that Lee knew (because obviously he knew his father didn't believe in the Gods and probably didn't take any stock in those religious myths and prophecies, and was of the same mind) it was a lie. I haven't watched it in a while, but wasn't he angry at Roslin for approaching Kara after he said no? Was he also mad at Adama? (I mean, when is he not, but specifically for something here?)

I think it's a good symbolization (OMG I MISS WHEN THIS SHOW WAS AWESOME LIKE THIS SOMETHING FIERCE SUDDENLY) of how they both work (as per usual)--Kara responds to the personal betrayal and Lee to the moral betrayal.

[midwinterlost.livejournal.com]

I think she felt betrayed by Adama, but most of all I think what affected her was the realization that, while Lee always told her how horrible Adama
was, Kara had always pretty much idolized him, and this was when she realized she was just as biased as Lee, if in the opposite direction.

But what I really don't get about this scene is that Kara's randomly wearing all that lipstick and eyeshadow and false lashes, at a level NEVER matched anywere else, even Colonial Day. What's up with that?

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

Oh interesting, so she was dismayed at herself for placing all that trust. Is she really wearing a lot of makeup in this scene? It doesn't look it in the picture above, but maybe. I think they had a lot of makeup on her in the mini too, but they toned it down by S2.

[thegreenkitty.livejournal.com]

This scene has always been heartbreaking for me because of Kara's continued unfulfilled need for a trustworthy and loving parental figure. Kara holds onto the self-deprecation, perfectionism mixed with never feeling good enough, and anger/guilt that Socrata taught her. She has also created such massive emotional barriers due to her inability to trust either of her parents for support (Dreilide was absent, Socrata was abusive and still effectively "left" Kara when she died).

Adama had seemed to provide Kara with some stability and she had reached a point where she actually trusted him in a way that she trusted relatively few others. When Adama destroys that trust in this scene it repeats the cycle for Kara. Her fears are once again validated that she makes a mistake when she allows herself to trust another person. At that point, Kara had no reason not to fall back on her belief that she was alone and self-sufficiency was required. Thus she followed her instinct back to Caprica.

If Bill had told her the truth, I expect Kara would still have returned to Caprica for the arrow. The motivation would have been much healthier though. As Ray said, it would have been an effort to help find earth as a group rather than reinforcing Kara's fears and frustration with her dysfunctional family life and relationships in general. Honesty between Adama and Kara had the potential to help Kara become more trusting and less fearful. Who knows what kind of impact that might have had on her personal growth. It very well could have improved her ongoing and future relationships. Instead the deception continues to build the way for the "Kara Thrace and her Special Destiny" plotline of fail as she learns once again that she has to do everything herself to ensure it will be done right.

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

Ugh, so heartbreaking. I really wish they had connected the arrow/tomb/constellations much better with the final run at earth. Sigh. (Then maybe it would've felt worth it?)

[zenzero42.livejournal.com]

This scene is heartbreaking that's true, but I love the fact that Adama can't really lie to her looking into her eyes. He just mutters something and then runs away

[zenzero42.livejournal.com]

plus: Kara is amazingly beautiful in this scene

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

She really is. That look on her face as he walks away is so complex and gutting. So many emotions warring right there. Gah. Love it. ♥

[scifiaddict86.livejournal.com]

Kara and Adama is one of my favourite relationships on BSG to ponder its so won derfully complicated and yet simple. They both love each other very much but their both so fucked up it gets messy sometimes like most of Kara's relationships. I like how even when its really bad he still goes to bat for her to get her the Demetrius. Its always to compare and contrast Bill's relationship with Lee versus his relationship with Kara cuz it really does explain a lot about what kind of parent Bill was. I know its something of UO in fandom but I've never really seen Bill as a terrible father, I think he was somewhat distant and that Lee was a very needy kid and that made for a bad combination. You see that in his relationship with Kara she has very low expectations of parents so to her Bill is a great dad.

I think while Kara was angry that Bill lied she also understood why he did it and forgave him for it in the end. I don't really see her going to Laura as her sticking it to Bill (Lee maybe but that a whole other conversation) I think she believed in what Laura was telling her and believed what she was doing was right more than anything.