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The SciFi Channel just released the first trailer for the upcoming Caprica. The show, at least from the trailer, threw me for a loop. It looks remarkably different, visually anyhow, than it’s predecessor Battlestar Galactica. Looks like Ron Moore is interested in telling a science-fiction family drama that will somehow lead into the show every geek loves. It’s almost pastoral in a way, like a scifi Rockwell painting.

There will be baggage with this show, simply because of the greatness of Battlestar. Still, the premise about two families who bond over a tragedy and help create the first Cylon model looks like it will raise some fascinating questions and moral dilemmas. We all know by now how this story turns out, well, those that watch Battlestar do anyway.

Joseph Adama (Admiral Bill Adama’s father) uses his dead daughter to build the first Cylon. That’s some heavy shit right there.

According to this interview show creator Ron Moore gave with the Chicago Tribune, “Caprica” is set 51 years before the events of “Battlestar Galactica.” According to a March press release from Sci Fi, “’Caprica’ follows two rival families – the Greystones and the Adamas – as they grow, compete, and thrive in the vibrant world of the 12 Colonies. Enmeshed in the burgeoning technology of artificial intelligence and robotics that will eventually lead to the creation of the Cylons, the two houses go toe-to-toe.”

Moore also said during the interview that Caprica is, “shot very different, and I think I was particularly attracted to the idea of doing a science fiction piece that was not built on a foundation of action adventure. It wasn’t about Vipers and it wasn’t about the Cylons attacking every other week. It was really a character piece. It was really a drama, and you can infuse with a lot of political commentary and a lot of religious overtones and really dig into a people and a society and how and why it all came unglued.”

Thank the Gods we can all put the speculation to rest.  I was getting worried that the new series Caprica might be all we got for a long, long while.  It’s also possible that Caprica may just go to series that the backdoor pilot/movie will be folded into the first season.  Essentially, the SciFi network has enough confidence in the show’s lasting appeal and quality to make a go of it.  iF Magazine has more deets about the upcoming SciFi schedule.

Collider has a review of the pilot script for the upcoming Ron Moore helmed, Battlestar Galactica spin-off project Caprica. It’s a precursor to the super-awesome sci-fi show.  We won’t give away the details here, but suffice it to say, the reviewer loved what he read. “Did you know that Dr. Frankenstein lives on in the world of Battlestar Gallactica? That is the ultimate story being told here. Someone angry at the universe defies the gods in an attempt to bring the dead back to life. There are always consequences. In this case, roughly fifty years later humanity barely hangs onto existence after attempted genocide by robots called Cylons. Still, isn’t some good father-daughter time worth that?”