Lt. Karl C. Agathon, reporting for duty
I have another huge treat for you guys: Our community's 2nd exclusive interview with one of Galactica's stars!! :) Tahmoh Penikett was kind enough to answer questions from myself and my two lovely co-moderators. Without further ado, I'm very excited to give you:

Tahmoh, first off, on behalf of the members of the "Battlestar Blog" LiveJournal Community, thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions. We all love your work on the show and are thrilled to have this opportunity!

Tell us a little about yourself -- How you got into acting, how you got the role on Battlestar, favorite movies, music, etc. :)

I've always had an appreciation of a good story. I've always been captivated by talented and truthful storytellers, whether on screen or stage since i was very young. The fascination with this art form of course led me to first trying my hand at it in High school. I've been hooked ever since.

I got the role on BSG, like most actors do, getting the call from my agent for the audition.. then having a great audition with the principle Director of the show Michael Rymer.

I love a dark drama or suspense thriller. To be honest with you I appreciate all genre of film as long as it's good. By good I mean, great plot, intriguing story, truthful performances where the actors aren't afraid to take the plunge!

Some of my favorite movies are 'Blade Runner', 'Goodfellahs', 'Alien' and 'Raging Bull'. I love Electronica, have been a fan of many different types of it. A few of my friends are creating some incredible new sounds in Techno. I'm fascinated at the progression of the music, how it has adapted, evolved and grown over the years. I love all types of music though, anything as long as it's good!!

Has the show's growing popularity changed your day-to-day life? Have you been getting recognized and approached by fans more often?

It hasn't changed my day to day life so much but there is definitely a lot more people out there who recognize me from the show. All in all it's been great because people are polite, respect my space but when i do engage them in conversation they are truly passionate fans with really interesting things to say about the show.



Have you formed strong friendships with any fellow castmates? Is there a lot of hanging out off-set, or do you try to keep your work life and social life separate whenever possible?

a) Definitely formed some amazing relationships, I think everyone on this cast will be bonded for life. We all get along well and all of these friendships I've formed with my cast mates I cherish.

b) We all get together outside of work when we can. In the last couple of years a few of the cast have had children so that takes up a lot of their time.

In what ways would you say you're similar to or different from Helo? Are there decisions the character's made that you probably would've made differently?

I'd like to think that Helo and I share some of the same qualities like loyalty, optimism and diligence.

I think the majority of the decisions that Helo's made I respect and understand the reason he may have made them. I probably would have made the same decisions if I was in his boots, which I guess I have been?!!

David Eick's video blogs show that some actors (Grace Park and James Callis, for example) occasionally offer the writers and directors some input as to how they think their character might act or speak. Have you ever approached the creative staff with ideas like these, and if so, can you give us examples of how a scene or line of dialogue was changed based on your suggestion?

In the second season there was a point early on where I felt there was a too quick transition with Helo in terms of his trust for Sharon. I expressed these concerns to David and he was open to them and some adjustments were made. Really I felt at that point the most interesting thing about Helo was the conflict of being in love with a cylon, how that affected his loyalties and whether he could trust her.

All of us in the cast take the responsibility of our characters in the show and if something that's written feels really wrong no one hesitates to mention it. The team is usually open to hearing out concerns.



Looking back on seasons one and two, is there a particular episode that stands out in your mind as being a favorite, or one that you're especially proud of?

There's been so many, but I have to say being able to do a scene with Eddie was a tremendous opportunity and experience for me. The first real scene that we had was where he's informing me that the President had decided to terminate Sharon's pregnancy. Very emotional scene.

When episodes of Battlestar air for the first time on television, do you usually watch them? Do cast and crew members get together and have viewing parties, or is that something that rarely - if ever - happens?

Some of us have the opportunity to watch them before they come on the television. I generally watch them with my family and friends. I'm not aware of the cast watching together unless it's on set.

You've spent a lot of time on-set with Grace Park and Katee Sackhoff, two of the most beautiful and talented actresses out there. Can you tell us what it's like working with them?

They are both incredibly unique and talented actresses. Katee and I if anything have a little too much fun on set, usually goofing around in between takes. She's an angel, so talented and incredibly funny.

Grace and I do the same sometimes but the majority of our scenes are usually intense, emotional scenes that require a lot of focus. We trained at the same school, have similar techniques and know each other's work so well that we really try and pull the best work out of each other. I always look forward to working with her. She's an amazing friend and extremely gifted actress.

Since you worked mainly with Grace and Katee in season one, how did it then feel to join the rest of the cast in season 2? Did it feel like there was an adjustment period of "fitting in" with a group that had been working together for so long?

In some ways yeah. I was really just eager to work with the rest of the cast. But truthfully there was a bit of the outsider feeling in the beginning which I used because it was so truthful to Helo's situation coming back to the ship.



Are there other actors on the show that you don't get much screen time with, but would love the chance to work with more?

I'd love to work with James Callis, he and I are great friends and I'm a huge fan of his work!

What is your opinion of the Helo/Sharon relationship? We hope she loves him as much as he loves her, but does she? Can we expect to see events unfold in season three that will "show" her true feelings and allegiances?

I think with the sacrifices that Sharon's made it's safe to say that she truly loves this man. In season three you can expect at the least to see her allegiances toward the human race waver, and how she reacts to that you'll have to wait to see!!!

What are you most excited about in season three? How does it compare to the previous seasons?

I'm a huge fan of the show, so like everyone else I can't wait to see what's in store for the end of the season. I'm so proud of the show, such incredibly talented and passionate individuals all coming together to make this series. To be honest it's much better in some ways than the previous seasons. This show is true to its form by still examining the world that we live in today, especially the political and religious situations which are defining this era. I'm honored to be part of Art that asks questions and is brave enough to consider these touchy subjects.

Tahmoh, thanks again for making time for us and for doing such an amazing job on the show. We wish you all the best, and we excitedly look forward to season three! :)

Thanks for everything, guys!! You're going to love season three!!!

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Thanks again to Tahmoh Penikett for this exclusive interview! To check out our other Battlestar interviews and features, please visit the community info page.

~ Grant, Annie, and Alice, from Battlestar Blog (community.livejournal.com/battlestar_blog)