Caprica

Just watched the pilot of "Caprica," the "Battlestar Galactica" prequel that hits the SyFy network come January, but which you can rent now to get a head start. My assessment: top-notch.  The story takes place 58 years before the end-of-the-world that was the beginning of Battlestar. One of the main characters is Adama's father, a lawyer, and Bill shows up as an 11-year-old. The sci-fi aspect includes a little "Star Trek" holodeck technology, some Matrix, and a big helping of William Gibson, anchoring plenty of allegorical food for thought. I'll be watching in January.