Mary McDonnell’s farewell--and her advice for understanding ‘Battlestar’

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Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell, the stars of ‘Battlestar Galactica’ who have been appearing in New York the last two nights, have been saying official goodbyes. Last night at the U.N., McDonnell -- photographed here at the embargoed finale screening in New York on Monday night -- summed up the show in a way that’s very germane to this upcoming Friday’s series finale.

Olmos spoke first, saying, among a vast and diverse number of other things indeed, that the show was ‘one of the best experiences I’ve ever had in my life.’

McDonnell, in her quiet and gracious (and possibly overtly Buddhist!) way, summed up what she would like viewers to keep in mind as the series ends -- with a brevity and understatement that is the opposite of Olmos. (‘That’s why I wanted him to go first,’ she said.)

‘I think the show, when you scrape everything away, what you’re finally left with is two things,’ she said. ‘One, the idea of patience being the essential element to evolution. And two, the idea of forgiveness being the necessary action to break the cycle of violence and begin to create a dialogue. And I do think the show, over and over again, brought those ideas to light, and that’s where we feel honored. We feel honored to have participated in such profound simplicity toward disciplines which are really difficult to practice, but clearly where we need to go. So that’s what I hope you can take a look at when viewing ‘Battlestar Galactica.’ ‘

-- Choire Sicha

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