DPP: Fathers and Children

[da-angel729.livejournal.com]

Hello everyone! I'm da_angel729 and I'm doing the DPP this week!

And I was originally going to do something different (I'll use it later this week instead), but in honor of Father's day (which was yesterday here in the US), and this article (linked below) that hit io9 this weekend, I thought it would be an interesting discussion topic because they mention Bill Adama as one of SciFi's best fathers.

Best and Worst Fathers From SciFi

For those of you who don't want to read the whole article, here's what they say about Bill:

WILLIAM ADAMA
Battlestar Galactica
To be fair, much of the reason why Lee and Bill Adama had such a strained relationship is because Lee was a self-important dick. But over the course of the series, Adama the Elder proved his worth, to both his son and his fleet, time and time again.

I don't (completely) agree with the comment about Lee but I nearly choked on my drink when I saw Adama listed as one of the best fathers because I find Bill to be an absolutely terrible father (though I know some of you don't, and I'd love some discussion on that as well). He treats Lee (especially in UB when he tells Lee Kara and Sam got married) and Kara (who he calls surrogate daughter but only when she doesn't have occurrences of PTSD) horribly if they're not playing at being perfect little soldiers, and as a military commander, being too close to your crew (which he is), is a terrible idea because it leads to favoritism and then feelings of personal betrayal when they don't agree with you.

But the article got me thinking. What was Kara's father like? How did he treat her, and why did he leave? What was Adama like when he was younger and his children were younger? How did the way Lee and Kara's fathers treat them impact who they are today? And do you think Adama is a good father?

A lot of this will be speculation and opinion (especially about Kara's father), but please do talk about personal canons and things if you have one.

Comments

[scifishipper.livejournal.com]

To be fair, much of the reason why Lee and Bill Adama had such a strained relationship is because Lee was a self-important dick. But over the course of the series, Adama the Elder proved his worth, to both his son and his fleet, time and time again.

So the father is absolved of all responsibility when the son acts like a dick? That's half of the problem. Adama didn't really take responsibility for his own parenting mistakes, he just got angry and rejected Lee more and more over time.

It's so fascinating to read how other people perceive Lee and Adama's relationship (not here, but around LJ and beyond). People seem to take sides, I'm not sure that I totally take sides, but I tend to point the finger back to the parents when a child grows up with significant issues. Yes, there are often other influences, Lee's mom, of course, but once Lee and Adama are back together, their dynamic plays out over and over again. Lee wants is father's approval and hates himself for wanting it. Bill expects perfect loyalty and it makes him furious when Lee disobeys. Is that being a dick? To defy your father because your relationship is built on distrust and resentment? I can't really stand behind that. I never got the sense that Lee intentionally hurt his father. Maybe when he gave up his wings - I don't know. I did get the sense that Lee and Adama loved each other and gave a grudging respect. One of my favorite scenes is in the mini when Adama hugs Lee. That is such an amazing and powerful moment. There is such forgiveness and love in that embrace.

I also love that the two men came together in the end. Lee became his own man and Adama learned to respect him for it. I actually find their relationship to be one of the most realistic and complex in the entire show.

*huggles them together* :D

[kag523.livejournal.com]

I loved that ending too. (And you said it so much better than I did.)

*adds you to the Lee / Bill huggle*

[damao2010.livejournal.com]

"I actually find their relationship to be one of the most realistic and complex in the entire show."

Me too. And I also loved how they seemed to have finally reached a point where they were able to love and respect each other leaving the old hurt feelings behind them. However, I couldn't help feeling Bill was abandoning Lee all over again when he decided to simply go away with Laura in the end.

[utenatai.livejournal.com]

Gods, this this this this THIS. I think I might even hate that more than the poof! They spend the entire goddamn show repairing that relationship and then the whole feels totally undone when Bill flies off and Lee makes that comment about this being the abandoning of all abadonings.