Galen Tyrol

For other uses of Tyrol, see Tyrol (disambiguation).

Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol is a character on the television series Battlestar Galactica. Tyrol is responsible for the maintenance of the Vipers and Raptors aboard Battlestar Galactica. After the events of the miniseries, he is the ship's highest-ranking non-commissioned officer.^[1] Chief Tyrol is played by Aaron Douglas, who once described his character thus:

Tyrol is fiercely loyal. He is a very good leader who is very much in tune with his crew. He admires honesty, hard work, common sense, intelligence and integrity. Tyrol is tough but fair and is what someone who possess the aforementioned attributes would want in their leader. Tyrol very much believes in the rule of military law and tradition. He is probably the most prepared of the crew who has not seen real battle and that combined with his natural leadership abilities has caused his rise to Chief. The crew respects and likes him.

Do not, repeat, do not cross Tyrol. If he senses weakness or disrespect you get one chance and then that is it. Tyrol believes in making mistakes. As he puts it, "If you don't fall down you are not trying hard enough." Just don't make the same mistake twice. New people who are really trying get the positive attention and teaching that Tyrol believes will get them where he needs them to be. Those who are not making the requisite effort get a good kick in the ass, and sometimes more than one.

I like Tyrol. He is the kind of person I would respect. The inner demons do not interfere with his day to day work. He deals with his own stuff when he is alone. Sometimes he takes on too much but you will never see it. He can wear his heart on his sleeve but he is very hard to read and get to know personally. Enigmatically simple if I can use those two together.

—Aaron Douglas

Character history

At the start of the series, Tyrol is romantically involved with Lt. Sharon Valerii aboard the Galactica, who is, unbeknownst to either Tyrol or herself, a Cylon.^[2] Once Sharon's true nature is revealed when she attempts to assassinate Commander Adama, the Chief is accused of being a Cylon and is thrown into the brig with Sharon. He claims that he hates her and orders her to keep her distance, but when Sharon is murdered, he mourns her and reveals his true affection for her. He is proven not to be a Cylon and resumes his job. However, the existence of Sharon's double, Sharon Agathon - who is pregnant and in love with another man - confuses him, especially with the late Sharon Valerii's death still haunting him.^[3] Galen's parents were a priest and an Oracle. He has served in the Colonial Fleet since he was 18 years old, working at various points on Battlestars Pegasus, Columbia, Atlantia, and Galactica.^[4] Based on Commander Adama's statement that Tyrol has served under his command for over five years, it is possible that Tyrol also served on the Valkyrie.^[1] It is suggested that his experience extends beyond mechanical knowledge when he is stranded on the surface of Kobol - his actions there suggest a strong grasp of tactical and other military knowledge, as well as an extremely high level of competence overall.^[5] Commander Adama holds him in very high esteem as Colonel Tigh acknowledges when he says that "the old man has a soft spot" for him.^[4] Tyrol even modeled his own style of leadership on Adama's, and generally keeps a professional demeanor - although Tyrol tends to become overly protective, sometimes even irrational, when anyone under his command is injured or killed.^[6] Tyrol and Helo encounter trouble when Lieutenant Thorne, an officer on the Pegasus, attempts to rape Sharon Agathon while interrogating her. Rushing to her aid, Tyrol and Helo accidentally kill Thorne and are summarily sentenced to death by Admiral Helena Cain.^[7] After Cain's untimely death, the two are eventually released from the brig by Pegasus' new commander, Jack Fisk, and all charges are dropped.^[8] Near the end of the second season, Tyrol begins to believe he may be a Cylon sleeper agent, and begins to entertain thoughts of committing suicide. He viciously attacks Cally when she wakes him from a nightmare, an act which prompts him to seek religious counsel. Brother Cavil's guidance allows Tyrol to realize that he isn't a Cylon, and makes him aware of Cally's feelings towards him. However, the meeting with Brother Cavil later allows Tyrol to expose the priest as a humanoid Cylon when a duplicate copy returns from the Caprica rescue mission.^[9] Tyrol and Cally are among the thousands that settle on New Caprica. The two get married and have a son, whom they name Nicholas. Tyrol worked as a union leader when the Cylons arrive and occupy New Caprica.^[9] During the Cylon occupation, Tyrol served an active member of the resistance, bombing strategic targets and recruiting new members.^[10] After the colonists escape New Caprica, Tyrol is appointed by President Tom Zarek to be a member of "The Circle," a six person jury charged with trying and executing humans suspected of collaborating with the Cylons. When Felix Gaeta is tried, Tyrol reveals that Gaeta was the "inside source" that the resistance relied upon, effectively exonerating him. Soon after, The Circle disbands.^[11] Tyrol and Cally return to duty aboard Galactica. After the fleet makes its way to the algae planet, Tyrol is one of those assigned to the base camp on the planet during the algae harvesting process. He feels a compulsion to walk into the hills above the camp where he discovers the Temple of Five. Tyrol's parents revered this place. ^[12]He tries to find the location of the Eye of Jupiter within the temple but the Cylons make their move before he is able to do so and the humans are forced to abandon the temple. Tyrol cannot bring himself to activate the explosives he placed there, and by the time Major Lee Adama presses the detonator it is too late, the devices have been disconnected by the Cylons. Afterwards, Tyrol finds Gaius Baltar within the temple and knocks him unconscious before he and the rest of the humans on the planet's surface return to Galactica as the local star goes supernova. ^[13] Tyrol and Cally have a rough patch in their marriage caused by Tyrol always volunteering the two of them for additional duty instead of spending time with their son. They get locked in an airlock that is losing atmosphere due to a damaged patch. Admiral Adama decides that the best way to rescue them is to blow the main hatch and catch them in a waiting raptor. After they are caught, they are rushed to sick bay for treatment. Seelix, brings his son to him in sick bay and he renews his commitment to his family and marriage. After a problem arises with the tylium refinery, Tyrol organizes a general strike to protest the working conditions. When Admiral Adama threatens to shoot Cally, Tyrol backs down. He then has a meeting with President Roslin to discuss working conditions, replacement personnel, and training. In the cliffhanger Season 3 finale, "Crossroads, Part II", he, along with Samuel Anders, Saul Tigh, and Tory Foster become aware that they are Cylons, based on hallucinatory music (which turns out to be "All Along The Watchtower" written by Bob Dylan) that only they can hear, and a "switch" that Tyrol believes has gone off within them. As the Cylon fleet attacked, Tigh defiantly declares, "My name is Saul Tigh. I am an officer in the Colonial Fleet.... whatever else I am, and whatever else it means, that's the man I want to be. And if I die today, that's the man I'll be." Following this speech, Tyrol reports for duty with Anders to prepare for battle against the Cylon fleet. Tyrol being a Cylon means that his son, Nicholas, is the second known Cylon-Human hybrid after Hera Agathon. This issue will be dealt with in the fourth season of Battlestar Galactica. ^[14]

Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• In "Lay Down Your Burdens", Tyrol's fiery speech to the labor union is based on Mario Savio's "gears of the machine" address at the University of California, Berkeley. ^[15]

External links

• Galen Tyrol at the Battlestar Wiki.

References