There was a lot of moaning three years ago when plans were announced to revamp and revive the cult 1970s television sci-fi series "Battlestar Galactica", but critics fell silent when the new version appeared.

Suddenly there was a roster of female leads, politics and philosophy turned up, the drama became so deep that it echoed - and the show's popularity flourished anew.

Season 2 debuts on Sunday at 8pm

on Cinemax (UBC Channel 13), with

the crew ready to resume battle against the Cylons and protect the human race.

Edward James Olmos, back in the starring role as Commander Adama, talks about his involvement in the show.

Why did you join "Battlestar Galactica"?

The pilot script written by Ron Moore was absolutely brilliant. I did not want to get involved with a show called "Battlestar Galactica", but the writing brought me into it.

I am very fortunate, very privileged to be on the show.

Have you seen the original from the '70s?

I never really saw the show. I was doing theatre at the time, so I never really got to watch television.

I saw Lorne Greene in a two-hour movie of "Battlestar", but it was completely different from the one we're doing now.

Tell us about the second season.

The show is the most enlightening

and fulfilling and most artistic on television.

Just a month ago we received an award from the Visual Effects Society for outstanding animated character in a live-action programme.

Were you surprised by any changes in Adama this season?

Of course I didn't know they were going to kill me last season - they just handed me the script!

In the second season my character completely changes.

I died on the operation table twice, and when you experience death - go into death and come back - you come back a different person.

You're involved in other aspects of the show?

For my character, I created the "old Asian" ingredient along with the language - the origami is mine, all the Asian-influenced characters and myself, and my dialect, some of my dialogue.

You're well known as a social activist off-screen. Does the show help in any way?

Activism is the most effective way of communicating my feelings and my thoughts, and "Battlestar Galactica" is the most influential and progressive medium I've ever had the ability to use.

Television really attacks the subconscious mind, and people all over the world are watching this expression of thoughts and ideas and theories. It's so riveting, despite the fact that it's a sci-fi programme.

In the US we have a tremendously difficult problem with the right to life and the right to choose. On the show there's a controversy over an abortion planned on board our ship. How can we - the only 49,000 humans left in the universe - be killing any other human beings, for whatever reason?

But what do you do with the woman who chooses not to have a baby? Is her right to be taken away?

And in the third year we'll get to know suicide bombers, and get to know what that means.

Manta Klangboonkrong

The Nation