Cassiopeia

Overview

Name: Cassiopeia

Nickname: Cassie

Age: 20s

Status: Single

Siblings: None

Children: None

Race: Gemon

Position: Medtech, Battlestar Galactica

Portrayed by Laurette Spang

Cassiopeia (Cassie) can be described as an attractive, level-headed survivor with her own strengths. Despite her past as a socialator, she grew into her role as medtech on the Galactica.

Biography

Before the Cylon Attack

Not much is known about Cassiopeia's history, except that when she was a child she sent out messages in an old Aeries Merchant code for her father. Her father, presumably, is either a trader hailing from Gemoni or was an Aerian himself. (The Long Patrol) Nothing is known about her mother. By some means she managed to become a socialator, the profession of which she apparently found herself defending to other Colonials -- including Starbuck. (Saga of a Star World)

Later on in her adult-hood, Commander Cain and Cassiopeia crossed paths and the two clicked. He apparently went to her for compassionate reasons -- to mourn for the death of his wife -- which is something that Cain's young daughter, Sheba, too offense to. This had occured sometime before the Battle of Molecay, which saw the entire Fifth Fleet being eradicated by Cylon forces and the assumption of Cain's (and Sheba's) deaths. (The Living Legend)

After the Cylon Attack

Cassiopeia managed to escape from the Colonies, earning a broken arm in the process in the "borays of humanity" aboard the freighter Gemini. Apparently, several irate Gemons of the Otori Sect were about ready to throw her and what she represented off the ship. This was interviened by Starbuck while surveying the ship for Solium leaks with Boomer and Apollo.

She was interviewed by Starbuck, who found out who and what she was. She found herself automatically defending socilators to him too, though he was not concerned about it. Ever since she became attracted to him, although he probably had his reasons for going after her.

After Doctor Paye fixed her arm, Starbuck and Cassiopeia were getting better acquainted. However, this was interrupted by a jealous Athena who steam purged the launch tube causing some discomfort from both Starbuck and Cassiopeia.

She later purchased a suite on Carillon after Starbuck and Boomer discovered the Ovions' mining/luxury operation. She had hoped to foster intimate relations with the Warrior, but instead was taken down to the lower levels of the facility for an Ovion entrée. Starbuck and Apollo later rescued her from being a buffet. (Saga of a Star World)

Sometime after she became trained and employed under the guidance of Doctor Salik, and she seems to have matured slightly and grown more motherly after escorting Boxey out of the pilot's bunks. (The Lost Warrior)

Her motherly attitude does not, however, underscore Cassiopeia. She had her fun with Starbuck on the Rising Star in celebration of exiting their home galaxy of Cyranus. She later found out, however, that Starbuck was playing musical women between her and Athena, bumping into each other when both were looking at the ranking pin he gave both of them "to remember me by". She was also instrumental in discovering that the transmissions beamed from Starbuck's appropriated Recon Viper were of Aerian Merchant Code, thus allowing Captain Apollo and Lieutenant Boomer to repossess the Recon Viper (which Starbuck piloted) as well as figure out what exactly was going on. (The Long Patrol)

When Starbuck told her that Cain had been found, she happened to be stuck between a rock and a hard place, undecided about her relationship with either men. She did accompany him to the Officer's Club on the Battlestar Galactica, much to the indignation of Sheba. (The Living Legend, Pt. I) Later, she noticed that the drop team to Gamoray had no medtech, as per guidelines, forcing them to accept her as part of the ground force -- where she attempted to make amends to Sheba. Despite her motives, she did assert herself professionally and had Bojay treated on the Battlestar Pegasus. She was also given the care of Sheba, who had been injured during the daggitfight with the Cylons, and sent back to the Galactica. Cassiopeia knew Cain well enough to know what this meant... Cain wasn't planning on coming back. (The Living Legend, Pt. II)

She was instrumental in saving Adama's life when Salik was forced to operate after discovering a shard embedded in the wall of his heart. The massive onboard fire and the generator disruptions made the operation much more tricky, but still it was a success. (Fire in Space)

Sometime later, she was also apparently enjoying the partying throughout the fleet, thanks to Count Iblis. However, Iblis was later found to be the Prince of Darkness, destroying the mood of the Fleet. (War of the Gods)

She and Starbuck had a strong steady relationship, enough to cause Starbuck to comment that she was the only person he'd ever actually thought about being Sealed to when he discussed her to Chameleon. Cassiopeia, by Starbuck's choosing, ran the genetic testing on both men to see if Chameleon was really Starbuck's father. She informed Chameleon about the results of the test, but he had convinced her not to, reasoning that Starbuck would "throw away everything" just to spend time with him. He did, however, promise her to reveal this fact to Starbuck when he was Sealed. Although dubious about that statement, she revealed nothing and told Starbuck the lie. (The Man with Nine Lives)

She was also a frequent spectator to the Triad games, noting that she knew the angry look on Starbuck's face when he was ejected from the game because of Ortega. She later broke up the fight between the two and informed Starbuck brusquely that she would be going back to the Galactica -- with or without him.

Ortega was killed, and Starbuck was the only suspect in the case as his laser was used as the termination weapon. When things looked grim for Starbuck, she attempted to get him to go with the self-defense plea that Chief Opposer Solon proposed. He wouldn't plead it and she was maneuvered into testifying against him for the most part. Fortunately, Starbuck was found innocent of the crime since Karibdis was revealed to be Ortega's murder. (Murder on the Rising Star)

She was also involved with the mission to retrun Michael and his group to Paradeen, apparently able to breathe the thin air on the ship for some period of time without a breather. She also assisted in searching for Starbuck when he was lost in the passages under Paradeen's main city. (Greetings from Earth)

When Starbuck discovered Aurora, a previous love interest he thought dead, and he attempted to make some semblance of peace between the two, Cassiopeia took the duckets to the Spehroid Concert away from him since she "wasn't going alone". However, after the Celestra situation had been solved and he returned to the battlestar, she revealed that she "knew he would come back". (Taking the Celestra)

She and Starbuck went with Apollo and Sheba up to the Celestial Temple to "enjoy the view". Instead, she and the others managed to come across an old signal, which Apollo believed originated from Earth. Nothing came of that signal since it was destroyed when the Galactica attacked the base star, much to Cassiopeia's worry and angst. (The Hand of God (TOS))

By The Hand of God, Sheba and Cassiopeia reconciled their differences, though no one is sure how it had occured.

Notes

The character of Cassiopeia was supposed to be "eaten" by the carnivorous Ovions of Carillon in the premiere. However, since Maren Jensen (Athena) lacked a level of acting talent that was painfully obvious, Laurette Spang now found a steady job (at least for a yahren) as a medtech onboard the Battlestar Galactica in future episodes.

Cassiopeia only became a medtech by express order of ABC (American Broadcasting Company), who didn't appreciate that she was a "socialator".

Cassiopeia is also the name of a W-shaped constellation that can be seen in the northern hemisphere, near the star of Polaris -- the brightest star in Ursa Minor at the end of the handle of the "little dipper".

Interestingly enough, "Cassie" -- the character's nickname -- is the name of a tropical American thorny shrub/small tree with fragrant yellow flowers used in the production of perfumery.