Was there a more a disappointing moment in childhood than the Sunday-morning realization that the only thing on TV was televangelists and 'The 700 Club'? You came looking for 'He-Man,' instead you got Pat Robertson. For some reason Ron Moore and the 'Caprica' team seem to want us to relive that moment every Tuesday night as we tune in for new episodes of the 'Battlestar Galactica' spin-off.

As other critics have noted, 'Caprica' has turned away from some of the deliciously-enticing ideas the show started to examine in the first half of the first season -- things like the potential origins of true artificial intelligence or completely virtual worlds -- and now, instead, we're getting a primer on the intricacies of a religion that doesn't even exist.

It's the fictional aspect of this religion that really gets my goat. I can understand having scenes involving detailed costumes and rituals if this was educational in some way, like, for example, if it was actually increasing our knowledge of an actual religion that was tied in with a terrorist group. But there is no reason that Moore and his team can't pursue the ideas that obviously fascinate them -- where terror and religion meet, what true belief can do, how people come to believe, etc -- without sparing his audience the dusty temples and colorful, sparkly robes (seriously, what was the deal with those?).

If such a thing as a tragic flaw exists, then this is Ron Moore's: His insistence on tying his beautiful characters and plots to religious themes. And it all started out as such a good idea. Back in the early days of 'BSG,' the zealotry of the Cylon agents mirrored that of the suicide bombers of al Qaeda, and if anything, humanized them. When these characters popped up on screen, we saw their faith and their anger, but thankfully we did not see them having meetings in ancient temples dressed like extras from 'The 10 Commandments.' As the show progressed, the theme of religious persecution and conversion came to the forefront, as the rebel Cylons tried to force the human captives of New Caprica to accept them. It was one of the finest allegories I've seen on television. And then things got weird -- Starbuck died and was resurrected, and when we got the promised explanation for her corporeal return, it was pretty vague.



Looking back, I see this was a massive turning point for the show. Early 'BSG' was a show about a war between people who believed in angels and prophecies and vengeful gods, and what they did to try to control each other. Late 'BSG' was a show in which angels and prophecies and vengeful gods were real. I was so caught up in the story I didn't even notice at the time. But all things considered, maybe I shouldn't have been surprised by the ending, which seemed to suggest that two of the characters were actually timeless, ageless beings -- angels or devils we're not sure -- who've observed humans from afar over our entire evolution. And of course, they don't like what they see.

But when it comes to 'Caprica,' my disappointment is two-fold. Not only am I pissed about the lack of return trips to V World, but I can't believe that Ron Moore got to invent a religion and this is the best he could come up with. If I have to put up with fusty details, it would be great if it was bit more original than scraggly beards, plain-faced 'mothers,' voluminous robes and nattering on about the 'one true God.' It's one thing when Tricia Helfer does it, but 'Caprica's believers are decidedly dowdy in comparison. In the realm of non-fiction (if it can be called that) new religions have all kinds of shiny attributes. L. Ron Hubbard came up with thetans, Bobby Henderson created the Flying Spaghetti Monster and spawned International Talk Like A Pirate Day, yet all Ron Moore can dream up is brown clothes, uncombed hair and ridiculously ornate jewelry.

In some ways, Moore has re-created some of those Sunday morning feelings right here on his show. You may not like 'Caprica' much right now -- you might find it boring, repetitive, slow and sort of judgmental -- but if you continue to tune in and watch Sister Clarice's endless scenes, maybe you'll get your reward in the last 10 minutes of season 1.5. Like a giant Cylon space fight in V World.