"You are capable of setting aside your fears, setting aside your hesitation ... and even your revulsion. Every natural inhibition that, during battle, could mean the difference between life and death.

When you can be this -- or as long as you have to be -- then you're a razor." -- Admiral Helena Cain, Battlestar Galactica: Razor

Yes, I was as shocked as the rest of you that, when I got to the TV Squad package drop the other day, one of those magical purple binders was waiting for me, emblazoned with a big white "IF", which could only mean one thing -- SciFi Channel goodness.

Before you continue, I will warn you that some of this is a little spoilery. I don't think it's much, but I'd rather warn you now than incur your wrath later.

The Chicago Tribune's/RedEye's NCAA tournament-like contest for the best character on TV is all over. And in the end, it was no contest at all.

RedEye announced today that Battlestar Galactica's Capt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace seriously trounced 24's illustrious terrorist hunter Jack Bauer by getting 3,061 votes to his 777.

Whoa. I did not expect the seemingly invincible Bauer to be defeated by anyone. In just this season alone, Bauer has deactivated a nuclear weapon, wielded a cigar cutter as an amputation device against a Russian diplomat and used plastic wrap as an interrogation tool on his own brother. Just mere hours after being released from a Chinese prison. I guess Bauer has met his match, and it's not in the form of a terrorist.

In this spoiler-filled article (read at your own risk - seriously!) in the Chicago Tribune, the producers of Battlestar Galactica confirm they are making a 2-hour movie between seasons 3 and 4. The news ends a few weeks of speculation. David Eick and Ron Moore say the movie will go straight to DVD and also air on SciFi. It will be a stand-alone flick that doesn't wrap up what is sure to be a freaking huge-ass cliffhanger at the end of the current season. The producers say the movie will probably be some sort of back story. The Chicago Tribune story is a little dated, though. In it, the producers say they'll only do a movie if they get a fourth season, but that has already happened.

By the way, BSG returns with new episodes on Sunday, January 21st at 10 pm. There's a season 3 marathon on SciFi on January 15th.

Before you get all... angry... that I didn't include your favorite character on this list, know that this is my list of favorite television characters. You can make your list in the comments.

When I look back at the 2006 television landscape, a few key characters come to mind. This year, I discovered some new characters that have my adoration and I've stuck close to the ones I loved from 2005. Here's my list of the Best Characters of 2006:

5. Michael Scott, The Office While it's no secret that I adore a certain member of the supporting cast, the best character on The Office is definitely Michael. He sucks the fun out of any situation by making everybody uncomfortable, but at least you know what his true colors are. He tries, and does a poor job of covering up his non-P.C. thoughts such as, "How queer! (sees camera) Queer Eye for the Straight Guy-- that's a great show!" He just tries so hard to get people to like him and to be a buddy rather than a boss that you can't help but love/pity the guy. And Jim's right, Michael is the most loyal guy at Dunder Mifflin.

A blogger over at Wired thinks that Battlestar Galactica is headed in the same direction as Lost: downhill. He wrote his post after last week's boxing episode where Kara and Lee beat the holy living crap out of each other. In particular, he didn't like the "barfy romantic flashbacks". He thinks BSG is headed in a dangerous direction and lists 10 reasons why, including Cylon threesomes, dangling subplots (Helo & Sharon's baby), and side projects that are keeping BSG creators busy.

Even though I disagree with him, I think the post is well-reasoned. I, too, have been wondering what the hell is going on with the Cylon/human baby that the Cylons managed to capture before they fled New Caprica. But, I adored last week's boxing episode that explains just how messed up Kara and Lee's relationship is. He doesn't like entire episodes being devoted to words like "genocide" and "torture", which I found to be thought-provoking.

I do agree on one point, though. Give Admiral Adama something to do other than just monologues. Edward James Olmos is a great actor and all he's getting are speeches.

(S03E09) Gods that's a classic image to remember, isn't it? Who would've thought that Roslin was a pot head? Anyway, I digress...

This episode was a lot better than the previews made it out to be. A few commenters complained when they saw it was going to be "the boxing episode," but once the smoke cleared it was evident that this was actually a very well crafted part of a love story, along with a well needed bit of talking to the troops by the admiral.

When you see Lt. Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on the season premiere of Battlestar Galactica this fall you'll notice a few things. First, her hair will be very, very short. Second, she will not be with the same man she was with at the end of last season.

This is according to Katee Sackhoff, who portrays Starbuck on the very popular Sci-Fi Channel series. In an interview on Zap2it.com, Sackhoff reveals that she will go through some very tough times in the first four episodes of the new season. By the fifth episode she will recommit herself to her military career and sport a nifty crew cut to go along with her new attitude.

Starbuck will also have a new love interest other than the man who she married during the second season finale. It's unsure if Samuel T. Anders (Michael Trucco) dies of the pneumonia he suffers during the finale, or while he resists the Cylon occupation.

Production on the third season of Battlestar Galactica began on April 10 and will continue until December, with the Sci-Fi Channel premiere in October.