RE: The writer's strike.

Did that actually change any of the episodes though? During the strike they weren't allowed to do any rewrites, so all the scripts were finished were finished pre-strike... in other words... how could their lack of certainty as to whether or not they were coming back after the mid-season break have effected the writing of the episodes?

Also, I think Ronald D. Moore was a bit overly dramatic during the strike with all his "If as a result of this strike we never get to finished the series, that is a price we are willing to pay" spiel. Galactica's ratings were tanking at the time, but if I remember correctly, they were still quite good for a Sci-Fi channel show, and that was Sci-Fi's flagship show at the time.