33 (Battlestar Galactica) - Writing

Writing

Preparing for production of Battlestar Galactica's first season, writer and series creator Ronald D. Moore wrote a short list of potential storylines, one of which was "the fleet jumps every 33 minutes; because the Cylons are relentlessly pursuing them, the crew gets no sleep." Conferring with fellow executive producer David Eick, the two decided that this story would be "the best way to kick off the season". Moore described writing "33" as a great experience; he wrote the whole script without a story outline or much structure, excited to begin the first episode of the first season and start the first year already "at the end of the road". Moore wrote the episode over his Christmas break before the series was officially picked up; he later claimed that this aspect was what made the episode "one of the more fun projects that wrote all of the first season."

David Eick found the episode to be a "standalone concept" that did not require having seen the miniseries to understand it. Because the miniseries ended "at a very happy place", starting the series in the middle of a crisis without explanation, and showing the audience that "actually, while you—the audience—were away, really bad things have been happening" made for a much more intriguing and interesting story. "33"'s complex storyline was a harbinger for episodes to come, and laid the groundwork with the network and audiences alike.

Moore explained on his blog that the number 33 had no hidden meaning or significance, only that he felt it sufficiently long to allow minor functions like snacking, showering, or cat napping, but was too short to allow anybody to gain any meaningful sleep and recharge their batteries. Further, Moore intentionally gave the number no meaning to avoid creating and inserting unnecessary technobabble into a drama-driven episode.