Caprica gets a positive review from Variety

Variety's Brian Lowry has posted a very positive review of the Caprica pilot. Here are a few snippets:

At first blush, the idea of a "Battlestar Galactica" prequel provoked skepticism of the "Why not leave well enough alone?" variety. Yet through its first four hours (including a two-hour premiere), "Caprica" exhibits more than enough promise to justify the mission, tracing the birth of the Cylons a half-century before the events of the earlier series while again weaving in powerful and resonant themes -- including religious intolerance and what truly makes us human. Although uneven in places, a quality cast and cliff-hanging episodic twists establish "Caprica" as an heir that shouldn't disappoint "BG" geeks.

The original "Galactica" was particularly adept at incorporating such flourishes and exploring concepts that compelled the audience to confront and contemplate their own reality -- particularly pertaining to terrorism's use as a tactic -- and series creators Ronald Moore and Remi Aubuchon again tackle those kinds of big ideas to push sci-fi boundaries in intellectually provocative ways.

For all that, the new show will doubtless be most enticing to fans of the old one, for whom every beat will carry echoes of the war to come. Whether that will limit the program's commercial appeal to a subset of "Galactica's" modest fleet of loyalists remains to be seen, but if this prequel can maintain the quality of its initial salvo, that will likely motivate at least those viewers to beseech whatever gods they pray to that "Caprica" be blessed with a prolonged stay in this place called Earth.