The 5th Cylon is a Terrian from Earth 2

Earth 2 was a great show, wasn't it? Sure it lasted only one season, but the premise was sweet -- Mankind had all but left Earth behind to live on space stations when some colonists crash-land on an alien planet, begin the long trek to their originally designated landing place, facing both alien and human threats. Now imagine this, what if these colonists were ancestors of the very same Earthlings from OE (original Earth)? Then... the colonists find E2 (Earth 2) and set up shop. Then they evolve and eventually flee the galaxy to create the 12 colonies. Which is where we left off -- the Cylons and Colonial Fleet have found E2! Talk about crossover cream dream!!!

Why it works:

So the humans stop living on E2 because of some crazy reason (nuclear war causes huge amounts of radiation). They move across galaxies and become the Colonial Fleet as we know it. Then the Colonial Fleet comes back to E2, (not OE, that's a dead planet now, duh) and finds that it's super radioactive. They establish some living zones and what-not, only to be terrorized by creepy gray tall guys with sticks (aka Terrians) that can jump/slide/whatever out of the ground (radiation can't get deep underground, I read it on Wikipedia). First of all, freaky. Secondly, sweetest Cylon EVAR!

Even better, Clancy Brown and Ronald D. Moore have a working history (see Carnivale). Seeing that Brown was on Earth 2 (the show, not E2 the planet), Moore would feel overly comfortable working with him to make sure things are portrayed correctly on E2 (historically speaking, of course).

Why it doesn’t work:
Earth 2 was cancelled after one season. With only 21 episodes under its belt, there's hardly enough to grasp onto to make a successful sci-fi crossover. Plus the Terrians have no personality, nor do they talk. They just stand around, steal kids and slide in and out of sand and caves. And they're ugly. They probably stink, too. If you think about it, they're really like a mix between moles and potatoes.

Odds that I’m right:
29,877,119:1

The 5th Cylon is *yawn* Chick President

Could the President be misleading the humans to their death? Does she really enjoy awkwardly kissing Adama? Do Cylons grow hair back after chemo? Who knows, but ol' Chick President could be the 5th Cylon.

Why it works:
Ever since Laura Roslin was diagnosed with Cancer she's had "visions." The most notable one is the one from the Kobol Opera House that features her, ShaBoomTha, Caprica Six and Baltar. The reason this is important is because Baltar has not had such a vision, or dream. The others that have -- ShaBoomTha and Six -- are Cylons. Unless something super crazy is going on, how could two Cylons and a human have the same dream?

Just like having Commander Adama being the last Cylon, this fits too well with the President being in such a position of power. Conflict would ensue as to where loyalties would lie.

Why it doesn’t work:
It's too easy. It's too expected. The show talks about destiny and foreshadows a lot, but this wouldn't quite fit the aha moment we're all expecting. Would it be executed well? Sure. Is it what we're wanting? Jury is out.

Odds that I’m right:
3:1 (this is a pretty realistic one)

The 5th Cylon is the Great Gazoo

You all know the Great Gazoo, the tiny, green, floating alien, from The Flintstones, right? I mean, sure he was exiled to Earth from his home planet Zatox as punishment for having invented a doomsday machine, but he made it on a whim with no intent of using it. Sound familiar? Exactly, it kinda does, but really doesn't.

Why it works:

If you recall on The Flintstones, Gazoo was only seen by Fred and Barney (and the animals and Pebbles and Bam-Bam, if you count inept beings). In fact, there were times when Fred was having a conversation with Gazoo, and Wilma thought Fred was talking to himself. Hmmm, think that the writers had Gazoo in mind when they created Baltar's Six? Well, not only do I think that Gazoo was the inspiration here, but I think he could be the last Cylon. Maybe.

He built a doomsday device, but never used it. So he has a better conscience than the other Cylons, but that doesn't mean he won't ever use it. It would make a very interesting storyline on Earth if only a few humans could see him. Why not make the President Lady super loopy from her drugs and discover Gazoo. NO ONE would believe her and we'd all be sitting there screaming at the TV that he's real! Oh, the horror.

Why it doesn’t work:
He's a fraking cartoon. Plus he was voiced by Harvey Korman -- who's no longer with us. :(

Odds that I’m right:
19,855:1

The 5th Cylon is ShaBoomTha

So wait, there's Caprica Six, Baltar's Inner Six, Shelly Godfrey, Gina Inviere, Natalie and even more than that? I don't know about you, but with all the multiple models running around, it gets a bit confusing. And not only does Six have multiple models, but so does number Eight (aka, Sharon, Boomer and/or Athena, or ShaBoomTha). Who knows, maybe there's a twin Cylon running around out there. We ARE waiting on number Seven, who's to say that ShaBoomTha doesn't have a twin sister (totally NOT a brother) running around out there?

Why it works:

Twin Cylons! What a concept! And we've been kinda lax on the ShaBoomTha storylines as of late, so let's thrust her, AND her twin, back into the mix. First off, it would just be wacky (think Parent Trap with a Colonial Fleet flavor). But it really lends itself to some great episode arcs -- Helo fraks the wrong one, Hera doesn't know which one is her mom, and then the whole doppleganger two-parter would rule.

The twin angle really works because there wouldn't have to be some huge back story. Nor do they have to increase an actor's pay, she's already playing multiple parts as it is. Maybe the twin parts her hair the other way, or is left-handed instead of right. She could even just be a mirror opposite of ShaBoomTha, so her name would be AhtMoobAhs (similar to the Cobra Twins).

Why it doesn’t work:
Would the writers truly throw that idea at us? Maybe. Would it work? Definitely not. While it's odd that there are multiple versions of each model, a twin Cylon would be the lamest thing ever.
The last thing that BSG fanboys want is another Gollum-like story only to find out that there really are two Gollums.

Hmmm. On second thought, fanboys might like that.

Odds that I’m right:
662:1

The 5th Cylon is Lee Adama's Fancy Suit

In a universe where faster-than-light interstellar travel occurs daily, we can't rule out the possiblity that there may be a NanoTechnolgical Cylon... in the form a fancy mens suit. It would be almost undetectable and, as I’ll explain, could gain access to the highest echelon of government and military power.

Why it works:
Seeing as that Lee Adama is, at various points, a critical member of the Legislative, Executive and Military branches of the government, it only makes sense that the Fancy Suit NanoTechnology Cylon (FSNTC) would somehow find its way into Lee’s wardrobe. I’m sure FSNTC looked for others to adorn, but no one else, besides Lee, high up in the chain of command ever wears a fancy suit… Not Admiral Adama and certainly not Saul Tigh. The closest candidate was President Laura Roslin, but she’s a woman and as I said, the 5th Cylon is a Fancy Suit NanoTechnology Cylon, not a Fancy Ladies Power Suit NanoTechnology Cylon, so that could never work. It’s obvious that Lee Adama was the best choice for the FSNTC.

When Lee became the military advisor to President Roslin, the FSNTC was privileged to all kinds of unfettered military and political access. Later down the road, Lee becomes the Caprican delegate to the Quorum of 12, giving FSNTC even more access to the political world. And eventually, Lee finds himself as the interim President of the 12 colonies, giving FSNTC access to virtually everything. It couldn’t be more perfect!

Why it doesn’t work:
While some might think of a NanoTechnological Cylon in the form of a fancy mens suit is ingenious, they would be wrong. It’s just stupid. I’m a little disappointed in myself for even thinking up this possibility.

Odds that I’m right:
1201:1

The 5th Cylon is One-Leg Gaeta

There's a pretty popular theory going around out there that Felix Gaeta is the final Cylon model. Yes, the Gaeta that pretty much got his leg shot off and then sang like a song-bird freak in the recovery room of the hospital, annoying the piss out of everyone within two ships of the Colonial Fleet. Yes, the same Gaeta that has said the words, "dradis contact," more than anyone on the show.

Why it works:
This theory works for quite a few reasons. First, Gaeta is in a high enough position in the fleet to warrant the whole, "no way" factor. Secondly, he's been harmed physically (see Cylon Pirate Tigh), but not killed (Cylons, while seemingly perfect, are looking for human-like flaws). Third, he was integral to getting the fleet to the nebula. Fourth, like 3 of the 4 recently revealed Cylon models, he was a major part of the resistance on New Caprica. 

More importantly, as previously mentioned, he can sing. Like really good. Also, he has an ethnic look to him (he's really Canadian, though). Why is that important? It's apparent that the Cylons have an inert desire to be diverse (one asian-american, one african-american, one middle-eastern-american?, two oldies, some youngins, etc.). You can't really place the race card with they Cylons.

Why it doesn’t work:
Dude has curly hair, Cylons just THINK they want to be human. But once they encounter curly hair, they'll be just as pissed as every other girl out there -- they can't do a frakin' thing to it when it's humid.

He's a singer. No other Cylon has any extraordinary ability. Except, mind you, Samuel Anders, who was amazingly gifted at pyramid (which, by the way, now that he's been found out as a Cylon, the C-Bucs should probably have to forfeit any games and/or championships won with Anders on the team).

He has ONE LEG. I can't really see much high action happening with Gaeta hobbling all over the place. If Adama ever confronts him, one single judo sweep takes him right out of the equation. Plus, I've heard (not seen) rumors that everyone on the ship now calls him Hip-Hop-Gaeta-the-Playa. It's not catchy like Boomer, or Athena, so he can't possibly be a Cylon.

Odds that I’m right:
5:1 (this is a pretty realistic one)

The 5th Cylon is Newt, from Aliens

It's a good thing that the BSG crew and Cylons landed during the day, because Rebecca 'Newt' Jorden (she goes by Newt and only her brother can call her Rebecca) usually goes into hiding at night. And why is that? Because "they mostly come at night ... mostly." In this case, the "they" would be humans and Cylons, not acid-for-blood aliens.

Why it works:
The ultimate goal for a Cylon is to become more human-like. For the final Cylon model to be a scared little girl hiding from an alien menace, I think I would at least call them a friend long enough for them to show me how to navigate the complex maze of air ducts to escape the creatures. Resurrection Ship be damned, Newt would show the other Cylons what it truly means to survive and fear death. Plus, she's overly attached to a doll head, which goes a lot farther than the usual infatuation with human/Cylon babies or just one of the humans in general.

Oh, but there's more! She chooses a surrogate mother. She mocks soldiers. She screams. AND she sometimes wears a helmet that's too big for her. Have you EVER seen another Cylon do that kind of stuff? Of course you haven't, that's why Newt would fool the hell out of you.

Why it doesn’t work:
An Aliens-BSG crossover isn't quite what the fans have in mind for any type of explanation. Additionally, introducing another species/evil entity into the mix wouldn't help wrap up the series in 10 episodes. And lastly, the chick who played Newt is like super-old now, she wouldn't fit into the same small spaces that the Newt circa-Aliens could.

Odds that I’m right:
1977:1

The 5th Cylon is Jennifer Lopez as Selena

Crazier things have happened. Sorta. Here’s how it shakes down: Just like it happened here on Earth, on Aquaria, J-Lo as Selena is murdered by her fan club manager. The only difference is that she was brought back to life by her manager/battlestar commander/secret adoptive father, Bill Adama. She goes into seclusion to recover from the almost-fatal gunshot wound only to emerge years later on one of the many starships in the fleet as the final Cylon.

Why it works:
Selena’s great. She’s funny, smart, cute and has musical talent. Besides, we’d all love to watch J-Lo as Selena the Cylon on Battlestar, wouldn’t we? Six would get all jealous and Baltar would start seeing J-Lo in his head all the time instead of Caprica-Six. Does J-Lo as Selena the Cylon’s spine glow red when she gets worked up, sexually? I can guarantee a bunch of you would watch to find out. If it’s all about ratings and money, this might be a good call.

And, come to think of it, we’ve never really met a musically inclined Cylon, have we? Could J-Lo as Selena the Cylon be responsible for having created the music that the previous four Cylons(Tigh, Anders, Foster & Tyrol) heard and drew them together? Maybe?

Finally, who among us hasn't been looking forward to seeing Edward James Olmos and J-Lo together again on-screen? For some reason their stars just shine brighter when they're together.

Why it doesn’t work:
Not a clue. Seems like J-Lo as Selena the Cylon would be a perfect fit for the 5th Cylon. Duh.

Odds that I’m right:
2261:3

The 5th Cylon is Scott Bakula

Since this is science fiction, they got the Quantum Leap and Star Trekking part right. But, "putting right what once went wrong?" Frak that. This time Scott Bakula is back with a skinjob vengeance -- putting humans in cages that once went free. He'd probably do some freaky science experiments on them, too.

Why it works:
The chemistry between Bakula and Dean Stockwell is reason enough for this to make sense. They could be the Cylon version of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Riding around Earth, looting desolate cities and hijacking derailed train cars. They won't be miffed by some silly bicycle metaphor, though, because they ARE the future. Well, not really, since the resurrection ship has been destroyed. But Bakula could be that one Cylon that seems evil, only to save face at the end of the series and ensure the human way of life. He's just charismatic enough to pull it off.

Why it doesn't work:
The television public couldn't handle a Quantum Leap reunion. Nor could one actor grace the cast of three popular science fiction shows and live to tell about it. Then there's the fact that he's never been in an episode yet and there's no room for anyone that has a random white patch of hair on their head -- Cylons are nearly perfect (ahem, I said nearly... looking at Cylon Pirate Tigh).

Odds that I'm right:
521:1

The 5th Cylon is Zak Adama

Thowing us a massive curve ball, we come to find that the final Cylon is none other than Admiral Adama’s dead son, Zak Adama. Didn’t see that one coming, did you?

Why it works:
Zak Adama is dead, dude. Remember how Starbuck cleared him to fly even though he was a crap pilot... and then he died? How could he be the final Cylon? Well, Cylons have the ability to “resurrect,” right? Maybe after he was killed in that training exercise, he was resurrected on a nearby Cylon resurrection ship. Since then he’s been partying in secret with the sixes on some private basestar, just living the dream, man; Hot chicks, blow, connect four. If this turns out to be the case, it’s going to be a major mindfrak for Admiral Adama, Starbuck and Lee Adama… and would make for some really interesting storylines in the last half of the season. You gotta admit, it’s certainly an interesting possibility.

Plus, we could add one to the list of Cylons that Starbuck has fraked. I’m betting that by the end of the season, she’ll have totally gotten it on with a Centurian.

Why is doesn’t work:
Really? His dead son comes back to life only to be revealed as a Cylon? There are so many other viable, more believable and straight-up better options for the final Cylon model. While it could make for some interesting TV, it just seems too far-fetched. Basically, they’d really be pulling one out of their asses for this to happen.

Odds that I'm right:
310:1

The 5th Cylon is Adama's Geiger Counter

When we last saw Adama, he was toiling around with dirt on Earth. More specifically, he was measuring the amount of radiation on the ocean shore (which will probably put a big damper on that Colonial Fleet-wide beach party they were planning). But who's to say that Adama wasn't tricked ... by the final Cylon!

Why it works:
As we've stated before, Cylons are machines. If you're unawares, geiger counters are machines, too. And what have the Cylons wanted to do since day one? No, not blow up the 12 colonies (which they pretty much did). They wanted to find Earth (which is ironic since five of them have already been there -- why not just go there in the first place?). So now that they've found Earth, the ol' hidden Cylon makes his/her appearance and tells the humans that it's WAY too dangerous to stay there. Radiation kills humans dead. Not robots. Plus, we're familiar with the geiger counter -- it's been in the fleet since day one and they've probably sniffed out a few bombs with it here and there.

Why it doesn't work:
A gods damned geiger counter? Yeah, absolutely ridiculous. Those things have about as much personality as two Number Fours. Besides, we'd all have to learn an intricate series of clicks as its language, unless they translate what it says for us across the bottom as it speaks. No one is overly thrilled with that idea, though.

Odds that I'm right:
1,000:1

The 5th Cylon is Kevin Sorbo

I can see it now: Pulling a “Lost,” the creative folks at BSG decide to introduce a new character that’s supposedly always been there, but for some reason has never been seen by us the viewer. Somehow, Mechanic # 7 becomes a central character and, to the delight of geeks everywhere, it turns out to be none other than Kevin Sorbo.

Why it works:
We already know Xena (aka #3, aka D’Anna Diers) is a Cylon, so why not Hercules? He’s on record saying that he “would love to do it” which is no surprise seeing as that he’s made a career working in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. Not only does he have an interest, but Sorbo has also worked with BSG Executive Producer David Eick on the Hercules series so the connections are already in place. Plus, with all the references to Greek mythology, it only follows that the son of Zeus would play a part in the BSG universe, right?

Why it doesn’t work:
C’Mon, Hercules as the fifth Cylon? Let’s get real. It might as well be The Highlander (There can be only one… final Cylon) or The Renegade Lorenzo Lamas or some other ridiculous character from a show you used to watch on USA after school all those years ago. Also, the final Cylon is supposed to be a character we’re already familiar with. So why would the big revelation of the last Cylon be some low level mechanic, or some other minor character that we’ve never seen before who is also Kevin Sorbo? Pretty sure we’d of spotted him at some point over the last three and a half seasons. Maybe he was in a coma?

Odds that I’m right:
850:1

The 5th Cylon is Jake

Imagine waking up to the feeling of someone, or something licking your toes. Sounds like something a dog would do, yeah? Well what if I told you that "dog" was really a Cylon!?! What in the Gods!?! Today we explore how Jake the dog (with the yellow bowl) could be the 5th Cylon.

Why it works:
It's perfect, 3 out of the 4 revealed Cylons were on New Caprica and a part of the resistance. Jake was totally there, too, and his yellow dog bowl was a signal for passing information back and forth. Jake could have known everything the humans were doing. Additionally, Jake didn't care whether he was sniffing/licking humans or Cylons. And as we've known, Cylons are apt to take on human lovers -- which feeds the notion that a dog is a man's best friend. Oh the irony!

Why it doesn't work:
The last Cylon is a dog? How could the Cylons follow a dog as a leader? I can see it now, in the throws of an intense battle over radioactive dirt on Earth, Jake must stop giving orders only to scratch behind his ear, lick his balls and hump the leg of Leoben (it's always funnier if it's a dude). I'm sure there's also an episode where Jake blames the pile of crap on the baseship on Six.

Odds that I'm right:
400:1

The 5th Cylon is Starbuck's Ship

Taking a page out of Knight Rider's book (which is really a page taken out of the original BSG book -- see pulsating red bar for confirmation), playing the role of KITT is Starbuck's suddenly brand-new old Viper.

Why it works:
How could it not? Cylons are machines. Spaceships are machines. The Viper had all the information in it's databanks but didn't reveal it until something "switched" it on. It doesn't HAVE to be a person in the fleet, it could just simply be in the fleet. Imagine having the fifth Cylon under your nose (literally if you're a pilot) the WHOLE time! Sweetness.

Why it doesn't work:
A spaceship as a Cylon? Lame writing alert! Imagine THAT brainstorm session, "ooo, guys, let's make the last one a ship!" Only 4 32 oz. Miller High Lifes makes that a reality, and even then, you'd have to convince the creators of the show. Hmmm, maybe that's why the show is coming to a close.

So why didn't the ship give up the location of Earth until now? It's possible that Gaeta never got around to checking the databanks properly since he was all jacked up in sickbay singing about losing his leg. Or maybe Starbuck never flipped on the switch to the nav computer's history.

Odds that I'm right:
500:1