Athena (TOS)

Athena is the daughter of and sister of . She serves primarily as an officer in Core Command, manning a scanner.
== Biography ==
=== The Peace Conference ===
Athena flies Adama in a shuttle from to . She informs her father that Galactica is on alert, as Apollo's patrol has run into trouble. After the ambush, Galactica returns to collect her fighters. Athena rushes into 's arms. Starbuck is upset that the were abandoned by Galactica during the battle, until Athena tells him that had been destroyed. Starbuck finds Athena later to apologize for how he acted in the landing bay, and points out that they may not have much time to live. Athena says that she cannot commit to a relationship in the midst of all of the chaos. Athena speaks with Adama in his quarters. He tells her about the conditions on Caprica, and it is apparent that Adama is humbled by the responsibility that has fallen to him. 
=== After the Cylon Attack ===
While on duty in Core Command, Athena checks on Starbuck's status on the flight deck. She catches him in the arms of Cassiopeia inside one of the . Infuriated, she activates a steam purge of the tube, burning Starbuck (and causing great discomfort for him during his mission through the Straits of Madagon).
Athena heads down to the surface of Carillon to the chancery to spend some time with Starbuck, only to find Cassiopeia there with the same thing in mind. The rivalry between the two has officially begun.
Athena is on duty in Core Command when the attack begins. She is surprised to see how quickly the Vipers are able to launch, considering that all the pilots were supposed to be at Sire Uri's award ceremony .
Athena prepares the meal at which Apollo announces his intention to be sealed to Serina. Athena gazes longingly at Starbuck, who quickly excuses himself in order to begin preparations for Apollo's bachelor party. Athena is one of the shuttle pilots selected for Viper training when the other Warriors develop the mysterious illness. During a training simulation she successfully destroys a , as well as Starbuck. Athena is selected to be Starbuck's wingman during the mission to destroy the Cylon outpost, and he asks that she not shoot him this time. Athena and the other new pilots succeed in their mission, destroying the outpost and securing the medical information needed to combat the illness .
Athena joins the group that goes down to . She is overjoyed when Starbuck returns unharmed from his Cylon captivity, and runs into his arms. When the Raiders begin their attack, Athena rushes to a Viper to go fight them. The inexperienced fighters begin to fight the Cylons, and are soon joined by the recently recovered veteran pilots. They successfully fight off the Cylon attack .
When Starbuck is awarded a dinner reservation aboard , Athena is disappointed that she cannot join him because she is on duty in Core Command. Adama and agree to cover her shift, and she happily leaves to join Starbuck. Meanwhile Starbuck has already made other plans, and has begun a date with Cassiopeia. Athena arrives while Cassiopeia is out of the room, and Starbuck manages to secure another private room in order to juggle the two dates. Starbuck seems to pull it off successfully, leaving each of them one of his insignia as a token of his affection. His plan falls apart when the ladies run into each other as they leave, each holding the same token. 
Athena puts her rivalry with Cassiopeia aside when she calls her up to Core Command. The signals they are receiving from the Recon Viper lead them to believe that Starbuck may be dead. Cassiopeia recognizes the signals as an Aerian merchant code. This is enough for Adama to call off the order to destroy the Viper, allowing Apollo and Boomer to get to the bottom of the mystery .
Athena is playing a game with in the rejuvenation center when the suicide attack Raiders explode against Galactica cutting the area off from the rest of the ship. Athena and Boxey help tend to the wounded, and are eventually rescued thanks to the efforts of Apollo, Starbuck, and Muffit .
Athena is in charge of a classroom of students when the Terran Shuttle is brought aboard. Students in the class include Boxey and Loma . Her appearance in this episode was the last time Athena would be seen in the series.
==Family tree==
== Notes ==
*The name Athena is based on a goddess from Greek mythology who was identified by the Romans as Minerva, also known as Athene.
*In "The Long Patrol," a computer readout lists Athena as a lieutenant. Though this could be correct, however it did not specify if her ranking was either that of a warrior or of a naval nature. While this may well have been an error on the writers' parts, it is considered to be her rank in the Colonial Armed Forces. If we are correct in the equivalence of the ranks, the lieutenant ranking would be consistent with her naval ranking of ensign as well.
* According to Encyclopedia Galactica (a non-canonical piece of merchandise published in 1979): Athena was the youngest of Adama's children. She has an interest in telecommunications which lead her to pursue advance degrees in "ether physics" at the Academy. During her time there, she created various "improvements computerized (sic) in long-range scanning equipment" and also published "several widely acclaimed essays on the philosophy of science".
*The character of Athena was, at least originally, equal in part to and , however it was clearly apparent that Maren Jensen was incapable of acting to the extent of the male leads, Richard Hatch and Dirk Benedict. It should be noted though that her performances did improve over time, due to the presence of an acting coach on-set, however her character was scaled back until she disappeared entirely after her piteous "teaching stint" in "Greetings From Earth".
*The character of Athena is one of a handful of Original Series characters who does not initially have direct parallel in the Re-imagined Series (see below). In Season 3, Commander Adama gives , a Cylon in whom he confides as a father would to a daughter (about which there is a possible connection to the Caprica spin-off), a Colonial officer's commission. After she rebuffs her fellow pilots' attempts to apply her "sister"'s former callsign, "Boomer" to her, the pilots suggest a handful of humorous and affectionate callsigns, but settle on the name "Athena" .
*In a sense, the character of Athena was merged with that of her brother Zac to form the Re-imagined Series character, Zak Adama. While Zac and Athena were both the children of Adama and the lower-ranking siblings of Apollo, Zac provided the Zak Adama's name and gender, and Athena provided the status of trainee pilot ("nugget") instructed by his/her love interest, Starbuck.
== Gallery ==
 
File:Athena Orange Background.jpg
File:Athena - Arms Folded.jpg
File:Athena - Warrior Uniform.jpg
File:Athena Pose 1.jpg
File:Athena Pose 2.JPG
File:Athena - Fire in Space.jpg|A backlot shot of Maren Jensen as Athena during the filming of "Fire in Space."
File:Galactica women.jpg
File:Athen On Bridge.jpg|A promotional photo featuring the series' leading actors and Maren Jensen.
File:Athenacarillon.jpg|Athena on Carillon searching for .
File:Mushies.jpg|Athena and Starbuck enjoying some mushies on .
== References ==
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