Louanne Katraine (
callsign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
"Kat") is a
fictional character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...
from the reimagined ''
Battlestar Galactica
''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...
'' television series, portrayed by
Luciana Carro
Luciana Carro (born March 23, 1981) is a Canadian actress best known for her appearances on the television series '' Battlestar Galactica'', '' Caprica'', and '' Falling Skies'' and in movies such as '' Two for the Money'' and '' Dr. Dolittle 3 ...
.
Character arc
Prior to the show (and unknown to the audience), Sasha Billings is a drug-runner. Fortunate enough to be among the survivors of the ragtag fleet, she takes the name of her roommate, Louanne Katraine, to get her through background checks, which allows her to join a group of volunteer pilots trained by
Starbuck.
A natural, she quickly becomes a rival to Starbuck. As fatigue and stress mount, Kat turns to stimulants to keep her senses sharp; she overdoses and is temporarily hospitalized.
After Starbuck and
Apollo
Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
are transferred to the battlestar ''Pegasus'', Kat seems to act as the ''Galactica''s ''de facto''
CAG,
and in the months after their return, the rivalry between Kat and Starbuck intensifies.
After settlement of planet New Caprica, Kat is promoted to captain and becomes the ''Galacticas CAG; she and Racetrack leads the decoy operation that allow the rescue of the civilian population.
After the escape, Apollo is reinstated as CAG; Kat and Starbuck become squadron leaders.
When the fleet attempts passage through a highly-radioactive star cluster, Starbuck discovers Kat's past and threatens to reveal it. On the final jump, Kat remains in the cluster long enough to help her assigned ship make it through. She succeeds, but receives a fatal dose of radiation. Admiral Adama visits her deathbed, and reinstates her as honorary CAG.
Behind the scenes
Like many characters in the series, Kat was intended to be a one-off, but Carro's performance impressed showrunner
Ronald D. Moore and her role was expanded. Kat is the only such character to have an episode ("The Passage") where she is the primary focus. A deleted scene from the episode "Maelstrom" would have shown the deceased Kat appearing alongside Starbuck's viper, encouraging her to accept her fate by telling her, "I've got your six."
[Battlestar Galactica season 3 dvd] Although it was not made explicit in the scene, Moore explained in his commentary on "The Passage," that Adama looked on Kat (and by extension, all his favored pilots), like Starbuck, as an adopted daughter of sorts.
See also
*
List of Battlestar Galactica (2004 television series) episodes
Footnotes
External links
Louanne Katraineat the Battlestar Wiki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Katraine, Louanne
Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series) characters
Fictional space pilots
Fictional women soldiers and warriors
Fictional lieutenants
Fictional military captains
Television characters introduced in 2004