Dead, a Prisoner, or a Cylon?

If you haven't seen last night's episode of Battlestar Galactica and you don't want to know what happened (or yo just don't care) STOP READING IMMEDIATELY!!!!! I WILL be ruining the ending for you.

So, last night's episode of BSG was actually interesting for a change. They really started going into the mind of Starbuck and her past. You get a bit of an idea why she is the way she is. There are a bunch of flash backs to her life with an abusive mother. It really explains her motherhood issues. The premise behind the episode is that the fleet is getting refuled by the one fuel ship in the fleet. It is taking a while, so they are hiding out by a planet that is giving out a lot of radiation that will throw off Cylon sensors. The problem is, it throws off Colonial sensors too. While patroling the area, Starbuck keeps seeing a lone Cylon ship that no one else can see. She thinks she is going crazy and people are starting to agree. She is also seeing herself as a child all over the place and also the Cylon that took her captive on New Caprica. To cut things short, she goes out on patrol again, see the Cylon ship again, goes after is, and the last you see of her is her ship blowing up. It is seen from a distance, so you really don't know if she ejected. The problem with that though, is that the planet has wicked storms and a crushing atomosphere, so she could not live on the ground. So, is Starbuck:

1. Dead? Was Katie Sackhoff sacked? Did she quit the show? I hadn't heard anything about that, but I guess it is possible. Woody is usually on top of things posted on the internet, so I think he'd mention something if Starbuck was out. I think this the least likely option.

2. A Cylon? Honestly, when her ship blew up, I half expected to see Starbuck wake up in a vat of Cylon goo. Could she really be one of the final five Cylons? That would really blow me away. I know that they are saying that one of the caracters on the show is going to be outed as a Cylon, but could it be Starbuck? If so, would she have all of the childhood injuries and memories? I guess that could be how she was programmed. I really don't know about this. It would blow me away.

3. Captured? I think this is the best bet. Leoben said that Starbuck has a destiny and he was in a lot of her flash backs. Maybe she got into her head like Caprica Six is in Baltar's head. No one saw the Cylon Raider, other than Starbuck, but maybe it was real and on a mission to capture her. Leoben said that he was going to see her again (on New Caprica). I think that this is the most likely possiblity. I don't think they are going to kill off such a popular character and I don't think that they will make her a Cylon. I am sure that, if she is alive, Galactica will find her and suspect her to be a Cylon. Either way, I was blown away when I saw Starbuck ger blowed up.