After my own repeated viewings, I'm more and more convinced that the bar scene was a set-up. It came pretty soon after the scene where Roslin specifically ordered Lee to lean on the Zarek supporters and see what was going on. The fact that Lee and Kara were sitting apart is a pretty good clue. If they'd just been chilling at the bar after a long shift working security, they would have been sitting together. As it is, she's positioned so that she can observe what's going on and watch his back. You'll notice that you can see her face in the background throughout the part where Lee's taunting the big goon (and the fact that they just happened to be where the known Zarek-supporting goon just happened to be is another good sign). My guess is that they were trying to goad the Zarek supporters into taking action so they could find out who was working with whom.
Where Lee's temper comes in is that I think he took the situation very personally on a couple of levels. He does seem protective of Roslin and worried that she will be hurt, but I also think he feels personally betrayed by Zarek. Before Bastille Day, he'd been impressed by Zarek. He thought Zarek had some good ideas. But then when they met in person and he found out that Zarek was just a grandstanding anarchist out for personal glory rather than any kind of high-minded, big-thinking idealist, I think Lee felt betrayed and let down. The times we've seen Lee lose his cool, it's generally been at times when he's felt let down by someone he thought he could believe in. He couldn't really go ballistic on Zarek in this situation, but he could take it out on the people he saw falling for Zarek's lines. The plan may have been to just goad them into saying something, maybe into giving the military an excuse to arrest them so they wouldn't be a threat, but Lee took it a little too far because he was too personally involved. I don't think the others (like Kara) realized just how personally he was taking it because he does keep such a tight hold on his temper in most situations.
The other times Lee has lost it or come close to losing it were with his father, whom he definitely believes has let him down, and with Tigh when Kara was lost. It appears that Tigh is someone he's known since childhood, so it's possible he felt betrayed when "Uncle Saul" didn't take his side.
As for the interrogation, my guess is most of it was for show, but a lot of it was spillover from the fight. He still had a lot of adrenaline working, and then there was still that sense of personal betrayal by Zarek. He couldn't scream and throw things at Zarek, so he did it to Zarek's follower.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2005-03-23 03:37 am (UTC)Where Lee's temper comes in is that I think he took the situation very personally on a couple of levels. He does seem protective of Roslin and worried that she will be hurt, but I also think he feels personally betrayed by Zarek. Before Bastille Day, he'd been impressed by Zarek. He thought Zarek had some good ideas. But then when they met in person and he found out that Zarek was just a grandstanding anarchist out for personal glory rather than any kind of high-minded, big-thinking idealist, I think Lee felt betrayed and let down. The times we've seen Lee lose his cool, it's generally been at times when he's felt let down by someone he thought he could believe in. He couldn't really go ballistic on Zarek in this situation, but he could take it out on the people he saw falling for Zarek's lines. The plan may have been to just goad them into saying something, maybe into giving the military an excuse to arrest them so they wouldn't be a threat, but Lee took it a little too far because he was too personally involved. I don't think the others (like Kara) realized just how personally he was taking it because he does keep such a tight hold on his temper in most situations.
The other times Lee has lost it or come close to losing it were with his father, whom he definitely believes has let him down, and with Tigh when Kara was lost. It appears that Tigh is someone he's known since childhood, so it's possible he felt betrayed when "Uncle Saul" didn't take his side.
As for the interrogation, my guess is most of it was for show, but a lot of it was spillover from the fight. He still had a lot of adrenaline working, and then there was still that sense of personal betrayal by Zarek. He couldn't scream and throw things at Zarek, so he did it to Zarek's follower.