[Ruthan Good]

For the background on Babylon 5, this was a tv series that ran through 1994-1998, lasted for 5 series, 6 TV movies, 1 series of spinoff show, and multiple comics and books and other bits and bobs. It was well-known for it's very tight plotting and (IMHO) fantastic main storyline. It had many traditional sci-fi and general themes such as good vs evil, order vs chaos (big one that), heroism and sacrifice at it's grandest, many others, and it truly defines the space opera genre. Sure enough it had faults (see below), but it combined massive space battles and character-based drama and what was effectively an education in tolerance, political and religious idealism (I think I'm not talking out of my arse), and a story about a friendship like none other. Beware of looking it up on wikipedia as I did (see below).

Babylon 5 was was created and largely written by J M Straczynski (I actually managed to spell it right without looking). He wrote 92 out the 110 episodes of the main show, and also all but one episode from series 3-5 (the other one was done by Neil Gaiman, so you know, can't complain). To modern audiences he is famous for Changeling on big screens, and to comic book readers he is the author to some of Spider-Man's and Thor's best stories (IMHO). Babylon 5 is as much about him as it is about the show.


I bring this thread on to people to discuss, like or hate, and get other people to watch it. Take care with posting spoilers.
Now with the faults:

1. The threat of cancellation and slight adjustments caused the last season to be not as good as the preceding stuff.
2. Some of the actors having left caused some other plot adjustments
3. Season 1 wasn't quite as good
4. The CGI is a bit antiquated by today's standard
5. It ended
6. I managed to spoil the whole thing, almost every one of the main plot points by just scanning through the article on the wikipedia thinking I wouldn't watch it

What the show did to make up for the faults:

1. Season 5 was still miles better than many other things on TV
2. The actors having left was dealt with quite well
3. Teething pains, and it also contained some of the best episodes
4. It was fantastic by then standards
5. Can't make up for that one
6. I still loved it

[Abyss]

There was no season 5.

[McLovin]

My main gripe is that the front half of Season 1 is very weak, which caused me to ignore the series when it first came out. Years later I got Season 1 on DVD, watched it and loved it. Then had to complete the collection.

You gotta really hand it to JMS. He had a lot of obstacles, but he knew where he was going, persevered, and did it.

[Ruthan Good]

I started a rewatch after writing about it yesterday. Going through every season 1 episode, no skipping!


As for season 5, though my fellow worshipper of the Great Old One may not think that there was a season 5, I actually cried at the end. 1st half of season 5 was questionable, but then it got better, and I to date feel robbed for not having seen/read about the Telepath War. The season shows destinies fulfilled, tragedy at it's greatest, change and rebirth all over the place. (It's hard to write here without spoilers btw).

[A Demon Llama!]

I tried watching this show once, but couldn't get past the first few episodes. Maybe I'll try again someday.

[LinearPhilosopher]

Gripes about season 5 aside, the long night of londo mollari remains one of my favourite babylon 5 episodes. B5 is likely my 2nd favourite sci-fi (first is firefly) simply because of the depth the show had in terms of plot. You can clearly see the various plot lines that were laid out. What was also done was the introduction of trapdoor characters. Since 4 season is a long time to run a show and contracts can get cancelled or w/e, JMS actually wrote in characters that could fill in for others. The ambassadors aides were all meant as trapdoor characters for example as they could easily be assigned to fill in their roles. Humans were more expendable (sinclair being switched out for sheridan).

http://io9.com/59857...on-of-babylon-5

more there if you're itnerested.

[Ruthan Good]

BalrogLord, on 12 March 2013 - 03:34 AM, said:

Gripes about season 5 aside, the long night of londo mollari remains one of my favourite babylon 5 episodes. B5 is likely my 2nd favourite sci-fi (first is firefly) simply because of the depth the show had in terms of plot. You can clearly see the various plot lines that were laid out. What was also done was the introduction of trapdoor characters. Since 4 season is a long time to run a show and contracts can get cancelled or w/e, JMS actually wrote in characters that could fill in for others. The ambassadors aides were all meant as trapdoor characters for example as they could easily be assigned to fill in their roles. Humans were more expendable (sinclair being switched out for sheridan).

http://io9.com/59857...on-of-babylon-5

more there if you're itnerested.

Pretty cool article, I liked it. Didn't address the most important character arc of all, of course, but there's enough on that elsewhere.

P.S. Beware spoilers if you hit the article.

[LinearPhilosopher]

Ruthan Good, on 12 March 2013 - 08:18 PM, said:

BalrogLord, on 12 March 2013 - 03:34 AM, said:

Gripes about season 5 aside, the long night of londo mollari remains one of my favourite babylon 5 episodes. B5 is likely my 2nd favourite sci-fi (first is firefly) simply because of the depth the show had in terms of plot. You can clearly see the various plot lines that were laid out. What was also done was the introduction of trapdoor characters. Since 4 season is a long time to run a show and contracts can get cancelled or w/e, JMS actually wrote in characters that could fill in for others. The ambassadors aides were all meant as trapdoor characters for example as they could easily be assigned to fill in their roles. Humans were more expendable (sinclair being switched out for sheridan).

http://io9.com/59857...on-of-babylon-5

more there if you're itnerested.

Pretty cool article, I liked it. Didn't address the most important character arc of all, of course, but there's enough on that elsewhere.

P.S. Beware spoilers if you hit the article.

most important? we talking about g'kar here?

[Abyss]

BalrogLord, on 13 March 2013 - 01:59 AM, said:

Ruthan Good, on 12 March 2013 - 08:18 PM, said:

BalrogLord, on 12 March 2013 - 03:34 AM, said:

Gripes about season 5 aside, the long night of londo mollari remains one of my favourite babylon 5 episodes. B5 is likely my 2nd favourite sci-fi (first is firefly) simply because of the depth the show had in terms of plot. You can clearly see the various plot lines that were laid out. What was also done was the introduction of trapdoor characters. Since 4 season is a long time to run a show and contracts can get cancelled or w/e, JMS actually wrote in characters that could fill in for others. The ambassadors aides were all meant as trapdoor characters for example as they could easily be assigned to fill in their roles. Humans were more expendable (sinclair being switched out for sheridan).

http://io9.com/59857...on-of-babylon-5

more there if you're itnerested.

Pretty cool article, I liked it. Didn't address the most important character arc of all, of course, but there's enough on that elsewhere.

P.S. Beware spoilers if you hit the article.

most important? we talking about g'kar here?

Garibaldi?

[Ruthan Good]

No Londo's of course. IMHO main character of the story.

Between him and G'Kar some of the best character arcs on TV period.

[LinearPhilosopher]

I've been showing this clip to my philosophy buddies recently. It's a very powerful scene. Gkar was a great character, with some amazing lines. Intresting how it ended up as he was a bit of a comic villain at the start of show.

[frookenhauer]

I COMPLETELY missed this when it was on TV, I didn't watch much at the time...anyway.

I watched the entirety of season 1 and thought it was okay to good at times.

I started watching season 2 , but got side tracked...

I have to say the CGI is a MAJOR drawback to everything, things have most definitely moved on, but the story side of things is good and the acting aint bad.

I'll put it on my list of things to do.

[stone monkey]

I watched this religiously at the time. Nothing dates as badly as old CGI, especially on tv shows, but it was groundbreaking back then - you were getting to see space opera on tv with the sense of scale (for the most part) intact. The acting let it down quite badly in the first season, the guy playing Sinclair was impossibly wooden. And the speechifying was a perennial problem - I'm guessing this was because JMS really didn't like being edited and so when he got to make his own show he left ALL his words in.

It did have some truly great moments; when the Shadows first show up in "Signs and Portents" in Season 1 you suddenly got to understand what the show was really about. Both G'Karr and Londo's character arcs were perfect. There was a tail off in Season 5 because of things being tied up so much in Season 4. But all in all it's a sadly underrated tv series.

[Werthead]

As was prophecised, BABYLON 5 is being rebooted.

This is clearly the best/worst idea ever/today and is guaranteed to be a huge success/miserable failure. It's great/lame that the original creator is involved, and horrible/interesting that it'll air on The CW. I'll definitely watch/burn my BABYLON 5 collectors' plates.

[QuickTidal]

I trust J. Michael Straczinski. Nuff said.

Also for anyone who whines that this will be on the CW when the original was not...

BABYLON 5 originally aired on PTEN (Prime Time Entertainment Network)....which then split to become UPN and WB respectively (still under Time Warner/Viacom)...and after operating separately for a while in the 2000's Time Warner/Viacom decided to once again unite the two channels into one, and they named it (You guessed it) The CW. So yeah, same network.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Werthead, on 30 September 2021 - 04:54 PM, said:

As was prophecised, BABYLON 5 is being rebooted.

This is clearly the best/worst idea ever/today and is guaranteed to be a huge success/miserable failure. It's great/lame that the original creator is involved, and horrible/interesting that it'll air on The CW. I'll definitely watch/burn my BABYLON 5 collectors' plates.

I do/don't agree.

[Cyphon]

The CW stands for?

[Malankazooie]

Cringe Watching.

[LinearPhilosopher]

Kinda exciting hearing about a complete reboot.

I also havent watched it in years, curious if closer to the date I should do a re-watch.

[Abyss]

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 30 September 2021 - 06:04 PM, said:

Werthead, on 30 September 2021 - 04:54 PM, said:

As was prophecised, BABYLON 5 is being rebooted.

This is clearly the best/worst idea ever/today and is guaranteed to be a huge success/miserable failure. It's great/lame that the original creator is involved, and horrible/interesting that it'll air on The CW. I'll definitely watch/burn my BABYLON 5 collectors' plates.

I do/don't agree.

Wert's post exactly captures the prevailing sentiment except for where he gets it utterly wrong.


Moi, i'm excited. I love B5, i enjoy most things JMS does, i want to see what he does given back this setting. I could not care less how 'faithful to the original' this is. BSG did it, Trek did it, Babylon 5 will be just fine.