Babylon 5

[Anwar]

I'm still not sure how to feel about this. The original series wrapped up pretty much everything and ended literally 1 million years in the future with the basic concept of the entire show being resolved. There's nowhere to go from there.

A reboot....well, what's new to tell with the plot?

 

[DigificWriter]

A reboot....well, what's new to tell with the plot?

A lot of things, actually.

 

[Farscape One]

All due respect to the B5 fanbase, as a member of it and somebody who gave up on Supernatural 2/3 of the way through... the two fanbases aren't anywhere near the same scale. And they don't even draw from the same roots.

Your 'classic' CW fan is the Supernatural/Vampire Diaries/Riverdale crowd, or your DC superhero tv adaptations, with heavy crossover between the two. Space opera, and Babylon 5 in particular... is a different genre entirely.

That said, I'm down for a reboot for sure, especially with the ideas I'm reading in the thread about "different avenues" more like the original JMS plan. Takashima and Dr. Kyle would be a cool idea to make it distinct. And I love the idea of Pat Tallman as Bester, Claudia Christian as Neroon (or Ivanova's mom if they keep Ivanova) and Boxleitner as President Clark or General Hague (or what about Lorien? Or Draal?).

That's my point. It IS a different base of fans, but a big number. It's like big corporations... the more diverse it is, the healthier it stays in the long run. The CW could use that diverisification of fans. I don't think it has a space based series at all. (Other than SUPERNATURAL, I didn't watch anything on that network.)

 

[valkyrie013]

Here's a blast from JMS explaining :

To answer all the questions, yes, it’s true, Babylon 5 is in active development as a series for the CW. We have some serious fans over at the network, and they’re eager to see this show happen. I’m hip deep into writing the pilot now, and will be running the series upon pickup. The network understands the uniqueness of Babylon 5 and is giving me a great deal of latitude with the storytelling.

As noted in the announcement, this is a reboot from the ground up rather than a continuation, for several reasons. Heraclitus wrote “You cannot step in the same river twice, for the river has changed, and you have changed.” In the years since B5, I’ve done a ton of other TV shows and movies, adding an equal number of tools to my toolbox, all of which I can bring to bear on one singular question: if I were creating Babylon 5 today, for the first time, knowing what I now know as a writer, what would it look like? How would it use all the storytelling tools and technological resources available in 2021 that were not on hand then?

How can it be used to reflect the world in which we live, and the questions we are asking and confronting every day? Fans regularly point out how prescient the show was and is of our current world; it would be fun to take a shot at looking further down the road. So we will not be retelling the same story in the same way because of what Heraclitus said about the river. There would be no fun and no surprises. Better to go the way of Westworld or Battlestar Galactica where you take the original elements that are evergreens and put them in a blender with a ton of new, challenging ideas, to create something fresh yet familiar. To those asking why not just do a continuation, for a network series like this, it can’t be done because over half our cast are still stubbornly on the other side of the Rim.

How do you telling continuing story of our original Londo without the original Vir? Or G’Kar? How do you tell Sheridan’s story without Delenn? Or the story of B5 without Franklin? Garibaldi? Zack?

The original Babylon 5 was ridiculously innovative: the first to use CGI to create ships and characters, and among the very first to shoot widescreen with a vigorous 5.1 mix. Most of all, for the first time, Babylon 5 introduced viewers accustomed to episodic television to the concept of a five-year arc with a pre-planned beginning, middle and end…creating a brand new paradigm for television storytelling that has subsequently become the norm. That tradition for innovation will continue in this new iteration, and I hope to create additional new forms of storytelling that will further push the television medium to the edge of what’s possible.

Let me conclude by just saying how supportive and enthusiastic everyone at the CW has been and is being with this project. They understand the unique position Babylon 5 occupies both in television and with its legions of fans, and are doing everything they can to ensure the maximum in creative freedom, a new story that will bring in new viewers while honoring all that has come before.

Onward!

 

[Saul]

As others have said I'm not sure how to feel about this. I didn't imagine the series would be rebooted anytime soon and definitely didn't think it would be done on CW. I'd rather a movie or some series set in the same Universe, a Crusade reboot even would be more appealing to me. A B5 reboot is... well, why? We did that story. OK, he wasn't always able to tell the story he wanted but how likely is that with any show, movie or book? Things changed, the show was what it was and sometimes felt richer for it. I went on that journey with B5 and I'm not all that interested in doing it all over again with a different cast. But it's good to see anything B5 related back.

 

[kirk55555]

I don't really get the point of a reboot. The original show told its story fairly well (up through Season 4 at least), its not like I see a lot that could use updating when I watch it (outside of the effects, which aren't that big a deal to me). Also, The CW means its pretty much guaranteed to be a flop. Even as someone who likes/has liked some of the Arrowverse stuff, its all drenched in teenage angst even in the shows where none of the characters are teenagers. Every CW show has that kind of stuff, and B5 done in the CW "style" is going to be an absolute tragedy, I don't care if JMS is involved. I can't imagine seeing CW versions of characters I liked from the old show, it would drive me insane. Imagine some mediocre actor hired for their looks instead of their acting ability (like 90% of CW actors) trying to pull off playing Londo or G'Kar, its an terrifying prospect.

Well, at least so far it seems like its nowhere near a sure thing, so hopefully this falls through. If it does make it to air, I won't be watching.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Honestly, I would've wanted a TNG like continuation with John Sheridan's son. David Sheridan.

It could've explored the universe of B5 during his time and see what happened as a result of his parents generations decisions that affected the universe.

 

[Commander Troi]

Like most of you, I was not sure how I felt about this when I saw the news. But JMS' post made me remember that this IS his baby. I don't think he's going to do anything to tarnish the name and I think he will honor the memories of those no longer with us. Because LOVE.

 

[eschaton]

I'm all for this personally. I mean, the original Babylon 5 suffered from three major issues which this can fix.

1. Terrible VFX - we can do better now even on CW budgets.
2. Really inconsistent acting. Jurasik and Katsulas were incredible, but the rest of the cast was mediocre to awful - as was most of the guest cast.
3. There were all sorts of arc-related issues, from the largely episodic first season JMS was forced to do to prove the concept to the networks, to the rushed season 4 with two seasons worth of plot, to the actual season 5 tacked on at the end and largely useless.

It seems to me a modern version could do much better treating the original series like a rough draft - something JMS can do since he had credit on basically all the "arc episodes." Pulp almost all of Seasons 1 and 5, and pull together the strongest elements of the middle three into a tight new five-season narrative.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

It doesn't have to be a 5 season narrative.

If he has the leeway, he can spread it out to as many seasons as CW will allow.

If JMS has as much "Stroke" with the higher ups as "The CW" as we're led to believe, he can get the "Supernatural" treatment and get renewed as much as possible, ergo the 15 season run of "Supernatural".

 

[Timelord79 (he/him)]

Well, after waking up from a nightmare and this being the first thing I see, I feel kinda optimistic about this one, after shaking the confused dream feeling.

Anyway, I’ll be the first to put this out here:

make your Cast suggestions!!!

Sheridan: Donald Glover
Ivanova: Summer Glau
Delenn: Laverne Cox
Londo: David Thewlis
G’Kar: Michelle Yeoh
Kosh: as himself

 

[eschaton]

It doesn't have to be a 5 season narrative.

If he has the leeway, he can spread it out to as many seasons as CW will allow.

If JMS has as much "Stroke" with the higher ups as "The CW" as we're led to believe, he can get the "Supernatural" treatment and get renewed as much as possible, ergo the 15 season run of "Supernatural".

Stretching out the planned arc over a longer period is fine - particularly with short modern seasons. But I absolutely do not want to have a show with an indefinite length. The best serialized dramas are those which understand that stories need to have concrete endings - that arcs come to a close. Shows which peter on past their original planned end date due to high ratings inspite of no clear idea of what to do cheapens the whole thing.

 

[StarMan]

I'm thrilled. This was the only way to go with so much of the original cast tragically gone. Without Deleen, G'Kar or Garibaldi (I know that's not everyone), it was a tough ask - Deleen in particular. Certainly wouldn't have been keen on recasting.

Even if they were all still with us, I would still lean towards a reboot after the several underwhelming non-starters post-B5. Although, Crusade certainly had potential.

Seeing surviving cast members in supporting roles / cameos would be wonderful.

Now we just need to resurrect Foundation Imaging. Imagine those artists working on B5 in 2021.

 

[David cgc]

Now we just need to resurrect Foundation Imaging. Imagine those artists working on B5 in 2021.

Adam "Mojo" Lebowitz, one of the main FI artists (and possibly the most well-known after the late Ron Thornton) posted this on his Facebook profile earlier today:

YES I AM AWARE

Here is why my chances of being involved are slim...

Blame Elvis.

While doing VFX for the pilot and season one, I also did the computer monitor display graphics. During the pilot I showed JMS a bunch of hidden easter eggs (mostly sci-fi references) that I snuck into the animation and he got a kick out of it.

During season one I put a handful of really deeply buried Elvis jokes in the displays (Babylon 4's transponder code was the day Elvis was born and died smooshed into one big number) that JMS (nor anyone else) noticed.

But fans on the internet knew I was an Elvis fan and scoured every display for potential references. Some diligent soul deciphered B4's code and told everyone what he discovered online.

That's how Joe found out and he was not amused. He called Ron (Thornton, VFX supervisor, my boss) and asked him to discipline me.

Ron called me into his office, closed the door and said "you just need to hide them better."

I avoided the temptation for the rest of the season but gave in to the dark side for the final episode. A Starfury blip on the radar needed a 3-digit code so I gave it "EAP 226."

A week later Joe called me from the edit bay. "Mojo! EAP? You don't think I know what EAP stands for?!"

"Earth Alliance Patrol," I responded.

There was a pause and a click.

Of course it was "Elvis Aaron Presley." I've never told anyone the true story before so this post is my official confession. Sure, maybe Joe over reacted, but it was his show, I knew it annoyed him and I did it anyway.

Our friendship soured after that. It's really a shame, we started out on great terms. I was a young, starry-eyed sci-fi fan getting his big break and Joe was happy to see a like-minded nerd getting a chance. He even popped by the office once to give me a signed, Harlan Ellison Elvis short story.

If this post ever makes its way to him, thanks again for that. It's a treasure.

We've run into each other a few times over the years and had pleasant enough conversations. The last time I saw Joe was at a comic book store in Sherman Oaks and he said "oh, it's you." I congratulated him for getting *his* big break in feature films.

So while we're not exactly enemies, I doubt JMS is going to run to the phone and ask me to put together an amazing team to once again bring cutting-edge visuals to Babylon Five.

I'd love to do it and even more patch things up with Joe (in most alternate universes I think we ended up as good friends) but even if Babylon Five remains in my rear view mirror, it was a hell of an accomplishment I'll always be proud of and I have nothing but fond memories.

I wish Joe all the success in the world and I will be tuning in on day one. Best of luck to whomever does the VFX and hey - you know where to find me.

Personally, if there's some kind of weird open-call dream-team VFX thing like they did with DSC (who were all subsequently laid off because they were just sitting around waiting for Bryan Fuller to actually shoot the pilot and they just got Pixomondo to do that weird black-light Guardians of the Galaxy look), I'd definitely apply. Babylon 5 got me into CG, I'd still be interested in making a contribution to it, officially.

 

[theenglish]

I'm excited for a reboot--a ground up reboot by a show's original creator? I think that has a lot of potential. It would also have a chance to redeem some of the later attempts with Crusade and the Rangers--and remember that the original arc did have to be changed after season one and during season 4, so it is not like B5 ever had a chance to tell the story as originally visioned without RL getting in the way. The show would also make a good companion piece to Superman and Lois (not plot or story connections of course) in that the CW could have a powerhouse evening of television with the two shows back to back.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Sheridan: Patrick Dempsey
Ivanova: Sofia Bush
Delenn: Lori Tann Chin
Londo: Brian Blessed
G’Kar: Lane Davies
Kosh: Tom Cruise.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

I wonder if a new 5-year B5 arc could meld in the plot from Crusade, cutting out most of the superfluous stuff. The first three years would be the Shadow war, the schism from Earth and its resolution with the defeat of Clark (or fascist analogue thereof) and the final two finding a cure to the Drakh plague/networked gestalt nanovirus, defeating the remnants of Clark's forces who have gained access to Shadow technology, and the resolution of the Telepath crisis.

Too overstuffed a pudding?

 

[somebuddyX]

I always thought B5 would get a reboot and I hope, while it shares some of the concepts as the original series, it's a new story. Unless they go with the idea that B5 can move through space like B4 I think the only thing they need to keep is the B5 station's look as an O'Neill cylinder. People can talk about B5 being some sacred cow but it already went the franchise route with Crusade, Legends of the Rangers and The Lost Tales. I recently did a picture of science-fiction film and television franchise history at DA, and with Doctor Who, Star Trek and Star Wars in production, BSG and Stargate shows being developed, the only other big franchise missing was B5. And here we are. For me the worst thing about this could be development hell, so hopefully the thing will at least come out and then people can choose to ignore it or give it a go.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Kosh: Tom Cruise

Maybe they can work Xenu and the Thetans into the plot.

 

[Farscape One]

You lnow what an ironic piece of casting would be?

Boxleitner as President Clark. How many actors can say they were the villain AND hero in the same franchise that has been rebooted? (Richard Hatch is the most obvious answer, but few others.)