Babylon 5 (4th trip)

[trentman359]

Well I had a fairly successful thread chronicling my first viewing of DS9.
http://trekbbs.com/showthread.php?t=59268

Watching the show really made me want to go back to Babylon 5. I am a huge fan of B5 and this will be my fourth time going through the entire series. I figured I'd share my thoughts and get some discussion going. If there is no interest I'll stop but I had fun with the other one so I will give this a try.


If this thread is in the wrong spot, please move it.

 

[Candlelight]

Where are you up to?

 

[trentman359]

"The Gathering"

"The Vorlon ambassador is nearly killed by an assassin shortly after arriving at the station, and Commander Sinclair is the prime suspect."

Well its amazing how much of this pilot episode actually survived to the series. Most of Sinclair's character arc was firmly in place. Of course some of the sets and costumes would go on to change. Delenn's makeup is horrendous. All of the principal actors from the series already seem to have a grasp on their roles. I am glad that they got rid of the doctor and the second in command. Overall a pretty decent start to my favorite science fiction series.

 

[Trubinator]

Funny coincidence. I was just about to make another run-through of Crusade.

 

[Tulin]

A lot of people(predictably)put TG down but I actually really liked the visual style of the pilot. I wished they had kept the sense of scale and busyness we see in the backgrounds. The casino was big and bustling and the Arrivals seemed like a real customes port.

 

[Orac Zen]

I recently started my...actually I've long since lost count of how many times I've rewatched B5. I got sidetracked so maybe this thread will kick me back into it.

I remember watching "The Gathering" and thinking something like "I have to check out this show if it ever shows up here" (Australian networks having a tendency to treat SF shows like crap more often than not). There wasn't much I didn't like about it; it did its job of selling the show to me.

 

[Jan]

Is it safe to assume that you're watching the Special Edition, trentman359? I liked that version much better than the original.

Jan

 

[Bri]

5 gravities!!!!!

Ok, Delenn's rings are just as bad as the makeup.

Are you watching the re-edited "Gathering"? I have both versions here, one on dvd, and the original on vhs. One thing about the re-edited Gathering that I didn't like, Kosh's dubbed over line to "Sinclair". "Entilzah Valen", that kinda ruins the whole reveal in "War Without End"!

One thing I liked about "The Gathering" was the private conversation shields. We never saw them again either.

Keep this thread going! I'll comment on every ep as time permits, it's far and away my favorite series of all time next to The Wire. I'll probably end up rewatching it with you, as I work 12 hour shifts and throw a few eps of whatever on my ipod nano every night. Almost done with BSG for the 2nd time, so I'd be up for B5 for the..umm.. I don't want to admit how many times I've watched B5.

We can all laugh at "Infection" soon!


Bri

 

[MarianLH]

I am glad that they got rid of the doctor and the second in command. Overall a pretty decent start to my favorite science fiction series.

Just out of curiosity, what didn't you like about Laurel Takashima or Dr. Kyle?


Marian

 

[Lindley]

Spoiler: Kosh

"Entilzah Valen", that kinda ruins the whole reveal in "War Without End"!

It doesn't ruin anything, since there's no way in hell someone who didn't have the line pointed out to them would think it's anything more than random alien sounds.

For those who aren't on their first time through, it's a nice early connection. Nothing more.

 

[trentman359]

Just out of curiosity, what didn't you like about Laurel Takashima or Dr. Kyle?


Marian

You know I think I am just so used to Richard Biggs and Claudia Christiansan that I don't like other actors in their roles. Dr. Kyle was pretty good and different. Takashima was very bland though.

 

[Harvey]

I'm not a big fan of "The Gathering." There's some pretty silly action at the end (which Straczynski also disparages on the commentary), and many of the characters would change when the series itself began. On the other hand, it does set up Sinclair's character arc rather well, and Jerry Doyle, Andreas Katsulas, and Peter Jurasik are all immediately interesting in their roles. And it did have a sense of atmosphere that wasn't retained in whole for the series. But the series happily improves as it goes along in most departments, making for an enjoyable ride.

 

[trentman359]

"Midnight on the Firing Line"

"When the Narn attack a Centauri colony, Londo and G'Kar nearly come to blows. Meanwhile, raiders are attacking transport ships near the station."

Now this is a better start for the show. All the political intrigue is there and Sinclair is obviously not going to take crap from anyone. Its hard to believe that from the very first episode that things are said that turn out to be true. It must have taken JMS quite some time to plan out the series.

 

[clint g]

BTW, I just want to say thank you for your old thread! It made me go out and buy all the DVDs and watch the series again for the first time since it was aired on TV

 

[trentman359]

Your welcome! I was very surprised that people enjoyed that thread so much. Its not like I ever had anything interesting to say. I dont know, maybe people just like following it. Hope you enjoy this one too!

 

[Jan]

Its hard to believe that from the very first episode that things are said that turn out to be true. It must have taken JMS quite some time to plan out the series.

That's one of the things that's always amazed me. I don't know if I envy new viewers their first run-through more or their second where they see just how much was planted early on.

Jan

 

[Tom Hendricks]

I have decided to re-watch B5 with you. I was a B5 fan from the very beginning, but I have not watched it since it was first on. So this should be fun.

 

[Bri]

Spoiler: Kosh

"Entilzah Valen", that kinda ruins the whole reveal in "War Without End"!

It doesn't ruin anything, since there's no way in hell someone who didn't have the line pointed out to them would think it's anything more than random alien sounds.

For those who aren't on their first time through, it's a nice early connection. Nothing more.

Speak for yourself! I know several people who caught that during the tnt run, who were first time watchers. Mind you, they were taping the series and were very astute observers, knowing the rumors of how heavily written it was. Certainly not everyone will catch this, but it's there, and a blanket statement of "no way in hell anyone" is simply not true.

It's an unnecessary line that ruins one of the best reveals in the series, much as "In the Beginning" mentions the "Shadow War", another thing that irked me.

This series was so great in it's original Pten run, when nobody knew what was going on or what to expect.

Bri

 

[Harvey]

Your friends must have been very astute then. Not only is the line barely discernable in the audio mix, but "Entilzah" and "Valen" are proper nouns not heard again nor defined until much later in the series, if I'm not mistaken (I don't have the quick access to the script books and encylopedic knowledge of Jan to be absolutely sure).

"In The Beginning" references the Shadow War, as well as Sheridan becoming President of the Alliance for one simple reason: it is set during 2278, well after anything else in the series, save for "Sleeping in Light." But I've shaken my fist like a cantakerous old man arguing for its placement between "Objects at Rest" and "Sleeping in Light for far too long now. I'll let that rest, for the moment.

 

[Bri]

"Midnight on the Firing Line"

"When the Narn attack a Centauri colony, Londo and G'Kar nearly come to blows. Meanwhile, raiders are attacking transport ships near the station."

Now this is a better start for the show. All the political intrigue is there and Sinclair is obviously not going to take crap from anyone. Its hard to believe that from the very first episode that things are said that turn out to be true. It must have taken JMS quite some time to plan out the series.

"Your time has come and gone!! It's OUR TURN NOW!!"

The great thing about this one, continuing from the pilot, is having the Narn be the initial aggressor/villians. I remember my first run through this, and watching just how unreal/tragic the fate of the Narn became, and more specifically G'Kar's overall character arc. The same goes for Mollari. Joe ran us through so many emotional upheveals on these 2 characters.

Andreas and Peter are still wildly overacting, which is also great/hilarious considering just how incredible they both became over time. Claudia's horrible fake accent is here for a while, thank god she decided to lose that!

Many improvements from "The Gathering", but still layered in a little cheese!

Bri