Battlestar Galactica or Babylon 5 or other (post Trek)

[otherjr]

Having finished with all the Star Trek I want to watch, I need a new sci-fi drug to zone out on. I hadnt watched any sci-fi tv before I started trek (about a year ago) so i thought Id ask here what people thought was the best out there, or rather which is best for a Star Trek fan. I put BG and B5 in the title because those are the two Ive heard good things about. Everyone says B5 was as good as DS9 (my favourite Trek) is that true?

Anyways, what would you recommend to a Trekkie all outta Trek?

 

[LOKAI of CHERON]

In a straight choice between nuBSG or B5, the former is pantently superior for me. The Sarah Connor Chronicles was another excellent show you could dip into...

 

[TheGodBen]

Babylon 5 is much closer to Trek and shares many elements with DS9 (): a space station, interstellar wars and a healthy dose of character development. It's not a utopian future, humanity as a whole are not virtuous, but the human cast are all pretty much good people while the alien cast evolve over time. It's not quite as polished as Trek, but the show has a lot of gusto and the plot holds together very well as it was all planned out in advance. Season 1 isn't very good, there's plenty of bad episodes in there and it's very cheesy, but by the end of season 2 the show had improved a lot.

BSG is very different. It's a bleak show, which it should be because it's about the genocide of the human race. There's no aliens, there's just humans and Cylons (with hints of an external force that I can't tell you about because it would be a spoiler). The show is almost as far away from the utopian vision of humanity as you can get, it boils down to humanity trying to survive on overcrowded ships while Cylons try to blow them up at every opportunity. All the characters have flaws and they struggle to overcome those flaws in order to survive and make it to the mythical planet of Earth. Contrary to B5, the show is extremely polished and looks fantastic, but the story arcs weren't planned out and in season 3 it becomes a big mess that's difficult to justify. Also contrary to B5, the first season and a half are the show's strongest (although there's still much to enjoy in season 3 and 4).

They're both very good shows with unique advantages and disadvantages. BSG had three staff writers from DS9 working on it (and one from Voyager), but B5 is closer to DS9 in setting and tone.

(And if you do decide to give BSG a go there is one important thing you should know: The Cylons did not have a plan. That tagline was a gimmick to hook viewers, the show makes much more sense if you accept that the Cylons are just winging it from the start.)

 

[Temis the Vorta]

And if you imagine for yourself that the Cylons are not actually robots with sharp robotic minds but rather humans with fluffy, swiss-cheese minds who suffer from the bizarre delusion that they are robots.

Or that they are robots, but remarkably stupid ones. BSG answers the burning question, "what if there were killer robots who thought and acted a lot like Gilligan from Gilligan's Island?"

 

[Myasishchev]

Or that they are robots, but remarkably stupid ones. BSG answers the burning question, "what if there were killer robots who thought and acted a lot like Gilligan from Gilligan's Island?"

I love how toward the end Cavil straight-up admits that he's the Rusty Venture of robot overlords and is at best only a decent maintenance technician for devices which other people invented, roughly on par with the guy that fills the Coke machine.

Anyway, given the choice, I would say Babylon 5, because Babylon 5 will not knife you in the back and sleep with your wife while you bleed out. On the other hand, the two shows share a trait: while each is great at building up tension, each absolutely sucks at denouement. B5 simply sucks at this less.

If I'm not bound by the choices, I'd probably say just go watch Futurama. But it is true that I've never even seen an episode of any Stargate series (liked the movie a lot, though), Farscape, etc.

 

[sbk1234]

I thought B5 was an absolute gem. Great stuff. It's not the same as the continuing characters of Star Trek, but take a look at the classic Twilight Zone with Rod Serling. Black and white, almost no special effects to speak of, and damn good writing and acting.
Even some of the campy sci-fi from the 70s are worth a gander, such as the original Battlestar Galactica, Logan's Run, Planet of the Apes. (I'm talking the tv series, although the movies were pretty damn good.)
I do like Clone Wars, if you're a Star Wars fan.

and yes, Futurama is damn good!

 

[RandyS]

Everyone says B5 was as good as DS9 (my favourite Trek) is that true?

Yes. it is 100% true.

In my opinion, of course.

In fact, if there had never been any Star Trek at all, Babylon 5 would be my most favorite sci-fi universe, instead of number two.

 

[T'Girl]

Firefly is a good, if brief, choice. Less than two dozen episodes, followed by a superior movie. Nicely shows the negative side of Humans trying to have a utopian culture.

 

[Roberta Lincoln]

I liked Babylon 5 a lot -- great characters and great story arc.

I have to admit I liked the 1970s BSG -- it doesn't seem as bleak as the new one (actually I don't they should even be compared!). Lol

Farscape is also good.

Alien Nation is always interesting and it has a fair number of actors who were in ST episodes, too!

AND SO IS FUTURAMA!!!!

 

[Harvey]

You should keep in mind that Babylon 5 has production values far below that of any of the Berman era Star Trek series. Battlestar Galactica has production values that are far superior to both. This may matter only a little or not at all to a viewer, but it should be noted.

Generally, if you're in the mood for a show that is more like Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, I'd suggest Babylon 5. As TheGodBen points out, much of the same trappings are there, and the shows were contemporaries.

On the other hand, if you'd prefer a show that takes the ideas present in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine much further, I'd recommend Battlestar Galactica. The show was written and produced by several key writers from DS9: Ronald D. Moore, David Weddle, Bradley Thompson, and Michael Taylor. It is, in a certain sense, what DS9 would have been without the restrictions that came with Paramount Pictures and the Star Trek franchise.

 

[-Brett-]

Despite it's many flaws, I'd say Babylon 5 is the better show between those two. Farscape, Firefly and Stargate SG-1* are better than both of them though.

*As long as you ignore seasons 8, 9, and 10 and don't even think about the spin-offs.

 

[otherjr]

On the other hand, if you'd prefer a show that takes the ideas present in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine much further, I'd recommend Battlestar Galactica. The show was written and produced by several key writers from DS9: Ronald D. Moore, David Weddle, Bradley Thompson, and Michael Taylor. It is, in a certain sense, what DS9 would have been without the restrictions that came with Paramount Pictures and the Star Trek franchise.

We have a winner! That sounds awesome, thanks everyone for the advice, I think Ill go with BSG

 

[RegFan]

I suggest you watch both BSG and B5. I love both, but I prefer BSG. And remember that B5 gets much better in seasons 2-4 (I'm only halfway through Season 4 myself, but I've heard that Season 5 is bad). Firefly is also great.

 

[TheGodBen]

We have a winner! That sounds awesome, thanks everyone for the advice, I think Ill go with BSG

It's a good choice, just be prepared to forgive the show for its many mistakes. The Cylons in particular are a poorly conceived villain, largely because they were barely conceived at all. Almost everything about the Cylons was made up on the fly and trying to justify it requires much willing suspension of disbelief. For example, the humanoid Cylons are supposed to be almost identical to humans to the point where it's extremely difficult to tell them apart, yet they can control machinery by sticking a fibre-optic cable into their arm and have some sort of transmitter to upload their personality to a new body when they die. And that doesn't even include the glowing spine thing that was retconned away as not being literal.

BSG is at its best when dealing with the humans in the fleet and how they struggle to survive and relate to one another. This is why seasons 1 and 2 are regarded as being the best, at that point the show focused almost solely on the human fleet while the Cylons were a mysterious force that featured mainly in the background. There's some brilliant characters and relationships on the show, my two favourites being Dr Baltar, the narcissistic genius that is perpetually haunted by the image of his former Cylon lover, and Colonel Tigh, the drunk XO. And in my opinion, Adama is the best "captain" in sci-fi, Edward James Olmos is magnificent in the role and brings it a power and humanity that is hard to match. He is a man that you see crying, you see him drunk, you see him puking on himself, you even see him getting stoned on one occasion... but when he says he's getting his men, you know there's not a force in the universe that could stop him.

And remember that B5 gets much better in seasons 2-4 (I'm only halfway through Season 4 myself, but I've heard that Season 5 is bad).

Some say it's bad, some say it's average, and then there's a bizarre few like me that actually prefer it to season 3. Go figure.

 

[Xerxes1979]

Babylon 5 is your last best hope for good entertainment.

 

[Anji]

Go with B5 because J. Michael Straczynski was an associate of Gene Roddenberry. But make sure nobody disturbs you when you watch it...plots are highly complex and political. Sets, costumes and makeup will dazzle you. Nobody can touch it.

And for fun I suggest classic BSG. Ah, Richard and Dirk!

 

[Alex1939]

Firefly

NuBSG





Babylon 5






Babylon 5 is OVER RATED <stomp stomp> OVER RATED

 

[RandyS]

Firefly

NuBSG





Babylon 5






Babylon 5 is OVER RATED <stomp stomp> OVER RATED

No. It is not.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

...J. Michael Straczynski was an associate of Gene Roddenberry.!

No.

Babylon 5 is your last best hope for good entertainment.

God that would be depressing if it were at all true.

 

[Alex1939]

No. It is not.

I think you are correct. To the general public Babylon5 is not over rated, but on this message board it is.

My opinion to OP, Firefly (only 13 episodes and a movie) then NuBSG. I'm not saying don't watch Babylon5, it's just not as great as many here make it out to be, and is far inferior to the other two series I mention.