A new B5 series on the horizon?

[Admiral_Young]

Yeah DWF kind of it hit on the head, why are we still talking about a reboot series when Joe himself stated the project died? It nearly happened and if it did get done then it's possible it could have been as good as the original. I just have no interest in Joe telling his story twice with tweaks or whatever here and there. Before any one states about "Star Trek" I think "Babylon 5" is something entirely different in the sense that it was one novel long story told on television. JMS had a very distinct story he wanted to tell and did so in marvelous fashion IMO. It doesn't need to be retold or re-imagined. It doesn't make any sense to me to reboot it. Normally am very open to things like this but yeah I don't think it makes much sense at all to retell a story he has already told.

 

[G2309]

Yeah DWF kind of it hit on the head, why are we still talking about a reboot series when Joe himself stated the project died? It nearly happened and if it did get done then it's possible it could have been as good as the original. I just have no interest in Joe telling his story twice with tweaks or whatever here and there. Before any one states about "Star Trek" I think "Babylon 5" is something entirely different in the sense that it was one novel long story told on television. JMS had a very distinct story he wanted to tell and did so in marvelous fashion IMO. It doesn't need to be retold or re-imagined. It doesn't make any sense to me to reboot it. Normally am very open to things like this but yeah I don't think it makes much sense at all to retell a story he has already told.

Agreed seies 1-4 is as good story wise as it can be. Using the same universe using a different setting and people could be good but I think JMS has lost his way.

 

[Admiral_Young]

I don't think he's "lost his way". I just think he has lost any interest in telling the kinds of B5 stories that fans want to see for whatever reason, may they be creative or economical.

 

[Sindatur]

Apparently a "fan" went to a JMS site (Or a JMS related one) and was apparently aggressive about what he thought he knew JMS was doing. JMS replied with some information I hadn't heard.

1. G'Kar wouldn't be a character recast, he'd be a Religious figure, ala G'quon. (And I'd imagine the same respect for other actors who have Passed Beyond the Rim)
2. Can't have a show called Babylon 5 without a Babylon 5, which is no more in the current continuity (IE: Telepath War wouldn't work because Fans would be confused about what Babylon 5 was)
3. It wouldn't start or end the same, and paths taken would be different
4. It's not economically feasible this many years later to do a straight sequel
5. He's learned alot about what did and didn't work the first time around
6. Technology has advanced

So, it sounds like this could've been good, and allowed B5 more leeway for future projects if the reboot was successful. He definitely wants to tell new stories, it appears, but, it's not the right environment, and this reboot could've provided that right environment

Jan can fill in the gaps, I'm sure

 

[Jan]

^^That's pretty much it. It was posted on the Fans of J. And the poster *is* a fan but was quite overwrought, as several folks around the 'net have been since the word 'reboot' entered the picture. The entire thread can be found https://www.facebook.com/j.michael.straczynski#!/pages/Fans-of-J-Michael-Straczynski/139652459402959

Jan

 

[Dac]

Saw this earlier, thought it seemed pertinent to this discussion:

http://trekmovie.com/2011/08/17/koe...k-babylon-5-walter-compares-bestor-to-chekov/

 

[Dac]

Also, only having seen one ep of the show and not being the biggest fan of it in the world, this too:

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpb1OXvNNMc[/yt]

(I kid, what I saw I really liked )

 

[Yminale]

I think rebooting B5 is a horrible idea. When you reboot a series, you are telling people that the original was flawed and worthless. That's not true for TOS or original BSG. It's shocking JMS wants to subject his masterpiece to such revision.

 

[Jan]

Saw this earlier, thought it seemed pertinent to this discussion:

http://trekmovie.com/2011/08/17/koe...k-babylon-5-walter-compares-bestor-to-chekov/

I think this is just the old news about the project that didn't happen for the new distribution system.

Jan

 

[Yoda]

Why the hell did Walter Koenig go to a Star Trek convention dressed as Centauri from The Last Starfighter?

 

[Sindatur]

Saw this earlier, thought it seemed pertinent to this discussion:

http://trekmovie.com/2011/08/17/koe...k-babylon-5-walter-compares-bestor-to-chekov/

I think this is just the old news about the project that didn't happen for the new distribution system.

Jan

It does mention the attempt to acquire the Rights back, though

 

[Ethros]

This thread title just makes me laugh. I guess it will be coming out around the same time as that new series of Firefly and Serenity 2 as well, huh? Oh and Ripper as well


They were great shows, but they ain't coming back. Get over it

 

[Yoda]

Ahh, ya never know. I mean, Serenity 1 seemed far more unlikely than a B5 revival. At least B5 actually had a successful initial run.

 

[Kegg]

Babylon 5's has had a lot of second chances, at that. Its revival on TNT, spinoff efforts with Crusade, Legend of the Rangers, The Lost Tales... and that's not counting the almost-maybes, Coming of the Shadows, and now this TV show that apparently was at the negotiating stage.

If there's been any fire to Firefly speculation post-Serenity beyond people saying 'that'd be cool', I haven't heard it.

 

[Professor Zoom]

I think rebooting B5 is a horrible idea. When you reboot a series, you are telling people that the original was flawed and worthless. That's not true for TOS or original BSG. It's shocking JMS wants to subject his masterpiece to such revision.

That's rarely the motivation for rebooting a series. If anything, it's because the previous series was successful and will be easier to market than a brand new series.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Rebooting could be nothing more than adopting the name recognition of a series. If it went on for a couple years, there's probably some recognition left in it. Whether the original was good or bad or whether the reboot is true to the original or XINO (X standing for the initial of your choice) are minor questions to the bean counters who have the power to approve the reboot.

I would expect a B5 reboot more than a Firefly reboot just because B5 had more time out there in the world. A big motive for adopting a known name for a new series (and calling it a reboot) is that the original was perceived as a success. A five-year run is a success. Being cancelled in the first season is not. Issues of quality or whether a show deserved to be cancelled are beside the point. The bean counters only care what happened, not why.

2. Can't have a show called Babylon 5 without a Babylon 5, which is no more in the current continuity (IE: Telepath War wouldn't work because Fans would be confused about what Babylon 5 was)

He shouldn't be concerned about that. B5 can work as a label, such as B5: Telepath War. "Fans" are the ones who won't be confused, since they've seen the original series and can figure out it's being used as a label. New viewers won't care what it means.

If JMS is really concerned about dotting the i's and crossing the t's, he could come up with some backstory where the B5 name was used by a military unit as a tribute to the original station. He certainly shouldn't get hung up on something like that as a reason to discard an entire show premise.

 

[Kegg]

^
But the Big Story JMS had to tell with the universe is done. There's a reason his other stabs at continuations have felt like afterthoughts, even Crusade. Someone else might be able to wring fresh juice from the B5verse, but a reboot is one's best bet if JMS is still writing the product.

I think rebooting B5 is a horrible idea. When you reboot a series, you are telling people that the original was flawed and worthless. That's not true for TOS or original BSG. It's shocking JMS wants to subject his masterpiece to such revision.

That's rarely the motivation for rebooting a series.

It is to an extent the exact opposite of the motivation for rebooting anything. If the title is worthless, there's basically no point to it. To reboot or is an implicit validation of its worth, that attaching the name to your product is considered an asset and not a liability. Nobody will ever remake Homeboys from Outer Space, but don't think they refrain from remaking it out of a deep respect for the material.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Why can't we have something in the B5 universe not related to the dawn of the third age of mankind or any ancient threat? A new danger somehow.

How about the "Daniel" storyline from Deconstruction of Falling Stars?

Spoiler: B5

Set 500 years in the future where Earth has split into two warring factions, one of which wants to secede from the IA, the other wants to stay. Eventually results in the Great Burn

As for B5 in general, it's already got a built-in premise ready for a reboot:

Spoiler: Sleeping in Light

As the final episode revealed, the entirety of the original B5 series is a documentary, made after the fact, by the Rangers. So what we saw might not have been entirely authentic after all. A rebooted B5 might be the events of the series as they REALLY happened.

 

[Kegg]

^
If we're going to do 'what ifs' from that episode, I'd rather A Canticle for Leibowitz.

 

[David cgc]

2. Can't have a show called Babylon 5 without a Babylon 5, which is no more in the current continuity (IE: Telepath War wouldn't work because Fans would be confused about what Babylon 5 was)

He shouldn't be concerned about that. B5 can work as a label, such as B5: Telepath War. "Fans" are the ones who won't be confused, since they've seen the original series and can figure out it's being used as a label. New viewers won't care what it means.

Plus, we're still seven years away from when everyone will be as old as they were when Babylon 5 was taken out without the benefit of old-age makeup. They could do a "present day" story on Babylon 5 with all the classic characters. There's the ongoing problem that every new production that shows it as a bustling free port down the line makes the fact that it had become a quiet backwater in '81 a bit less believable, but who cares? And as for the telepath war, that was supposed to be before Crusade. Give Boxlietner some Just For Men, and it'll be fine.